Evening star., 1912-11-05


be in constant demand for addresses on
public questions.
Second Book on Government.
Everywhere, both in his classes and
| in his public appearances, he made an
extra ordinary impression; here was
man, his audiences felt, who made pub
lie affairs luminous and fascinating;
who was afire with ideas, as he was
| crammed with knowledge, who had
| new points of view and a new way
of saying things; who stirred men,
! their consciences and their patriotism
just as he informed and clarified their
minds. While at Middletown Mr.. Viii
son published 4 second. book. The
State" displaying simply prodigiOus
knowledge of the history and principles.
Of governments from the earliest times
down to the latest.
| In 1890, the chair of Jurisprudence
the trustees very naturally elected to
| it their own old graduate who had so
quickly made himself a foremost repu-
tation as student of politics.
His Return to Princeton.
/ September, 1890, then found Woodrow
Wilson again domiciled in the Jersey col
LIegiate town which fifteen years before
he had first gazed around upon with the
eyes of raw student from the south.
He was now a man whose renown had
| begun to spread in the world, an author,
| a public speaker of enviable repute. the
| head of a family, a figure of considera-
| tion.
| In 19O2-twelve years later-Woodrow
ton University. This university is re-
markab.e for the degree to which clubs
flourish among its two upper classes.
There is. whole street Of them, some OF
the houses being palatlal, yet an tolo'
they have room for only about $50 mem
/ bers, less than quarter OF the Whole
/ university, less than half of the upper
classmen. Membership is sought after
eagerly from the day of entrance. All
through the freshman and sophomore
years every man is anXiousiy hemlnS
| to be one of the fortunate ones admitted
to a club. When he becomes d junior he
learns his fate. More than half are shut
/ out. Some of these leave college.
The Great Princeton Fight.
| President Wilson made up his mind that
the system was undemocratic and de-
structive of everything that an Amer-
can university ought to stand for and in
| culcate. Yet he did not attack the clubs;
he came, in 1907, with a proposal to sub
| sttute a better system for them. His
idea was the division of the whole uni
versity into "quadrangles, each quad
rangle" or quad to be composed of
certain number of students from each
| class with preceptor or two living with
them.
The ..uuad" suggestion had hardly been
| made when it brought down on the
| head of the president storm the fury
| of which furnished one of the most
! astonishing things in the history of
! A nerican colleges. The scheme was mis-
| who had dared propose it was assaiied
| as 'leveler''; socialist; man who
| wanted to make gentleman chum with
| a mucker." The trustees, who had ap-
| nous vote, were frightened into with
! drawing their approval and the idea had
| to be. for the time at least, abandoned
New Issue With Wilson.
Before it came up again a new issue
/ arose between President Wilson and the
| party which had now arisen in the uni
versity to oppose his democratic ideas
| This was the matter of a graduate school
| In 1905 a quarter Of million dollars had
been bequeathed for such school.
In 1909 Mr. William c. Proctor Of Gin
| cinnati generously offered half million
| more But Mr.. Proctor's offer was
| coupled with certain conditions. The am
/ bilious dean Of the school had some time
| before laid out plan for graduate
! department that should be rather sep
| arate graduate college, with buildings IN
| remote part of town.
Mr.. Proctor's offer was contingent upon
| the adoption of the deans plan So long
| as there was no special likelihood OF the
deans scheme materializing nobody had
paid much attention to It, NOW that
| they came to examine 1t, the trustees
/ concluded that they didn't care to COM
| NIT themselves to it. In particular, they
/ were unwilling to accept money that
/ would require them to locate the gradu-
| ate school in far-off section of the
| town, remote from the life of the rest of
the university. They, therefore, wrote to
| Mr.. Proctor. inquiring whether his gem
| erous gift was to go into the hands of
| the authorized guardians of the institu-
/ tion to be used for the purpose indicated
] according to their best ideas. or must be
| spent precisely as the donor required.
/ Whereupon Mr.. Proctor withdrew his
| offer.
/ Attacked by Enemies.
II the quad proposal had been fol-
| lowed by storm, the hesitation to
! cept the Proctor gift brought down a
| tornado. There was no charge too grave
! to bring against a president who had let
money go; no epithet too strong to hurl
| at a man who declined to let wealth die
| tate how its donation should be spent.
| The men whose business it was to con-
duct the university could not abrogate
! the duties of their Office, and surrender
to donor the right to determine the
university's policy in grave matter.
| They could not possibly admit the prin-
ciple that a rich man who was willing to
| give money should therefore be given the
right to dictate the educational policy Of