A chapter in the life history of an old university : being the introductory lecture of the session 1881-2, delivered to the students of University College, London, on Tuesday, October 4th, 1881 / by T. George Bonney.

  • Thomas George Bonney
Date:
1882
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A chapter in the life history of an old university : being the introductory lecture of the session 1881-2, delivered to the students of University College, London, on Tuesday, October 4th, 1881 / by T. George Bonney. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    opponents. The heterodoxy of the originator was, of course, also unfavourable to the success of the scheme, so that it had no chance of being accepted. An examination, however, was held prior to the con- ferring of a degree, but except in the case of honours, this had b?en reduced to little more than a form. Of this examination, as it existed about a century since, I will now attempt a brief sketch. The earliest mode of examination was mainly viva voce, and to a large extent in the form of disputations, the aspirant for academic distinctions maintaining one or more theses against his fellows and his seniors, and being ques- tioned by the latter as to his knowledge generally. Elaborate formalities accompanied these exercises in the earlier part of the sixteenth century, descriptions of which have been handed down to us. Examinations, both written and oral, of a more systematic form were gradually added: the candidates for honours, and for an ordinary degree, in practice, if not in theory, were separated one from another: and towards the close of the last century the examination of the former in the University of Cambridge was conducted as follows: (it will be remembered that dis- tinction was only awarded for proficiency in mathematics, though some knowledge of Latin and of Moral Philosophy was expected.) The public exercises of the Schools formed the first stage, which were conducted in Latin under the superintendence of two graduates called Moderators, men who, in some previous examination, had attained one of the highest distinctions. To them the College authorities sent lists of students in their third year of residence, together, frequently, with brief notes on the character of each. These students were separately summoned before one of the Moderators, and ordered to bring a list of subjects on which they were prepared to dispute. The propositions were generally expected to be afiirraative rather than negative. For example, these are given as specimens by Dr. J ebb in the year 1772 :— QuiESTIONES SUNT. PlanetoB primarise retinentur in orbitis suis Ti graTitatis et motu projectili. Iridis primarise et secundariae phenomena solTi possunt ex principiis opticis. Non licet magistratui civom morti tradere nisi ob crimen homicidii. These accepted, the moderator selected three opponents from the list before him, to whom a copy of the theses was sent. Their business was to play the part of Devil's advocate and to say all that could be said on the other, generally the unorthodox side. The Respondent, as the first student was called and the opponents commonly met two or three times at a social meal before the duel so as to obtain some notion of the line of argument which each would follow. At the fixed hour the Moderator entered the School and mounting a kind of pulpit, summoned the respondent to deliver his thesis from the rostrum opposite. This done, the Moderator said ascendat opponentium primus, and the person thus designated entered a sort of clerk's desk below his pulpit and commenced the attack. The discussion was conducted in syllogistic form, and as the respondent commonly, if not always, maintained an orthodox view, the opponent was obliged to content himself either with
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