The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-01-03
DAVID STARR: JoRDAN's ADDRESS
He Discusses Agasslz as Scientist and
Educator. e l.!

DR.. David Starr Jordans address on
"Agassiz' was much more than a per-
sonal eulogy; it was g. skilful analysis
of the greatness of his teaching and of
it's educational influence. It was full Of
personal incidents and of the speakers
recollections Of the man whose last pupil
he was. In the course of his analysis he
had occasion to tell Of Agassiz's strong
belief in co-educatton, and he affirmed
his own with equal strength. He said:
81 have no respect for the arguments adj
vanced against co-education.. The argu-
ments Of those outside colleges are based
on prejudice, and of those inside the col
|leges on rowdyism.' - = >--~-- - .
This was in connection with an incident
at Penikese Island, where, in the last
year Of his life, Agassiz opened sum-.
MGR school. The incident has never be-
fore appeared in print and has seldom
been told. Agassiz greatly shocked the
educators Of the mOnast1c institutions by.
inviting to attend his school thirty men
and twenty women, this being the first
CO. educational experiment in the east. A
group Of Harvard and Amherst students
decided the first day that they would
teach Agassiz q lesson by playing a dis
agreeable prank on the girls. The follow
ing morning at breakfast Agassiz read off
the names Of the six students concerned
and announced that the yacht would take
them back to the mainland. Interces-
sions, even Of the women, were of no
avail, for he held that such men could
not be serious students such as he in
tended to train and they went
/ The school on the, barren island Of Pen
| ikese was pronounced the greatest sum-
mer school as well as the first. 1t was
designed for teachers.
DR.. Jordan told Of the morning talk Of
| Agassiz which led to Whittier Prayer
| Of Agassiz.'' The master scientist first
talked of what he hoped the school had
ACCOMPLISHED. He wanted the teachers
| there to go out and do missionary work
! for a, nobler and better way Of looking at
| the works OF God and for a teaching of
science that would bring people closer
| to the truth of nature. Then he made the
| Whittier's poem, II should not like any
one to pray for me now. Each one may
! make his own prayer in silence.
| Agassiz brought to- this country the
| then unknown German idea of living on
terms of friendship and familiar inter
| course with his students and the public
| and his personal influence was great He
went about among the farmers talking
! over with them their interests and com
| to come in contact with teachers and was
one Of the first college professors to az
! tend their meetings and to address them
1 For his first address he collected a quaint
1 ity Of grasshoppers in order that each
4 might watch a grasshopper while he talked
about it and he insisted upon his audience
4 verifying his statements by means Of the
grasshoppers, even II they did spit. or
i their hands. Some of the teachers die
4 not like his method and he was much
| ridiculed about his grasshoppers, but hi.
4 method was the true one and has pre-.
vailed and completely revolutionized ped
agcgical ideas. fK