Shadow of great britain

Any young student on the streets of Göttingen might help Einstein solve a problem in four-dimensional geometry.

——David Hilbert

In the evening, in that time and space that has been gently touched by time, the University of Göttingen sits quietly in a state of tranquility.

This long-established institution founded by George II in 1737 has given birth to the dreams of countless German youths and witnessed the brilliance of countless scholars. The breeze blew by, fanning the green leaves on the treetops, and the golden sunset covered the campus paths. Under the shadows of the library and teaching buildings, it seemed that the Göttingen students who had once strolled here could be seen.

Among them were the old senior Clemens Metternich, Prime Minister of the Austrian Empire, who was reviled by Göttingen students, and the talented poet Heinrich Heine, who was regarded as the leader of freedom in Germany.

Although the two of them never dealt with each other and even insulted each other with terms such as hemorrhoids, urinary incontinence and mobile public toilets, this did not affect the fact that they were alumni of the same university.

In addition, Friedrich von Savigny, the pioneer of the German Historical School of Law, Arthur Schopenhauer, Hegel's number one opponent, and Wilhelm von Humboldt, the founder of the University of Berlin, studied in Prussia. Baron Stein, who implemented national education reforms, and Arthur's old friend Lionel Rothschild, the richest young man in Europe, were also among them.

In the near future, Heisenberg, Dirac, Schrodinger, Fermi, Stern, Pauli, Oppenheimer, Fermi, Planck and Minkowski will also join this ranks. .

Even if they are playing football, they can proudly announce to the world that they are able to put together at least five world-class starting lineups.

It is precisely because of such an outstanding university that the city motto - There is no life outside Göttingen - can be written with full confidence on the outer wall of Göttingen City Hall.

As one of the five most prestigious universities in Germany, the University of Göttingen, which is in its heyday, is fully qualified to say condescendingly to the University of Berlin, the University of Munich, the University of Heidelberg and the University of Jena that "there is no academic world outside Göttingen." .

The fine tradition of the University of Göttingen is the pride of every professor who works here and the students who study here, but for Arthur Hess, the first special national representative and chancellor of the University of Göttingen who has just assumed his new post, For Sir Thomas Tings, the reputation and strength of the University of Göttingen means a kind of pressure.

The University of Göttingen is to Hanover what Oxford and Cambridge are to Britain.

Sir Peel offended his alma mater Oxford University because he helped the Duke of Wellington promote the Catholic Act. As a result, he was expelled from Oxford University. He lost his seat at Oxford University, which was regarded as the most valuable seat in Britain. He was also later expelled from Oxford University. The clergy continued to denounce it for several years.

The 'Anti-Robert Peel Movement' they launched not only hit Sir Peel's political reputation, but also caused the extreme Tories who also graduated from Oxford University to break up with Sir Peel. Until now, the two parties have no relationship. repair.

And if Arthur messes up the University of Göttingen, the chain reaction will definitely be more serious than if Sir Peel angered the University of Oxford. After all, in Britain, there is the University of Cambridge to disperse the influence of Oxford University, while in Hanover, the University of Göttingen is the only one in the education world.

Or, even if we take a step back, if Arthur did not do a good job in maintaining stability, then His Majesty the King and your Excellencies on Whitehall Street will definitely hold him accountable.

And if he does his job of maintaining stability too well, it won't be long before Heine's Arthur Hastings will have the same German hemorrhoids as Metternich and suffer from urinary incontinence.

Thinking of this, even Sir Arthur Hastings, the water master who has walked the tightrope all his life and worked in the mud for half his life, couldn't help but sigh: "From Scotland Yard to the University of Göttingen, the Tories and the Fai The Georgian party, the conservatives and the liberals, have always been on thin ice in my life.”

Accompanying Arthur on his tour of the campus was Professor John Herbart, the dean of the School of Philosophy. The professor was completely unaware that the young proctor next to him, who looked not much older than the average student, was in a state of wandering mind. With the rigor of a philosopher and the nature of a professor who likes to teach others, he introduced Arthur to the history of the University of Göttingen.

"In the 18th century, when the University of Göttingen was just founded, the differences between universities were not based on their academic reputation, but on the atmosphere and mood of their students' overall life.

For example, the universities of Jena and Wittenberg are famous for how many beers their students drink and how many heads they break, the University of Marburg is famous for how many duels their students engage in, and the University of Leipzig is popular for how debauched its students live.

As for Tübingen, in the 18th century it was more like the Colosseum than a teaching place. Southern farmers and ghetto residents were troubled by the students' pranks.

Moreover, the pranks adopted by the students were also very bad, such as disrupting folk festivals, breaking into venues where weddings were being held, attacking Jewish shops, and other similar atrocities.

At that time, most of the college students came from the French-speaking upper class, and the aristocrats had a monopoly on the universities. However, they did not cherish such a place to impart knowledge. Instead, they focused on indulgence, flattery and exquisite etiquette.

To some extent, we have to thank Napoleon's cavalry for sweeping across Europe, which caused Germany to face the shadow of defeat at the beginning of the century. Although he brought war, he also awakened the German states. Faced with such a dilapidated situation, everyone realized that the country needed reform, and education also needed reform. ”

Professor Herbart is a very cautious person. He rarely reveals his political views in school. He prefers to be seen as a pure scholar rather than a political leader. This is not only to avoid unnecessary trouble, but also the educational creed he adheres to.

If he uses his own words, it is - it is not my business to evaluate what kind of improvement can be made to the political life of the Germans and how much it can be improved. I can only say that the university spirit cannot imitate political life, because the essence of the university lies in science.

As a scholar, it is normal to have liberal tendencies in this era. Herbart, who studied under Fichte and was also a good friend of Schiller, is no exception.

But if he had not seen the new school supervisor and the students involved in the riot today, he would hardly have expressed his feelings so bluntly.

As a serious scholar, he said this to express his support for Arthur in a euphemistic way, but as a professor, he couldn't help but give a few words to the new school supervisor in front of him who was not as old as many doctoral students.

"Sir, you are very courageous today, but this is not a good role model for students. I don't think it's a good sign for students to be overly involved in political activities. Universities are places for learning, and politics is the business of parliament. But I also know that it's the nature of young people to be passionate, and we can't blame them too much, so we have formulated various school rules to restrain their behavior. But if you, as a school supervisor, also mess around like the students, it will definitely have a bad effect on maintaining the normal operation of teaching. "

Arthur slowly came back to his senses after hearing this. He looked at Professor Herbart, who had a serious face. Although the two had just met not long ago, Arthur had come to a conclusion based on just a few hours of contact that the professor in front of him was an upright old scholar from the academic school.

In a way, dealing with such a person is much easier than dealing with Police Chief Schmidt.

He smiled kindly and told the cause and effect of today's beer hall riot truthfully. Sure enough, after Professor Herbart heard the story, his tense face immediately relaxed.

But not long after, he seemed to have thought of something, took off his hat and apologized: "It seems that I misunderstood you. I didn't expect that you would solve such a troublesome matter for those bastards just after taking office. If you didn't let the police release them, and when Director Schmidt reported the matter to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, we would not be able to cover up for the students even if we wanted to.

Once the orders from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Education are pressed down, all of these bastards will be expelled from school. However, although they were lucky enough to run into you today, they will definitely not learn their lesson if they are not punished. Especially today, they saw you among them. If there is no punishment, these guys will probably think they are doing the right thing. "

After speaking, Professor Herbart pondered for a while and suggested: "I think the list of students who participated in the riot today should be submitted to the Student Punishment Committee, and they should be punished one by one according to the school rules. Those with minor offenses should stay in the confinement room for a week, and those with serious offenses should be suspended from school for at least one month. "

Hearing this, Arthur couldn't help but feel troubled by Professor Herbart's efficient actions: "Mr. Herbart, I understand your starting point. But if the first thing I do when I take office is to punish students, it is always a bit inappropriate. But when it comes to running an education, you are the expert. If you think this is right, I will definitely support you with all my strength. ”

Arthur’s frankness immediately won Herbart’s favor. Although the professor’s style was old-fashioned, it didn’t mean that he was a fool who didn’t understand the ways of the world.

He replied quite calmly: “The school rules have clearly stipulated the punishment for violations. You are only a supervisor now, and you don’t hold a position in the student punishment committee, so you just need to perform your duties and supervise whether the committee’s resolution violates the legal procedures. As for what punishment to impose and which students to impose the punishment on, these are all decisions made by us committee members, and you have no right to interfere. ”

As soon as Herbart said this, Arthur couldn’t help but stand in awe: “You are worthy of being a master who has served as a professor of Kant’s philosophy at the University of Königsberg for 24 years. Although I haven’t communicated with you much, I still have to say that you are the most insightful of Kant researchers I have ever met. Even if the students don’t understand, I privately think that you absolutely deserve the praise of being upright. If there is a chance, can I have the honor of attending your lectures? "

Because of his old-fashioned temper, Herbart was not as popular among students as those professors with radical positions. Some students even regarded him as the conservative leader of the school. Herbart was a little uncomfortable with being praised by Arthur out of the blue.

However, as a researcher and follower of Kant, there is no praise that can make people happier than "the most Kant's essence".

Herbart's old face turned red, and he coughed and said, "You are really too kind. I heard that you are a student of Mr. Bentham. Although you are more famous in the field of electromagnetism, I guess your attainments in Kantian philosophy must be high. But if you are willing to come to my class and exchange a few words with me, then of course I welcome it. But I always think that when it comes to Kantian philosophy, Professor Dahlmann may be better than me. It's a pity that he went to the capital to attend the Constitutional Convention a few days ago, otherwise you could meet him today."

"Professor Dahlmann?" Arthur recalled the list of the University of Göttingen that was handed to him a few days ago: "Friedrich Dahlmann?"

Herbart nodded slightly and said, "It is him, the German Historical School of Law 's new leader, Professor Albrecht of Law and Professor Gervinus of History went to the capital with him for a meeting. Although I am a little disappointed that I couldn't meet them today, Professor Gauss, the director of our Göttingen Observatory, and Professor Weber of Physics have long wanted to meet you.

To be honest, they just tinkered with an electromagnetic telegraph machine not long ago, and are currently building a 1.5-kilometer telegraph line from the physics laboratory to the observatory. They heard that when you were in London, you participated in the work of helping Mr. Wheatstone to build the telegraph line. It is said that the several telegraph lines currently in use in Scotland Yard were built under your guidance? "

Arthur couldn't help but jump three times when he heard the two names.

He couldn't figure it out. He had already hidden all the way from Paris to the small country town of Göttingen, but why was he still being chased by these scientists?

Gauss and Weber, these two people are not easier to fool than Poisson and Ampere of the French Academy of Sciences.

Arthur was thinking about what excuse to make, when suddenly he heard a burst of dog barking from the front.

Looking in the direction of the dog barking, he saw a young student with a mustache and a sword on his waist walking towards the two of them on the stone road in front of him, leading three big wolfhounds.

He noticed the gazes of Arthur and Herbart, but he neither took off his hat to greet them nor made way for them. Instead, he twitched his nose slightly and snorted contemptuously.

Professor Herbart, who was standing by, saw this and his gentle temperament was thrown out of his mind. He clenched one hand and raised the other hand suddenly, pointing at the student and yelling, "Bismarck, stop right there!"

Bismarck was called by Herbart's name, but he seemed not to hear it and did not react to the teacher's scolding at all.

Herbart was even more angry when he saw this. The old professor in his fifties rushed forward and was about to snatch the dog leash from Bismarck's hand. Unexpectedly, before he approached, the three dogs stopped and barked at him. The sudden change frightened Herbart so much that he could not help but step back a few steps.

Bismarck saw this and smiled. He leaned over and touched his beloved wolfhound, praising it as he touched it: "Good dog! Good dog!"

Herbart was so angry that he asked: "Bismarck! Although I am old, I am not senile. The punishment for your fight at Jena University last time has not been completed! Your confinement will end next week. Why are you here now? In addition, tell me honestly, where did those three dogs in your hand come from!"