University of Texas School of Law - Peregrinus Yearbook (Austin, TX)

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THE DUCK ON THE RING The Sfory of the PEREGRINUS

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TABLE OF CONTENTS THE STORY OF THE PEREGRINUS PAGE 18 DEDICATION 20 ADMINISTRATION 24 FACULTY 31 CLASSES 54 FRESHMEN 55 MID-LAWS 77 SENIORS 97 ORGANIZATIONS 137 HONORS 159 INTRAMURALS 177 ADVERTISING 187 A reader finds. . .in a great book. . . space to put many things. Joubert

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Saint Ives, Patron Saint of all law students, has nothing on the Peregrinus as a Patron Saint. The Peregrinus was created in December, 1899, and was adopted by the Junior Law Class in 1901 as the Patron Saint of the Law School. The birth of Perry took place in the lecture room of one of the most colorful and beloved of the early law professors. Colonel W.S. Simkins. It was the Colonel's first year of professoring. and his students were intrigued by the way he pronounced-or mispronounced-some Latin terms. One day in his Equity class he asked a student to identify the word Peregrinus. which was the name of an ancient Roman official, whose full name was Praetor Peregrinus. The student swung too low on the curved pronunciation, however, and guessed, Wal. I don't know. Judge, 'less it could be some kind of animal. This student was Jim Livingston McCall, a star Longhorn football player who was the center on the team. Another version of the incident by those who believe it was 1900 and not 1899 that Peregrinus was born, claim that the incident took place after Texas beat A. M. on Thanksgiving. McCall was asleep in class when called on because he had been up the night before celebrating the victory. Nevertheless, it was too good to let die. and in practically nothing flat another student, the late Russell R. Savage of Corpus Christ , drew a picture of the imaginary animal in class and on the blackboard the next morning before class. The sketch was later copied in a plaster statuette, which was installed as the idol of the Law School. The small orange and white figurine has also been securely installed in the hearts of thousands of students through the years. Since early in the century Perry has been the symbol of a feud between the Laws and the Engineers, with the result that he has been captured and taken for a ride several times. It is not known for certain, but it is believed that the current Perry is the fourth edition of the original. Perry is always the subject of inquiry by first year students; some have asked why a duck appears on the official senior ring. But, it doesn't take long before these students learn that the Peregrinus is the patron saint of the Law School and join thousands who for more than half a century have shown their love, admiration and respect for Perry. In discussing the Roman Court that set up the cases involving foreigners. Colonel Simkins told of the judge who presided over the court and, intentionally or unintentionally, he pronounced Praetor Peregrinus as Peregrinoos, and to this day it is still so pronounced. Savage drew the picture on the blackboard and when Professor Simpkins arrived he saw that the creature had the tail of a fox, the body of a donkey, the eyes of an eagle, the head of a stork, and vicious fangs. On his front feet were men's shoes and on his rear feet were boxing gloves. Later a claw replaced one front shoe and an Irish ditcher's boot replaced the other. Colonel Simkins first gave significance to the features and through the years his comments picked up other traditional meanings. The fiery mouth was to fight injustice and represent the wide latitude of a bill of equity; the bushy tail of a fox represents the wise and skillful lawyer or the shrewd and crafty one. On the Peregrinus' front foot the Irish ditcher's boot indicates the law's protection of the least of mankind. On the other front foot the naked claws indicate that the greatest of mankind must fear its power. His hindquarters are those of a dog. man's most faithful friend. The spotted patches indicate that even the most beautiful days will have a few clouds. The arched back in the attitude of springing indicates that the law is ever ready to protect right or prevent wrong. The sharp extending beak indicates the power to penetrate the mysteries of the law which the true student must obtain by study. For many years after the birth of the Peregrinus, first-year students were required to greet upperclassmen with Good morning, how is your Peregrinus today? Colonel Simkins gave his own view of the Peregrinus: You ask for the origin of Peregrinus. I well remember its birth-in fact I was present at the accouchement. This nondescript sprang fully armed and equipped for its mission not from a mental Jove, but from the disordered brain of a Savage. Many years ago I was trying to explain to the class in Equity, the origin of the system in Rome and the sources of Equity in the Roman Empire. At that time fledglings just from the high schools were admitted to the Law School. Many of them had never heard of the Roman Empire, and not a few spelled cow with a K. They often reminded me of the school boy who when asked by his teacher when George Washington died, exclaimed, Is he dead? I didn't know the Old Guy was sick. Well, I explained to them that when Rome conquered a nation it was incorporated into the Roman Empire subject to its own laws and not to the laws of Rome-that the Roman citizen was not subject to the laws of these incorporated nations-that in due course commerce sprang up between the citizens of Rome and the barbaric nations, and there was no law to determine and settle their contractual relations. The Roman Emperor, to settle the troubles arising out of the fact that there was no law applicable to control their contracts, appointed a Praetor or chancellor to travel among these nations and to settle all disputes without reference to the laws of Rome or of the incorporated Nations, but to do justice and decide all disputes, alone by the conscience of the Praetor. Peregrinating from one nation to the other, he was called a Praetor Peregrinus. 'The bonehcads of the class evidently thought that a Peregrinus was an internal organ of the body, for they continually greeted each other, 'How is your Peregrinus today? This fact seems to have developed the humorous side of the incident, and Russell Savage developed a concrete expression of it on the blackboard, and thus the tradition began. Russell drew better than he knew, for the nondescript animal symbolizes both in limb and attitude the maxims in Equity that guide the administration of the system. For instance, the bushy tail indicated that equity brushes away the technicalities of the law and does justice on the merits. Regardless of what takes place at the Law School, the Law Day activities, Portia presentation. Moot Court arguments, or publication of the Law Review, Peregrinus or the Law Forum, the Peregrinus governs all. He, or it. is omnipresent in every classroom. He is in the line when students v alk through the main office to get their semester grades. He attends the graduation exercises and takes the Bar examination with each University candidate and is sworn in at the Texas Association ceremonies. He is in law offices all over the world, wherever a University graduate settles. It is not frivolous to say that Peregrinus is the symbol of integrity, efficiency, and the spirit of a job well done that makes The University of Texas School of Law proud of its reputation, and makes the students proud of their school. (This resume was the result of the efforts of Miss Helen Hargrave, J.P. Porter, Colonel W.S. Simkins, Miss Lucy Moore, Charles S. Potts, Don Bernard and Dean T.U. Taylor. Written and compiled by Julian Lyles.)