Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-12-22
THE AMERICAN SCHOOL
Pursuit of Classical Studies
in Rome.
DOING A GREAT WORK
STIFFENED REGULATIONS RE-
DUCE THE NUMBER OF PUPILS.
Yearly Expeditions to Greece-Special
Investigations-Res Of Pro-
fessors-Support of Institution.
BY WILLIAM e. CURTIS.


and museums of Rome; Prof. Egbert of
| Columbia Is instructor and lecturer in the
| department Of classics, inscriptions and
ancient manuscripts, and Prof De Cou Of
| the University of Michigan deals with
| archaeology and the dialects of the ancient
races, and conducts the excursions to
! Greece in the spring. The entire school
goes over there every year for six weeks
| of exploration in the country and study in
| Athens. accompanied by the faculty. This
| Is entirely independent of the Athens
| school, which, like this in Rome, is under
| the care of the American Institute of
| Archaeology.
Last spring the students left Rome March
| ID and made a tour of PeloponnesuS, spent
| two weeks in Athens and explored northern
Greece as far as the Vale of Tempe. They
were accompanied by Prof. and Mrs. KEEL
| sey and Prof De Cou, who was then secre-
tary of the American school at Athens.
This journey is a part of the curriculum,
but the remainder of the outdoor work Is
done in the neighborhood of Rome.
Stiffening the Regulations.
Last year there were twenty-four stu
dents. but this fall the regulas ons have
been stiffened so as to exclude tourists and
limit the advantages of the institution to
actual students with practical purposes in
view anu seIlOUS Llo icCtui oS dAAA
excursions have proven to be a great temp
tation to people who are spending the
winter in Rome and have nothing else to
occupy their time and attention, and while
the faculty are willing to help everybody
and direct the archaeological inquiries OF
all Americans who come to the eternal
city, they have been compelled for obvious
reasons to exclude from the school those
who are seeking entertainment only. In
order to limit the number of students to
those who are preparing themselves for
professional careers the faculty have
recommended still further restrictions, and
will hereafter require more thorough prep
aration and preliminary training in ad-
dition to the payment of an annual fee of
So. The presence of mere tourists who
simply desire to follow the pleasant paths
of culture has proved to be hindrance
to the work Of more serious people, par
ticularly women who have graduated at the
American colleges and come to Rome for
what Prof. Norton calls a "finishing-off
process"
1t is proposed to adopt rule providing
that no woman shall be admitted to the
school who does not hold or has not held
position as teacher or shows special quail
fications for classical work 1t Is also pro-
posed hereafter that all chaperonage be
abandoned, and women who come to the
school must submit to the same regulations
and endure the same hardships as the men.
The Students.
The following IL list Of the students en-
tered for the current year. and you will
notice that majority OF them are from the
west:
+ Walter Whipple Arnold. Rochester. N. Y.
Susan Helen Ballou, Chicago.
James Leon Chamberlain, Cleveland, Ohio.
Mario Emilio Cosenza, New York, N. Y.
Herbert Richard Cross, Providence.
Charles Densmore Curtis. Colorado.
Professor Green. Providence.
Norman Wentworth De Witt Hamilton,
Ont.
Lillian English Dimmit. Jacksonville, III.
James Thorne Fairchild, Northfield MINI.
Jessie Gillenden, West Towers, N. Y.
Elizabeth Gertrude Hill. Red Wing MINI.
Una Mcmahon, Chicago.
Cady Stanley. Cleveland.
Conn.
Alice Walton, Wellesley. Mass.
The Plan Of Work.
A reference to the plan of work may be
| interesting to those who are not familiar
with the school On pleasant days the stu
dents are conducted by members of the
faculty to the historic places in the neigh
| borhood Of Rome. to the ruins, the libraries
| and the museums. the monuments, churches
and sites associated with classical ntera-
ture. where lectures are delivered bearing
upon the immediate surroundings. On rainy
days they go into the museums. Each stu
| dent is assigned a special topic for investi-
cation. When he has completed his maui
ries he prepares thesis, which is read in
the presence Of the entire school and at the
place in question. When he has finished
his report the other students and the MEM
bers Of the faculty quiz him, asking any
question that may occur to them bearing on
the subject. In these personal investiga-
tons a great deal of clever work has been
done.
Special Investigations.
! During the second year those who show
| talent in this direction are sent out to COL
| lect new information and material. For ex-
| ample, Mr.. Curtis of Colorado has been
making some remarkable discoveries in AL
geria. which will be shortly published
| Other students have been working In Rome
| Miss Bruce. who was here last year made a
valuable report upon the history and wor-
| ship of Vesta. Miss Van Deman. another
| of last years students. completed a thor
| ough report upon the topography of the
| Forum; Miss Susan Ballou of Chicago COL
lated various manuscripts of Catullus in the
| Vatican and in st. Marks library, Venice
! and is now engaged in the Vatican library
deciphering manuscripts connected with the
histories of the Roman emperors, to secure
| for the benefit of historians better texts NJ
what are called the Scriptures Rarum
Agusti. Miss Ballou, who is from the
| University of Chicago, Is profound Latin
Scnolar and Is so highly respected at the
| Vatican that every possible facility is fur
nished her Father Ehrle. the pontificaI
librarian. went even so far as to send FOR
manuscripts from the library at Bamberg
for her examination.
Researches of Professors.
Prof. Thatcher OF the University of Chi
cago. who has been here for several years
collecting material for a life of Pope Adrian
", the only Englishman who ever sat upon
the pontifcal throne. has completed his
labors and has published a very important
contribution to history.
Prof. Norton spent last summer investi-
eating the trade relations between ancient
Rome and the far east. 1t is an entirely
new line of study. He went across the
desert of Turkestan by camel caravan as
far as the frontier of China. The Russian
government furnished him an escort and
gave him every facility possible It was
only a prospecting trip, however, and will
be followed up next year, provided the
means and facilities can be obtained. Prof
Norton obtained sufficient evidence of the
existence of important remains to justify
serious research. He reports numerous
traces similar to those in Mesopotamia OF
an extensive early civilization and com.
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