SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XI. No. 262. 



strict myself, therefore, to remarks upon his 

 earlier work in this university and his in- 

 fluence as an educator rather than as a 

 specialist. 



I firmly believe that no one can fully 

 understand and fairly evaluate Dr. Orton's 

 services to the university during the first 

 ten years of its existence who was not him- 

 self in some way or other a part of its offi- 

 cial organization during those years, and in 

 close touch with methods and motives by 

 which its future career was determined, 

 and I must ask your indulgence in a brief 

 statement of some of the conditions under 

 which the institution came into existence. 



The Act of Congress which created this 

 and many other noble institutions of learn- 

 ing, having been passed in the most dis- 

 couraging and gloomy year of the great 

 Civil War, did not receive immediate con- 

 sideration and acceptance by many of the 

 States, and in Ohio there was a delay of 

 nearly ten years before those interested saw 

 definite promise of the actual realization of 

 their hopes. In the meantime and during 

 the latter part of this period there was much 

 necessary and useful discussion in regard 

 to the character and scope of the proposed 

 school. Innumerable schemes for utilizing 

 the prospective income were thrust upon 

 the public, and there was much strength in 

 support of a division of the fund among 

 several existing institutions. The first 

 board of trustees courageously resisted all 

 attempts to destroy by disintegration, and 

 it was finally determined that the institu- 

 tion should be located at Columbus and 

 known as the Ohio Agricultural and Me- 

 chanical College. 



The field of controversy was now greatly 

 narrowed, but was, perhaps, correspond- 

 ingly more intense. The character of the 

 work of the new school, the scope of its 

 courses and their relation to the require- 

 ments of a liberal education were yet to be 

 determined. On the one hand were those 



who urged a generous interpretation of the 

 Act of 1862, and who believed that it was 

 primarily intended to furnish the founda- 

 tion of an institution which might in time 

 become a great university for all of the 

 people ; that while, in the provisions of the 

 Act the nation had determined to fortify 

 and invigorate the two great sources of the 

 State's material prosperity, agriculture and 

 manufactures, especial emphasis had also 

 been placed upon the importance of foster- 

 ing the more purely intellectual or culture 

 components of a well-rounded course of 

 study, for it was specifically directed that 

 these must not be neglected. On the other, 

 was a considerable group of men, equally 

 honest, conscientious and well meaning, 

 who wished to organize a school, intensely 

 practical in tone and atmosphere, in which 

 even science would have found no place 

 except as applied science, and which would 

 have offered little opportunity to those — 

 and, fortunately, thej' are many — who seek 

 to show their right to labor in the higher re- 

 gions of more purely intellectual activity. 

 Both sides of this most important contro- 

 versy were represented by strong men in the 

 first board of trustees, and it is but justice 

 to all to say that the conflict was waged in 

 a manner worthy of the dignity of the 

 occasion and of the great trust for which 

 they had become responsible. I cannot 

 here even refer to the various phases of this 

 discussion or to those who were most active 

 and influential in shaping the organization 

 of the school, nor can I omit saying that to 

 the first president of the board of trus- 

 tees, Valentine B. Horton, and to Joseph 

 Sullivant, then and long one of the leading 

 citizens of Columbus and of Ohio, the Uni- 

 versity will ever be indebted for the exer- 

 cise of a courage, tact and unwearying 

 effort that went far to put the institution 

 in the way of being what it has been, is, 

 and is sure to be in the future. Fortu- 

 nately, they were supported by many others 



