University of Kansas School of Law - Shingle Yearbook (Lawrence, KS)

Page 11 text:

The Kansas University Law School. From the very moment the westward wan- derer set foot upon the soil of Kansas, that Territory was designed to become a great State. Here, like a huge slate tipped to the east and one corner broken and gone, it stretched, and on it was written the song of freedom afterward to be sung by the nation. YVas it any marvel that with the west- ward march o-f civilization and freedom there should be the germs of learning and knowl- edge? These seeds have grown into a plant. That plant has borne fruit. and to-day Kan- sas has a University of which an older State might be proud, a Universitybaptized in the blood of a war fought for freedom. The Kansas State University sprang into exist- ence by an act of, the Legislature in 1864. Ah! T'hat beginning, how small compared with the Kansas University of to-day! Al: though in every alumnus, heart there is cherished a grateful remembrance of his Almer Mater, yet it is beyond the present moment to speak the praises, to chronicle the history of our University as a whole, how- ever pleasant the task might be. It is one branch alone o-f the Kansas University which has conferred its share of blessings on the people-though it may not have received in return as much recognition as so-me of the less worthy courses of the University of which it is a part. As the University grew and prospered there sprang up with' the advancement of the time a desire forprofessional courses in its curriculum. The earliest of these, the Law Department, was organized in October of the year 1878. Practicing law down in the city of Lawrence was an able attorney, J. YV. Green, and to him Chancellor Marvin applied. Prof. Marvin's idea was to make the Law Course an optional to be carried in addition to some of the collegiate branches. Mr. Green took up the work, and while doubt- ing the practicability of the Chancellor's scheme of making Law a minor to collegiate work, was willing to give it a trial. From that moment the life of this great-hearted man has been given to the building up of this school in the University. As Mr. Green suspected, Chancellor Mar- vin's plan was not a success. Thirteen young men from the Art School enrolled in the Law Department, and they met 'fUncle Jim- mie for the first time in a small room to thc left of the main enltrance-now the Secre- tary's oiiice. The class of thirteen soon dwin- dled to four, these, .one by one as the work grew harder, .dropped awayuntil but one re- mained. His name was Howard Smith. He studied himself stupid and Hnally gave up. He afterward graduated. u V The next year better arrangements were made, and we ind a 'class fairly started under Prof. Green with Mr. J. Patterson 'as his assistant Still, the work was but a mere beginning. The Dean and his co-worker,re- ceived as compensation for their time and eiforts a small fee paid by each student. This fee was 35153 and as the class only consisted of but seven or eight members, of course the Instructors could not be expected to wholly dispense with their practice in the courts. This first class of eight members graduated in 1880, and among their number we find the name of Lucius H. Perkins, an able attorney of Lawrence. J This year, 1880, Mr. Patterson discontin- ued his connection with the now small but fully established Law School, and his place was filled by Marcus Summerfield. From 'time to time the place of recitation was shifted about to suit the Convenience of the ...3-

Page 10 text:

JAM ES WOOD GREEN

Page 12 text:

janitor and a growing University. This con- tinual change of loco did not seem to agree with the classes, and for several years no out- going one equaled the first in numbers. Fin- ally, after settling down into a room some- where near their present quarters, the Law School began to thrive. The Dean kindly brought up his library from his down-town office, and the Regents, as if for the first time recognizing the fact that an ever-persistent man was in their University turning out lawyers, made a donation of 35500 for books, and so forth. But a political squabble on the floor of the Senate Chamber of the State Legislature was ordained to shape more clearly the des- tinies of Uncle Jimmie's protege. Late 'in the eighties R. XV. Blue, afterward Congress man-at-Large, and Senator George Barker, of Douglas County, were at swords' points over the passage of some bill. Senator Barker had introduced a bill which had embodied in it an appropriation for the Law Department of the State University. Dick Blue opposed this, and added with his opposition the caus- tic inference that the Instructor of said De- partment could in all probability be found at that present moment down in some justicets court in Lawrence arguing a case. This statement nettled Judge Barker, and he re- plied to the effect that as said Instructor re- ceived very little if any compensation for his services to the University, it was neces- sary that he follow his profession at least a part of thertime. The result of this passage at arms was a fixed salary for Dean Green, with a provision. finserted by the vindictive Senator from 'Linn Countyi, that barred the Dean of the Law School from practice. The Law Department was at last brought to notice, but the State lost a future Supreme Judge in J. NV. Green, for he has since that time devoted his time and talents almost en- tirely to the upbuilding of this school. Soon after this the fees were abolished, and, with exception of a library fee at one time, the Law School has been and is abso- lutely free to every student from the State of Kansas. As to the library fee-thereby hangs a tale. About six or seven years ago, the Regents, judging success through inan- cial specs, as Regents are prone to do, allowed a library fee of five dollars to be charged for the purpose of purchasing books for the li- brary. fThe supreme gall of this wise body's action may be easily imagined, when it is known that the larger part of said library was the private property of Dean Green.l Now, in the Class of 1894 there was one Eli Cann, and said Eli proved that he was 0116 that did not belie his name. He conceived the idea of using some of the Law School's own law upon itself. The consequences were that the courts sustained him in his action, and the library fee was forever abol- ished from the whole institution. As the University grew the Department dealing out LL.B.'s also made ranid strides. The Regents grew a little less reluctant to aid it. The classis grewin number eachy.ar until the present Senior Class will graduate more than eighty members. As the enrollment in- creased, so also was the number of Instruct- ors and Lecturers added to. For 'several years previous to January 1, 1899, Wlm. B. Brownell, himself a graduate of the Class of 18-86, was assistant to the Dean. At his resig- nation last year Prof. WV. L. Burdick, of the Yale Law School., was called to this position. Again in the fall of 1899, another Instructor was added to the list of the Law Faculty. This time it was XV. E. Higgins, a practicing attorney, who had graduated in the Class of 1894. From time to time and with a few changes the corps of 'Lecturers has been augmented until we find the following: Jas. Willis Gleed, Judge A. YV. Benson, Judge S. A. Riggs, Judge Charles L. Dobson, Judge David, Martin, and Marcus Summerfield. From this list of names must not be omitted that of Charles Vickrey, Professor of Elocu- tion and Oratory. For several years previous to 1894 old North College wasuthe home of the Laws, but new buildings having been built which al- lowed more room in Fraser Hall, we were again in 1894 established in the north wing of the main building. Here, with two class' rooms, library and reading-room, Instructors, office, and cloak corridor, we threaten to grow until some alumnus, grown wealthy, dies and leaves us a bequest to shame the State, whose generosity has done the least always, for the most important of the cour- ses at Kansas University. Thus the Law School has grown until to- day it is no 'longer an annex, but an integral part of the University itself. The efforts of 7 ..4..