Page:A History of the University of Chicago by Thomas Wakefield Goodspeed.djvu/138

 no A HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO University project. The presidency of Dr. Harper was so identi- fied in their minds with the whole movement, they were so confi- dent that this feeling was shared by Mr. Rockefeller, that they saw in this effort to bind Dr. Harper to Yale, if it should succeed, the abandonment of the undertaking and the blasting of all their hopes. On the receipt of the letter Mr. Goodspeed at once con- sulted Drs. Northrup and Smith and sent the following telegram: We think you must tell Mr. R. the facts. Will you do so ? Before seeing them he had written telling Dr. Harper how the above letter had " disconcerted and demoralized" him, and urging that if he (Dr. Harper) would keep good faith he must, before mortgaging his services to Yale for an indefinite period, frankly inform Mr. Rockefeller of the facts, "for fear, if you do not, you may do us a fatal injury." This was good advice, but Dr. Harper could not bring himself to comply with it. The matter, however, was taken out of his hands. Mr. Gates was now in New York. He had been with Dr. Harper in New Haven. He had reached the conclusion that the discussion as to the presidency was premature and could well be deferred. He had therefore proposed to Dr. Harper an arrangement by which a Chancellor should be appointed while Dr. Harper remained at Yale for five or six years, and from that supposed "vantage ground" acted as the Chancellor's official adviser and associate. As this would leave Dr. Harper at liberty to accept the very flattering offers he was considering, while giving him the opportunity of exercising his genius in planning and organizing the new institution, he welcomed the suggestion with enthusiasm and cordially united with Mr. Gates in commending it to Mr. Rockefeller. It seemed to him to solve his difficulty. This suggestion, for the time being, worked in with the plans of Mr. Gates and Dr. Harper and tided things over a somewhat critical moment. They were seeking at this time to arrange an interview between Mr. Rockefeller and Mr. Gates. It was desir- able and necessary that as corresponding secretary of the Edu- cation Society Mr. Gates should be brought into personal relations with the man who was intending to make a great contribution for education and who ought, for every reason, to make it through that