Trinity College - Trinilogue Yearbook (Washington, DC)

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The prospects of the 1932 football sea- son assumed a brighter hue with the , appointment of Daniel E. Jcssee as head football coach. Mr. Jessee, after receiv- ing a B.A. from Pacific University, studied for an M.A. in Physical Education at Columbia. Four additional faculty members were added at this time, among whom was Mr. Clarence E. Watters, who assumed the position of organist and choir master. The Trinity College Jesters presented Wings Over Europe , a tragi-comedy by Robert Nichols and Maurice Brown, dur- ing the second week in April. The cast in- cluded twenty characters, all male, and the comedy effect of mincing males in female roles was thus eliminated. In closing their season, the Jesters performed this play in New London at the Connecticut College for Women. Wings over Europe was a very difficult play to perform, but the quality of the performance marked the production as one of the great Jester achievements. The Glee Club made its final appearance of the year in a concert in Alumni Hall. A musical team and several violin and piano solos completed the p1'ogram. Dancing followed. A portion of the report of this program read thus: John F. Martens then presented several violin solos which were immediately followed by the club singing 'The Broken Melody'. The publicized questionnaire held by the Tripod on Wednesday, May 4, was answered by about one half of the student body. Questions on Physical Education requirements, compulsory chapel, chapel speakers, war, and even radios were asked. The results were sufficiently indefinite to be valueless. The Trinity rifle team, some members of which we conjecture voted refusal to bear arms in a future war in the Tripod Poll, defeated the Harvard team in a match at the latter's home range at Arlington, Massachusetts. The track team closed an undefeated season, having broken several of the college records, while the baseball team defeated Wesleyan 7-1. Final exams came and went, commencement week rolled around, and great were the preparations, for the long-awaited consecration of the new Chapel was to take place, and the 106th commencement at Trinity College was to be held in the Chapel. Consecration Day was set for June 18. William G. Mather, '77, donor of the Chapel, presented Dr. Ogilby with the keys to the Chapel as the elaborate and involved processions reached the Chapel door. Bishop Brewster, the Consecrating Bishop, blessed the Chapel and its equipment. Class day exercises were held in Alumni Hall, the address being made by E. Kent Hubbard, president of the Manufacturers' Association of Connecticut. On Monday, June 20, graduation exercises were held. Eighty-five degrees in courses were conferred, twenty-two Bachelor of Arts degrees and sixty-three Bache- 26

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It was also in October that Dr. Ogilby announced several gifts made by persons interested in the Chapel. Dr. John Plumb, '91, presented the carillon of thirty bells, one bell of which is slightly overworked about eight o'cloek mornings. Other gifts were the Cardinal Woolsey Window, by W. R. C. Corson, and the silver Processional Cross by Mrs. Clarence Carpenter. At a meeting of the Student Body on November 4, the coveted Scholarship Cup was awarded to the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. The Alpha Delts won over the Alpha Chi Rhos, the holder for the previous year, by a margin of one one-hundredth of one percent. The carillon, under the able manipulation of world famous carilloneur, Kamiel Lcfevre, rang out in formal debut on Wednesday, December 9. Hundreds of interested listeners braved the inclement weather to hear the first concert on the bells of Old Trinity's new tower. The J esters presented The Circle on F1'iday, December 11. The satisfying presentation of this three act comedy by W. Somerset Maugham caused the rafters of old Alumni Hall to ring with applause. The year 1931 was finished off at Trinity by two precocious decisions. The Crusaders , vowing death to the 18th Amendment, Cjust as though it made any differencel formed a Chapter at Trinity under the able direction of Breck Armstrong. The theme of the Crusaders was true temperance . They merely declared the 18th Amendment an imposition. On December 14 Dr. John Barrett, director of the Pan-American Union and former U. S. Minister, spoke in Alumni Hall. Dr. Barrett presented a logical and valid argument in favor of the recognition of Russia by the United States. The entire English A class attended this affair, for the Dean had sent them engraved invitations. Had our Rip Van Winkle Government been aware of the knowledge rampant at Trinity, we might have had true temperanceu and commercial advantages back in 1931. Although the approach of the mid-year exams struck terror to the hearts of the yearlings and many of the upperclassmen, the percentage of freshmen dismissed because of failure in studies was the lowest in the history of the college. Conspicu- ously absent was the English A student who Wrote: When somebody applies an epitaph to you, it is sometimes very hard to reply. History at Trinity College during the first part of the 1932 term is largely the progress in constructing the Chapel. On February 24 the service for the consecra- tion of the materials for the organ was held in the Chapel, the gift of a leetern by the Class of 1910 was announced, the stained glass windows were set and described 3 the cut flagstone floor under the tower was laid, the Crypt Chapel was completed, the organ was installed and tuned, and the twelve la1'ge open diapason pipes were erected under the Mothers' Window at the west wall. The outstanding early spring classic at Trinity was rendered by Professor Perkins, under the guise of a Demonstration of Sound Effects on Wind Instru- ments . The repertoire was of wide range, beginning with a Scotch jig on a Chinese flute and ending with Old Black Joe on a French Horn. Ten different instruments were heard during the prog1'am. At the close of the concert Professor Perkins was complimented upon his versatility and reminded of his vaudeville and broadcasting possibilities. 25

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lor of Science degrees. The week-end of processions, banquets, organ and carillon recitals, chapel services, dances, and class meetings, came to a close. The doors of the Halls of Learning were shut, and the inhabitants of Trinity went home to forget. The Class of 1936 meekly made its appearance upon Trinity Campus to take its place in the Collegiate Sieve. As a well-known alumnus ably stated it, this sieve is kept in constant agitation by the 13 resident, Dean, Faculty and student organiza- tions. The freshmen find themselves tumbled about with the upperclassmen, get- ting their sharp angles and idiosyncrasies removed. The holes in the sieve represent the many hazards of college life, and only the 'big' men keep from falling throughf' While freshmen were adjusting themselves to the new conditions and being buffeted about by physical examinations, psychological tests and the like, the upper- elassmen noted several improvements in the college grounds. A spacious parking place was being constructed to the south of the campus, the finishing touches on Cook Hall had been completed, new tennis courts had been built, and the old road- way from Alumni Hall to Vernon Street had been replaced by a walk bordered with grass plots. The old brown stone posts and gates from Washington College had been set at the Vernon Street entrance to the walk. Since the early part of the century, these historic iron gates had been left to the ravages of rust in the eatacombs under Northam Towers and their replacement at the entrance of the campus was a mitigating gesture. The Glec Club, the Jcsters, and the Athenaeum absorbed the interested mem- bers of the 1936 class, and the outlook for these societies appeared promising. In the early part of the year a war was waged, Students vs. Faculty, concerning the Extra Course? Thirty Dollars! The war was waged in printers' type, edi- torials and communications. The extra charge for courses over five was made only after due consideration and deliberation by Faculty and Trustees. The contest resulted in a no-decision draw in favor of the Faculty. ln September 1932, three regular professors returned to Hartford from Europe. Professor Babbitt had spent the past year at the University of Athens in Greece, where he taught classes and studied Greek excavations. Professor Skau of the Chemistry Department 1'eturned from Germany, where for two years he had been coordinating the theory and labora- tory work on pure compounds for a refer- ence book he is compiling. Professor Bis- sonnette of the Biology Department re- turned from England where he had been continuing his studies in conjunction with several other professors on the subject of the effect of light on the sexual cycles of birds and animals. Noisily acclaimed by a Trinity cheer- ing squad who saw him Hoff , the Dean departed for lilngland. This was his second trip to England within the last three years to gather material for his book on Robert Browning. 27