554 Report S.A.A. Advancement of Science. 



scornful, and determined never to move. As a matter of fact, they 

 had been looking forward to the necessity of a change of this kind for 

 a long time past. He might remind the meeting that there would 

 have been no possibility of even such a discussion as this until the 

 Colleges were in existence and properly equipped. The discussion 

 really originated in the heart of the University Council itself. They 

 all entered fully into the discussion, and a committee of the Council 

 was appointed, of which he was a member, to formulate some scheme 

 of improvement. 



His view might perhaps be somewhat unwelcome to the majority, 

 but he felt bound to confess, while disclaiming any desire to sit in 

 the seat of the scornful, that he was rather for moderation in any 

 forward movement. He doubted if they had yet arrived at the 

 stage when they could take a very gigantic stride. He had, 

 however, been for years in favour of steady and gradual progress in 

 the direction of drawing the various Colleges more closely together. 

 For many years he had advocated that professors and teachers should 

 be examiners, and that Colleges should have something to say as to 

 whether the student should get his degree or not. They might there- 

 fore look upon him as having been for manv years in favour of 

 steady, moderate improvement, although at the present moment he 

 was in opposition to any violent change. 



It appeared to him that during the present discussion several 

 things had been tacitly assumed. One thing which had been assumed 

 was that their University was in exactly the same position as that 

 of London when it was purely an examining body. There was this 

 difference — that while it was true that the Cape University was an 

 examining body, it was an examining body which was almost entirely 

 in the hands of the Colleges themselves. The Universitv Council was 

 predominantly made up of the representatives of the three Colleges. 

 The examiners were selected by them. It was purely by reason of 

 an Act of Parliament that the examiners were not selected from them. 

 But the examiners were selected bv them, and the syllabus was drawn 

 up in accordance with their instructions. The whole thing was 

 practically in their hands. There were other elements in the 

 University, which filled a gap, for, after all, the Colleges were not 

 Universities in the real sense of the term. The attempt had been 

 made by the University Council to represent every intellectual 

 interest, every educational agency, every forward movement in the 

 intellectual life of the country. It might be a very bad attempt, but 

 if anvone could shqw them how to do it better thev would be grateful. 



Another assumption was that either there must be affiliation, or 

 federation, or separation, or, failinc either of ^hese, the status quo. 

 Now, there was, logically speaking, a gap here. A little possibility 

 had been omitted. It was perfectlv possible to evolve, but the status 

 quo would not remain. The Council was now a different organisation 

 to what it was vears ago. Progress had been more rapid during the 

 last few vears than for fifteen years previouslv, and it had been 

 in proportion to the progress of the Colleges. Now that the Colleges 



