THE UNIVERSITY CONGRESS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1521, 17 August 1912, Page 7

THE UNIVERSITY CONGRESS.

iIREAT SPEECH BY LORD ROSEBERY, • NEED OF HEN- . THE BEST KIND OF IMPERIAL FEELING. In, the University of London, Lord Kbsebery is at home; and therefore it •was that there was a blending of formality and of informality about, his opening of the Congress of the .Universities of the Empire there on July 2 (says.the "Westminster 'Gazette"). A large gathering of distinguished educationalists from many parts of tho world—even India was represented, and there were perhaps a dozen ladies in tho gathering—were assembled in the big lecture-room of the University awaiting his arrival. He came in solemn state, preceded by the Mace of tho University, and attended by its principal officers, wearing the black gown' of his Chancellorship, with' its heavy cord of gold adornment, and having a small boy in a spotless white waistcoat to carry his train, Ho took his place, solemnly; on the platform; and then, almost at onco, cast formality aside. Ho saw Lord Stratheoua seated beiow, and, (with graceful deference to age, he left ■tho platform again to go down and exchange greetings with him. He returned to his place, but before he could settle down to worlc he had to strugglo out' of his -heavy robe and throw it over the back of a chair. Then, without furthor preliminary of any sort, he plunged' at once into his opening address. Vitally Important. He said this was an age of congresses. JThey had innumerable congresses, 6ome eminently useful, perhaps, some eminently superfluous. (Laughter.) Ho doubted if in all tho congresses that had met in London there was' ono in reality so vitally important, so striking in its nature, and making so great an appeal to the imagination of every British subject as that gathering. From England to Sydney, from Cambridge to Calcutta, from St. 'Andrews to Saskatchewan, and from Dublin to tho Cape, .they were, all joining hands and singing, as it were/ "Auld Lang Syne" at. a meeting which represented every part and region of this world-wide Lmpiro. Was not this; ho asked, the best kind of Empire, the best kind of Imperial feeling—a form of 'Imperialism to which not the least Englander could objectthat of co-operation in high- and noble tasks with.the common sympathy, affection,' and energy which would characterise the members of an immense family?,

Growth- of Universities,'" They must,be struck by the immenso growth in the number of the universities of the' Empire. In the-year. 1830—a.very' criticalyear in our history and in the history of. Europe—such a,congress, if it had been an English one, would have been an interesting private and confidential meeting of two representatives. (Laughter.). .Had it been confined to Groat Britain it ,„ would have been a , meeting of six; England had been-con-tent for centuries with two, whilst Scotland had never been content with less than four. (Laughter.) Had it been an Imperial congress it would have consisted of not more than eight representatives. Eighty years afterwards they came fiftythree strong; (Cheers.) . Might they not believe that had Daniel Wobster lived to deliver his famous eulogy on the British a small space the most eloquent that had ever been delivered, and that by an American statesman—he would have been able to add to his famous figure of the .universal "drumbeat'of the Empire" that it was" hbyr- belted around with universities. •'. The' marvellous • increase in the number of-'universities''-was due'to : an immense demand and an immense need,' and not, Ss^'thevoider 1 'universities ? were due; to the" instincts'of a-' pio'us"!in"d generally'ecclesiastical founder. The development in our universities had taken a totally different turn. Whereas .formerly, had/a.new .university 'been.founded, 'the founders would probably have choson the sequestered' solitudo of some cathedral city like Wells or Canterbury, but tho new universities were totally dif- . ferent. They met tho demand of great cities, which required that they should be situated in their midst, and that these universities should meet tne demands of their communities. ■ Every Great City's Desire. Oxford and Cambridge had supplied the wants of England for centuries, and did their work nobly, but with the increasing complications of our civilisation, together' with tho increase of our population, our commerco, and our wealth, it was felt that theso two universities could no longer, do what was required, and every great city seemed to considbr it a matter of' pride and a necessary appanage of its position'that it should hold auniversity ■ within its walls. In' the - twelve years -of the twentieth century : which had already passed, no fewer than-five'universities had .been founded in England alone.; That surely was a remarkable and striking feature of the times, and it had be™ row on all over the Empire. Any centralisation, or federation of the umversitttrs oi m'u iinipiro would bo poisonous and demoralising to them, but- he, could not.helo hopint? . that that Congress would leave behind it , Fomo pre-eminent channel through, which Hie universities of the Empire could continue to communicate with each other, when necessity arose. • There was one need common to all of them, a need which they alone cotild cupply—the great need of the age, which Was the need of itif-n. "You cannot," said Lord Rosebery,, ■"have a class of character or a class of morals; but yon can infuse character and morals and energy, and patriotism by tho ' tone and atmosphere of your universities, nnd of your professors. (Applause.) So far as you, in your different universities, can fulfil your "task of sending out men— I care less about their brains than their character for tho purposes I am speaking of—you are rendering by far th* greatest Borvice to the Empire that anybody within the Empire can render. (Cheers.) A century ago one. Prinio Minister sufficed for the whole British Empire,-and-we had some difficulty in finding him—(laughter)—but now the wholo Empire is dotted over with Parliaments, which require not merely members, incorruptible, earnest, ■honourable' members—l do not ask so much' for brains—(laughter)—but, as brains come wherever there is a career for ambition, members, Ministries,. and Prime Ministers, who are supposed to bo the most important of all. The Sort of Man Required. ' "These- are the requirements that have 'developed .'nil over the Empire, and for which we have to find men, or, more i-trictly spr.ikin's, you have to find them, Iwcaiise it-is the-university alone that can mipnly the sort of man that is required. "Then, again, there is the enormous development of municipal life—municipalities dotted nil over the country for which wo require equally honourable, incorrupt- j jble, strenuous men, if theso municipalities are not to degenerate to ■.something ] ,vory perilous to the State. Where are I we to get- the men for these purposes, if ! not from yon? I sometimes wonder if the ! universities sufficiently recognise Hie function that thev h.'ivp. to discharge- to the 3mpire, in furnishing the Empire with ;nen to carry on its work. If you fail in ■;hat—l do not say you are of no use to -is— yoj are not discharging the functions •vhich, under Providence, you were meant -.-o discharge." Au=tralia, with a population of about half that of greater London, added Lord Itoseberv. hid its seven Parliament?, ;ievcn Minister?, sown Prime Ministers. That rer,rr--ite'l n drain r-f the intelligence and vihlitv of tho Australian nation which cculd only ndcnur.tely be nipt if the universities of that country did thtiir duty. Before the gnat cm* and competition of nations took ple.ee, it was comprjativrfy c.-isv to maintain thif Emr/ire. They simply spread thc3i?ol ves, as it were, rnvoTuntevih- over the giobe, but ao one who observed the -i?n= of the times,could fe.il to see that it would be increasingly.difficult to maintain this Empire iniitvciiUrsty and its cohesion without an jnten'-.ity of character, and devotion which' it was the task of the Uni-versities-pre-eminently to: maintain.

A Great ..Movement of Unrest. "It is not only tho Empire," Lord Eosebery continued, "it is tho world itself which has need of. all tho character, all.

the honesty, and all the ability which it contains, developed or undeveloped, to carry it on without the danger of anarchy and chaos. I do not think any intelligent observer can watch tho course oi the world without seeing that a great movement of unrest is passing over it, whether for good or for evil—l cannot doubt for good—that it is affecting not merely England and the Empire, but that it is affecting tho entiro universe. Att.r centuries of dcadncss it has affected the East, and tho Ottoman Empire is apparently in tho throes of preparation,for 6omo new development. "More striking even than that, it has touched the dormant millions of China, which for tho first timo in its .history appears likely to make a new start, a new development, a new progress to sorao ideal, which wo ourselves aro incapable of defining. Is not. the whole world in the throes of a travail to produce something* new to us, something perhaps now to history, something perhaps better than anything wo have yet known, which it may tako long to perfect or to achieve, but which, at any rate, means a now evolution?

"Now for that purpose, the purpose of guiding that movement, tho purpose ol letting it proceed on safe lines that will not lead to shipwreck,, we need all the men the universities can give 7 us, not merelv the higher intelligences of which I spoke, but also tho men right through tho frame-work of society, from tho highest to the lowest, whose character and virtues can influence and inspire others. (Applause.) I am looking ,to-day at the universities simply as machines for producing men—tho best kind of machine for producing the best kind; of men who may help preserve our Empire, and even tho universe itself, from the grave conditions under which wo seem 'ikely to labour.

"I hope you will forgive me for' taking this narrow and yet broader new of the university functions than that which it is usual to take. It is in that spirit, and in the hopo that the universities of tho Empire will not bo insensible to that spirit, and tho high responsibility which is cast upon them, that I bid God-speed to tho labours of this Congress." (Applause.) A Ten-minute Limit.

There was si "ton-minute limit" imposed for speakers;' and, as the papers that • had been prepared were printed, this led to some of their authors deciding to "take them as read," and make supplementary speeches—an innovation that it must be admitted added considerably to the interest of the proceedings. Sir Alfred Hopkinson, the Vice-Chan-cellor of tho University of Manchester, called attention to the need of an understanding' that each university will take up the lines of work with which it can deal efficiently by reason of its local conditions, its pecuniary position, and the character of its students—such subjects, for instance, as mining, agriculture, tropical medicine, and metallurgy, which seme universities had. special facilities for treating, while they, camo hardly at all within the scope of others. Dr. T. Herbert Warren, the President of Magdalen, complained that universities were often too conventional, too imitative, 'too unoriginal, and insisted that this commercial rivalry was L< th unworthy and unwise.

Principal Peterson, ofi the M'Gill University of Montreal, opened a discussion on inter-university arrangements for postgraduate and research students. As a trustee of the Carnegie Foundation, he was able to speak not only for the British and Canadian universities, hut for those of the United States, "which," ho said, "if they are not Imperial, are at least English-speaking." Principal Griffiths, tho late Vice-Chan-cellor of the University of Wales, suggested a "probationary year" for graduates, to test their capability for original research, and described a scheme of that kind that has already been adopted in tho Welsh University. Professor H. B. Allen, of Melbourne University, and Professor Frank Allen, of tho University of Manitoba, pleaded for mutual recognition of courses and degrees among universities,'.in order that students.at a sufficiently,advanced stage of their career,'might,.enjoy, the .advantage that is to be obtained' by'passing from one university to another. Sir Joseph Thompson pointed out that very few students were in a position to undertako post-graduate work without financial support, and asked that millionaires should bo "trained to spend their _ money -on men, and not on buildings." > •

An Indian Professor, from Calcutta, and Sir William Turner, the Vice-Chan-cellor of Edinburgh University, and Dr. Barrett, of Melbourne, also took part in a discussion of great interest and considerable value, and that was protracted.