New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-12-27

then continued 10 FIJI the places Of syndie and
professor with signal ability. His departure
TO assume the presidency Of famous old La
fayetse College. to which he was elected the
other day. will be keenly felt as loss TO New
York University, and indeed TO New York
City. since he has been a particularly active
participant in civic affairs.
The younger OF these two brothers, Henry
Noble MacCrscken. was born at Toledo. Ohio,
during his fathers pastorste there. in 1880. and
was graduated from New York University in
1900 and received post graduate degrees from
Harvard in 1905 and 1907. He was a preco-
cious lad. They say that at the age OF nine.
when he was reading Cesar he had given to
him a lot OF toy soldiers, with which on the
floor he used to enact the campaigns and bat
ties OF which he read in the immortal Com
mentaries" One day he said 10 his mother;
"Oh. mother do wish that Caesar had been
whipped just once; for / know how 70 organ
ize my army. / can march It forward. ! can
build bridges. and charge, and halt, and build
camps, but don't know how TO reuestT
After graduation here he went to Beyrout.
Syria, and for three years instructor In
English in the American College there, teach
ing Greeks, Syrians, Turks and others. He
developed a system Of his own, in which, re-
jecting the German method Of emphasizing
the noun, he made the verb the principal word
in instruction. This proved highly successful,
and textbook written by him on that prin-
ciple has become one Of the standard works
for use in the East. from Arabia to Persia.
- - L0ouur
as "Es Subbi," meaning 'the Little LadT
Near the end OF his third year he was
stricken with typhoid fever, and be came home
for recuperation. Strong urgings wee made
for him to return TO Beyrout, but he decided 20
remain in America. So he pursued post-gradu-
ate courses at Harvard, specialized 10 philology
and particularly in early English, and then un-
dertook the editing of a lot of fifteenth cen
tury manuscripts for publication by the Earl,
English Text Society. In this work he was
greatly assisted by his accomplished wife, for.
merly Miss Marjorie Dodd. Of New York.
whom he married just after leaving Harvard.
In 1908 he became an instructor in English at
Sheffield Scientific School, Yale University,
and the next year became assistant professor.
Thence he went last year 70 Smith College as
professor of English. From that place he has
now been called to become the president Of
Vassar College
There is pretty story whispered about
among some who ought to know, which Is
really too good not to be true, that his election
at Poughkeepsie was the sequel TO something
like repetition of the why don't you speak
for yourself, john" episode. They say that
the Vassar people naturally went about among
the other big colleges for women, seeking
whom they might elect, and when they
reached Smith they asked Noble MacCracken
whom he could suggest Now, there was this
important difference between this incident and
that Of Colonial days, that Noble had not been
sent or commissioned by John Henry to speak
for him. Nevertheless he did speak for him
and so eoquently and persuasvely told them
what a good fellow his elder brother was, and
what capital prexy he would make for Vas
sar, that they were nightly impressed, not
only with the superlative excellence of John
Henry but also and perhaps even more with
the super-superlative excellence of John
Henrys younger brother. So that they prae-
tically said: why don't you speak for your
self, Noble?" And so, within three days Of
John Henry's election at Easton, Noble was
elected at Poughkeepsie; and the chancellor
emeritus at University Heights ezulted at be-
ing the Father OF Presidents.