Evening star., 1920-11-23
- william ui,lor Caller Of .

President William Miller Collier Of
George Washington University has is
sued a statement with regard to the
Baptist protest against the union OF
George Washington University with
the American University.
The statement is as follows:
MY attention has been called to the
report in one of the Washington pa
pers OF November ~ that at the re-
cent session of the Columbia Baptist
Association a history of the former
relations of the university with the
Baptist Church was given and the de-
sire was expressed that they might
be restored. in view of the fact that
the local Baptists would now be able
to devote to the university a con :
siderable portion of the s50.000,00O
which that great denomination has
raised throughout the nation for edu-
cational purposes. 1t is also stated
! that the association regretted that
a number of years ago, when the
Baptists were somewhat financially
straitened. they had to cease support
ing the university and the two. iner"-
fore. separated. The article to which
| refer also declares that so strong
IS the desire OF the Baptist Assoc ). :
tion today for a reunion with the UNI
versity. that it voiced its objections
sideration between the George Wash :
ington University and the American n
University. The latter. it may be said,
is Methodist Institution.
Grateful for Influence.
The George Washington Univer-
sity is very proud of the many years
association which it had with the
artist denomination. and is grateful
to it for some very wholesome influ-
u fay .i-aI hp1n n "a
vas extended to il by Baptsts in its
early days, when it was known as the
Columbian College. That financial
help was, however. always grossly in
adequate to its needs
The relations between the uniyer-
sity and the denomination have been
somewhat fickle. Although the insti-
tuition was founded in 1921. as the re-
suit of the persistent efforts of Luther
Rice, a great Baptist home mission
ary it was not, at first, in any way,
subject to the control or supervision
of that denomination and no religious
test. was applied to its trustees, fac
ultyi or students. Afterward a closer
corporate relation with the Baptist
Church was established. BY an amend
ed charter a large proportion of its
trustees had to be Raptists. and as a
result for several decades. it's presi-
dents We're members of that church
and the institution was properly con-
sidered as belonging to that denomi
nation. This connection was. how
ever. dissolved, very many years ago,
because of the admitted financial in
ability of the Baptist.s. at that time.
to support the university. Since then
the university. although remaining
thoroughly Christian in character
(using the word Christian in the
broadest sense), has been absolutely
non-sectarian. 1t is free from all de-
nominational control except that. ac-
cording to the terms of a scholarship
founded by Amos Kendall. Postmaster
General in the cabinet of President
Andrew Jackson. one trustee must be
nominated by the Calvary Baptist
Church of Washington as long as the
university makes use of the income of
this fund. which now provides, in
part, for the tuition of one or two stu
dents.
Name still Applied.
LAS a tribute to the Baptist found
ers. the university still applies the
name under which it was organized.
divisions of the department OF arts
and sciences. This college is. in eff
feet. the college of liberal arts of the
university. . The dean of Columbian
College is Prof. William Allen Wilbur.
the widely known Shakespearean
scholar and recognized authority in
rhetoric. He is not only greatly be-
loved in the university. but is a Bap-
tist minister in good and regular
standing. 1 noted with interest that
at the same session at which the
Baptist Association expressed it's dis
approval of the union Of the George
Washington University and the Amer
lean University it sent a message of
congratulation to Brother Warren G..
Harding. the first Baptist to be elect
ed to the presidency of the United