June 30, 1911] 



SCIENCE 



979 



of the world we may value them for their 

 contributions to the past, but their futures 

 we measure in terms of social unity and 

 national purpose. To a despondent ob- 

 server ovir own nation at times appears to 

 lack both unity and a clear vision of its 

 task. Sections, classes, interests, parties, 

 cliques, sects seem to the gloomy onlooker 

 to give the lie to the idea of national 

 unity. Faith in a glorious manifest des- 

 tiny is not the same thing a.s a real sense of 

 national purpose. But beneath all the dis- 

 cord and clash of antagonistic groups, and 

 vaguely emerging from a fatalistic opti- 

 mism, we discern an underlying loyalty to 

 American ideals and a clearer conception 

 of American aim and American duty. 

 Our national greatness will depend upon 

 the growth of loyalty and good will, and 

 upon the working out of an ever clearer 

 conception of America's part in the build- 

 ing of a nobler civilization. 



As with the nation, so with the institu- 

 tion. Consciousness of itself, a sense of 

 team play, loyalty to a common aim, make 

 a university strong and efficient. But the 

 Tiniversity gets its meaning from society 

 and from the nation and therefore must be 

 an expression of the common life. In the 

 words of Dr. Pritchett, "No nation is 

 likely to be educationally efficient until it 

 has grown into some fair possession of a 

 national educational consciousness." The 

 university is one of the agencies of national 

 purpose. "The kings," writes President 

 Jordan, "have recognized the need of uni- 

 versities and university men. In this need 

 Alfred founded Oxford, and Charlemagne 

 the University of Paris. The Emperor 

 William is quoted as saying that 'Bis- 

 marck and von Moltke were but tools in 

 the hands of my august grandfather. ' To 

 furnish more such tools and in all the 

 range of human activity, the University of 

 Berlin was established." 



If the univei-sity, as an organ of society, 

 is to gain strength of purpose it must have 

 a consciousness of its function and duty. 

 Only by such sense of team play can indi- 

 viduals, departments, schools, colleges, fac- 

 ulties, classes, student groups, be fused 

 into genuine unity and rallied to a com- 

 mon loyalty. In general, the university 

 ideal is changing from the thought of per- 

 sonal privilege to the conception of social 

 service, from a preaching of personal cul- 

 ture to a democracy of studies, or in an- 

 other phrase, from culture to efficiency. 

 This does not mean that colleges and uni- 

 versities have not always had some sense of 

 social obligation. But too generally the 

 privileges of higher education were for the 

 favored few who by virtue of their special 

 opportunities were set off from the masses 

 of men. The growth of democracy has 

 made new demands, has widened oppor- 

 tunity, has broken down the barriers of 

 class. Even in the old world, and notably 

 in the new, democracy has created schools, 

 colleges and universities and has chartered 

 them to serve the common welfare. The 

 university has become, therefore, especially 

 in this mid-western region, "the people's 

 organized instrument of research," or as 

 President Van Hise puts it, "the scientific 

 adviser of the state." On every hand we 

 hear variations of this central theme of 

 social service. College presidents and men 

 in political life, each group from its own 

 point of view, insist upon this conception 

 of higher education. In this view the uni- 

 versity appeals to the imagination, it be- 

 comes an organ of the higher life of the 

 community and the state, it connects itself 

 at every point with the industry, com- 

 merce, social conditions, educational inter- 

 ests, ideal purposes of the commonwealth. 



The university as a social agent is en- 

 trusted with certain standards of the com- 

 munity, standards of scientific method and 



