Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-11-23
COLLEGE DEGREES IN HAWkEYE
STATE MAY BE PEDDLED
DIscRiMlNATELY.
STATUTE COVERING COLLEGES
FOUND TO BE VERY LOOSE
Any Incorporated Educational Institu-
ton May Confer Degrees or Titles
State to Receive Large Inheritance
Tax From Storm Estate-lnterest in
Chicago Election.
Special to Times-Republican.

4
Des Moines, Nov. 23.-College de-
grees have no legal standing in Iowa.
State Superintendent Riggs was sur
prised TO find this out the other day.
Anybody can organize almost any kind
of an educational institution and grant
degrees and it's nobody's business. A
college or academy does not have to
even file articles of incorporation with
the secretary of state, nor go on record
in any department of state. There IS
no regulation of degree making and no
body has authority to define what is a
"college degree; and practically a
.'Ph. D." or an Ill. D. is not of it
self Of any value Or standing any
where in Iowa.
The matter came to the attention oe
the department of education by an in
Quiry from the pastor of an Evangelical
Lutheran church in a southern city
7ho wanted TO find out first if the
Iowa Christian College was author
lied 10 grant degrees and later wante1
10 know if a degree by that college mad
any legal standing. Investigation of the
law books showed that for all that the
law knows the college named can grant
degrees. A college or educational in
stitution in Iowa virtually decides Cor
itself what it shall do in such matters
and there is no law governing.
The Iowa Christian College is in
fact the reorganized remnant of Drake
University which was left at Osllaloosa
when the college which is supported
by the Disciples of Christ was moved
u Des Moines and made over into a
university II has no standing among
! Iowa colleges. tho it has most eN-
4 cellent head and probably does some
/ good work.
The discovery by the state superin-
/ tendcnt indicates that the laws of she
state in regard to colleges are very
loose About the only place where the
character of a college degree is called
in question is in determining the status
/ Of a college in reference to recognition
in certiication of teachers. Even Their
it is not the degree that counts but the
4 college back of the degree, for the fac
| is plainly recognized that there are
4 good many college degrees that do 40
Any incorporated educational institu
ton in Iowa may grant any degree OF
title and there is nothing in the Law
TO regulate the same.
The state of Iowa Is in for anothe
nice slice of collateral inheritance ia.
from the estate of the late JOSEPH
Storm, of Dallas counry-probably a:
much as $4,000. Storm was so year:
old and unmarried He located not fal
from the now defunct town of Zenis
in 1856 and bought 240 acres Of ianj
for which he paid 81 an acre. He ha(
not remained there all the time but sti,
. owned the land which had been patent.
ed to him by the government befor'
the days of homesteading and his lant
holdings aggregated about 5000 acres
Besides he had moneys and credits o
90.000 Most of the property will g
4 10 four brothers and sisters, aged re
spectively II, 10, IS and IS, SO tina
the property will likely be inherite'
some more in a few years. The stat
gets per cent on all the property a
nothing was left to charity.
Among republicans there is expecta
ton that in the congressional electio,
in one Chicago district today, Nozzle
will be elected. "It has been one of tn
War,nest campaigns ever seen in Chi
cago," said a Chicago travelling man a
t the Slavery last night. ut seems certai
that Monkey will win. Senator Lorime
e has been personally in charge of I'll
campaign and all his power of organi
cation has been used, backed by SIS,
o 600 put up by the regular republica
candidate. The most significant thin
: about the fight, however, is the non
t partisan character it has assumed
Saturday night Lorimer spoke at
meeting where a number of other
spoke, including some prominent dem
ocrats 1t was announced that a ha'
n dozen Of the democratic precinct com
rnitteemen are openly working for Mox
ley and scores of leading democrats
n the district are supporting him. Barne
) is the independent republican candidat
and Ryan the Democratic The distrit
9 is normally republican by 1000 to 8
900 The fact that party lines have bee
broken down makes 1T certain thu
Monkey will win"