Washington and Lee University - Calyx Yearbook (Lexington, VA)

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v-- : ' l n 1 o-reat tbiiikiTs of the day; the curricnlnui of the college wisely extended io meet the eonditioii of the changhii;- times ; the active life and increased ability for its great W(]i ' k, hikIim- ilic i ' lTsiilcnl ' s pi-ogressive leadership, impel me to express, on liehalf of I he ahimni and fi ' iends of the rniversity, cordial apjiroval of his policy and the gratitnde of those who have her real welfare at heart. There has been no reactionary life in his administration. There has licen no unwise straining after the new things of the day. Under his leadership the Fniversity has grasped and appro])riated the good of the new, discarded that which does not fit the times, and held wisely to the great funda- mentals which have always been a characteristic of this seat of learning. I frankly say that the friends of the rnivei ' sity hirgely asi ' ril); ' hei ' conunand- ing position at this time to the ])( ' (Miliar consfrueiixe aliiliiy of her jiresident, which is as rare as it is invaluable. - Again, from another viewpoint, this era of widening ideas was of greiit im])ortance to Washington and Lee. Education is intensely practical. Ko thoughtful man who contemijlates the work of a great educational institution understands that its success has been fou nded merely n])on the learning dis- seminated within its halls. This learning is fundamental and necessary, and without it an institution cannot attain its true ends. But the inner history of every great educational institution shows that business sagacity and financial acumen are just as imjxirtant to its ultimate success as is the beam- ing of the books. With this change of conditions to which 1 haw refi ' rre l, and with the institutions in the North daily adding to their already larse endowments, there was the natural fear that Washington and Lee might not 1)8 able to keei pace in the race. It is a matter of pride that President Denny, ajjpreciating these conditions, possessed the ability and energy and foresight which have enaliled Washington and Lee to increase, beyond all precedent, her ability to eit ' ectually carry on her work. If you doubt, look around you: Tlu ' campus resounding with the tread of six hundred students, where there were formerly about two hundred; the endowment increased by three hundred thousand dollars ; new schools ; new departments; new walkways; old buildings reno -ated : new buildings and new equipment amounting to more than ine hundreil and fifty thousand dollars; a debt of thirty thousand dollars lutiil; the annual income, the very il ' r '

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-.■3f 3TX i .- fiSKi ' -Ti-- .=rf [KTiod of President Denny ' s administration, and for ten years preceding, there was occurring an e])och in the educational life of this country. This period of change was peculiarly vital to the South. The counti-y was widen- ing and broadening its policy, changing its life — whether for better or worse, T will not here discuss. Education, business, ])olitical life, economic thimght, have been going with the new impulse of the day. To meet the conditions arising from this era of change was a supremely important demand. There was a supreme need of strong men at the head of our institutions of learning, men fully able to separate the good from the great measure of the new, yet at the same time to examine, with discrimination, the changing conditions of the tiuies, and to hold, with unerring judgment, to the old and fine tradi- tions of learning and rlie high moral values which through the years have gloritieil the South. At the time of the election of President l)?nny, then a very young man, I am fi ' auk to say that 1, in common with many others, regarded the matter with appri ' hension, for it was a critical iK-riod for Southern education, and an especially critical period for Washington and Lee. With splendid skill and inlinite patience he bound together the widely diverse elements in the life of the college. His strong grasp of the situation was the admiration of his friends and the despair of those who were jirepared to adversely criticize. Those who believed in the old order of things, who were filled with a conservatism that almost failed to understand the changing need of the hour, were with consummate tact led into the light of a newer and brighter day — while the heedless haste of him who would hurry into untried ways was restrained until the road was clear and safe. The steady hand and s])lendid jiersouality of President Denny wrought both conservative and liberal into one cohesive force, working with one end in view — the advanee- uient of the college along high and catholic and sane lines. In a varied and extended experience with many things and many men, I have seen no greater evidence of consummate ability, tact, patience, and Idndliness than was thus shown in consolidating the diiferent elements which I 111 11 conij)Osed the friends, the alunmi, and the clientele of the college. President Denny ' s s])lendid leaji to the very front rank of American (•(liicational executives; the high considoral ion in which he is held bv nianv U

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Iife-lilo(id (if the institvition, increased fi-diii fifty t(i practically one hundred thousand dollars : the admission requirements raised from five to fourteen Carnegie units, ( ' an any one say, in the face of these splendid achievements, that the president should not have the gratitude, the cociperation, and the high regard of every man who loves and reveres Washington and I.ee i It is equally certain that these results are only a foretaste of what will he accomplished hy him when his common sense, his knowledge of peoj)le, his constructive ability, his high character, have wider reach and effect, as his experience in affairs, and his acquaintanceshi]) with men, ripen and expand. Sjieaking as a man of affairs, and nut as a student or scholar, conversant with the oiiininn of men who are doing things and who understand the situation of the day, I have no hesitancy in saying that President Denny ' s ten years of administration have been consecrated in their purpose, splendid in their results, and unselfishly untiring towards the per])etuatiou of the high life of Washingtiin and L: ' c, and the widening and dee])eniug of her power for good. And, in my judgment, as the years grow ajiaee, his ability for achieving great things will become still further recngnizcd, and his name will take a high place in the catalogue of those wlm liavf wruught mightily for Virginia ami the natiun. I