NA TURE 



405 



THURSDAY, MARCH i, 1894. 



THE REPORT OF THE GRESHAM 

 UNIVERSITY COMMISSION. 



THE "Report of the Commissioners appointed to 

 consider the Draft Charter for the proposed 

 Gresham University in London, together with Dis- 

 sentient and other Notes," is a document of sixty-three 

 pages full of important matter from beginning to end. 

 It bears evidence of very careful thought, and is worth 

 attentive study. 



The Commissioners accept at once two principles, 

 both of which were included in, and one of which was 

 peculiar to, the scheme of the Association for promoting 

 a Professorial University in London.^ They lay it down 

 that there should be one University only in the metropolis, 

 and that the changes which they recommend should be 

 eflfected not by Charter, but by legislative authority, and 

 by the appointment of a Statutory Commission. They 

 thus adopt the only satisfactory theoretical solution of 

 the problem, and the only possible way of putting theory 

 into practice. Every one is tired of the game in which 

 the shuttlecock is tossed backwards and forwards from 

 the University to the Colleges, from the Senate to 

 Convocation. London and learning cannot wait in- 

 definitely. The time has come when Parliament must 

 arbitrate between conflicting views and interests. 



The Commissioners also decide that the same 

 University is capable of carrying on simultaneously 

 systems of internal and external examinations, though 

 Prof. Sidgwick has thought it right to express his dis- 

 approval of this conclusion. 



They further propose that the scope of the University 

 shall be enlarged in respect both of the subject-matter 

 and the method of its teaching, so as to include six 

 Faculties, viz. .Arts, Science, Medicine, Law, Theology, 

 and Music. 



The first two of these are, of course, fundamental, 

 and we hope that even if difficulties should arise 

 with regard to the others, the foundation of a 

 Teaching University in London, with the Faculties 

 of Arts and Science only, will not thereby be pre- 

 vented. If the existing University and the institu- 

 tions of University rank which are chiefly interested in 

 Arts and Science can be united, a most important result 

 will have been achieved. The law of gravitation will in 

 time do the rest. 



We shall, therefore, confine ourselves chiefly to the 

 proposals of the Commissioners with respect to Arts and 

 Science, but a mere recapitulation of their recommenda- 

 tions would be of little interest unless the points of 

 agreement with or divergence from previous schemes 

 were indicated. 



We propose, then, in the first instance to institute 

 a comparison between the scheme of the Commissioners 

 and three of the more important proposals which have 

 been made in the course of the long discussion as to the 

 best constitution for a Teaching University in the 

 metropolis. The abortive Gresham Scheme may at once 

 be put on one side. Its authors aimed at founding a 



1 This will be hereafter referred to as the Association Scheme. 

 NO. 1270, VOL. 49] 



second University in London. Everyone now agrees 

 that there should be one only. The schemes which we 

 select for our purpose are (i) the so-called Revised 

 Scheme, which was approved by the Senate but rejected 

 by the Convocation of the University of London ; (2) 

 the scheme approved in 1893 by Convocation ; and (3) 

 the Association Scheme. 



The "Revised Scheme" and that of Convocation 

 differ from the others in that their authors contemplate 

 the possibility of the University having direct relations 

 with educational institutions outside the metropolitan 

 area. As it is probable that the teaching operations of 

 the new University will be confined to London, we shall 

 pass over this point without further reference. 



The Association and Convocation agree in fashioning 

 the University out of materials which closely correspond 

 to the " Chancellor, Masters, and Scholars " of our older 

 seats of learning. On the other hand, the Revised Scheme 

 and that of the Commissioners make a beginning with 

 such bodies as the Senate, Convocation, &c. The matter 

 is not of fundamental importance, but it is necessary to 

 refer to it as the phrase " the University shall consist of" 

 is applied in different ways. 



Putting this difference aside, the government of the 

 University is distributed among various bodies named 

 as follows : — 



In what follows we shall use the word Senate to desig- 

 nate the Supreme Governing Body of the University. 

 Its constitution under the different schemes is as 

 follows : — 



It will be observed that while but slightly reducing the 

 absolute number of members claimed by Convocation 



S 



