, 1908-03-27
T|SDEL'S TESTIMONY
BEFORE COMMISSION

eral departments in the fullest sense
of the word?
Faculty Tenure in Presidents Hands.
A. Not at all, and 1 have it SO far
as the educational work of the institu-
ton is concerned, and l wish to say
that l doubt if / have made a single
recommendation to this board of trus'
tees that has not been adopted, within
the limits of what / have made recon-
mendations upon. l have felt, l would
like to say, that a good deal has been
said here about someone else besides
the president determining the tenure
of Office of the faculty and the appoint
ments to the faculty. | should like to
say that | feel, whatever others may
feel, that have had the appointing OF
this faculty, and that it is practically
within my hands whether anyone stays
in this faculty or goes. The authority,
Of course, is in the board of trustees,
out they rave never shown n dispo-
sition to take any other action than |
recommended, and if you will not feel
it necessary to inquire. into the name',
either of the board member Or people
little incident which illustrates that.
On n occasion since l have been
president, there came to me a letter
from d member of the board of trus-
tees saying that a personal friend of
his was interested in one of the depart
ments of the university in which there
was a vacancy and that he would like
to have his qualifications considered
The gentleman in question anne to me
and we discussed the whole situation.
| told him very frankly that did not
feel that he had the qualifications for
the position. He went to n or two of
the members of the board. They told
him to do business with me. l cor
mended another appointment to the
board of trustees. | heard no more
on the matter from the member of the
board who was a friend of the appli-
cant.
Q. Then, as to this branch of the
university management, you feel that
you have a free hand without limita.
ton
A.. Yes, sir.
Q. Has there been any attempt, 20
knowledge; to influence yourself
any of the professors or teachers.
of the university by the executive com
mittee or board of trustees or others
as to the exercise of the political frau
chise?
Gives Lie to Morton.
A. Nc, sir, and l think, if you wish II, I
could throw light upon the incident
mentioned by Mr.. Morton of the mem
Der OF the faculty being approached to
run for office. Mr.. Morton said hat a
member OF the faculty had been ap-
preached to go upon one of the politi-
cal tickets for a legislative office, AMI
hat he had gone to the president of
the board of trustees and the president
of the board had told him he could not
do it. I think Mr.. Morton is under a
misrepresentation. and 1 am sure he
would say so if he were acquainted
with the circumstances. The gentle
nan in question may have gone to the
president of the board; / do not know,
but he usually comes to me, and in
this Ease came to me. DR.. Quaintance,
professor of political economy, came to
me and said that he had been approach
ed by the democrats of Laramie to put
his name on the democratic ticket for
the legislature. and asked me what l
thought of it. | told him-and the re-
sponsibility was entirely mine-I told
him | felt any member of the faculty
who went into a political campaign
must be more or less active in the po-
litical campaign; that it would be ex-
pected of him, and he would have 10
do it; that his attention would be talk
en- from his university work during the
campaign; that it would be necessary
for him to be in Cheyenne six weeks
of the winter term, and a substitute
would have to .be provided, which
would be hard to provide effectively
for that length of time in the middle
of the year. 1t seemed to me that the
work of his department would serious.
a candidate. He asked me if l felt
that a member of the faculty in the
legislature could not be of great ser
vice to the university, and l told him
I thought not. 1t was a distinctly edn-
cational proposition, not at all a politi-
cal proposition. l should have said the
same thing to any man in the faculty