The Building of a State: VII. The College of California [pp. 26-39]

The College of California.
It was the plan that the Berkeley improve ment should be carried on as means might be
obtained from the sale of homestead-lots, and
that the balance still due of the purchasemoney for a portion of the land should be paid
from the same fund. The sale of these lotswas
reasonably successful, and the income would
have met all demands on this department of
our enterprise, had it not been necessary to
divert so much of it to meet deficiencies in
the college current-expense income. For in
1857 our time-subscriptions for that purpose
had expired. Having received little help,
and no endowments from the East or elsewhere, we were obliged to try to raise another
time-subscription for current expenses.
This effort proceeded slowly, and met with
many difficulties. Business was depressed.
The war had but recently closed, and wartaxes were yet high. The currency of the
country was unsettled and fluctuating. Our
business men had subscribed generously to
the College several times, but now, in the
uncertainties as to the future, they hesitated.
Moreover, within a few years we had lost six
of our earliest, most zealous, efficient, and
generous Trustees-three of them by death,
and three by removal from the State. The
places of such men could not be at once
fully supplied by new elections. The situation became perplexing. If current college
expenses, which were all the time increasing,
must be met by the sale of the homesteadlots, that sale would have to be forced, and,
of course, at low prices, and soon all would
be gone.
Additional to all this was the fact that new
pastors had come to the churches of several
of the denominations. They saw clearly the
need of denominational work, and, perhaps,
as strangers, did not see so clearly that concentration of effort was vital to the existence
of the College. It may possibly have been
thought that a college which had grown up
through so many years would, of course, go
on, and that other needed things could now
be undertaken.
It was in this juncture of affairs that we
held our Commencement, in June, x867.
Governor Low was present. In view of what
he saw, he was led to say:
"You have here organization, scholarship,
patronage, success, reputation, but you lack
money; the State has money, but has none
of these things: what a pity they could not
be brought together! "
He probably was led more particularly to
say this because, as chairman of a Legislative Committee, he was then in search of a
location for a State "Agricultural, Mining,
and Mechanical Arts College."
About that time, Dr. John Todd visited
us. He had been at Ann Arbor, and had
seen the distinguished success of Michigan
University, and described it in a very attractive way. Besides, just then the State University "idea" was very popular before the
public throughout the country, especially as
represented by Michigan and Cornell Universities.
All these things led naturally to the question whether a State University here could
not be made to solve the problem, both of
the proposed Agricultural Institution and
our college, and by one endowed and well
supported institution fill the place of both.
This idea struck some of us with regret
and apprehension. But as it was discussed
confidentially among the Trustees and contributors to our college, it seemed to gain
general assent, as possibly, under the circumstances, a wise measure. If only we could
have been sure of realizing as good a university as that of Michigan, it would have been
easier than it was to surrender the College for
the sake of it. But we were not sure. Nevertheless the decided opinion among the Trustees and donors came to be, at last, that it
was best to take the risk, and transfer the
College to a University, if the State would
undertake to establish and maintain one.
TRANSFER TO THE STATE FOR A UNIVERSITY.
Governor Low was consulted. The Governor had been a warm friend of the College
from the beginning, and a liberal contributor
to its funds. He decidedly approved of the
university plan, and expressed his high appreciation of the contemplated offer on the
part of the College. He thought it would
unite all interests, whereas they had hereto
1885.]
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