Mississippi State University - Reveille Yearbook (Starkville, MS)

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John Crumpton Hardy, M. A., LL. D. Can storied urn or animated bust Back to its mansion call the fleeting breath? Can Honor ' s voice provoke the silent dust. Or flattery soothe the dull, cold ear of Death: Realizing thai flowers placed on the casket have no power to waft their fragrance over the days that are gone, to brighten the sleeper ' s past, cheer his disembodied spirit, and make after-life brighter and happier, we, bouyant with youth and hope, have decided to break our alabaster box of love and esteem at the feet of one who is worthy of all the honor we may pay him. at a time when he is still living, and while his heart can be thrilled by our admiration. Nearly two-score years ago was created the first school of industrial education in Mississippi. At that time our State was just beginning to recover from a war of desolation, followed by a reign of despotism that is unparalleled hi American history. I ut the Mississippi Legislature caught a vision of greater things in store for our dear old State, through industrial advancement, and established the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical College at Starkville. A few of our people misunderstood its mission, and the fires of opposition burned with increasing intensity. One prominent politician boasted that he would tear down the college and give the bricks to farmers to use in making chimneys. To guard against such fanaticism, the immortal Senator George placed a provision in the organic law of our commonwealth, the Constitution of 1890, making it incumbent upon the legislature to provide for the maintenance and support of the Agricultural and Mechanical College. Since that time the hand of Fate has dealt kindly with this institution, and it has waxed strong and mighty. It seems fitting to us, then, that this volume of The Reveille should be dedicated to a man under whose guidance the institution has made the greatest strides. In 1900, when President Hardy was placed in charge of this institution, its total valuation was only $300,000. Last December a board of appraisers, com- posed of legislators, estimated the property al more than $1,000, 000. Our enrollment has grown from 300 to more than 1,000. The esteem in which this College is held by our sister institutions and by educational author ities is another gratifying result of A. M. expansion. The Tinted States Commis- 10

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•JOHN CRIMPTON HARDY, M. A.. LI.. D.

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sioner of Agriculture, Dr. Knapp, places the Mississippi A. M. in the forefront of Southern industrial schools. President Taft, on his recent trip through the South, took occasion to commend the work done at this College. To say that these things are the result of chance, or of natural growth, is hardly to give credit to whom credit is due. Nothing great or good was ever accomplished without unremitting, self-sacrificing toil. Certainly, then, we must owe some- thing of our present standing in the educational world to the ceaseless efforts of our President, With a broader vision than ever before, he is now working to make the influence of our College felt in every corner of our beloved State. Pie will never be content until the curse of ignorance, which is blighting our country, is lifted, and until Mississippi assumes that place in the agricultural life of the nation which Nature intended she should occupy — the Garden Spot of America. Yes, the A. M. glories in her past — her Lees, her Stones, her Montgomeries and her Georges — and with hopeful, expectant eye she turns to the future. She stands today on the threshold of a wider existence. In the voiceless suppli- cation of a mother ' s love she beseeches you, her sons, to forget not your duty. Before her stretches a vista of growth, and progress, and usefulness, such as will lead to a realization of her fondest desires. Feeble as is our vision of the future, yet strengthened by the fire of love, we have caught a glimpse of what is in store for our Alma Mater. We believe in her future as we honor and respect her past. Hoping that in these pages each reader may find cause for a greater reverence for the A. M. of long ago, and a greater ambition for the A. M. of the future, we dedicate this volume to the man whom we believe will change these intangible dreams into living, breathing actualities. PI. B. Sanders, Editor-in-Chief The ' JO Reveille. » i