SUNY Plattsburgh - Cardinal Yearbook (Plattsburgh, NY)

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NORMAL CORRIDOR Salutatory ANNA B. COLLINS 14 TEACHERS, fell ow-students, and friends; another year has rolled away and another class is assembled to celebrate, with appropriate exercises, its Class Day. We are assembled with the common pleasure of tasks accomplished and joy of work well done, but mingled with these is a feeling of sadness, the sadness of parting from friends tried and true, the students and teachers of Alma Mater. This is our Commencement Week and very appropriately is it named, for to-morrow ushers us into a new and broader world of toil and strife with none to guide and often not a friend to sympathize,- a world in which each one must work out his own destiny. We have considered our petty school day trials and troubles as mountain- ous but to-day we look back upon them with a smile, they were so trivial. Let us hope that in years to come we may be able to smile at the trials they bring. During Normal Days we considered three nights at the movies, a play, a dance, and perhaps a baseball game or two, a part of our week ' s work, pro- viding we could get them all in without the knowledge of the Faculty and arrange not to be called on in class the day after. Failures ! why naturally there were one or two but of course not due to pleasure. Why! people would think it strange if everyone should pass. But now it must be duty first and pleasure afterward. I realize that all who are gathered in this chapel today are here because of interest in at least one member of our class. You will hear of various things: the defects of our teachers, the faults of the Seniors, the virtues of the Juniors, — jokes that perhaps will not seem funny to you,- — but I beg your forbearance for this is our play day. I take great pleasure in extending to you in the name of the Class of 1914, a most cordial welcome.

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it be otherwise when there is continual tug-of-war going on among the members of the Class. This failing is one of your worst and is a good reason in itself why you have failed to show any capacity for leadership. You have shown an unpre- cedented disregard for vested authority. The Senior Class is supposed to be ad- ministered by a body of officers at the head of which is a president. But the Class of 1 9 1 4 is run by a small faction of commercial girls — I say commercial girls, for they are all commercial students with one notorious exception. These girls are continually quarreling among themselves and their only apologia pro vita is to make life miserable for the nominal president. They do not know their own minds and they take it upon themselves to criticize those who do. They have even dared to approach me and attempt to tell me how this or that should be done. If they do that to the Juniors ' president I can in some way imagine what they do to their own president, and I here extend to Ham my deep sympathy. Now 1 feel that there may be some in this audience who take my words with a grain of sa ' t. If any of you doubt the truth of what I say, I can show you an instance right here this afternoon which should relieve your minds of all doubt. Turn to the program you hold in your hands, turn to that part which deals with this afternoon ' s exercises and see if you find there even the name of the Senior President. You cannot find it for the simple reason that this body of self-constituted bosses has relegated him to the rear. 1 am inclined to believe that the notorious exception I have mentioned is responsible in a great measure for this slight to the Senior President, and I suppose this is only another case where the exception proves the rule. The remedies for these abuses should suggest themselves to you and I trust that now since your troubles have been analyzed, you will lose no time in applying the remedy. Before closing 1 would have you turn your gaze once more to the noble body of young ladies and gentlemen I represent. In our ranks are peace and harmony. We have all fought shoulder to shoulder, perfectly willing to bury any personal differences in order to unite on the great issues of class principle. I am proud be- yond measure that during the past three months 1 have borne the brunt of the fight for such a class as this, and that in every troubled situation that confronted me I could feel I had behind me such a s plendid fighting organization. Lengthy exhortation to rally round the flag and desperate efforts to keep our line from wavering have been entirely unnecessary. Like Nelson at Trafalgar all I needed to say was England expects every man to do his duty . This is the last afternoon we shall ever be assembled in this Hall where we have assembled so often In spite of all your faults we hate to see you go. We would like to beat you all over again. But unfortunately that cannot be so. Somatomes we stop the current of our wrath against you and try hard to discover m you a few good qualities, and once in a while we succeed. I feel as though this we j one of those blessed moments, so I want to assure you you are not en- tirely bad. We all hope that as you leave these halls you may meet with some degree of success, we hope that you may be filled with the spirit of service for humanity and that the world will be better because you have lived. My parting message to each and every one of you is, Good bye and good luck I

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Last Will and Testament of the Class of Nineteen-Fourteen ENNOWILLA EELLS 14 117 E, the Class of Nineteen-hundred, fourteen of the State Normal School, ▼ city of Pittsburgh, County of Clinton, and State of New York, being of sound mind and memory do hereby make, publish, and declare this to be our last Will and Testament, in manner following, that is to say : First - We direct that all our just debts and funeral expenses be paid. Second-- We do bequeath to the Class of 1915 the seats of honor in the study hall and chapel ; the very great privilege of appearing upon the rostrum three times ; and more than two excuse cards to every member if necessary. Third To the class of 1 9 1 5 we do devise our traditional dignity of mein and bearing ; our key of knowledge which at present is bright and shining ; our great desire to work ; our love for books of every nature, interesting or otherwise but especially otherwise, and last of all our great success. And we do charge them wear this sombre vestment of Senior dignity in unforgetting memory of our former glory. Fourth - We the Girls of the Class of 1914 do makeover whatever trans- ferable physical and intellectual charms we may possess to be equally distributed among our envious followers. And we do charge you use these to the intent of their former possessors, to urge on the few of the other sex, which your Class may have the honor of calling your own. Fifth To such as may be so wretched, so vile, so contemptible as in any measure or degree to interfere with the Class of 1916 after its organization, we do bequeath an all night bath in the muddy portion of the Normal Pond. Sixth — To the Class of 1915 we do bequeath our History of Ed. airship (instructions for use may be had from almost any Senior) but we do admonish said class to be considerate of the instructor in said subject and not drain too great- ly upon his sense of speech or hearing. Seventh To the boys of the class of 1915 we do bequeath the unques- tioned privilege of becoming interested in all the pretty girls who may enter this institution in September of this year. But we do charge said boys to remember that handsome is as handsome does . Eighth In consideration of the very great kindness, respect and honor with which the Class of 191 5 have held their Seniors we do hereby make a few spec- ial gifts. To the President of the Class of 1 9 1 5 we do bequeath one large, modern, two-story, fireproof house, made of something that never Byrnes. To Miss Alice Collins we do give and bequeath enough money for a com- plete course in Clay modeling, if she finally decides to take this up as a life-work.