1934
You are going to miss the sparkling chatter of the Worcester Columnist so in order that the transition won't be too sudden, we are taking the liberty of reprinting some of JohnFoley's choicest words delivered to the Class in his final report. To those of you who were there and heard it in Silsby Hall, you can grin again, and to those poor misguided souls who were working at their appointed tasks, here is some deathless prose for your edification:
"It is customary and traditional that the departing secretary render an account of how we shape up, as a class, after these long five years since the last reunion.
"Although this departing secretary has never been particularly rocked back on his heels by custom and tradition, it turns out that they hold back your last check and references until you do give a report - so I have no choice. Please relax, slumber if you wish, through the next 6.3 minutes of read- ing time.
"Let's consider this class of ours, at not too great length, statistically. When I was at Tuck School, I studied Statistics under a great statis- tician - and, if he had let me up, I would have learned a hell of a lot more. I did learn, however, that working from unverified basic figures is likely to land you in Fenway Park when the Red Sox are playing in Cleveland (Cleveland being another team in the American League).
"To elaborate. We have on the records about 600 members, but about 50 of these are in the category of dis-interested. Non-grads, mostly, who have shown no interest in anything Dartmouth for years and have been scratched off the MAGAZINE mailing list. That leaves us about 550 what we might call breathing members. Breathing in the sense that it might be stretching an adjective to call even some of these brothers active.
"Now - I sent out a questionnaire recently to get a check on what has been written into the records by our original Scribe and his successors and had about 310 replies. That means we've got a pretty good line on about 56% of the class group.
"With this fund of basic statistics, and some of this will be no startling news to you who read that great monthly magazine published in the interest and enlightenment of the alumni of Dartmouth College, and particularly to those who have stomachs strong enough to read the 1934 notes, 98% have made that fatal error which is sometimes referred to in less realistic circles as entering the connubial state. It is perhaps fair and accurate to project this figure and say that about 540 of us are now married. We've contributed our share towards the national average on divorces and we've had at least one two-time loser, but in general, remarriage has been the rule.
"There is 1 married man with 6 children; 14 men with 5 children; 34 with 4; 84 with 3; 112 with 2; 34 with 1; 23 with none; and, of course, we must assume that our 7 bachelors of record are childless, although there crept onto the official Alumni Office record of one, Philip ]. Glazer, the report of his children named Dave, Ray, Al, Bob and Jocko. A very loyal member, even in his facetiousness! Rejecting obvious inaccuracies, we may strike an average of 2.3 children per man reported. Projecting this average to the whole class might be unwise, because most of the other fellows, not doing much writing, or otherwise filling out questionnaires, might have more time for other things and the average would rise accordingly.
"Certainly a fair statement could be made, however, that we are a growing class. It is encouraging to note that in the year 1954 we had born into our group no less than 12 children, and the year 1955 promises no less than 3 more with the year yet young, and deliveries throughout the nation failing to keep pace with the stock market. Additionally and inevitably, we now have at least ten children in college, at least one child married and we soon will find ourselves entering the area of geometric progression.
"On the more serious side, we have unhappily lost over the years since our last reunion, eight of our fellows: Jack Adams, Bill Barrett, Tom Clark,Dave Eddy, Brad Hill, Harry Ingram, Ned Mudge and Bob Lapidus.
"It would be interesting to do some occupational research in our dynamic class group, but, unfortunately, time ran out on me. It is true that we have an abundance of doctors, for excluding the 3 or 4 Ph.D.'s, if such cavalier treatment is not too distressing to those eminent gentlemen, we can count some 54. We probably have as many or more lawyers, one minister, a dean and several college professors and then the great body of those of the rest of us who work for a living. In spite of Jeff Jackson pointing a finger last reunion, we still do not have an Indian chief, but we do have a U. S. Representative in the halls of Congress, and, if he lasts long enough, as I know Perk Bass will, it is certain that some tribe will hang an honorary war bonnet on him.
"It has been an interesting experience to follow you fellows over the last five years as you added to your stature-professional, civic, economic, whatever it may have been. It was a privilege to serve as your secretary. Thank you and God bless you!"
To wind up the official class affairs at reunion the nominating committee designated William T. Adams, Thomas M. Beers, George W. Copp, Martin J. Dwyer, Robert S. Engelman, John E. Gilbert, Richard F. Gruen, John J. Foley, Frank C. Heath, Laurence T. Herman, Richard H. Houck, George H. Kimball, Franklyn J. Jackson, Alvin 8.. Marks, W. Langdon Powers, William H. Scherman, Robert W. Smith, James F. Wendell, Henry Werner, William L. Wilson and Nicholas Xanthaky to act as the executive committee and class officers until our Twenty-fifth.
It is expected that the executive committee will function in a workmanlike fashion and keep the class not only together but amused. A meeting is scheduled after the Dartmouth Yale football game.
The letter received from John Torinus best typifies the wonderful warm feeling we all derived in Hanover in June:
"As an alumnus who had sort of lost contact with Dartmouth from being in the sticks so long, I am in a good position" to testify to the worthwhileness of attending a class reunion. Myself, my wife and two eldest sons had a wonderful time. We received inspiration as well as entertainment and I came back resolved that I will certainly be there for the big Twenty-fifth and all future gettogethers. I would say to others who have been in my position that attending a reunion is more than worth the effort, money and time.
"As to family history, we now have six children, John B. Jr., Thomas R., Charles 8., Laurel Ann, Nancy Louise and Mark E.
"John Jr. enters Yale this fall and Thomas is in high hopes of entering Dartmouth in 1956. The two boys have been one year apart at the same schools all through grade school and high school and we wanted to separate them at college. Tom being a fair skier chose Dartmouth and that left Yale for Johnny.
"I am now managing editor of the Green BayPress-Gazette, a daily of 37,000 circulation in northeastern Wisconsin. I am also secretary-treasurer of the Green Bay Packer Football Corporation, chairman of the Red Cross Blood Program in Brown County plus having a number of those other free jobs which are so easy to acquire."
Jottings from your secretary's summer note- book. ... Bob Engelman called to say that Marty Dwyer had not received the pig he won in the raffle. Spiegel is weaning the daughter of a champion sow and this takes time. Bob reports meeting Dr. James H. Skiles Jr. at the airport. Jay is an obstetrician in Oak Park, Ill. Claims that his wife Virginia enjoys BillScherman's news letters as much as he does. Gail M. Raphael wasn't able to join the group last June because he had just left Ruthrauff & Ryan as a vice president to ally himself with two other Dartmouth stalwarts at Lennen & Newell, to wit, Marty Dwyer and Tom Lane '35. Gail is a vice president and group supervisor in the new agency. One of his accounts is American Airlines, Inc., which according to Gail's clever ads "carries more passengers than any other airline in the world."
On the following blissful note we leave you. In the New York Herald Tribune of August 25, there is a charming picture of Judith Ann Hirschey, accompanied by the announcement of her engagement to Robert Charles Skeele, by her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Charles S.Hirschey of Carthage, N. Y. Judith Ann was graduated from Dana Hall, attended Vassar College and was graduated from Marjorie Webster Junior College. She studied interior decoration at Syracuse University last year.
The new 193 a Executive Committee on the Sanborn House steps at reunion in June. L to r,front row — Doug Ley, Ed Offutt, Ted Harbaugh; second row - Fran Chase, Milburn McCarlv. class secretary, Art Bamford; back row - Reg Bankart, class chairman, Dave Smith.Not shown: Sid Diamond, George Kreer, Bob Naramore, Herb Shuttleworth, Ted Steele, JohnWallace, Adolf Weil.
Secretary, 160 Broadway, New York 38, N. Y.
Treasurer, . Hovey Lane, Hanover, N. H.
