University of Massachusetts Amherst - Index Yearbook (Amherst, MA)

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TheIndex. 5 about them, revert their thoughts to the reminiscences of college life, without feeling a most passionate desire to see once more seated around a festive board at Fitch ' s the class of ' 74, and listen to their jokes and puns which were ivont to set the table in a roar ? Not one ! No ! Many and pleasant will be the reflections cast upon our college hfe, and upon those with whom we wandered upon the banks of the yet unexplored river of Knowledge, hand-in-hand, with Hope for our Anchor, and Faith for our Guide. Strike, but heae ! has always been our motto, and may it ever be. May we ever be ready and willing to do, but at the same time listen to the counsel of others more experienced and older than our- selves, and retain our rank in that sphere of independence becom- ing every man and every station. In closing, we (the editors) whose lot it has been to have the managing and editing of The I DEx, hope that our work will meet with the approval of all, be the harbinger of many noble, pleasant thoughts and acts, as well as the source of much merriment. If any offense is taken it will be considered as due to the peculiar dis- position of the personages, and not to be attributed to ourselves, as no offense is intended.

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4 T HE Ind ex. cerned. A change has likewise occiiiTed in the Mihfcary depart- ment, and a new man in blue has been given us to salute in the office and in the ranks. In the M. A. C. Cadets the Seniors have commenced their lives as commissioned officers ; the Juniors and Sophs, theirs in lesser grades, and all unite in trying to make the poor Freshmen hold up their heads and march to the proper tune. We are glad to see the Faculty of the College exerting thems elves too, for we students had fallen into a deplorable state of inaction, and though the fault lies with ourselves in a great measure, we can ' t but help seeing that a screw has been loose somewhere. By the low standard of admission that has been in practice, many have en- tered the institution, who have neither benefited themselves nor others, but have, on the other hand, been the means of positive in- jury to all. This we see the Faculty are commencing to obviate by a more thorough examination of new students, and requiring more from those already entered. Although only a commencement has been made, we are rejoiced to see it, and more of the same, and will welcome the day when a flunk (in college language) will be considered a strange and rare thing. In our private lives, too, the Faculty seem to have become imbued with a parental anxiety for our comfort and health, so that now we are favored with a weekly visit from LHusjiedeur, compelling some of us, we can but say, to work on the day set apart for rest. Our Professors are, as a general thing, what they should be, — skilled in their several departments, and capable of imparting their knowledge to others ; possessing, in most cases, the good-will and resj)ect of the students. We hope they will continue to occupy theu ' respective positions in public and private life, though as to the latter some are meditating a serious change. During the past collegiate year two college-mates have gone from us, taken, after a short illness in both cases, by the reaper Death, reminding us that we all are but dust, and to dust we shall all return. Classmates, turning to you, we might ask with what enjoyment and how satisfactory have been all our meetings and gather- ings together, but it is needless so to do. Suffice it to say, that in all our participations, the best of order has been maintained, the strictest rules of tem])erance as well as those of gentlemaril con- duct have been observed, and none but the most amicable senti- ments have been sustained among us. How many of those still re- maining, can, in after years, when age has wrapped its fleecy mantle

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For the fourth and last time is ' 73 represented in The Index. The former communications from our class have been characterized bj their wit, and their pleasing allusion to the jokes and cheerful events of the past year. But as we are now situated in the evening of our college life, with the future, filled with the many stern reidi- ties so near at hand, our thoughts are naturally drawn into deeper and more serious channels. Perhaps the one question vvrhich comes home to each one of us with more earnestness than any other, is. Have the three years which we have spent here been rightly and profitably improved, and ai ' e we sufficiently compensated for the time and money which we have here expended ? It is indeed true that many, perhaps all of us, have wasted many precious moments and allowed many opportunities to go unimproved. We have also pursued many studies here, which in after life may be of no prac- tical importance to any of us. But on looking back over the three years which have passed away since first we entered these College halls as verdant Freshmen, we feel that our progress has been in many respects satisfactory. We have found here many new ideas, have stored away a vast amount of useful information, aud have passed through a course of mental training and discipline, which we hope will hereafter place us in positions of trust and honor among our fellow citizens. Yes, we are satisfied, and we shall go forth from here feeling that our time has not been altogether wasted, and