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Caption: Book - History of the University (Nevins)
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DRAPER'S EQUIPMENT 155 Boys' Academy in Albany and the Albany Law School to supplement his early education, he could never become a scholar. He was not versed in languages; he did not know literature and had little taste for it for its own sake. He read little poetry; he was capable of blundering in talking about the classics, and was said never to have read but one novel—"David Harum.' He had explored with thoroughness very few fields of knowledge. Though accustomed for many years to select and guide teachers, he had little sympathy with pure pedagogy, and was not qualified in himself to plan in detail full courses of study. But he was a man of culture in a very real sense, for he knew law, he was a great reader of history, and he had a rare intellectual curiosity and a knack of securing from others knowledge that he had not found for himself. He was an excellent public speaker, fluent and correct, and a plain but cogent and forceful writer. | Above all, his consciousness of his defects made him deferential to the real scholar when such deference was to the best interests of the University; for Dr. Draper was never accused of educational narrowness. For the major questions of policy that he had to treat, a detailed scholarly equipment was as nothing beside the unusual qualifications he possessed. And no readers of his volumes of "Addresses and Papers" and "Holiday Papers 'Si can doubt that he possessed very uncommon intellectual as well as executive force. The grasp he at once manifested of the problems before him greatly pleased the Trustees. J* To enable t^B University to advance to a leading position," he B | in his letter of acceptance, "it must have financial | l l § to an extent which would have surprised the last gqfc' eration, for the field of University operations has
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