The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1903-07-24
GALE ATTACKS The u"
Professor Charges That Originality Is
Discouraged in That institution.
anagement Of the. University Is Sc.
vereIy Criticised BY Him.
Being a Black Sheep He Was Driven
to a Dark Sky Parlor.
II Is a Caustic Statement From a
Former Member of Faculty.
From Fridays Daily.

FROM tGluay Ddlly.
According to pamphlet, soon to be
issued by DIR. Harlow Gale, late profess
sor of experimental psychology at the
state university. original research, pro-
gressive methods of teaching, are dis
couraged at that institution. The OBJ
iect of the management, he will argue,
is to make that institution mere high
school of larger growth, an academy
where the professors win teach no more
than what they learned themselves be-
fore they were graduated, no more than
what appears i'll regular text books.
Pm going to issue a pamphlet before
long" said Professor Gale yesterday,
chat will throw light on the inside man
agement of university affairs 1t will
tell something of my observations there
in the nine years that | was connected
with the faculty. 1t will give actual
proceedings at the faculty meetings to
prove what | assert.
'The real reason why my department
was abolished a few weeks ago is known
to many people. 1t wasn't because the
board of control had restricted the eX-
penditures of the university 1t was
simply because the management object
ed TO my methods.
For 4 number of years some of the
university officers were always trying
to make me resign. One of them eX-
claimed. | remember What we want
you to do is to go? You're a stencil in
our nOstrilsn
But | had my friends, too They
insisted on my staying, and pointed out
that the spirit of the management must
inevitably change before long In that
case, they said, modern control would
probably sympathize with my work, as
so many of the students did.
"0ne thing alleged against me was
that my experiments in the psychology
OF the brain tended to cast doubt on old
time theories, and exerted, in fact, ma
terialistic tendency. Now, these expert
ments do have materialistic side, no
doubt but they are not repugnant to
broad minded Christians. Scientific
truth is truth nevertheless, and no rea-
sonabe Christian is afraid of the truth.
"Another protest was made here
against my treatment of the students.
| treated them as sensible, responsible
Young men and women, Just as the stu
dents are treated at the foreign universe
ties of the higher grade. But | refused
to enforce a petty discipline. declin-
ed to act as if my students were simply
children at high school.
"And then the fact that | was
making original Investigations and that
| even ventured to talk to my classes
about such work, was considered almost
heinous. l was told repeatedly that the
professors at the state university are
hired to teach; that the university is no
place for original Investigations even ii
similar researches are encouraged in
other universities. My business was to
stick to the text books. | suppose
wasn't to ask any question that couldn't
BE- answered by quoting certain line OF
paragraph.
$50, being an inky black sheep, | was
driven away into an almost inaccessible
pen on the top of the old main building.
Every effort was made to keep me from
having any classes. Three courses in
text book PHYSIOLOGY were provided UNI
der another professor against one course
under me in experimental psychology.
One of the first three courses was made
elective. And students were discourage
ed from attending my lectures. The
management went so far as to fix the
lecture hours so that one of the other
psychological classes should always as
semble at the same hour as my class.
I'm spite of these Instructions L used
to have thirty or forty students at my
lectures and the students were so well
satisfied with their work that many of
them have already written to me to that
effect. l shall publish their letters in
my pamphlet The writer's say that
some of their most profitable study was
accomplished in what was called deris
lively my annex to the university.
''But | was not the only professor
found fault with for trying to keep out
of ruts. | had fellow sufferers and fell
low sympathizers. There are other pro-
fessors that are working to extend their
own knowledge over at the 'U' and are
endeavoring to interest their students in
original research, the research that makes
a scientific education productive and pro-
fitable. But these professors have to per-
form experiments on the sly, like bad lit
tie boys that run away from home to
fly their kites"
Professor Gale, however, will continue
his investigation. He will receive, he
believes, the encouragement of the many
friends he still retains among the univer-
sity faculty and students. He has leas-
ed at Sl2 Fourth street South, opposite
the old court house, a small brick build
ing, formerly occupied by the Minneso
to Title Insurance and Trust company.
The main room measures % by 81 feet
There are two steel vaults, one of them
sixteen by nine feet, will make an excel |
lent dark room. The building, with its
spacious basement and numerous win
dows, will constitute an ideal laboratory.
When opened next week the laboratory
will contain much valuable apparatus for
the study of child psychology, the psy-
chology of the brain, and the psychology |
OF music. A library will be provided
with psychological works in various Ian
guages.
Here Professor Gale will deliver from
time to time courses of lectures, to |
teachers and others, upon child psycho-I
logy and the psychology of music.
''Pve found here" he says, my VAIN |
fried, my dream of peace as Wagner |
called his house at Bayreuth. Mime |
apolis Journal