Haverford College - Record Yearbook (Haverford, PA)

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o agining himself to be John Sullivan, he announced his intention f writing for the Burlington Haivkcyc, and, indeed, had the editor of that paper I)ccn present to hear his side-splitting remarks, he would have engaged him at once. We also practiced baseball when out surveying, but did not get up a class team. The generous farewell gift of Rd. liinns, namely, our first class supper, and the first one ever held at Haverford, came off in December of this year, and was a great success. The custom then inaugurated at Haverford has been kept up ever since. Though this was our second year at college, we had not yet be- come very studious, but were still somewhat inclined to youthful pranks. Some of us no doubt have some very vivid recollections of an affair of canned pears, etc., while others remember with amusement the night that nine of us went into Collection dressed up in improvised dress suits, well corked, and otherwise festively decorated, and also the picture we had taken afterwards. In physics, Collins was a very acceptable member, furnishing numer- ous occasions of merriment in that generally not very humorous subject. In the French class Hartshorne got himself disliked by not surrendering his paper, while in Paley he caused the Pro- fessor to make a most derogatory remark. It was also about this time that George Whithead, of Toledo, donated his valuable collection of mound-builder relics and Sahara sand to the Museum, through the agency of Hilles, England and Dawson. As Charles had given a great deal of trouble in our Fresh- man year, so Esrey kept us busy a great part of this ) ear ; and, as usual, Tommy took the lead in the acclimating process. Night after night in his room, Esrey would perform various wonderful gymnastic feats in the presence of an admiring audience. His astronomical observations through a coat sleeve were also remark- able, though sometimes interfered with by damp weather. This vigorous treatment, prolonged e en into the Junior year, gradually 19

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Bearded, and Jim the Indignant; Fweddy, the Witty; Lewis, the-man-with-a-club, and Esrey — the — well, words can ' t describe him. The growing freshness of ' 89 first attracted our attention, and it was decided that something must be done to counteract the undesirable effect of the prohibition of tossing. Accordingly, a committee was appointed, and having exacted a pledge from Sharp that he would not laugh, sent the sergeant-at-arms to bring in the offenders ; Charles, putting on his most savage look, did the talking, and it was a sight for gods and men to see those Fresh- men wilt and tremble under his rhetorical thunders. The cane-rush was somewhat of a surprise to us, as the Freshmen had intimated that they would not make the attempt. However, we pitched into them immediately, and twenty minutes ' agony ensued. Orbison especially fought very well, not being at all embarrassed by the removal of his clothing, and Ed. Binns showed up as a dark horse, being on the cane all the time, though dressed in ordinary clothes, and wearing a plug hat, which he kept on till the end. At the end we had five men on the cane, and so the victory was awarded to us. The struggle was a severe one, and Sharp was pretty well exhausted, but a little Grenet cleaning solution braced him up. Mr. Dawson, how- ever, was more seriously injured, having suffered a severe contu- sion of the chest, occasioned, we believe, by squeezing Geary ' s head. Our foot-ball team this year was an excellent one, and we defeated the University and Swarthmore Sophomores in great style, the latter game being particularly brilliant. The class match with ' 87 was never finished, as in the early part of the game Sharp had his nose broken in some mysterious way. His discourse that night, while under the influence of liquor (Ether Sulphuric), will never be forgotten by those who were with him. Besides im- 18

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had an effect, and the family disposition to use cricket bats, geological hammers, etc., with murderous intent, finally passed away. Our Sophomore year may be said to have been dedicated to the successful performance of one event, namely, cremation. We determined to have one that should eclipse all records, and to it we devoted all our energy and ingenuity. The novel ideas of having Japanese costumes and an execution originated in the fertile brains of two of our schemers early in the fall. Every committee did its work faithfully, and the Executive Committee, by frequent exercise of tact and skill, directed everything, and secured the harmonious working of the whole. Charles deserves especial credit for the construction of the effigy, which was a very difficult task. Another member, happily still with us, also con- tributed largely to the success of the affair. Who has forgotten the untiring perseverance with which Lewis endeavored to accus- tom us to complicated manoeuvers in the jolly rehearsals down by the creek ? How hard all of us had to work the morning of that great day ! How discouraging to have the platform break down when we thought it secure ! How lowering the sky all the morning and afternoon ! But, in spite of all, our cremation was an unparalleled success ! Never had a more glorious moon looked down upon a lovelier scene. Never before had so large and orderly a crowd been present to witness such a novel specta- cle. How vividly it all comes before us ! The procession from the gymnasium, while the big bell rang and the bugle sounded clear upon the still air ; the marching and counter- marching in the presence of an immense concourse of people ; the speeches, the conviction and binding of Wentworth, and the skillful substitution of the effigy ; the dull thud of the executioner ' s sword, and the blood gushing (?) from the headless trunk; the cremation ot the corpse, and the concluding songs