372 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXI. No. 793 



aBnouncement that uiiless the financial and 

 other conditions are decidedly altered, the 

 foundation will find it advisable to with- 

 draw (except in eases of disability and 

 siicli other cases as may be specified) the 

 right of an allowance on the service basis, 

 after the year 1915 or 1920, it may be con- 

 fidently expected that the academic woi'ld 

 will accept this announcement with deep 

 regret, but without that feeling of right- 

 eous indignation or moral resentment which 

 is so forcibly expressed by the writer of 

 the editorial just cited. The first and para- 

 mount obligation is for the foundation to 

 clear its record and restore confidence in 

 the value of its mission, in the directness 

 of its methods, and the unquestioned ac- 

 ceptance of its obligations. A ten-year 

 period is none too long for such an an- 

 nouncement; for it may well be that with 

 the situation clearly foreseen, measures 

 may be taken to continue the service retire- 

 ment upon some modified basis which will 

 tend to the advancement of the profession, 

 and to the retention of the influence of the 

 foundation. 



To proceed to the consideration of the 

 situation as it stands: The report shows 

 that as yet only one fourth of the funds 

 for retirement allowances is expended for 

 service grants, while three fourths of the 

 funds go for age grants. It appears that 

 this is regarded as a large ratio ; but that 

 depends upon how one views the desirabil- 

 ity and the value of service allowances. 

 One who believes strongly in the value of 

 such allowances will hold that to them 

 might properly (in an experience of twenty 

 to thirty years) be assigned the larger 

 rather than the smaller share of the funds. 

 But the argument advanced by the report 

 expresses dissatisfaction with the working 

 of this retirement provision for the follow- 

 ing reasons, and concludes that the service 

 pension for professors is a mistake : First, 

 that universities are likely to bring undue 



pressure to bear to retire professors who 

 are willing and should be permitted to con- 

 tinue their service. Second, that there will 

 arise a "tendency of the teacher assui'ed of 

 a retiring allowance to become ultra-crit- 

 ical toward the administration." Third, 

 that the hope that such allowances would 

 prove an aid to research is one which on 

 the whole seems illusive. Fourth, that too 

 many men accept the allowance because 

 they are tired of teaching, or wish to go 

 into business, or to engage in some activity 

 irrelevant to the purpose of the foundation. 

 "It seems that this rule offers too large a 

 temptation to certain qualities of universal 

 human nature" — but yet, if universal, why 

 were they not considered three or four 

 years ago? Fifth, that of forty men re- 

 tired on this basis, only twelve retired for 

 disability. This is regarded as a dispro- 

 portion, although there is nothing in the 

 original provision which suggests that the 

 main purpose of the rule was to provide for 

 cases of disability. Sixth, while there is no 

 explicit statement that this is a cause for 

 the action, the conclusion may be inferred 

 that a continuance of this policy woiild 

 overtax the available funds. 



To the first it might be replied that if 

 the universities so offend, the foundation 

 should withdraw the right of retirement 

 by the universities until they can show good 

 cause for their actions ; to the second, that 

 the sin of being critical towards the admin- 

 istration is a form of lese majeste not likely 

 to be seriously regarded in a professedly 

 democratic community, at all events not so 

 seriously as to cancel a right (?) to a pen- 

 sion ; to the third, that it all depends upon 

 what manner of men occupy professorial 

 chairs, and that the purpose of the founda- 

 tion is to so improve conditions that the 

 right type of men may more readily be 

 induced to enter this career ; to the fourth, 

 that the needlessly severe conditions of the 



