THE MICHIGAN DAILY
riATTUlRDA , rDE("i;1-_F',C 15, 19 2;
. ...... . ..
DELEGATES FROM FOREIGN NATIONS
PAY TRIBUTE AT GRAVE OF WRIGHT
MAYO NEURO-SURGEON
TO DISCUSS PIS WORK
Rochester Clinician Will Deliver
Annual Mayo Lecture
Here Monday
IS FOREMOST IN FIELD
Dr. Alfred Washington Adson will
deliver the annual Mayo lecture in
the Natural Science auditorium oki
Monday, December 17, at 4:15. His
ubject will be, "The First Concep-
tion of Surgery on, the Sympathetic
Nervous System."
Dr. Adson is chief of the neuro-
surgical division of the Mayo clinic
at Rochester, Minn. The sym-
pathetic nervous system has for
some time been well known by an-
atomists but has just recently
assumed great importance in its
relation to surgery. Dr. Adson is
one of the pioneers in the applica-
tion of surgery to the sympathetic
nervous system.
Drs. Royal and Hunter of Aus-
tralia carried out the first modern
investigation of this neuro-surgical
relation.
Dr. Hunter, who died recently of
typhoid fever contracted while le
traveled about this country discus-
sing his discoveries, was widely
recognized as one of the most bril-
liant anatomists the world has
known. The work of Royal and
Hunter was a great stimulus to
neuro-surgical research although;
their original conceptions have not
yet received confirmation.
Dr. Adson, who is a powerful
speaker- and is recognized as an
outstanding authority on this
branch of surgery, continued the
work started by Royal and
Hunter, and has revealed applica-
tions which are much more valu-
able than those proposed originally.
The rpost recent applications of
this type of surgery have been in
the treatment of diseases of the ex-
tremities, such as of the arms and
hands, and the legs and feet. An-
other application has been in the
relief of the giant colon in children.
on the way in which it trains stu-
dents, but iupon colleges and pro-
fessors its students choose for
their freshman year.
PROFESSOR EMERITUS LEVI CONDEMNS PH. D. DEGREE
In an open letter to The Daily'
Prof. Moritz Levi, professor emeri-
tus of French, agrees with the'
writer of the article in the Nation,'
which was reprinted in the Daily
recently. He writes as follows:
"In view of my having gonec
through the mill it may not be
amiss if I say a few words rela-
tive to the article in the Nation:
"Advice to a Prospective Teacher." '
To begin with, I believe that the
article in question' deserves sericus'
consideration on the part of those}
who aspire to become college
teachers of English or, indeed, of
any other subject, for the reason
that it is advisable to look before
one leaps.
"The writer of the article sets
forth the advantages as well as th;
disadvantages of the career of col-
lege teachers. Among the disad-
vantages he mentions first, slow
advancement due the aspirant's
lack of the Ph.D.; and next, insuf-
ficient compensation-more es-
pecially in the case of those who
marry before they have reached
"the age of reason," that is, the
Ph. D. degree and the consequent
higher salary. The advantages
spoken of are leisure for reading
and writing, "if one can overcome
the inertia imposed by enervating
academic conditions," the teacher's3
inspiration to his students, per-1
manency of tenure, and old-agef
worth looking at. I have no fault
to find with the Ph.D. degree per
se. This is a "believing world" and
we Americans worship, among
others, prohibition and the Ph.D.
degree-to mention only two of our,
divinities. Concerning the doctor's
degree I cannot help affirming
after considerable thought on the
subject that this academic distinc-
tion offers no guarantee of its pos-
sessor's being an exceptional in-
dividual as regards original re-
rearch or teoching ability. A doc-
tor's thesis may be valuable or it
may be of no value. It is certain,,
however, that many doctors' theses
represent a waste of time and ef-
fort. Moreover, judging by much
of what I have seen during the last
twenty-five years, I am inclined to
think that, in many cases, the par-
ticular work and excessive special-
ization required for the Ph.D. de-
gree are quite as likely to hinder
intellectual growth as to promote'
it. Looking up one's own little field
as if it were the center of the uni-
verse is liable to bring about this
negative result.
"Another aspect of the subject
concerns the relative value of the
doctor's degree. In order to deter-
mine this value, the status in the
Ph.D. decoration fastened to their
coat lapel, but who otherwise arc
wholly undistinguished either as
original workers or as good
teachers.
It goes without saying that there
are many eminent doctors of phil-
osophy, but as one examines, fog
instance, the list of contributions
to cur best magazines and of
writers of good books in general,
one finds among them as many
able men ana women who do not
possess the Ph.D. degree as who
do. Such being the case, it is evi-
dent that ability and fitness for
position may very well exist with-
out the Ph.D. This is well known.
yet in spite of this knowledge it
happens again and again at our
universities that, as the result of
the exaggerated worship of the
Ph.D. degree, deserving young men
are held back for years because
they cannot put that title after
their names, anx yet these same
young men often prove to be
among the best teachers. An in-
structor teaching fifteen hours per
Week must of necessity experience
considerable difficulty in finding
time for preparing his work for
the doctor's degree and, if married,
in order to make ends meet, he
Orville Wright, aviation pioneer, above, greets delegates from for-
eign nations who came to pay tribute to the memory of his brother,
Wilbur, and to place a wreath on his grave at Dayton, O. Wright is
scholarly world of the professors may have to do private tutoring
under whom young men may be besides. This postpones his doctor's
working is of utmost importance. degree and conseqpently his ad-
There are professors whose sole vancement.
'y Charges Secondary Schools Are Mere
Recruiting Grounds For College Athle &s
Secondary schools are turning ployed by major baseball team
Ito recruiting grounds for ath- managements,' he said. Although
tes, and as a result of the pres- he could offer no solution, he rec-
it system employed in the col- ommended that a study should be
ges, the secondary schools are made of the situation.
eclining in effectiveness, accord- "Athletic achievement is re-
ig to a statement of H. M. Ivy, warded and scholarship attain-
leridian, Miss., retiring president ,nents slighted as of no moment
the Association of Colleges and when a student goes from high
econdary schools of the Southern school to college," he declared. "As
ates, at its convention here. a result the athlete finds his uni-
"Ambitious alumni are more as- versity expenses amply provided
duous in scouting for promising for, while the man who is not an
niors than any scouts ever em- athlete often runs against an em-
barassing financial handicap."
VIlI Link University An attempt was also made to
standardize the grading system of
With State Progress colleges andhsecondary schools,
which were characterized as "emi-
Following in President Clarence n'ently unfair." "A student's rec-
ook Little's footsteps, Dr. John ord in a high school or prepara-
oscoe Turner, recently inaugurat- tory school now is relatively value-
d president of the University of less," it was stated. The records
Vest Virginia, plans to link his of freshmen in colleges are used
niversity with the industrial and' for or against the 'high schools
ocial development of the state. from which they are graduated.
Backed by his board of gover- If a school turns out a high per-
ors he aims to develop the natur- centage of students who become
I resources of the state by exten- vuccessful freshmen, theoretically
pensions. qualification .for conferring doe-
"As regards slow advancement tor's degrees consist in having their
and relatively low salaries at first, --- ---- -__ _
there does not seem to be any real
cause for complaint on the part of A RDr
the young college teacher since in A R C A D E
every calling, men are obliged to
begin at the bottom and cannot
reasonably expect to be munifi- TODAY ONLY
cently rewarded from the start.
But the value of the Ph. D., the
lack of which constitutes an ob-
stacle to advancement is a matter
"Lack of the Ph.D. degree is not
(Continued On Page Eight)
THEATRE
4C
leaudine od gs
rearty Laughs!
I
Detroit Theaters
CASS THEATRE
BEGINNING MONDAY, DEC. 10
Nights $1.00 to $2.50
HAL SKELLY
AND BARBARA STANWYCK
In the Comedy Success Entitled
"BURLESQUE" :
illian H
One M
ADDED
COMEDY
NEWS
Beginning with questions asked s
West about the renewal of the Salt
Creek royal oil lease to Harry F. n
Sinclair, the committee later call- a
{I
CHRISTMAS GIFTS
Burr, Patterson
& Auld Co.
Church at South U
SHUBERT
LAFAYETTE
WM. HODGE
in His Greatest Success
"STRAIGHT THRU THE DOOR"
Nights Mc to $2.50; Thursday
and Saturday Mats. 50c to $1.50
SUNDAY AND MONDAY
CHARLIE CHAPLIN
IN
'THE CIRCUS
ed Dr. Hubert Work, secretary of I sive research in engineering, chem- it is an efficient school. Actually,
the interior when the contract was istry, and geology. its rating is not at all dependent
renewed, and today William J.
Donovan, an assistant attorney
general, had been summoned 'to
testify.-
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