ALUMNUS IN CHINA WRITES OF LATE PRESIDENT TUCKER
From H. W. Robinson '10, of the American Board Mission at Paotingfu, China, Director Emeritus of the Thayer School, Professor Robert Fletcher, recently received a letter embodying a tribute to the late President Emeritus, William Jewett Tucker. As one more among the many tributes of Dartmouth men to the president whom they revered the ALUMNI MAGAZINE reprints the following portion of Mr. Robinson's letter:
"I had not learned until your letter came of Dr. Tucker's death, tho I have read an editorial in the Outlook since then regarding it. As I think back over my college days there are several things that stand out vividly in connection with Dr. Tucker. One is the conference I had with him during my senior year as to whether I should leave Engineering and go into the ministry. Being a minister himself, I thought he would likely encourage me to make the change, perhaps it was because I wanted him to do so that I thought he would. But he did nothing of the kind. He simply helped me in a sympathetic way to face both sides of the problem and left me to make my own decision. 1 he said that my training along Scientific lines would probably give me a better understanding of the 'man in the street than a purely classical course would have done. I think now that what he said is true, tho I regretted at times not having a better grounding in history and literature. Again I recall vividly the impression made on my mind, and heart, as we gathered at the College Hall to wish Dr. Tucker God Speed when he left Hanover to seek better health. He said that he left the College in our hands and knew that it would be well. How could we but be inspired to do our best when Dr. Tucker put such faith m us!
'Another instance that comes to my mind is a statement he made once in which he said that sometimes when he became discouraged he gained new strength and hope by going out to the cemetery and standing by the grave of Eleazar Wheelock. This to me is very significant. Dr. Tucker was a forward looking man. Even when I was in College he was young in his thinking and he had been ahead of his generation m many ways for long years. But he also kept in close contact with the past. Wheelock was an inspiration to him. In the Pres" ent conflict between Fundamentalists and Modernists, if there were more who possess the spirit of Dr. Tucker the conflict would be at an end—it never would have occurred. At least that is my opinion on the subject.
"And finally, the meaning that Dr. Tucker put into the word 'man' was to me an inspiration. I don't know why that word meant more to me when spoken by Dr. Tucker than when spoken by others. I suppose it was because I associated the word with Dr. Tucker himself. He was a 'man' in the full sense of that term. My ambition to become a 'man' was greatly elevated by the meaning that Dr. Tucker was able to put into that word for me, when he called us 'men' and urged us to be 'men'."
