The Press Saturday, July 11, 1925. "Intellectual Co-operation."

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18431, 11 July 1925, Page 14

The Press Saturday, July 11, 1925. " Intellectual Co-operation."

Perhaps the most remarkable development in the. British University world during the past fourteen or fifteen years has been the extent to which organised consultation or conference or discussion between Universities has taken root and expanded. Every fifth year the Universities of the Empire meet in '"Congress." Every year the Universities of Great Britain and Ireland hold a " Conference.'' And every three months a body called the "' Committee •'of Vice-Chancellors and Principals' 5 of British and Irish Universities and University Colleges meets in London for the discussion of incidents or problems of immediate concern to the whole body. Altogether this triple form of consultation and deliberation goes a long way towards realising the League of Nations ideal of " iutel- " Icctual co-operation/' The annual Conference between the British and Irish Universities for 1025 has just been held in London. The topics for discussion were limited to three. The lirst was, '■ The Function of the Uni- " versities in Relation to Agriculture," a question of direct practical interest

to ourselves here at tlio present time. The opening speaker was Sir Daniel Hall, K.C.8., F.R.S., Chief Scientific Adviser to the Ministry of Agriculture. He rather treated the question on broad, general lines than offered specific solutions of the many problems involved for tho Universities in the matter. Looking at the older Universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge, he noted that many of the students were future landowners. "What was.to be done with them/ Many of them Mere ill-adapted for specialised scientific courses. But there were broad human aspects of agriculture, and there were social and economic aspects; and he considered it of the highest importance that these future landowners should, while at the University, obtain some initiation and guidance in those large, general aspects of their future calling, which were oil such vital importance to the rural life of England. It was left to subsequent speakers to thresh out the details. Should agriculture be a degree or merely a compulsory subject for a degree? Should it be- associated with an Honours course in Science? Should the specialised w r ork in agriculture be post-graduate or undergraduate 1 Is there a " science" of agriculture? These are only a few of the many aspects of (he question which were discussed. J-ho next subject "'Physical Training "and Medical Supervision of '' sity Students." was especially interesting from the broad and somewhat startling contrast which it brought out between British methods on the one hand and American and Canadian methods on the other. In Britain, as with ourselves here, every encouragement is given to games and exercises by University authorities; but there is no official recognition, no authoritative organisation of spoi'ts or phj-sieal exercises, Jior the faintest shadow of an attempt at authoritative medical inspection or supervision. It so happened that there were present at the Conference two distinguished academic representatives of the New World: Sir Robert Falconer, President of the University of Toronto, and Professor C. M. Gayley, late Dean of the University of California and now representative in London of tho American Universities' Union. Each of them described the system and method of physical supervision at his own University, and there was an extraordinary resemblance between the two pictures. The system of physical training and medical supeiv vision is compulsory, and is very thorough. Every individual student must undergo periodic medical examination ; and the lines of his physical exercises arc laid down according to the results of this inspection. He (or she) has no choice in the matter. It would appear that no room is left for individual preferences or proclivities. There is a Director of Physical Training, and he is under the direction of a Medical Director, who is supreme autocrat. We need not elaborate the picture; nor would it be possible here to discuss the points involved. Some of the British delegates supported the American system. Sir George Adami, Vice-Chaneellor of Liverpool University, urged that the adoption of some such system would improve Britain's C 3 population. He also pointed out that, while Britain had taught the world corporate sports (an idea which ancient Greece, with her individualistic culture, had never arrived at), still it ivas after all only a small proportion of University students that could participate in such sports. We can touch but briefly on the third discussion, though the subject has acquired importance of late owing to its bearing ou certain aspects of French foreign policy. It was: " The '"relation of Universities to foreign " National Institutes established in "Great Britain and similar British Institutes abroad." We were aware already of the special efforts being made by France, by the establishment of Institutes in other countries, to promote French influence, and focus attention on France as the fountain of culture for Europe. She has eight such Institutes scattered over Europe; while Britain has a solitary one, namely, at Florence; and that is now dependent on voluntary contributions. The Director of the "Institut Francais'"' in London was present at the meeting, and spoke' of the aims and methods of his '* Institut." Teachers of French get their University courses on the lines of the. Sorbonne. Students who caunot afford to go to France get similar advantages. And tho "In- '* stitut" serves also as an information bureau for facilitating interchange of Professors, and the like. Further, the Director "conveyed to the meeting the earnest desire of French Professors

that Britain would establish an Institute in Pari?. They realised that it was a serious loss to themselves that they had so little direct contact with British Professors, and practically no first-hand knowledge of their methods of teaching. British speakers acknowledged Britain's deficiencies in the matter of .Institutes: but unfortunately the Universities could do nothing, as they had no money. They tried to compensate by throwing their doors open wide to students from abroad ami from the oversea Dominions. But there still remains the fact that British Universities do very little, to assist their own students to go abroad or to America. Professor Gayley remarked that while there are now 425 American students studying at British Universities, there r: not one-third of that number of British students in the Universities of the United States. In connexion with this whole question, we think we may fairly congratulate the University of New Zealand on the liberal scheme of travelling scholarships which it has built up in recent vears.