Northwestern State University - Potpourri Yearbook (Natchitoches, LA)

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THE CELEBRATION [HEN a child is old enough to go to school, when he enters his teens — when a you ng lady is sixteen and when a young man is twenty-one — these are the peakpoints on the human-life roadway. Each must be marked by appropriate feasts and ceremonies — the candled cake, the invited friends, the round of jubilee. So in the life of an institution there are the days of retrospection, of realization and of prophecy. Such a time the Normal had on June 5 and 6, 1910. Twenty-five years had passed since the Normal came into being with a Faculty of three and a student- body of forty. Slowly, gradually, confidently and surely it grew — possibly not receiving its just due from the State ' s horn of plenty, but in service to the State and patronage of the people it had its share. At the time of the celebration forty-two teachers constituted its Faculty, and its student-body numbered one thousand two hundred and seventy-six — the greatest Normal school in Dixie! Normal Hill had on her holiday attire. An amphitheatre with a seating capacity of five thousand had been provided ; pennants from every college and high school in the State, fanned by the summer ' s breeze, swung from the boughs of the trees and waved their thanks, their con- gratulations, and their hope. The night was made day by a wealth of artificial lights, with the purple and white so intermingled that they spelt patriotism to the Normal. The grass provided a soft carpet of green, the flowers shed their sweetest fragrance, the trees cast their broadest shade, and everything and everybody spoke, felt, and acted Welcome! Welcome to the citizens of Natchitoches, who for a quarter of a cen- tury have been the Normal ' s best friends, friends who made its birthday party possible; welcome to the old students and graduates who were here in the days now agone, who became inspired within its sacred walls and 11

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Foreword OTPOURRI! Brewed in blackest caves forlorn, Where goblins lurk and witches dark enchant, Of shadows, shades of things, and tears and frowns, And troubles countless, sleepless nights and such, Brought forth into the sunlight, seasoned well With smiles, anticipations, memories, Garnished with our hopes, reader dear ! Take and taste ; but, if you like it not, If ' tis too rarely seasoned, or too much; Too hot, too cold ; if scorched, not cooked enough ; Or if you dreamed ' twould taste like something else — Remember, Gentle Reader, how ' tis served! — For in truth it is the serving of a thing, The spirit in which ' tis given, after all, That makes you like it not, or like it much. ' Tis served with friendship, garnished o ' er with love — ' Tis made up of our schoolday hopes and joys. L So, Reader, take a cup ! Come ! take and fill, And drink a long, long life to Normal Hill ! 10

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have since been giving that inspiration to others; welcome to the new students who for the first time had come to sip of its life-giving waters; welcome to all friends who had given it their loyal support and friendship ; welcome to the invited guests who came to rejoice with those who rejoiced. These guests were one hundred members of the State Legislature, who attended in a body; presidents of school boards and police juries, sheriffs, principals of high schools, parish superintendents, presidents of private and high schools, and distinguished visitors from other States. The speakers were Bishop Thomas F. Gaylor, of Tennessee, who preached the jubilee sermon; Ex-Governor Joe Folk, of Missouri, who delivered the jubilee address; President Claxton, of the University of the South, who spoke on the Mission of the Normal School ; and Governor J. Y. Sanders, who presented diplomas to the one hundred and forty-three graduates of the classes of 1909-10. Greetings were brought from- the High Schools by Principal E. S. Jenkins, of Lake Charles; from the parishes by Superintendent C. E. Bird, of Caddo; from the Louisiana Industrial School by President J. E. Keeny, of Ruston ; from the State University by Professor R. L. Himes, and from the State of Louisiana by Honorable Garland Dupre, Speaker of the House of the State Legislature. Honorable Thomas C. Barret, of Shreveport, presented a beautiful flag, which was accepted with appropriate ceremony. One of the attractive features of the celebration was the Alumni banquet. Over five hundred visitors and graduates gathered in the Normal dining-room, and in laughter, song, and reminiscence renewed the memories of former banquets while they enjoyed to the full the birthday dinner which the Normal had bountifully provided. Eight courses were served and toasts were drunk to the prosperity of the Normal in the past, the present, and the future. Suffice it to say that from beginning to end it was a successful and appropriate celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Normal. 12