After referring to the instance mentioned above, in which corporal punishment was inflicted at Harvard College, the author speaks as follows, in reference to the same subject, as connected with the English universities. "The excerpts from the body of Oxford statutes, printed in the very year when this College was founded, threaten corporal punishment to persons of the proper age,—that is, below the age of eighteen,—for a variety of offences; and among the rest for disrespect to Seniors, for frequenting places where 'vinum aut quivis alius potus aut herba Nicotiana ordinarie venditur,' for coming home to their rooms after the great Tom or bell of Christ's Church had sounded, and for playing football within the University precincts or in the city streets. But the statutes of Trinity College, Cambridge, contain more remarkable rules, which are in theory still valid, although obsolete in fact. All the scholars, it is there said, who are absent from prayers,—Bachelors excepted,—if over eighteen years of age, 'shall be fined a half-penny, but if they have not completed the year of their age above mentioned, they shall be chastised with rods in the hall on Friday.' At this chastisement all undergraduates were required to be lookers on, the Dean having the rod of punishment in his hand; and it was provided also, that whosoever should not answer to his name on this occasion, if a boy, should be flogged on Saturday. No doubt this rigor towards the younger members of the society was handed down from the monastic forms which education took in the earlier schools of the Middle Ages. And an advance in the age of admission, as well as a change in the tone of treatment of the young, may account for this system being laid aside at the universities; although, as is well known, it continues to flourish at the great public schools of England."—pp. 49-51.
CORPORATION. The general government of colleges and universities is usually vested in a corporation aggregate, which is preserved by a succession of members. "The President and Fellows of Harvard College," says Mr. Quincy in his History of Harvard University, "being the only Corporation in the Province, and so continuing during the whole of the seventeenth century, they early assumed, and had by common usage conceded to them, the name of "The Corporation," by which they designate themselves in all the early records. Their proceedings are recorded as being done 'at a meeting ofthe Corporation,' or introduced by the formula, 'It is ordered bythe Corporation,' without stating the number or the names of the members present, until April 19th, 1675, when, under President Oakes, the names of those present were first entered on the records, and afterwards they were frequently, though not uniformly, inserted."—Vol. I. p. 274.
2. At Trinity College, Hartford, theCorporation, on which theHouse of Convocationis wholly dependent, and to which, by law, belongs the supreme control of the College, consists of not more than twenty-four Trustees, resident within the State of Connecticut; the Chancellor and President of the College beingex officiomembers, and the Chancellor beingex officioPresident of the same. They have authority to fill their own vacancies; to appoint to offices and professorships; to direct and manage the funds for the good of the College; and, in general, to exercise the powers of a collegiate society, according to the provisions of the charter.—Calendar Trin. Coll., 1850, p. 6.
COSTUME. At the English universities there are few objects that attract the attention of the stranger more than the various academical dresses worn by the members of those institutions. The following description of the various costumes assumed in the University of Cambridge is taken from "The Cambridge Guide," Ed. 1845.
"ADoctor in Divinityhas three robes: thefirst, a gown made of scarlet cloth, with ample sleeves terminating in a point, and lined with rose-colored silk, which is worn in public processions, and on all state and festival days;—thesecondis the cope, worn at Great St. Mary's during the service on Litany-days, in the Divinity Schools during an Act, and at Conciones ad Clerum; it is made of scarlet cloth, and completely envelops the person, being closed down the front, which is trimmed with an edging of ermine; at the back of it is affixed a hood of the same costly fur;—thethirdis a gown made of black silk or poplin, with full, round sleeves, and is the habit commonly worn in public by a D.D.; Doctors, however, sometimes wear a Master of Arts' gown, with a silk scarf. These several dresses are put over a black silk cassock, which covers the entire body, around which it is fastened by a broad sash, and has sleeves coming down to the wrists, like a coat. A handsome scarf of the same materials, which hangs over the shoulders, and extends to the feet, is always worn with the scarlet and black gowns. A square black cloth cap, with silk tassel, completes the costume.
"Doctors in the Civil Law and in Physichave two robes: thefirstis the scarlet gown, as just described, and thesecond, or ordinary dress of a D.C.L., is a black silk gown, with a plain square collar, the sleeves hanging down square to the feet;—the ordinary gown of an M.D. is of the same shape, but trimmed at the collar, sleeves, and front with rich black silk lace.
"ADoctor in Musiccommonly wears the same dress as a D.C.L.; but on festival and scarlet-days is arrayed in a gown made of rich white damask silk, with sleeves and facings of rose-color, a hood of the same, and a round black velvet cap with gold tassel.
"Bachelors in DivinityandMasters of Artswear a black gown, made of bombazine, poplin, or silk. It has sleeves extending to the feet, with apertures for the arms just above the elbow, and may be distinguished by the shape of the sleeves, which hang down square, and are cut out at the bottom like the section of a horseshoe.
"Bachelors in the Civil Law and in Physicwear a gown of the same shape as that of a Master of Arts.
"All Graduates of the above ranks are entitled to wear a hat, instead of the square black cloth cap, with their gowns, and the custom of doing so is generally adopted, except by the HEADS,Tutors, andUniversityandCollege Officers, who consider it more correct to appear in the full academical costume.
"ABachelor of Arts'gown is made of bombazine or poplin, with large sleeves terminating in a point, with apertures for the arms, just below the shoulder-joint.[13]Bachelor Fellow-Commonersusually wear silk gowns, and square velvet caps. The caps of other Bachelors are of cloth.
"All the above, beingGraduates, when they use surplices in chapel wear over them theirhoods, which are peculiar to the several degrees. The hoods ofDoctorsare made of scarlet cloth, lined with rose-colored silk; those ofBachelors in Divinity, andNon-Regent Masters of Arts, are of black silk; those ofRegent Masters of ArtsandBachelors in the Civil Law and in Physic, of black silk lined with white; and those ofBachelors of Arts, of black serge, trimmed with a border of white lamb's-wool.
"The dresses of theUndergraduatesare the following:—
"ANoblemanhas two gowns: thefirstin shape like that of the Fellow-Commoners, is made of purple Ducape, very richly embroidered with gold lace, and is worn in public processions, and on festival-days: a square black velvet cap with a very large gold tassel is worn with it;—thesecond, or ordinary gown, is made of black silk, with full round sleeves, and a hat is worn with it. The latter dress is worn also by the Bachelor Fellows of King's College.
"AFellow-Commonerwears a black prince's stuff gown, with a square collar, and straight hanging sleeves, which are decorated with gold lace; and a square black velvet cap with a gold tassel.
"The Fellow-Commoners of Emmanuel College wear a similar gown, with the addition of several gold-lace buttons attached to the trimmings on the sleeves;—those of Trinity College have a purple prince's stuff gown, adorned with silver lace,[14] and a silver tassel is attached to the cap;—at Downing the gown is made of black silk, of the same shape, ornamented with tufts and silk lace; and a square cap of velvet with a gold tassel is worn. At Jesus College, a Bachelor's silk gown is worn, plaited up at the sleeve, and with a gold lace from the shoulder to the bend of the arm. At Queen's a Bachelor's silk gown, with a velvet cap and gold tassel, is worn: the same at Corpus and Magdalene; at the latter it is gathered and looped up at the sleeve,—at the former (Corpus) it has velvet facings. Married Fellow-Commoners usually wear a black silk gown, with full, round sleeves, and a square velvet cap with silk tassel.[15]
"ThePensioner'sgown and cap are mostly of the same material and shape as those of the Bachelor's: the gown differs only in the mode of trimming. At Trinity and Caius Colleges the gown is purple, with large sleeves, terminating in a point. At St. Peter's and Queen's, the gown is precisely the same as that of a Bachelor; and at King's, the same, but made of fine black woollen cloth. At Corpus Christi is worn a B.A. gown, with black velvet facings. At Downing and Trinity Hall the gown is made of black bombazine, with large sleeves, looped up at the elbows.[16]
"Students in the Civil Law and in Physic, who have kept their Acts, wear a full-sleeved gown, and are entitled to use a B.A. hood.
"Bachelors of Arts and Undergraduates are obliged by the statutes to wear their academical costume constantly in public, under a penalty of 6s. 8d. for every omission.[17]
"Very few of theUniversity Officershave distinctive dresses.
"TheChancellor'sgown is of black damask silk, very richly embroidered with gold. It is worn with a broad, rich lace band, and square velvet cap with large gold tassel.
"TheVice-Chancellordresses merely as a Doctor, except at Congregations in the Senate-House, when he wears a cope. When proceeding to St. Mary's, or elsewhere, in his official capacity, he is preceded by the three Esquire-Bedells with their silver maces, which were the gift of Queen Elizabeth.
"TheRegius Professors of the Civil Law and of Physic, when they preside at Acts in the Schools, wear copes, and round black velvet caps with gold tassels.
"TheProctorsare not distinguishable from other Masters of Arts, except at St. Mary's Church and at Congregations, when they wear cassocks and black silk ruffs, and carry the Statutes of the University, being attended by two servants, dressed in large blue cloaks, ornamented with gold-lace buttons.
"TheYeoman-Bedell, in processions, precedes the Esquire-Bedells, carrying an ebony mace, tipped with silver; his gown, as well as those of theMarshalandSchool-Keeper, is made of black prince's stuff, with square collar, and square hanging sleeves."—pp. 28-33.
At the University of Oxford, Eng., the costume of the Graduates is as follows:—
"The Doctor in Divinity has three dresses: the first consists of a gown of scarlet cloth, with black velvet sleeves and facings, a cassock, sash, and scarf. This dress is worn on all public occasions in the Theatre, in public processions, and on those Sundays and holidays marked (*) in theOxford Calendar. The second is a habit of scarlet cloth, and a hood of the same color lined with black, and a black silk scarf: the Master of Arts' gown is worn under this dress, the sleeves appearing through the arm-holes of the habit. This is the dress of business; it is used in Convocation, Congregation, at Morning Sermons at St. Mary's during the term, and at Afternoon Sermons at St. Peter's during Lent, with the exception of the Morning Sermon on Quinquagesima Sunday, and the Morning Sermons in Lent. The third, which is the usual dress in which a Doctor of Divinity appears, is a Master of Arts' gown, with cassock, sash, and scarf. The Vice-Chancellor and Heads of Colleges and Halls have no distinguishing dress, but appear on all occasions as Doctors in the faculty to which they belong.
"The dresses worn by Graduates in Law and Physic are nearly the same. The Doctor has three. The first is a gown of scarlet cloth, with sleeves and facings of pink silk, and a round black velvet cap. This is the dress of state. The second consists of a habit and hood of scarlet cloth, the habit faced and the hood lined with pink silk. This habit, which is perfectly analogous to the second dress of the Doctor in Divinity, has lately grown into disuse; it is, however, retained by the Professors, and is always used in presenting to Degrees. The third or common dress of a Doctor in Law or Physic nearly resembles that of the Bachelor in these faculties; it is a black silk gown richly ornamented with black lace; the hood of the Bachelor of Laws (worn as a dress) is of purple silk, lined with white fur.
"The dress worn by the Doctor of Music on public occasions is a rich white damask silk gown, with sleeves and facings of crimson satin, a hood of the same material, and a round black velvet cap. The usual dresses of the Doctor and of the Bachelor in Music are nearly the same as those of Law and Physic.
"The Master of Arts wears a black gown, usually made of prince's stuff or crape, with long sleeves which are remarkable for the circular cut at the bottom. The arm comes through an aperture in the sleeve, which hangs down. The hood of a Master of Arts is black silk lined with crimson.
"The gown of a Bachelor of Arts is also usually made of prince's stuff or crape. It has a full sleeve, looped up at the elbow, and terminating in a point; the dress hood is black, trimmed with white fur. In Lent, at the time ofdeterminingin the Schools, a strip of lamb's-wool is worn in addition to the hood. Noblemen and Gentlemen-Commoners, who take the Degrees of Bachelor and Master of Arts, wear their gowns of silk."
The costume of the Undergraduates is thus described:—
"The Nobleman has two dresses; the first, which is worn in the Theatre, in processions, and on all public occasions, is a gown of purple damask silk, richly ornamented with gold lace. The second is a black silk gown, with full sleeves; it has a tippet attached to the shoulders. With both these dresses is worn a square cap of black velvet, with a gold tassel.
"The Gentleman-Commoner has two gowns,both of black silk; the first, which is considered as a dress gown, although worn on all occasions, at pleasure, is richly ornamented with tassels. The second, or undress gown, is ornamented with plaits at the sleeves. A square black velvet cap with a silk tassel, is worn with both.
"The dress of Commoners is a gown of black prince's stuff, without sleeves; from each shoulder is appended a broad strip, which reaches to the bottom of the dress, and towards the top is gathered into plaits. Square cap of black cloth and silk tassel.
"The student in Civil Law, or Civilian, wears a plain black silk gown, and square cloth cap, with silk tassel.
"Scholars and Demies of Magdalene, and students of Christ Church who have not taken a degree, wear a plain black gown of prince's stuff, with round, full sleeves half the length of the gown, and a square black cap, with silk tassel.
"The dress of the Servitor is the same as that of the Commoner, but it has no plaits at the shoulder, and the cap is without a tassel."
The costume of those among the University Officers who are distinguished by their dress, may be thus noted:—
"The dress of the Chancellor is of black damask silk, richly ornamented with gold embroidery, a rich lace band, and square velvet cap, with a large gold tassel.
"The Proctors wear gowns of prince's stuff, the sleeves and facings of black velvet; to the left shoulder is affixed a small tippet. To this is added, as a dress, a large ermine hood.
"The Pro-Proctor wears a Master of Arts' gown, faced with velvet, with a tippet attached to the left shoulder."
The Collectors wear the same dress as the Proctors, with the exception of the hood and tippet.
The Esquire Bedels wear silk gowns, similar to those of Bachelors of Law, and round velvet caps. The Yeoman Bedels have black stuff gowns, and round silk caps.
The dress of the Verger is nearly the same as that of the YeomanBedel.
"Bands at the neck are considered as necessary appendages to the academic dress, particularly on all public occasions."—Guide to Oxford.
See DRESS.
COURTS. At the English universities, the squares or acres into which each college is divided. Called also quadrangles, abbreviated quads.
All the colleges are constructed in quadrangles orcourts; and, as in course of years the population of every college, except one,[18] has outgrown the original quadrangle, new courts have been added, so that the larger foundations have three, and one[19] has four courts.—Bristed's Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 2.
CRACKLING. At the University of Cambridge, Eng., in common parlance, the three stripes of velvet which a member of St. John's College wears on his sleeve, are designated by this name.
Various other gowns are to be discerned, the Pembroke looped at the sleeve, the Christ's and Catherine curiously crimped in front, and the Johnian with its unmistakable "Crackling"—Bristed's Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 73.
CRAM. To prepare a student to pass an examination; to study in view of examination. In the latter sense used in American colleges.
In the latter [Euclid] it is hardly possible, at least not near so easy as in Logic, to present the semblance of preparation by learning questions and answers by rote:—in the cant phrase of undergraduates, by gettingcrammed.—Whalely's Logic, Preface.
For many weeks he "crams" him,—daily does he rehearse.Poem before the Iadma of Harv. Coll., 1850.
A class of men arose whose business was tocramthe candidates. —Lit. World, Vol. XII. p. 246.
In a wider sense, to prepare another, or one's self, by study, for any occasion.
The members of the bar were lounging about that tabooed precinct, some smoking, some talking and laughing, some poring over long, ill-written papers or large calf-bound books, and all big with the ponderous interests depending upon them, and the eloquence and learning with which they were "crammed" for the occasion.—Talbot and Vernon.
When he was to write, it was necessary tocramhim with the facts and points.—F.K. Hunt's Fourth Estate, 1850.
CRAM. All miscellaneous information about Ancient History, Geography, Antiquities, Law, &c.; all classical matter not included under the heads of TRANSLATION and COMPOSITION, which can be learned by CRAMMING. Peculiar to the English Universities.—Bristed.
2. The same as CRAMMING, which see.
I have made him promise to give me four or five evenings of about half an hour'scrameach.—Collegian's Guide, p. 240.
It is not necessary to practise "cram" so outrageously as at some of the college examinations.—Westminster Rev., Am. ed., Vol. XXXV. p. 237.
3. A paper on which is written something necessary to be learned, previous to an examination.
"Take care what you light your cigars with," said Belton, "you'll be burning some of Tufton'scrams: they are stuck all about the pictures."—Collegian's Guide, p. 223.
He puzzled himself with hiscramshe had in his pocket, and copied what he did not understand.—Ibid., p. 279.
CRAMBAMBULI. A favorite drink among the students in the German universities, composed of burnt rum and sugar.
Crambambuli, das ist der Titel Des Tranks, der sich bei uns bewährt.Drinking song.
To the next! let's have thecrambambulifirst, however.—YaleLit. Mag., Vol. XII. p. 117.
CRAM BOOK. A book in which are laid down such topics as constitute an examination, together with the requisite answers to the questions proposed on that occasion.
He in consequence engages a private tutor, and buys all thecram bookspublished for the occasion.—Gradus ad Cantab., p. 128.
CRAMINATION. A farcical word, signifying the same ascramming; the terminationtionbeing suffixed for the sake of mock dignity.
The —— scholarship is awarded to the student in each Senior Class who attends most tocraminationon the College course.—Burlesque Catalogue, Yale Coll., 1852-53, p. 28.
CRAM MAN. One who is cramming for an examination.
He has read all the black-lettered divinity in the Bodleian, and says that none of thecram menshall have a chance with him.—Collegian's Guide, p. 274.
CRAMMER. One who prepares another for an examination.
The qualifications of acrammerare given in the following extract from the Collegian's Guide.
"The first point, therefore, in which a crammer differs from other tutors, is in the selection of subjects. While another tutor would teach every part of the books given up, he virtually reduces their quantity, dwelling chiefly on the 'likely parts.'
"The second point in which a crammer excels is in fixing the attention, and reducing subjects to the comprehension of ill-formed and undisciplined minds.
"The third qualification of a crammer is a happy manner and address, to encourage the desponding, to animate the idle, and to make the exertions of the pupil continually increase in such a ratio, that he shall be wound up to concert pitch by the day of entering the schools."—pp. 231, 232.
CRAMMING. A cant term, in the British universities, for the act of preparing a student to pass an examination, by going over the topics with him beforehand, and furnishing him with the requisite answers.—Webster.
The author of the Collegian's Guide, speaking of examinations, says: "First, we must observe that all examinations imply the existence of examiners, and examiners, like other mortal beings, lie open to the frauds of designing men, through the uniformity and sameness of their proceedings. This uniformity inventive men have analyzed and reduced to a system, founding thereon a certain science, and corresponding art, calledCramming."—p. 229.
The power of "cramming"—of filling the mind with knowledge hastily acquired for a particular occasion, and to be forgotten when that occasion is past—is a power not to be despised, and of much use in the world, especially at the bar.—Westminster Rev., Am. ed., Vol. XXXV. p. 237.
I shall never forget the torment I suffered incramminglong lessons in Greek Grammar.—Dickens's Household Words, Vol. I. p. 192.
CRAM PAPER. A paper in which are inserted such questions as are generally asked at an examination. The manner in which these questions are obtained is explained in the following extract. "Every pupil, after his examination, comes to thank him as a matter of course; and as every man, you know, is loquacious enough on such occasions, Tufton gets out of him all the questions he was asked in the schools; and according to these questions, he has moulded hiscram papers."—Collegian's Guide, p. 239.
We should be puzzled to find any questions more absurd and unreasonable than those in thecram papersin the college examination.—Westminster Rev., Am. ed., Vol. XXXV. p. 237.
CRIB. Probably a translation; a pony.
Of the "Odes and Epodes of Horace, translated literally andrhythmically" by W. Sewell, of Oxford, the editor of the LiteraryWorld remarks: "Useful as a 'crib,' it is also poetical."—Vol.VIII. p. 28.
CROW'S-FOOT. At Harvard College a badge formerly worn on the sleeve, resembling a crow's foot, to denote the class to which a student belongs. In the regulations passed April 29, 1822, for establishing the style of dress among the students at Harvard College, we find the following. A part of the dress shall be "three crow's-feet, made of black silk cord, on the lower part of the sleeve of a Senior, two on that of a Junior, and one on that of a Sophomore." The Freshmen were not allowed to wear the crow's-foot, and the custom is now discontinued, although an unsuccessful attempt was made to revive it a few years ago.
The Freshman scampers off at the first bell for the chapel, where, finding no brother student of a higher class to encourage his punctuality, he crawls back to watch the starting of some one blessed with acrow's-foot, to act as vanguard.—Harv. Reg., p. 377.
The cordedcrow's-feet, and the collar square,The change and chance of earthly lot must share.Class Poem at Harv. Coll., 1835, p. 18.
What if the creature should arise,—For he was stout and tall,—And swallow down a Sophomore,Coat,crow's-foot, cap, and all.Holmes's Poems, 1850, p. 109.
CUE, KUE, Q. A small portion of bread or beer; a term formerly current in both the English universities, the letter q being the mark in the buttery books to denote such a piece. Q would seem to stand forquadrans, a farthing; but Minsheu says it was only half that sum, and thus particularly explains it: "Because they set down in the battling or butterie bookes in Oxford and Cambridge, the letter q for half a farthing; and in Oxford when they make that cue or q a farthing, they say,cap my q, and make it a farthing, thus, [Symbol: small q with a line over]. But in Cambridge they use this letter, a little f; thus, f, or thus, s, for a farthing." He translates it in Latincalculus panis. Coles has, "Acue[half a farthing] minutum."—Nares's Glossary.
"A cue of bread," says Halliwell, "is the fourth part of a half-penny crust. A cue of beer, one draught."
J. Woods, under-butler of Christ Church, Oxon, said he would never sitt capping ofcues.—Urry's MS.add. to Ray.
You are still at Cambridge with sizekue.—Orig. of Dr., III. p. 271.
He never drank above sizeqof Helicon.—Eachard, Contempt ofCl., p. 26.
"Cuesandcees," says Nares, "are generally mentioned together, theceemeaning a small measure of beer; but why, is not equally explained." From certain passages in which they are used interchangeably, the terms do not seem to have been well defined.
Hee [the college butler] domineers over freshmen, when they first come to the hatch, and puzzles them with strange language ofcuesandcees, and some broken Latin, which he has learnt at his bin.—Earle's Micro-cosmographie, (1628,) Char. 17.
The wordcuewas formerly used at Harvard College. Dr. Holyoke, who graduated in 1746, says, the "breakfast was two sizings of bread and acueof beer." Judge Wingate, who graduated thirteen years after, says: "We were allowed at dinner acueof beer, which was a half-pint."
It is amusing to see, term after term, and year after year, the formal votes, passed by this venerable body of seven ruling and teaching elders, regulating the price at which acue(a half-pint) of cider, or asizing(ration) of bread, or beef, might be sold to the student by the butler.—Eliot's Sketch of Hist. Harv. Coll., p. 70.
CUP. Among the English Cantabs, "an odious mixture … compounded of spice and cider."—Westminster Rev., Am. ed., Vol. XXXV. p. 239.
CURL. In the University of Virginia, to make a perfect recitation; to overwhelm a Professor with student learning.
CUT. To be absent from; to neglect. Thus, a person is said to "cutprayers," to "cutlecture," &c. Also, to "cutGreek" or "Latin"; i.e. to be absent from the Greek or Latin recitation. Another use of the word is, when one says, "IcutDr. B——, or Prof. C——, this morning," meaning that he was absent from their exercises.
Prepare tocutrecitations,cutprayers,cutlectures,—ay, tocuteven the President himself.—Oration before H.L. of I.O. of O.F.1848.
Next morn hecutshis maiden prayer, to his last night's text abiding.—Poem before Y.H. of Harv. Coll., 1849.
As soon as we were Seniors,Wecutthe morning prayers,We showed the Freshmen to the door,And helped them down the stairs.Presentation Day Songs, June 15, 1854.
We speak not of individuals but of majorities, not of him whose ambition is to "cut" prayers and recitations so far as possible. —Williams Quarterly, Vol. II. p. 15.
The two rudimentary lectures which he was at first forced to attend, are now pressed less earnestly upon his notice. In fact, he can almost entirely "cut" them, if he likes, and doescutthem accordingly, as a waste of time,—Household Words, Vol. II. p. 160.
To cut dead, in student use, to neglect entirely.
Icutthe Algebra and Trigonometry papersdeadmy first year, and came out seventh.—Bristed's Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 51.
This word is much used in the University of Cambridge, England, as appears from the following extract from a letter in the Gentleman's Magazine, written with reference to some of the customs there observed:—"I remarked, also, that they frequently used the wordsto cut, and to sport, in senses to me totally unintelligible. A man had been cut in chapel, cut at afternoon lectures, cut in his tutor's rooms, cut at a concert, cut at a ball, &c. Soon, however, I was told of men,vice versa, who cut a figure,cutchapel,cutgates,cutlectures,cuthall,cutexaminations, cut particular connections; nay, more, I was informed of some whocuttheir tutors!"—Gent. Mag., 1794, p. 1085.
The instances in which the verbto cutis used in the above extract without Italics, are now very common both in England and America.
To cut Gates. To enter college after ten o'clock,—the hour of shutting them.—Gradus ad Cantab., p. 40.
CUT. An omission of a recitation. This phrase is frequently heard: "We had a cut to-day in Greek," i.e. no recitation in Greek. Again, "Prof. D—— gave us a cut," i.e. he had no recitation. A correspondent from Bowdoin College gives, in the following sentence, the manner in which this word is there used:—"Cuts. When a class for any reason become dissatisfied with one of the Faculty, they absent themselves from his recitation, as an expression of their feelings"
D.C.L. An abbreviation forDoctor Civilis Legis, Doctor in Civil Law. At the University of Oxford, England, this degree is conferred four years after receiving the degree of B.C.L. The exercises are three lectures. In the University of Cambridge, England, a D.C.L. must be a B.C.L. of five years' standing, or an M.A. of seven years' standing, and must have kept two acts.
D.D. An abbreviation ofDivinitatis Doctor, Doctor in Divinity. At the University of Cambridge, England, this degree is conferred on a B.D. of five, or an M.A. of twelve years' standing. The exercises are one act, two opponencies, a clerum, and an English sermon. At Oxford it is given to a B.D. of four, or a regent M.A. of eleven years' standing. The exercises are three lectures. In American colleges this degree is honorary, and is conferredpro meritison those who are distinguished as theologians.
DEAD. To be unable to recite; to be ignorant of the lesson; to declare one's self unprepared to recite.
Be ready, in fine, to cut, to drink, to smoke, todead.—Oration before H.L. of I.O. of O.F., 1848.
I see our whole lodge desperately striving todead, by doing that hardest of all work, nothing.—Ibid., 1849.
Transitively; to cause one to fail in reciting. Said of a teacher who puzzles a scholar with difficult questions, and thereby causes him to fail.
Have I been screwed, yea,deadedmorn and eve,Some dozen moons of this collegiate life,And not yet taught me to philosophize?Harvardiana, Vol. III. p. 255.
DEAD. A complete failure; a declaration that one is not prepared to recite.
One must stand up in the singleness of his ignorance to understand all the mysterious feelings connected with adead.—Harv. Reg., p. 378.
And fearful of the morrow's screw ordead,Takes book and candle underneath his bed.Class Poem, by B.D. Winslow, at Harv. Coll., 1835, p. 10.
He, unmoved by Freshman's curses,Loves thedeadswhich Freshmen make.—MS. Poem.
But oh! what aching heads had they!Whatdeadsthey perpetrated the succeeding day.—Ibid.
It was formerly customary in many colleges, and is now in a few, to talk about "taking a dead."
I have a most instinctive dreadOf getting up totake a dead,Unworthy degradation!—Harv. Reg., p. 312.
DEAD-SET. The same as a DEAD, which see.
Now's the day and now's the hour;See approach Old Sikes's power;See the front of Logic lower;Screws,dead-sets, and fines.—Rebelliad, p. 52.
Grose has this word in his Slang Dictionary, and defines it "a concerted scheme to defraud a person by gaming." "This phrase," says Bartlett, in his Dictionary of Americanisms, "seems to be taken from the lifeless attitude of a pointer in marking his game."
"The lifeless attitude" seems to be the only point of resemblance between the above definitions, and the appearance of one who istaking a dead set. The word has of late years been displaced by the more general use of the worddead, with the same meaning.
The phraseto be at a dead-set, implying a fixed state or condition which precludes further progress, is in general use.
DEAN. An officer in each college of the universities in England, whose duties consist in the due preservation of the college discipline.
"Old Holingshed," says the Gradus ad Cantabrigiam, "in his Chronicles, describing Cambridge, speaks of 'certain censors, ordeanes, appointed to looke to the behaviour and manner of the Students there, whom they punishvery severely, if they make any default, according to the quantitye and qualitye of their trespasses.' Whenflagellationwas enforced at the universities, the Deans were the ministers of vengeance."
At the present time, a person applying for admission to a college in the University of Cambridge, Eng., is examined by the Dean and the Head Lecturer. "The Dean is the presiding officer in chapel, and the only one whose presence there is indispensable. He oversees the markers' lists, pulls up the absentees, and receives their excuses. This office is no sinecure in a large college." At Oxford "the discipline of a college is administered by its head, and by an officer usually called Dean, though, in some colleges, known by other names."—Bristed's Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, pp. 12, 16.Literary World, Vol. XII. p. 223.
In the older American colleges, whipping and cuffing were inflicted by a tutor, professor, or president; the latter, however, usually employed an agent for this purpose.
See under CORPORAL PUNISHMENT.
2. In the United States, a registrar of the faculty in some colleges, and especially in medical institutions.—Webster.
Adeanmay also be appointed by the Faculty of each ProfessionalSchool, if deemed expedient by the Corporation.—Laws Univ. atCam., Mass., 1848, p. 8.
3. The head or president of a college.
You rarely find yourself in a shop, or other place of public resort, with a Christ-Church-man, but he takes occasion, if young and frivolous, to talk loudly of theDean, as an indirect expression of his own connection with this splendid college; the title ofDeanbeing exclusively attached to the headship of Christ Church.—De Quincey's Life and Manners, p. 245.
DEAN OF CONVOCATION. At Trinity College, Hartford, this officer presides in theHouse of Convocation, and is elected by the same, biennially.—Calendar Trin. Coll., 1850, p. 7.
DEAN'S BOUNTY. In 1730, the Rev. Dr. George Berkeley, then Dean of Derry, in Ireland, came to America, and resided a year or two at Newport, Rhode Island, "where," says Clap, in his History of Yale College, "he purchased a country seat, with about ninety-six acres of land." On his return to London, in 1733, he sent a deed of his farm in Rhode Island to Yale College, in which it was ordered, "that the rents of the farm should be appropriated to the maintenance of the three best scholars in Greek and Latin, who should reside at College at least nine months in a year, in each of the three years between their first and second degrees." President Clap further remarks, that "this premium has been a great incitement to a laudable ambition to excel in the knowledge of the classics." It was commonly known as theDean's bounty.—Clap's Hist. of Yale Coll., pp. 37, 38.
The Dean afterwards conveyed to it [Yale College], by a deed transmitted to Dr. Johnson, his Rhode Island farm, for the establishment of thatDean's bounty, to which sound classical learning in Connecticut has been much indebted.—Hist. Sketch of Columbia Coll., p. 19.
DEAN SCHOLAR. The person who received the money appropriated byDean Berkeley was called theDean scholar.
This premium was formerly called the Dean's bounty, and the person who received it theDean scholar.—Sketches of Yale Coll., p. 87.
DECENT. Tolerable; pretty good. He is adecentscholar; adecentwriter; he is nothing more thandecent. "This word," says Mr. Pickering, in his Vocabulary, "has been in common use at some of our colleges, but only in the language of conversation. The adverbdecently(and possibly the adjective also) is sometimes used in a similar manner in some parts of Great Britain."
The greater part of the pieces it contains may be said to be verydecentlywritten.—Edinb. Rev., Vol. I. p. 426.
DECLAMATION. The word is applied especially to the public speaking and speeches of students in colleges, practised for exercises in oratory.—Webster.
It would appear by the following extract from the old laws of Harvard College, that original declamations were formerly required of the students. "The Undergraduates shall in their course declaim publicly in the hall, in one of the three learned languages; and in no other without leave or direction from the President, and immediately give up their declamations fairly written to the President. And he that neglects this exercise shall be punished by the President or Tutor that calls over the weekly bill, not exceeding five shillings. And such delinquent shall within one week after give in to the President a written declamation subscribed by himself."—Laws 1734, in Peirce's Hist. Harv. Univ., App., p. 129.
2. At the University of Cambridge, Eng., an essay upon a given subject, written in view of a prize, and publicly recited in the chapel of the college to which the writer belongs.
DECLAMATION BOARDS. At Bowdoin College, small establishments in the rear of each building, for urinary purposes.
DEDUCTION. In some of the American colleges, one of the minor punishments for non-conformity with laws and regulations is deducting from the marks which a student receives for recitations and other exercises, and by which his standing in the class is determined.
Soften down the intense feeling with which he relates heroicRapid'sdeductions.—Harv. Mag., Vol. I. p. 267.
2. At the University of Cambridge, Eng., an original proposition in geometry.
"How much Euclid did you do? Fifteen?"
"No, fourteen; one of them was adeduction."—Bristed's FiveYears in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 75.
With a mathematical tutor, the hour of tuition is a sort of familiar examination, working out examples,deductions, &c.—Ibid., pp. 18, 19.
DEGRADATION. In the older American colleges, it was formerly customary to arrange the members of each class in an order determined by the rank of the parent. "Degradation consisted in placing a student on the list, in consequence of some offence, below the level to which his father's condition would assign him; and thus declared that he had disgraced his family."
In the Immediate Government Book, No. IV., of Harvard College, date July 20th, 1776, is the following entry: "Voted, that Trumbal, a Middle Bachelor, who was degraded to the bottom of his class for his misdemeanors when an undergraduate, having presented an humble confession of his faults, with a petition to be restored to his place in the class in the Catalogue now printing, be restored agreeable to his request." The Triennial Catalogue for that year was the first in which the names of the students appeared in an alphabetical order. The class of 1773 was the first in which the change was made.
"The punishment of degradation," says President Woolsey, in his Historical Discourse before the Graduates of Yale College, "laid aside not very long before the beginning of the Revolutionary war, was still more characteristic of the times. It was a method of acting upon the aristocratic feelings of family; and we at this day can hardly conceive to what extent the social distinctions were then acknowledged and cherished. In the manuscript laws of the infant College, we find the following regulation, which was borrowed from an early ordinance of Harvard under President Dunster. 'Every student shall be called by his surname, except he be the son of a nobleman, or a knight's eldest son.' I know not whether such a 'rara avis in terris' ever received the honors of the College; but a kind of colonial, untitled aristocracy grew up, composed of the families of chief magistrates, and of other civilians and ministers. In the second year of college life, precedency according to the aristocratic scale was determined, and the arrangement of names on the class roll was in accordance. This appears on our Triennial Catalogue until 1768, when the minds of men began to be imbued with the notion of equality. Thus, for instance, Gurdon Saltonstall, son of the Governor of that name, and descendant of Sir Richard, the first emigrant of the family, heads the class of 1725, and names of the same stock begin the lists of 1752 and 1756. It must have been a pretty delicate matter to decide precedence in a multitude of cases, as in that of the sons of members of the Council or of ministers, to which class many of the scholars belonged. The story used to circulate, as I dare say many of the older graduates remember, that a shoemaker's son, being questioned as to the quality of his father, replied, thathe was upon the bench, which gave him, of course, a high place."—pp. 48, 49.
See under PLACE.
DEGRADE. At the English universities to go back a year.
"'Degrading,' or going back a year," says Bristed, "is not allowed except in case of illness (proved by a doctor's certificate). A mandegradingfor any other reason cannot go out afterwards in honors."—Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 98.
I could choose the year below without formallydegrading.—Ibid., p. 157.
DEGREE. A mark of distinction conferred on students, as a testimony of their proficiency in arts and sciences; giving them a kind of rank, and entitling them to certain privileges. This is usually evidenced by a diploma. Degrees are conferredpro meritison the alumni of a college; or they are honorary tokens of respect, conferred on strangers of distinguished reputation. Thefirst degreeis that ofBachelor of Arts; thesecond, thatof Master of Arts. Honorary degrees are those ofDoctor of Divinity,Doctor of Laws, &c. Physicians, also, receive the degree ofDoctor of Medicine.—Webster.
DEGREE EXAMINATION. At the English universities, the final university examination, which must be passed before the B.A. degree is conferred.
The Classical Tripos is generally spoken of astheTripos, theMathematical one asthe Degree Examination.—Bristed's FiveYears in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 170.
DELTA. A piece of land in Cambridge, which belongs to HarvardCollege, where the students kick football, and play at cricket,and other games. The shape of the land is that of the GreekDelta, whence its name.
What was unmeetest of all, timid strangers as we were, it was expected on the first Monday eventide after our arrival, that we should assemble on a neighboring green, theDelta, since devoted to the purposes of a gymnasium, there to engage in a furious contest with those enemies, the Sophs, at kicking football and shins.—A Tour through College, 1823-1827, p. 13.
Where are the royal cricket-matches of old, the great games of football, when the obtaining of victory was a point of honor, and crowds assembled on theDeltato witness the all-absorbing contest?—Harvardiana, Vol. I. p. 107.
I must have another pair of pantaloons soon, for I have burst the knees of two, in kicking football on theDelta.—Ibid., Vol. III. p. 77.
TheDeltacan tell of the deeds we've done,The fierce-fought fields we've lost and won,The shins we've cracked,And noses we've whacked,The eyes we've blacked, and all in fun.Class Poem, 1849, Harv. Coll.
A plat at Bowdoin College, of this shape, and used for similar purposes, is known by the same name.
DEMI, DEMY. The name of a scholar at Magdalene College, Oxford, where there are thirtydemiesor half-fellows, as it were, who, like scholars in other colleges, succeed to fellowships.—Johnson.
DEN. One of the buildings formerly attached to Harvard College, which was taken down in the year 1846, was for more than a half-century known by the name of theDen. It was occupied by students during the greater part of that period, although it was originally built for private use. In later years, from its appearance, both externally and internally, it fully merited its cognomen; but this is supposed to have originated from the following incident, which occurred within its walls about the year 1770, the time when it was built. The north portion of the house was occupied by Mr. Wiswal (to whom it belonged) and his family. His wife, who was then ill, and, as it afterwards proved, fatally, was attended by a woman who did not bear a very good character, to whom Mr. Wiswal seemed to be more attentive than was consistent with the character of a true and loving husband. About six weeks after Mrs. Wiswal's death, Mr. Wiswal espoused the nurse, which, circumstance gave great offence to the good people of Cambridge, and was the cause of much scandal among the gossips. One Sunday, not long after this second marriage, Mr. Wiswal having gone to church, his wife, who did not accompany him, began an examination of her predecessor's wardrobe and possessions, with the intention, as was supposed, of appropriating to herself whatever had been left by the former Mrs. Wiswal to her children. On his return from church, Mr. Wiswal, missing his wife, after searching for some time, found her at last in the kitchen, convulsively clutching the dresser, her eyes staring wildly, she herself being unable to speak. In this state of insensibility she remained until her decease, which occurred shortly after. Although it was evident that she had been seized with convulsions, and that these were the cause of her death, the old women were careful to promulgate, and their daughters to transmit the story, that the Devil had appeared to herin propria persona, and shaken her in pieces, as a punishment for her crimes. The building was purchased by Harvard College in the year 1774.
In the Federal Orrery, March 26, 1795, is an article datedWiswal-Den, Cambridge, which title it also bore, from the name of its former occupant.
In his address spoken at the Harvard Alumni Festival, July 22, 1852, Hon. Edward Everett, with reference to this mysterious building as it appeared in the year 1807, said:—
"A little further to the north, and just at the corner of Church Street (which was not then opened), stood what was dignified in the annual College Catalogue—(which was printed on one side of a sheet of paper, and was a novelty)—as 'the College House.' The cellar is still visible. By the students, this edifice was disrespectfully called 'Wiswal's Den,' or, for brevity, 'the Den.' I lived in it in my Freshman year. Whence the name of 'Wiswal's Den' I hardly dare say: there was something worse than 'old fogy' about it. There was a dismal tradition that, at some former period, it had been the scene of a murder. A brutal husband had dragged his wife by the hair up and down the stairs, and then killed her. On the anniversary of the murder,—and what day that was no one knew,—there were sights and sounds,—flitting garments daggled in blood, plaintive screams,—stridor ferri tractæque catenæ,—enough to appall the stoutest Sophomore. But for myself, I can truly say, that I got through my Freshman year without having seen the ghost of Mr. Wiswal or his lamented lady. I was not, however, sorry when the twelvemonth was up, and I was transferred to that light, airy, well-ventilated room, No. 20 Hollis; being the inner room, ground floor, north entry of that ancient and respectable edifice."—To-Day, Boston, Saturday, July 31, 1852, p. 66.
Many years ago there emigrated to this University, from the wilds of New Hampshire, an odd genius, by the name of Jedediah Croak, who took up his abode as a student in the oldDen.—Harvard Register, 1827-28,A Legend of the Den, pp. 82-86.
DEPOSITION. During the first half of the seventeenth century, in the majority of the German universities, Catholic as well as Protestant, the matriculation of a student was preceded by a ceremony called thedeposition. SeeHowitt's Student Life in Germany, Am. ed., pp. 119-121.
DESCENDAS. Latin; literally,you may descend. At the University of Cambridge, Eng., when a student who has been appointed to declaim in chapel fails in eloquence, memory, or taste, his harangue is usually cut short "by a testydescendas."—Grad. ad Cantab.
DETERMINING. In the University of Oxford, a Bachelor is entitled to his degree of M.A. twelve terms after the regular time for taking his first degree, having previously gone through the ceremony ofdetermining, which exercise consists in reading two dissertations in Latin prose, or one in prose and a copy of Latin verses. As this takes place in Lent, it is commonly calleddetermining in Lent.—Oxf. Guide.
DETUR. Latin; literally,let it be given.
In 1657, the Hon. Edward Hopkins, dying, left, among other donations to Harvard College, one "to be applied to the purchase of books for presents to meritorious undergraduates." The distribution of these books is made, at the commencement of each academic year, to students of the Sophomore Class who have made meritorious progress in their studies during their Freshman year; also, as far as the state of the funds admits, to those members of the Junior Class who entered as Sophomores, and have made meritorious progress in their studies during the Sophomore year, and to such Juniors as, having failed to receive adeturat the commencement of the Sophomore year, have, during that year, made decided improvement in scholarship.—Laws of Univ. at Cam., Mass., 1848, p. 18.
"From the first word in the short Latin label," Peirce says, "which is signed by the President, and attached to the inside of the cover, a book presented from this fund is familiarly called aDetur."—Hist. Harv. Univ., p. 103.
Now for my books; first Bunyan's Pilgrim,(As he with thankful pleasure will grin,)Tho' dogleaved, torn, in bad type set in,'T will do quite well for classmate B——,And thus with complaisance to treat her,'T will answer for anotherDetur.The Will of Charles Prentiss.
Be not, then, painfully anxious about the Greek particles, and sit not up all night lest you should miss prayers, only that you may have a "Detur," and be chosen into the Phi Beta Kappa among the first eight. Get a "Detur" by all means, and the square medal with its cabalistic signs, the sooner the better; but do not "stoop and lie in wait" for them.—A Letter to a Young Man who has just entered College, 1849, p. 36.
Or yet,—though 't were incredible,—say hast obtained adetur!Poem before Iadma, 1850.
DIG. To study hard; to spend much time in studying.
Another, in his study chair,Digsup Greek roots with learned care,—Unpalatable eating.—Harv. Reg., 1827-28, p. 247.
Here the sunken eye and sallow countenance bespoke the man whodugsixteen hours "per diem."—Ibid., p. 303.
Some have gone to lounge away an hour in the libraries,—some to ditto in the grove,—some todigupon the afternoon lesson.—Amherst Indicator, Vol. I. p. 77.
DIG. A diligent student; one who learns his lessons by hard and long-continued exertion.
A clever soul is one, I say,Who wears a laughing face all day,Who never misses declamation,Nor cuts a stupid recitation,And yet is no elaboratedig,Nor for rank systems cares a fig.Harvardiana, Vol. III. p. 283.
I could see, in the long vista of the past, the many honestdigswho had in this room consumed the midnight oil.—Collegian, p. 231.
And, truly, the picture of a college "dig" taking a walk—no, I say not so, for he never "takes a walk," but "walking for exercise"—justifies the contemptuous estimate.—A Letter to a Young Man who has just entered College, 1849, p. 14.
He is just the character to enjoy the treadmill, which perhaps might be a useful appendage to a college, not as a punishment, but as a recreation for "digs."—Ibid., p. 14.
Resolves that he will be, in spite of toil or of fatigue,That humbug of all humbugs, the staid, inveterate "dig."Poem before Iadma of Harv. Coll., 1850.
There goes thedig, just look!How like a parson he eyes his book!The Jobsiad, inLit. World, Oct. 11, 1851.
The fact that I am thus getting the character of a man of no talent, and a mere "dig," does, I confess, weigh down my spirits.—Amherst Indicator, Vol. I. p. 224.
By this 't is that we get ahead of theDig,'T is not we that prevail, but the wine that we swig.Ibid., Vol. II. p. 252.
DIGGING. The act of studying hard; diligent application.
I find my eyes in doleful case,Bydigginguntil midnight.—Harv. Reg., p. 312.
I've had an easy time in College, and enjoyed well the "otium cum dignitate,"—the learned leisure of a scholar's life,—always despiseddigging, you know.—Ibid., p. 194.
How often after his day ofdigging, when he comes to lay his weary head to rest, he finds the cruel sheets giving him no admittance.—Ibid., p. 377.
Hopes to hit the markBydiggingnightly into matters dark.Class Poem, Harv. Coll., 1835.
He "makes up" for past "digging."Iadma Poem, Harv. Coll., 1850.
DIGNITY. At Bowdoin College, "Dignity," says a correspondent, "is the name applied to the regular holidays, varying from one half-day per week, during the Freshman year, up to four in the Senior."
DIKED. At the University of Virginia, one who is dressed with more than ordinary elegance is said to bediked out. Probably corrupted from the worddecked, or the nearly obsoletedighted.
DIPLOMA. Greek, [Greek: diploma], from [Greek: diploo], todoubleor fold. Anciently, a letter or other composition written on paper or parchment, and folded; afterward, any letter, literary monument, or public document. A letter or writing conferring some power, authority, privilege, or honor. Diplomas are given to graduates of colleges on their receiving the usual degrees; to clergymen who are licensed to exercise the ministerial functions; to physicians who are licensed to practise their profession; and to agents who are authorized to transact business for their principals. A diploma, then, is a writing or instrument, usually under seal, and signed by the proper person or officer, conferring merely honor, as in the case of graduates, or authority, as in the case of physicians, agents, &c.—Webster.
DISCIPLINE. The punishments which are at present generally adopted in American colleges are warning, admonition, the letter home, suspension, rustication, and expulsion. Formerly they were more numerous, and their execution was attended with great solemnity. "The discipline of the College," says President Quincy, in his History of Harvard University, "was enforced and sanctioned by daily visits of the tutors to the chambers of the students, fines, admonitions, confession in the hall, publicly asking pardon, degradation to the bottom of the class, striking the name from the College list, and expulsion, according to the nature and aggravation of the offence."—Vol. I. p. 442.
Of Yale College, President Woolsey in his Historical Discourse says: "The old system of discipline may be described in general as consisting of a series of minor punishments for various petty offences, while the more extreme measure of separating a student from College seems not to have been usually adopted until long forbearance had been found fruitless, even in cases which would now be visited in all American colleges with speedy dismission. The chief of these punishments named in the laws are imposition of school exercises,—of which we find little notice after the first foundation of the College, but which we believe yet exists in the colleges of England;[20] deprivation of the privilege of sending Freshmen upon errands, or extension of the period during which this servitude should be required beyond the end of the Freshman year; fines either specified, of which there are a very great number in the earlier laws, or arbitrarily imposed by the officers; admonition and degradation. For the offence of mischievously ringing the bell, which was very common whilst the bell was in an exposed situation over an entry of a college building, students were sometimes required to act as the butler's waiters in ringing the bell for a certain time."—pp. 46, 47.
See under titles ADMONITION, CONFESSION, CORPORAL PUNISHMENT,DEGRADATION, FINES, LETTER HOME, SUSPENSION, &c.
DISCOMMUNE. At the University of Cambridge, Eng., to prohibit an undergraduate from dealing with any tradesman or inhabitant of the town who has violated the University privileges or regulations. The right to exercise this power is vested in the Vice-Chancellor.
Any tradesman who allows a student to run in debt with him to an amount exceeding $25, without informing his college tutor, or to incur any debt for wine or spirituous liquors without giving notice of it to the same functionary during the current quarter, or who shall take any promissory note from a student without his tutor's knowledge, is liable to bediscommuned.—Lit. World, Vol. XII. p. 283.
In the following extracts, this word appears under a different orthography.
There is always a great demand for the rooms in college. Those at lodging-houses are not so good, while the rules are equally strict, the owners being solemnly bound to report all their lodgers who stay out at night, under pain of being "discommonsed," a species of college excommunication.—Bristed's Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 81.
Any tradesman bringing a suit against an Undergraduate shall be "discommonsed"; i.e. all the Undergraduates are forbidden to deal with him.—Ibid., p. 83.
This word is allied to the law term "discommon," to deprive of the privileges of a place.
DISMISS. To separate from college, for an indefinite or limited time.
DISMISSION. In college government, dismission is the separation of a student from a college, for an indefinite or for a limited time, at the discretion of the Faculty. It is required of the dismissed student, on applying for readmittance to his own or any other class, to furnish satisfactory testimonials of good conduct during his separation, and to appear, on examination, to be well qualified for such readmission.—College Laws.
In England, a student, although precluded from returning to the university whence he has been dismissed, is not hindered from taking a degree at some other university.
DISPENSATION. In universities and colleges, the granting of a license, or the license itself, to do what is forbidden by law, or to omit something which is commanded. Also, an exemption from attending a college exercise.
The business of the first of these houses, or the oligarchal portion of the constitution [the House of Congregation], is chiefly to grant degrees, and pass graces anddispensations.—Oxford Guide, Ed. 1847, p. xi.
All the students who are under twenty-one years of age may be excused from attending the private Hebrew lectures of the Professor, upon their producing to the President a certificate from their parents or guardians, desiring adispensation.—Laws Harv. Coll., 1798, p. 12.
DISPERSE. A favorite word with tutors and proctors; used when speaking to a number of students unlawfully collected. This technical use of the word is burlesqued in the following passages.
Minerva conveys the Freshman to his room, where his cries make such a disturbance, that a proctor enters and commands the blue-eyed goddess "to disperse." This order she reluctantly obeys.—Harvardiana, Vol. IV. p. 23.
And often grouping on the chains, he hums his own sweet verse,Till Tutor ——, coming up, commands him todisperse.Poem before Y.H. Harv. Coll., 1849.
DISPUTATION. An exercise in colleges, in which parties reason in opposition to each other, on some question proposed.—Webster.
Disputations were formerly, in American colleges, a part of the exercises on Commencement and Exhibition days.
DISPUTE. To contend in argument; to reason or argue in opposition. —Webster.
The two Senior classes shalldisputeonce or twice a week before the President, a Professor, or the Tutor.—Laws Yale Coll., 1837, p. 15.
DIVINITY. A member of a theological school is often familiarly called aDivinity, abbreviated for a Divinity student.
One of the youngDivinitiespassedStraight through the College yard.Childe Harvard, p. 40.
DIVISION. At the University of Cambridge, Eng., each of the three terms is divided into two parts.Divisionis the time when this partition is made.
After "division" in the Michaelmas and Lent terms, a student, who can assign a good plea for absence to the college authorities, may go down and take holiday for the rest of the time.—Bristed's Five Years in an Eng. Univ., Ed. 2d, p. 63.
DOCTOR. One who has passed all the degrees of a faculty, and is empowered to practise and teach it; as, adoctorin divinity, in physic, in law; or, according to modern usage, a person who has received the highest degree in a faculty. The degree ofdoctoris conferred by universities and colleges, as an honorary mark of literary distinction. It is also conferred on physicians as a professional degree.—Webster.
DOCTORATE. The degree of a doctor.—Webster.
The first diploma for a doctorate in divinity given in America was presented under the seal of Harvard College to Mr. Increase Mather, the President of that institution, in the year 1692.—Peirce's Hist. Harv. Univ., App., p. 68.
DODGE. A trick; an artifice or stratagem for the purpose of deception. Used often withcome; as, "to come a dodgeover him."
No artfuldodgeto leave my school could I just then prepare.Poem before Iadma, Harv. Coll., 1850.
Agreed; but I have anotherdodgeas good as yours.—Collegian'sGuide, p. 240.
We may well admire the cleverness displayed by this would-be Chatterton, in his attempt to sell the unwary with an Ossiandodge.—Lit. World, Vol. XII. p. 191.