Rome Free Academy - De O Wain Sta Yearbook (Rome, NY)

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20 afterwards said, ‘‘the rebels should never know that they had a man who could die so bravely.’’ And indeed he did die bravely. on the morning of the twenty-second of September, 1776, the noble patriot was led to the place selected for the execu- tion, Colonel Henry Rutger’s orchard, near the present junction of Market street and East Broadway. With firm tread and calm countenance he ascended the scaffold, saying, ‘‘You are shedding the blood of the innocent; if I had ten thousand lives I would lay them down in defense of my injured, bleeding country.’’ Then, as the noose is adjusted about his neck, and as the spectators sob aloud at the pitiful sight, Nathan Hale speaks again in his firm but gentle voice, ‘‘I only regret that I have but one life to These are his Early lose for my country.’’ last words. With the courageand hero- ism of a martyr he meets his fate. Where in the annals of war can be found a parallel to this unselfish, devoted, will- ing sacrifice? A little fort bui lt in 1812 on Black Rock at the entrance of the New Haven was named Fort Hale in his and a granite memorial was erected at his birthplace in 1846. A bronze statue, the work of Karl Ger- hardt, was placed in the capitol at Hart- ford on the fourteenth of June, 1887. An address presenting the statue to the state was made by Charles Dudley War- ver, to which Governor Phineas C. Lounsbury responded. The Society of the Sons of the Revolution raised funds for a handsome statue in City Hall Park. Isaac Stuart has written an account of the life of the martyr spy, as has also Benson J. Lossing. President Timothy Dwight, the elder, who was his tutor when at Yale, has commemorated his career in verse and also extolled him in harbor honor, THE SENIOR ANNUAL. prose. The manuscript of one of his college orations is carefully preserved by the Linonian Society at Yale. the outward tokens of the love every true American These monuments are | bears to the memory of Nathan Hale, | but his grandest monument is the story | of his noble, unselfish life, which shall endure as long as the American nation. Our neighbors on Hallowe’en night. We Wonder —Who rang the bell Hallowe’en ? —When Merritt cut his teeth? —Who strung the skeleton up? —Where Meyers buys milk now? —How Miss Knapp learns so much? —Where Miss Shortall got that hat? —What attracts all the girls to Atkin- son? —Who is going to buy Miss Fowler a rattle? —Who causes all the fuss in the 6th period ? —What’s the matter with Anna Mai, Charlie? —When Walters is going to get his hair cut? —Why class 1902 did not have their sleigh ride? —When Miss Susie Thomas will get shoes to fit.

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his tenth year, but as he grew older his health improved and his athletic feats became the wonder and admiration of his companions. It father's wish that Nathan should become a min- was his ister, so Reverend Joseph Huntington prepared the lad for Yale. Our young hero thoroughly enjoyed his college life. was engaged with William Robinson and Ezra Sampson in a syllogistic dispute followed by a debate. Question ‘‘Whether the education of thedaughters be not, without any just reason, more neglected than that of the sons.’’ A classmate, James Hillhouse, wrote ‘‘Hale triumphed and most ably did he advo cate the cause of the daughters.’’ After graduating he taught school at East Hadley, and now, at the beginning of the Revolution, we find him engaged in the same occupation at New London. But Nathan Hale was not content to remain in a quiet village when his coun- try needed him. Enrolling himself as a volunteer he was soon made lieutenant in Colonel Charles Webb’s regiment. He was then ordered to Cambridge, where, after participating in the siege of Boston, he was made captain in January, nA ii, At his graduation he Soon after he went to New York where, early in September, he captured at mid- night, with the aid of a few picked men, a supply vessel which was anchored in the East River under the protection of the guns of the British “‘Asia.’’ The stores of provisions from the prize were distributed among his hungry fellow soldiers. He was now made captain of the Con- necticut Rangers, a corps known as Congress’s, were commanded by Thomas Knowlton. General Washington, after the defeat at Long Island, applied to Knowlton for man-of-war THE SENIOR ANNUAL. 19 enter the British lines and procure intelligence. With- out a moment’s hesitation Captain Hale volunteered to perform this service. At the house of Robert Murray on the In- cleberg (now Murray Hill in New York city) where Washington had his head- quarters for a while retreating towards Harlem Heights, instructions on duty from the a discreet officer to time he received com- mander-in-chief. Disguised as a schoolmaster and loy- alist he visited all the British camps on Long Island and in New York, openly making observations, drawings and mem- oranda of the fortifications. He then started on his dangerous jour- ney back to the American lines. He re- turned safely to the point where a boat was to take him to the Connecticut shore, but the one which he signaled proved to be from a British man-of-war, and he Still the brave young officer did not give up hope, but answered the questions put to him with such apparent frankness that he might have been released had he not been rec- ognized by some Tory relative ‘and re- ported as a rebel officer. This led to his examination and the plans were found on his person. He was then taken before General Howe, to whom he openly avowed his mission. Without even a form of trial, Howe handed the prisoner over to Provost- Marshal Cunningham to be hanged. Captain Hale was confined in a green- house over night. His requests for a Bible and the attendance of a chaplain were roughly refused. A humane offi- cer, who superintended the execution, was at once arrested. | procured him some writing material, but the tender letters of farewell which he wrote to his mother, betrothed and sis- ters, were destroyed before his eyes by the brutal Cunningham, so that, as he

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THE SENIOR ANNUAL —Where Keeney and Hammann spend their afternoons ? —Why the fellows in the 2d period have to stay noons? —What the High School will do with- out the class of 1902? Why the fellows all crowd on the walk so no one can pass by? —Why some fellows come home on the last train from Camden? —lIf the class of 1906 will be as fresh as our present Freshman class? How Wardwell their German lessons so well the three months ? Keeney and got last Mr. H-—-d and Mr. H-r- -s. Our Clock. You have asked me to write thing about the McKinley Memorial some- Clock which the opening of school in September will find doing business, we Probably you will be more interested in learning hope, with great regularity. something about modern time systems, and particularly about the one which we hope to have here, than you would be to have the purposes, and ways and means of raising the necessary funds repeated. The old fashioned weight-clock has, within recent years, been almost entirely superseded by an electrically operated, self-winding clock, which requires no attention whatever, except that the batteries must be replenished from time to time. This is the sort of a system | 21 which we expect to install soon after the ist of July. It self-winding master clock with mercur- will consist of a ial compensating pendulum which shall actuate the hands of the four foot glass dial in the marble window fronting James street, as well as the secondary In the High School study-hall the secondary clocks throughout the building. | clock will be a twenty-inch red marble dial, with fancy hands and numerals. In the principal’s office and in each of the classrooms on the first floor, second- twelve-inch All electric ary clocks will be of ten or size with ordinary dials. of these clocks, the placed both inside and outside of the as well as bells, building g, will be electrically operated by the master-clock. The device with which these clocks are fitted for controlling the program of a school is very interesting to me. By simply insertirg a program form into the clock, the ringing of the bells will be made to conform to that pro- of As an illustration, if a warning gram on intervals one minute or more. bell is to be sounded at. 38 minutes past nine, the final bell could be sounded at 39 minutes past nine, if desired, or as custom has been in the High School, to have the warning bell two our minutes before the close of the period, it can be adjusted to meet this require- ment. Such a system will not only insure a uniformity of time throughout the building, but it will obviate the neces- sity which now exists for ringing the electric bells at least twice in each period by hand. All this will be done automatically. No winding is neces- sary and no setting of clocks will be necessary, unless it might be the master- clock itself, as all secondary clocks in