The Portland daily press., 1871-10-25

To the Editor of>tte Press:
In your issue of Thursday, Sept. 18Th, you
have the following: "Probably Governor
Chamberlain aud the rest of the college au-
thorlties under the new regime do not believe
in the divine right OF students to be roydies
and blackguards.'' This was in connection
with your notice of the suspension OF the SEN
ior class at Bowdoin College.
Like all the rest of the world you assume the
divine infslbility of the Faculty and then
with bold deduction, at least by inference,
declare those affected by its action to be row.
dies and blackguards.
As to the postulate it is useless to argue
The Faculty is de .fdcto utterly irresponsible,
and if they choose 10 bring Bowdoin College
underprimary school discipline, they are at per-
feet liberty to do SO. Though even in primary
schools we believe that it is customary to hear
both sides of the story before turning one out
of school.
With regard to the inference certainly
these are bitter words, and words were seldom
less applicable. Fully one third if not one
half of the Senior class are members of the
church in good and regular standing, who,
however they might mistake in judgment,
would be far from even the remotest concep-
ton OF blackguardism in any form. The act
| for which they were suspended and the rea-
sons assigned for that act had not the slightest
| earthly connection with rowdyism or black
guardism.
| And finally, if we may be allowed toisay so
| the position of the students toward the Facul-
| ty in this matter, was more decorous and dig
| nitied than the position OF the Faculty toward
| the students "a SENIOR"
| Vol done, Mr.. Senior! We recognize with
sincere pleasure the sensitivsness you and
| your compatriots disclose in this matter for
therein is a promise of better conducr in future
But we cannot for momen mt concede that re-
beion against the academic authorities is
becoming act,even young men who are church
members and who haze not the ''remotest con-
csption of backguardism in any FORM We
have no doubt that the young men who have
been suspended are persons whose gen.
eral character is excellent. The offense
for which they are disciplined seems of
a less aggravated nature than those often COM
| mitted by undergraduates. But nevertheless
| it is clearly an outgrowth OF that false and per-
| nicious notion, every where prevalent in COL
| leges, that students are privileged persons,
| and that they ard somehow entitled to indulge
| their lawless fances without rebuke. 1t is
part of the same college creed which holds vio-
lence, falsehood and theft to be the mere par
donable eccentricities of youth. Probably
none of the young men whose relations
with the college are now temporarily sus-
pended ever avail themselves Of the extreme
latitude allowed by these singular doctrines,
but the traditional undergraduate spirit seems
to animate them We gladly exculpate them
from the charge of being 'backguards'' and
"rowdies." They are old enough to be men,
and to realize that their interests and those of
the Faculty are Identical So long as they
fail to realize this fact, we ask them in all can
dor, is not "prlmary school discipline" Just
what they want, church m smbers and all?