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About The Nebraskan. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1892-1899 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 1894)
THB NBBRJLSKA.N 9 ! structor to instructor; and the differences between these, therefore, may not become loo great. In all this work, so thoroughly organised and so vig orously conducted, the application to practical life is not lost to view. Kvcn in somewhat elementary math ematics, for instance, the problems as far as possib'e are those which are liable to arise in the trades and the various callings of life. In the sciences the applica tion is constant and noticeable. Professor Hessey can not teach botany without beginning and carrying forward every year what the resources of his depart ment really do not warrant, a botanical survey oi the state; discussing its grasses, its food plants generally, and the nature, extent, and diversity of its flora. Pro fessor Nicholson cannot push his work in chemistry in the class room alone, but must be the leader in beet sugar and sugar beets, as well as in much other equally valuable work. Professor Harbour is not content to lecture on geology, but makes soil collections,' exam ines, classifies and analyzes the mineral products of the state in such lines as building stone, clays, and cement stock. For years the department of physics kept the meteorological records of the U. S. Kxperiment station, which are of immense practical value to the state at large. The department of English, with its special course in journalism and its practice in extem poraneous speaking and rapid writing, is developing graduates who will be able to put pen to paper in a vigorous, trenchant way, or to stand upon their feet and say their say to their fellow-men without hesita tion and with clearness and force. Literature is so stud'od as to have the most direct and beneficent effect upon style; the languages are taught in a vivid and magnetic way; even philosophy takes to itself as one of its chief excellencies the study of the child-mind, in order that the future fathers and mothers and teach ers and school officers of the state may be far more in telligent as to their duties than are those of to-day. Of the direct practical value of such work as horticult ure, agriculture, the manual training shops, the course in electrical and steam engineering, and the course in ciil engineering, no question whatever arises. It is not to be imagined for a moment, however, that the culture-value of all this work is neglected or over looked in the slightest degree. No one of the old classical colleges does more, or has ever done more, to secure this much desired end than does the academic college of the University to-day. With all its practi cal beneficence, the University knows better than to deem the world a mere workshop, or to fancy that there must always be everywhere the dust and sweat of labor and constant toil. It believes thoroughly in making life worth the living, in securing masterful ex istence, in developing all the qualities that put man in touch not only with his fellow men but with all the divine purposes to be found in the powers of earth and air. Those who know the University bt can bst ap preciate the earnest, sincere, even reverent seeking after that truth which alone can make men free, that is constantly found within its borders. As far as special methods of work are concerned, that is, in the arrangement of curriculum, the University occupies an advanced position; being in many respects the clearly recognized leader in these lines. It has now divided the work of the two colleges into four great groups. Of these the main purpose or central thought oi each is indicated by its title Classical, Lit erary, Philosophical, English, General Scientific, Agri cultural, Electrical and Steam Engineering, and Civil Engineering. While it places its requirements for a degree far beyond those of any of the Colleges of the western stales and within easy touch of institutions ol the very first rank, such as Cornell and Ann Arbor it gives reasonable latitude to its students in their choice of work. About one-half of each of the four literary courses is made up of free electives. In the technical courses, however, there must be less of this by the very necessity of their purpose and aim. Hut even in these the requirements are broad and cover a much larger amount of general culture than is usual in connection with such work. There is no ques tion that a man goes out of the electrical engineering collide as well developed intellectually, with his mental faculties as fully alert, and with as much mental power as he who has passed through any other course in the two colleges. This is somewhat unusual in connection with Industrial or Agricultural Colleges, as they have been generally established. Hut the founders of the University were wise enough to make requirements for a degree in one college as nearly equivalent as possi ble to the requirements for a degree in the other. This action has given the industrial college unusually high standing, although at the same time it does lessen the number of students that have followed its courses, and thereby in a certain sense has weakened its hold upon popular esteem. Of course, this is simply because of limited information as to real work of the Industrial College. Hecause it has taken such high stand it has necessarily maintained thus far more or less of the necessary preparatory work which could not be secured by those to whom it was supposed to minister (the ag ricultural and industrial classes of the state). This lack of appreciation of the real work of the Industrial College and its curriculum and standards, has in the past led to some discussion as to the desirability of withdrawing this college from the University and locat ing it elsewhere in the state, in order that its course might be modeled and reduced to the standard of simi lar colleges in other states. The good sense of the people, however, quickened by the equally good sense on the part of the regents in providing manual train ing and shop work, in strengthening the courses in agriculture and horticulture, and in promising the School of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts the good sense of the people has come to grasp the situation, and all fears of a disruption of the institution disap peared some years ago. The practical beneficence of the University, and its hold upon the confidence of the state, is shown by the way in which the various state organizations cluster about it as well as by the attitude of individuals who arc seeking for expert, unbiased and unpurchasable knowledge and information. For many years the State Hoard of Agriculture has held its annual meeting at the University, and has spread its " Corn Show " in Grant Memorial Hall. The office of the Secretary of the State Horticultural Society is in Nebraska Hall, the science building; and the members of this society come up to the campus yearly for their annual pro gram, and for their exhibit of Nebraska fruits. The State Historical Society has placed its library and its collections in the basement of the new library building where it is destined to find in the near future most rapid growth and increasing fame. The State Dairy man's Association turns to the chapel of the University for its mid-winter meeting, and this organization also makes an annual display in the Armory of the products of Nebraska dairies. The members of the State Hec keepers' Association, dripping with wisdom and honey, assemble at least annually in the botanical lecture room for the discussion of the matters of such deep interest in their daily lives; while the State Teachers' Associa-
