Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-02-24
Approves of Harvard Methods.

1.-THE president has been good enough
to refer to the fact that I departed from
the faith at Yale, and sent my boy to
the Harvard Law School-and his mother
feels very proud of what he has done
there. OF course, she feels proud-she
could not help it. The bringing out, as
the president has, of the necessity for
promoting the acquisition of knowledge
in the college, and making 1t more of
part of college life than it has hereto
fore been, is something that 1 have had
much at heart.
II do not know exactly the theory upon
which they have abolished rank. If your
boy came out at the head of the class,
then you would believe In rank and its
publication. In the older universities
/ think in England certainly-they main
tain the system of giving out what that
rank Is, SO as to make it part of the col
lege triumph that one may achieve, and
1 am sure don't know why if one is the
best scholar or the fifth best scholar in
his class or the eighth best scholar in his
class 1t should not be known the same as
it Is known that he Is the first, fifth, or
eighth in the boat crew.
There have been periods when
scholarship has been frowned upon, when
good fellowship and the management OF
base ball and foot ball and other associa-
tons and athletic excellence have all
been regarded as of much more impor-
lance than scholarship. 1t was supposed
to show that those who succeeded in the
MANAGEMENT of associations and other
things were giving some evidence of a
better chance OF success In life. do
not mean to say that is not one Of the
standards by which you can judge how
a man is coming out In after life, but
think it is very wrong rule to ignore
scholarship and the standard of scholar
ship as a means of judging what a man
is to make Of himself afterward.
Result Of His Observations.
'This theory that the valedictorian
and others never amount to anything Is
not true. / know it is not true from
the observations l have made. / do not
know that the president and l agree, and
I don't know that 1 have caught his
meaning in full, but do know that in
the corporation Of Yale, of which I have
the honor to be a humble member, l am
always in favor of recognizing scholar
ship in every possible way in the
academic department. Perhaps this is
heterodox to some of those who hear me.
but can stand with President Lowell, l
am willing to be alone with him.
Il suppose President Lowell is buster
man tina nthe President of the United
States, but / do want to say for him that
when he Is called upon to perform pub
Tic DUTY IL IIldhcS uO ullIcTCICC AoW 1AA0uS
other duties he has to perform, he yields
to the invitation and comes in, even II 1t
involves a most laborious investigation
into q subject not very full OF interest,
but a subject which is of the utmost I'M
portance to the government, and l wish
now and here to testify to the gratitude
/ feel toward him and Mr.. Justice Hughes
and Mr.. Wheeler of Chicago, for having
accepted positions on the commission TO
look into the question as to what our
newspapers and our magazines ought to
pay for transmission in the Post Office
Department"
Training Of Minds First Duty.
President Lowell declared that the first
and foremost function of a university
was the training Of minds. This. he de-
clared, was of paramount Importance
above everything else in college life. He
urged a number of reforms at Harvard,
and told his auditors that conditions
both from a scholastic standpoint as well
as an athletic standpoint We're better at
Harvard than ever before. Other adj
dresses were made by Representatives
Longworth and Gardner, Secretary Meyer
and Gen. Porter.
At the Tables.
The diners included Dr. H w. Wiley,
Hennen Jennings. 81. C. Perkins, Prof.
George F. Becker. '6s; Prof. F. w.
Clarke, 81: Judge Bond. DR.. James
l. Brown Scott, c. n. Butler, Luther w.
Mott, '96; Winfred T. Denison. Frank H.
Hitchcock. '95; Admiral Stockton, Gen.
Horace Porter, Senator Root, President
Taft, Beekman Winthrop, President
Lowell, Secretary Meyer, Rome G. Brown.
"a; John NJ. Coolidge, "a; Herbert Put
nam, 's3; Francis D. Millet; A. p. Gard
ner. 'S6: eugene +. Chamberlain, Mai.
Judson. Capt. Archibald Butt, Walter /.
MCCOY. '82; Thomas J. Scully, Paul
Rowland. Capt g. r. Howiahd,