378 



POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



one hand, and to the professional 

 school, on the other, is a problem that 

 may ultimately be solved by the elim- 

 ination of the old-fashioned college. 

 The better high schools overlap the 

 first two years of the vreaker colleges, 

 and the last two years of the college 

 are often given in part to specialized 

 or professional studies. Only one 

 medical student in twelve holds a 

 bachelor's degree. Our college is re- 

 garded as a distinctly American insti- 

 tution and is venerated as such. When 

 there were but few high schools and 

 when professional schools were private 

 ventures, the college was the chief fac- 

 tor in education and culture. It is, 

 however, now struggling for its exist- 

 ence, and has become so hybridized and 

 diversified that there is no typical col- 

 lege. 



The differences of opinion among the 

 college administrators who took part 

 in the discussion at Boston were ex- 

 treme. President Eliot has consist- 

 ently urged a three-year college course, 

 beginning at the age of eighteen, con- 

 sisting of elective studies and required 

 for the professional schools. Dean 

 West said that three years might be 

 quite long enough for electives, but 

 that we should have a four-year course 

 composed of 'disciplinary ' studies. 

 President Harper also favors four 

 years, but allows a sliding scale. 

 President Butler prefers a two-year 

 course for students preparing for the 

 professions, beginning at the age of 

 sixteen or seventeen. All the college 

 officers who spoke at Boston agree, 

 however, that the college course must 

 be prerequisite to the professional 

 schools, at least to the better ones. 

 None of them seemed to regard it as 

 possible that the distinction between 

 ' cultural ' and useful studies is arti- 

 ficial. Certainly none of them sug- 

 gested that the student should be set 

 free to do his work, and the bac- 

 calaureate degree be given him on his 

 twenty first birtliday. 



THE BRITISH ANTARCTIC EX- 

 PEDITION. 



Advices received in England and an- 

 nounced by the president of the Royal 

 Geographical Society and others make 

 it possible to form a reasonably correct 

 estimate of the work accomplished by 

 the British Antarctic Expedition and 

 its present condition. The Morning, 

 the relief ship under the command of 

 Captain Colbeck, sighted the Discovery 

 on Januaiy 23, but owing to the ice 

 pack was not able to approach nearer 

 to it than a distance of five miles. 

 The Morning, having transferred the 

 stores, left the ice on March 2, when 

 there was already danger that she 

 would become shut in. At this time 

 it was hoped that the Discovery might 

 be released from the ice, but this evi- 

 dently proved impossible, as the ship 

 would have reached New Zealand be- 

 fore this. We reproduce from the 

 Journal of the Royal Geographical So- 

 ciety a sketch showing the position of 

 the Discovery, the configuration of the 

 land and the routes taken by the ex- 

 peditions. It will be seen that the ice 

 line was considerably further north in 

 1903 than in 1902, and unless it re- 

 treats in 1904, the Discovery must be 

 abandoned. It is of course necessary 

 under these circumstances to send a 

 relief expedition again next year, and 

 efforts are being made to collect money 

 for this purpose. The government has 

 been applied to for assistance, and the 

 premier in the House of Commons re- 

 cently, while implying that assistance 

 would be granted, rather severely 

 blamed the Royal Geographical Society 

 and the Royal Society for not foresee- 

 ing this need. 



The most dramatic result of the 

 expedition was reaching the point 

 furthest south, at latitude 82° 17', 

 from whicli land could be seen as 

 far south as 83° 30', with mountain 

 ranges and peaks as high as 14,000 feet. 

 The trip was made by Captain Scott, 

 accompanied by Lieutenant Shackleton 



