ence). For each general course and for each special branch of study within a given college there were usually two prizes, the first of $30 and the second of $20. In the college of History $30 were offered for the best series of notes or essay in connection with the president's course in history, and $20 for the second in merit. Thirty dollars were also given for the best series of notes or essay in connection with Goldwin Smith's course in English history, and $20 for the second best. For the best set of notes in connection with Professor Russel's course, $20 were offered, and for the next in merit $10. In 1870 the president's prizes in his own course appear to have been awarded upon the basis of the following examination :

1. State the two theories which have given rise to the opposite charges against the influences of the Reformation: First, the theory of John Adams and Guizot; secondly, the theory of Professor Fisher. How may these two apparently contradictory theories be reconciled?

2. Give the name and geographical positions of the three towns where the Diets of the Empire were held which dealt with important matters relating to the Reformation; for what was each of these Diets noted?

3. Give the citation from St. Filippo Neri regarding the young men preparing for the Jesuit missions to England. State the circumstances which give point to that saying.

4. Name the two most laborious and self-sacrificing of the Jesuit missionaries to England. Name any who distinguished themselves in North America.

5. What do you understand by the "Secularization of European Politics" under Richelieu?

6. What was the Paulette? What had it to do with the Fronde?

7. Give a general sketch of the Parliament of Paris.

8. Give, as concisely as possible, an argument on the comparative fertility of republics and monarchies in great men, with any historical illustrations which may occur to you.

9. Who was ruling in England at the time of the accession of Louis XIV? Who at the time of his death?

10. What was the Calas affair, and what was Voltaire's agency in it?

11. Name the three most important writings of Montesquieu, and give a brief sketch of each.

12. What is the approximate date given by Buckle as separating the philosophic attack on the French Church from the attack on the State?

13. What was the central id ea of Calonne's financial policy?

14. How may the French revolutionary ferocity be accounted for on general principles? Name any agencies in training the French to it.

15. What was the "Suspensive Veto" under the Constitution of 1791?

16. Give the main features of the French Constitution of 1795, and trace in it the reaction against the earlier revolutionary Constitution.

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR RUSSEL.1

Prof. William Channing Russel, a graduate of Columbia College, and at one time professor in Horace Mann's College, Ohio, a man of scholarly tastes, was associated with President White in the depart

1 Professor Russel left Cornell University in 1881 and occupied temporarily the chair of the late Professor Diman, now held by Professor Andrews. Mr. Russel is said by Mr. Burr to have early introduced the seminary method at Cornell University.

ment of history from the very beginning of the Cornell University. He occupied a peculiarly strong and influential position in the early years of that institution and even served it as vice-president during the ab sence of Mr. White as American minister to Berlin 1879–81. At the inauguration of President White in 1868 Mr. Russel delivered an address representing the faculty and expressed strong sympathy with both classical culture and the modern movement towards historical and scientific studies. He devoted himself as an instructor particularly to Roman and medieval history, although he gave also instruction in French. Old graduates of Cornell University have spoken to the writer in warm terms of Professor Russel's devotion to the university and of his excellent work as a teacher, although in a somewhat unpopular field. The teaching of ancient and mediæval history, in this country, requires men of uncommon zeal and enthusiasm, for, as a rule, American students are much more interested in the modern history and especially in that of England and of their own country. But a wholesome corrective and proper balance to this practical tendency should be rigidly enforced in every college and university.

Perhaps the best idea of the nature of Professor Russel's courses can be derived from the following specimens of his examination papers. The instructor gave lectures on Ancient history and required select readings from Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

EXAMINATION IN ANCIENT HISTORY (1874–75).

1. Into what races are mankind divided ethnologically?

2. Into what families are the languages of Europe and Asia divided philologically?

3. To what race of mankind do the Chinese belong, and to what family does their language belong?

4. About how far back do Chinese records extend?

5. What attention have the Chinese paid to the history of their nation?

6. When did Confucius live? What was the character of his teaching?

7. What nations successively conquered China, and at about what time? Of what nationality is the present ruling race?

8. To what race do the people of Hindoostan belong, and to what family does their language?

9. What attention did the East Indians pay to history? Describe their intellectual character and habits.

10. What have been the prevailing religions of the East Indians? State their doctrines.

11. By what nations has Hindoostan been successively conquered?

12. Of what race were the Babylonians?

13. How far back can we trace Baylonian history?

14. Of what nationality were the Assyrians?

15. What memorials of Babylonian and Assyrian history remain ?

16. Describe Assyrian civilization.

17. By what nation were Babylon and Assyria conquered?

18. What was the extent of the Persian monarchy under Darius Hystaspes?

19. How far back does our knowledge of Egypt extend? To what races did the Egyptians belong?

20. What means have we of knowing Egyptian history and civilization? Describe their civilization.

21. By whom were Persia and Egypt finally conquered, and of whose empire did they become a part?

22. To what races did the Hellenes belong? Which were the two principal subraces?

23. What was the general character of the Spartan Government? What was the character of the Athenian Government? Explain as to each.

EXAMINATION IN ROMAN HISTORY.

(April 2, 1870.)

I.-1. Who were the original Italians?

2. What other people belonged to the same family?

3. After the Italians came into Italy, into what nations were they divided? II.-1. At what date does the authentic history of Rome begin?

2. What authority have we for facts said to have occurred before that
period?

3. What is the date usually ascribed to the foundation of Rome?
4. Of what three nations were the early inhabitants of Rome?

III.-1. What was a Roman Gens? a Curia? a Century? a Tribe?

2. Under what two great divisions were the free inhabitants of Rome classed?

3. What rights had they respectively?

4. What means of obtaining privileges did the unprivileged class several times use?

IV.-1. What principle in regard to the possession of land is conspicuous in Roman

history?

2. How did the small proprietors of land lose it?

3. What was the effect on the prosperity of Rome of the want of small landed proprietors?

4. What was the object of an agrarian law?

5. Who were the Gracchi, and what did they accomplish?

6. What other persons attempted the same thing?

V.-1. What was the prevailing policy of Rome with respect to foreign nations?

2. By what wars did Rome extend her power?

3. At the time of Julius Cæsar, what was the extent of the Roman Empire? VI.-1. What was the effect of foreign conquest on the prosperity of the Romans? 2. How did it affect their mode of life, their independence, their morality.

VII.-1. In the time of Marius who were Roman citizens?

2. Under Julius Cæsar who were they?

VIII.-1. What were the original causes of the loss of Roman liberty?

2. Who first destoyed Roman liberty?

3. After him what form of Government did Rome need?

4. Between what persons was the struggle for supreme power?

5. How did the struggle result?

IX.—1. What fatal political mistake did Julius Cæsar make?

EXAMINATION IN LATER ROMAN HISTORY.

(June 25, 1870.)

1. What were the powers of Emperor Augustus and his immediate successors ? Whence were those powers derived?

2. After the time of the Antonines, what body virtually appointed the Emperor? What was the origin of that body, and how large was it?

757 ED, NO. 2--10

3. What changes did Diocletian introduce into the form of government, in the places of the imperial residence, and in the imperial style of living? What effect had these changes on the powers of the Senate and on the burthens of the people? 4. What change did Constantine the Great make in the imperial residence and in the constitution of the empire?

5. By whom and when was the empire divided into two parts? What was the effect of that division on the decline of the Empire?

6. How and when did the Roman Empire of the West become extinct?

7. By what means was Italy ruled by the Emperor of the Eastern Empire? What was the title of his representative.

8. To what principal causes was the decline of the Roman Empire due?

9. How were the Goths divided? Where did they come from? Where were they when they first appeared in Roman history? What Roman Emperor was defeated by them and when? When and under whom did they finally conquer Italy? How long did they keep possession of it?

EXAMINATION IN MEDIEVAL HISTORY.

(Fall trimester, 1871.)

1. (a) Who were the inhabitants of Gaul when the Franks invaded it?

(b) Who were the Franks? Where did they come from into Gaul? What was their form of government? What was their religion?

(c) What other nations invaded and occupied portions of Gaul, and what portions?

(d) Describe the conquests of Clovis. Give date.

(e) What political considerations influenced the conversion of Clovis ?

(ƒ) What was the general character of the succeeding Merovingian kings?

2. (a) What political influences brought about the change from the Merovingian to

the Carlovingian dynasty?

(b) Who was the first Carlovingian king? Give the date of his reign.

(c) What sanction to his usurpation did he obtain? How did he procure it? (d) Against what influences did the Carlovingians have to contend?

(e) To what territorial limits was the royal domain reduced under the Carlovin. gians?

(f) What brought about the change from the Carlovingian to the Capetian

dynasty?

3. (a) Who was Hugh Capet? Give date.

(b) What was the territorial extent of his authority when he became king?

(c) Who was the last king of the Capetian dynasty? Give date.

(d) With what difficulties did the early Capetians have to contend. How did they surmount them?

(e) What was the greatest territorial extent of the royal authority under Charles VII?

4. (a) What was the effect of the Crusades on the royal authority in France? (b) Which French kings took part in the Crusades?

5. (a) What were the Capitularies of Charlemagne ?

(b) By what authority were they enacted?
(c) What means of government did he devise?
(d) What were Dukes and Counts in his reign?

(e) What was his policy in regard to the church?

6. (a) Under the successors of Charlemagne how were the laws made and admin

istered outside of the royal domain?

(b) What were the Etablissements of Louis IX?

(c) What was their influence in Europe?

7. (a) To how much French territory was Edward I of England lawfully entitled ? (b) Under what kings was the battle of Crecy fought?

(c) For what was that battle remarkable?

8. (a) Between what princes was the battle of Poictiers fought?

(b) What was the result to France of that battle?

(c) What was the most important conquest of Edward III in France?

9. (a) Who was Etienne Marcel ?

(b) What object did he attempt?

(c) What caused his failure?

(d) What makes his attempt remarkable in French history? 10. (a) What was the condition of France under Charles VI?

(b) What question was involved in the war with England? (c) What domestic discord divided France in that reign?

11. What means did Charles VII adopt for the recovery of France and with what result?

12. What political lesson may be learned from the government of France in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries?

PROFESSOR WILLIAM D. WILSON.

The professor of moral and intellectual philosophy was enrolled in the faculty of history and political science as well as in the faculty of philosophy and letters. He was for many years the faithful registrar of the university, and was the first teacher Cornell students ever had in political economy and in civil polity. In addition to his regular work in connection with the philosophical department, he lectured twice a week to the senior class upon the philosophy of history, with the intention of explaining the origin, course, and progress of civilization, and the causes that have contributed to it. A specimen set of the questions drawn by each student by lot, for the final examination, is appended, and will sufficiently illustrate the nature of his course:

QUESTIONS IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY.

(Specimen set No. 2.)

2. What are the three agents that control the causes and results of history? What are the different theories of their relative influence?

22. Why may we not expect any high civilization in extreme latitudes? What is the effect of elevation above sea-level on civilization?

42. What influence has intellectual culture on religion with reference to (1) fetichism, (2) polytheism, and (3) monotheism?

62. Describe the circumstances of race and physical position that made Athens the place of origin of modern civilization.

HISTORY THROUGH THE LANGUAGES.

An excellent feature of historical instruction was early introduced at Cornell University, as well as at Harvard, by the professors of the modern languages. Just as special attention is paid to classical history by teachers of the classics at Harvard, Yale, Michigan, and all the better colleges, so at Cornell it was recognized, almost from the outset,