Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-11-23
TO TRAIN MEN FOR LIFE
EFFORTS TO CARRY OUT SENATOR
sTANFORD'S DESIRES.
Serious Misrepresentation Concerning
the Institution In Reference to Its
Religious Influence.
BY WILLIAM Z. CURTIS.

I
freak. many of them did when 1t was
started, and IL is difficult to understand why
any one of them should still consider 1t an
eduea tional experiment. 1t Is true that some
old shioned pedagogues have not yet in
dorsed it's methods admitted its success.
and the sentimental features still provoke
ridicule; but everybody who is sincerely In
terested in educational progress has watch
ed its growth with increasing qualification.
aud the trustees and faculty have been do
ing everything they can to divert public at
tention from the sensational features which
have furnished 50 much gossip and conjec-
ture- When | was out there several weeks
ago in search of Information the secretary
of the institution told me that half the arti-
Giles published concerning the institution
were sensational Misrepresentation. but
that Is not strange when one considers the
peculiar circumstances under which 1t was
rounded. Its enormous endowment which is
twice as large that of any other uniyer-
Slty IN the world; the unique plan of its
buildings It's situation, so remote from CEN
ters of education and culture. and the ex-
S reney practical purposes which Senator
stanford announced. President Jordan says
that New York newspaper expressed pub
lie sentiment when it declared that there
was about much need of slch an instf-
luton In California as there was for an
asylum for INDECENT sea captains in Switzer-
land.
iNtdi tStttt agents, ldnO boomers and
porters with vivid imaginatons took ad-
vantage of those circumstances to crafty
the public taste for novelty, and there was
enough foundation for their stories to at
tract all the educational cranks on the con-
tnent and excite the distrust of conserva-
tive men.
The personal equation is still apparent
whenever way you may look. No other In
sutution has fairy godmother so pro-
foundly interested in it's welfare and SO
eager 10 do something to promote It's sue
ut ma h.,,-..
wen as It's advantages. but the former are
INSIGNIFICANT and trouble nobody who is
actually concerned for the welfare of the
university.
The Number of Students.
The institution is now thirteen years old,
ana opens this year with about 900 STU
dents The newcomers number 30 OF
'hese 10 enter from other colleges and the
rest are freshmen OF the matriculates AZ
are women. making a total of 479. This
brings the number of woman students very
nearly to the limit, which Is fixed AT 200 &C
MI Stanford believed that 1t was wise TO
UNIT the co-educational feature Mrs
SANFORD wants to keep the number of stu
tents within 1000. She would prefer a
Unit of 15oo. she believes no more can
De properly educated in a single institution
she Is opposed to everything that looks like
competition with other institutions and I
believe Mr. Stanford in his instructions RI
the trustees, prohibited all advertisements
he said that the university had no goods
toners W S
Mrs. Stanford is strongly in favor of de-
Velopng the mechanical department. which.
she thinks, has not received the attention il
deserves. 1T was theory of nv hus
bands, she said. that the labor of a man
whose brain has been developed in con-
junction with skilled hands made him so
superior to the ordinary workman as to
enable him to command the highest com
pensation. He aiso felt that the presence
OF these departments in the university tend
ed TO dignity labor. Many of the students
r ,, 10 TINS university because the adj
vantages are free. and because they know
they will be obliged to carve out their own
future. and with the encoura cement which
we VIII give these departments in the future
they may gladly pursue that course of
study. The professional world has more
than Its quota, while the manual has still
room for more skilled workmen"
senator Stanford had no hobbies but COR
tam purposes We're always before him and
one of them was the education of the work
ing classes He believed with Ian Mac
I Eh' IN Keeping the path we'll trodden
rom the farm house to the unversity-and
from the factory also. machine to him
was not a mere saver of labor but an aid
TO labor increasing the efficiency and there
lore ADDING to the value of men
Senator Stanford's Purpose.
I would have this institution" he once
said. help to tit men and women for usa-
iulness In this life by increasing their in
dividual power of production and by MAX
ing them good company for themselves ana
others That sentence contains the key
10 the policy upon which 1t is conducted
III JORDAN relates that a friend once
argued with Mr.. Stanford that there is al
ready too much education, and that to in
crease u is simply TO swell the volume of
ulscontent MIR. Stanford insisted that
there cannot be too much education any
more imam too much health or intelligence.
and asked: do you happen to know any
man who has been too well ed,Ic1tsdy
Where does he live?"
lie believed in specializing education
however. lie considered it wise for every
Young man TO select his occupation or pro-
tessIon early, and direct his studies and
thoGshts so as To prepare himself for it,
Tor definite usefulness. He had no interest
IN general education; he had no desire To
increase the knowledge of mankind as an
end in itself. but the economic principIe he
ing always present in his practical mind he
heheVed that the great waste of labor
would md its remedy in education
He once said. THE great struggle of labor
~ 10 supply the necessities of life: bur n
small portion of our people are so engaged
rood. clothing and shelter are common in
our country To every provident person. eX-
cepttng. of course, in occasional accidental
cases. The great demand for labor is TO
supply what may be termed intellectual
wants. 10 which there is no limit except
tHdt VI luNeinRenre 10 conceive. IL all the
relations and obligations of man were prop
erIy understood. il would not be necessary
for people TO make "A burden of labor The
great masses OF tOilers now are compelled
TO perform such an amount of labor as
makes life often wearisome. An Intelligent
system OF education would correct this in
equality. 1t would make the humblest la
borer's work more valuable. IL would in
crease both the demand and supply of skill
ed labor. and reduce the number of the nom
producing class. II would dignity labor
and ultimately would go far to wipe out the
mere distinctions OF wealth and ancestry
IL would achieve n bloodless revolution and
establish "A republic of industry merit and
learning"
The trustees and faculty have always
been mindful of these principles and theo-
RES which Mr.. Stanford regarded so highly.
and have endeavored from the beginning
to shape the educa tional features of the
institution so as 10 fulfill his desires as we'll
as his intentions. How far they have been
successful cannot be determined by one
class OF graduates. or nine classes The
atmosphere around the Institution and the
spirit of the students seems to be in har-
n'ony with them. The last catalogue shows
however that the larger number of stu
dents were engaged In the literary rather
than In the mechanical departments: that
tfer trend is toward the professions as In
other universities. Nearly 800 out of a
al n IT,,