Erskine College - Arrow Yearbook (Due West, SC)

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THE NAUGHTY-SIX CALYX 25 At last my plans we1'e realized and the pleasures ol' a trip to my old class friends loomed up before me in inammoth proportions. With surprising' ease and er-lerity all preparations were made, and, rising' early in the morning, I boarded an out-going' train for the North. My first stop was in Richmond, Ya., where I found .l. ll. Simpson f'1ig'z1g'r-fl in the drug business. A commodious building' on Broad street bore the modest sign- UJ. D. Simpson, Drngg'ist.'l A few days I spent in his hospitable home, presided over by a. noble daughter of the famous old ll. IV. F. t'. The home, however, betrayed a tinge of sadness occasioned by the recent. departure ol' their only daughter who was attending' school at Due WH-st. Bidding' farewell to these l'riends, I went next to VVashington. Here I was met by Hazel Ilharr, who, after completing' a law course in the Columbia University, had settled for the practice of his chosen prot'ession in this city. Wliile here I also met R. L. Jenkins. I found him engaged in the V. S. Survey. He had, like myself, been away from the South and consequently knew very little of our old class. He told me, however, that he had occasionally seen Mason Stevenson, who was an active rail road man. When the seemingly impossible project of The New York to Paris Rail Road was first introduced, he had entered the enterprise with his usual enthusiasm, and when the missing links of the road were finished in 1915, it was he who conducted the first train through from New York to Paris. The world read with amazing' wonder of the initial trip-leaving' the metropolis the train sped Westward to Seattle and thence northward to tl1e Behring' Strait under which a tunnel 38 miles long' had been constructed. Once on the Asiatic continent, the way was clear for Paris, which place was reached in fifteen days after leaving' New York. While here I had missed seeing' still another, R. L. Patrick, who had passed through a few days before on his way to New York to take, in connection with his vacation, a special course in Hebrew. He has for several years been the acceptable pastor of the First A. R. P. Church in Itill'llllllt.L'lll'lH1, Ala. Leaving' IVashing'ton, I turned my face to tl1e west. I landed at last in Memphis, Tennessee. I found that Moffatt Pressly had, like most. other wanderers, settled near the old home at last. I went up to Troy, about forty miles from Memphis. to see him, and found that he had taken his t'ather's place as leading' physician in those parts. His early shyness for the feminine sex had evidently worn off with the study of medicine, for I found l1im not alone. Here also I found Rev. IV. M. McFerrin, the pastor of Troy A. li. IJ. tlhurch. Ile was the same Mae I had known in college, and I found him very pleasantly situated but for one thing: The only trouble between him and the people lay in the l'aet that he had for some time urged the building' of an annex to the parsonage, a thing' which the people were unwilling' to do. From these I learned the where-abonts ol' llalph Robinson. They told me that he had for several years after leaving' college taught in Tennessee and then, with a heavy heart, occasioned by a serious disappointment in a love affair, retired to a quiet little home in the l'oot-hills ot' the l'iedmont section of his native State where he devoted his entire time to writing. llis works on fiction were classed as among the best. He had also recently published a volume ol' poems entitled, Robinsons Love Lyrics. But I must hurry on with my story. On my way to Nashville. I was greeted hy a hustling' little man whom I soon recognized as IVill llandridee. l t'onnd that he was on his way home from a meeting of the International Medical Assoeiation. Ile

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24 T711 El blfkilltlli T73K4Sl EC C111 L Y'5C 4444444 4 4 3 4 3 4 4 4444442 4 3 4 4 4 4 S3 w ' 4 4 23 4 me F5 in 3 E ll' '?a m c C3 2 z -gg 4 H 4 pg-f:'41 N459 :Hg if:'-v- 4 4 4 4 4 4 3 4444443 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4444444 'PQ 9 4' 'D' 0 'D' 'I' 'U' 'U' 3 gal' 'U' 'D' 4' 'D' 'D' 'U' 'I' 4' 4' 'I' O 'l' 'I' 'O 4' 'P 4 'I' 'P 'P 'P 'D 0 'U' 'D' 'O 'l' 'U' 0 'D' 0 'D' 'D' 0 9 34 0 'P 'O' 0 'U' 'D' 'O 'U' 4' 'O 49 My llear tll1lSSlll3ll'SI A few nights ago I 1'Qtl1l'l1Gtl f1'U1l1 a. most pleasant trip, antl as I illll sure that it will he of no little interest to you. 1 will tell y011 about it.. ,lt began lll this way. One eohl, tlreary night, not long' ago, I sat alone ill my room. 'l'l1e wintls whistletl tl1l'UllQ'll tllf' leafless trees. and a clrizzling' F8111 aflcled to tl1e gloom. QXltllOl1g.1'l1 outside tl1e ele111e11ts were lll a wihl eo111111ot1011, 1 sat eo111fc1rtably ill my easy eliair while tl1e tire east a elieery light tl11'Ol1g,'ll the room. My Sll1'1'0l111fll11Q'S naturally threw lllt? illttr a 1'e111i11iseent mootl, and I fftlllld myselt' living' over again my old eollege tlays. lVell dial I l'Ell1t'IUll0l' the day we g2,'1'a1l11ate1l. It was Tuesday, June tl1e tit'tl1, lfltlti, a clay lone' to be l't3IHOIlllJ6l'0fl. I reniember well l1ow we I1l8l'Cl194l to the 2lllllltHl'lllIl1 ltl tl1e lllfltllllltl' ot' that day: how, XVllG11 eaeh had tinishetl his speeeh, l1e reeeiveml a little package of llowers fl'0Il1 his friencl 111 the Female College! how, after Slreeehes were all slelivereel, we we1'e eaeli l1l'6SGl1tQtl witl1 our 1l111lo111as and how, when all was over, witl1 tearful eyes, we said a last HGoocl-bye to the girls we lovetl so well. For four long' years we l1a1l looketl forward to that tlay and hailetl its Chllllllgi' witl1 joy, but XYllGll it 031110 at last, l1ow ehanged were onr feelings. lnsteaal of that exultant spirit, we almost wept XVllQl1 the ti111e 0211119 to part. t'a11 it he that twenty-tive years have passed sinee that eventful clay? Surely, as 0110 of our llltllllllll' said NVllCl1 a Pil'6'Sl1llltlll, 'tTe11111uS is surely fllQ,'ltil1,.H Some elass 11l'UllllQtS have NVl'1t't0ll simple proplleeies. Some have 1lel1g'l1te1l to speak ot' their elass mates 111 tl1e highest terms, l'911l'6SPl1liIlQZ' tl1e111 as busied witl1 the things ot' the worhl, going' 1111on lo11g'jo11r11eys, sitting' ill jllllQ'lll0llt 11111111 their t'ellown1e11, llfbllllllgl' tllf' highest possible positions, or even Sitting' ill tl1e Pl'0SltlC'l1t'lS ehair. These things are 11e1tl1er 111111ossil1le nor illllll'UlH1lll9, and Sllt'll great things 111ig'l1t1 well ll2lYU been lbl'Hlbllt't'lCql of tl1e tl1e11 great elass of 1906, l111t l shall tell a simple story lll a Slllllllil way,ft1l1e truth as I llilV6 been able to gather it after twenty-tive yearS. As l have saifl, twenty-five years l1ave rollecl rapitlly by sinee we batle farewell to the olfl eollege, tl1e t':1e11lty, fellow stnflentsg and eastine' a last ltbllglllg' look aeross the OZIITIIVIIS to the iltlflllllllf' t'olleg'e, we Set Oltt' upon o11r journey of lit'e. NVQ were a lll'0IlllSlllQ.1' elass, tl1irty 111 lnnnher, antl eaeh entlowetl witl1 a liberal lllllfblllll ot' lillUWll'tlg't',flllf' resnlt of' t'onr years of ineessant toil. Olll' weapons with whieh we were to light the battles ot' l1t'e eonsisteel lll part ot' tl1e l10llUWlllg1'-ll fairly gyootl l:11owle+lg'e ot' tl1e seienee of AStl'Ull0IIly. a traee ot' l'syel1olog'y, tl1e best inethotls for Q'l'UWlllQ' the ehoieest Greek 1'41otH,'l laboratory antl other lllt'tll4itlS for inaliing' tl1e llllItlllIttl'illbl4' anml lllll!lt'lltlt1llZllDlt' t'HllllNblllltlS 11t'tll14'll1lSt1'j', some ltlreneh. liatin. tit'l'IlI1lIl, anfl Itlnglisll. 'l'hese were prieeless weapons tlneoretieally, b11t as time wore on these trnsty t'UlllltIlllltlllS were o11e hy o11e east asitle t'or those 111ore praetieal ones. 'llo satisfy lll.V intense mlesire for some titlings ot' 111y fornier elass mates, T tleterlninefl to lay asicle t'or :1 while tl1e aetive tlnties ot' l1t'e antl go lll seareh ot' tllelll. l hatl always the th-sire to travel. Zllltl l knew ot' no otl1er trip so pleasant or pretitahle a. one to see those with whom l hail l1ee11 so intiinately assoeiatetl while in eollege.

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26 THE NAUGHTY-SIX CALYX has settled for the practice of his profession in Fayetteville, Tenn., and a day I spent in his home. I found that his Youthful dreams of rain-bow gleams had really come to pass, for by his side and in full sympathy with his work, was none other than his old college girl. I11 company with Dan I drove out to the Female College to visit Sam Rahb. It was a genuine pleasure to shake his hand again and call him Old Lady, a 11a1ne he had not heard for years. His early fondness for college girls had led him to establish a female college where he has labored for years as president. I found that his early views on the social problems were slightly changed, for ttSoirees we1'e a rarity and callers XV61'6 not admitted except ence a month and then only with special permission from the young lady's papa. Associated with him in this work, I found Miss Katherine Flenniken, as teacher of Mathematics and Astronomy. She had always a fondness for Mathematics and was well versed in the laws of Astronomy, and this tendency had led her to reject. her numerous suitors and give her life to this work. She made me acquainted with the where-ahouts of Miss Margaret Flenniken. For two years after leaving college she was a typical t'School Marmf' but she was not long permitted to revel in the quietude of a country school-house, for she was one of the parties to a case of love at first sight and now she lives in tlharleston, S. C., where her husband is a doctor. I was also let into the secret of Miss Bessie Jackson 's passing from a state of single to that of double hlessedness. It came about i11 this way. She taught for a year or so, and tigured in a pretty little romance as follows: IVhile in the full performance of her duties as teacher, she had one day occasion to punish rather severely one of the little girls: Next morning this same little girl's father, who hy the way was a young widower, came with her to the school room to have it out with whom he called, t'That imprudent new teacher. But when he heheld the new teacher in her pretty pink dress, his anger cooled at once. It was a plain case and very evident that this school would soon need a still newer teacher. ln course of time they were duly married, and you may even now, find their happy home at I046 Tenth Avenue, Asheville, N. C. On my way to Columbia, I stopped over in Atlanta, Ga., where I hecame suddenly vexed with a severe tooth-ache. I started up town in search of a dentist, and soon I was confronted hy the sign H-I. It. Devlin, Dentist. I hurried up stairs to assure myself if it was that same Roddy Devlin, whom I hod known. It was, and after dislocating my jaw and wrenching my neck in his frantic attempts to extricate my tooth, we sat down for a long talk of our old college days. In the afternoon we went around to see Kirkpatrick, the director of a large conservatory of music. Kirk had developed his musical talent hy an extended course in Germany. Among his compositions is a new song entitled, I can't' 'forget you, dedicated to his college girl who thought him gone, and married while he was in ttermany. In company with these two friends, I went' that night to the Grand Opera to hear the famous hnmorist lecturer, IV. A. lNlcAulay. 'l'he house was crowded to the limits of comfort. After the exercises were over we stayed to speak to Billy, XYIIOII in college, his tendency seemed toward the ministry, hut judging from his success on the stage, he had evidently not missed his calling very far. After a pleasant trip, I landed late in the afternoon in the city of tiolumhia. S. F. I lere I was entertained hy IV. I . tlaldwell. Italie had not heen idle since I had seen him, for here he has huilt up a tine law practice, and at this time is