Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1901-06-19
FOR ACADEMIC FREEDOM
Plea Made by President Hyde
Of Bowdoin College.
WARNS AGAINST ROCKEPELLERIsM

Man Who Gives Money, He Says. Ha
Nh Right ia Prescribe what sh.i
He Taught - other. Have Right.
Duties of the stnte-statu. of pro
fessors.
President William De Witt Uvd,
OF Bowdoin college made a strong ad
dress at the commencement exercise,
of Boston university, which were hell
In fremont temple the other afternoon
says the New York Times. .Acatiemi,
Freedom" was his subject. He said in
part:
..rhe last decade of the nineteent,
century raised the question of academ
ic freedom in several cases-at Brown
university, Chicago university. Kansa.
state Agricultural college and Leland
stanford university. This question OF
academic freedom did not arise so long
as the colleges We're content to teach
Latin. Greek. mathematics and a little
science and philosophy, for the simple
reason that nobody cared much one
way or the other what was taught
about these things.
interference with liberty comes on,y
when the subjects taught are those for
which the people care. Now that eco
nomic and social questions have come
to the front it is with these that trou-
bles have arisen. 1t is no accident that
all four cases cited arose in connection
with utterances of economic and social
questions.
Social and economic questions, how
ever. are destined to divide the public
more sharply than ever before. To de-
fine accurately the rights and duties of
the parties to such university educa-
ton, securing reasonable liberty for all
and absolutely free course for the
truth is the most pressing educational
problem which the nineteenth century
has handed over to the twentieth for
solution.
who. then. are the parties to uni
versity instruction? The parties TO
this partnership are six: First. the
founders, donors and bencfactors; sec
ond, the state: third, the trustees. re-
gents or overseers; fourth, professors
and Instructors; fifth, the students:
sixth. the constituency OF the college,
that portion of the public from which
money and students come"
At this point the speaker sounded n
warning against the spread of Rookie
fellerism." as he termed ii, saying of
the man who gives money to institu-
lions OF learning:
"He has no right whatever to dictate
the specific view which the institution
shall teach. The moment a donor has
given his money he has entered into n
partnership with the five other parties
Of the institution. and his rights must |
be limited by the rights which belong
to them. Neither uay he legitimately |
draw up creed or statement of opin- |
ion which the professors of the institu- |
ton shall be bound to teach. To do
that would be like sending a boat TO
sea with the tiller dashed in position
and with Instructions to the sailors on
no account to touch il. even though the
boat might be making straight for the
icebergs or the rocks"
Further along in his address DIR.
Hyde said:
TT Is the duty of the state to protect
the public against misdirection of funds
and the cheapening of degrees. An in
stitution founded for the propagation |
of Christian Science. theosophy, palm
istry. astrology or alchemy would have
no claim to exemption from taxation or
the comforting of degrees. for some OF
these subjects have been proved TO be
without foundation. and others. to say
the least. have yet to make good their
claim of public confidence.
..There is no reason why the public ,
at large should contribute to the sup |
port of such institutions or place conn-
dence in their graduates. Further
more the state should refuse charters I
TO institutions which attempt to dupii-
cate means of instruction already ade-
uuate. The state should not support |
ten colleges when five are adequate to /
serve its educational needs
..The state should refuse to grant
charters for the PRONUNCIATION OF indi-
vidual prejudice. 1t should not allow
an institution to bind itself TO teach |
either free trade or protection, the goiu
standard or the free and unlimited
coinage or silver at the ratio OF IT. to J.
Either imperialism or anti-imperial-
ism. either private or municipal own
ership of public service corporations,
either trinitariAnism or unitarianiSm ell
Their universal salvation or the endless
punishment of the wicked. either so
cialism or individualism. either sacer'
dotalism or independence of the local
church-one side of these questions
has as much right to be impartiaily
presented as the other Consequently |
the state should not enter into partner
ship with either party
Taking up the subject or professors
status. the speaker said: Removal OF
professors for Incompetence Is duty
OF trustees and presidents which they
have never half lived up to. To shirt
this duty to students or 10 the elective
system. as is being done at present. Is
cowardly negligence. The incompetent
man should be dismissed at the nrsi
opportunity. Academic freedom de
mandS it
Academic freedom is as necessary
to The studeIts Us 10 any other party
Of the institution. We can never make
men out of the boys who come TO Us
unless in some form or other we give
them n career in which 10 work OUT
freely what is in them. Wherever pre-
scription and pa ternalism undertake. &c
don.incer the life of the students we
are sure 10 find either lawlesSness OF
good for nothing. eGeminate nah6S
pamby weakiings.'