VISITORS WELCOME

Brought suddenly before the public eye by recent revelations in the news, the whole question of Visiting Committees comes up for review, and the findings are far from encouraging. It appears that considerable change has come about since the days of twenty-five years ago, when members of the committees actually attended lectures, took notes, and submitted suggestions. In line with a policy of securing great names, the Overseers have turned to the lions of New York, who, despite their thorough knowledge of their fields, have neither the time nor the inclination to come to Cambridge and see how these subjects are taught to Harvard undergraduates. Too often another motive appears to have crept in, and men of fame as well as fortune have been appointed with the hope that they might feel like paying for the honor accorded them. This confusion of the ends with the means has led to the virtual death of the Visiting Committee as a factor in molding Harvard instruction.

The fault lies more with the Overseers than with members of the committees, for it is too much to ask of man of affairs that he continually make the trip to Cambridge only to find that he has no power and the matters before him are purely departmental. There might well be a compromise between old and new Visitors, for the constant and intelligent auditors are of as much service as the experts consulted annually on matters of policy. The "old-fashioned" visitors would of necessity be residents of Greater Boston, and possibly a Harvard degree somewhere in the past would insure their interest. But it is doubtful if the Visiting Committee will ever be of service until it has been invested with sufficient power to correct evils that come to its notice. Modern business men have too much to do to play Blind Man's Buff in the New Lecture Hall.