Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-06-25
THE UNIVERSITY.


the Board of Regents Of the State Uni.
versity complain that the press has used
its influence to embarrass and prevent
what they claim to be a work of necessary
reform and reorganization in that instltu-
ton. These members say that they have
at heart only the best interests of the Uni.
versity that they have had to choose be-
tween reorganization and dry-rot but
that just when they had made up their
minds to changes which were really indis-
pensable, the very journals which had
always supported the cause of higher edu.
cation turned upon and denounced them.
II this complaint is well grounded, it is
very much to be regretted that so serious
misunderstanding should have arisen.
But we cannot allow the Regents to put
the responsibility for any mistakes of the
kind upon the shoulders of the press. The
direct and only cause of misapprehension
in this matter is the mischievous rule of
secrecy which the Regents have adopted.
We have repeatedly warned them that this
rule was certain to bring them into diff
cultlas sooner or later, but they would not
alter their policy. They therefore have no
one but themselves to blame for the pres
ent state of affairs, and it is necessary that
they should realize this, or even now
they cannot save themselves from further
trouble.
There are no reasons sufficiently cogent
to outweigh the plain and obvious objec-
lions which lie against the rule OF secrecy
We are familiar with the arguments en-
ployed in justification OF the course, but
against them all we have only to set the
liability to just such misunderstanding as
are now alleged, to demonstrate the fatal
imprudence of Withholding the actual facts
from the public. The Regents who now
complain that leading journals like the
RECORD UNION have turned against and
thwarted them, do not appear to remem-
Der that they themselves deliberately
agreed to withhold from the press the
very facts which could alone have vindi-
Gated the proposed new departure. In
adopting this course the Board threw the
press and the public back upon the only
guide to opinion remaining available, and
that was, the external indications. Now
it will have to be admitted by every IN
prejudiced witness that these external in
dications justified but one conclusion, and
that was the conclusion that the Board was
acsuated by partisan political motives in
making removals from the Faculty and
otherwise.
It is nonsense for the Regents to pretend
that the press and public ought to have
known better than to suspect them of any
such intentions We have been asked if
the names of the majority of the men,
bers are not sufficient guarantees against
any such suspicious, and we are obliged in
candor to reply that they are not sufficient
guarantees On the contrary, several of
the members are veteran politicians, and
there are very few of them who are be-
yond the suspicion of partisan motives if
sufficient temptation existed The truth
is that the opinion the Regents appear to
entertain of themselves is not the opinion
the public entertains of them, in many
important respects, and it is necessary that
Al Tor ~ Xbaxy
desire to avoid further blunders and fail
ures. The plain fact is that they are not
a body OF men so entirely removed from
worldly temptations and selfish interests
thatthe public would be willing to confdeim-
pIicitly in their judgment and impartiality.
And as no other kind of body than this
ideal one could be trusted to act in secrecy
all the time, it is clearly impossible that
the actual Regents should have escaped
doubt and mistrust.
Their great mistake has been in thinking
that they could govern public institution
without the consent and concurrence Of
the people. As regards the press they
seem to have entertained very extraordi-
nary ideas. They appear to have thought
that journals which believed in the higher
education would necessarily support them
without knowing what they were doing,
and would even defend them without brief
in case they were attacked. This was
very unfortunate and extraordinary delu-
sion, and we find it difficult to understand
how practical business men could ever have
fallen into SO palpable an error. The press
stands ready to defend what it knows to
be just and right. but assuredly it is not
prepared to take on trust the policy of
fallible mortals who decline to give their