Springfield College - Massasoit Yearbook (Springfield, MA)

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anjc jttaggasott 9 work on the New York Elevated. In September, 1902, we were glad towel- come Samson, Pinneo, Smith and Bonnamaux. We have always associated Bonnie with “No marvel that the lady wept, It was the Land of France, The chosen home of chivalry, The garden of romance.” But he has now dried his tears and has become thoroughly Americanized. It soon became evident that the affairs of the nation could not prosper with so many good men withdrawn from its activities, and by the end of our first year we had lost Ward, Fadden, Traugott, Offinger, Homer and Ashley. We missed these men and were sorry to lose them. Offinger always cheered things up after he conquered his homesickness; the dormitory lights refused to behave well when Homer was not about; and Ashley’s absence was keenly felt when we came to blow up the football. In 1903, Vose left for Albany, Little went to Victoria, B. C., and Buck- land to Hartford, Conn. 1904, however, was always awake to opportunities, and as men were withdrawn, we endeavored to fill their places as well as pos- sible by creating an honorary membership to which we elected Dr. Ballantine, Dr. McCurdy, Dr. Seerley, Dr. Hastings, Mr. Simons, Mrs. Ashley, Mrs. Flanagan and Miss Ruth Flanagan, and Mrs. Currier as soon as Ebby had discovered her. In 1903 we were glad to have a chance at Bugbee, and promptly enrolled him as an honorary member. It is true these honorary members did not take Oftinger’s place at football nor play hockey like Vose, but we have found them helpful in many other ways. It was not long before Gray helped us learn Hippe Koack, Koack, Koack! and Cunningham became so accustomed to the second floor yell that he could sleep without seeing things at night; Barrier was seen rambling about the shores of Massasoit with some of Ins gentler friends; and several of our num- ber visited Forest Park while endeavoring to find their way home; — then it was that Pope Colbert remarked, that “Take them for all and all, we shall not look upon their like again.” We did not confine all our admiring glances to the Seniors, although they always tried to set us a good example and showed us the way to Mt. Holyoke;

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Part I. The Aggregation Some time during the year of 1901, or in the years immediately preced- J ing, there came to many men in many cities and employed in many ways, the same impulse. It was a desire which grew as days passed by, and which caused them ultimately to find their way to Springfield, there to enroll as members of the Class of 1904 at T. S. They journeyed from all parts of our country and Canada, and later from India and France. From the far West came “ Pop” Wilbur, with a quick gray eye that sized up men as it had cattle and a determined look that meant business: the middle West sent Rea, and as if not yet satisfied, by a later instalment, Samson and Pinneo, our raven-haired wonder: New York state was well represented, and also New England and other parts of the East: and perhaps it would be well to specify that Holmes, Moule, Stafford, and Little came from Canada. Nineteen Four was not complete with the enrolment of September, 1901, for we did not catch sight of Seifert until October 9th, and though we were warned to “Flee from the Rath to come,” he did not appear until the 19th of that month; then there was Little to see on November 4th, and Flanagan came during the latter part of the month with the same rush which wouldn’t 18

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20 srtjr JtiUissasott we endeavored to discover ourselves. There were men from the farm and factory, the store and machine shop, printing office and real estate business Pop Randel came from a nursery, but we didn’t believe it till he told us,— we infer that it was a Day Nursery similar to the one we visited in New York. We found that Cunningham thought he was a barber; that Moraller could permanently disable clocks and watches; and Currier could eat beans. After some delay the Class Historian and other officers were elected, the latter being, Charles T. Rea, President; }. H. Scott, Vice-President; and Noble P. Randel, Secretary and Treasurer. This class organization was preparatory to systematic work which the class was about to undertake, and occurred October 28, 1901. In the years which followed, we were forced to go through the trying ordeal of class election quite often (at least it seemed so). It was not difficult to find men for offices, for whatever way we turned, we saw good men, cap- able men, ambitious men. It was not that each man voted for himself, but rather that each one succeeded in getting someone to vote for him. We chose, on the whole, rather ordinary men to fill the more important offices, realizing that they would be aided by the training which such positions usually afford. We hesitate for this reason to name the officers of the class during the middle and senior years, — nevertheless it may be as well to satisfy the curious reader at once. Thevictims during the middle year were, Currier, President; Elliott, Vice-President; and Lewis, Secretary and Treasurer. In the senior yea r, Laudenslager, President; Thompson, Vice-President; Samson, Secretary and Treasurer. Part II. A Few Changes Which Came with 1904 It seems that from the very first 1904 was dissatisfied with those elements in the environment of the school which were not in accord with the progres- sive spirit of the class. One member was astonished to find, on looking out at the lake for the first time, that the slope to the water’s edge was not a graded lawn, hut a rough pile of sand; another, interested in aquatics, complained of the need of a boathouse or even such a convenience as a derrick by which canoes might be lowered from the old barn at the top of the hill. There was