9 2 



POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



opens the main problem before the in- 

 stitution, namely, whether it shall con- 

 duct several great laboratories for re- 

 search or shall cooperate with existing 

 institutions. There is doubtless much 

 to be said on both sides. It appears 

 from a series of articles by leading sci- 

 entific men, published in reeent issues 

 of Science, that opinion is pretty 

 equally divided. Some hold that the 

 resources of the institution can be 

 best utilized in the establishment of 

 laboratories at Washington or else- 

 where, while others think that for the 

 present at least assistance should be 

 given where it appears to be most 

 needed. There is in either case some 

 danger of too great centralization of 

 power and of interference with indi- 

 vidual initiative, and with agencies 

 supported or likely to be supported 

 from other sources. As a labor saving 

 invention may at first disorganize a 

 trade, though in the end for the benefit 

 of society, so the great resources of 

 the Carnegie Institution must be used 

 with discretion if there is not to be a 

 temporary inhibition of other agencies. 

 When compared with any similar 

 agency, the funds of the Carnegie Insti- 

 tution are bewilderingly large. Thus 

 in his presidential address before the 

 British Association, Professor Dewar 

 stated that the Carnegie Institution 

 will dispose in a year of as much 

 money as the members of the Royal 

 Institution have expended in a century 

 on its purely scientific work. The 

 other institution most like that en- 

 dowed by Mr. Carnegie is the Smith- 

 sonian, whose endowment was about 

 equal to the annual income of the Car- 

 negie Institution. Compared, how- 

 ever, with certain other agencies, for 

 example, the U. S. Geological Survey, 

 with its appropriation of $1,300,000, 

 the funds of the Carnegie Institution 

 are limited, and it is evident that they 

 must be used economically, without any 

 attempt to rival the government or 

 universities, but doing what can be 



done only by an institution so unique 

 in its possibilities. 



THE COLLEGE AND THE UNI- 

 VERSITY. 



The first report of President Butler 

 to the trustees of Columbia University 

 exhibits the benefit of a university pres- 

 ident's being from the outset a student 

 of educational problems. The domes- 

 tic economy of the university is re- 

 viewed in a masterly fashion, and ques- 

 tions of wide-reaching importance for 

 the development of the educational in- 

 stitutions of the country are discussed 

 by an acknowledged leader. The most 

 pressing problem is the relation of the 

 college to the university, and here Pres- 

 ident Butler outlines a policy which 

 while radical appears to be in the line 

 of advance. The plan of Harvard, 

 Johns Hopkins and to a certain ex- 

 tent of Columbia has been to require a 

 college degree for entrance to the pro- 

 fessional schools. Students now enter 

 the freshman class of these univer- 

 sities at the age of eighteen or nineteen. 

 If they follow a four years' course at 

 college and a three or four years' course 

 in the professional school, they are on 

 the average twenty-five years of age 

 before they begin actual work with a 

 period of apprenticeship before them. 

 This is wrong both economically and 

 educationally. Only the sons of the 

 rich, who accept parental support when 

 they should themselves be heads of 

 families, are able to enter professional 

 careers. The actual practice essential 

 to professional work is postponed 

 until the age of plasticity is passed. 



President Eliot has long advocated a 

 college course of three years, making it 

 at the same time elective, so that a 

 certain amount of work preparatory to 

 the professions can be done at college. 

 Columbia University admits seniors to 

 its schools of medicine and law, per- 

 mitting them to count part of their 

 professional work toward the bachelor's 

 degree. President Butler now advo- 



