University of Rochester - Interpres Yearbook (Rochester, NY)

Page 9 text:

THE INTERPRES 9 DAVID JAYN E HILL. MGNG the distinguished names that adorn the records of our Uni- versity there is none more highly honored by the present generation of students or more fondly cherished by the great body of the alumni than that of our former president, David Jayne Hill. It is therefore with a peculiar sense of pride that we dedicate this volume to the man who devoted a valuable part of his life to the interests of our Alma Mater and who now holds an honored place in the front rank of American diplomat- ists. His life, still in its prime, has bee11 marked by a succession of bril- liant achievements which have conferred upon him distinction as a student, a scholar, a teacher, an administrator, an author, and a statesman, and which present to the student body of today a career both to admire and to emulate. Born in Plainnelcl, N. J., june 10, 1850, he early showed a taste for intel- lectual pursuits and after a thorough course of preparatory and collegiate study was graduated from Bucknell University in 1874. The reputation that he gained in college is evident from the fact that after serving two years as professor of rhetoric he was unanimously chosen to the presidency of his own Alma Mater, when he was himself only twenty-nine years of age-the youngest American college president. In this position he showed unusual administrative ability, reorganizing and giving new life to the institution. lt was here that he began his literary career, publishing biographies of lWash- ington Irving and l7Villiam Cullen Bryant, also a new series of text-books, including the Elements of Rhetoric and Compositionf' the 'Science of Rhet- oric, the Elements of Logic, and the Elements of Psychology -all of which were distinguished for clear analytic arrangement and careful scien- tinc treatment. His growing appreciation and grasp of social problems are seen in two books also published at this time, the Social Influence of Chris- tianity, and the Principles and Fallacies of Socialism. During the ten years that he was president of Bucknell University he gained a national reputation as a man who combined broad and accurate scholarship with administrative capacity of a high order as well as superior gifts as a writer and speaker. In 1888 he was called to the presidency of the University of Rochester, a position which he held for eight years. His administration at Rochester marked the transition from the old to the new regime. Under his supervision the curriculum was expanded to meet more fully the demands of modern life. He emphasized the liberal nature and non-sectarian character of higher edu- cation. He bent his energies to enlarging the scope and increasing the usefulness of the institution as a seat of learning. He also revealed in a striking way the power of a renned personality. By his courteous manner he

Page 8 text:

THE INTERPRES

Page 10 text:

10 THE INTERPRES drew the student body into cordial support of all his plans, and became a con- spicuous and attractive figure in the social and public life of the whole com- munity. By the charms of his presence, the grace of his oratory and his catholic sympathies, he won an enviable distinction as a citizen and a representative man. He moreover added to his literary fame by the publication of one of his most important works, entitled 'fGenetic Philosophy, which presented in a new light the accepted facts of evolution and suggested a scientific recon- ciliation between such extreme theories as those embodied in the absolute idealism of Hegel and the synthetic philosophy of Spencer. He also wrote at this time an important essay on 'flnternational Justice, in which we may perhaps discern the unconscious beginnings of his diplomatic career. His increasing interest in public affairs is evident in the growing frequency of his appearance on the political platform, as well as in the publication of a popular treatise on Einance,', which was used as a campaign document in 1896. The strong conviction that a wider and more attractive field of activity lay before him led to his resignation as college president-but not to the breaking of the ties of friendship which bound him to Rochester. The regret that was felt by all the friends of liberal education at the severance of his official relation to the University has in part been dissipated by the remarkable success that has attended him in his new career. To prepare himself more fully for his future work he spent nearly three years in the study of the public law and diplomacy of Europe. The first public recog- nition of his qualifications as a diplomat was made in 1898, when he was appointed first assistant secretary of state at Wfashington and was brought into close official relations with Secretary John Hay and President McKinley. Wliile occupying this position he not only took an active part in the negotia- tions relating to the Ear Eastern Question, but also delivered courses of lectures on European diplomacy in the School of Comparative jurisprudence connected with the Columbian fnow the George W'ashingtonj University, besides publishing important tractates upon the f'Conception and Realization of Neutrality, and the Life and VVork, of Hugo Grotiusf' In 1903 he was appointed envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to Switzerland, whence he was transferred in 1905 to the Netherlands. In connection with this latter position he was appointed plenipotentiary delegate to the Second Peace Conference at the Hague. These successive appointments indicate in an unmistakable manner the great confidence reposed in him by the govern- ment at Wasliiiigton. But the strongest evidence of his unqualified success as a representative of our country abroad was his designation by President Roosevelt as ambassador to Berlin. The design of the President and the Secretary of State in choosing Mr. Hill, to quote the language of the VVash- ington authorities in referring to this promotion, was to choose the man who of all the men in the diplomatic service was best fitted for this particular position-a position of the very first order in honor and responsibility, and one to which therefore it was deemed well to send a skilled diplomat, a student, a speaker, an authority on international law, a learned German