The sun., 1908-06-28

10 sxoeed as. ed.. 7 or Ahout ss csnts--ths
sarne amount AZ for @Eoing upon tho tor
Of the college, In some respects, then,
the scale Of 7puniehments would seera 30
| have advanced.
The admiration of our Rhodes scholars
for Oxford freedom may at first sight
appear somewhat paradoxical. Another
American writer, however, with practical
experience Of Oxford, Mr.. CoRBrN, speaks
in much the same sense. There must be
| some reason for these views, and per-
haps 1t may be found in the fact that tho
Oxford restrictions, numerous as they
are, are all external, so to speak. They
do not interfere with the students inner
life. They order him to sleep In q osr-
tain place, to wear gown at certain
hours, and 30 on, but they leave his
conscience alone, and even the use Of his
intellectual powers. Provided that he
conforms outwardly to certain mechan-
ical requirements, which are mostly
historic survivals, he may think and
be pretty well what he pleases. The
university police concerns itself not at
all with his Sense of honor" President
ELIOT In his recent telegram TO President
ROOSEVELT said:
"A keen and sure sense OF honor being tho meet
result Of college life, think the college and grad
| uates should condemn effectively dishonorabis
conduct
In the case referred to, effectively
meant a penalty Of Suspension for o
year. At Oxford the function Of tnsttl-
ling sense Of honor is not in any degree
assigned to the penal code Of the univer-
sity. We may assume that 30 important
a matter 10 not neglected, but It is left to
other influences. II an Oxford under
graduate were caught in, say, a street
brawl by the proctor and gave 2 ntols-
name, the point OF honor would not be
raised. The evasion would be regarded
simply in the same light as II he had tried
to escape by running away, in which case
the ordinary fine is doubled.
President THw1No, in his book on
College Government lays down the
principle that the best method OF guild
ing the morals OF students is through
making constant and severe intellectual
demands on them. Hard work is an
enemy to easy morals" Compared with
the English universities at least, Harvard
may be said to act upon this principle
1t allows the student to sleep WHARF he
pleases, but it is very strict about his
attendance at lectures, DC. At Oxford
this Is reversed, and IL is evident that
here again tho English discipline In ex
ternal, while the American aims at the
inner life, making constant and severe
intellectual demands"
Indeed, the two systems are 30 es,san
TALLY different that il is impossible to
compare them on the point Of eitici.ncy.
The more important part OF life i, per-
haps freer at Oxford; the less impcr-
tant, far more restricted. Our Rhodes
scholars must have been attending tn the
first part when they praised "the free
dom Of life where every man 10 ex-
pected to act and think for himself.
AS for the restrictions on the other part,
Mr.. CoRBIN seems to have found them
much less Objectionable in practice than
one might expect, and he perceived some
compensaions for them--chiefy, the
creation Of an intenser social life inside
the college through the men being COM
PEELED to spend good deal Of their time
there. For weaker vessels, such as at
Harvard succumb to the wicked temp
tations Of Boston, he thought them en-
inently salutary