Yale University Law School - Yale Law Reporter Yearbook (New Haven, CT)

Page 75 text:

7O Tllli YALE SIIINGLIC. diflicult occasioned so many side remarks and sneers that it is very difficult to ascertain what is the opinion of the class on the subject. The introduction of honor courses has made Senior year so much harder than it has ever been previously, that most of those who answered the question instead of criticising the grammar used, vote it the more difficult. Nei- ther and Both are replies of the indifferent and non-committal. Corporations, Real Property, Pleading, Evidence and Contracts in the order named receive the greater part of the votes for the most difficult subject, while nearly every subject we had studied had proved difh- cult for one or another. By far the easiest subject to the largest number of the class was Bailments, Forensic Oratory coming second and Torts third. Mr. Bailey's course in Forensic Elocution receives a respectable vote, while other subjects, from International Law to Corpora- tions.are voted for with great freedom of opinion. The subject of Contracts is selected as the most valuable, receiving twenty more votes than Elemen- tary Law and Evidence. which are tied for second place. Real Property and Corporations follow next with half a dozen other subjects receiving one or two votes. Our class is guilty no apostasy from '93's belief that Robinson's Elementary Law is the best written text book we have used. The vote is large enough to be used in an advertising circular. Parsons on Contracts. with all its faults is secondg Cooley on Torts comes third, with the remaining votes scattered.

Page 74 text:

Tllli Y.-Xl,l'1 Sl'llNGl.l'1. 69 improvement of situation. Increase in numbers is fervently prayed for by several, though it would seem that the number of the present Junior class sufheiently guarantees that. One man combines in his idea of our greatest want larger recitation rooms, and more Professor Robinsons. Those with a tendency to l'lll60llf70l.7lf express great regret at the absence of an elevator, while one indolent man would be satished with a drop of two stories. We can console these gentlemen with the statement that one feature of the proposed building is that the lirst story will be near the ground. Loud cries for more money and endowments are heard, while one man, who has evidently been looking in vain for 29 Texas Court of Appeals, or a certain volume of Georgia Reports votes for a replacement of coniiscated books in the library. One thinks another Lord George would lend dignity and tone to future classes. Turning to a less material view of our needs, several men think that a higher standard of admis- sion would be very benelicial to the Law School. The Faculty are evidently becoming converted to this doctrine, as the new catalogue shows. One cynical gentleman declares that a 'flew Hrst-class funerals would prove advantageousg while another uses the following vigorous language: The greatest need of the Law School is an entrance examination so severe that it would cease to be an asylum of brainless ignoramusesf' The election of Adams and Levy to thc Faculty is the dcs2'1z'c1'zn'm7z of another. That unfortunate mistake in the degree of compar- ison in the question as to which year was more

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Tllli YALE Sl'llNGI.l'1. 71 Our opinion of Moot Courts was given before they had been reduced to their present effective form, and has consequently undergone considerable modification. Although a few have given this means of preparing law students for the application of the principles learned in the text books a moderate amount of praise, the view generally taken has been decidedly unfavorable, and many have used very emphatic words of disapproval. Of the minority who think them valuable, one says that theyv are of decided advantage, enabling a lawyer to wear off the rough edges before he commences actual warfare. fLieber's Code forbids the use of rough edges in warfare.j Several others think that the practice and confidence derived from participation in mock trials will prove very useful, others think that the advantages accrue only to those taking part, and consequently, on account of the size of the class, are small. As exam- ples of the opinion of that more numerous body whose opinionsof Moot Court are unfriendly, we give the following: Very good as far as they go, and plenty of them such as they are. Good to kill time. HN. G., Footless, Could be improved, More entertaining than instructive, Absurd, Rather tiresome, but no doubt beneficial to Levy, Agony for the listeners, etc. It is but just to state that we had not then been present at the magnificent display of Mr. Hawkes in the leading ease of Yjwm' 21. Cfnzffcs Q4 Napoleon Blast, 7287, on which memorable occasion, that gentleman, with so much humor and satire, applied the rules of Forensic Oratory with so much intelligence.