New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-10-02

OPENING OF YALE. HARVARD, PENNSYL~
vANIA AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS.
UNIVERSITIES AS PCBLSHERs-GRE
ACTIVITY IN RECENT YEARs-THE AD-
vANCEMENT OF SOUND
LEARNING

LEARNING
No one who has watched the development Of
American universities during recent years can
fail to have observed that many OF them have
become active publishing centres. As an ex-
ample take Columbia University. which
through house in this city. publishes one series
on history. economies and public law. another
on biology. together with others on philosophy
psychology and education. on electrical engineer
ing on geology, on botany. on mineralogy and
on astronomy When the name Of Johns Hop
kns University IS mentioned, who does not Mt
once think Of the series Of Studies IN History
and Politics" issued by that institution? And
with Harvard University is connected its Quar-
tcry Journal Of Economies" and The Harvard
Historical Series" Yale brings TO mind It's
Law Review" To mention but one Of Its sew
eraI publications the Cornell Studies in Classi-
cal PhNology" has spread the fame Of Cornell
University Going westward to the vigorous
young university at Chicago. one finds long
list Of publications issued from It's university
press. among which are The American journal
Of Sociology" The Physical Journal and
The School Review" The University OF WIS
consin has four series. on economics, political
science and history. on science on language ana
literature and ON engineering. Stanford OnlNer-
sity has five Of these separate series while the
University Of Pennsylvania has al least six
Some OF the chronological institutions are pub
fishing the results Of work done. or this type
IS THE Technology Quarterly" issued by the
Massachusetts Institute OF Technology
In this rapid survey only few typical cases
have been touched upon rather than an at
TEMPT made to cover the whole field OF univer-
sity publishing enterprises. 10 mention has
been made Of the many publications edited in
fracf tint
but not issued under university auspices. as
for example The journal Of Science" which
has been edited for eighty years by men Of the
Yale faculty. The Educational Review" is an
other Of this latter class. edited 10y a Columbia
professor, Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler. In as
euming this function the universities OF the
country have added the work Of the diffusion Of
knowledge 10 the earlier duties or becoming
centres Of instruction. This truly is university
extension of high order The results OF such
enterprises seem TO have been advantageous 10
the prestige Of the Institutions to their facu-
ties, TO their students and to the reading pubhc'
Such publications. cannot Dut extend the Itpu-
tations OF the institutions issuing them. They
show 10 the world outside college halls that
something Is being done by those inside. They
serve as mediums for the transmission OF the
results OF Investigations to others beyond the
immediate circle OF the cla-srooms They fire.
quently show what professors arc on the alert
TO make new discoveries or are pursuing orig
ina Investigations. and by generous rNalres
and a laudabe ambition 10 bear a part IL the
onward movement In the discovery ana spread
OF knowledge they serve as spur % some pro-
fessOrs who might otherwise be inclined to fall
into conventional ways and be content TO teach
the things in the same stereotyped man
ner
While there is no occasion 10 think less highly
Of the institutions that have entered little or
not at all into this field new to American
universities yet there il occasion for gratlhca-
ton on the part Of scholars that so many nave
found such an opportunity 70 put before the
world the best product OF their intellectual ac-
fivities No statistics are at hand showing
whether such enterprises are s II supporting or
are subsidized from university funds II
the latter. II is likely that the institutions gain
from them IN other ways than simply through
the revenues from subscriptions one or these
ways is In the large and important accessons
that come 70 their libraries from exchanges
In most of these publications the articles are
by professors Vhile IN others they are largely
made Up Of the theses Of candidates for the
doctorate Of philosophy. But in either case the
question arises whether unworthy articles are
not sometimes admitted. The requirement Of
nning Il certain number Of pages IN each issue.
the wish to present new discovery or the de-
sire 10 be represented by an article or some
sort may cause to be published matter that
should never be printed. oI at least not yet
For with this opportunity OF spreading learn
ing comes the duty Of making sure that II Is
sound learning. When an investigator hnds an
article on the subject az his researches IN uni
versity publication. he IS apt to look not al the
authors name. but at the university issuing II,
and when he sees that 1t bears the stamp Of an
institution famed for its scholarship he ac-
oepts It as authoritative. For, with univvrs ties
as with men, great opportunities imply great
responsibilities. one q these privileges which
may be interpreted duty Is that Of some
times publishing articles or books which can
never be commercial successes because Of their
expense and their small circulation. That has
frequently been the case with some Of the
works issued by the oxford and Cambridge
University presses II was known TO the man
agernent beforehand that In publishing them
loss inevitable: but because Of the great
importance Of the works. they were neverthe-
less given 70 the world Thus have tho Eng
iish universities served scholars and thus. no
doubt the American universities Will serve the
cause Of learning. II they have not Done so
already.