The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-04-05
SESSION HELDBY . HEADS OF COLLEGES Formal Address Made by President Abercrombie COLEBECK IS HEARD Birmingham Man Discusses the Status
 of Latin and Greek in the Colleges and the
 Universities

The meeting of the Association Of Colleges yesterday morning in room BOA of the high school building was very interesting and large number of college teachers and presidents were on hand The address of the president was made by pr. John ". Abercrombie of University. Among the most inter- esting speeches made were those of pr. C. H. Barnwell of the University | of Alabama, who spoke on '"rhe Group System of Electives In Colleges" and pr A. P. Montague's address on Hin drances That Retard Development of the True College" Probably the main address was made by E. L. Colebeck. professor of Latin at Birmingham col lege, who spoke on "Tne Present Status l of Latin and Greek in Colleges and Universities" Professor Colebeck said in part:
 some years ago the dean of the graduate department of one of our largest state universities. himself a very eminent Greek scholar, made the remark in my presence that he was quite discouraged at the increasing number of students who were entering college without presenting Greek. He took a rather gloomy view of the situ- ation and expressed his fear that in state institutions, at least having few prospective theological students, the | courses in Greek would be assigned eventually to a relativcsy unimportant place In the curriculuni. The trend in dicated by my professor friend is ap- parently in the same direction touay. It Is doubtful if single college of liberal arts in the Umred States now requires Greek as a sine qua non for a degree Only very recently Oxford university, the very citadel of cfasslcai learning and of conservatism, has opened it's doors to students who nave DO knowledge of Greex. In the case of secondary schools perhaps not 10 per cent of the 115 high schools and acad- emies in the state of Alabama which are affiliated with the Association of Alabama colleges offer Greek at all.
 NO matter how much me may re- gret the tendency, the fact is patent and must be faced. Is the day coming when Greek will be taught in the the- ological seminaries o~-y? Or will it I.aJways have a place, though minor one, in all colleges which make claims of giving broad culture? Nearly all schools of technology neglect 1t entire fly. State-supported colleges and uni.
 versailles seem to be narrowing its field It is in institutions founded or sup Irorted under religious auspices that IGreek maintains and is likely to main
 tain. for obvious reasons, much of its old-t time importance. Candidates for the ministry will always very probably de. sire to equip themselves with a knowl-
 edge of Greek. The college and moi
 the theological seminary, is the proper
 place to acquire a reading knowledge
 of that language. The ministerial stu
 dent should be able to read the New Testament when he matriclates as g seminarian. This necessity alone, in my opinion, assures permanent recognition
 of Greek in a goodly majority of col lleges and universities. While not more
 than 15 per cent pernaps of the stu.
 dents in the denomnational colleges are looking forward to the mlnistrypas a profession, there will be always found l I believe, in such Institutions an at.
 mosphere which will strongly favor the
 classics. The ministerial groups con
 stitute a class which attracts to tn,
 study of Greek many cr the strongest
 minds in their respective colleges Through such influence the Greek spirl
 becomes popular. This has been my ob
 seryation in the colleges with which il
 has been my lot, as a student or teach CT. to be connected. This phenomenon
 believe, is common to most college: which are under the auspices of, or in some sort of intimate relation With religious denominations