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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 16, 1902)
(Copyright, 192, by T. I James.) IIVEN cqttal natural ability, push, nrrvc, determination and anibl- tlon, the college graduate has n big advantage, of course, over his f"Mow who has not. enjoyed the advantages of the schools. But college training alone will not Insure success. Whosoever would yin must be fducated, but it Is one of the easiest things in the world to spend a certain number of years at college, to pass the examinations creditably and to get a document which certifies that you have done these things without really becoming educated. And if you are not educated, in the true sense, you cannot accomplish the things that are really worth doing In this world. The first problem for every young man. then, is education. He should go to col logo if he can manage It, but there Is no reason for him to despair if the college course is beyond his reach. America is crowded,' as everybody knows, with men who have made their marks in business, in high finances, in politics, in railroading and manufacturing, in journalism, art and literature, in nearly every walk of life, who never have seen the Inside of a college save as visitors. Most of these men are proud of what they have done In spite of their handicap, but there are few among them who do not regret the handicap; who do not believe in their hearts that they could have gone further and achieved more had they been able to get the training that the college course gives. This could be shown in no more con clusive way than by the liberality displayed toward the higher institutions of learning by certain non-graduate princes of In dustry, of finance and of transportation. No man In the world has given so much money for the maintenance and endowment of seminaries, colleges and universities as John D. Rockefeller, whose education was completed without the help of any school of a grade higher than the district school. No other man has given one tithe as much to place the means of self-education, In the form of free libraries, within the reach of those who cannot go to college, as An drew Carnegie, who was graduated into the world of affairs from the telegraph key, and whose education Included practically no schooling at all. A long list of non college men who have given with munifi cence to educational institutions might be made, but mention of the two best known for their liberality in helping others to enjoy the advantages of which they were deprived in youth Is enough to illustrate my point. Probably more than half of all the money that has been expended In America for the founding and the main tenance of colleges and universities has been contributed by men who were not col lege graduates. One of the important advantages enjoyed Ay tho college man over tho non-graduate, lies in the fact that by reason of his col lege course the former virtually belongs to a vast and growing club, with members In practically every city of his own land and many cities of tho great world out side. A graduate of Harvard, for Instance, going from an eastern city to San Fran cisco to engage in business or professional life has a big lead over a non-collego man In the same circumstances. There are many Harvard graduates In San Francisco and every ono of them will be quick to extend such social courtesies as he may to any newcomer, who, like himself, re- MAJOR SETII BULLOCK, Non-College Man's Chances in reived his training from the beloved alma mater on the banks of the Charles. It Is tho same if he be a graduate of Yale or rrlnceton, of Columbia or Cornell of any of the colleges or unlverslt ios. great or small, east or west. Though, of course, the graduate cf one of the bigger colleges B,all(,s 11 rhnncp to find more brother aiumni in tils new home than the grad uate of a smaller institution. With the non-college man It Is different. He Is alone, a stranger In the new city. He has his own way to make In far greater degree than the other. If he has character, ability and address, he makes Irs way, as a matter of course, hut It Is slower, more difficult. Often, to be sure, he wins a higher prize than the graduate, for his first advantage Is only temporary, when all Is said. After he has established rela tions with his brother alumni in his new field of action It remains for him to "make good;" If he doesn't his lead doesn't last, and in the long run he Is wcrse off than If ho had no lead to begin with. That h" had decidedly the best of It In the start, though, no one can doubt. After all, then, success depends upon brains, character and Industry. One who ins uiese quaimcauons will become an educated man, whether ho ran go to school much or not. He will begin his education i i , . , . when he begins to earn his living.- He will flml means for carrying It on In wheatever he does and wherever he goes. The world will be his university, and whether con sciously or not, he will force every one he meets to play the part of Instructor. And tills brings up tho question, "What Is Education?" The answer Is simple. Education Is training that will enable its possessor to use correctly the tools that every man possesses his hands, his eyes and his brains. To make your mark in any ca'.ling you must have this, whether you go to college or not. The standard college education of other ,1 4 1. 111. - . - 1. . . , - . , . -, .m .,, s.ock m me eoucauon or .ui- ...limn, ur oi una worKHuay worlds pracueai requirements. in tne main It amounted to the study of the Greek and Latin classics with a dash of mathematics thrown In. The college education of today may or may not Include, as the student elects, the training of other faculties than those which are developed by the classics. It is the glory of the American college and university that they now afford their students opportunities to secure training of almost every possible sort. Today our great universities and many of our smaller colleges give as much attention to mechanl- cal training, to Instruction In practical chemistry and electricity and dozens of like subjects as to Greek and Iatln. Tho workshop and the laboratory are as important departments of thesj modern educational institutions as the lecture rooms of the professors who devote their attention to tho topics which made up the old-fashloned course. A "omplete iocomo- tlve In perfect working order is provided by Columbia university for the study of those who make mechanical engineering their specialty. The workshops of various sorts provided by Cornell are famous the world over. This same university Instructs Its students of civil engineering and sur- veylng by sending them out to make practical surveys of the country rounj about and In this way a large portion of the state of New York has been actually surveyed. Only the universities of Germany rival those of America on the practical side. . 1 CHIEF RANG ER OF THE BLACK HILLS FOREST RESERVE. England's great schools appear to be await- ruing slowly to the necessity of furnishing their students with pr.ntlial training, but they have made little headway as yet, and Ilrilish educational authorities say It will Journntlsm; to become a factor in the his take years for the schools of their country tory of the greatest nation on the earth, to catch up in the race. There is an Im- The rareer of the elder Hennelt was much portant element In (Jreat Britain, and n like Greeley's. Each founded a great news smaller one. relatively, in this country, paper, which is known and respected wher whlch objects to the "practlcalizatlon" of ever the English language Is read or spoken, the colleges and universities, but the move- It wan his patient mastery of the ele ment, born of necessity, has got too good ments of education, achieved for the most a start t be retarded materially. part at night, in the college of tho flaring Undoubtedly. In my view, the present pine knot, that enabled Abraham Lincoln, tendency Is right in the main. It does not though handicapped almost Indescribably, to lessen the facilities offered to students win the highest place In the gift of the na- who wish to acquire the classical educa tion; it simply gives the student who from necessity or Inclination requires training that will help him to make his way In practical life an opportunity to get It In the years of his schooling, instead of waiting until his graduation day has been passed. There is one serious defect in the educa- tion of a large proportion of those who make up the rising generation whether they are Intended for college or not. This de- feet Is so radical and so easily overcome, if measures to tha end nre taken early enough, that Its existence is both surprls- ing and humiliating. I refer to the notorl- onslv lax training so manv receive In the elementary branches the "three It's." I have explained my views on this subject before, and Judging from the many com mendatory letters that I have received from all parts of the I'nited States, there Is very general agreement with my conten tion that a large proportion of our rlemen taT schools are Inadequate, Graduates of tho public schools are turned out Into the world Incapable of por- forming the simple arithmetical computa- tions needed in the ordinary transactions 0f business life. They do not know how to express themselves clearly and directly in . V. .. I . 1. I A,hA. 1. .. f ...... ,u. .u.bu., .....-. u, . mum., ur ... .nniS. ,.,,.....,,,.., srnoois give more aiieniiou io liuuii hiiu Greek, admittedly Btudled chiefly for their disciplinary value, than they do to English, which Is the living tongue, the medium of practically all communication between man and man In this country. Every employer of clerks will verify what I say on this point. The majority of the applicants for situations in the banks. the offices of the big transportation coin- panics, the mecantlle business concerns are houses and other unable to write proper letters of application. Their hand- writing Is bad; often they cannot spell. The old thoroughness of elementary tnin ing, the hard digging at the work of laying the foundation of education, in the mastery of English" and arithmetic and the acquisi tion of a cjear legible handwriting has been abandoned In too many schools, There are exceptions, for which the coun- try should be thankful, and a surprisingly large number of these exceptions are found among the elementary schools conducted under the auspices of the Catholic church. In thera the former thorough teaching of the "three R's" seems to have persisted; and while no one can be more sensible of the great work that the public schools are doing than myself. I must commend tho elementary methods of the Catholic schools world's great school. Is thorough and Intl to the public school authorities In many mate mastery of the elementary branches cities, the "three R's" on which tho superstrue- It was his mastery of the English lan turP 0f all real education must be reared, guage and his thorough mental training THOMAS L. JAMES, that enabled Horace Greeley. Innocent of Life schools, to eonie to New York when a young man and rise from the eompositor's case to no of the most rommanding positions in the difficult and Important profession of tlon at the time when tho nation needed Just such a man at Its head. These, by the way, became men of truly liberal edu cation, despite their lack of college train- Ing, and they are only three of many who, lacking the opportunity to train themselves In college, yet found time amid the stress of actual life and achievement to broaden nnI liberalize themselves by general read- Ing and the study of those topics with which their more fortunate fellows were able to acquaint themselves in college. There are many living men, who, though turning college advantages, have found true liberal education In the university of the world. James J. Hill, for Instance, though never n student In n school of higher grade than the academy In a lit Ur? Canadian village, and obliged to make his own way from the age of 1(1. Is more fa miliar with the classics In the original than most college graduates and his criti cal knowledge of art Is superior to that tf most professional art rrltlcs. Of a different type Is Russell Sage, who, though a highly educated man, despite his disadvantages as to schooling, has pre ferred to study along special rather than general lines all his life. Mr. Sage saw the need of education when working for a very small wage as "the boy" In his brother's grocery store at Troy. He paid hoo, tparh t of wrpkIy pl, (Bnpe to teach him the "three U s" at night after both had done the day'B work by which they earned their living. And while Mr. Sage possibly could never have passed an examination that would have admitted h)m Jo coPKP he Kr0Unded himBelf well In the elements and afterward made good use or the foundation m building up a ........ rilrtllrn nf .hnrninrh knowledge of ...,.,. wn,h nlereBtPd him. Thev Included trade, finance and politics, and ho has been conspicuous In all of them, his now half forgotten political career having l)opn a vpry surrPf,8fui onP, jn n wny Mr. Sage is one of tho bcBt educated men in the world. To mention a fraction of the men who have become educated outside of college would be simply cataloguing many of the world's best known men, and the names of those given, familiar to everyone, are suffi cient. It is clear then that the non-college man has plenty of chances, but for all that every young man should avail himself of tho best and most advanced school thnt he can gPt. He must train himself thoroughly f be would achieve, whether he can go to college or not. Finally the chief essential of real educa- finn nenntrpd either In colleen or the The Voice of Experience Rrooklyn Eagle: Tho bride's mother was visiting her and together they sat In the sewing room. The brldo 'was fixing the sleeve lining of her husband's overcoat. "Well, I think that's a neat Job," re marked the bride, as she finished her task. Tho mother examined It and Bhook her head solemnly. "You don't like it?" suggested the bride. "It's too well done," was the reply. "Too well done!" "Yes; It's a tailor's Job." "Hut if I can do it as well as a tailor " "Why, then, of course, you'll have to keep on doing things of that sort. Oh, 1 know all about it. I tried it myself when I was first married, and later I had to ruin two coats before I could break your father of the habit of bringing everything to me. Just listen to the voice of experience, daughter, and make a bungling job of that, even If you have to tear it all out and do It over again. It's no trouble at all to dis courage him now, but It will be a year ot so later. It Is of tho utmost importance that a woman should begin married life right." Hehind the Scenes Juige: The Author (meekly) Could you advance me $20 on my royalty account? The Publisher (Jreat Caesar! If you haven't got the nerve of your swash buckling hero. The Author Hut you are advertising thai 5o,0t,(l copies of m uovel have been Bold In advance. The Publisher I see you know how to read. The Author And how am I to keep up the appearance of a successful author? The Publisher Go away back and hiber- nate for a month or so, and by that time we'll probably cost us. know how much you've A Western Hanker , J. W. Welpton of Ogalalla. an enterpris ing Nebraska hanker. Is now torn ted In new banking rooms, which have been re painted, papered and furnished In elegant style. It Is said to be one of the coziest Utile banking rooms in the west end of the state. The new building was formally opened November 1 by serving coffee and wafers In the bank parlor, which was nicely decorated for the occasion. Among the out-of-town visitors were James Wa're of lllalr. John M. Daugherty and H. Hitch cock of Omaha and J. 1. Adams of Denver. The Exchange bank was established by J. W. Welpton In 1 S!7. organized ns a state bank In 1!100. The business has been steadily Increasing from year to year. Mr. Welpton Is a shrewd, careful banker, a member of the Amerienn Hankers' asso ciation and an active member of the Ne braska Rankers' association, and Is worthy the confidence of nil. We predict that tho business of the Exchange bank will continue to prosper under his management. Tho'bank funds are protected by one of the celebrated Manganese steel safes, pur chased of J. J. Derlght Company of Omaha, which Is absolutely burglar proof. 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