Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1870-03-02
z GERMANAMERICAN COLLEGE

z UER q q u a MERIGAN COLLEGE
We make some extracts from an article
with the above title, in the last number OF
the BELorr COLLEGE Monthly. The writer
IS, describing visit paid last tall to the
University III this place and We are sure
that 1t will be of interest to our readers to
see how our College, in which we all take
SO much pride, looks to visitor from Re-
'oit College. The writer after describing
the College building and noticing Prof. Hoe
micke's flower beds, goes on to say:
"Three years ago this gentleman ex
changed the position Of or;p1t doenst in q
German University Tor that of Professor in
the new seminary connected with this Col
iege. listened 10 some of his theological
lecture, delivered in German of course and
found them learned and orthodox. and such
as no Princeton or Andover student would
despise, if delivered in English. By the
recent union of the Synod of Wisconsin
with the Synod of Missouri and other
states, he with his seminary will soon be
transferred to st. Louis, loss to scholar
ship and religion to Wisconsin.
But the College was more interesting to
me al this visit than tbs Theological Sem
mary A Preparatory Department has
eeen IN full opetation several years, and this
year Freshman, Sophomore and Jul
NOR Glass have been organized. So with
me 70 the second story, and we shall find
tnere the general study room, which is also
me chapel--a room not quite so large as
Mr. ri SIX s domain III the South College, at
oeloit-and containing now something over
nall as many students. Some recitaiions
go oy with nothing noteworthy, except
that the students all honestly try to get
their lessons. But now comes the geoma-
Try class. Some Of the students are scarce
~ able TO speak English yet; aud still they
ali m axe very good rect2tions giving any
proposition by number, and evidently carry
ing good idea of their previous work
along with them. A well-alvanced class
were able to give by number and demon
strate any proposition in the text book.
Neither teacher nor pupils used
book in the class Aud this was not mere
memsrizing, for they discussed and CRITICIZE
ed the demonstrations in the book, and
offered some original ways of proving the
propositions. Pres. Thompson has GER
..
les, and his classes make the best recitations
that 1t has ever been my fortune to hear in
that branch
passing TO the Latin room, we fad
Prot. Ernst in charge of class of begin.
ners whom he is putting through in Ar
mold Prose Composition, which wears
familiar look 70 cur eyes. Soon tie class
IS dismissed aud we talk with the PROBES
soT. De Is University educated man has
been tive years pastor in Brooklin; has
juSt been appointed Professor here and is
evidently man of culture and ability. He
speaks English readily and well Bat now
comes the Freshman class in Liyy. The
boys have only been studying Latin two
years but they take longer lessons than
Freshmen a. Beloit do, and recite about as
well. Poof. Ernst tries to bring them in to
the spirit Of The language His questions
are pathological, not grammatical. Every
idiom of the Latin, which is different from
the German or the English idiom, is ana
lyzed, the exact force Of it is weighed. the
reason in the mental constitution or The
habit Of speech of the Romans which re-
quired the idiom explained, and the best
way OF traaslating it into good German or
English discu 3Sed. He thus makes the
Latin language become to the students as
near as possible 2 living thing, and not a
collection Of dead SYMBOLS. But we notice
that he does not, at this recitation at least.
discuss the historical questions suggested
by the study Of the first book Of LivT.
Going 10 the Greek room, we fad Prof.
AeuRann with the Freshman class over
agfHn; bat this time in Herodotus. The
general run Of the recitation is almost ex-
ectly Ike Greek recitation at Beioit But
at the close the students shut their books.
ami answer few questions in Greek, show
ing some facility in speaking Greek. Com
nenting on this TO Dr.. Meumann after the
recitation, he recalls Que of tie students
ana asks him 10 give US a specimen of his
knowledge of Greek. He tellS-not word
Tor word, but largely n his own language,
corrected occasionally by the Professor-tAe
story OF CleoblS aud BitOn from HerOaOtus
and the episode of Uly sseS ad Nausicaa from
the Odyssey. He had studied Greek a lit
! tie less than two Years and had taken Latin
| along with it, Prof. bIeuman tells me. and
we take 1t down as a remarkable thing, that
IN two years this class have stu
lied the German, the reader two books OF
/ the Anahasi a little CT Tie Memorabilia.
| five books OF the Odyssey, aud was ge.s.n
| ming Herodotus. And We must remark tha,
| this class began Latin AZ the same lime
and carried It along with the Creek Nor
| was there anything surprisingly brilliant
about this class. What they had done
| Dy 1int Of hard work Probably no elias.
| q any American college could be coayaa
| or driven TO DO so much work ID so .it..e
time. The secret Of German scholarship is
| t0nu't III the German genius for hard .tt r.
| And something OF that spirit has been I'M
| parted into this German American College
''There IS much besides TO see that is ia
| tcrestlng 10 see and hear, of which thera is
not time to give q detailed account. Th-
| mixture OF the language and customs OF
! Germany and OF America ssems strange 4
eyes not already wonJed 10 see sights Bu
! This very mixture gives an opportunity
| such as rarely comes TO the founders Of ANY
| Institution, to choose that which is hest on
| Of the gathered experience of two hundrel
races, the tide Of whose national lif. la
| long flowed in separate channels, but which
are now meeting again IN the interior state
OF America. Such an opportunity Goes no
come often, and the taI-seeing men, wiz
Guiding up this young college, appreciate
the posture which uas fallen 10 them. AM
near to make ii, so far az lies in their pow
er, true mediator between German an.
Auglo-SaZon citizens, and az iar IS "a
knowledge OF German American school
and colleges goes, this promises best d
them Ell. not ol.y - rs h.gR standard G
scholarship aoH Us CLris.j;u suarA.5eC. 5u
a.So be cause it2 lecturers nave oGst graspe
the idea taG, it i2HSt mediate between Gel
man and American ideas. not h2 aye9a-ir.
the g0OG aad bad, bu5 by taking the Oe2