COLLEGE PAPERS.

Concerning what a college paper should be there now exist a great many ideas, perhaps almost as many as there are college papers published. For by looking over the representative papers from our different colleges we find them to be conducted in many instances upon entirely different plans, and in their exchange columns are able to find many different suggestions as to how other papers should be carried on. We find that the tendency in our opinion, especially among our western college papers, is too much towards literary effort, that is too much space is frequently given for essays, orations, such productions as we listen to every week in our different class rhetorical exercises. In too many instances these labored productions prove tiresome and entirely without interest. Subjects are frequently chosen which, from time immemorial, have been the favorite themes for our college literary stars. These furnish us no information, nor do they offer sufficient instruction in the methods of composition to repay the reader for his time ; and they are certainly in no sense amusing. The number of general magazines now published in this country is sufficient to serve the purposes sought by converting college papers into literary productions merely. These general magazines furnish us better articles, written by far better authors, and with subjects more interesting and much more instructive. What we demand then in our college journals is that which pertains particularly to college life. It should represent all the institutions of a college, and represent them faithfully. It should be to the students as near as possible, the same as newspapers are to the general public. In order to accomplish this students must interest themselves in their papers, must support them, not only financially, but by contributing whatever is of interest, by bringing up for discussion all subjects of importance, and seeing that whatever needs attention is noticed. We have noticed a department in some of our eastern college papers that is almost entirely overlooked by western journals, and that is some light, humorous article, in the nature of a take-off on some story, play or poem.

Such articles if not too numerous and frequent, add much to the attractiveness of a paper, and give much more satisfaction to a reader than to plod through a tedious essay on "Melancholy," "Imagination," or "George Washington." At the same time it cultivates ability in that line of writing, which fact, though not of great importance, ought not to be overlooked. There is no reason why some in our own colleges should not turn their attention to this line of writing, and produce interesting, readable articles, such as will improve the tone of our papers and make them more entertaining than at present. If those not on the editorial boards would only turn their attention to doing something to aid the experions of the editors, there would be less necessity for filling up vacant columns with what to the majority seems mere trash, be it essays, orations or local items of blind import and little interest, though to editors, hard pressed for time and copy, it may seem acceptable reading matter. [Badger.