The action of the gentleman, at Williams, in refusing the position of valedictorian, because he regarded it as an honor obtained from the marks he had received by a system that he did not approve, has called forth many articles on the method employed of distinguishing the different grades of scholarship attained by men at college. By some, the marking system is upheld, as the only means to prevent idleness and neglect, and as an unfailing incentive to "healthy, honest competition," as one contemporary has it; others trace from it all the prevalent evils that result from overwork and cramming, while some, with careful conservatism, agree that it is a good which, like all other goods, possesses some grain of evil that cannot be avoided. In one exchange the methods of assigning scholarships at German, English and American schools are thoroughly discussed, and the relative results derived are thoughtfully compared by the writer who endeavors to show - but we must confess with little attention to the facts he himself presents - that the practice of giving comparative per cents. is an absolute necessity in American schools, if one fully understands the apathetic character of the general American student.