An article from De Heraut reprinted as an appendix to a collection of three letters published by the curators of the Vrije Universiteit regarding the removal of A.F. de Savornin Lohman from his professorial chair. In his brochure De correspondentie over mijn ontslag als Hoogleeraar aan de Vrije Universiteit [The correspondence about my dismissal as professor at the Vrije Universiteit] (Utrecht: Kemink & Zoon, 1896), De Savornin Lohman had stated that he had been requested not to publish one of the items of correspondence. However, this request—which involved a letter sent by the curators—had not been made by the curators themselves. Since De Savornin Lohman had published the rest of their correspondence about the dismissal, the curators thought it prudent to make this letter public as well.

The letter in question was actually a memorandum, dated September 28, 1896, in which the curators laid out their standpoint and course of action for the directors of the Association for Higher Education on Reformed Principles. A copy of this memorandum had been sent to De Savornin Lohman. Kuyper’s article concerning the Reformed principles of constitutional law was added to this publication to make clear once again the fundamental disagreement that had led to De Savornin Lohman’s dismissal. The article was reprinted from De Heraut, no. 897, November 22, 1896 and was also included in De Standaard 25 (1896), no. 7585, November 25, 1896.