A PLEA FOR PURE SCIENCE. 37 



following tables, however, of three hundred and thirty so-called col- 

 leges and universities : 



218 had from to 100 students. 

 88 " " 100 " 200 

 12 « " 200 ** 300 « 

 6 " " 300 " 500 " 

 6 over 500 



Of three hundred and twenty-two so-called colleges and universities — 



206 had to 10 in the faculty. 

 99 " 10 " 20 « " 

 17 " 20 or over " " 



If the statistics were forthcoming — and possibly they may exist — 

 we might also get an idea of the standing of these institutions and 

 their approach to the true university idea, by the average age of the 

 scholars. Possibly also the ratio of number of scholars to teachers 

 might be of some help. All these methods give an approximation to 

 the present standing of the institutions. But there is another method 

 of attacking the problem, which is very exact, but it only gives us 

 the possibilities of which the institution is capable. I refer to the 

 wealth of the institution. In estimating the wealth, I have not in- 

 cluded the value of grounds and buildings, for this is of little impor- 

 tance, either to the present or future standing of the institution. As 

 good work can be done in a hovel as in a palace. I have taken the 

 productive funds of the institution as the basis of estimate. I find — 



234 have below $500,000. 



8 " between $500,000 and $1,000,000. 

 8 « over $1,000,000. 



There is no fact more firmly established, all over the world, than 

 that the higher education can never be made to pay for itself. Usu- 

 ally the cost to a college, of educating a young man, very much ex- 

 ceeds what he pays for it, and is often three or four times as much. 

 The higher the education, the greater this proportion will be ; and a 

 university of the highest class should anticipate only a small accession 

 to its income from the fees of students. Hence the test I have applied 

 must give a true representation of the possibilities in every case. Ac- 

 cording to the figures, only sixteen colleges and universities have 

 $500,000 or over of invested funds, and only one half of these have 

 $1,000,000 and over. Now, even the latter sum is a very small endow- 

 ment for a college ; and to call any institution a university which has 

 less than $1,000,000 is to render it absurd in the face of the world. 

 And yet more than one hundred of our institutions, many of them 

 very respectable colleges, have abused the word " university " in this 

 manner. It is to be hoped that the endowment of the more respect- 

 able of these institutions may be increased, as many of them deserve 



