The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-09-16

We congratulate the board Of regents
of the state university upon the policy
they seem To have adopted We do not
seek to exaIt the selection Of one pro-
fessor To undue importance, bat IT
marks the adoption Of q policy which
cannot bat be for ths benefit OF the uni
versity. II is a recognition OF the in
disputabie fact that the president
should have the selection Of the officers
for whose work he is 10 be held re-
sponsibie
A few months ago 1T seemed as II the
regents intended to use the institution
less as an educational force than as an
opportunity for the dispensation Of pa
tronage. II has not been forgotten that
one Of the most emphatic advocates OF
reform no sooner got into office than he
began engineering to have his brother
in-iaw appointed janitor. There are cir
cumstances connected with this Incl
dent which make it particularly pain
full to refer to IL. but IL was so glaring
and at the same time SO notifying that
1t cannot be ignored in a discussion OF
the incidents which have served TO H.
lussrate the policy Of the former regent
and those recently In office We refer
10 II in the kindest spirit for the pur-
pose of more emphaticaily commencing
the course of the present board OF re-
gents. or at least a majority of them.
There has never been a body OF men
holding office for years, and subject to
an annual change of at least one men,
Der, which could be held entirely free
from some fault. The fault of the board
Of regents whose term expired when
Gov. Rogers came into office was that 1t
had too exalted an idea of the universe
ty. considering the conditions OF the
state and the need OF lessened appropri-
ations The regents wanted a man OF
very high standing at the head of the
university. and felt disposed TO make ad-
equate compensation. They were liberal
in their remuneration Of professors, al
though not more so than similar insti-
tutions In Eastern states. Every man
who has It's welfare at heart must hope
that the time will come when President
Graves. If he fulfill the promise his past
holds out. shall rank as high as the
president OF any university of its age.
and higher than most of those Of the
newer states; and to be a member Of its
faculty shall be OF itself a guaranty
of efficiency Nothing will better tend
to bring about this most desirable con-
dition than a surrender by the board
of regents to the president of the right
To select those with whom he must CO.
operate, and upon whose fitness he
must rely.
Those OF the present board who have
investigated the affairs of the institu-
ton without prejudice cannot fail to
have come to the conclusion that one
of the most serious causes of dissats-
faction has been the reliance Of certain
professors upon a particular influence
in the board, which he knew would
ha exercised on his behalf and he sue
cessful, because II would he fortified
by the votes of other members who
sought a similar favor in return for
their own proteges There is a strong
temptation TO display authority and to
yield To requests for favorS. but that is
why the public demands that men Of
exceptionally high character and honor
shall be selected for the board Of re-
gents.
We have not hesitated 10 express re-
sret nj the course which the present
hoard has sometimes taken. ana so I'm
portant are The interests that We should
not be doing our duty IL we did not
condemn much that has been done, but
we realize that we would be no less
dcrelict il we did not, in sp,ts IF ali
political and personal considerations.
uphold the course Of and stand 10y the
members If the hoard who have risen
above the ciamor OF party office-seek
| ers and have placed the standard Of
the university above everything.