Taylor University - Ilium / Gem Yearbook (Upland, IN)

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Class Ibistov WHEN I WAS a little boy, and my feeble mind by the help of my fingers was hardly able to count that youthful Spring had seven times fled, and b} ' her gentle wings had seven times touched nie, ni}- mother with an indescribable maternal pride and joy, unveiled to me the following mystery which was connected with mj ' birth. By the interpretation of an extraordinary phenomenon, which then occurred it was unanimously decided by the astrologists and sages that the boy would become the greatest historian of the ages. Great, not on account of his own personal merits, but because of the greatness and sublimit}- of the subject he should represent. Although yet a boy, I commenced to fathom the depths of all the histori- cal subjects and tried to discover if anything of great importance was left for me to write. Having said farewell to my loved ones, whose presence so much I cherished, I have traveled from city to cit)-, from kingdom to king- dom, from clime to clime, and from continent to continent. I have climbed towering heights and descended into the valleys, crossed the mighty deep with its frenzied waves, and endured many hardships for the purpose of my calling, believing that the finger of kind Providence was leading me toward the great object of my existence. As the S tar of Bethlehem from the sandy deserts of Arabia, from the shady groves of Athens, and from the sacred rivers of India, for many days having guided the three wise men of the East, stood still above the manger, where the child king, the sole aim of their travel was lying, so the auspicious star of my destiu}- having led me to Taylor University, there, with smiling glance over our Halls of learning, stood still, seemingly saying that here is my destination. Then I began to realize that it was not the bloody battles between human beings, nor their most deplorable results I was to describe. Neither should I write the history of disasters and calainities, nor the rise and fall of empires. Ah no! Not anything that will lower the standard of man, the prince of all creation. But my theme is the history of a class whose golden moments of life ' s morning are spent in the most delightful halls of Taylor Universit}-. Chief among these classes which are now enjoying the advantages of our be- loved institution, is the class of ' 98. The history of the class begins with the 23

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liistorj ' of our college, which after having fought and struggled fearlessly between life and death; although her downfall predicted even b} ' many of her friends, 3 ' et having retained within herself the imperishable germ of re- sistless energy, she was re-established with greater power and stability, and with better equipments at Upland. We, as a Class, have had no inhuman conflicts to boast of, neither do we glorj- in the number of canes we have broken, nor in having caused the sacred halls of our University to resound with boisterous noise. But we do heartily glory in the intellectual ability of our members, in the number of Greek and Latin roots we have grubbed up, and in the number of gigantic problems we have .solved. ThucN-dides, Aeschylus and Ouintilian were no longer old meaningless and tire.some clas.sics. ■ Calculus and others were not inaccessible heights for us. The crown of our class is adorned with the inextinguishable luminaries, which will brighten the pathwa -s of man3-, which will elevate humanit)- from its present condition to a higher plain, to a grander purpose, to a loftier conception and to a better life. No class has been, as yet, so well organized and so marvelously equipped as the class of ' 93. Its orators are the most eloquent, its declaimers are the most accomplished, its debaters the most argumentative, and its poetic and musical genius is un.surjjassed. Surel)- there is a strong magnetic power in this Cla.ss, for it not onh draws unto itself the golden eagles of the Moonev prizes, and the bank notes of the Christian Herald prizes, but also, as the needle is invariably attracted to the pole, so all that is good, noble and true is attracted to the Class of ' 98. The literary attainments of its members are wonderful, its scholarship is unexcelled, and the Christian character of its members is to be admired and esteemed. The glorious achievements and wondrous deeds of our Class attracted the attention of many distinguished young people from abroad, who disconnecting themselves from other insti- tutions, and some even for a time laying aside their high standing in profes- sional lines, came, and with great satisfaction attached themselves to our class; whose names will alwa3rs be remembered with honor and pride by their classmates. Further the liistor} ' of the Class of ' 98 is the history of the progressive, ambitious and energetic individuals conforming themselves to the rules and regulations of the institution of which the} ' are a part. Taylor University will alwa ' s acknowledge the helping hand which our class offered in the times of need, and also the Class of ' 93 will ever cherish the pleasant memories of kindnesses which it received from the authorities. Our class meetings have alwa3 ' s been the most enthusiastic and inost orderl}- of their kin:l. D.iring these meetings the class conceived the idea