THE HESPERIAN.
3
,1
We hear much concerning college spirit. Nearly
everything that is good in connection with college life
is attributed to college spirit; and if any one wishes
to complain of a decline of interest in athletics or
college organizations the most cutting charge he can
make is of a decline in college spirit. College spirit
is a thing which leaves a thousand pleasant memories
in the remembrance of its devotees. Nevertheless
college spirit seems to be giving way to a different re
gime the rule of the university idea.
The typical college spirit manifests itself in various
ways but in none so much as in organization. Glee
clubs, athletic clubs, debating clubs and the number
less other institutions which go to make up ordinary
college society find their rankest growth in those in
stitutions which have most college spirit. One dis
tinguishing feature of the typical university life, on
the other hand, is an absence of these organizations.
In a recent article from the pen of A. G. Warner
now in Johns Hopkins University, he remarked the
existence of a characteristic in the students of that
place which he was pleased to call "self poise."
This, we take it, well describes the difference between
the two systems. In the words which, most of any
thing we have seen, express the animus of college spir
it "One man is no man." Where college spirit reigns
clique is ranged against clique, society opposes soci
ety, clan clashes with clan; and the principle of in
ter-dependence between members of the same society
is an essential adjunct to such a condition of affairs.
The university, on the other hand, elevates and
cultivates the individual at the expense of organiza
tion and is so far in harmony with the spirit of the
times. We think that this is one reason for the pop
ularity of the university as opposed to the college.
There are many things in the college of our fore
fathers which we shall be sorry to see disappear. We
are convincad, however, that the new regime is bet
ter. Some of the pleasantest memories of college
life may cluster around the society organization,
but that is not the question. We must ask first of all,
whether our college discipline developes strong, inde
pendent character. In training for the business of a
real existence we believe the university to excel the
college and we arc therefore glad to see the latter superseded.
MISCELLANY.
SYNOPSIS OF THE OPENING ADDRESS.
DELIVERED BY PROF. HITCHCOCK.
The opening address of the spring term of the University
was given by Professor Hitchcock on last Saturday evening
at the Univesity chapel. The subject was "Winds and
Storms." Many things were said which we are forced to
omit.' We give a short resume of the most interesting points.
The weather is the subject of most common remark. A
conversation can scarcely be carried on without its aid and
anything that may be said of it should therefore be of interest.
Taking a stove to illustrate the principle of storms, we know
air heated by kindling a fire in it, rises and is replaced by
colder air rushing in at the bottom. When the air of any
area becomes heated from whatever cause it shows the same
tendency and we have practically, an immense stove. The
heated air, however, rises until it finds air of a similar density
and then overflows, so to speak, thus causing an increased
density of air immediately outside the heated area. This
will be referred to later.
The sun being the chief source of heat for us, the heated
area'is generally at the equator and the various tiadc winds
may be explained by the illustration of the stove. Taking in-
to consideration that the air at the equator has a much great
er movement from west to cast than that towards the north
or south, it may easily be seen that as the warm current rises
and flows to the north and south it will take a north-easterly
and south-easterly direction. This current remains an upper
current till about thirty degrees from the equator when it be
comes deflected and henceforth is alternately an upper and a
lower current, and constantly tends, in the meantime, to a
more easterly direction around the poles.
The lower currents which move to supply the vacancy
caused by the upward movement of the air at the equator
assume a westerly direction and become the equatorial trade
winds. Any long continued wind will, owing to this rotation
of the earth, veer ftom north to cast, to south and west through
the intermediate points of the compass and winds very rarely
change in any other way.
Storms may be traced to similar causes. An area of low
barometer causes outside currents to rush towards a common
center. Owing to the tendency of winds to change their
course, as before noticed, these converging currents of
air, instead of meeting, assume a circular motion around the
area oflow barometer. The speaker placed much stress on con
densation of the moisture in the warmer currents which, giv
ing oft heat, increases the movements of air upward from the
storm center. To illustrate the amount of heat held by water
in a vaporous form the Professor said that the heat required
to convert one quart of water to steam after it had reached the
boiling point would elevate the temperature of a like amount
of water iooo degrees. What an amount of heat must be
given oft then, when sufficient water falls to flood Salt Creek
bottoms as sometimes happens. This increase of heat tends
to continue the storm and hence a storm frequently com
mences on a modest scale and grows to large proportions.
These phenomena give sufficient data by which to compute
storms and generally the predictions of the United States Sig
nal Scrviee are reliable.
The subject of tornadoes was next discussed and some of
the most interestiong parts of the address were accounts of
tornadoes whose effects the speaker had seen.
Observations have been taken of late years and data has
been collected extending over a long time, but it is incom
plete. In the spring of 1879 was a period of tornadoes, elev
en occurring in Kansas on May 30th and two in Missouri on
the preceding day.
Tornadoes are almost invariably preceded by the appear
ance of a black cloud in the southwest followed by a similar
but blacker one in the northwest. These approach generally
in a northeasterly and southeasterly direction at a speed of
from 70 to 100 miles per hour and, when they meet, form the
tornado unless they move in exactly opposite directions.
The meeting of the cold and warm currents causes th hail