Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-06
STEADY ADVANCE MADE
Development of the University
of Missouri.
LOCATED AT COLUMBIA
Conservative Town With Wide, Shad.
=. ed Streets.
MERITS OF THE INSTITUTION
Claims to Be the First to Admit Wo-
men to It's Halls-Value of It's
Agricultural Work.
MERITS OF THE INSTITUTION
icy WILLIAM L. CrRTIS
Special Correspondence of The Star and the Chicago
Record Herald.

|
Special Correspondence of The Star and the Chicago
| Record Herald.
| COLUMBIA, Mo-, December 81. 1865.
| The University Of Missouri is gradually
pushing its way to the front and by it's
| progressive policy will soon stand along
| size the first of our great institutions of
| learning. 1t Is located at Columbia. an
old arstocratic town, which was settled
by Virginia and Kentucky families In the
early part of the nineteenth century, and
| mas been better known for It's culture and
| conservatism than for Its enterprise 1t is
| the Cambridge or the Princeton of Mis-
| souri,. with wide, shaded streets old-fash-
Toned mansions surrounded by large
| grounds, and church on almost every
corner Curiously enough, the churches
| are nearly all new. and they are built of
| the limestone that lies under the turf
around them, after unusually good designs.
Four walls. roof and an ugly steeple. with
| rows OF hftching posts in the side lot. de-
scribe the usual temple of worshin In
MISSOURI. but Columbia Is not excelled for
| church architecture by any town of its
s s.1e .,rat KNOW, and its population must
| many churches. In ancient days Columbia
| was center OF WING sentiment and II Is
| suspected that some of the tenacious mem
| bers OF that party still vote for Henry
| Clay. Thomas H. Benton hated the place
and would never come here.
Birth Of the University.
| Being a community of that sort II was
perfectly natural that Columbia should
offer the highest bid when the legislature
OF missouri sold the university at auction
In June, 1889. The offer OF Columbia was
| Tar and away ahead Of any other and con-
| sisted of SIT COO, which was a very large
! sum IN those days under ordinary circum-
stances, considering the scamty popula ton,
| the undeveloped wealth, and the fact that
| the effects of the financial crisis of 1897
were stu felt in every part of the land.
| Columbia was then on the frontier There
was scarcely any settlement of importance
west OF 1t. 1t is an interesting and signih-
| cant ract that one of the largest sub
| scrlptions $4,000 was made by a man who
could neither read nor write. and it was
equally remarkable that. every dollar of
| every subscription was paid
A grant OF two townships of land was
| made for the support of seminary of
| learning" when Missouri was admitted to
| Inc Union In lS2O, and in 1882 1t was offered
| Tor sale at a minimum price of 50 an acre
In 1883 when the proceeds had reached the
| sum OF 100000 the question of location was
| taken up and the Legislature passed an act
drawn by Henry S. Geyer afterward a mem
/ Der Of the United States Senate, locating
chain of colleges and academies in sew.
eral parts OF the state, with university
| In the center. Similar plans are still to he
| round upon the statute books of other
| states, but nowhere Were they carried out
IN Missouri commissioners were appointed
| 70 VISIT all the county seats and receive
| bids for the university, which was nromntIv
| located at Columbia in the way l have Al
ready described The corner stone of the
nrst guiding was laid July 4, 1910, and It
| was beautiful, classical structure evil
gently much superior in architectural
| style 70 the present buildings. 1t was de-
Stroyed by fire In 1902. but the stately
| Ionic columns OF the portico still stand
| in the center of the campus, the most ar
,ractive and artistic objects in central
| Missouri.
John H: Lathrop LID, a scholar and a
| good business man. of charming personal
| ity, was called from Hamilton College.
| New York, to organize the institution. and
| he remained until 1S49, when he resigned
sity of Wisconsin. The original faculty
| consisted of three professors The first
! commencement was held November %, 1s43.
with two graduates. Robert L. Todd and
! Robert B. Todd. Both of them became dis
! tinguished. and the latter was for many
! years justice of the supreme court of
Louisiana. During the civil war the uni
| versity was closed, but 1t was ~reopened In
| 1885. again under President Lathrop. who
| returned to the faculty and remained until
| his death, a year later, and was succeeded
! by Prof Daniel Read Of the University of
| Wisconsin. During the ten years of Reads
| administration the institution grew from
| an old-fashtoned college into modern uni
| versity.
Development Of Co-Education.
| The University of Missouri disputes with
| the University of Michigan the honor of
| being the first to admit women, and its
claims are especially noteworthy because
| 1t was situated in the midst of a conserva-
tive community. with all the prejudices con-
| corning the sphere of woman that prevail
| throughout the south, President Read in
! his history Of the institution, says that I'VE
| first allowed young women lin 1869 to
| come into the normal department to qualify
| themselves as teachers We were not yet
prepared to permit them to join in the wor-
ship of the chapel, to come to the Uni
versity for attending Rotations or lectures.
| They were kept at the back door a full
| year on the score Of some danger.
Finding, however, that the young wom-
| en- of the normal did no manner of harm.
we very cautiously admitted them to some
| Of the recitations and lectures in the uni
versity building ITSELF supplementary to
| their regular exercises. providing, always,
| they were to be marched in good order,
with at least two teachers, one In the front
and the other In the rear of the column as
| guards Finally there was another advance:
the young women were permitted to come
into the chapel and, after the novelty of
| their presence was worn off, even to join
their voices In prayer and praise In the
| morning worship. By degrees and care
| fully feeling our way, as though explosive
material We're all around us. we have come
to admit them to all the classes, in all de-
partments, just as young men are admit
| ted
The Teachers College
| The Teachers College is one of the
strongest branches of the institution 1t is
the only state university that has such a
department, which Is due to its general
policy of encouraging and aiding the pub
| lie school system of the state. Missouri
insists upon placing the profession OF teach
ing on the same level with the other pro-
fessions-law, medicine, theology etc In
this 1t has followed the example of Column
aa University in New York and the Uni
versty Of Chicago but it has gone beyond
them. anq is the only institution In the
country that affords actual practice In
teaching for high school teachers. Column
bia and Chicago have large schools for OBJ
seryation, but 1t Is claimed here that the
Missouri Teachers. College is the only one
that offers the opportunity and enforces the
requirements that its students demonstrate
by practical tests their ability to teach high
school pupils before receiving their de-
grees or, certificates.
Agricultural Work.
The aortc1tltura1 depa rtment Is also very