Editing Horace Mann (section)

==Early career==
===Legal career===
Mann studied law for a short time in [[Wrentham, Massachusetts]] and was a tutor of Latin and Greek (1820–1822) and a librarian (1821–1823) at Brown. During 1822, he also studied at [[Litchfield Law School]] and, in 1823, was admitted to the bar in [[Dedham, Massachusetts]].<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=y|wstitle=Mann, Horace| volume=17|page=587}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School |location= Hartford, Connecticut |publisher=Press of Case, Tiffany and Company |year= 1849}}</ref>

Mann defended [[James Allen (highwayman)|James Allen]] in a robbery trial by placing a [[reasonable doubt]] in the minds of the jury by pointing out that the victim had previously identified someone else as the man who robbed him.{{sfn|Parr|2009|p=39}}{{sfn|Hanson|1976|p=225}} The strategy worked, and there was a [[hung jury]].{{sfn|Parr|2009|p=39}}

===Massachusetts legislature===
Mann was elected to the Massachusetts legislature in 1827 and, in that role, was active in the interests of education, public charities, and [[Prohibition in the United States#Origins|laws for the suppression of alcoholic drinks]] and lotteries. He established an asylum in [[Worcester, Massachusetts|Worcester]], and in 1833, was chairman of its board of trustees. Mann continued to be returned to the legislature as a representative from Dedham until his removal to [[Boston]] in 1833. While in the legislature, he was a member and part of the time chairman of the committee for the revision of the state statutes, and many salutary provisions were incorporated into the code at his suggestion. After their enactment, he was appointed one of the editors of the work and prepared its marginal notes and references to judicial decisions. He was elected to the [[Massachusetts State Senate]] from Boston in 1835 and was its president in 1836–1837. As a member of the Senate, he spent time as the majority leader and aimed his focus at infrastructure, funding the construction of railroads and canals.<ref name=":0">{{Cite encyclopedia| url= https://www.britannica.com/biography/Horace-Mann| title= Horace Mann {{!}} American educator| encyclopedia= Encyclopedia Britannica| access-date= May 1, 2017| language= en| archive-date= January 31, 2017| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170131211713/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Horace-Mann|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Sarah |last=Mondale |title=School: The Story of American Public Education |url= https://archive.org/details/school00sara |url-access=registration |location=New York |publisher=Beacon |year=2001}}</ref>