NOVEMBEB 13, 190S] 



SCIENCE 



663 



primary function is to furnish an effective 

 form of general education. Our students 

 come to us during four years of the most 

 critical period of life, when their habits of 

 thought and ideals of life are being 

 formed; and we must appreciate the seri- 

 ousness of the trust which is thereby im- 

 posed upon us. It is of comparatively 

 little significance whether the student ac- 

 quires more or less knowledge of mathe- 

 matics, chemistry, physics or engineering; 

 but it is vitally important that his mental 

 power, his general culture, his character 

 and his ideals be adequately developed. 

 We must, therefore, take care not to in- 

 terpret our function as teachers too nar- 

 rowly; but we must each of us improve 

 every opportunity for contributing to the 

 more general and more important result 

 which the institute has in view. The 

 means for attaining this result certainly 

 deserve especial consideration in a talk on 

 teaching. I have already expressed my 

 ideas at some length on the development of 

 mental power. Owing to the limited time 

 remaining, I shall not attempt to discuss 

 the means of developing those important 

 qualities which are summed up in the word 

 "culture"; but I should like to consider 

 with you briefly the still more vital ques- 

 tion of what can be done to develop char- 

 acter and high ideals. The indefiniteness 

 of the methods by which this may be ac- 

 complished makes the subject a particu- 

 larly difficult one; but it must not be 

 passed over on this account. 



The methods of the institute are espe- 

 cially adapted to develop those habits' 

 which go to the formation of character. 

 To meet the demands of our curriculum, 

 the student must be willing to subordinate 

 pleasure to duty; he must work industri- 

 ously and persistently; he must, too, work 

 rapidly, whereby he comes to appreciate 

 the • value of time. Our scientific courses 

 offer, moreover, special opportunities for 



inculcating habits of accuracy, reliability, 

 clearness of expression, neatness and order- 

 liness ; and we must insist that the work be 

 so carried out that these benefits do in fact 

 result. Careless or slovenly work of any 

 kind must be vigorously condemned. "We 

 should see that note-books be kept in a neat 

 and orderly manner; that reports be 

 written clearly in good literary form ; that 

 in the class-room accuracy of expression be 

 cultivated; that the numerical work con- 

 nected with problems be accurately per- 

 formed (nothing like full credit being 

 given when merely "the principle is cor- 

 rect") ; and that every reasonable effort be 

 made to verify an experimental result or 

 confirm a conclusion before it is accepted 

 as final. The teacher of any science who 

 says it is not his business to attend to these' 

 things does not, in my opinion, understand 

 his business, which is not so much to teach 

 the subject-matter of the science as it is 

 to teach scientific method and to cultivate 

 the scientific spirit. 



Yet the formation of character, impor- 

 tant as it is, is by no means the whole of 

 this side of our task. The qualities that 

 make up a good character in the narrower 

 sense are, after all, only "the half -virtues 

 which the world calls best. ' ' That the man 

 may be really effective, these must be sup- 

 plemented by high ideals of service, a 

 strong purpose in life, and a real devotion 

 to it. With respect to means of imparting 

 such ideals, I have only a few thoughts to 

 present. 



In the first place, I believe that, to ac- 

 complish much in this direction, we must 

 get into personal relations with the student. 

 Thereby many different opportunities of 

 influencing him are opened to us. To begin 

 with, we set him the example of rendering 

 unselfish service to others by giving him 

 individual aid beyond that which our for- 

 mal obligations in class-room and labora- 

 tory demand. Let us make it clear to him 



