Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute - Transit Yearbook (Troy, NY)

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throwers. Sophomores and Freshmen were our delight, and many an unsuspecting one went out with his pockets filled with water. It always seemed strange to us why it should be so, but Prof. Mason always insisted that you could get better ventilation by opening the windows on the Eighth street side from the top than from the bottom. Who is there who does not involuntarily start at the cry of pretty girl ? Prof. Anderson seemed quite anxious to make our acquaintance in the Electrical Department. We had not met Prof, Anderson, but we knew that he would like usf In the course in Electricity and Magnetism Prof. Anderson tried to break some records, that is ideal records, which we did by Hnishing one week ahead of time. Then we did a week's work in Dynamo Construction to make our work lighter next year. Many new and plausible theories were advanced and so well defended that Prof. Anderson had hard work in adhering to the accepted theories. About this time we were introduced by our genial Director to the works of a Scotch engineer named Rankine. As days went by our respect for the Director and Rankine grew apace. Rankine had everything figured out so nicely and the Director knew not only that but also a great deal more. Then we had the -satisfaction of carrying the red book by which the juniors are known to the people of Troyl We spent more time in Interrogation than we did in Topics. Prof. Lawson seemed to keep us under a sort of spell so that we always falmostj rushed. We never do things by halves at the Institute, so on top of this work came an hour and a half of map drawing each day. Anyohe who has drawn maps or even made titles under Prof. Cary knows how t'pilly they must be made. There were several lively discussions about certain maps not being clean, but the question was settled beyond a doubt when the spongerubber went on at the finish. There was a grand rush for the railroad at the end of the last recitation before the Christmas vacation. This vacation took our minds but not our hands from our work, for most of us had maps to finish. On the 2nd of january we greeted each other again and settled down to the work of Reviews and Examinations. These did not seem so hard, and the class made a creditable showing in Mclean cards.', The week's vacation after card-day passed only too quickly, and we were again at work. We continued the work in Mechanics and Chemistry and took up 32

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and that is where the men who thought that they were up to the limit deceived them- selves but not Prof. Crockett. ' We bought our Machine Construction books and once more communed with our old friend Warren under the guidance of Prof. Thompson. We did not recite every day for fear we would get through the book too soon. This course was so much easier than Descriptive that most of our mistakes were -the result of drawing the hgures too quickly. During this course we had some practical work in the north drawing room under Prof. Chill- man. It was very monotonous for Prof. Chillman to come up day after day and not have to answer any questions, so he at last got out his hardest plates. Even then the time hung so heavy on his hands that it was only by the untiring efforts of our best singers and story- tellers that we kept him from getting homesick. Roads and Pavements, under Prof. Raymond, took our attention next. It is a com- mon saying among professors that they learn something during each course, and it will be safe to say that Prof. Raymond heard many new theories. One of our men who has had K' extensive experience in road-building, and who often walks out alone to inspect existing pavements and those under construction, gave some new and startling information concern- ing asphalt pavements, but we were unable to learn how much of it Prof. Raymond accepted as facts. Some of us thought when we hnished the study of Geography in the grammar school that we knew a whole lot about the earth. When we began that most delightful of courses, Geodesy, we came to the conclusion that there was something more to learn. The course was short, but there was a great deal in it. Prof. Raymond remarked real innocently at the beginning of our Sophomore Surveying that 'tHe did not care much for Mathe- matics, but he was interested enough when it came to Geodesy. Fifteen dollars cash was the initiation fee to the Laboratory course in the Qualita- tive Analysis. We went through our little book noting reactions and precipitates and then started in on unknowns They really were unknowns to us, and we tried to persuade George that they were to him when we lost something or found substances the original liquid did not contain. WVho did not get wet? It is not known who holds the record for the largest number of test-tubes. It sometimes required the contents of a number 4 beaker or a 5-lb. paper bag to dampen the ardor of some of the water 31

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Mineralogy under Prof. Clarke. When in doubt about the name of a mineral, as We sometimes were, We did not hesitate in the least to take Prof. Clarke's Word for it, as he is an eminent authority on the subject. In this course We managed to do six weeks' work in less than five Weeks, and, strange to relate, got our reward by having a Week with only one recitation. The course, in Assaying is the warmest We have yet encountered. No one has thus far succeeded in Hflunking cold. In the Work on lead ores some very high percentages of lead were obtained. This was principally due to the interest We took in each other's Welfare. If there were any doubt of a 1nan's not finding lead We put some lead in so that 'he would not feel disappointed when he broke the crucible. This interest must be expressed in terms of lead, for no one has been caught adding gold or silver to our buttons This course and the one in Descriptive Astronomy are at present claiming our attention, and a notice is posted for the course in Rail- road Curves. HISTORIAN '0O. NCT' y 3 e4rqJ.f'k - or , X -. fr ,ff free G .9 f Xian! fl 'T . N 'T755CVxezf-r X m fg - VC x V A .ix N X ' X 'W we at M. .5 it 3 33