Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-08-15
COLLEGE MEN IN WHITE HOUSE

story has often been told how he was
led to go to Williams After two years
at Hiram college, Ohio, he wrote to the
presidents af Yale, Brown and Will
liams, telling what his studies had
been, and asking how long it would
take to finish their course. In reply
all informed him that he could grad
uate in two years, but President Hop
kins added to the business letter this
sentence, IF you come here. we shall
be glad to do what we can for you
Said Garfield, "Other things being so
near equal, this sentence, which seems
to be kind of friendly grasp of the
hand, has settled the question for me
l shall start for Williams next week"
So the great educators friendly word
gave Williams the honor of a presi-
dent among its alumni, and also the
choice of head for the institution
itself.
Arthur, who succeeded Garfield, was
a graduate of Union college. After him
came Cleveland, who was not a col
legian, though later in life he became
closely identified with Princeton uni
versity, and the handsome tower of
the graduate school there is called by
his name.
Between Cleveland's two terms came
Benjamin Harrison, a graduate of
Miami university, at Oxford, Ohio His
was one of the strongest classes in
Miami's history, but he kept we'll az
the top" He also improved his time
at college by counting the presidents
daughter, Miss Carrie Scott A re-
markable coincidence was the nominal
ton of WhiteIaw Reid, also of Miami.
as candidate for vice president at the
time of his second nomination, which
resulted in the defeat Of both.
Mckinley spent but about one year
at Allegheny college, Meadville, Pa
Roosevelt, as every one knows, is a
Harvard man. At college ''he was
neither a grind nor a trif1er" Taft was
the first Yale man to reach the presi-
dency.
Wilson has probably had the most
extensive and varied college exper-
fence of any of our presidents. He
spent one year in Davidson college, a
small North Carolina institution; then
graduated at Princeton and studied
law at Johns Hopkins university, Bal
timOre. Then he has taught in three
institutions, Bryn Mawr, Wesleyan and
Princeton. His class in Princeton
numbered 1872, and he stood 41st, being
just within the honor line.
If Hughes is elected president, a
DION II university graduate VIII IOT JQS
first time occupy the chair. He took
the first part of his college course at
Colgate university at Hamilton, n Y,
so that institution would also share in
the honor of educating a president of
the nation.
The entire list of presidents includes
27 names. OF these eight-Washing-
ton, Jackson, Van Buren,, Taylor, Fill =
more, Lincoln, Johnson and Cleveland
had no college training. Three-Jef-
ferson, Monroe and McKinley-did not
graduate. That leaves Is college grad
uates-John Adams. Madison, John
Quincy Adams, w. H. Harrison, Tyler,
Polk, Pierce, Buchanan, Grant, Hayes,
Garfield, Arthur. Benjamin Harrison
Roosevelt, Taft and Wilson. A total of
10 college men out of q is not, after
all, bad proportion. While it is true
that the two most famous presidents
Washington and Lincoln, were not col
legians, yet such men are rare, and
Jackson and Johnson, to mention no
others, would have been the better for
a broader education and more liberal
culture.-WilIiam S. jerome, in the
Detroit Free Press.