PROPOSED AMERICAN ACADEMY.

EDITORS HERALD-CRIMSON: -A correspondent of the Critic asks why America should not have an institution similar to the French Academy. Perhaps it would be well to have an American Academy, but should it be made as the Critic's man would have it, similar to the French Academy? By no means.

The proposal to form an American Academy is new, and now, without a chance for fair consideration of the subject, we are called upon to choose the "immortal forty." The correspondent of the Critic seems to be carrying on the enterprise alone. and so far as the present writer knows, has not been questioned as to the form or limits of the proposed Academy. All we know of the plan is that forty living men of letters are required. That America will have an Academy of men of letters in the near future can hardly be doubted. It ought to be a subject of great interest to all intelligent people, and especially to Harvard men; because when the Academy is once founded, Harvard will surely furnish a fair share of its members.

It may, perhaps be seriously doubted whether we can at the present time elect forty living men of letters to immortal fame without stretching the bounds of immortality to the cracking point. What will M. A. A. be worth if we go about creating it with a blind determination to make forty men immortal whether there are forty worthy of it or not? Indeed, unless the standard of excellence required in the Academy be very high, our first men of letters will deem it no honor. much less an assurance of immortality to belong to it.

Perhaps there is no better way to choose the first members than by a popular vote as suggested. But would it not be better to call not for forty men of letters, but for all men of letters worthy to constitute an Academy, leaving numbers, out of consideration? Then by some fair method, let the members of the Academy be determined from these. Let the number of men so determined constitute the standing number of members in the Academy. When there shall have arisen sufficient cause for it for reason of our growing literature, this number can be increased to meet the demand.

This objection may not be a vital one, for in this country it would tend to remedy itself as soon as the number of worthy men of letters had increased up to the required limit. But that might be a long time. Until that time, to be a member of the Academy would not go for much, and just as in the French Academy, many would attain to its honors who are entirely unworthy of them.

Since we seem bound to have an Academy, let us have the best one possible, and to this end it is to be hoped that not only Harvard students, but all persons interested in the University will give it due consideration. If properly considered, the question will be settled mainly by the college graduates and students of the Country, and Harvard should come in for her share.-There remain, however, many other serious objections to the form and spirit of the French Academy which ought to be discussed before we accept it as our model.

T.