The Portland daily press., 1866-11-09
Bowdoin Collexe.

MEETING OF THE BoARDs.-The two Col
ege Boards adjourned to meet on TUESDAY,
he 18th day of November, the main business
Q come up for action, being the election Oh
President of the College. o.;or
We hear nothing here at home, OF tne aoVion
If the members of the Boards OF OF Cno ,ahoss
af success of the different gentleo.n;, ,r;t%
the President's office. We heard the other day
Dr Raw Palmer alluded to as gentiemah
who would make a good presiding omcer 1or
Bowdoin. This is the only name that mas come
IN our knowledge for weeks.
lished on the 28th of September, elected not
response from journal in the State. The
truth is, the press of Maine cares as little for
Bowdoin College as it does for the religious in
terests of the inhabitants of the moon, If there
chance to be any SUCH This ought not to be !;
there are many of her sons scattered over the
State, men OF talent, of worth, who ought to
interest themselves in the management Of her
affairs. They do not and will not until evi-
dence is afforded that more enlightened spirit
will guide the councils of the Boards, more
particularly that of the overseers. Gentlemen
abroad concede the necessity OF MAINTAINING
religious influence in the conduct OF the Col
lege, but they protest against that lnnuence
being turned to the promotion of sectarian IN,
terests. They insist, as we have done, and sun
do, that Bowdoin College belongs to the State'
and for years maintained its State character.
They declare that no religious denomnatlon
has any especial claims upon 1t. Ihey 40 not
protest against its general Orthodox or furi-
tan leanings, provided always equal honors are
accorded to ali her graduates, and equal privi-
leges shared by ali her students. They do pro-
test against the right of any and all indlvidI-
ais to set up religions standard to which
everything else must be made to yield.
If there is need OF an institution upon mar
row, sectarian basis, they say, let those VINO de-
sire such an institution start anew. But let
Bowdoin maintain her true character, and sup
ply the means of education to all who may de-
sire to avail themselves of the advantages
which she offers.
LIS there anything illiberal or partisan in the
holding Of such opinions? We think not.
The election of a President on the second
Tuesday of November, or the action then taken
by the Boards, whether it result or not, In an
election, will show in o large measure, what
influences are hereafter to control IN the man.
agement of College affairs, and whether 1t Is
to stand, in the future, upon the broad basis OF
educating men for the various walks OF life, or
upon the narrow platform of dwarfing their IN
tellect--of closing the avenues to their aftec-
tions, by a purely sectarian course OF lnstruc-
ton, and system OF goyernment-dl9erlng
only in name, never in spirit-from the lnqui,
sition, the utter adherence of all enlightened
communities.
& NOIE.-1ue SpIlG VI tuc loIcSOiuS dieiCic,
we entirely approve. The college should be
administered upon liberal principles free from
all sectarian or denominational infuences.-
Such was the basis upon which it was found
ed. A large majority of the first trustees, ap-
pointed in 1894, were men of liberal senti-
ments. They were the Rev. Thomas Browne,
of Falmouth, the Rev. DIR. Deane and John
rockingham of Portland, Reverends Daniel
Little of Kennebunk and Thomas Lancaster
of Scarboro, Rev. Alden Bradford of Wiscas-
set, afterwards of Boston, and DIR, Thos. Rice of
Wiscasset; the other original trustees were Jo-
siah Thatcher of Gorham, and David Mitchell,
Wm Martin and Rev. Tristram Gilman of
North Yarmouth. Before the College went
into operation in 1902, vacancies occurred in
the Board by the death of Rev. Mr.. Little Mr..
Browne, Josiah Thatcher and David Mitchell,
and the resignation of Thomas Rice. When
the college received its first class in 1902, the
following persons were trustees: Rev. DIR.
Deane and Judge rockingham of Portland,
Rev. Thomas Lancaster and Alden Bradford,
with the President, DR.. McKeen, and Treas
urer, Dummar Sewall of Bath, er o6icio. 6 The
vacancies had been filed by the election of
Rev. Alfred johnson Of Freeport, Rev. Elijah
Kellogg and the late Chief Justice Parker of
Portland, Charles Coffin, Silas Lee of Wiscas-
set, and Rev. Josiah Winship, of Bath. This
cast of the executive government was guar
anty that the Institution would be conducted
upon high and catholic principles, and SO it
proved to be, for many years. And another
guarantee was found in the character of the
principal contributors to its funds. Among
these, the chief ones, next to the Common
wealth of Massachusetts, were James Bowdo-
in, SON of Gov. Bowdoin, of Boston, from
whom the college was named, and his widow;
and after them numerous individuals of yaii-
Gus religious and political afinities, in money
and books. No idea was ever entertained by
its original founders, that it would ever be-
come an instrument of sectarian or political
influence.
The first encroachment upon. this impartial
management, was by the State of Maine inn
nediately after its separation from Massachus-
tits. The political party which then came into
'ower, was dissatisfied with the supposed in
luence of the institution in political affairs
! large majority, if not every one, of the trus-
ees, except President Allen, belonging to the
Id Federal party. The State government there
ore, in 1921, undertook to make fundamental
liberation in the charter, by increasing the
number of trustees and overseers, adding to
'he former twelve persons and to the latter
fifteen; and authorized their appointment by
the Governor and Council, thus annulling the
power given by the charter to the several
Boards to fill their own vacancies. The Gov
'rnor and Council in pursuance of this authors
", filled the places in the Board of Trustees
With twelve persons, every one of whom was
IN active member of the Democratic party
they also made it o condition of any future
,rant to the College, that the government of
he institution should submit its charter to the
power of the State And going
till farther, the State passed an act in 1881.
whose effect was to remove President Allen
rom his office by depriving him of his salary
Ind emoluments. This last act brought the
natter to an issue; Mr.. Allen commenced an
lction against the treasurer of the College in
he Circuit Court of the United States, for his
alary and perquisites of office in 1882, which
Ifter very thorough and exhaustive argu-
nents by Mr.. Greenleaf for President Allen. 4
md Mr.. Longfellow for the College, was decid-
ID by Judge Story in favor of the President
The Judge delivered very long and elaborate
opinion, in which he decided that the several
'cts of the legislature altering the charter, were
and void; that the sCollere
. pricate and mot a public corporation. of
which the commonwealth of Massachusetts,
vas founder, and the visitatorial and all other
'owers, franchises andrights of property of the
College are vested in the Boards of Trustees
md overeers, estabishedl by the charter"
hat "a College, merely because it receives a
harter from the government, though founded
y private benefactors, is not thereby consti-
uted public corporation cpntrollable by the
nor does it make any difference.
hat the funds have been generally derived
rom the bounty Of the government"
Bowdoin College Is not therefore State
nstitution," as alleged in the article above
uoted from the Brunswick Telegraph; nor
vas Il originally started as State Institr-
aOn' but it was started by private enterprise:
and enferprising citizens of Maine