Records of Scholarship.

In President Eliot's report there are some interesting statistics about men taking second-year and final honors. The number of men who take second-year and final honors does not increase with the growth of the college. The report contains several figures of which a few may serve to show the general drift that students are taking in regard to honors. Since 1881 the yearly average of both second-year and final honors has been a trifle over 24. The number of men taking second-year honors for the last four years has been 19, 18, 27, and 19. More men, it seems, take final honors, for the number of these honors taken in the last four years has been 22, 22, 25, and 28.

Although so few men take honors, those degrees with distinction which require no special study but merely general excellence, are taken by a great number of the men that graduate. But even in the case of these degrees the scholarship has depreciated of late. Up to 1887 over one-half of the graduates took degrees with distinction, and in the class of 1884, 61 per cent. of the graduates took such degrees. But of late classes have not shown such brilliant scholarship. The class of '88 graduated 42 per cent. with distinction, '89 graduated but 39 per cent., and '90 graduated 42 per cent. The class of 1884 made the following brilliant record: Out of 195 men 118 took degrees with distinction, 22 of which were summa cum laude, 43 magna cum laude, and 53 cum laude. Compared with this the class of 1890 took the same total number of degrees with distinction, although graduating half as many men again.

The decreasing popularity of second-year and final honors may be due to the existence of these more popular degrees with distinction; but it also points to a tendency in college students to devote their energies less to specializing than to general education. The President states that the Faculty are in doubt about the expediency of men trying for honors, except in cases where such students intend to teach.

In Dean Smith's report there are statistics which show that even at present it is perfectly possible for men to go through college in three years and perform the work with credit. Last year ten men graduated, after having done their work in three years. The number of courses required for a degree was 18.4. Four men did extra work, three taking 18.9 courses, and one taking 19.4. The student last mentioned took honorable mention in three subjects and a degree magna cum laude. Of the other three, one took a degree magna cum laude, and two summa cum laude; one of them took second-year and final honors, and one took highest honors. Out of all ten men who graduated in three years, three took degrees summa cum laude, three magna cum laude, one cum laude, one merely honorable mention, and two no distinction. Would it not be well for advocates of a three years course to examine these data and see how under the present system the work is done in three years by those who wish to do so?