Part 1 - The Institute Libraries - Institute for Advanced Study

quacy, He was near the end of the special earmarked funds for medical
education. He was very doubtful that the University of Chicago was
going to bring his other idea to a successful end. He was now neither
officer or Trustee of the Board; he was Director of Medical Education
and Studies, Toward the end of 1927 Flexner was asked to deliver the
Rhodes Trust Memorial Lectures at Oxford the fallowing May, on a sub-
ject of his ovn choice. For this he was to thank Dr. Frank Aydelotte,
who was also American Secretary of the Trust. Flexner chose universi-
ties as hfs subject.
The Lectures were delivered on the Sth, the 12th and the 19th
of May. fn the first he expounded his Idea of a Modern University. In
the second he discussed Amexican universities, sparing neither criticism
nor xidicule in describing the multiple conflicting purposes ef some of
the most important institutions, giving devastating examples of such
things as strictly vocational and trade school activities for which
credit was given toward graduate degrees. In the third lecture he ex-
amined and criticized English universities, without: approva1,:but also
without ridicule, and the German institutions, for which he had great
respect, particularly as they had existed prior to the Revolutlm of
1919 when the ntidinessw due to class distinctions had given way.
The lectures attracted much attention in the United States --
particularly the press reports of the second one. One may imagine the
quiet but deadly storm of protest from the heads of the great unkversfties
which beat upon the Trustees of the General Education Board, even
though Flexner did not identify them by name. Qn the 24th of May the
Board's Secretary announced publicly Dr. Flexnerts m*vofuntarg retirt-