Middletown transcript., 1902-11-15
DELAWARE COLLEGE

Cellego wrote IN 1899, Sno mas OF late
years been justifying her right to exist
ence, for a good number of people hold
that Delaware does not need and cannot
support q college. But her
ideal should not be a great university,
rather shall she find sal
vation in the noble work of preparing for
good citizenship those whom fitness, pre-
ference for small college, or lack of
funds debars from the great universities.
One can scarcely believe that any eiti-
zen of this State is willing that her edu-
cational system should be parasite on
that of Maryland or Pennsylvania, de-
Tending himself by saying that We can
not support college. 1t would be about
patriotic to send our legislators to Mary.
land and say we have no need of seper-
ate political existence, for if we have no
State College we must fit our school sys-
TEN under that or into that of some
other state, and by SO doing become a
part Of it in one of the most important de-
partments of state life. Young men who
yell for Maryland athletic teams, grow
up in a Maryland atmosphere and are
trained by Maryland teachers, are more
truly citizens of Maryland than they are
of Delaware. l use Maryland only as an
example, for any state other than our
own. We certainly need college.
And we certainly are able to support
one. Delaware College now has large
and valuable "plant'' and an income OF
$4,000 year. None of this is paid by
the state. Is anyone willing to say that
the State of Delaware is not able to
pay the five to ten thousand dollars a
year which should be added to this to
keep this $4,000 in the state and to
make the college one of which the state
may justly be proud? That need hardly
be asked.
No, we need and can have a college
which shall be the capstone of our sys-
TEN of public education. Now is the
present college ''it?" Has she justified
her right to existence2 Do the people
look upon her as their college, (for that
is necessary? And has she shown her.
self fitted for the place? Here are figures
In 1888, the year the article referred to
was written, there were 80 students in
the college; in 1896 there were II; in
1902 there were ia. Some of the people
see the advantage of keeping their sons
in the state and giving them a better
education at home and at lower price
than they could get outside.
I say better education advisedly, for
all thinking men must agree that the un-
dergraduate is better trained in small
college than in university; in small
town than in large city. The moral
and physical atmosphere is better on the
face of it, and nearly all If not all edu-
Gators agree that the more nearly stu
dent comes in contact with his instruc-
tor the more gain he gets, conceding, of
course, that the instructors is the man
he should be. The Faculty of Delaware
College consists of 9 professors, assis.
tants and instructors, and a number o.
lecturers, etc. OF these five are Doctors
of Philosophy, two having received
their degrees at the best German Univer-
stiles; and three others have studied
abroad. She has one Of the most health
ful locations in the country, near enough
to the large cities to get all the advant-
ages with none Of the disadvantages
about as near in time as Columbia, N.
Y, is from the business part of New
York City. Among her departments of
instruction, there is scarcely college at
which better opportunities are offered in
chemistry, and the various Engineering
departments; and her academic depart
ments are being raised as rapidly as the
condition of the stale schools will per.
NIT.
The day when Delaware College had
the problem of existence to solve is past.
With numbers quadrupled in fourteen
years, with dormitories crowded and
students seeking rooms in vain, with
Faculty alert and abreast of every new
movement in education, with athletic
teams that win admiration from the
partizans of their opponents by manly
and honest work (of which see more in
future article on Delaware's football
season), with everything that a college
needs except little more money, she in
yites examination and challenges criti-
cism from her enemies, if She has any,
and demands what she has right to ex-
pect,-the loyal support and patronage
of every citizen of the state she SO nobly
represents.