GRADUATES often complain that they never received adequate instruction in that most important branch, Elocution, while in college, and now feel their deficiency when called upon to speak in public. The fact that out of the twenty or twenty-five Freshmen selected as meriting the right even to compete for the ten Lee prizes, only six received any, clearly shows that an ability to read common prose well and understandingly is a rare accomplishment among them.

The same can be said of any class in college.

The present Junior Class are doubtless sufficiently grateful for the benefit they may have derived from reading fifty lines of Milton once in four weeks (anything in the Dean's Report to the contrary notwithstanding) last year, yet they are not to blame for not yet feeling fully accomplished in that particular. We grant that the infrequency of these recitations was due in a great measure to disturbances created by the divisions during recitation, in accordance with a traditionary and time-honored custom; but because it was time-honored, we cannot believe that it was entirely the fault of the students, and therefore the removal of the venerable instructor to a field where his great abilities will be better appreciated may have been the right and proper thing to do. But this does not make it at all clear that there ought to be no instruction whatever in this particular study. How can this growing evil, then, be remedied? Certainly not by the present action of the College. For just as matters in that quarter are shown to be at their worst, they think proper to give up the ship entirely, and deny to the present Sophomore and Freshman classes even the meagre instruction before doled out. In this one respect our College is and has for a long time been behind other smaller institutions. These have good instruction by eminent elocutionists furnished them, while we are forced to get it at private expense, though the College ought to furnish it. For this reason we are glad to see the advertisement of a gentleman fully competent to give good instruction in Elocution. He will satisfy a long-felt want.