University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1911-01-09
TWO KINDS OF sTUDENE.

the studious students. These two
races fall again into two subdivisions
under each of the general headings.
Under the heading called studious
students comes the grinders, or those
students who do nothing but study.
Opposed to the grinders are the strict.
ly society students. The strictly so
ciety student pays no attention what.
ever to his studies. but gives all his
attention to society. The athletes are
students from all the other classes,
but they are forced necessarily to
give most of their attention to ath-
letics. However. there are some good
is yet another class which more truly
represents the life and character of
the student body than any other and
this class is the one that | shall call
the representative class OF students.
The representative student is the stu
dent who does judicious amount Of
studying along with his social pleas
ures. Every one of these classes will
fit equally well under any Of the gen.
eral headings. for you will find in the
members of all the smaller divisions,
the traits that characterize both of the
larger divisions, sometimes the traits
of the one and sometimes those of
the other being predominant.
Let us now take a look at the
character of the students who are
members of those two great bodies.
There is the society man-always we'll
dressed. good to look at, and well
versed in the art of conversation. He
is fiippant in his talk and has care
free way about him. Anh he can well
afford to be carefree. for he is not
bothered with troublesome thoughts
about where he will obtain the money
with which to carry on his society
affairs Nor is he bothered with
troublesome thoughts about how he
will obtain an education, for this class
of students generally slide through
school by various means. In the first
place he does not go to school for
the sake of obtaining a practical edu-
cation; he goes to school merely to
obtain a social education. He is in
terested in obtaining an education
only so far as it will bring him great
er social distinction. He looks upon
a college only as a place at which he
may prepare for social career. II
1t were to become a fad in society
to make an extended trip through
some country to complete the social
training, he would gladly do that. The
social students mix up their studies
in any old way. They study French,
Biology and Euclid, or anything else
that happens to strike their fancy.
They take no thought about whether
or not their studies will be of any
practical benefit to them in after life, |
but they study whatever it happens to !
be- the fashion to have a sfnattering |
of at the time These stu.
dents are not always the children of /
rich parents either. Some of them
live in nigh glory of of the money |
that mother and father labored so
hard to obtain, by mortgaging their
farm perhaps. or by selling off some
of the stock or furniture. One of the
society leaders at a certain large
western college lived a high social
life OF of the money that his mother
obtained for him by taking in washing
Happily. though. the social students
ire not in the majority now at most
colleges. II is the race of studious
that form the backbone of
,ur schools; and of them wish to
ak next. There are two divisions
VI this race-the pedants and the class
which ! designated in the opening
the representative class of
! would speak more of the
but lack of space forbids it,
Suffice it to say that as az class they L
ire almost as harmful to our schools
Is are the strictly society students. K
they overdo the thing in their zeal
o obtain knowledge. II
1t is of the representative body of
Students that | wish to speak now.
after all they are the most prominent
Iivision. They are the ones that get
he most good out of student life.
they choose their courses intelligent
y and have some definite aim In life Il
oward which they point all of their
nergies. They do not, like the pedant,
hink that the world begins and ends
n a library; nor do they, like the
trictly society student. think that all
( the world is ballroom, but they s
ave arrived at a happy compromise I
h4 txrr& IL