St Johns College - Ozanam Yearbook (Toledo, OH)

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THE OZANAM 45 Each is backed by a great deal of what we Americans like to refer to as sound com- mon sense. The first of his plans is to be tried out by Johns Hopkins in the near future. It is name- ly the absolute and final separation of the college as it is now constituted from the uni- versity. C-oodnow would make Johns Hop- kins solely a university, rather than a combi- nation of college and university, with the idea that there is in this country room for at least one such institution. Such a sep- aration, he believes, would make for a greater emphasis and seriousness in the pursuit of ad- vanced studies. For American education in general, how- ever, Professor C-oodnow proposes a much more radical change. ln fact, his proposal amounts to nothing less than the entire aban- donment of the college and of the Bachelor's degreeg the first two years of college he would attach to the high school, to make a six years' course, and the work of the last two he be- lieves could very well be achieved in a re- vised university course. The work of the first two years of college, he writes, is in a large measure secondary . . . in char- acter and could be done by the college stu- dent in the secondary school. The rea- son for abandoning the Bachelor's degree would be to discourage those from coming to the reorganized university who intended to study any subject for merely two years. It will, of course, be many years before the real value of Professor Goodnow's pro- jects can be known. It will require many an experiment to test them. But it is our hum- ble opinion that, at least, that part of the plan is valid which proposed to link the stud- ies of the first years of college with the high school course. To one looking back it would seem that much duplication and repetition, as well as a great deal of expense, would be avoided. Either adopt this proposal or change the character of the work done in these years. It could well be more satisfactory. Florence Renan Sabin, Professor of His- tology at johns Hopkins Medical School, has recently been received into the National Academy of Sciences as the first and so far the only woman member. The Order of the Holy Sepulchre was also recently conferred on Mrs. Howard K. Spaulding of Michigan City, Indiana, for her activities in religion and charity. She is the first woman in America to receive this high honor of the Catholic Church. We thought for a moment the good old phrase had slipped our memory, but here it is, as fresh and appropriate as ever: Woman seems to be coming into her own. When the new editorial board took over the Dartmouth, official paper of the New Hampshire institution, two columns down the center of the front page were devoted to a very frank but good-spirited criticism of Dart- mouth students. Let us quote just one para- graph as a sample: Within three years the spirit which char- acterized Dartmouth and Dartmouth men to the outside world has virtually disappeared. The individuality which was Dartmouth has vanished. The College is sinking fast into the rut of stereotype which marks many an- other such institution in the country. Here in the heart of nature we are trying to become cosmopolitan .... Here at last is an example of what this department has long wished to see-the use of the college paper or magazine as a me- dium of criticism of students and school life. Too often, especially in Catholic colleges and high schools, the school publication is almost sickenly prim and proper. Rotarian-wise, it praises anything and everything-its favor- ite heading being Great Success g it prints and says only what in the very best academic sense it is expected to print and say. In fine, it is a small boy of the old school in his Sunday clothes. It is printed more for the edilication of outsiders than for any appeal

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44 THE OZANAM hibit these actions are not binding in con- science because they constitute unjust inter- ference with personal liberty. The purchaser, he goes on to state, is re- garded as co-operating with the seller, and for this reason he is a participant with the latter in moral guilt. This, however, is not necessarily a grave sin. To sum it all up fwith apologies to Father Ryanj--Every man his own brewer and the bootlegger be di. A recent survey of the best sellers of the first quarter of the twentieth century in America, made by Publishers' Weekly CNew Yorkl, reveals that the greatest popu- larity among the book buyers has been en- joyed by Winston Churchill. This despite that he has not written since l9l 7. Harold Bell Wright holds second place, with Booth Tarkington pressing him closely. Such writ- ers as Galsworthy and Conrad rank well down in the list, Conrad being placed sev- enty-seventh. The most popular single novel in these twenty-live years has been Sinclair Lewis' Main Street. If Winter Comes ranks next. Of the one hundred and one novel- ists listed, sixty-five are men and thirty-six women-which is a very splendid showing for the women, considering the great prepon- derance of men writers. Of the total num- ber, sixty-nine are of American birth. In the May number of the Forum, Arthur Symons, called by that magazine dean of critics and stylists, takes his turn at picking the fifteen greatest novels. It is surpris- ing to note that there are only three British books in the list. But it is infinitely more sur- prising to note the three that are picked. They are Fielding's Tom Jones, Richard- son's Clarissa Harlowef' and Swift's Gul- liver's Travels. Wliich, I believe, is quite contrary to the common judgment of those who study English literature. Hawthorne, with his Scarlet Letter, is the only American to win a place. After holding the Intercollegiate Debating Championship for nine years, during which time it was never once beaten, little Bates recently dropped a two-to-one decision and the championship to another small college, Colgate. During this career of victory Bates had yearly triumphs over Yale, Harvard, Cornell, and many other great eastern and middle western universities. Three times it defeated Oxford, and once it positively over- whelmed Cambridge. This, with the football record of Centre, is an object lesson to all other small col- leges. It demonstrates what the little fellow can do, if he goes about it seriously and zest- fully. It is far from an impossibility that St. John's might build up such debating tra- ditions and records as are Bates'. It would require just these things-someone with a vision and the courage of his vision, and zeal on the part of the men of the college. On the Hfth day of last month the old Italian university of Pavia celebrated the eleventh centenary of its recognition by Loth- aire, grandson of Charlemagne, as the fore- most scholastic institution of that day. It is not certain how many years this seat of learning had existed before it was accorded this signal honor. Almost since Rome, this venerable, thriv- ing old institution has looked upon the chang- ing immensities of history-one wonders what it thinks about as it looks at the world today. Does it smile its slow smile of amused toler- ance? or is it fearful? or hopeful? or what? Frank johnson Goodnow, president of Johns Hopkins University, is the sponsor of lwo new departures that may in time work a revolution in American higher educational methods. These are so related that the one will lead almost inevitably into the other.

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46 THE OZANAM or influence it may have with the students. Which is precsiely why it has no appeal and exerts no influence. And thus is it failing in one of its greatest functions as a school publication. A little less hypocrisy and a good deal more honesty and sincerity would do a great deal to make school periodicals more what they should be-potent factors in school life. Of course, there is the opposite extreme- the ''college-chap-this-freedom'' type of peri- odical that makes its appearance in some places. The good old faded standby is not half so insipid as this new clever publi- cation. Rarely one of the latter class achieves something positive, as in the case of the recent issue of the Harvard Advocate parodying The Dial. This number was rank enough to be characterized by judge John Duff of the Boston Municipal Court as obscene, pro- fane, unfit for sale or exposure for sale, and sufficient to corrupt the morals of youth. Now many a magazine like that may be bought very cheaply at any news-stand. It is puzzling why certain Harvard students should go to all the trouble and expense of printing one of their own. An interesting new experiment is being made at Antioch College, Ohio, where the students have been asked to grade their pro- fessors at the end of each quarter. The points that the students are to consider in marking the teacher are: fairness in grading, ability to present subject matter clearly, will- ingness to advise students in religious, voca- tional, and religious matters, value of said teacher to Antioch College. Just what this innovation is expected to accomplish is not stated. It certainly affords the student a long-needed protection from the incompetent instructor. But whether this is the best or even a good way to effect this result is another question.