1917

October was a very busy month in Hanover with the busloads and cars of tourists who wished to view the autumn colors and crowd our traffic and (we hope) our stores; with the football games and other athletic events; with the many events at Hopkins Center and the Collis Center lectures and so on; but the great event of the month was the Dartmouth Night celebration. This was the crowning glory of October. The torchlight parade was a wonderfully well-organized affair. Classes from the oldest represented to the present resident classes were arranged according to age, 1917 being the most ancient class to take part, with your secretary riding alone, as usual in the last four years. The next oldest was the class of 1921, but there were representatives of some members of the championship teams beginning with 1916. It was a beautiful night, not too cold, and there was an enthusiastic crowd to cheer us on our way. The speeches, cheering, and singing in front of Dartmouth Hall were joyously received by the onlookers and students. The bonfire blazed up beautifully, and the warmth of it could be felt from the middle of the campus to the Hanover Inn. An unforgettable performance in every respect.

Harvard, of course, was deliciously ribbed in speeches, and fortunately Dartmouth won a big victory over that elite institution. That game gave us two victories in the Ivy League, but then we lost to Cornell and Yale. Now we have to meet Columbia, Brown, and Princeton. Let us take a deep breath and hope for the best.

Imagine, if you can, after all the festivities on Dartmouth Night, being asked to attend a 7:30 breakfast for all class presidents and being treated to a buffet morning meal. Since your class chairman is regarded as a class president, he made it, and found a goodly number of fine companions ready for a lively and informative meeting. There were some speeches, but more importantly, some give-and-take of several interesting ideas. It also gave your chairman (unfortunate me) a chance to warn the men not to let the same thing which has befallen me happen to them or any of their classmates. The reference is to the idea that one man can really handle all the class offices to the best advantage. It does not involve enough of the classmen and is a very big task. In fact it would be impossible without the co-operative and genial help of the administrative officers and their secretaries in Blunt Alumni Center. Often it is necessary to go to four or five offices to take care of some item or other. Not only does one get the information sought, but a little chat or visit with these people is a pleasant experience. If they ever come to the point of putting me out as a nuisance, I shall comply, but not gladly or even graciously. No siree!

Village Apartments #12 Hanover, N.H. 03755