St Johns College - Yearbook (Annapolis, MD)

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There 'was soon to begin a chain of circumstances which tended more and more to cast into shadow his better nature, and which were the cause of much sorrow and bitter repentance in after years. However, before this dark train, there was a trace of light. 'S To make a long story short, about the beginning of his Senior year john fell in love with a young lady living a couple of miles from the college, and for a time it appeared that his sunny disposition would once more be resurrected from its tomb of melancholy, and that john would be able to grasp the sunbeams of life which had lately eluded his clutch. His smile once more returned to his countenance 3 he felt better toward the world be- cause his innermost being, his affections, had been stirred, and somewhat of his old enthusiasm in natural beauty returned, together with a reawakening of home- love. But, alas! such a happy state of affairs was des- tined to arrive at an abrupt termination. The young lady who had excited his admiration was a bright, attractive girl, and she gave john all the encouragement he needed in his suit for her hand, but shortly before commence- ment, just as he was about to leave the scene of four busy years and take another step in the walks of life, he one day took her to a beautiful secluded spot near her home, and spoke of his love to her. Imagine his surprise and chagrin when she simply laughed a cold, pitiless laugh, and told him what her actions had belied many a time. H His faith in human nature was greatly shattered at I this disappointment of his hopes, and under any circum- stances it would have required some time for the wounds to heal. But again circumstances were against him. He relapsed into his former melancholy pursuit of chill, unadorned knowledge, became somewhat reckless ir his actions, and when the session at the law school opened, it found him in a it mood to enter into the first scheme, good or bad, that was presented to him. 'K It is needless to enter into the details of his experi- ences at law school. Suffice it to say that he fell in with a crowd of young men who cared more for having a good time than for studying, and as a result of his reckless feeling, john entered into their enterprises with spirit, and although not doing anything very wicked, still he neglected home, friends, studies, and almost self-respect. His natural brightness carried him through his final examinations, but the tares which had been sown in his character could not fail to produce their legitimate fruit. and to thrust him one step farther from the path of recti- tude and happiness. Such was the sorrowful situation when at last John was equipped to sail forth upon the voyage of life g and oh, how that motheris heart must have ached for the bright though wayward son whom she saw drifting away from loveis ennobling l11l:lLlG1'fCGSi You will notice that the year of Johns graduation was his twenty-sixth, and that same year witnessed the beginning of that stupendous struggle which enveloped

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to visit his home, and receive the heartfelt welcome always accorded him. But towards the close of his Soph- omore year a slight change began to be manifest respect- ing his relations to home. His letters became more and more irregular in coming, and often were very incom- plete. Yet we made due allowances for this, and attrib- uted it to pressure of work. W'e should not have noticed this so much, but he soon began to form excuses for not coming home on holidays. Sometimes he remained at college, while at other times he would go home with one of the students. Yet his motherls heart was even recon- ciled to forego the pleasure of seeing her boy, because she thought that his visits furnished him happiness. He firmly believed that he loved the old home as much as ever, and perhaps he did, but to my mind there is a limit to the action of the brain, and in proportion as new subjects of thought came crowding into the mind, so old ideas and sentiments are wont to be obscured, or pushed back into the innermost recesses of the brain, as grain is stored in a warehouse. These ideas or sentiments require continual effort to keep them in prominence, and so it was in johnis case. His home-love yet burned in his heart, but the busy routine of college life so occupied his brain that it was no difficult matter for his home-thoughts to slink into the background 3 and he was slowly, uncon- sciously allowing the pressure of occupation to cast a shadow over the glow in his heart. , The summer's vacation after his Sophomore year I he passed at home, but although he willingly did what- ever duty came to him, still he never manifested his old enthusiasm over the scenes of nature or the affairsiat home. He read most of his leisure time, and seemed bent upon one object. That object was law. I have said that john was of an impulsive disposition, and that same disposition led him to throw his very soul into whatsoever project he took a fancy to. Law was such a project, and law he meant to pursue to the bitter end. Furthermore, he took the sternest possible view of the profession. He felt that there should be only cold dis- crimination in acts of justice, and although he did not intend to read law proper until his graduation from col- lege, he nevertheless trained himself to look upon the deeds of men from a purely critical standpoint. Neither would his energetic disposition permit him to maintain a happy' medium of sentiment 5 but in the pursuit of his chosen aim his desire to do right transformed him into a pessimist 5 the cold calculations of his brain preyed upon the sympathies of his heart until he seemed unable to see life's brighter side, or even the brighter side of his own profession. Sometimes while in society his inborn gen- iality would reappear, 'only to disappear in what seemed to him the proper training for his pro- fession. It was evident that some circumstance or some ' word fitly spoken' was required to bring again into prominence the tender side of the nature of this naturally affectionate lad. Fate decreed otherwise. ,.- .M -nn-1, .

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our whole nation in the folds of civil strife,-the great Civil XYar of rS6r. NVhat could have better satiated a spirit of recklessness than participation in such exciting scenes P So john enlisted, and owing to the military dis- cipline he had received at college, soon obtained a lieu- tenant's commission. Amid the stirring events of war- fare there was great difficulty in sending messages at 3 distance 3 and so through all the four long, weary years not a word was heard of john Hielt, excepting now and then a mere rumor. Once, indeed, as was ascertained afterwards he had written home, but the letter was unfor- tunately lost. Afterwards he was either offended because he received no answer, or he had lost sufficient regard for the home of his childhood 3 for he never wrote again. After the four years of service had rolled slowly around, john seemed to have been imbued with Bishop Berkeleys idea that Westvvard the course of empire takes its way,' and accordingly he is soon on his Way to California. He openedalaw oflice in San Francisco, and started into work with his characteristic vim, and with the intention of rising in his profession, and thus making up for the lack of applied energy while at law school. But john was not happy. His better nature was, as it were, shut upivvithin himself, and he had ver- itably become a scheming man-of-the-world, teeming with ambition, his every thought being directed toward success in his profession. . Twelve years sped by. john had acqulred the IGP' I utation of being an able, enterprising lawyer, strictly accurate in his business transactions, yet little caring if other people suffered by his dealings. His opinion was respected, but he did not possess the genial warmth of feeling which makes one generally beloved. Reaction at last came. A commonplace circum- stance Was the means of leading john to reflect, and that was just the revolutionizing agent needed. Une day, While Waiting for the trai11 which should take him some miles out of the city to visit one of his clients, his atten- tion was attracted to two not overly well dressed urchins who were talking near him in mysterious whispers. They Seemed to be greatly pleased at something. One would make a remark, and then both would laugh as if it were the funniest joke in the world. The ludicrous aspect of the scene first caught his notice, and as he had nothing more profitable to do while awaiting his train, he allowed them to occupy his whole attention. He soon learned that somebody was expected on the incoming train, and that the whisperings and peculiar actions of the boys be- tokened the expectation of rare joy at the meeting. At length the train came shrieking into the depot, and the expectant air of the boys was even more ludicrous than before. They kept nudging each other with their elbows, all the while keeping a sharp lookout for the expected newcomer. john was interested, and watched them until a middle-aged woman alighted from one of the cars, whom the boys had no sooner seen than they ran up to