New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-03-05
GERMAN AND AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES.

bat without costs.
GERMAN AND AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES.
Correspondence Of The N. Y. Tribune.
BERLIN, Jan. 30, 1859.
In the frieze, designed By Ksubscb and painted
by his pupils, in the grand stairway of the new
museum of this city, the intellectual history and
progress of man is represented by succession OF
nfantile figures. often of wonderful beauty and ex
preston. Two little fellows just popping their
heads out OF two large eggs, with faces expressive
of the utmost establishment at life and light, begin
the series and three others close il, representing
the highest range 10 which human intellect has
| reached. Upon the original sketch, Kaul5ach has
written with pencil the names Goethe, Humboldt,
Jacob Grmm-the poet, the scientific man, the
phiologist. We should naturally place the figure
of Shakespeare in place of Goethe, but no one can
say word against the selection of the others.
Goethe was of Weimsr, and is dead. The others
are of Berlin, and still live.
What city TO posse.s two such men What an
array of great names since 1912 can Berlin boast
Heel Fichte, Schleiermacher, the two Grimms,
Bach, Bopp, Lep,ius, Gerhard, Humboldt,
Gutenberg the Roses, Mitscherllscb, Doue, Encke,
Poggendorf Rsnie, Raumer, Neander, Meyerbeer,
Mendelssohp, Dehu, Rsucb, Cornelus-men great
in all departments OF science and art-men whose
names meet us continually. The theological,
the scientific the historical, the mu steal the pho
losical--eyery student who goes beyond ordinary
Iudimental Textbooks, Is sure TO meet, III his
studies Berlin professors and scientific men as
authorities.
There is nothing, however, at all wonderful in
the fact, when one knows why It Is so.
In our country. with a population OF some
90 coo 000-eNclusive of the wilderness districts,
and of that Glars of human animals who have only
certain per centage of soul, according to the depth
| of cOlOr-We are blessed with magnificent array
of universities and colleges, which fill l do not
know how many pages Of the American Almanac
! for the wear of grace 1859, not having seen it.
Each has It's stray Of professors and Instructors; us
| library, its apparatus, its buildings The facul-
ties in scores of instances, number from four TO
six individuals, generally chosen because they do or
do not believe in sprinkling, or immersion, or some
other equally important point in the study OF Latin
and Greek. Their splendid libraries number from
| 800 to coo volumes. Their apparatus might pos
sibly do in New. England high school of town of
4 600 inhabitants, until the school WAS fairly under
| hesdway. 1t isspesking within bounds to say that
the graduates of 10 per cent of American pseudo
c. leges and universities O. are not fitted even with
! book TO say nothing of scientifc) knowledge 10
enable them to take their places in the second class
| of good New land high school.
| Yet in each case a sum Of money varying from
! fifty to Il hundred thousand dollars, has been in
| vested. Take New England alone, and count up
! the amount of money which has been spent in get
| ting into working order, such as it is, some half
| dozen of these institutions of one religious sect,
! some three or four of another, and SO on. Even
| from Harvard or Yale no graduate, who is q real
I -. .L.Nk L., -. -. a
| ANY branch of study whatever, unless We may
| make an exception in case of mathematics. He
! must come 10 Europe If be be really desirOus To
study up to the standard of acquisition which will
| enable him to strike out into the unknown and de-
! yelop new truth. Our professors, being so few in
/ number, must do the work, which IN Europe
/ is divided among SIX, eight ten OF more persons.
! There i. no Institution IN America which has
library that can IN any degree meet the wants of
! thorough student.
Suppose now-oDly suppose-for God forbid that
sny believer in sprinkling should ever seed his son
/ 10 study Mathemstics, Latin, Astronomy or Chem
/ istry OF y msn who believes IN immersion Sup
/ pose that the hard cash (snd some credit which
| has been spent in New England in merely erecting
| buildings for the dozen or two of Institutions OF
learning that bless that happy region, now col.
lected into single sum IN BE- devoted to the estab
lishment of University in the true sense of the
term-a place where universal knOwledgei is taught.
/ One set of buildings, which might even have
/ some slightly appreciate architectural excel
/ lence thereby becoming dumb teachers of good
taste, would answer all purposes, and funds would
still remain sufficient 10 establish library worthy
Of the name colrc. IONS of natural history worthy
the name apparatus full and complete for the study
I OF all science.
In every institution, there must be professor of
/ Greek, and another of Latin, even though the
/ whole number of students be has 10 instruct De
/ hundred, more OF lsss. 10 fifteen colleges, then,
We have fifteen men drawing salaries for going
/ through precisely the same routine Of half dozen
; Lstin or half dozen Greek books. The poor
4 man in each case hiss to fl the entire field. which
1 often dwindes 10 microscopic proportions. Ii is
not in his power To devote himself To any one par
ti.ulsr branch OF pathological inquiry, aud if 1t was
| where is his apparatus ior study How many Of
| the 1900 volumes in the library can consist
of the costly fac-similes of ancient manuscripts,
4 papyri, and the like; of the great works on an.
cient monuments, vases, medals, gems, &c. which
| cost large sums, but without know ledge of which
| the man only excites smile by pretending 10 be
philologist Thus We have not only sunk an i'm
mense sum in the useless multiplication OF build.
pps of copies OF the works-fur each institu.
ton must posses certain youmes-of instructors of
precisely tie saDpe branches, bit Nc cripple the