1889

The following tribute to our late class president was read at the Dartmouth Night meeting of the Dartmouth Club of Washington, D. C., of which he was its founder. It was written by F. Stirling Wilson '16, one of his former choir boys at St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Washington:

"Henry Patterson Blair, class of 1889, died October 3, 1948. In his death the Dartmouth community of Washington sustained an immeasurable loss, a loss shared with the other communities in which Mr. Blair lived and moved—the community of churches, the community of schools, the community of hospitals, the community of recreation and sports, the community of business and professions, the community of gentlemen and scholars, and the community of human beings.

"This great loss is mitigated by a common heritage in which all shared who knew Mr.Blair, or who came within the scope of his benign heritage of the good deeds he performed, the tasks he completed, and the example of unselfishness he constantly set.

"There are no sons and daughters to mourn and bless him, to perpetuate his name. But from the dim recesses of years gone, reaching up to this day, a long line of boys and men pay their tribute of respect and love for this good friend. Many have preceded Mr. Blair into the great beyond, many are gray, many have sons and grandsons of their own, but they are all his sons. To generations of choir boys who knew him as 'Pop' Blair, who sang with him, played baseball with him, swam with him, camped with him, sailed with him and walked and talked with him, he is a figure of heroic tradition.

"A man capable of unbelievable feats of strength, he could be as gentle as a woman with a homesick boy at camp, away from home and parents for the first time; he could boss a camp of half a hundred vigorous, aggresive boys with the firmness of a drill sergeant, the humor of an indulgent father, the acumen of a successful business man, and the wisdom of a Solomon. To all these boys, Mr. Blair was too vital, too immortal ever to grow old. We who knew him have winced to hear him called The Grand Old Man of the Dartmouth Club' when we remembered him in his prime, and it saddened us to see his great frame bending with the burden of years and with burdens he took off the shoulders of weaker men. It has saddened us to note his faltering steps that were once so firm and sure. It has saddened us to see his great strength failing. We have known him too long and too intimately to believe he has gone.

"Mr. Blair personified the Spirit of Dartmouth. He was a product of the austere NewEngland village, and his rigid morality, his strength of character, his vigor of mind and body, his unswerving determination and his saving grace of humor. Truly he had the granite of New Hampshire in his muscles and his brains, and a Christ-like pity in his heart for young children, for animals and for those of all ages and races who needed his help. He achieved success because that was inevitable with his great talents. But the symbols of success, wealth and recognition by his fellowmen, meant to him only greater opprtunity to serve humanity.

"At Dartmouth he was a leader, in intellectual and athletic activities; he was a leader all his life. Those who knew him only slightly respected him, those who knew him well respected, admired, and loved him for his great mind and great heart. Of him a president of Dartmouth said 'He is a man to lean upon.' Only his unaffected modesty and clear sense of values kept him from the greatest honors that any man could covet, but even these qualities could not conceal his good works. Institutions and men have risen to acclaim him, and innumerable obscure souls have known the expanse of his charity, the great reach of his human sympathy, the warm quality of his support, and the boon of his friendship. When he departed from the world he left it a better place than he found it. With Henry P. Blair an era has ended. But dreds of men will carry to their lives' end an unspoken tribute in their hearts for a great man. Of him we can say, as Anthony said of Brutus:

"His life was gentle, and the elements So mix'd in him that Nature might stand up And sav to all the world, 'This was a man!'"

Fund, Contributors for 1948 14 Gifts (Participation. Index 127). Total gifts: 11,155.00 (385% of objective), HARDY S. FERGUSON, Class Agent.

1889

Bard, George P. Bartlett, Ralph S. Blair, Henry P. Blakely, David N.1 Chase, Arthur Davis, Edwin B. Ferguson, Hardy S. Frost, Harry M. Hazen, Frank J. Moulton, Clarence E. Redfield, Burt H.2

Reynolds, Frank J.3 Sullivan, Walter S. Warden, Oliver S. Wellman, James A.4 MEMORIAL GIFTS FROM:1 Mrs. Blakely.2 Mrs. Red field.3 Hardy S. Ferguson '89.4 Son-in-law, Robert P.Burroughs '21.

CLASS AGENT HARDY S. FERGUSON '89

Secretary and Treasurer, 108 Mt. Vernon St., Boston 8, Mass.

Class Agent, 12 Clinton Ave., Dobbs Ferry, N. Y.