The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-10-23
ACHIEVEMENTS At YALE.
Advancement Of Science and Liter.
ature by Great Educators
The Development Of the Institution
From College to Jnivcr>itS-Nork
of Dwight. SiIIimnn. WoolSey.
Damn, und whitney Reviewed.

/ NEW HAVEN, conn. oct -'--ia' Two
/ hundred years Of NaIo's history naturally
/ fell into the wsII-deGuc. periods OF about
/ equal length Tho eighteenth century saw
the beginning end rise Of Yale College,
with the nineteenth century and the al
| miuis;ration of President Dwight began
/ the first definite movements which have
| I'm the last hundred years transformed
the coIIcg, into a university. A legion Of
men have had their part i'm this transfer
/ nation. but il is especially distinguished
bv the genius of q small group whose
! splendid achievements are without CUES
/ ti1u the greatest glory of Yale And Yet
not one Of them sought prominence foT
/ their own sake. ON the other hand. each
would have preferred to DO his work IN
/ seclusion. Such. among others, were
/ President Dwight. the elder. Benjamin
SUimau. Theodore Dwight Wo"lsey,
James Dwight Dana, and William
/ Dwight Whitney and through these men
the traditions OF learning m science and
Hteratur- at Yale have been founded,
Z cherished. and transmitted 10 the present
/ generation.
one who reads Siuim5ns Journal Of the
undergraduate days becomes acquainted
with "a sweet. sympathetic young fellow,
inclined to take himself rather seriously,
yet fun of high spirits, and able to en-
joy himself i'm many ways. Gradually he
falls under the spell Of that great teacher
President Dwight. and seems to expand
almost from week TO week. After Bradu-
alton at seventeen comes brief but sue
cessfuI period of teaching in "a private
school then the study Of law, together
with service as tutor in college. He had
already truly said that "a man ought to
have the patience of Job TO serve as "a
tutor in "a college" but ne seems to have
got on well with his charge. Two restless
years of his tutorship passed before he
had shown any decided leaning toward
the science in which ne was to distin-
guish himself, then suddenly he came To
the parting Of the ways. He happened
on a bright July morning to meet tho
president under the great Gins on College
Street. They paused TO talk.
An Impressive Picture.
Tt is picture one fingers over-the ell
der man. Of fine bearing and kindly pres
cuce. with couuteuauce open and full Of
lights, and the younger man. whom he
loved. imaginative and eager his dark
eyes and handsome features quickly re-
spousive TO the proposals he now heard
ia brief. the president then offered Sill
man the new chair in chemistry and nat
uraI history. with a leave of absence for
-AAh'L- 100 sur LIl4-NaA anu fAalAfA ~
think. the young man hurried from the
shadow of the elms 10 his room, where
ne al length decided 10 accept the offer
After studying for a part of two years
ia Philadelphia. he took the then unusual
step Jf going TO Europe for further study
and thus became pioneer in the rescue
Of his country from its almost hopeless
provinciality Of his zine. His journal Of
his two years travel in England and
Scotland and on the continent. one Of
the most popular books Of travel in his
day. still repays reading So fresh and
wide was the writer's interest. so vivid
his Impressions. that his narrative even
Of tribes is Irresistible.
Great was the inspiration which Sill
man at twenty-eight brought 10 Yale: nor
did II flag OF fan through an the forty
I seven years OF service which followed.
And how varied was that service, He
taught not only chemistry. but the other
natural sciences. assisted in tho admins
. tratIou of the college. lectuTed in other
cities, correspondent with the great sci
] eutIsts Of Europe. and saved time for the
investigation which won him fame. And
yet Tor sixteen years Do" had no better
place Tor laboratory than ths damp cell
lar of old Lyctum- In ISIS Le founded
the American Journal Of Sciences and
Arts or, as IL was more commonly
known. "Sillimans Journal This he
both edited and managed for years. 1t
was "A unique venture I'm this country. but
ne saw In II the best method OF enCDUTa <
ing and improving American work in sci
euce. Since his death il has tiOuTlshed
under the edttorship 81 Prof. Dana, the
clueT, and Prof r. 5 Dana, and still re-
mains the best repository Of American
I scientific papers.
Raised the Standard of Science.
Sulimau also did much 10 raise the
standard Of scientific research on this side
Of tho water by attracting 70 himself q
number Of young men whom ne inspired
and trained 20 assume the leadership aft
er him. one Of these was Dana.
! When Dana graduated from Yale I'm 1913
n had already caught "a great impulse
| toward science from SiIlimau. The same
! year he Travelled 90 the Mediterranean as
teacher OF midshipmen, and made a study
Of Vesuvius. ia the period Of uncer-
tainty after his return he was called TO
I become SiIliman's assistant at Yale. and
his life opened before him. He was only
twcuty-fOur when the first edition Of his
/ -NIiuoraIogy," probably the best known Of
Z his writings. appeared The next year
/ embarked the great. though almost for
( gotten Wilkes expedition Tor exploration
/ IF the South Seas n was Government
| venture, and Dana was appointed min
I cTIiaElst ana gsoloSlS' or the scientific
/ corps. literally 20 follow knowledge like a
/ sinking star beyond the sea.
! The South Pacific was then compare
! lively unknown land of imaginary
| wonders and dreams Daua's letters. de
/ scribIug tho tcrroTS Of Cape Horn or the
! Cauuibal Islands. and the delights of
/ atOIis and strange lands where never man
| set foot. breathe the charm OF Homer or
! Marco Polo. Many or them are TO De-
found IN President GIlUau.s biography Of
| Dana In three years hc returned Co take
| mp the work Of preparing his reports Of
/ iha expedition, Investigating, and publish
ing.
Iu 1850 ne was appointed sHIimau pro-
fs-SDT Of natural sciences ut Yale. and
this added TO his already numerous obi
cations Yet no carried ms work forward.
as his poor h'al-h allowed. almost until
the end his books constituting au agI i,N.-
m-ur even for % UIu with better health
than his. "A System Of MiuaraIDgy." OF
| 'ZDuphNtts tl"UrTt Of the wilkes cNpc-
ditto. al pages. with 81 folio atlas
plates. Manual of MineraI1gy' 81
pages. in the fourth edition. Coral
Reefs and Islands" Iif pages, "CruS-
taco rrUOrj Of the Nikas expedition.
leo pages. with a5 folio plates, Man
uu Of Geology, 81 pages. in the
Islands. 500 pages, besides element
AIRY textbooks and countless ar
ucies for scientific Journals. In mineral
DEy he was an authority. lie had also a
wide and exact knowledge Of chemistry.
physics, ana zoology, but De accomplished
| ~ coral islands OF of volcanoes alone.
| deserved "a great reputation. hut his
| graudest scientific idea was the one into
| which all his study resolved itsclf-uamc-
lE, his conception Of the development Of
| the earth AS "a unit And i'm this his gen
! ius lS most apparent. Many man who
| EaS ar Yale lu Dana IS time remembers
De- .H "f rI D..