The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-08-11
presid emit whites Address.

The second days session of the National
Teachers Association at Detroit was signal
lied by the address of President Andrew
d. White, of Cornell, on Public Provision
for University Education"
President White is a comparatively young
man, but he has devoted himself to scholar
ship and educational interests good part of
his life. He has had since his boyhood
abundant means at his disposal for crafty
ing every literary whim. The book stores
of the city of Syracuse had standing order
that the boy was to be furnished with what
ever he desired. and the same good fortune
seems to have followed the man in respect
to more things than books. In par
ticular departments to which his tastes have
led him, he is perhaps a thorough master,
and on certain topics certainly possesses the
control ola great magazine of information.
But it is doubtful whether his education has
been a complete and systematic one. OF
late years he has been taken with a weak
ness for omniscience and an ambition for
political influence, which have given rise to
youthful passion for knowledge has
not died out. He has had too much
to do with legislatures, handled
too many party conventions, been
busy in too many administration intrigues
and wasted too much of his brain power in
the financial feats of strength necessary to
keep Cornell University afioat, to have had
much time for scholarship. A not unnatural
doubt has sprung Hp as to the profundity
of his knowledge; but the certainty as to
his ability to use what he does know to the
best advantage has never wavered He is
not by any means man of robust frame or
massive brain power-as rar as one
can judge of intellect from physical
appearance-and his uninterrupted sue
cess thus far in life NAV be mainly
attributed, apart from his exquisite tact, to
whole energy everything ne under
takes. He throws every atom OF nerve
power he has got into his public efforts and
has probably less reserve force than any
man of mark in the country. This paper,
which is nominally in answer to President
Eliot's discourse of last year on National
University, has long been promised and its
White felt that in taking up the gauntlet
thrown down by Harvard, not only a con-
test of men was involved, but comp arson
OF institutions and an antagonism of sys-
TENS. Under such exigent circumstances he
has done well. M
The paper is mainly taken up with an
attack on American colleges, and no more
easy victory could be offered to an orator than
the exposure of the defects of our $50 half
starved, irregular and..unsystematic schools
and universities. There is no doubt that
there are too many of these institutions; that
even the best of them are not as richly en-
dowed, or as thorough in their instruction
as old country schools; that spirit of bigotry
is abroad amongst them, which is inimical to
all true scholarship and cramps the minds
of students to fit particular standards;
observatory; that another has got an obser-
vstory and no telescopes: and that there
there is scattering of capital, culture and
enthusiasm which should all be gath
cred at great centres. That the
American system of colleges has all
these faults is true enough. In
a young country with so many different
sects flourishing, nothing better could be
expected. The task of criticising what ex-
lists already was an easy one. President
White need not have spent so much time
upon it. His real work lay in prov
ing that there is no possibility of
Improvement, save in the scheme
which he proposes that: 1.-THE main provis-
ion for advanced education in the United
States must be made by the people at large,
acting through their National and State
Legislatures, to endow and maintain institu-
tons for the higher instruction, fully
eqdipped and free from sectarian CONTROL
Until he showed reasons why no natural
strengthening of these institutions could
take place in the course oftime-no survival