JUNE 7, 1912] 
representatives should be the heads of the 
various departments, the men who are really 
responsible for the character of the work in 
each department. There is a difficulty here 
with regard to the very large departments, 
such as history, literature or chemistry in a 
university. It might be difficult here to single 
out the one responsible man. The other plan 
would be by the election of representatives by 
the departments of the faculties. This would 
probably be necessary in the philosophical 
faculty. The maximum of representatives for 
each faculty should not be more than twenty. 
In paragraph (4) I agree fully with regard 
to the election of the dean and the nomination 
of professors. The board of advisers I also 
think is an available feature. One of the 
great difficulties which I see in university 
management is that of the removal or non- 
continuance of inefficient men holding minor 
positions. Of course, such minor positions, 
including assistant professors, should be for a 
term of years and at the end of this term the 
position should be regarded as vacant and be 
filled by the best man available. It is much 
easier to say this than to do it. Certainly in 
our medical schools and in the hospitals, if a 
man gets into a minor position he is pretty 
sure to go on to continual advancement irre- 
spective of the character of his work unless 
this has been very bad indeed. Nominations 
by a committee will not obviate this trouble 
because the committee will not seriously con- 
sider this. 
The American college president is certainly 
an anomaly in education; and the wonder is 
that the system involving him works on the 
whole so well. Certainly university faculties 
do not seem well qualified to manage univer- 
sities; and state or national educational 
boards are to be dreaded—Heaven save us! 
Does not the existence of the present system 
show that faculties are unbusinesslike and are 
willing to have some one manage for them? 
The present method presents a strong contrast 
to that of the directors of a mill or manufac- 
turing company—where the matters germane 
to the industry are discussed by a board of 
SCIENCE 
903 
directors with a president who is the execu- 
tive officer. Imagine the feelings of the direc- 
tors if the president should go to another 
body, on which the directors have no repre- 
sentative, and state the opinions of the direc- 
tors as he understands them, or as he desires 
them to be understood. This is the condition 
in most of our universities. The faculties 
should shape the educational reforms of the 
uniyersities—in a council consisting of not 
more than twenty men—heads of great depart- 
ments. The president should carry the votes 
of such a council to the business and legal 
councils of the university to ascertain if there 
are practical objections to the plans of such 
an academic council. Why should one man 
assume to shape the educational future of a 
university ? 
It seems to me that the cooperation of all 
faculty members above and including the rank 
of instructor, should be desired, but how to 
get this is not clear to me. If the apprecia- 
tive sympathy of all the faculty is not had, 
the control surely will go to the “old guard” 
and there it will remain, not permitting the 
careful and at the same time progressive 
policies essential to the health of the univer- 
sity, as a whole, or it will be taken over by 
some clique, which would be equally undesir- 
able. Perhaps the end could be best attained 
by the adoption of a near-republican form of 
control, by which as much authority as feas- 
ible could be delegated, but in which all fac- 
ulty members including instructors should 
have the right to vote and should be eligible 
for service on appropriate committees. The 
chief executive officer should be elected by 
this voting body, and for a definite term of 
years. The professors should also be elected 
by the same body, but for an indefinite period. 
I have no comment to offer on your sugges- 
tions except the single one, that they appear 
to me to be sound in every particular and 
worthy of serious consideration. Such uni- 
versities as have barely escaped shipwreck 
through the use of wrong policies in control 
could well follow the plan laid down by you 
with great profit. 
