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gage in it, is one of the surest indications of the earnest spirit of the school.

The four professors who have been spoken of as doing the substantial part of the work follow in the main the system of oral recitations upon reading which has been previously assigned. They deliver lectures in cases where the nature of the subject or special circumstances make treatment by recitations inexpedient; but in such cases the student is required to take down dictated abstracts or notes, and to prepare himself upon them as he would from a text-book. The other lecture courses are some of them in expansion of important subjects which have been previously taught by recitation, some of them discussions of the law in its higher and broader applications and relations. They give the opportunity of investigating the subject in detail if desired, but are rather designed to supplement other work so that a general and systematic view of the whole field of legal science may be presented. This is a general statement of the relation which the lecture courses bear to the recitation work, especially in the undergraduate course. The point here to be emphasized is this, that the basis of work is the recitation system.

JOHNSON T. PLATT.

It is intended that the student shall have, as nearly as practicable, the benefit of private instruction from his professors. To this end the recitation is made quite informal. A large portion of the hour is usually spent in questioning the students individually upon the general principles of the matter in hand, and asking for their application to actual or hypothetical cases in illustration. They are encouraged to ask questions freely, in order that no points of obscurity or difficulty may be left in doubt, and that the students may be trained to a careful criticism of their reading. This is never time wasted, for even questions which seem foolish may indicate a real difficulty and enable the instructor to meet it. This method is much more productive of good results than the lecture system; for however able a lecturer may be, and however well prepared his lecture, it cannot reach the student as effectively as an exercise in which he is required to do some of the thinking,—where to catch the connection of one question with another, as his companions are called upon, and to find a solution for the one which may at any moment be asked of himself, he must be constantly on the alert. Whether earnest in their work or not, few students are so careless of their instructor's efforts or of their own reputation for readiness and ability, as to be found inattentive when so called upon. The question which requires thought generally receives it, and makes the more permanent impression; if not convinced by the logic of the professor, there may and probably will be discussion by the student with his companions or private investigation. The advantage of this system is that, besides in suring a careful study of the text, the student is trained to ready analysis of facts and quick