Votume VI. No. 22.
NEW HAVEN, CONN., THURSDAY, MARCH 11,
- BBOTER USE I? IN RHETORIC.
Professor Beers on the Lampson
Bequest and the English
Department,
At the invitation of the editor of the
Yale Alumni Weekly, I have agreed to
say something about the needs of the
English Department, and the best use
to be made of the new _ professor-
ships. The opinions here expressed
are my individual opinions. The Eng-
lish Department, as a whoie, is in no
way responsible for them.
_ The English staff in Yale College (Ac-
ademic Department) for the coming
year will be composed of two profess-
ors, an assistant professor and five in-
structors, even should the two new
chairs remain unfilled. I believe that
force is large enough, if prop-
erly distributed, to handle the
work; and that the two pro-
fessors already on the ground might
be put upon the Emily Sanford and
Lampson foundations, thereby releas-
ing an equivalent income for the gener-
al uses of the College. But I ought to
explain what I mean by “‘properly dis-
tributed.’ If I had my way, English
literature would not be taught as a re-
quired study, nor would there be any
entrance requirement in the subject.
The instructors who are now engaged in
teaching the required courses in Fresh-
man and Sophomore years would thus
be set free for elective work in the Sen-
ior and Junior classes and in the» Grad-
uate School.
But the College has committed itself
—unwisely, as I think—to a system of
required work in English literature in
the lower classes and in the prepara-
tory schools. Moreover, there is a gen-
eral expectation, on the part of the pub-
lic, that the new endowments will be
used to strengthen the Department by
adding new men to the present
corps of instructors. Under the cir-
cumstances, therefore, we shall have to
look about for such men, if we wish to
satisfy the alumni and to enrich the
elective program of English study in
the upper classes.
WHAT ‘‘ ENGLISH” INCLUDES.
Now, “Wnglish”’ includes
branches of instruction:
(1.) Rhetoric, or the arts of spoken
and written expression, comprising
theme work, praxis, lectures on style,
text-book instruction in rhetorical theo-.-
ry, the reading of authors for purposes
of rhetorical analysis, etc.
(2.) Philology or linguistics, i. e., the
study of the English language, its
structure and history, embracing usu-
ally, courses in Old and Middle English,
etc.
(3.) English literature, or the study of
literary history, or of authors for their
own sake and not as illustrations of
rhetorical principles or linguistic
laws. Of course these branches run in-
to each other; no hard and fast line
can be drawn between them. But they
are easily separable and are, in fact,
practically separated every day in the
teaching given at Yale as at other col-
leges.
English philology is, perhaps, al-
ready well provided for here. Anyone
wishing to study Anglo-Saxon, or Early
English, or the history of the language,
has an opportunity to do so under a
teacher who is a recognized authority
in his subject. The classes in this
branch will naturally always be small.
Few men specialize, as undergraduates
in linguistic science. Fifty men, or a
hundred men are interested in Shake-
ae where one is interested in Caed-
three
RHETORICAL EQUIPMENT INADEQUATE,
On the other hand, the rhetorical in-
struction in the College is, at present
quite inadequate, not in qualtiy, but =
amount. This is work whieh requires
en
NINETY-SEVEN COURANT BOARD.
A. P; Judd- Jr,
N. L. Barnes.
C. BE. Thomas.
R. L. Munger, (Ch.)
F. Tilney.
[Reprinted by permission from the Banner.)
See page five.
©. P. Kitchel..
a large force. To read and criticize the
themes ‘of twelve hundred undergrad-
uates, to train twelve hundred men in-
dividually in writing and speaking is a
prodigious task. And to be of much ef-
fect, the work must be individual. Ev-
ery student ought to write, not four
but ten—but twenty—themes a year;
and every theme should be carefuily
criticized. There is perhaps no depart-
ment of human labour in which the
returns bear so small a proportion to
the energy expended as in this. We are
not going to provide adequate rheto-
rical instruction for our students by
filling the Lampson chair with a sil-
ver-tongued orator. The drudgery of
theme reading is something which no
silver-tongue will long endure.
For rhetoric in the old sense, i. ¢., Or-
atory, or public speaking, the College
has long ceased to make provision.
This is something which can best be
managed by the students themselves,
in debating clubs of their own, like the
old Linonia and Brothers and _ the
modern Yale Union; just as journalism
is carried on by the undergraduate pe-
riodicals; though Mr. Hesing, I see, is
calling loudly for a graduate school of
journalism here, just as Mr. Chamber-
lin is calling for some one to train us
in public speaking.
Well doubtless that ‘‘Richtung”’ ought
to have recognition; and I, for one,
would be glad to have the alumni grat-
lified by the appointment, to one of the
new chairs, of some accomplished
speaker—I say, the nearest modern
analogue attainable of Edward Ever-
ett. I shall hope to see the other chair
filled by a man of letters; a scholar, of
course, but also, if possible, one who
has made contributions to literature;
not necessarily to what is known as
“creative” literature—fiction, poetry,
drama, etc., but to literary history, bi-
ography, criticism or the like; who is
something more than. an annotator of
texts or a compiler of other men’s writ-
ings.
HENRY A. BEERS.
»
STATUS OF THE CLASSICS.
Professor Seymour Reports a Strong
Department.—Another Latin
Professor is Suggested.
The terms of Mr. Lampson’s recent
bequest to Yale call attention to the
condition of classical studies in our
University. To inquire in detail how
this gift will affect the Classical De-
partment, may be premature. Very
probably one of the present professors
of Greek will be put upon a Lampson
foundation. That another professor
of Latin should be added seems exceed-
ingly. desirable, and more probable
than before in view of the increase in
the funds available for this purpose.
The Latin Department has three per-
manent officers, but Professor H. P.
Wright has had his thoughts and
strength drawn away from philological
teaching and research by the impor-
tant and absorbing duties of the Dean-
ship, for which he has shown very
unusual fitness. Those regret most his
partial withdrawal from work as a
teacher, who know best the accuracy
and depth of his scholarship and his
powers of clear statement. His work
as Dean leaves him less than half his
time for Latin, although his influence
in the Department is important. Pro-
fessor Peck is devoted entirely to elec-
tive and graduate work. Thus for a
large part of the year Professor Mor-
ris is the only permanent officer of the
Latin Department who is engaged in
the instruction of the Freshman and
Sophomore classes. At least one addi-
tional professor should take part in
this work.
But we would not imply that the
classes are suffering from any lack of
competence in their Latin teachers.
The time is distinctly in the past when
tutors have been selected on the sole
ground of general scholarship. For
several college generations no one has
been called to teach the classics at Yale
who has not had special preparation
for the work, and did not expect to de-
vote his life to classical studies. Of the
younger officers in Latin at present,
four have received the degree of Ph.
D., in classical philology, and the fifth
has had a long residence in Italy. No
one of them is without experience in
teaching. One received his A. B. thir-
teen years ago, another nine years ago.
Two have been teaching here for four
years, after previous experience else-
where; another has taught here for
three years. Men of this age and
training, when carefully selected, are
‘efficient and stimulating teachers of
Freshmen and Sophomores. Several
of these men are at least fully as
learned and competent instructors as
the average college professor of our
country. But the two lower classes
should have also a larger amount than
our Latin Department can now afford
.them of the ripeness and fullness of
learning which comes to a teacher only
with age.
Our Greek Department has a larger
number of experienced instructors than
the Latin,—having four professors, of
whom the youngest has had fifteen
years of experience in teaching. Three
of its permanent officers are continual-
ly engaged in the instruction of the two
lower classes,—two being with the
Sophomores, and one with the Fresh-
men. In this Department, too, the in-
structors who are not on a permanent
appointment have had adequate experi-
ence, and preparation. One of these in-
structors has had twelve years of ex-
perience in teaching here. Another has
taught for seven years. Two have spent
each two years in study at Athens, in
connection with the American School
of Classical Studies there. A certain
amount of young, new blood is desir-
able in every department, and the pres-
ent arrangement for the Greek force,
four permanent officers, and three on
