PROBLEMS IN TRAINING MINING ENGINEERS 649 



willing "to begin at the beginning and give their whole heart to the 

 work" is because their education has often been so exclusively 

 theoretical that they are filled with the conceit of learning, and they 

 have an inordinate idea of their untried abilities. Hence their un- 

 willingness "to begin at the beginning." They feel that they ought 

 to begin at the end and be put in charge of everything. If, in their 

 training, theory and practice had gone hand in hand, this conceit, 

 which is natural to all young men, would have been soon dissipated 

 by the hard realities of practice, and the young men would have been 

 more willing "to begin at the beginning," and more ready and able 

 "to give their whole heart to the work." 



At the same time I cannot help thinking that Mr. Edison must 

 have been unfortunate in his choice of "college-bred assistants," or 

 in the colleges that trained them; for in opposition to his experience 

 may be quoted the practice of a large number of his important rivals 

 in the electrical business and of an increasing number of iron and 

 steel railway bridge construction, and mining and smelting com- 

 panies, to draw upon the graduates of engineering schools for their 

 assistants; and where they wisely insist on the men beginning at the 

 bottom and working their way up according to merit, the results have 

 been, on the whole, more and more satisfactory as the engineering 

 schools have adjusted themselves more closely to their environment. 

 I have given these strong statements of the failings of college-bred 

 men, not to indorse them, but because they contain an important 

 truth that must be recognized and met. 



This condition of public opinion has from the very first forced the 

 American mining schools to stand on their own merits. Whatever 

 success they have achieved has been due to this hard necessity. 1 The 

 atmosphere surrounding European mining schools is so different from 



1 I append in this connection the following concise and caustic note from the 

 Engineering and Mining Journal, p. 403, June 12, 1880, which shows the con- 

 dition of affairs in America only 25 years ago. The hope expressed in the last 

 paragraph has since been largely realized to the benefit of all concerned. 



"A correspondent writes us, asking 'If it is absolutely necessary to be a gradu- 

 ate of a school of mines before being able to engage in the business of a mining 

 engineer.' Certainly not; in fact, before engaging in the business of mining 

 engineering it does not appear to be absolutely necessary that a man should know 

 anything at all, as our correspondent can very well satisfy himself by visiting 

 nine out of ten of the mines nearest to him, wherever he may be. Had our cor- 

 respondent asked, whether it would be desirable that a man should be a graduate 

 of a school of mines before engaging in mining engineering, we should have an- 

 swered in the affirmative, for the simple reason that the course of study in a 

 school of mines is calculated to give the elementary education necessary for a 

 mining engineer, and, other things being equal, should give its recipient an ad- 

 vantage over those who have learned the business only in practice. The course 

 of study in a school of mines is not, however, sufficient to qualify a mining engin- 

 eer to take charge of important works ; but it forms an excellent foundation upon 

 which to build a practical knowledge of the business. 



" Many of our mines are now under the direction of competent engineers and 

 the results of this policy are justifying the hope that, before very long, all com- 

 panies of good standing will place their mines in charge of men specially trained 

 for the discharge of the responsible and important duties of a mining engineer." 



