300 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



that they went out of their way to declare that a study of Latin and 

 Greek is absolutely essential to high excellence in any department of 

 intellectual effort ! 



All these reports, both those of 1869 and those of later years, 

 so far as they were made by the faculties, were as a rule drafted 

 by volunteers in the faculty, and some rabidly classical man gener- 

 ally offered to do the work. When his report was laid before the 

 faculty, many voted for it, or refrained from voting against it, for 

 the simple reason that they did not have time to offer such modifi- 

 cations as they would like to have seen made in the language or 

 matter of the report. Thus, the writer was told by one professor 

 in a university which sent in a very strong report in favor of the 

 gymnasiasts as against the real-school graduates : " Professor So- 

 and-so " (mentioning his name — one well known in Germany) " drew 

 up our report. He is perfectly crazy on the subject, but there was 

 no one else to do it, and after he submitted it we did not want to do 

 such an ungracious thing as reject a service which nobody else would 

 undertake. I voted for his report, though I should have been glad to 

 have a much more moderate and judicial report than the one we sent 

 in." It thus appears that these reports were prepared by men who 

 were not only graduates of the gymnasium, but who were also, in some 

 cases at least, regarded by their own friends as extremists. Add to 

 this the fact that there were no representatives of the real schools in the 

 reporting board who might have called attention to exaggerations or 

 misstatements, whether intentional or unintentional, and it is pretty 

 clear that these reports can not be called judicial, either in their form 

 or spirit, but partake largely of the character of advocates' pleas. 



It would be fair to suppose, however, that these men would at 

 least examine the tacts in the case as to how these real-school gradu- 

 ates turned out in after-life, before making a report on their compara- 

 tive ability. But even this supposition turns out to be an unfounded 

 one. As is well known, there is no general system of recitation and 

 record-keeping in German universities, such as we have in our Ameri- 

 can colleges. The professor has, therefore, as a rule, no means of 

 judging of a student's attainments. There are no examinations except 

 the final one for a doctor's degree. The only institution bearing a 

 resemblance to our recitation is the Seminar, a voluntary organization 

 which many students never enter, and which varies greatly in char- 

 acter, according to the temperament of the professor in charge or to 

 the subject-matter discussed. Being at times a society for the train- 

 ing of the members in the power of independent investigation and 

 research, it becomes often a mere " quiz," or indeed but little more 

 than a two hours' lecture on the part of the leader. With the excep- 

 tion of those students who enter the Seminar, the professor has no 

 means of judging of the ability or training of the university students. 

 The only test, therefore, is the record of such students in the final 



