The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1917-01-20

within the memory of man, at least the man of this gen
Grafton, at which this was not proposed?
AS to the finances of the university, these are prop
erly within the scope of legislative inquiry. AS to ques-
lions of educational or administrative policy, what part of
the Legislative membership has had such university or edu-
cational experience as to command respect for any findings
1T might make? And we have recently had one invrstiga-
ton of the university by a man supposedly expert and ex-
perienced in university affairs, delegated by the United
States bureau of education. We are even now awaiting
his report. Whatever the report of this survey may be,
or however competent or incompetent to make 1t It's author
NAV have been, it will command infinitely more respect
than any report that any Legislative committee could sub
NIT within the period of the legislative session or any other
period.
But there is one feature of university control that the
legislature is qualified to investigate, if investigation were
necessary-which it is not-and that is the manner of Sc
Letting the regents and the period of their tenure. And
if any final and conclusive argument for this has been
lacking it was recently supplied by the majority members
of the board, who have just taken office. On the plea OF
taking the institution out of politics. the board, or rather
the new members, at their very first meeting, demanded
the resignation of the president and r%epudiated, in toto, and
without inquiry, and without awaiting the report OF the
survey recently made, the policy of the former board, of
which their present minority colleagues were members and
with which these colleagues have been associated and with
which they were presumably familiar. Their next act was
to declare 'deplorable' the administration OF the present
controller" and the former controller and this declara-
ton was Immediately followed by disappointment of the
latter. And all this while taking the university out OF
politics.
The Tribune doesn't believe that either the present
or the former controller was either inefficient or dere-
lct. And neither do the people who know them; and
neither do the regents who took this action. There was
more politics in that first meeting of the new board than
was ever developed in any meeting of university regents
within the knowledge of the oldest inhab1tant.'
1t has been urged in justification that these new mem
bers were elected for that very purpose. This is not true.
A few voters may have had this in mind when they voted,
but what proportion of the voters of the state had it in
mind, or were even conscious of such a desire on the part
of anybody? Not one in ten. Yet, if true it is all the
more reason why these regents should not have been elect
ed. All the more reason why it should not be possible to
elect a majority of any board of university control to take
office at one time and render possible such a proceeding,
Taking the university out of politics! Rather filling
it and examining it and jamning it and then plastering it
with politics-of the peanut variety at that.
We were also informed that even prior to the vacancy
thus created the state contained several prospective cand1-
dates, including two or three members of the faculty.
How many of these, if any, were interested or active in
creating a vacancy? There is one thing certain, namely:
No candidate in or out of the faculty is big enough Tor
president of this or any other university. Selections for
the presidency of universities that command respect in the
educational world are not selected from any list of can
ddates." This is one position that seeks the man and
runs from the man who takes the seeking upon himself.
If the writer were a member of that board he would
insist upon a policy that would eliminate candidates by
inviting suggestions from the heads of universities of rec
ognized standing, particularly western universities. And
from the list of those suggested a selection could be made
that would not only command respect in the educational
world but among the students and alumni of this institu-
ton itself.
President Hendrick has done some good work for Ne
vada in his present position. He has done it under handi
caps. He has no doubt made some mistakes. Maybe a
change was wise and necessary. Regardless of his qualll-
cations, it may be that antagonisms have SO impaired his
usefulness as to Justify a change.
But the one fact which stares the legislature in the
face. is the fact that the university will be a football in
fractional, if not partisan politics, a football of personal
ambition, of personal pique, of disappointment, of hate, of
selfish interest, as long as the present method of selecting
regents prevails. It has been. and it will continue to be: