1920
It is the usual practice to go far afield for news about classmates. Sometimes, however, interesting items lie close at hand. Such is the story about Lyon Southworth. Lyon and wife Dorothy live quietly on the Valley Road Extension in Hanover, N. H. There they tend their lovely flower gardens and feed their birds. They have many visit their feeders, including, I am told, a pair of cardinals, rare in this cold area. But this is not all that Lyon does. His capabilities extend to the Mary Hitchcock Hospital and the Kiewit Computation Center. Lyon writes, "I became interested in machine accounting during World War II, while I was at Harvard, and later took some, courses in computer programming at M.I.T. and elsewhere because I was fascinated by the possibilities. The modern high speed computer is essentially a very simple device. It is the programmer's job to understand the logical organization of the machine and to feed it data and instructions in such a way that it will carry out the work expected. In our work at the hospital we are using the Dartmouth-Kiewit time-sharing computer because of its flexibility and large storage capacity."
Lyon then went on to say that his work at the hospital has consisted largely of organizing a system for the storage and retrieval of information concerning all patients treated there for cancer. In the interests of privacy these records are all in coded numerical form. No names or other personal records are available as such in the computer files. The information is used for statistical studies: such things as ageincidence, survival rates, effectiveness of treatment methods, etc. The program draws on data from Mary Hitchcock experience but eventually it may include information from other hospitals in the Northern New England area. Indeed, it may already do so as more and more hospitals collaborate in centralized statistics storage.
It is gratifying, indeed, to learn of these instances of worthy contributions by men in their local communities who are putting to good use their years of accumulated talents. Our congratulations, Southy. We commend you for your efforts.
Eureka! Roy Rubel has revealed his Florida hideaway. Intrigued by his address, I consulted my road atlas of Florida. No where could I find Tequesta, much less Turtle Creek Drive. But Roy very kindly sent me a Jupiter-Tequesta map put out by the Jupiter Chamber of Commerce. The area lies at the mouth of Loxahatchee River, famous for its fishing, which flows into the Inland Waterway at Jupiter Inlet not far from North Palm Beach. Roy writes that not not long ago he met Tom andEdith Carpenter who also reside in that region. Tom's house is on the Northwest Fork of the lovely Loxahatchee which rises just northeast of Lake Okeechobee. Thank you, Roy, for the explicit information which has stimulated the study in geography and slaked my curiosity.
We recognize this month William H.Farnham Jr., Bill to his classmates and many friends in Spokane, Wash. In college Bill was known for his modesty and scholarly manner. He was also known for his skill on the tennis courts. To quote him, "I played a lot of tennis at Dartmouth and was captain of the team at the time." He claims to have played little tennis after college but he was the doubles champion of Idaho! In the Spokane region badminton became the popular sport and Bill took great interest in it but too late in life to get into championship frays. But when his local club sponsored an international tourney it was Bill who functioned as chairman. Never a golfer and only occasionally a fisherman Bill concentrated on gardening and his home place responded beautifully to his ministrations.
As is often the case with men in business, Bill's career has seen several changes of occupation. Armed with a Dartmouth degree and an M.C.S. from Amos Tuck School in 1921, he started in the banking field, pursued it until the late twenties when he joined the Washington State Tax Commission. He remained with the Commission until W.W. II when he sought to serve his country in the military. Ill health forced him out of it so he returned to private life again in an essential industry, allying himself with the Electro-Metallurgical Co. of New York for the duration of the war. Then he became office manager, secretary, and treasurer of the Morrison Brothers Seed Company in Spokane, a leading producer of seed peas, until his retirement in 1969.
Bill was a devoted and active churchman—an Episcopalian. For many years as a young man he taught Sunday School; then served as Scout Master in the Cathedral B.S.A. troop. He served his church many years as an usher and was sometime Chairman of the Property Committee. His greatest service, however, was in the financial affairs of his Diocese. He followed in his father's footsteps and since 1954 he was the Diocesan Treasurer and a director of Diocesan corporations. Much of his work was voluntary. Only when he retired from the seed company in 1969 did he accept any compensation for his many services as financial adviser and participant in overseeing the many business interests of the Diocese. Upon his retirement in the fall of 1971 a testimonial for Bill's service to his church appeared in The Columbian Churchman. Vol. XIX, No. 5, October 1971.
An active Dartmouth man in his community, Bill assisted in raising money for the Third Century Fund and" he has participated as a class agent under the leadership of Jack Mayer.
The 1972 Alumni Fund is again under way. The goal is higher. The need is even greater. Need more be said to the loyal sons of Dartmouth!
Secretary, Robert Frost Lane Etna, N. H. 03750
Class A gent. 90 Iron Mine Dr. Staten Island, N. Y. 10304
