ETHICAL VALUE OF DUELLING.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1415, 16 April 1912, Page 7

ETHICAL VALUE OF DUELLING.

UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR'S VIEW. An interesting apologist for tho German duel is Mr. C. L- do ot the Professors of the University ot Michigan, who desoribos the university duel as a more effective factor in the development of character than many forms of sport prevalent in American colleges. Thero are two kinds of duelling, ho proDeeds to point out, namely, duels fought to get satisfaction for an actual or imagined insult, ami duels fought for sport pure and simple. The first kind is undoubtedly somewhat out of date, and has fallen into public disfavour. The second kind, however, is far from outgrown, in Germany, at least. Says Professor de Murnlt: "When a young student enters a unlversity ho is given a. chance to enter any one of various student 'societies similar to cur American 'fraternities.' The Corps —for so the societies aro called in Germany—are distinguished from one another by the colours which their members wear both on their caps and on silk ribbons worn across the chest. When a student becomes a member of a 'Corps, he is called a 'fox' and is considered to bo m the outer circle only and on probation. Ho is allowed to wear only two of the three colours which distinguish that particular Corps from all the others. These two colours ho wears during a period of six months or so, and during this time the 'fox' is instructed by the older members in fencing and duelling manners Toward the end of this period he will have learned enough about duelling to be tried out, and he is matched against a member of another Corps of approximately equal strength in a real duel. Let me 6ay right 'jhere that in duelling for sport there is no intention of killing your adversary. The purpose is simply to disable him, and, except in the duels of the test fencers, the doctor and tne seconds are the judges as to when a man is disabled. The best fencers usually fight as long as they ere able to V-M « p*-"" 1 -' the 'fox' in his first duel behaves well and shows that he can take punishment without flinching, he is matched in ■a second duel against a man of superior strength. Thus he is tried out somo three to five times, and at least pnee he is matched against a man who is surely goin" to punish him severely. This is his Teal test of courago. If in this test and in his general conduct ho has shown himself worthy to bo a full member of the Corps he is given the permission to wear the three colours of his Corps and is called a 'Corps-Bursch. , After this, his duels will be of a more serious nature, and will iisually ba fought in the name of his Corps in its quarrels with other Corps. "When ono Corps has a grievance against another, the aggrieved Corps challenges the other for as many dnels as the weaker Corps has members. Tho challenged usually returns the challenge, thus doubling the number of duels to bo fought. This method of procedure is chosen simply a3 a means of providing a sufficient number of duels for tho older members, who, as a general rule, do not like to be simply matched against their approximate equals, but prefer fighting Tti'h some special incentive and with a certain amount of hazard in the, game, ns happens when they do not know exactly asainst whom they hay nave to fight up to the moment they actually meet th« adversary."

One thousand pounds has recently been paid for a copy of Chaucer's ''Canterbury Talcs," printed by Caxton.