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

Page 20 text:

14 THE INDEX. It afforded us much pleasure upon our return, to find that the final effort of our Sophomore year was still visible upon the hillside; and we are confident that however much the cares of life may in the future press upon us, ' 79 will always cling in affectionate remembrance to her old Alma Mater. But two short years remain ere we step into the arena of active life. Let us make the most of them. We will do what we do, and do what we do well.

Page 19 text:

c S we resume our college duties we are forcibly reminded of the passage, swiftly rolls the tide of time. It is our Junior year. The so-called year of ease, which, however, opens with a term requiring more labor than any through which we have yet passed. Always irregular in numbers, we have, within the past year, gained two. The present term brings with it one of our old classmates, who, for the past twelve months, has been engaged in practical agriculture. We welcome, also, a for- mer member of the class of ' 75, whose desire for Dutch and Physics is so strong, that, after an absence of four years, he has returned to complete his college course. It is with the deepest sorrow that we are obliged to record the loss ot three of our members, one of whom an all-wise Providence has seen fit to remove from among us, giving us another illustra- tion of the uncertainty and frailty of this life. As we look back upon the first half of our course, we feel compelled to remonstrate against an evil that has become so prevalent as to rarely cause remark. We refer to the practice of getting through the college course in three years, which, in our own class, has spread to such an extent that fully one- fourth of our number have undertaken its accomplishment. It will be seen by a moment ' s reflection, that there is a radical defect somewhere, and we earnestly desire the Faculty to take the matter into consideration, not only on account of the utter impossibility of the student gaining as complete an ed- ucation, but also because of the very demoralizing effect upon the class and, in fact, the whole college.

Page 21 text:

(s sss SSSsTES s E have spent one year of college life very pleasantly, W and, we think, profitably, and are now called upon to communicate to the Index as Sophomores. Our class now numbers fourteen, having lost six men dur- ing the year. While we regret that they are not with us, we wish them success in whatever they undertake. We have adopted the old custom of the college in getting class pins, as we consider them to be the best class emblem we could have. We are glad to see that so large a class has come in to fill our places, although we had wished for a still larger one. They seemed to have been trained well at home and, there- fore, we did not have to change their hour of retiring. We are glad to see that this important principle was instilled into their youthful minds before they left their mammas. In the rush, our courage was first-class, and so was our mus- cle, too ; but what could be expected when we were complete- ly outnumbered . ' ' We have introduced a new custom, that of letting the Freshmen carry canes. It worked to a charm, for in a few days we saw a big cord-wood stick dragging a poor, helpless Freshie after it. Some of these sticks have mysteriously walked off, never again to be seen by their owners in that lengthy state. We note with pleasure the interest taken in military affairs, as we believe this department to be as important as any other in the institution.