My Years with Ludwig von Mises.pdf - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

encounters will almost never be equal, and judged by which the
ordinary run of university professor-at Chicago, Princeton, or
Harvard-is simply a joke (but it would be unfair to judge them by
such a measure; here we are talking about two entirely different
sorts of human beings)."
Another one of these young men whom Lu admitted to the seminar
was Lawrence Moss, who at the time was a junior at Queens
College. Moss had heard Lu speak when Lu sat on a platform with
Senator Barry Goldwater. He was so impressed by Lu's ideas that
he tried his very best to meet Lu and get into the seminar. Rothbard
helped him and arranged it for him. From then on Moss was a
"regular" in the seminar.
Having been indoctrinated in his college with rather "liberal"
ideas, Moss and a friend, who also joined the seminar, started to
ask Lu many questions, which Lu answered with never-ending
patience. One of the older students was annoyed by the steady
questioning of the newcomers. The older student only wanted to
listen to "the Professor," he was not interested in the mental gymnastics
of these youngsters. So he called the dean of students at
Queens College and reported these two young boys, saying that
they were on the grounds of New York University withoutpermission
of· Queens College, without paying admission fees, and disturbing
other students. The dean called the two students and asked
for an explanation. They told their story and asked the dean to call
Lu, to hear from him whether they had behaved improperly. But
the dean believed them and said, "If you are reported a second
time, I will make a note on your record." It did not happen again.
Today, Lawrence Moss, thirty years old, is assistant professor at
the James Wilson Department of Economics of the University of
Virginia, where he is working on a study of the Austrian school of
economics. For Moss, Lu is the greatest man of the century.
Henry Hazlitt often came to the seminar. He always sat next to
Lu and participated in the general discussion. Lu was especially
pleased with his presence. Once, in the academic year 1957-58,
Ayn Rand, the famous author of Fountainhead and Atlas
Shrugged, also attended.
The seminar was frequented by people of various nationalities
and professions. For five years, two Jesuit professors attended,
Father William McInnes, a professor of economiqs and management
at Weston College, and Father Michael Mansfield, a former
professor of economics at Hong Kong University. Lu always took
special delight in .leading these and other clergymen into philosophical
and theological questions with respect to social and economic
problems. I also remember Captain Richard L. Fruin, a
medical doctor from the Naval Station at Lakehurst, New Jersey.
138