The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-03-18
COLLEGE TRAINING.

COLLEGE TRAINING.
Andrew Carnegie, in his published in
terview With representative Of this paper,
expressed an uncomplimentary opinion of
college training as preparation for an
energetic, hard working pursuit like that
of journalism. Horace Greeley and Samuel
Bowles both held the same opinion. 1t
cannot be denied that there are certain
demoralizing conditions of college life
which grow out of the clannishness of its
intellectual and social culture, conditions
that are not seldom perpetuated by the
failure Of the college authorities to do their
whole duty in the government of their
little world of nominal scholars. The
Garrison case at Harvard college was a
recent exposure of this sort
The evil influence of college life is not
that it tends to make men dissolute,
drunken or unchaste, but that It unduly
encourages men whose natural need is
Such men, and they are not few, are
seldom dissolute; they are generally
scholarly, so far as reading and study
suffice TO make a scholar, but they are
prone to a kind of intellectual inertia
in this, that while they are not indolent
students. they are likely to become in
dolent, or at least non-energetic, IN
aggressive men of the world. They pass
from school to college with no inter-
mediate knowledge of the world of bust
ness. They enjoy the still air of studies;
they enjoy the social intercourse
of college life. chattering about books with
their fellows. Their life and culture are
SO charming even in Its clannishness that
though innocent of evil intent or action
it has dangerous tendency to make a
man constitutional dreamer and saunt-
erer rather than doer. Such men are
prone to hate business, TO despise it. to
dismiss il, unless they are born to SPUR
ring circumstances where the low howl of
the wolf Of poverty is always heard at the
door.
Such men are generally of good repute
in college for literary taste, if not faithful
scholarship, and amiahe and refined
manners and conduct, but for the
battle Of life they have been harmed
rather than helped by the calm Sc
clusion of academic life and training
Industrious as students. they touch life in
the outside world with an inward sense Of
shrinking, repuision and disgust, and are
not seldom INDECENT, non-enterprising,
non-aggressive, unambiiious, unthrifty.
unsuccessfu. men. Their amiable native
weakness needed the very reverse of a col
lege life to harden their gristle Of youth
into the bone ofmanhood.
Such men. if they are fated to hoe their
own row through poverty without help to
competence after college, should never
be sent thither, but should be placed in
the rude business world with its hard
practicalizing culture. Given a boy with
natural passion for business, with plenty
OF boisterous, ambitious energy of mind
and body; fellow full of natural acouis;.
tiveness and talent for trade. with
the thrift that follows il. and
college life would help him, because he
needs toning down lest his acouisi,ive-
ness, through lack of systematic spir;tual
culture, become avarice and his thrift
vulgar greed. But the boy who is taintsa
with natural tendency TO dream ra+ba-
than to do; 10 saunter and star-gaze and
PHILOSOPHERS rather than to plan am.
bitiously and energeticaIly execute docs
not need a college; he needs A more ,t;-
ring. unitarian and practical experienc.
He will be sure TO read and think and
study enough, whatever calling he f,I.
lows, and his youth should be one Of hu.,-
ness life. activity and experience. For-
years in college will send such ma,
into life very much such a creature ss
Hamlet returned from Wittenberg with all
his resolutions sicklied DER with the male
cast of thought, but daring little and
doing nought.
For not few natures college life and
eslsure, therefore, is not the best; it de-
Haorslizes in this sense. when the harsher
lie and outdoor experience and training
~ Business would have helped to make
ths dreamer something of a doer and sturdy
sever sHgong men. OF course when this
ts4s psfs8ssntal dreamer is man of gem
- als dreams do not expire in intellect
- lsHggor, in vsporinc, in shrinking eff
tyg$S ~ ''eatcli on" in the dusty and re-
s. sifs psttls of life; but while every man
- ssH3ss = ia a sense n dreamer there are
ss,gsss st's II dfsamers who are not men
y s.sEs4s - sil, AID need 10 be dashed all