1916
Dick Coburn's widow, Helen, has thoughtfully sent to the Class a clipping from the Boston Sunday Post of Feb. 13, 1916, reporting the Winter Carnival of that year (it was then referred to as the Snow Festival). McGill University was the only outside competitor and Dartmouth reversed the outcome of the previous year's meet by winning quite handily. It would be hard to recognize some of the events which were held that year when compared with the modern slalom, Alpine combined and such like. I recall the ski-joring race, of which the Post said, "No assemblage of haughty Romans ever got more excitement out of their chariot races than these same scoffing undergraduates and their guests when the four horses tore down Main Street neck and neck, urged on by whip and voice by their ski jockeys. No time was taken for the distance, a short half mile, but at the rate the speedy little Morgans travelled through the snow some records must have been shattered to bits." If my memory serves me correctly the late Edgar SpringWinters was one of the charioteers.
I also recall the student from New Hampshire State College named Paulson who did sensational somersaults off the ski jump. I have inquired since that time but have never learned that anyone has tried to duplicate that neck-breaking stunt. Ollie Frederiksen, "the wiry little captain of the Dartmouth skiers," went into the lead in the first thirty yards of the Dartmouth-McGill dual race, and finished so far ahead of his nearest rival that the judges counted the time intervening rather than the distance in yards. Among the Sixteeners scoring in the meet were Chan Green, Les Leavitt and our late classmates El Mack, Ed Noyes, who hailed from Duxbury and Paw Anderton from Pawtucket. Our own Jack English was the announcer.
John Ames writes me that he dined twice with Gran Fuller when Gran was in New York in March in connection with his Federal Housing Authority duties. The second time was at the height of a heavy snow storm, when Dutch Doenecke took a night off from Brooklyn and George Dock brought along a friend from Philadelphia, who could neither get home that night nor connect with his family by telephone. After customary libations they had a fine steak dinner at a place on Second Avenue that George knew. And a convivial evening was spent by all.
Macy's, New York, recently won a tax case involving a refund of more than a million dollars by the Federal Government. Ros Magill argued the case for his firm, which represented the store. The decision was appealed.
John Stearns was honored by the American Legion Post in Hanover, which presented him with a gold life membership card, as well as a 25-year membership certificate and pin. All this in recognition of John's achievement as a scholar, a professor and a citizen devoted for many years to the principles of the American Legion.
I don't think adequate, consideration has been given to the fine talk which CharlieCressy made at the January Class dinner at the Club in New York. He reminisced on the horse and buggy days at Hanover, - a slow trot from the present era in which the students spin down to Smith or to Colby Junior in their jalopies. Charlie recalled that for a few bucks the Inn Stables, Pat Labby or Red Spaulding's father would accommodate with a nag and a rig with which to sally forth and head for points north, east, south or west. I was sorry to have missed that meeting and I see no reason why the New York group should be the sole beneficiaries of these reminiscences. I'm asking Charlie to write about a few of the escapades he recounted at the dinner, which, if I have any luck, I will pass on to you. Thus they will not be lost to posterity.
I would also have liked very much to have been present at the April meeting at which Phil Stackpole was the speaker and his subject "10,000 Years in Prison," that being the total of sentences handed out by Phil during the five years he was a District Judge in the Military Courts in Germany following the late World War. He also handled the legal details of the construction work in Iceland and later, on the Azores. Phil stated that the base on the Azores represents an American investment of about 100 million dollars, and a base population of about 2000 people. Even more arresting (no pun intended) was his account of the task which faced the Allied authorities in Germany as the war ended, because the Germans then had no judges, or even lawyers. Practically all the legal profession had been members of the Nazi party and thus were not permitted to practice again until some years after the war. Many of them, in fact, were reduced to manual labor following the close of hostilities. Classmates present during the evening: John Ames, George Dock (to whom I'm indebted for the above information), DutchDoenecke, Roger Evans, Gran Fuller, CharlieJones, Johnny Pelletier, Ken Ross, FreddySt. George Smith and Milt Streeter.
And while we are on the subject of speakers I think that Dutch Doenecke must have a trace of Chautauqua blood in his veins. Where, I ask you, could you find a more diverse and interesting symposium than Dutch has provided the New York group in the past two years? And look who's to come, - Irving Wolff at the May meeting (at which I hope to be present) and later, Dick Parkhurst, Ken Ross and Fletch Andrews. Talk about adult education, - this is as good as a seminar!
By the time this sheet hits the news stands the Alumni Fund Campaign will long since have hit the deck. This year 105 of the Class are not being formally solicited since their names are being reserved for the Capital Gifts Campaign and they will be approached starting in July and through June 1959. Many of this group of 105 will esteem it an honor and a privilege to contribute this year both to the Alumni Fund Campaign and to the Capital Campaign, and many have already done so. All are invited to do so. It's an opportunity to reduce in some small manner the great debt we have owed (and will always owe) the College. There will be no official dollar goal, but keen and exciting competition between the classes based on participation only. And that is where we should shine. Sixteen is not a moneyed class, but as Alec Jardine, Class Agent summa cum laude, has pointed out, our class had 79% participation last year. The average of all classes was 71% plus and of all the classes from 1908 on only the class of 1921 with 80%' topped us, and that by a measly percentage point. I hope we can maintain our pre-eminence in this field in the current campaign. It's squarely at your front door, brother.
Class Notes Editor, 7 Swarthmore PL, Swarthmore, Pa.
Secretary,: Box 1998, Ormond Beach, Fla.
Class Agent, Box 151, Sagamore, Mass.
