The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-07-27
Has the College a Healthy Site?

ACer Cne parent mas narrowed his
choice Of college according to the prob
able life work of the boy and his char
acter and inclinations, the next ques-
ton for him to settle is: Has the college
a healthy location? This is considera-
ton not always taken into account, as
many parents can attest who have
seen their boys taken sick while in
college. A pathetic instance of this
recently appeared in print, and will
illustrate the Importance of a healthy
site for school. A New York farmer
with one son was very anxious to give
the boy college education, but found
himself unable to raise the necessary
funds He had an orchard which
might have yielded an ample income,
but which he had neglected. Getting in
touch with the State Department of
Agriculture, he procured the services of
an expert, who told him how to spray
and tend his trees. The old gentleman
implicitly obeyed instructions, and the
next year harvested the largest crop Of
apples he had ever had. There was
money enough, and to spare, so off went
the boy to college, He had not been
there month, however, before he con-
tracted typhoid fever from the pollu-
ton of the college water supply and
died. No wonder the old man reflected
bitterly on the short vision of State
which would save the lives of fruit
trees and neglect the health of young
men; no wonder he rued his own care
lessness in not considering the health
fulness of the college he had chosen for
his son.
In Virginia, happily, there is little
danger that such a tragedy could
happen, for the sites of all the colleges
have been chosen with particular
regard for the good health of the
students. Many of them are in districts
long-famed for good health; practically
all of them have every safeguard of
sanitation that science can devise.
How Much Will 1t Cost?
Inevitably, the question Of expense
has to be taken into account in choosing
a college, and often this cannot be
made secondary consideration. Ma
turally, too, the parent who has not
educated a boy or has forgotten the
expense of his own training, in diff
ferent economic era, will sometimes be
puzzled to know just what he may have
to pay. Of course, the answer varies
with the school, though the fees
exacted by all our Virginia colleges are
remarkably low. In some schools
tuition can be had for less than a third
of what it actually costs, thanks to a
large endowment; in other colleges, less
fortunate, the fees are higher. There
WILL likewise, be some difference,
according to the courses which the boy
will take, and in the scientific branches,
where laboratory work is to be done,
an allowance for this should always be
made
Where the parents must economic,
certain items may be reduced and GER
tain expenses eliminated in every
college. There are, for instance, in
every school endowed scholarships open
to several classes of students. These
are always awarded to the boys who
need them, or who win them in compe-
tition, and some of them afford a royal
road to learning for those who other
wise would be denied it.
In most colleges the list of scholar
ships is printed in the annual catalogue,
but it is always best to make special
inquiry from the president or dean Of
the institution An early application
for scholarships is always desirable.
Where scholarships cannot be had
it is often possible for young man to
supplement his income by doing special
work in the college, or in the city where
the college is located. In the Northern
colleges students act as walters in the
dining-rooms, and sometimes serve as
janitors in the dormitories. The proud
South has hesitated to follow this lead,