The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1897-10-29


of the planet Neptune, whose existence,
foretold by Adams and Leverrier, was
demonstrated on the night of Septem-
Der 20, 1916, Then the fortunate as
tronomer of Berlin turned his lens, by
request, to the predicted place, and first
of mortals saw that vast orb which had
been circling in solemn silence for
countless ages thousands of millions
of miles from the sun. This supreme
achievement, like the torch bearers of
Aurora's car, was the precursor of
great improvements in the telescope and
of great endowments for astronomical
research. But most Unexpectedly
new astronomy has supplemented the
old, the celestial physics is standing
side by side with celestial mechanics as
the interpreter of the mysteries of the
universe. Surprising as was the rev.
elation of Neptune, wonderful as are
the maps of the heavens, and the call
ing Of the stars by their names, it is
more remarkable that astronomy can
now tell us the constituents of every
heavenly body. This Is the triumph of
spectrum analysis, already mentioned,
the contribution of chemistry and phys
les to astronomy, an inevitable evolu-
ton from the researches of kirchhofT
and Bunsen, in 1859.
I am in danger of multiplying these
fascinating illusions, and in trying to
give in a single page an abstract of q
cyclopaedia, which would be the task
of Icarus, predestined to fall; but men
ton must be made, if 1t be only with
I'd Of, a 6ya In other
departments of science. Think of theo-
logy including palaentology on one side
and Photography on the other; OF
chemistry, with its revelation of new
elements, leading up to the Neptune
like discovery of Argon; and its innum-
cradle contributions to agriculture, me-
tallurgy and pharmacy to color, food
and flavor; of engineering and mechan-
les with their acquired control of force
and matter, in ordinance, ships, dyno-
mos, engines, bridges air ships and
tunnels; of the sciences of metallurgy,
meteorology, geodesy, exploration, nav
igation and aerostatics. It is truly
half century of marvels proceeding
from the patient, unrequited, unseen
pursuit of science by men of extraordi-
ldIy ability tuu VI eiDoolulV tpiiSSiisiSs-
ton, the advancement of knowledge.
BY common consent, it is known as the
age of electricity, and the history of
that single branch of science verifies
saying of F'araday's, which was early
adopted in this school, There is moth
ing so prolific in utilities as abstrac-
tons" But every science has made its
contributions to the advancement of
the race, and every advance has made
more obvious the mystery of existence
and increased the humility of man as
he thinks of that which transcends his
reason.
AS knowledge grows from more to
more
So more of reverence with us dwells."
Different minds will place different
estimates on the intellectual accom-
plishments of these recent years. In
ordinary conversation the men of the
mart will point to an Eifel tower, sus-
pension bridge, a continental express
train, man-of-war, a Kaiser Wilhelm
der Crosse, or a great exhibition. On
the other hand, scholars of the lamp,
like Freeman, will give precedence to
the comparative method of study now
employed in history, language politics,
economics and religion. But before this
assembly ] venture to claim that the
greatest triumphs of the intellect dur
ing the last half century are these five
contributions to human knowledge:
The establishment of the principles of
evolution; the establishment of the
principles of the conservation of force;
the development of mathematical sci
ence and it's applications to physics,
mechanics, electricity and astronomy;
the development of spectrum analysis
and the consequent discoveries respect
ing light and electricity; and the dis
covery of the nature and functions of
bacteria, and OF their influence, for veal
or woe, upon living organisms.
To these may be added, perhaps, the
birth of experimental psychology, a
child so young that though it seems to
belong to the family of Hercules, its
strength has not been fairly tested.
1t is time to turn from the aspects of
science to those of education. Prior to
the days of Faraday Darwin and Hulk
ley, of Agassiz, Dana and Whitney, the
classics held their sway and controlled
with almost absolute supremacy the
liberal education Of England and the
United States. The benefits of instruc-
ton in Latin and Greek, enormous as
they were, received exaggerated praise,
in spite of the dictum of Sir William
Hamilton, which was often quoted,
that nothing brought the classics into
such disrepute as requiring them of
every student. To enforce this state
ment it is not necessary to appeal to
the opponents of classical culture. The
words of a renowned scholar, distin-
guished for his knowledge of antiquity
and his love of the ancient landmarks,
tell the story well. The classical revi-
val, says Freeman, "in all it's forms
and stages, fostered the idea that the
languages, the arts, the history of
Greece and Rome at certain stages of
their being, were the only forms of lam
guage, art and history which deserved
the study of cultivated men. 1t led to
the belief, not perhaps fully put forth
in words, but none the less practically
acted on, that those two languages, ard
all that belonged to them had some
special privilege above all others-that
the studies which were honored by the
ambiguous name of Classical were
fenced off from all others by some mys-
FERROUS barrier-that they formed a sa-
cred precinct which the initiated alone