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which has succeeded most in experimenting and exploring the modern by-paths of knowledge (a namely the U.S.A. The introduction of this policy has meant that students have been called upon to study subjects that are not relevant to the social life of China, and do not emerge naturally from it. There has therefore been confusion of aims, wrong emphasis, and much superficial and meaningless work.
There are thirteen universities in Shanghai alone and twelve in Peking, and in those two cities sixty per cent of the undergraduates of China are to be found. We visited St. John's University, which is situated on the outskirts of Shanghai in a very pleasant compound that forms a striking contrast with the condition of the village and land outside. This institution is presided over by Dr. Hawk Pott, a benign, scholarly man whose inner calm and repose seemed to find expression in the study in which he received us, and in the pleasant old world garden, with its well-kept lawn, and shady trees, through which the sun glinted,- the whole being shut off by a high wall from the busy noisy world outside. It was difficult to realise that only a month or two previously this university had been on the edge of a modern battle field, and had witnessed the deadly effect of modern guns, Still it had survived this crisis, which naturally affected the students profoundly, as it had survived several other difficulties in the course of recent years.
The university is an institution with American Christian missions behind it. It emphasises the arts side of the work, economics, political science, English, Theology, but it has also a medical course together with a department of civil engineering. It has been in existence since 1879 and is therefore the oldest of all the modern institutions of higher education.
Dr. Hawk Pott was troubled at the moment we were there about the question of registration. There was a natural reluctance to surrender academic independence, as must happen, if recognition was to be obtained, for registration involves the acceptance of certain regulations. The Three Principles have to be included in the curriculum and expounded by a qualified teacher. Religious teaching has to become voluntary and take place outside the scope of the normal working hours. Military training has to become part of the course for students of the first and second year. The President of the University has to be a Chinese and the Council of the University has to consist of a majority of Chinese. Then there is the greatly increased work that falls upon the administration by the demands of the Government Education Department for statistics and returns. One could not help sympathising with Dr. Hawk Pott in his efforts to preserve and protect the institution, which he so clearly loved, from external influence which might mar the delightful tone he had been able to create by his own methods, and yet in the interests of a unified and common university policy for the country one felt that a surrender should be made though, if any exception were granted it could certainly be made in this case by the Government, with safety, for St. John's University has provided many statesmen and politicians who have held important positions in the Government since the revolution of 1911.
We proceeded to Nanking, and there with letters of introduction, provided by the Minister of Education, Dr. Chu, a keen, alert, efficient administrator, we were able to enter the Central University which is one of the most famous of the National foundations. This university has eight faculties or colleges as they are called in the official nomenclature Law, Engineering, Chinese, Medicine, Education, Pure Science, Agriculture and Economics. The Legal and Medical schools of the University however, are situated in Shanghai. The figures for 1931 gave an enrolment of 1663, and a staff of 379 teachers.
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