Stevens Institute of Technology - Link Yearbook (Hoboken, NJ)

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- unior istory - T is with undeniable misgiving that the historian takes up his pen in the hope that he may, fittingly, be able to chronicle the events, which, following each other in rapid succession during the past few months, will at some future day, when time has broadened the vision of generations to come, make the Junior year of the Class of Ninety-eight shine forth with a radiance unequaled at a11y other period in the history of tl1e class. As he looks back upon those eventful days and turns over in his mind the incidents which seemed to make each one more notable than the last, he is confronted with the appalling thought of his own insignificance and his inability to accord to them their true place in the annals of human events. In undertaking the task he hesitates, stops, then goes ahead, craves indulgence, and hopes that of him no one will say : Fools rush in where angels fear to treadf' Since the last installment of our history was given forth to the wings of the winds to be pro- claimed throughout the universe, gradually and unconciously, but none the less surely, have we passed through a wonderful period of transition. We have risen from the ranks of that great multi- tude of under-classmen who, rich in a bountiful supply of ignorance, and unsophisticated as to the ways of this mundane sphere, sally forth, Quixote like, armored in tl1e mail of their ow11 conceit only to meet the ignominous fate of their guiding spirit-the Don himself. It is not my intention to be too severe upon those the folly of whose ways we have seen and whose ranks we have left. I only refer to them here as they affect the history of our ow11 lives during part of the twelve months just past. If I may now be permitted I will carry my readers back to the time when our narrative was so abruptly broken off and take up the trend of our story. The class had just finished a good dinner when my predecessor finished l1is task. And, indeed, it must have been good, for it had a stimulating and bracing effect even up to the time of Exams. at the close of the long second term. To many classes of ordinary merit these are a source of not a little concern. Vcni, w2z'z', vici, that famous message of tl1e great Caesar to the Roman Senate after his victorious campaign in Asia Minor, need only be slightly changed to suit our case. The Exams. came, we saw Cthe Prof 's handj, we conquered Cheld four of a kind-cribsl. We deserved our rest which the ensuing vacation afforded, and returned to the scene of our conquests the more able to continue our conquests. The next short term was truly one of glory. The fiend Calculus, which in vain had tried so long to bring us under the control of his hypnotic influence, realized the futility of the task and succumbed to our prowess. He l1ad reckoned without . 29

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JOHN DUDLEY HACKSTAFF, 282 Jefferson Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. GEO. O. HAMMOND, O N ld, 115 West 76th Street, New York City. R. C. HANDLOSER, 69 NE, 443 East IIOUI Street, New York City. JAS. W. HANSIAIUPT, Akron, Ohio. G. R. HPIMMINGER, A TA, Carlisle, Pa. R. S. G. IIUGHES, O E, 166 Hamilton Avenue, Paterson, N. J. WILLIAM HUSSEY, 17 West 94th Street, New York City. L. H. JOHNSON, X IF, . Summit, N. J, E. D. KELLOGG, 440 Halse Street, Brooklyn, N. Y. F. D. KENNEDY, A A, IQ West 74th Street, New York City. GEO. F. KIDD, 1573 I2tl1 Avenue, East Oakland, Cal. K. S. LITTLEJOHN, X 45, Montclair, N. J. W. G. LUNGER, 20 Hi h Street, Newark, N. J. H. L. MCGEE, Xgvf. Plainfield, N. J. W. H. MILLER, Q E, 156 North 7th Street, Newark, N. J. MACM. N. MOORE, 571 Newark Avenue, Elizabeth, N. J. EWD. MURPIIY, JR., ' 124 East 26th Street, New York City. A. C. MYEIRS, TB IT, Tyrone, Pa. CHAS. Z. NEWELL, South Orange, N. J. H. E. NEWELL, South Orange, N. J. RANDOLPH T. ODE, 24 Charlton Street, New York City. R. PETERSON, 247 Third Street, Jersey City, N. J. R. C. POST, X QD, 136 Magnolia Avenue, Jersey City, N. J. DUFEIELD PRINCE, 868 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. 'Deceased. W. B. RITTENHOUSE, G7 NE, 4Io East 6th Street, Plainfield, N. J. H. ROBINSON, O NE, 367 West 56th Street, New York City L. J. ROBERTS, l 511A Monroe Street, Brooklyn, N. Y. L. SANDERS, 168 West 73d Street, New York City. JOSEPH A. SCHMITT, JR., 45 Sherman Place, Jersey City, N. J. R S. SCOTT, JR., X Eff, Baltimore, Md. FREDERIC SEELY, 53o West 18211 Street, New York City H. H. SLAWSON, Purdys, N. Y. A. I. SMIT1-I, JR., X di, 146 West 76th Street, New York City. E. B. SMITH, Islip, N. Y. P. H. F. SMITII, 61 Franklin Street, Morristown, N. J. E. C. SOFIO, GJ E, 31 Second Place, Brooklyn, N. Y. J. STEI-ILIN, 162 East 93d Street,'New York City. R. H. STEVENS, 150 West 99th Street, New York City T. TAKEO, Tokyo, Japan. C. R. TOCK ,Flushing Michigan. A. J. VAN LENHOFFF: Amsterdam, Holland. P. EDWIN VAN SAUN, H NE, Maywood, N. J. A. V. WAINRIGHT, X Q, Mauasquan, N. J. M. PENDERELL WALKER, I Cheshire, Conn. WM. MCNAIR WELCH, 463 Tompkins Avenue, Brooklyn, N. FREDERICK A. WELLPSS, B Q II, Tl' B TI, 480 Greene Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. A. F. WESTERYELT, Q NE, 144 Park Street, Hackensack, N. J. H. WRIGIAIT, 504 West 23d Street, New York City. 28

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his host. That part of this history which follows now is not only a part of our history but a part of the history of the world, as in overcoming the arch-fiend we conferred a lasting benefit upon humanity. Although he may rise again, it will not be with that spirit and vigor which he possessed when first we encountered him. ' The occasion of his trial, and execution, which followed immediately upon his conviction, was made a time of general rejoicing, and the towns-people and country-folk for miles around flocked to the scene. The night pageant and pyrotechnic display surpassed in grandeur anything which had ever been witnessed at the celebration of a similar event. Our lesser antagonists, such as Descrip, Belles-Lettres and Metallurgy, each gave way in turn. It now only remained for the Class of Ninety-eight to vanquish her rivals upon the athletic field, and this she did without an effort. The Sophomore-Freshman lacrosse game was child's play for '98 who won by a score of 2 to o. The baseball game was tl1e last event in which these two foes would meet. The spirit which Ninety- Eight manifested upon that occasion showed that beneath their rugged exterior tl1ere existed those qualities which are symbolic of the highest and most noble traits of manhood-that of forgiving and forgetting g that of the strong having compassion for the weak. After showing '99 that we could in this do as we had done in all previous contests, we allowed them to win one game-by a few points-and thus save themselves from tl1e humiliating situation of having been defeated in everything which they undertook. The score in tl1is game was Sophomores, 2I g Freshmen, 25. ' Farewells were said, and the third terms Exams. met like previous ones. We were no longer under-classmen. With one fell swoop all the dignity of Junior's descended upon our shoulders. Then i11 truth it could be said that the battle of the gods was to begin. But before that time was to come we had three months of idleness to contemplate. With what pleasure did we hie ourselves to our various homes, and there in plain, unvarnished talk, deliver the accounts of our achievements. To eager ears we told our tales, as Othello at the house of Brabantio unto sympathetic Desdemona. The three short months passed over eve11 quicker tha11 we expected, and the 25th of September saw us once more in tl1e gray old walls of the 'Stute, rugged and brown after our su1nmer's enjoyments, ready a11d eager for tl1e fray, for tl1e royal battle of our lives. It did not take long for the smell of burning powder to penetrate to our camp, and soon we could hear tl1e screeching of shells as they came dangerously near our earthworks and the dull thud of shot as they buried themselves in tl1e timber about us. The combined forces of Morton, Webb, Wood, MacCord, Kroeh and jacobus trained their guns upon us, and the light raged fast and furious. The tactics of Webb, as he manipulated Rankine, somewhat unmanned us for a time, but We stood our ground, and after a sharp engagement about tl1e Ioth of December the enemy retreated and left us in possession of the field. The Exams. over, we rested upon our arms for a fortnight, only to renew tl1e conquest on the 4th of January. 30