300 AS UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT-II 



the supplementary legislation allowing him to make a 

 contract with the State for &quot;locating&quot; the lands, were 

 thought out entirely by himself ; and in all these matters he 

 showed, not only a public spirit far beyond that displayed 

 by any other benefactor of education in his time, but a 

 foresight which seemed to me then, and seems to me now, 

 almost miraculous. He alone, of all men in the United 

 States, was able to foresee what might be done by an 

 individual to develop the land-grant fund, and he alone 

 was willing to make the great personal sacrifice thereby 

 required. 



But, while he thus left the general educational features 

 to me, he uttered, during one of our conversations, words 

 which showed that he had arrived at the true conception 

 of a university. He expressed the hope that in the pro 

 posed institution every student might find instruction in 

 whatever study interested him. Hence came the legend 

 now surrounding his medallion portrait upon the univer 

 sity seal : &quot; I would found an institution where any person 

 can find instruction in any study.&quot; 



The introduction of this new bill into the legislature 

 was a signal for war. Nearly all the denominational col 

 leges girded themselves for the fray, and sent their agents 

 to fight us at Albany; they also stirred up the secular 

 press, without distinction of party, in the regions where 

 they were situated, and the religious organs of their va 

 rious sects in the great cities. 



At the center of the movement against us was the Peo 

 ple s College; it had rallied in force and won over the 

 chairman of the educational committee in the Assembly, 

 so that under various pretexts he delayed considering the 

 bill. Worst of all, there appeared against us, late in the 

 session, a professor from the Genesee College a man of 

 high character and great ability ; and he did his work most 

 vigorously. He brought the whole force of his sect to 

 bear upon the legislature, and insisted that every other 

 college in the State had received something from the pub 

 lic funds, while his had received none. 



