Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1903-01-29

\ [The following interesting account Of stud.
abroad was written by Rev. @. r. Weida. VIII
offlciates ut St. Johns church as rector HI
home is Manhattan where he is professo
In the college.l
The atmosphere or environment Il
what makes residence ct German
University SO necessary to any Ameri
can who aspires to what is best ID
scholastic life. A comparison OF the
courses offered is not enough nor will
any comparison Of material resources
and means Of illustration affect this
something Of atmosphere" which al
American can never acquire without
having been "sbroad." Judged BY
buildings and advertisements and pre-.
tensions generally many Of our land
grant colleges might be considered
preferable to those Universities oves
five hundred years old. quietly and
unpretentiously doing their work
under the name Of "Hoch-Schule. y
1t is an application or extension
Of the same principle that makes
eastern men send their sons "West"
and the western men send their chill
dren to the East" So I have no
hesitation in saying that the Ameri-
can college graduate who can spend
a year in German University even
without definite plans and without
regular systematic work there acquires
something which cannot be replaced
by any amount Of credits from an
American university whether 1t be
Chicago, or Columb ia. or Harvard, or
John Hopkins. I desire to repeat
here a statement Of DR.. ID. G. Gilman
that very happy ishe who can spend
his first year Of postgraduate study
without plans too definite and without
too strenuous work. Happy is he
who can and will take time to get the
university idea and understand the
differences between it and the grind
Of much that we call college work.
When a college graduate decides to
60 to a German University the first
thing to be done is to get copy of
the "Deutscher Universitats Kalen-
der" which is published for each Sc
mester and contains the name Of each
instructor in each Of the institutions
and some indications Of the courses
that each will offer. Before taking up
the details OF the announcements for
any one University let him get his
maps and encyclopedias to find out
what he can about the towns where
these great institutions are situated.
Each Of these has its peculiarities
and its points Of attraction aside from
the men on the faculties; but these
men are usually what cause the final
decision in the choice Of University.
Thus in the department Of Chemistry,
the names Of E. Fischer and OF Landolt
might draw one to Berlin; the names
OF OSWALD and Wislicenus might
draw one to Leipzig; or the names OF
Wallach and Of Nerst might draw
student to Goettingen. These great
men, who have done the work and
acquired fame in their respective fields
OF learning stand out with great lus-
ire and are almost worshipped by the
young student from an American
college just entering on his speciality.
He goes there to get acquainted with
these men, and he finds them-espe-
cially in the scientific departments
very pleasant, helpful and compan-
ionable. ! shall never forget my fSst
impressions Of Heidelberg, where l
looked forward with awe to meeting
the great Victor Meyer at his resi-
dence and found him pleasant, help.
full man and friend, perfectly unss-
Stunning and unconscious Of his fame
as chemist. The same remarks sp-
ply to Jannascb, the professor Of
Chemistry; and to RoSen-
busch, the great miueralogist and
author on Photography. Later on
travelling to Berlin and Leipzig |
found the same tree Of the great men
met and heard Observation-Disclosures,
HoimAn, and OSWALD. 1t was one Of
the great delights Of my brief stay 10