The sun., 1908-12-06
RULES AT OXFORD STRICT
WHICH rs SEEN IN THE FATE OF
4 SCION or THE CEETLS.

Consul Warns His COuntrymen No
20 Como Here--GeFman Theatres
Not Doing weil-C0mt Of Turin
African Travels-Pspe and Pilgrims
LONDON. Nov. 25--The general publ,
useu, not 50 very long ago. 10 hear little oi
he purely domestic concerns and troublt
If the universities Of Oxford and Cam.
bridge. Undergraduates had their littls
rows with the authorities or among them.
sclves. and unless something on a par.
tioularly large scale happened nothinf
was heard OF them outside.
But to-day nothing escapes the atten.
ton Of the popular press. and the doing
n undergraduates are reported as fully
as the proceedings Of the sufYragettes
Thus the annual celebration of Guy
hawkes. day, November 5, at Oxford
was duly described. and the world was
informed that Randle William Gas.
eoyne Cecil, con of the Rev. Lord William
Cecil and grandson Of the late Marquis
Of Salisbury. had been charged at the
oxford police court with sssaulting the
police captain upon that joyous occasion
and fined 10 shillings and 5 shillings and
sNpence costs.
Following on the police court proceed
ings Lord William Cecil wrote an indignant
letter to the Times which has been copied
into nearly every paper in the country
and commented on with much sarcastic
disfsvor. Lord William wrote;
No doubt the letting OF OF fireworks in a
street is custom not to be encouraged
and the men caught doing IL should be
.~aned by the proctors; but the modern plan
Of employing clumsy, lower class policemen
TO keep high spirited gentlemen In order
"a to take a course which must provoke q
breach of the peace. and the poor boys,
who had no criminal intent but plenty Of
The high spirits OF innocent and pure youth.
ind themselves In q police court with its
concomitant degradation aud publicity.
Parents pay heavy cost for an Oxford
education. because they desire that their
sons should be brought in contact with the
cultured and refined Oxford dons. The
power Of culture and refinement is never
better displayed than in the exercise Of
rho dificult duty of discipline.
Under it's influence the barbarism Of
hoyhood makes way for the civilization Of
me oxford man. II the discipline Of the
University is to be delegated to the police
rhp value of a university education is vastly
,uninished. A row between the police and
,hr undergraduates tends to degrade all
onccrned.
There is nc doubt good deal of justi-
n,ation for Lord Williams protest against
he too free use Of the police in these little
rows a. Oxford and Cambridge, but to
to-; uf clumsy. lower class policemen
aud high spirited gentlemen was too
much sor a deniocratio age. and Lord
William has heen chafHed unn,ercisrlly
in print ever since the letter appeared.
The matter was just being forgotten
whcu yesterdays afternoon papers an
uo,Inced that Lord Williams high spirited
son had been sent down from Oxford
University He was q member OF Uni
versity College and was discovered by
policeman after midnight throwing
stones at the windows Of Balliol College.
He was taken to the police station, where
he gave his name and explained that he
was trying to arouse friend.
The case vas handed over to the proc
tors. with the result that young Cecil.
who was in his first term, got sent down.
The offence for which this somewhat
severe punishment was inflicted was
not that of throwing stones at Ral!iors
windows or OF disorderly behavior.
Offences Of that kind would be met by
fine or eating that is, being confined
to the precincts of his own college for
certain plumber Of days after 4. NJ.
His serious offence was being out OF
college after midnight. Outside Of moral
offences that is one Of the most serious1
breaches of university discipline. and that
it should be so gives some idea of what
Oxford discipline is and why Lord William
Il f<,, a ,fx.ta
by the university authorities and not by
tho police.
The mouastic system still survives to a
considerable extent in Oxford. The
writer not long ago took an American.
An old college man. around Oxford. The
Americans first comments were upon the
beauties of the place and the wonderful
charm Of it's atmosphere. His next re-
marks referred to the bolted and barred
aspect Of every college.
They might be prisons he said.
As a matter OF fact every college in
Oxford is in way a prison. Every win
dow looking on the outside is heavily and
closely secured with iron bars; every
gate is made as nearly as possible unscal-
able and every wall 10 surmounted with
elaborate and murderous spikes.
From the moment that Big Tom. the
great bell In Christ Church, has finished
the hundred and two strokes. on which
1t starts at Eve minutes past in the even
ing. every college in Oxford becomes q
prison till next morning. Till midnight
there is modified form OF imprisonment.
Members Of college who are inside its
walls when Big Tom has finished must
emain inside till next day. Guests from
other colleges may 60 out at any time
up TO midnight.
But they do not depart freely or with
nut form. For each. the porter un-
locks the little door in the great gate. and |
a. he goes out he says. 'Mr. SO and SO.
and for the privilege OF having his guests
let out Mr.. SO and So las TO pay his college
penny for each up 10 10 p. NJ, increasing |
30 siypence up 10 midnight. in some
colleges TO eightpence OF tenpence.
On arriving at his own college the guest /
knocks in," and his own college porter
carefully enters the exact time he arrives,
and no too pays his college similar sum
i'r the privilege Of being admitted. The
seriousness OF being out Of college after
midnight may be guessed from the pun