Princeton University - Bric A Brac Yearbook (Princeton, NJ)

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Eliot of Harvard and Dr. McCosh under the auspices of New York ' s Nineteenth Century Club. McCosh proved his point, for Eliot was ahead of his time and only the later-day improvements in preparatory schools made his plan eventually feasible. Thus, Princeton ' s curriculum remained fairly tight compared to present standards, but it was a considerable improvement over MacLean ' s inflexible system. McCosh undertook a tremendous pro- gram of expansion in the seventies and eighties. His college was attracting more students every year, and furthermore, he hoped to create an intellectual atmosphere such as those Avhich had so impressed him at Oxford and Heidelberg. He was for- tunate in having the support of several wealthy alumni and friends. With their aid, the program was started. Thus it was that Dickinson Hall was built, standing northwest of the present building of that name. Then followed the Chancellor Green Library. It stands today as an architectural hodgepodge, but it was then considered the most beautiful college library in the country. A gymnasium which resembled a chateau sprang up where Holder Hall now stands. There were sev- eral new dormitories built: Witherspoon Hall, Reunion Hall, and Edwards. A new chapel was completed, and, near it, Mur- ray Hall was erected as a center of religious activities. In 1882 Dr. William C. Prime offered the college a priceless collection of china and procelain, if a suitable build- ing is promised. Again McCosh was equal to the occasion and the School of Art was built. Concurrently, a Hall of Science and Engineering was developed under a grant from John C. Green. The ultimate was reached when McCosh received enough money to start a preparatory school which would train future Princetonians. This is now Lawrenceville School. The club movement was growing sim- ilarly. McCosh found that there were still secret societies on campus, but in 1875 he obtained enough evidence to suspend many members, and with that action finally rid the college of the societies which the fac- ulty had always disliked. However, the fac- ulty had no such objections to the club system. In 1879, Ivy Club led the way by building a home on Prospect Street after it had incorporated itself. The so-called cannon war presented McCosh with an opportunity to exercise his diplomacy and understanding person- ality. By the time he came to Princeton, the large British cannon was already buried in the center of the green behind Nassau Hall. It had been placed there by a group of students in 1838, after they brought it back from New Brunswick, whence it had been taken originally to bolster that to vn ' s defenses in 1812. The little cannon, mean- while, lay buried halfway between Whig and Clio. However, one morning in 1875 the campus was alarmed to find that it had disappeared! Several Rutgers men had de- scended on Princeton and removed the cannon in the middle of the night. Their excuse was a long-standing rumor that the cannon had originally come from New Brunswick. McCosh restrained the stu- dents ' first impulse to go to Rutgers im- mediately. He secured the appointment of an impartial commission which awarded the cannon to Princeton. McCosh rubbed his hands in great pleasure, saying, I told you so, as the students sunk the little cannon in concrete, where it rests today. Thus ended the cannon war. McCosh ' s figure was prominent on the sidelines at any athletic event. He backed athletics to the fullest extent and the records of the period reflect this sup- port. The baseball team continued to com- pile a large percentage of victories. In 21

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Hickory, Shucks, Gideon ' s Band, and Old Bourbon. The clubs were not established on a permanent basis, but the idea contin- ued to grow. Under MacLean the clubs first assumed importance in the life of the undergraduates. In 1867, Dr. MacLean decided to re- sign because of his advancing age. He had successfully guided the college through a critical period in both its own and the na- tion ' s history. And he had set the stage for the great expansion which was to follow. The trustees felt a keen sense of the importance of selecting an extremely able man as MacLean ' s successor. American edu- cation was entering a new era, as was vir- tually every other phase of American life. The college had to go along with the tide or be swept into anonymity in the back- wash. The choice fell upon Reverend Henry Green of the Seminary. Green, how- ever, declined, and the trustees had to reach a new decision. The choice this time went to James McCosh, a professor of Queen ' s College, Belfast, and a thorough-going Scot. He had visited the United States in 1866, and made a deep impression as an able teacher and scholar. There was, too, the precedent set by Witherspoon. who had come over just a century before. Furthermore, Mc- Cosh had visited many European univer- sities and was in a position to transport the best of their ideas to Princeton. On April 29, 1868 he was elected and accepted almost as soon as he received notice of his election. Five months later, he arrived in Princeton amidst a tremendous celebra- tion. He was met at the train by coaches carrying orange streamers embossed with black class numerals. But the significance of this first use of Princeton ' s colors was lost in the excitement of the arrival. That night, the students cheered and sang around a huge bonfire, and as McCosh was introduced, rockets burst in the skies over- head. Thus was to begin the most colorful and expansive period in Princeton ' s his- tory. McCosh set the keynote for his admin- istration when, speaking vith a deep Scot- tish burr, he emphasized the importance of individual learning. He would attempt to draw the best out of the student, while imparting useful knowledge to him at the same time. The program would utilize a student ' s power to think, rather than to memorize, as had always been the case before. In an effort to fulfill his aims, McCosh started to build up the faculty. It took time to organize a group of scholars around him, but in ten years the faculty was con- sidered one of the best in the country. The names of C tus Brackett, Granny Hunt, and Heni7 B. Fine are still remembered as outstanding educators. McCosh believed in greater freedom for the individual student. However, he would not allow the same freedom of course elections which prevailed in some other colleges. There developed a lively interest in the question among educators. The result was a debate between President 20

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1867, at New Haven, Yale was beaten by the. score of 58-52! Each side wore out six pitchers. On November 8, 1869, McCosh took his place behind the side-fence of a New Brunswick playing field. He was about to witness the first intercollegiate football game. The field was 360 by 225 feet and each side had twenty-five players. Rutgers carried the day 6 to 4, but not until Big Mike of Rutgers and Large of Princeton had collided beside the fence and knocked the spectators off their feet. Interest in the sport continued and in 1876 Columbia and Penn were defeated. When it came time to play Yale and Harvard, Princeton found that the rules had been changed. The team played under the new rules and lost. Vic- tories the next year made up the losses in ' 76, however. It was one of the mysteries of Prince- ton ' s history as to why Yale has been se- lected as the chief athletic antagonist and not Harvard. Of the seven founders, six had gone to Yale, one to Harvard. In the early days Harvard attracted many Old Lights and helped keep alive the intra- church rivalry. Finally, in 1 886 came what % might have been considered the final blow. McCosh was attending the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Harvard ' s found- ing. He heard Harvard eulogized by nu- merous speakers and grew wrathful as he saw forty-two Honorary degrees given out without a mention of a Princeton man. When the ode which Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote for the occasion was read, McCosh heard the lines: O ' er Princeton ' s sands the far reflections steal, Where mighty Edwards stamped his iron heel. He considered this a slight against Prince- ton and an attack on Calvinism, and caught the next train to Princeton in a huff. There was an exchange of notes and the affair was a long time in dying down. But Yale still remained the chief rival on the athletic field. McCosh disliked the hazing which went on at Princeton and made several attempts to put an end to it. In this he eventually succeeded. But he never let ideo- logical compulsions stand in the way of practicality. Once he called the victim of a recent hazing before him. He demanded to know who had committed the acts. The freshman refused to talk. Then get out of me college! roared McCosh. Remembering a moment, he said, But wait a bit. Is it true that your father gave a chapel to Dartmouth? Yes, sir, it is, replied the student. Then come back into me college! was McCosh ' s hasty answer. Actions like these served only to en- dear him to the students. When, in 1874, William Thomas asked if he couldn ' t re- main in Princeton u nder his beloved mas- ter as a graduate student, the foundations for a graduate school were laid. After Thomas was allowed to stay, others sought 22