COLLEGE AND 'VARSITY.

Auckland Star, Volume LVI, Issue 112, 14 May 1925, Page 9

COLLEGE AND 'VARSITY.

SCHOLASTIC LIFE IN SYDNEY. SOME HINTS FOR AUCKLAND. F-tOFESSOB DETTMAN-J'S VIEWS.

Past and present students of the Auckland University, and his large circle of friends here, are interested in the return to Auckland, on a short holiday visit, of Professor H. S. Dettmann, ■who with Mrs. Dettmann, arrived by the Ulimaroa from Sydney yesterday. The Professor has been headmaster of the Sydney Grammar School since August of 1023, prior to which he •was Professor of Classics at the Auckland University College.

Interviewed this morning, Mr. Dettmann gave a "Star" representative some interesting facts regarding scholastic life in Sydney and he mode some suggestions, which, if adopted here, would certainly result in very great improvements in the sphere of the University. The University of Sydney has over 3000 students and, of recent years, most of the professors have been men from that University. The medical and law s-'hools have a very high standing in the country, the law school having about 400 students.

Residential College System. "University life in Sydney is helped greatly by the residential college system," said Mr. Dettmann. "There are five residental colleges in Sydney and a sixth for Catholic women has just been founded. These colleges are the real centre of University life and one of the great needs of Auckland. The corporate life of the Auckland University is wonderfully fine considering its disadvantages, but a separate Auckland University with separate colleges would mean a very great advance."

A University Club. "Another need of Auckland (based on Bydney experience), is a university club," continued the professor. "The Sydney University Club, with its central rooms and subscription of £G fi/ a year, is a meeting place for 'Varsity men, and any day at lunch one may meet the Attorney-General, two or Three judges, a number of professors, leading members of the law and medical professions, and various business men. It's a regular thing, and should be possible in Auckland. It would make a wonderful difference to the status of the university in the community in this town, where people have never fully realised that they had a university, except through its cricket and football teams."

In Sydney, the State has been very generous in the matter of university buildings, said Mr. Dettmann. They must be easily the finest in the Southern Hemisphere. The University War Memorial i 3 taking the form of carillon bells in the tower, the 'Varsity men having subscribed £20,000 for them.

The State School. The schools in Sydney are very fine, says Professor Dettmann. They are trying hard to make them independent by getting endowments from old boys. The State system there is exceptionally good, just as it is in the Dominion. The State High School corresponds with the Auckland Grammar School, and has the same amazing success in scholarships as does the Auckland school. The great private schools, however, believe that they have something to give that the State schools cannot give.

The Sydney Grammar School, of which Mr. Dettmann is "Head," is the oldest school in Australia and celebrates its centenary this year. Its building dates from.iß32. The Chief Justice of New South Wales is Chairman of Trustees, and is an old boy, as is also Sir Edmund Barton, the Chief Justice of Australia. "1 was welcomed at a dinner at the Union Club, by 80 old boys, one of whom Joined the school in"ISSS," _aid the Professor. "It was an extraordinary experience to address a gathering of old boys who were real 'old boys.' There are lads in the school now who are the fourth generation. At present the roll numbers 650 students."

School Sport. Regarding sport, Mr. Dettmann said that the eight big schools in Sydney had five great competitions each year —competitions that attracted, great public attention. At the last public echool regatta on the Parramatta river, 100,000 people were present, it being practically impossible to hire a craft on the river "for love or money." The event was classed as the biggest of the year, with the exception of the English cricket test match. The Sydney Grammar School was "head of the river" for three years, but last year, it was beaten on merit. School football there is just King's and Grammar over again, excepting that in Sydney, there are seven or eight schools to choose from instead of one or two, and. a big match, akin to King's v. Grammar, takes place every Saturday during the season. Grammar v. St. Joseph's was the great game last year and it was witnessed by lo.nnrj persons on a Wednesday afternoon. The All Blacks saw the game and Ces Badcley told Mr. Dettmann that he had never seen school-boy teams of such fine physique. The Professor pointed out that the boys stay on at school later in Australia, some remaining until they are IS or Ift. and it was quite common to find "forwards averaging 12 stone in the teams. Sydney Life. Sydney is in the grip of the crossword puzzle, but the professor expressed the opinion that life there was sane and healthy, except that the greater bustle made it less quiet and so less pleasant. Sydney is a great city offering pleasures galore, the cabaret system being highly developed. But it was pointed out by Mr. Dettmann that the hospitals there depend on voluntary effort, and large sums necessary for their upkeep were raised by fetes' and cabaret parties on a grand scale. The women do splendid work in the name of charity, although Mrs. Dettmann holds that the business is overdone. She said that she is always overwhelmed with tickets for bazaars and fetes, and that it is quite usual for three or four brilliant charity functions to be held on the same night. Great excitement is now probable in Sydney with elections coming on at the end of the month. Mr. Dettmann said that Labour has been rather unfortunate with the internal rows that have taken place, and that the recent activities of the City Council have not helped them much.