Hampden Sydney College - Kaleidoscope Yearbook (Hampden Sydney, VA)

Page 9 text:

G3-ififi COLLEGE LIBRARY nuunnLMQVl'1NFV UL

Page 8 text:

J L.-A TO Dean Macon Reed AS AN EXPRESSION OF OUR ESTEEM AND AFFECTIONQ AS A MARK OF OUR APPRECIA- TION FOR HIS SPLENDID SERVICES IN THE BETTERMENT OF HAMPDEN-SYDNEY COL- LECE: AND AS A TRIBUTE TO A MAN WHOSE WHOLESOME OPTIMISM AND NOBLE CHAR- ACTER HAVE MADE Us BETTER FOR HAVINC. KNOWN HIM-WE DEDICATE THIS VOLUME OF THE KALEIDOSCOPE.

Page 10 text:

THE HAMPDEN-SYDNEY KALEIDOSCOPE Dean S. Macon Reed MID the epochal changes which have taken' place at 'Hampden-Sydney in ig lm recent years, the office of Dean has been established. Until l9l9, the president had been the sole executive officer in matters great and small. By that date duties had multiplied, the machinery had become more complicated, the routine more intricate, and it was deemed wise to relieve the situation by appointing a Dean- an officer described by a wag as a man who has to do what nobody else wants to do. It is evident how important the office must be and, withal, how onerous and nerve-racking. Upon this long-suffering official, devolves-more than upon any other-the internal management of the College. It is he who most frequently comes in contact with patrons and students, hears their tales of woe, passes upon their requests, and imposes penalties. Truly the Dean must be a man of tact, of sound judgment, of keen sense of justice, and of personal responsibility. He must have a genial manner and sympathetic heart: he must possess wisdom of a high order, must know how to temper justice with mercy and, above all, how to stand firm and yet keep the machinery running smoothly. Who is sufficient for these things? At Hampden-Sydney the answer is Dean Reed, the third Dean of the College. Who, then, is this Dean, the man who combines in such unusual degree the traits and qualities outlined above as necessary for the successful discharge of the duties of the office? In the first place, we may claim that he is a great-great-grandson of the College. It has always been a source of pride and congratulation to friends of Hampden-Sydney that throughout the passing years so many of those in whose veins flowed the blood of the founders have been actively identified with the institution as students or officials. Long ago, Dr. Hugh Blair Crigsby called attention to this, and the fact has been repeatedly emphasized since Dr, Crigsby's time--'very recently in Dr. Bagby's striking article, The Acid Test, which appeared in The Record. The rule is exemplified in Dean Reed's case. From Hampden-Sydney's point of view, this gentleman is one of The Scots wha haeng for on the distaff side he comes from the loins of those to whom Hampden-Sydney owes its being, as will be shown later on. The Dean's parents were the Rev. Richard Clark Reed, D. D., LL. D., and Mary Cantey Venable. The father, a tall Tennessean of brawn and brain, was a man among men-an eloquent preacher, a gifted writer, an inspiring teacher, a learned scholar, a loyal friend, a devout Christian. Having served in several important pastorates, he, for thirty years, filled with marked ability and success the Chair of Church History in Columbia Theological Seminary. The mother-a worthy helpmeet for her distinguished husband, a lady whose grace of person and charm of character are still fresh in the memories of lA.D. 19301 6