AN AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17294, 18 October 1919, Page 1 (Supplement)

AN AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY.

WHY NOT? BT H. W. SEGAH, M.A. It will surprise many people to hear there is no university in Auckland. There is a University College, and there are three others in Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin respectively. These are affiliated to the New Zealand University. The colleges do the teaching, and provide laboratories, libraries, museums, and equipment. The university legislates, determines the requirements for degrees, confers such degrees, awards various scholarships and prizes, and conducts the necessary examinations. The colleges do the teaching, which is the most essential as well as much the most expensive part of the work, but the name university is reserved for a body that practically determines what shall be taught, where it shall be taught, and decides as to what extent it is successfully taught. And where is the New Zealand University ? Well, here is its calendar of some 270 pages. Let us look at it. All we can find in it bearing on the question is "'Office : Wellington." We have to look up the directory for further information. Here we rind "University of New Zealand (Sir Robert Stout, K.C-M.G., Chancellor)' 11-13 Brandon St., Wei." Or. searching for the building, we find ourselves in Brandon Street, one of the central commercial streets of the capital city, but can find no trace of the university at Nos. 11-13. A little inquiry and we are directed to No. !do"Brandon Street Chambers." We search the plates at the entrance, and presently find that the New Zealand University is on the second floor. Mounting several flights of stairs, or taking the lilt, we at last enter the suite of three rented rooms, admirably suited for an accountant with a fair connection. These constitute all the habitation the New Zealand University offers to the world. It shares a not very large block with surveyors, architects, shipping agents, and others. Truly not one a notion of a university this. Newman defines a university as a place of teaching universal knowledge. The great American University President, C. WEliot, speaks of "all the branches of university administration in its numerous departments of teaching, in its financial and maintenance departments, its museums, laboratories, and libraries, in its extensive grounds and numerous buildings for very various purposes, and in its social organisation." In no way do these descriptions apply to the New Zealand University. In what sense then is the New Zealand University a university Only in respect to functions which neither Newman nor Eliot places amongst the essentials of a university. These functions may be important, but consequentially to the more essential functions. Their concentration in the -\ew Zealand University deprives the colleges of the right of self-determination, and of granting degrees, and hence of the right to be entitled universities.

is a University College, and there are J three others in Wellington, Christchurch ' and Dunedin respectively. These are af- , filiated to the New Zealand University. < The colleges do the teaching, and pro- i vide laboratories, libraries, museums, ' and equipment. The university legislates, '• determines the requirements for degrees, confers such degrees, awards various j scholarships and prizes, and conducts the 1 necessary examinations. The colleges do the teaching, which is the most essential - as well as much the most expensive part of the work, but the name university is reserved for a body that practically determines what shall be taught, where it shall be taught, and decides as to what extent it is successfully taught. And where is the New Zealand University ? Well, here is its calendar of some 270 pages. Let us look at it. All we can find in it bearing on the question is '"Office : Wellington." We have to look up the directory for further information. Here we find "University of New Zealand (Sir Robert Stout, &.C-M.G., Chancellor)' 11-13 Brandon St., Wei." On searching for the building, we find ourselves in Brandon Street, one of the central commercial streets of the capital city, but can find no trace of the university at Noe. 11-13. A little inquiry and we are directed to No. iiO—"Brandon Street Chambers.'' We search the plates at the entrance, and presently find that the New Zealand University is on the second floor. Mounting several flights of stairs, or taking the lift, we at last enter the suite of three rented rooms, admirably suited for an accountant with a fair connection. These constitute all the habitation the New Zealand University offers to the world. It shares a not very large block with surveyors, architects, shipping agents, and others. Truly not one notion of a university this. Newman defines a university as a place of teaching universal knowledge. The great American University President, C. WEliot, speaks of "all the branches of nniversity administration in its numerous departments of teaching, in its financial and maintenance departments, its mus- I eurns, lauoratories, and libraries, in its extensive grounds and numerous build- j ings for very various purposes, and in its j social organisation." In no way do these j descriptions apply to the New Zealand University. In what sense then is the New Zealand University a university Only in respect to functions which neither Newman nor Eliot places amongst the essentials of a university. These func- ! turns may be important, but consequent- | iiJly to the more essential functions, j Their concentration in the .\ew Zealand University deprives the colleges of the j right of self-determination, and of grant- . ing degrees, and hence of the right to be ) entitled universities. 1 The Federal System. The university system of New Zealand is that known as the Federal System. It is similar to that of the Victoria University that once connected the University | Colleges of Liverpool, Manchester and j Leeds. The failure of the federal conj stitution of the Victoria after i some 20 years' trial, with the consequent j founding of the Universities of Liverpool, j Manchester and Leeds, is a fact full of ! significance, and goes to show that a I Federal University is ephemeral. Indeed, I as a manifesto issued a few years ago by I the South African College states, the federal system is "'a temporary makej shift necessitated in some places by i special local conditions, but not destined to be permanent. It is intended only as j a step towards complete independence. The case against the Federal University was pleaded most powerfully in a peti- ! I tion in 1902 by the City and University ! j College of Liverpool. The petitioners : ! jointed out that there were a number of ; I very serious inherent disadvantages in I ! the system which were growing ever Eieater and greater as time went on, and i which separation alone could cure. The Victoria University stirred little or no j local interest in Liverpool. The city had no proud sense of ownership in the viiiversity. The centre (Manchester), in j which the university meetings were held, | acquired a disproportionate share in its I government. There again the organisation moved increasingly unwieldy. The machinery creaked and crawled : it was cumbrous, irregular, and ineffective. Business became congested. In schemes ot study constant compromises had to be patched up between the ideas of three different sets of teachers. Schemes of study were devised which differed from i the ideals of all, and which all had never- ; tneless to follow. The federal system ! obstructed the progress of the separate colleges along the lines of their natural developments. The unity of legislation, which should characterise a university, had often to be sacrificed. All originality of aim and method was hampered. As far as teaching was concerned, the cc lieges got no direct help either from the university or from one another. If i one college was particularly strong in one : branch of study, neither of the othe* col■ic ges was a whit the better for it. In : conclusion the Liverpool Separatists reI ferred to the examples of Scotland, ; America, Germany, and other European : countries, all of which had favoured the • Single-College University System with the most gratifying results. Is the Time Ripe? The Victoria Federal University is no more. The arguments of the Liverpool i : petitioners achieved their purpose. The i ' real success of the new universities has 1 ' justified their foresight. Every one of 1 | these arguments applies to the case of . | New Zealand, but some of them even ■ j more strongly. We have four distant j lieges instead of three. and the distances separating the colleges are enor--1 j mouslv greater than in the case of Vic--1 j tona University. A meeting of a govern- ! i ing body of the Victoria University could | i be held at the cost of only a few" hours' ' | time to each concerned. A meeting of 1 | the New Zealand University Senate is a ! much more serious matter, with the re- | sult that, except for formal business, 1 ! which is left to the Wellington members, * I two meetings only are held in the year, 1 | far too few for the efficient government *i or the growing institutions. The system \ I is breaking down . by reason of it* own I weight. ' All argument? against the institution of r I separate universities in New Zealand a: i ' likely to centre round the youth and rela- : tive smallness of the several colleges. It ' I is well to recollect then what our neigh- > i hours have done. Otago started its 1 university when its population was very , j small, and before the New Zealand Unij I versity was instituted, and although it j sacrificed its independence to facilitate r | matters, it has retained to this clay its . i original title, the "Otago University." f I Sydney started its university when not J j half the size Auckland is to-day. Tas- | mania has long had its university, and j Western Australia founded its university some years ago, and in neither is there a population even approaching that of Auckland. In Adelaide and Brisbane ' acain we have universities, and in neither town is the population greatly in excess of the Auckland centre, and the univer- ' sily in Adelaide is of long standing. Last November the writer proposed a 1 motion on this matter to the Board of 6 Studies. Although it merely urged i,he 3 consideration of the question, he was sur,r prised at its being carried unanimously. Sii. C. Bowen, 9 few years ago, speaking ' in Auckland, suggested 100 years for ih- ; ,' development of separate universities. The writer hoped that keeping the que-- ,\ tion "in the air" for pf'rh.ip.- 10 years. 0 might sufficiently ripen public opinion, a But signs are not wanting that the question, is Akeadj one of practical polities.