An 1818 professional dispute - American Chemical Society

An 1818 Professional Dispute Herbert T. Pratt E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc. Wilmington, Delaware 19898 When the ACS Committee on Professional Relations started during.the mid-1960's to assist memhers who have yrievances against their tmployers, it rewgnized a long existing nerd ( 1 I. C'oniidrr the case of (hnaliel Smith Old?. u'ho in May, 1818, felt it "an imperious duty" in his own defense to publish a 20-page booklet of "facts" (2)on how he had been fired as Professor of Chemistry a t Middlebury College.' Olds, a Congregational minister and a graduate of both Williams College and Andover Seminary, had been hired in August, 1816, by Dr. Henry Davis, President of Middlehu~y.~ Although Olds had taueht mathematics and natural ~hilosoohva t \~illiamsbet& entering the ministry? he felt /nadrqt;at: tor his new task without f~lrthrrschnolinr. Asa result. I ~ e d ~ t a i n e d permission from President Davis tostudy for one session a t full salarv with Beniamin Silliman a t Yale.4 Onlv after resigning his pasror:lte in Greenfivld. Massachusetts, ;n October, and gettlna settled nanin as astudrnr, did he learn that Middlehury Cdlege wasstrapped for cash and that the Trustees had refused t o honor his leave of absence. Olds had a family to support and needed 1 he back pay. Atier a series of letters to Ihvis and verbal nmmunicsrioni to the'l'rusrers through n third party tailed roelicit n response, Olds in despenitim laid his case hefore the Franklin (:mlnry r.Vas;a~h~~settsj As.;