New-York tribune., 1871-07-03


university should consent to be tried only by this stand
ard OF youth; whether demand should not already
be made upon her for ripe intellectual harvest well ~
for the sowing OF seed-ths Is anotheR question The
Presidents enthusiasm ysbiy carried all before 10, for
the time being; yet some Of the more cautious Alumni
did not fail whisper each aher aerwari that hi,
enthusiasm was directed rather 10 the administrative
and financial departments than TO the meditatve AMI
scholarly, and that 1t more aimed to reach tho
pocket than the BRAIN After all, brick aN mortar even
examinations and ASSISTS, only means % an end:
and would it be wasting time Commencement day t.
give word to that endl Shall the Cambridge sthol
ars like him whom Milton celebrates,
"outvacb the Bs,r
with thrice-grrat Heme-.'
or shall it only with that other Hermes god Of money
changers. ones aches for something more. Have
there been any discoveries in science have any great
works of literature been produced az Cambridge during
the past yearl Is anything attained by these observa
and botanic gardens, beyond the daily repetition
of lessons already earnedf Is the University place
for the accumulation Of knowledge or only for t' dis
tributiOnl do not know whether Prof W. d. whitney
teaches sanscrit to single pupil at Yat College but
the fact that his translation OF the Tafti1yaPTdtt-
eokbyo is being made there gives that institution
thing of the prestige OF University It may seem very
oldashioncd, very new-fashOned, but should have
liked to hear President Eliot boast Of the completion OF
Prof G0Odwins translation Of Plutarchs Morals OF I'd
have him report Prof Childs progress on the new En-
elish Dictionary as well as tell what Mr. Weld and
Mr. Mathews had done ont Of their fortunately over
flowing pockets. True, Prof Porter said generously (tn
his simple and manly aner-iinner speech, that the two
volumes Of Memorial Biographies dedicated by the
Alumni to their deceased comrades a more per
manent honor to the institution than all these buildings
a visitor from another college who said this.
1t is to Dc remembered that President Elots admins
traons not now on trial by ITSELF but in come" ton
with the system Of Alumni supervision. For the first
time this University is now thoroughly detached from
lfu frxa R.Q rfOf
Ovcrseers who chosen, to the last man. by their
fellow graduates This influential body, while cOrdsly
supporting the President, has sometimes checked
what might have been his For instance, this
year noticed with delight that the speakers on COM
Day stood up and faced their audiences like
men, without manuscripts Last year all or nearly all
simply stood at a desk and read. The reason OF the
change that the Oyersecrs made stand against the
President and insisted reviying the old depart
ment Rhetoric aud Oratory," which, under the new
arrangement, fast becoming extinct Even with
this improvement is worth noticing that not subject
among the Commencement parts of purely literary
character Yet it would certainly seem that little Liter
ature might be good thing TO have in the house."
when that house is a College.
While the Board of Oyerseers must thus defend the
University against itself in respect to literature, It is
little unfortunate that this Board is itself elected with
scarcely the slightest reference to scholarship Not that
it consists Of inferior class Of men, in fact they
generally men who have done themselves much credit
in the professions in business that they have had
very little time for books. In point of business faculty
and in general enlightenment. they in advance OF
the oldschoo clergymen who preceded them; but the
oldsehool clergymen al least read Cicero and ther
Greek Testaments. was told by Of the most con
graduates that quite important to secure
Prof. Alpheus Crosby oyerseer as they needed
two three who capable OF examining the classes
but that Prof Crosby had hardly vote. In this
respect exPresident Hill will be valuable accession 10
( thn have n L r. g4( al
was among the rejected candidates. Mr. 6. 6. Hard
also elected. has always passed for good bccsietcs
scholar OF the old school, Mr.. r. II. Dana jr Il man
of eminent ability culture, and was formerly an IN
sructor both ia the law school and In the Undergrad
uate department Of the University.
Messrs Salisbury and Lawrence have been large pecu-
mary donors the college, and will he faithful to their
duties OF Mr. Shattuck know absolutely nOing, but
all the others had doubtless deserved well OF the institu
ton and there good reasons why they should all
be chosen. But it pity that five ont OF the six
reside in Boston aud the suburbs and tie sixth no fur
ther of than Worcester; this spirit of Capitalization,
shown so strongly every year, T. great drawback ON
the popularity Of the college in the rural DISTRICTS
and is the rock on which the whole system OF election
by the Alumni may yet split. II this system Is TO be
adopted by other colleges il is to be- hoped that this
source of danger-ocal centralizaton-may be avoided
II is one great evil OF the Harvard method.
Its known to many that the preliminary nominations
for Oyereers are made through the Po~tO0,c and by
the q" Hare SYSTEM" and the working of the latter ~
watched with some anxiety. IL was generally supposed
that IL WAS TO come up this year for final verdict at
the Alumni meeting but II obtained another lease oi me-
For one am lust beginning 10 feel an Interest IN tho
system As merely speculative matter and really he
l.yc that Il secures to individual preferences much
nor, accurate representation. In this respect the C4a
bridge experiment has been Of value but II lsioi ge
yalue "a showing the entire impracicabhiy Oi '
| scbem. for general elections. Here Il has been on "
for two wears by the most cultivated oonsSit ~
America 80 lar as book education goes, ana o' VI ~
of them will tell You to-day that It Is a per'' Pu@
TO them do not why IL should he So "s NP''
by Mr. Ware in the last Social Science Q""'p u seems
to me quite comprehensive; but thee i 'n' l''', %
settles the question. Fer it is an ao'uu'y v 'n'A "
applying To universal suffrage system M"i'n Wv
Harvard Alumni cannot viii mol conipfeleho.
Were this not enough there Is s'l" aiio'uer
Where there "a cheating ordinary election IL can
often he evnoseJ AS lately In Connecticut by Simply
nu,tir,o, tte witness staud succession OF persons
who ,yn, totify for whom they have voted But thi''
,rdo , uare system, would be absolutely mpos'ibe'
n tho whole bearing OF the votes may depend on 'no
,,o IN which they are counted, and mo- human he'i's
evco,t the Judges themselves tell that Inc anu"
election at Harvard simply resolves itself MO >o.c
,,uu,eucc-wou deseryed-in the Integrity y ''l' W "
| Ware .rt,u
/ Aud there i,yet suo,hcr srave o2o.'i'n not OF"