The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1914-12-11
PROF. ROYCE WARNS
VERMONT TO BE WARY
Advice of Carnegie Foundation that
of Professional Standardizers with
Habits of officialism.
Especial to The Reformer.)
M1DDLEBURY, Dec. II


M1DDLEBURY, Dec. II.
Josiah Royce, the distinguished philoso-
pher of Harvard university, author of The
Philosophy of Loyalty and other works of
International reputation, has taken part
III the discussion on Vermont education
In letter to President Thomas of Middle
bury college, published under the title A
Plea for Provincial independence in Edu-
cation, he urges Vermont to do its own
thinking on educational problems. After
d searching logical examination of methods
of cooperation between the state and in
stitutiens, he says of the Carnegie report:
Learn from their wisdom. For nobody
can for a moment doubt that the Carnegie
Foundation stands for great deal of
wisdom and of official advice. But remem-
| Der that all this advice is likely to be
tainted with two defects. First, it is the
advice OF professional standardizers; sec
ond, it Is the advice of those who have
| the habits of oficialism. Such defects i'm
iply no degeneracy, either intellectual or
moral, in those who show them. They are
| the natural outcome of the habit of trying
to carry on such enterprises as a Carnegie
Foundation is. That Foundation has
tdone great good and will do much more
But when it is asked to advise the state
OF Vermont, then be wary of accepting its
| 'clear-cut formulas. Such are the formu-
las that ofcialism and the love of stan
dardizing viii always give YOU
| Concerning the statement of DR. Thomas
to the educational commission, Professor
Royce says: you make an extremely
modest application to your legislators that
they will not be wholly guided by advice
| OF the Carnegie Foundation, so far as that
refers to the 'clear-cut' policy about higher
education which that Foundation recon-
mends. [ wholly agree with the spirit
and, so far as l have any right to speak
about the topic, with the letter of youl
recommendation. / speak in the interest
OF the Vermont tradition and ideal.
lspeak after reading the proceedings that
took place at the time of your centennial
celebration at AIiddlebury in 1900
speak IN the name of the New England
country town, of the New England coun
try college, of some of the dearest ideals
which our whole country knows They
We're kept alive of old by New England
farmers and clergymen, by those who dix
so much to determine the cultivation o
our new west, by those whose memor,
. will always be cherished by every Ameri
. can pdIflOI. 90 InaL IN my OPINION yOl
, are right to propose a method whereof,
the state of Vermont may wisely aid sucl
an institution to keep something of its owl
: independence, not by merely giving itsel
/ over to private benefaction, as not by sim
: ply accepting mechanical state control
, My life has taught me this lesson: :
typical American province, such as you
venerable Vermont long since was, such a
: fmy new California has within my ow
: lifetime become-such province is wort
( preserving. Your legislature will do we
y to appropriate something towards til
: preservation of Nermonts most preciou
: ideals and traditions. These are embodie
!, in its institutions. | know that Middl,
: bury college actually embodies an impo
tant portion of these ideals a wise stat
aid given to a valuable institution, undt
suitable safeguards, is certain to be prof
q able.