The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-01-30

congratulations from the governor of
the province. from my old professors
and all my friends. 1t was a great day
for me. 1t opened a new vista. The
scholarship meant $500 year for three
years, to be spent in London or Edin-
burgh, as l might elect / chose Lon
| don, not so much for my educational
advantages as because I had been
STEPPED in English history and 1 want
ed to see and know the famous city.
Like all the Canadian youth of the
! time, knew my British history thor
oughly, but of American history knew
nothing at all.
For youth brought up as I had
been. London was naturally a great
revelation. The university was the cen
ter for the advanced scientific thought
of the time. / was plunged at once in
to Darwinian biology. Spencerian phil
osophy. and the teachings of Huxley
and Tyndall. l had grown up with
some pretty orthodox beliefs. which I
found very ruGely handled by those
great teachers. To a young man who
had seriously thought of the ministry
as vocation. it was nothing less than
a terrible ordeal. For a time l did not
/ know what 10 believe. l almost lost
belief in everything. But 1 determined
to go through with ii, to learn the
| truth, whether it semed good or bad to
me.
In my second year got some light
on the questions that were perpleXlnC
me from James Martineau. He was
not attached to the University of Lon
don. but was lecturing TO Unitarian di-
vinity students in Manchester college,
then in Gordon Square. but since re
moved to Oxford. l got permission TO
attend his lectures, and in the winter Of
1851 l got a great deal OF good out OF
them, for il was then that Martineau
delivered the lectures which have since
been published in the two stately vol
umes of his Ethics. He delivered them
before two divinity students, Miss
Macintosh and myself.
INTERESTED IN PHILOSOPHY.
cit was at this time that I first be-
came deeply interested in philosophy.
and came to the conclusion that the
study and teaching of the great truths
with which it deals would be the most
satisfactory work that 1 could under
take. Therefore. for the third year of
my course, l decided to go to Edin-
burgh. which was still regarded
throughout the length ard breadth Of
the kingdom as the very home of phil
osOphy.
Cdi lis MY Stdg III L-tAllDQA 1H
learned of the Hibbard travelling fell
lowship which had just been establish
ed. 1t offered $1,000 a year for philo-
sOphical study anywhere on the CONT
nent that the holder might elect. 1t
was open TO all graduates in the Unit
ed Kingdam, and / saw that this was
just what l needed to round out my
philosophical education, and determined
to try for il.
ssTTbara t~ara SixrN--fo1rr- cOr11ratifOre
including a number of Oxford and Cam
bridge men. After an extensive exam
ination OF our credentials and recon-
mendations, the examining committee
narrowed the number down to four.
These four were summoned to appear
before the committee in London.
STRUGGLE FOR ANOTHER PRIZE.
"A fellow student and close friend OF
mine in Edinburgh. Andrew Seth. had
been a competitor for the fellowship.
We had often talked the matter over,
wondering who would get the prize, and
whether it might be either one of US.
When the summons 10 London came
we were both included in the four.
After some further deliberatiCn, the
committee informed us that they had
decided To establish two fellOwships.
They were awarded to Seth and myself.
So we went to Germany together.
That year in Heidelberg and Berlin
was very delightful and profitable To
me, for l had the opportunity of meet
ing and becoming acquainted with
some of the great leaders in philOsophic
and scientific thought. But in reality
the $1,000 Hubbard fellowship was less
valuable to me than the $50 scholarship
I had won years before in Prince of
Wales college. That had given me my
start.
LAT the end of my year in Germany
returned home and began my work as
teacher in Acadia college, where l had
spent part of my student days l soon
gave up this position. however, and
went to DalhOusie university in Hall
fax to accept the chair of philosophy
there.
During my stay in Berlin 1 attended
on one occasion a reception given by
the minister Of the United States, then
as now Hon. Andrew d. White. At
that time Mr. White was president of
Cornell university. From him and from
Professor Willard Fiske, whom [ met
at the same time, l learned a great deal
about Cornell.
This chance meeting with Mr.
White was destined to have a great in
huence on my later career. When Cor
nell came to establish Il chair of phil
osophy. Mr.. White remembered me and
moned to Ithaca, and the outcome of it
Thus began my connection with the
since"