May 31, 1912] 
partment. Its total imcome should be 
held as a trust fund, to be decreased only 
after full and public investigation. The 
laboratories, rooms, apparatus, equipment, 
library, ete., should be held in trust for 
the department, to be taken away against 
its will only for clear reasons and on the 
recommendation of a competent faculty 
committee. Under these conditions the 
members of a department will plan on a 
safe basis for the future, and will seek to 
increase its funds and facilities. I know 
of a case in which a professor obtained a 
eift of $100,000, made expressly ‘‘to in- 
crease the facilities of the department,’’ 
and the income was assigned by the presi- 
dent and trustees to pay the salary of that 
professor against his earnest protest. I 
also know of a case in which a depart- 
ment which had built up one of the strong- 
est laboratories in the country had those of 
its rooms especially devoted to research 
taken away and given to a weak depart- 
ment, to induce a certain professor to ac- 
cept a call from elsewhere to the headship 
of the weak department. These are of 
course extreme cases and might seem in- 
credible, if it were not that interference 
with the vested rights of departments is 
of frequent occurrence. 
The Harvard plan of visiting committees 
which may take an active interest in the 
educational work and financial support of 
departments is commendable. Under the 
existing trustee system it might be well if 
one trustee would concern himself espe- 
cially with one or two departments, at- 
tending their meetings and doing what he 
could to advance their interests. There can 
to advantage be within the university de- 
partments related to its educational work, 
but under independent control. Thus the 
most useful and vigorous division of Co- 
lumbia University, with the possible excep- 
tion of the faculty of political science, is 
SCIENCE 
857 
the Teachers College, which is under its 
own trustees with a dean and faculty re- 
sponsible to them. As a department of 
education under the trustees of Columbia 
College, it would probably have had no 
more leadership than the departments at 
Harvard or Yale. The educational alli- 
ance between Columbia University and the 
Union Theological Seminary is far better 
than a school of theology under the trus- 
tees of the university. There is no valid 
objection to two schools of law or two 
schools of chemistry, independently con- 
trolled, but enjoying the advantages of 
educational affiliation with a university. 
Endowed research institutions and munici- 
pal, state or governmental bureaus, can to 
advantage be placed near a university, con- 
tributing to and gaining from its educa- 
tional work. 
Appointments and the apportionment of 
funds are said to be questions insoluble 
under democratic control. But in spite of 
the difficulties the case is not so bad as au- 
toeratic one-man power. If there are fixed 
salaries with automatic increases, only 
three or four decisions must be made. 
Shall this man be appointed instructor? 
Shall he be appointed junior professor 
after five or ten years of service as in- 
structor? Shall he be appointed full pro- 
fessor after five or ten years of service as 
junior professor? Who shall be appointed 
to super-professorships, if such exist? As 
a matter of fact under the existing system 
instructors and junior professors are nearly 
always nominated by the department or its 
head. They alone have the necessary in- 
formation in regard to the men and the 
situation. The nomination of a full pro- 
fessor can be entrusted better to the depart- 
ment concerned than to a president. But 
such an appointment being for life and of 
immense consequence can not be too care- 
fully guarded. It should be passed on by 
