The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-03-11
TlIES ENGLISH TEACHING.
r.noT CHAMBERLAIN REPLIES
L. pRoE BBERS'S ASSERTIONS.

nj. pesn in Pror. neera,s Ciassrooua
~, pounn Ills Instruction was n Failure
-. same, re says. was Truo or Pref
r..u,, nstruction-He Suggests New Mep.
vrw u,yrS. March 1o-Ex.Gov. Daniel II.
'-Ao-,orn OF South Carolina has taken up
.Ip" " o-ain in his campaign against Prof.
m III Rccrs, tho head of tho English depart.
h'". Vale. Like the New York Voice. his
~'. Il, ,No Beers for me-" He rctorts satiri-
NIL NIL n prof. Becrs's reply Of last week to his
nTho rrofcssor seems to have lost his temper,
..,hrus I should say, since l do not know him
1..sonnlly, he seems to have n bad temper.
- pcers saws in terms | am discourteous In
s,coring that the English department at Yale
ssnnts hut one good teacher II 1t is true, Is 1t
s,.ourteousi II it is not true. is 1t dlscour.
..on. TO express the opinion that is true !
,vhom does Prof. Beers imagine himself TO be !
MAS he think he is enthroned beyond the roach
- INV criticism or Judgments Have no busi-
.,,s to have an opinion Of his work, and, having
=, m EXPRESS III Prof. Beers Inns for twenty
Ears or more been eating the bread. consuming
~. bounty. piled up in Yale University by gen.
'.s,ions Of hundreds. IL not thousands. of donors.
and must VIC now endure to BIO told 1t is dis
.or,,eous' to look at his work and give our
s,ininn of IL | III 1 ClTtu W uSh oh
.,,,tude on the part of almost any Yale pro-
t,,,or, | could not say less than that 1t Is impu-
dent and intolerable.
"The truth Is, though. I have come near to
,,,ouinc the advice OF an old and sagacious
y.,o and New Haven friend who wrote me
.,,,srday, one Of several OF the Yale faculty
,rho have done SO: You are we'll able to fight
vpr own battles, but l want to tell you we are
s,,,d here you have not replied to Beers's
IIvmni Weekly letter. We are all hanging our
IDS in shame over 1t. Let it alone; it 10
rbesp and nasty. Beers deserves to DO asked to
%re ::EEnt I have concluded not to let it alone.
prot Reers now informs us that he would not
b,vc criticism. upon which l have only to re-
mari that my conclusion is therefore beyond
suestion. that with no requirement or English
S%r entrance and none in the college course.
zone may bear the credentials of Yale and not
know how to speak or write a sentence OF his
own tongue with decent accuracy
Relative to his letter to President Dwight,
Gov, Chamberlain says:
'S"Let me ask, | wrote to President Dwight.
what | ought perhaps to assume-whethcr you
are familiar with the work OF Beers and Cook In
he classroom, or out of i. in their professional
dutiosi | have attended two recitntions In
others to do the same at different times. Our
verdicts were the same. namely, that III all our
eIpericncc we had mover seen so great n failure,
N Yittlc attempt TO hold their attention. SO little
aid worth attention. We all know Beers to be
aRood scholar. a fine fellow. a conscientious
man, a fairly good writer Of some rather ephem-
erei matters. but al! this does not hide his
conspicuous happiness for teaching either rhct-
oric or English or literature.
"'With Mr.. Cook the general result is the
pme. | have had the same experience with
him and so have my friends. He fails lament
sbIy, grieyously to arouse or inspire. or even to
drill his classes. Cook again IS a fine scholar
learned critic-1 have read his books-but no
cannot and does not teach and is an eminent
Dryasdust..
"Now, I do not say there is no place for
Beers and Cook. hut | do say there is no place
for more Bcerses and Cooks. What is needed is
Obvious enough. Men of powor. of strong per-
ocnality. men Of light and leading, masters to
some eminent degree Of the art they essay to
teach, are needed. Are there not such men
who can be had! You think not. Here. while
We might agree in qualifications. We might dis
agree on what men possess Them
Gov. Chamberlain then formally places in the
Geld Col. Homer B. Sprague, Prof. Moses Colt
Tyler Of Cornell. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS VIII
liam l. Wilson, Prof. Ernest W. Huffuut Of Cor
nell, William Lyon Phelps of Yale, and his own
brother, the Rev. Lcander Chamberlain.