CORRESPONDENCE. 359 
The Morrill Bill of 1862, which gave the foundation of many of 
the state colleges — with its supplement of 1890 — and the Hatch Bill 
of 1887, which founded the Agricultural Experiment Stations, together 
form the basis for higher education and research in the states at the 
expense of the national government. An extension of this kind of 
support to the higher departments of learning in the states would 
disseminate the interest and give opportunity for training in research. 
By this means all of the degree-conferring machinery of a national 
university could be relegated to the universities of the states. 
The selection which Dr. Dall, in the American Naturalist for 
February, mentions as necessary before students shall be admitted to 
opportunity in the government departments at Washington would 
thus be accomplished. A thesis for Doctorate would be the test for 
ability to use the opportunity. 
By generous cooperation certain resources of the departments 
could be used by a special student without expecting instruction in 
the ordinary sense from the chief of divisions, and thus not be a 
burden. 
The recent address of President Harper before the University Club 
of New York outlines a plan for a federation of universities which 
may make the basis for a national university. Some such plan as 
this, modified by the combined wisdom of a committee of experts, can 
surely solve the problem of the university side of the question, ż.e., 
what branches of learning can to best advantage be furthered in any 
one university. 
The unification of the Scientific Bureaus of Washington, the exact 
degree in which they can give opportunity for research without 
impairment of their usefulness, — these questions should be discussed 
and carefully considered by experts also; but the serious difficulty 
of opening these Bureaus to students comes from the possible great 
number of applicants who would be attracted by a free opportunity. 
There are 4000 graduate students in the universities of the United 
States. The number is rapidly increasing, and there may before long 
be 10,000 students who might apply for admission to opportunity in 
Washington, thus embarrassing and clogging all work. Therefore a 
larger outlook must be taken by those who advocate a national uni- 
versity. A plan must be devised whereby the government may do its 
share toward the support of graduate instruction in universities and 
also more generously support the real research done under government 
auspices. 
The government lands are, perhaps, too nearly exhausted to make 
