914 



REVIEW OF REVIEWS. 



y'ovcinhvr I, 1913. 



In addition a large sum — ii^ 128,000 — 

 is required for building purposes. Un- 

 less these indicated by the committee 

 as the minimum are erected, the Univer- 

 sity, instead of advancing during the 

 next decade, will remain stationary, if 

 indeed it does not lose ground. The 

 chief requirements are-: — - 

 Library enlargement. Admini- 

 stration Offices i^6o,ooo 



Natural Philosophy labora- 

 tories, building for Botany 

 and Agriculture, outlay on 

 Agricultural Farm, and on 

 the Geological Department ... ^^^39,000 

 E-rilargement of the Medical 



School iJ^20,ooo 



Conservatorium of Music, out- 

 lay on Metallurgy and 



Che'mistry i, 9,000 



The above sums are to be spent dur- 

 ing the next ten years. The committee 

 ])oints out that its demands are mode- 

 rate when compared with what has been 

 spent at Sydney, and in Scotland: — 

 Proposed capital expenditure 

 ' on Melbourne University 



during next decade iJ'128,000 



Capital expenditure on Syd- 

 ney Universit}- during last 



decade ... ... /;^200,ooo 



Four Scotch Universities dur- 

 ing the last five years, from 

 the Carnegie grant alone ... i^200,ooo 



AGAINST A FREE UNIVERSITY. 



The committee cotild not apj^rove of 



a " free Universit)-," if that means the 



opening of its portals to all comers 



without an\- payment of fee, because — 



(a) Such an experiment would involve 

 too heavy a drain ujion the finances of 

 the State. 



(b) The inevitable tendenc\- of such a 

 system would be to swell the numbers 

 of those who are temjjted to tr}- their 

 fortunes in professions for which they 

 have no aptitude, with the result of dis- 

 appointment, and often disaster to them- 

 selves, while the State would suffer from 



lion of this character by his donation of 

 two million pounds to the four Scotch 

 Universities. His idea was that the fees 

 of every student, provided he applied 

 ■for the exemption, should be ])aid for 

 him. In actual practice, the experiment 

 was not so successful as anticipated. 



For these and other reasons the com- 

 mittee does not see its wa)- to advise 

 such an experiment in \'^ictoria. 



The committee, realising that the pre- 

 sent methods of government are both 

 unsuitable and inadequate, devotes con- 

 siderable space in its report to the ques- 

 tion of administration. It advises that 

 the government of the University shall 

 be vested in a council of 34, composed 

 as follows : — 



President of the University (ex 

 officio), one ; Director of Education (ex 

 officio), one ; heads of affiliated colleges 

 (ex officio), three (to be increased to four 

 if the proposed Roman Catholic college 

 be established) ; co-opted members, 

 four ; members appointed by the fol- 

 lowing : -- Legislative Council two, 

 Legislative Assembl}' two, Governor in 

 Council three, professorial board ii\e, 

 graduates of the L^niversity 12, under- 

 graduates one. 



A PERMANENT HEAD REQUIRED. 

 The committee is of opinion that the 

 rapid growth of the Universit)- and the 

 continuous increase in its opportunities 

 of educational service call for the ap- 

 ]")ointment, as soon as possible, of a chief 

 governing officer, corresponding in func- 

 tions w ith the president of an American 

 LIniversity or the principal of a Scottish ' 

 University. It would be the duty of 

 such an officer to keep himself ac- 

 quainted with the proceedings of all the 

 departments of the L'niversity, and to 

 be a connecting link between them, pro- 

 moting their harmonious operation, anfl 

 securing the co-ordination of their work. 



Another recommendation of the Com- 

 mittee is that the Senate shall in future 

 be called the Convocation, and that all 



diverting into uni)rofitable channels the graduates, irrespective of sex, who are 21 



)-ears of age and over, should be mem- 

 bers thereof. Notwithstanding this en- 

 largement of the body the Convocation 



energies of students who might have 

 found useful and productive careers in 

 other occupations ; and 



(c) Mr. Andrew Carnegie made an at- 

 tempt to institute free l^niversity educa- 



is to enjoy all the present power of the 

 Senate. 



