The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1890-10-22
farm life in New England is not good
enough. Let the city have them.

agIlCultuIdl CollegeS, Says III bho
case of our college it is to the credit of
the farmers of the state that they have
from the first pulled with the college,
but unfortunately for agriculture the
college, more especially in late years,
has been pulling away from this in
dustry." The real trouble is in getting
the right kind of men for instructors
in our Immigrant colleges. The idea
of the superiority Of a literary and
classical to practical education is so
ingrained among the class from which
most teachers yet have to be drawn
that it is almost impossible to secure
loyalty to the avowed purpose of these
schools among those who are entrusted
with their control.
NOTHING illustrates this thing better
than some observations we find in the
lately-issued biennial report of the trus-
tees of the University at Burlington.
Referring to the connection of the
agricultural college with the University,
the report says: "The predictions of
those who feared that the old collegiate
discipline would be impaired, and the
historic name of the University would
be discredited, by the union of the new
with the old education, have not been
verified in the long run. No doubt the
University has suffered by reason of
this suspicion. The history of the old
time Agricultural Colleges had not
been such that diploma from one of
them was attractive to an aspiring
young man. And it may take long
time to give the same prestige to col
lege bearing this name as to other
colleges and universities. But it should
be put to the credit of the authorities,
the graduates, and the friends of the
University, that with almost entire
unanimity and with hearty good faith,
they accepted the new situation, bal
ancing its drawbacks with its benefits,
and have been as loyal to the new in
stitution as to the old. This they have
shown by contributing much the larg-
est part of the funds necessary to start
the institution on its new career, and by
continuing to send their children to be
educated under the new management
of the old college," Who can read
this and not see that the University
would have much preferred to get the
income of IS, 100 received from the land
grant fund in almost any other way?
They considered it plainly degrade
ton to historic name of the Univer-
sity" that il should be reduced to re-
ceive, nay even to scheme to get, aims
from the agricultural fund; and now
they congratulate themselves that they
have so used the money as to quiet the
fears of the friends of the old curricu-
lum. They balanced its drawbacks
in the association with industrial edu-
cation, with its benefits" in the re-
ception of the interest of the industrial
fund. How could anybody expect any
other result than the one we have seen?
WE do not blame the heads of the
Burlington college for such sentiments.
They are as natural to them as their
very breath, and it is burning shame
to the friends of classical learning in
this state, constituting, as they do, the
leading citizens in all our larger and
weather. towns, that they compelled
the University to seek financial sal
walton elsewhere by their contemplate
parsimony. We want our literary and
classical institutions. Without them
our system of general education would
be grossly incomplete. We would
favor to-day, as we would have done at
any time, the most liberal provision on
the part of the state, for educating
every young man and woman who de-
sired a classical course, and was not
able to pay for it. We need all kinds
of learning, for each kind serves use
of its own,-one as important, and no
more so, as the other. The reading of
that part of the report which we have
quoted created revulsion in our feel
ings toward the University; and we
pity, where for many years we blamed,
those who had the hard choice to make.
We think they made the wrong one ,
but we realize how great was the ne
cessity, and how dire the temptation.
BUT we must be allowed to ask,
Why has the literary college not been
discredted by its alliance with the in
dustrial college? We wish that the re-
port had been a little more explicit on
that subject. Has it been because in
dustrial students have found almost no
no attraction in the opportunities held
forth to them by those who were SO
fearful of the risk of "this suspicion" ?