USA > New York > Tompkins County > Landmarks of Tompkins County, New York : including a history of Cornell University > Part 52
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In accepting his resignation the board expressed the hope that after a period of needed change and rest Mr. White might renew his relations to the university in a more congenial and less exacting position and give it the prestige of his high character and attainments. They there- fore requested that he would accept the nomination to act as honorary president of the university, and
Resolved, That the Legislature be requested to amend the charter so as to make the first president of the university a member of the Board of Trustees for life.
The position of honorary president he declined in a letter from Paris dated December 22, 1885. While recognizing the confidence and kind- ness shown to him by the trustees in unanimously offering to him the honorary presidency of the university, he stated that he felt obliged to decline this especial honor on various grounds, "the most important being the consideration that there should not seem to be any division in the executive responsibility." After expressing his grateful apprecia- tion of the proffer of the board to secure legislation making him a trustee for life, he declined this honor from a dislike to special legisla- tion of the sort required and distrust regarding the precedent which would be established and requested that the resolution be allowed to rest simply as a most striking expression of confidence. The faculty of the university at a meeting to be held on the same day expressed its sorrow at the severing of the relation which had lasted since the earliest existence of the university, and formed an essential part in the official life of every one of its members, and which on his side had been sus- tained with great wisdom and great labor, with inexhaustible enthu- siasm, with constant self-sacrifice 'and with increasing anxiety for the sound growth and welfare of the university. It also expressed its sense of the generous attitude which he had maintained toward the faculty in all manners of administration, and of the strong and inspiring influ- ence which he had exerted upon the body of undergraduates and upon the alumni, and the hope that he would continue a member of the teaching body of the university, giving to its deliberations the benefit of his ripe experience and to future classes of students the same instruc- tion and stimulation in historical work that had been previously enjoyed. The alumni also passed resolutions of appreciation and regret.
The selection of a successor to President White was a subject of ear- nest consideration. Several names of men eminent as scholars and ad- ministrators were mentioned for the position, whose work would, it was believed, promote the prosperity of the university. President White's
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choice fell upon a former pupil, Professor Charles Kendall Adams, of the University of Michigan, Mr. White's successor in the department of history in that institution. In an elaborate discussion of the quali- ties required, presented at the request of the trustees, Dr. White ex- pressed his views upon the choice of a successor. At a special meeting of the board, held on July 13, Dr. Charles Kendall Adams was elected president of the university, and was formally inaugurated on the 19th of November of the same year. President Adams's inaugural address was entitled "The Development of Higher Education in America." President Adams brought to the university an experience of great value as an educator. He had been an attentive student of the various ques- tions discussed in connection with higher learning, to the solution of which he had himself contributed. A man of great industry and method in his work, he brought to the duties of his position qualities which were of high value. A president's office was established in one of the uni- versity buildings, where the president was accessible both by faculty and students at certain definite times, a feature of administration add- ing greatly to the efficiency of the office. Under President Adams's wise direction the whole arrangement of the bureau of administration con- nected with the executive office was remodeled and improved. Presi- dent Adams was a most laborious and conscientious executive officer, giving careful attention to every interest which affected the university, of practical and experienced judgment, and it was at once felt that every detail of business received at once immediate and adequate attention. Several extremely valuable features were introduced soon after his ac- cession in university administration, which made the faculty feel that there was an intelligent and sympathetic interest on the part of the pre- siding officer, not only with all questions of higher learning, but also with the individual interest of every professor. The system of grant- ing a leave of absence to members of the faculty after six years of serv- ice for purposes of travel and investigation was a valuable feature of the new administration. The salaries of professors were raised, so that they were more worthy of a university of high standing and influence. All these measures commended themselves to the faculty and contributed to give confidence in the new administration. The period which fol- lowed since 1885 has been onc of uniform prosperity and growth. The presence at all times of a responsible presiding officer, and confidence in a uniform and judicious administration of affairs contributed to give stability and unity to the progress of the university. Among the im-
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portant events connected with President Adams's administration from 1885 to 1892 may be mentioned the establishment of the Law School, the ercction of the Chemical Laboratory and of the Sage Library, of Lincoln Hall for the Departments of Architecture and Civil Engineer- ing, the erection of Barnes Hall and the enlargement of the Armory, the establishment of the new President White School of History and Political Science, and also of the State Meteorological Station. Presi- dent Adams resigned in May, 1892, and was elected soon after president of the University of Wisconsin. Professor Jacob Gould Schurman, dean of the Sage School of Philosophy, was elected as his successor. Profes- sor Schurman during the period of his connection with the university had established a reputation as a brilliant lecturer upon philosophical subjects, whose private lectures as well as his public and more popular lectures had been largely attended. Dr. Schurman possesses especially the gift of lucid exposition and analysis of philosophical systems. A
series of lectures upon theism, which were delivered later before the students of Andover Theological Seminary and published in a volume, exhibited great acuteness in stating and criticizing from a scientific and philosophical standpoint the current arguments by which this doctrine is defended. An earlier volume upon "The Ethical Import of Dar- winism " was also the product of Dr. Schurman's work while occupying his professorship here. Dr. Schurman entered upon his duties with great energy, and with a desire to carry forward the work which had already been begun. He has endeavored to unite the university more intimately with the State, and, since his accession, two grants have been made by the Legislature, partially fulfilling the duty assumed by the State in accepting the land grant, which pledged it to erect a build- ing for the accommodation of the college established by the Congres- sional gift.
X.
STUDENT LIFE.
The university opened with four classes. Students who came from other colleges brought with them naturally the traditions of the life which they had left. The system here, however, was altogether new. The demand for lecture rooms in the two buildings which had been
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erected limited the number of students who could find accommodation in those buildings. Cascadilla, on the contrary, was crowded, not only with students but with professors. The corner rooms, affording some- what larger accommodations for professors and their families, were usually occupied by some married member of the faculty. The others found quarters in the less desirable rooms, and the students were scat- tered in the inner rooms, which were often poorly lighted and worse ventilated. There was an enthusiastic, tumultuous life among the students of those early days. They espoused most thoroughly the principles upon which the university was founded; they were exposed to criticism in common with the university itself, and they defended themselves vigorously; they loved the freedom which they enjoyed; they had faith in their university and in its future, and happily cherished no doubt of the position which the university had already attained. One student is reported to have asked Professor Goldwin Smith how long he thought it would take before this university would equal Oxford, who is said to have answered with grim truthfulness, realizing as he did that his- tory and tradition are necessary to constitute a true university life, that he thought about five hundred years.
The military system which overhung, we might say overshadowed, everything in those early days, though defended as necessary from the charter, was cordially disliked. The martinct discipline of the first few years, so contrary to a university atmosphere, is a persistent memory in the minds of the students of those early days. The attempt was early made to abolish the class system, to classify students without reference to the familiar terms of Senior, Junior, Sophomore and Freshman. It was fondly believed that this illusion would cause students to forget the academic class to which they belonged and that class rivalries would be forgotten in a scholarly union.
The large liberty in elective studies which was allowed to all students caused ambitious freshmen to select courses for which they were un- preparcd. It was generally believed in the university world without, that the German university system prevailed here, that all instruction was by lectures, and that absolute freedom was the prerogative of every student. This loyalty to the university on the part of the students soon developed a genuine university life. Songs were written in which they proudly commemorated their alma mater. The first university song was " The Chimes," written by the Hon. Francis M. Finch, one of the trustees of the university, who had enriched the song book of his own
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college, Yale, and whose poem, " The Blue and the Gray," has become more widely known than perhaps any other poem which was the pro- duct of our Civil War. The remark has been credited to President Woolsey that Judge Finch is the only poet whom Yale College ever graduated.
At the second anniversary of the Cornell Library Association held in Library Hall, Ithaca, on the 21st of January, 1869, the Orpheus Glee Club sang this first college song to which Cornell University can lay claim, which was received with great enthusiasm, and which will be re- garded with constantly increasing interest as it is sung by successive classes. The next song which has obtained permanent acceptance was written by George K. Birge and was entitled "Cornell," with the re- frain :
We honor thee, Cornell, We honor thee, Cornell, While breezes blow, Or waters flow, We'll honor thee, Cornell.
The song, however, which has perhaps become the true university song is what is now called " Alma Mater," beginning "Far above Cayuga's waters," and having a joint authorship. The circumstances under which it was composed are thus given in substance by one of the authors:
" We were seated together one evening in our room, when some one mentioned the lack of university songs at Cornell. It was proposed that we should undertake to compose one. One suggested :
Far above Cayuga's waters,
The second added :
With its waves of blue,
and so the composition proceeded to the end, the two contributing, but not always in the same order.
Thus this favorite song arose.
The entire number of students enrolled during the first year of the university was 412. In the following year this number was increased by a little more than 150, to 563; but in the third year the number reached its maximum, and from that time the decline was continuous to the year 1881-2, when the number of students was only 384, and in one term fell as low as 315. It was not until the year 1885-6, that the number of students of fifteen years before was again attained
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and surpassed. The decline in the number of students after the open- ing of the university may be attributed to various reasons, first among which is the financial crisis which followed in 1873, and secondly, per- haps, to a gradual readjustment of numbers according to the fixed and permanent relations which the university assumed, and the actual advantages which it offered. Many students flocked to it in the early days with inadequate preparation, and under the mistaken impression that they would be enabled to support themselves while completing their education. These were necessarily disappointed.
SOCIETIES.
The new university was not merely to be a university in name, but it was to embody all the features that were distinctive of other institu- tions of learning, and as the young American is, by birth, a public or- ator, societies for literary culture and oratory were at once organized. The first society to be organized, soon after the opening of the univer- sity, was the Philalathean, and soon afterwards, on October 22, 1868, the Irving. The former society held public literary exercises two months later, on December 18, in the friendly shelter of the Aurora Street Methodist Episcopal Church. The æsthetic spirit was also rife, and one of the early numbers of the Era contains a record of the Or- pheus Club.
The first place of meeting of the Philalathean was in a room in Cas- cadilla, while the Irving met in the university; but as the university opened with four classes, many of the new students had been members of seeret soeieties at other institutions, chapters of which were soon formed among the students here. The first secret societies to be insti- tuted were the Zeta Psi and Chi Phi fraternities. A spirit, however, opposed to secret societies was also immediately developed and, as early as December 11, a meeting of students calling themselves Inde- pendents, who were opposed to all secret societies, was held in the par- lor of Cascadilla Place. Soon after an association of independents was formally organized who regarded secret societies as aristocratic, as introducing a distinction between students of the same university, and between members of the same class, and often as possessing no claim to existenee from the literary culture imparted, being merely societies for dissipation. The college press of those days, which seems to have been under the control of members of the secret societies, ridiculed
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vigorously the new anti-secret organization. On May 28th of the fol- lowing year, the Delta Upsilon was founded, composed mainly of the independents and those who sympathized with them. This organiza- tion, although opposed to secret societies, was never regarded as a pub- lic society, attendance upon whose exercises, literary or otherwise, was open to all students. The Christian students of the university also united to form an association, which sems to have been organized formally on January 23, 1869. The meetings were at first held in the university buildings, but often in connection with the churches in town.
The Classical Association, which has had a continued existence and has formed an important feature in connection with classical study, was organized on February 2, 1869. A month later, one of the largest and most influential of all the scientific societies connected with the uni- versity, the Natural History Society, was organized on March 7. The Kappa Alpha fraternity appears third on the list of secret societies, having been founded about November 27, 1868. Upon April 3 three other societies claimed recognition, viz. ; the Alpha Delta Phi, Chi Psi, and Phi Kappa Psi, since which date the establishment of other secret societies has been quite rapid until the present time, when there are about twenty-six such organizations.
A distinguishing feature of university life in its later development has been the growth of chapter houses. From the very earliest date it was natural that the members of the different secret societies should arrange to secure rooms together, and many chapters rented private houses, which were used for fraternity purposes. This practice gave way subsequently to the erection of beautiful buildings for fraternity purposes. These buildings contain lodge room, library, parlors, recep- tion rooms and studies, and bed rooms for the members. In some cases board is also provided by a steward within the chapter house. The fraternity which first possessed an independent chapter house was the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity, which was erected in 1878, when a large portion of the students still roomed in the city. Its con- venient site on Buffalo Street, half way up the hill, was favorably situated for the needs of that time. Later, the authorities granted lots to societies which should wish to build upon the university grounds. The first fraternity to avail itself of this privilege was the Psi Upsilon fraternity which chose the site at the entrance of the university grounds on the borders of Cascadilla ravine. It was followed by the Kappa Alpha fraternity, which erected a chapter house directly north,
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on the opposite side of the bank, in 1886-7. Since then, fraternity honses have been erected by the Sigma Phi, Delta Upsilon and Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternities on the university grounds. Other frater- nities have chosen to erect lodges off the university grounds, and the Chi Phi fraternity has erected a picturesque chapter house in Craigielea Place, while the Zeta Psi has erected a large and very fine building upon Stewart Avenue, and the Chi Psi fraternity has purchased and refitted a large building on Buffalo street. The attitude of the univer- sity to secret societies has, perhaps, been different from that of other institutions. The secret societies as established here have received students during the freshman year, who have retained their connection with their society through the four years' course. In some other institutions full membership practically exists for only one or two years at the most. Here no arguments or influence has been used against their establishment. The faculty has insisted that all cere- monies connected with the admission should be without practical jokes, or anything like hazing. In many cases members of the faculty have been members of some one of these societies during the period of their own student days. In a few cases professors have accepted an lionor- ary membership in societies with which they had not been previously associated. The frankest relations have always been sustained between members of the faculty and members of the various societies, while to the uninitiate a certain awe attaches to their mysterious names and mottoes. In the university world they are regarded rather as private clubs. The character of the influence of a secret society de- pends entirely upon its membership, and societies whose standing is high in other universities, and who have a long list of illustrious graduates, possess naturally an ambition to maintain the reputation which they have inherited. It cannot be denied that occasionally, through the influence of a few bad members, a society may exert upon its membership an influence that is positively disastrous, and such influence may continue for more than a single year. Similarly, when the tone of scholarship in a chapter is low, and when its leading mem- bers are devoted to society, a low standard of scholarship may prevail. On the other hand, many societies have preserved uniformly for a series of years a reputation for distinguished scholarship. Membership in such societies is a badge of character and ability. It must be premised that a student upon entering an institution of learning, must have some companionship. He cannot, and it is not to be desired that he should,
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live alone. Indeed, the most effective, perhaps the most influential part of a student's education is obtained from contact with his fellows. Through association, he acquires a knowledge of men, and becomes courteous and friendly in his dealings with them. His ambition is quickened by contact with brilliant scholars, and the social side of his nature is developed in connection with the intellectual. Assuming these facts, if a student can join a society of high standing early in his course, he is kept from the dangers and accidents which are associated with the promiscuous fellowship of the university world. His reputa- tion and scholarship become a part of the reputation of his society, and care is excercised over his life and studies The influence of the faculty, which is felt by the members of a secret society in its public receptions, tends to preserve them from decline, and the more fully the influence of the faculty is felt in the various chapters, the more per- fect is the guarantee of the character of their members. It has often been found that where official influence was powerless, the personal in- fluence of an instructor could be exerted advantageously to effect the
reform of a student. It has not been of isolated occurrence that chap- ters themselves, for the sake of their own reputation, have severed the connection of undesirable members, and relieved the university indi- rectly from the incubus of unworthy students. Every year at Com- mencement and at other times, receptions are given by various societies to their alumni, members of the faculty, visitors and friends. Such in- vitations are gratefully responded to by members of the faculty, and their influence upon the student world can only be favorable.
Another fact in connection with the establishment of chapter houses is not unworthy of notice. Early in the history of the university, President White expressed himself very decidedly against the dormitory system. Many educators have regarded the dormitory system, by which large numbers of students were gathered together in one building, as a fruitful source of disorder. The introduction of society halls, which are owned and governed by the students themselves, guarantees a cer- tain self government in their own interest. It may perhaps be stated that one-fourth of the students of the university find homes in the va- rious chapter houses at the present time. The evils which are usually ascribed to secret societies are found in the clannish and exclusive spirit which is fostered by them. They have been held to be opposed to a broad republican spirit, to the association of students on a footing of perfect equality, and to an enthusiastic and common participation in
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the public and literary interests of the university. Such evils can not perhaps, be absolutely disavowed. But in this university, where so large a portion of the work in laboratories, shops and seminaries brings students into intimate personal relations with one another, apart from mere association at lectures and recitations, a spirit of utter separation is impossible.
Of late years the feeling in favor of attractive, well arranged and well lighted dormitories has increased among the faculty. A university spirit is cultivated, when the students reside upon the university grounds. The friendships of students constitute one of the most beau- tiful features associated with their lives, and are remembered with ardor and gratitude, when the mere acquisitions of the four years of study have been lost in later professional life. Such friendships among students are certainly fostered more when they are associated in a hall, and, weighing the advantages and the disadvantages, it seems unques- tionable that such a life is far preferable to the isolated existence and dreary lodgings and possibilities of temptation, which are associated with boarding houses scattered throughout the city. In the first report of President Adams, the attention of the trustees was called to the ex- pediency of the erection of dormitorics, who presented in a very able manner the reasons for their introduction from an educational as well as a financial standpoint. President Schurman in his inaugural address speaks in favor of the dormitory system, and it is hoped that at no distant day dormitories erected by friends of the university will con- stitute an important feature in university life.
Among student organizations, the Students' Guild requires mention. Professor Hewett published an article in the Era of December 1, 1876, entitled " Students' Relief Association," in which he called atten- tion to the numerous cases of illness among students and the need of some systematic effort on the part of the university as a whole to pro- vide assistance. He said: "The university has appealed from the first to students of limited means, who are in part dependent upon their own efforts to secure an education. Such students, in case their health is preserved amid the arduous task of self-support and study, may succced with many sacrifices in accomplishing their noble purpose; but in case of illness, many occupy rooms remote from the university, with no one to whom they can appeal for skillful nursing or carc, and have to trust to the friendly and often accidental offices of some room mate or fellow student; such kindly services are not always possible, and the
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