Mississippi College - Tribesman Yearbook (Clinton, MS)

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i H. Longino, ’75 T IS an exemplary fact that in demo- cratic America there are no obstacles so great as to stand in the way of a determined man. No matter how much ham- pered in youth by poverty and environment, the opportunity for unlimited achievements is extended to all. All Mississippians are proud to honor a man who has manfully fought his way in spite of such difficulties to a place of preeminence among his fellow men. This is well illustrated in the life of Governor A H. Longino. He was born twelve miles above Monti- cello, the county site of Lawrence County, Mississippi. His parents, John Thomas and Annie Ramsay Longino, both died when he was a very small child, leaving no property or money of consequence. At the tender age of ten years he began the battle of life alone, with never so much as a legal guardian to re- strain or direct his childhood career. In order to feed, clothe, and educate himself, he worked By teaching school, and with careful economy, he as a day laborer on the farm, was able to graduate from Mississippi College. In the same year of his graduation, he was elected circuit and chancery clerk of his native county. At the end of that official term, he became State Senator for the district composed of Lawrence, Lincoln, and Pike counties. By reading law in his spare moments, and, after a short course at the University of Virginia, he was admitted to the bar and began the practice at Monticello in 1881, where he continued to practice until appointed by President Cleveland to the office of United States attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, in 1888. In 1890, he moved to Greenwood, where he became chancellor, by appointment of Governor Stone. At the end of his first term, he was reappointed by Governor McLaurin, but soon thereafter resigned to enter the race for governor. He was elected to that office in 1899, over five strong opponents, and was inaugurated governor Januaryl9th, 1900. It is with no little pride that we remember the administration as governor of this son of Mississippi College. A critical time had arrived in the affairs of the State. Rapid progress and phenomenal development was being made along every line, and a strong hand was needed to guide the ship of state along its glorious course. A new eapitol, beautiful in its artistic design and architectural grandeur, built at the cost t over a million dollars, without the issuance of a single bond, or the slightest J ' Uspic ion of graft, stands as a tribute to his intelligent executive ability. He found State struggling under the weight of heavy debts, and left the chair having placed •it ' I t 1 ? highest respect financially with her sister commonwealths. This, too, r having carried to completion a system of internal improvements, will be for a laie a n °ble monument to his He name. is prominent in religious circles as president of the State Baptist Conven- ion, and Sunday school superintendent. Since returning to private life, he has ecome identified with many manufacturing and industrial enterprises. 17 2

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E ustace eugene king, a son of Joseph Monroe and Margaret Wil- liams King, was born at Raymond, Mississippi, September 4th, 1850. Both of his parents died while he was still a child. He lived with his relatives and worked on a farm until he was fifteen years old, at which lime he began the business and battle of life for himself. Early manifesting a desire to obtain an education, he went to private neighborhood schools and in the summer made arrangements with his employer to attend school on his leisure days. Between working and studying, he possessed himself of sufficient rudimentary education to enter the preparatory department of Mississippi College at the age of nineteen. With that perseverence which characterizes men who move things, he went through the daily routine of college life for five years, re- ceiving the B. A. degree. Merit always receives its reward: as an able, careful and conscientious student, he held many positions of trust and honor, among which were public debater, salutatorian, orator, and anniversarian of the Hermenian Society. He also excelled as an English student and a writer, winning the prize given for the best essay written by members of the Sophomore and Junior classes. Since the completion of his college course, he has won deserving notice in literary circles for his letters on “ Travels in the Orient, and a little booklet entitled “Evangelist Sid Williams and His Work . 99 Before he entered college he served as pastor of a church near Raymond. Since, he has occupied many positions of usefulness, and the great work he has done is commensurate with the ability of the man. He has been an able and devoted servant in the Master’s cause, successively, at Senatobia, Starkville, and Green- ville, in Mississippi, and at the First Baptist churches of San Antonio and Mc- Kinney, Texas, where, by his consecrated service and efficient work, there has been erected a magnificent church, costing thirty-five thousand dollars. In 1890 the degree of 1). 1). was conferred on him by Baylor University. This is only one instance of the appreciative recognition of his achievements; he is a trustee of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, of Baylor University, and of Westminster Institute; member of the board of directors of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, and chairman of the executive board of the Collin County Association. Not only do we find him wearing the ministerial robe with credit and honor, but we find him always “out on the firing line ” performing his duty as a citizen. He is a strong believer and advocate of civic righteousness and is often among the leaders in educational and Prohibition movements for the bet- terment of his community and State. The great activity of the man may be seen and his worth realized when we note the fact that he has received 2,857 ac- cessions to the church, and officiated at 942 marriages and 642 burials. Still, at the age of fifty-seven, his energy is unabated and his life more useful than ever. 16 E. E. King, ’74

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B. D. Gray, ’78 t VEN though it is not universally be- lieved that heredity has a power in the molding and shaping of the lives and characters of great men, it cannot be denied that it adds a venerableness to the name to which it is attached. Baron De Kalb Gray is descended directly from men who belong to that band which immortalized it- self in the Carolinas during the Revolution- ary War. His grandfather. Clinch Gray, a civil engineer, in the employ of the govern- ment, came to Winchester, Mississippi, from Knoxville, Tennessee, in the early part of 1805, and subquently became a member of the first Constitutional Convention, which formed this great territory into a State. From a lineage so patriotic we could but expect a man so cosmopolitan in his interests as Doctor Gray. After elementary education in his county schools and academy work under the famous S. S. Melben, we find him entering Mississippi College in 1874. He was graduated from this institution in 1878, receiving the M. A., w ith first honors, and delivering the Latin Salutatory address. He enjoys the notable distinction of being, with P. H. Eager, tlie first who ever attained the master’s degree from the college. Throughout his entire college course he was conspicuous for promptness and regularity in the performance of all duties. These characteristics were especially prominent in regard to all religious exercises. He w r as fall orator of the Hcrim nian Society and also Anniversarian in his Senior year, having declined in his Junior year the same honor which his popularity had made possible foi him. As a student, he took a lively interest in college athletics, and is an enthusiastic supporter of inter- collegiate football, under regulations. Indeed, we may say that loyalty was his attitude to all college interests, and is the criterion to which may be attributed the soul, spirit, and essence of his life work and suc cess. . After taking graduate and postgraduate work in the Baptist Theological Seminary, he held the pastorate of the East Baptist Church of Louisville for a year. He resigned this with the intention of taking a course at the University of lrgima, but later, at the earnest solicitation of his friends, he abandoned this cherished plan and became pastor of the Clinton Church, in 1884; while he was here, he was married to Miss Alma Ratliff, the accomplished daughter of Captain W. T. Ratliff. As president of the board of trustees of Howard College, he led the move- ment that resulted in the removal of a fifty-thousand-dollar debt. After refusing the presidency of eight colleges, he was finally induced to accept that position in Georgetown, Kentucky. Although he loved educational w ork and was planning largely for the future of his institution, he listened to the appeals of his brethren that lie enter upon the corresponding secretaryship of the Home Mission Board, located at Atlanta, Georgia. Mississippi College conferred upon him the degree of I). D. in 1890, and of LL. D. in 1904. 18