Worcester Polytechnic Institute - Peddler Yearbook (Worcester, MA)

Page 30 text:

Joseph O. Phelon, Professor of E ectrical Engineering “ Uncle Joe ’ with his slow, easy drawl and indifferent manner, appears, as he sits indolently on the table during lecture, to care not a whit as to what goes on in class. Questions asked of him are carelessly turned back on the one who propounded them to be answered, and as if this were not enough, other puzzling questions are put, much to the bewilderment of the poor would-be learners. Anyone who has seen him and heard him lecture will swear on honor that he is the laziest man on the Hill; yet despite this, we must say that the ground covered is great and the founda¬ tions laid for future work by the course under “ Joe’s ” guidance are solid and stable. Albert S. Richey, E.E., Professor of Electric Pailway Engineering Professor Richey is one of the profs who are overburdened with work on the Hill. All through the second half-year, he has to deliver two lec¬ tures each week to embryo railway engineers, and then, too, he has some work with the P. G.’s. Three days in the week he appears on the Hill, unless he chances to be busy elsewhere, in which case he is thoughtful enough to prepare an examination and let Pope serve it. The results of these exams are, by the way, as a rule “ universally unsatisfactory.” Not¬ withstanding this lazy man’s schedule, the course under him in railway engineering, together with his notes on the course, is the brightest spot in the second half of the senior year for the Electrics. Carleton A. Read, S.B., Professor of Steam Engineering When Professor Read speaks of “ the Institute,” he doesn’t mean “ the Institute,” but only M. I. T., from which he graduated. He came to us from the rural districts of Durham, N. H., to expound to us the intri¬ cacies of temperature-entropy charts and other thermodynamic playthings. His attempts to ignore questions which seemed ill-timed have raised havoc with discipline in his classes, and he is consequently often forced to announce, “ We’ll wait,” until he can get an opportunity to send the “ class to the board with steam tables.” Rumor has it that his bump of curiosity is large and active concerning the meaning of the cabalistic symbol “ B. A.” which is frequently attached to his name. We would suggest that if he is still curious, he should send “ Sammy ” out to solve the mystery. 24

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Alton L. Smith, M.S., Professor of Drawing and Machine Design Our predecessors introduced Professor Smith to us as “ Dingtoe,” and we have known him as such all through the course, without bothering to find a reason for the appellation. As head of the drawing and design courses, “Ding” works havoc among the Freshmen through the medium of descript, applied in copious doses by his assistants, “ Mac ” and “ Jimmy.” The Sopthomores he lets by easy, but Juniors and Seniors he himself handles with the utmost freedom and carelessness. Kinematics is his trump card, and to those who can play to it he gives considerable freedom in design. His indifference as to time spent makes machine design a good substitute for real sleep. His concessions on time are his main attraction to those stu¬ dents who hanker for “ Bull ” between meals. Charles M. Allen, M.S., Professor of Hydraulic Engineering “ Any questions? ” If you wish a thing well done do it yourself or—let Harvey do it. “ Charlie ” Allen says he wants things well done; Harvey has become very proficient as an instructor. Hydraulics is a very interesting course: one hydraulic (two stories)—deprecatory grins; one more hydraulic (series of anecdotes)—incredulous snickers; hydraulic number three (soaring flight of the imagination)—expostulatory guffaw. Professor Allen is a graduate of the Institute in the Class of 1894, and entered the Department of Mechanical Engineering as an instructor imme¬ diately, receiving the degree of Master of Science in 1900. As Assistant Professor of Experimental Engineering since 1902, he has been endeavoring to make life agreeable to W. P. I. Seniors by gathering together and narrat¬ ing to the class a collection of remarkable incidents in his career. His career has been very unusual. Taken all around, “ Charlie ” is very popular with the boys. He is known actually to have laughed aloud on occasion, and one day in class he nearly opened his mouth while talking. Seldom is he away from the Insti¬ tute; the liveliest and most ambitious man in the department, he has caused Harvey to worry for two years that there wouldn’t be any work left to do.

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Edward L. Hancock, M.S., Professor of Applied Mechanics Professor Hancock was an unknown quantity when he came to us at the first of our Junior year, but soon became one of the most popular of our profs. Both in classroom and in lab we have found him agreeable and considerate, which has helped to make his popularity. Before coming to the Institute, Professor Hancock had acquired considerable fame as an author of books on mechanics and kindred subjects. Since his coming he has rearranged the courses which he teaches in such a way as greatly to increase their value. We look back with pleasure to our associations with him. Arthur W. Ewell, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Physics Doctor Ewell has as yet failed to break down under the burden of a string of nicknames, such as “ Punk,” “ Schusme,” “ Fizzle,” and others too numerous to mention. Having been long accustomed to deal with small units of time, he has evidently decided that the time consumed in enun¬ ciating the second syllable of “ Mister ” is wasted; consequently we have become accustomed to being addressed as “ Miss ” without thinking we had made a mistake and got into a co-ed school. His efforts to instill scien¬ tific accuracy into our methods have met with success as varied as the sub¬ jects into whom he tried to instill it. Pleasant memories will hover around the old brown cap which has so recently been elevated to a dignified posi¬ tion above the steering gear of the Doctor’s new automobile. We shall be surprised if the Doctor’s graceful form does not chase madly through our day dreams in pursuit of a probable error when we review memories of Tech at some future date. Arthur D. Butterfield, M.S., A.M., Assistant Professor of Mathematics If he should put on high leather boots and gauntlets one would think that a western ranchman was coming over the Hill. But when he-has hung¬ up his hat in his office and has entered the classroom, we find a broad- shouldered, robust man of athletic physique. When an undergraduate at the Institute, with the Class of 1893, Professor Butterfield was very much