1909

Of all the seasons of the year, The year-end rates the biggest cheer. It's when a right Good Will prevails. The spirit of the times assails The things that petty are in scope, And to a bright New Year brings hope.

Dress-up Days at Dartmouth

Back in those days when we old-timers trod the Hanover Plain, epidemics for getting rigged up in outlandish costumes broke out periodically. One of the occasions was when Type Hitchcock held exams. Other times, studes would put on an act for no special reason. It might be in the spring after a long, hard Hanover winter when the exuberance of youth had to have an outlet. Or it might be around Commencement time when staid seniors cast aside for the moment their garments of dignity and donned crazy regalia for one last fling before going out into a cold and cruel world.

The photo seen with this column was taken at 1906 Commencement time. The original came from the mementos of one Jeremiah Arthur Farrington who started out with the class of '06 and later became affiliated with '07. The photo was faded with age, one of those old brown prints. I turned it over to our camera man, Big John Kojundich, and asked him to see what he could do in making a clearer reproduction. How he came through the way he did. must be a trade secret. As John said, "Sometimes I get so good, it scares me."

The lads in the photo represent all four classes in college the year of 1905-06. In the front row are Reggie Bankart and MickyMcLane (left); Harry McDevitt '07; Tony Pelton, the popcorn man, and his dog Cy; Harry Coburn and Shorty Neal '06. Second row: Lonny Russ '06; Dennie Black '07; Don Mclntire and Dave Main '6; George (Dutch) Grebenstein '07, and Norm Bankart '06. Back row: Porter Smith '08; Happy Wayman and Beanie Waring '06; a guy who is unidentified; "Major" Russell and Bill McGrail '06; Mort Hull '08; and Art Farrington '06-'07.

All these men were prominent in college affairs: football, baseball, basketball, golf, musical clubs, dramatis personae, or what have you - names that are associated with Dartmouth lore. It's a good gamble that their like is seldom duplicated.

Freshman Year, Class of 1885

Back in the 1880's, a freshman year history of the class of '85 was compiled by J. M. Hulbert, class historian, printed in booklet form (48 pages and cover) by the "Dartmouth Steam Press," and read before the class at the beginning of its sophomore year, September 25, 1882. This unusual document was sent to me by George Liscomb '07 who is a student of Richard Hovey, the eminent Dartmouth poet who was in the class of '85.

The book recounts classroom episodes, local love affairs, freshman-sophomore rushes, peerades and other bits of news gathered during the first year in college.

O'Brien, for example, "while on one of his tramps through Lebanon, saw in the distance one whom he took to be a Fem. Sem. After somewhat elaborate flirtations, he came closer and found that the fair (?) one had ceased being a lass some forty years or more."

Hudson, in the class of Prof. Worthen (father of Tute '07 and Joe '09): "Well! when you divide through by xy and you add ml to both sides of the equation you can't get -"

Prof. Worthen: "If you will employ some other pronoun, sir, it will have a better sound." (Hudson was particular afterwards to tell what he could not do, instead of reciting Prof's incapabilities.)

Further comment was made about Prof. Worthen: "Although our respect for Prof. Worthen was great, it increased as we continued under his instruction. Freshman mathematics in Dartmouth is severely hard, but under him, the difficult points he was always ready to make clear. ... No one was ever heard to complain of unfairness in his marking." In appreciation, the class presented him with a gold-headed cane.

Richard Hovey, who was voted class poet his freshman year, roomed with a guy named O'Brien. What O'Brien disliked was Hovey's inclination to boast about his poetic talent. One time O'Brien was heard to tell him: "Hovey, oi have moor poetry in moi little finger than ye's have in yer whole sowl."

In the matter of athletics, Hubbard's bicycling was reported to be the event of the sports. "His marvelous skill and alacrity was a matter of comment the entire time he was in the field."

Pranks were not beyond this freshman class, for it was revealed that, one morning in chapel, the sophs found it inconvenient to attend because of an abundance of red pepper in and about their seats. The only ground for suspecting a certain freshman was that Thurston '84 saw Lucas coming out of the chapel one night about 12 o'clock and the pepper "happened" to be in the seats the next morning.

At Thanksgiving time came exams, long and hard, but few failed to pass. The longest and most difficult one was Latin which took until 11 p.m. for some of the lads to finish.

Hulbert, the historian, reported that 48 entered the Liberal Arts portion of the class, two dropping out before the end of the year. The average age was 20 years and 9 months; average weight, 140. The largest hat, worn by Hovey, was 7½ the largest, boot, size 10, and the smallest, a 4. The tallest man, Adams, was 6 ft. 7/8 in., and the shortest, 5 ft. 2 1/16 in. The heaviest man weighed 173 lbs. Three-quarters of the class were Republicans, and almost half of the class listed their religion as Congregational. The large majority of the class came from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont; four from Washington, D. C., and one each from Wisconsin, Maine, New York, and Iowa.

In the Scientific portion of the class, twenty men started the year and nineteen finished. Average weight was 152 lbs., the lightest man weighing 117 lbs. and the heaviest, 170 lbs. Average height was 5 ft. 8½ in., the shortest being 5 ft. 5 in. and the tallest 6 ft. 1 in. Here, again, three-quarters of the class were Republicans. In religion, the Congregationalists claimed almost a third of the class.

In describing one member of the class, young Joe Shultz (nicknamed Twigs) "looked like an ideal Western back-woodsman, with the rural air which his broad-brimmed paternal felt hat gave him." Later, it was reported that Twigs spent his four weeks' vacation in Philadelphia and "returned transformed from an innocent youth into a bold, bad man."

Speaking of another vacation, Wilcox passed the time with relatives at Concord. "He said he had a bully time for there was a fellow in the same house who chewed fine cut, and it didn't cost him a cent all the time he was there, besides he had some fun dating the hired girl."

All men who attended Dartmouth during the 80's are gone, with the exception of two in the class of '85 who are listed in the 1960 Dartmouth directory: Ed Allen and Joe Shultz. Joe must be the one referred to as Twigs in this historical document written 79 years ago. A salute to these hardy souls.

It was dress-up time when this picture was taken in the spring of 1906. All fourclasses then in college ('06, '07, '08, '09) are represented in the photo. For identitiesand further details read the '09 class notes written by Jack Childs '09.

Class Notes Editor, 141 Pioneer Trail, Aurora, Ohio

Secretary and Treasurer,: Sandwich, Mass.

Bequest Chairman,

Season's Greetings, One and All