Worcester Polytechnic Institute - Peddler Yearbook (Worcester, MA)

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ZELOTES WOOD COOMBS A.B., Amherst, 1888, and A.M., 1895; Instructor in English, Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute, 1888-89; Univ. of Virginia, 1889-90; Clerk and Assistant in Languages, W. P. I., 1890-92; Instructor in Modern Languages, 1892-95; Assistant Professor, 1895-1901; Professor of French, 1901-03; English and Modern Languages, 1903-13; Secretary of the Faculty, 1910; Professor of English, 1913; Phi Beta Kappa, Alpha Delta Phi. “When I have tapped three times on the arm—” will we ever forget those nerve rack¬ ing days when we debated against the demon rum or attempted to show why capital punish¬ ment was all wrong? And will we ever forget “Coombsie” the day “Those fifteen noble young men went in pursuit of the drama?” Where are they now? In prison? Please forgive us for our misdeeds, Prof. Coombs—we did our best. “ Coombsie ” HAROLD BABBITT SMITH M.E., Cornell 1891; Adjunct Professor of Electrical Engineering, Arkansas State Univ., 1892-93; Pro¬ fessor, Purdue, 1893-96; W. P. I., 1896; Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi, Beta Theta Pi. With the electrics “H. B.” became a pass¬ word months before we had the pleasure of meeting him in class, for his various exploits were constantly foisted upon us by hero- worshiping upper classmen. In Abstracts we had little opportunity to better our acquain¬ tance with him for obvious reasons, though we must confess that the fault was ours. In De¬ sign the situation changed, and in our attempts to learn what it was all about we were obliged to take advantage of his presence. An impres¬ sive combination of the teacher and the prac¬ tical expert, “H. B.” will always stand out in our minds as one of the pleasantest of our many enjoyable associations. Page twenty-seven 1 926

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• I I I. IIII IIII 11 II ll IIII IIII IIII IIII IIII IIII IIII GEORGE HENRY HAYNES A.B., Amherst, 1887; Ph.D., John Hopkins, 1893; Instructor in Modern Languages, W. P. I., 1887-88; Mathematics, 1888-89; Modern Languages, 1889-90; Professor of Economics and Government, 1893; Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Delta Kappa Epsilon.. Professor Haynes returned from Washington the fall of our Junior year in time to give us an insight into the subject of Economics. Dur¬ ing his stay in the National Capitol, he col¬ lected a set of anecdotes and stories which made his lecture hours well worth attending, and though the subject matter was dry, the pre¬ sentation was worth staying awake to hear. Eco¬ nomics, Government and Business Law we will try to forget, but “Jinny’s” method of pop¬ ping questions on sleeping members during lecture, his five minute quizzes, his personal stories, jokes, and smile, we will always cherish as memories. WALTER LOUIS JENNINGS A.B., Harvard, 1889, A.M., 1890, and Ph.D., 1892; Assistant Chemistry, Harvard, 1890-92; Parker Fellow at Univ. of Berlin, 1893-94; Assistant Pro¬ fessor of Chemistry, W. P. I., 1894-99; Professor of Organic Chemistry, 1900; Sigma Xi. When we speak of Dr. Jennings, we invaria¬ bly think of eight o’clock, for “The Kaiser” and “eight o’clock” are expressions which are syn- onomous. His frequent quizzes at this early hour surely started the day properly for most of us. In Qualitative his manipulation was perfect, a goal which we all strove to attain; and in Organic he had no peer. If we could but acquire a tenth of his vast knowledge of the latter, we would consider ourselves mar¬ vels. Dr. Jennings is a staunch supporter of the flourishing Sceptical Chymists, and his work as tennis coach is truly a success. “The Kaiser ” Page twenty-six 1 02.6

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A. WILMER DUFF • i i n ! II I II I II I II B.A., Univ. of New Brunswick, 1884, and Univ. of London, 1887; M.A., Univ of Edinburgh, 1888, B.Sc., 1892 and D.Sc., 1901; L.L.D., Univ. of New Brunswick, 1920; Professor of Physics, Univ. of Madras, 1889-90; Univ. of New Brunswick, 1890- 93; Purdue, 1893-99; W. P. I., 1899; Sigma Xi, Phi Sigma Kappa. When we think of Dr. Duff, we remember peculiar little cough that had a habit of occurr¬ ing frequently during Sophomore physics lec¬ tures. Yet he is famous for other things too; until recently he was known as editor and part author of a very well known physics textbook. This did not suffice for him however, so now he has written one all by himself. As to the suc¬ cess of this new volume—it cannot help but outdo the old, and that was no joke as we all know. The Physics Department has indeed an able leader in Dr. Duff. ARTHUR WIFFARD FRENCH C.E., Dartmouth, 1892; Associate Professor of Civil Engineering, 1895-98; Professor, W. P. I., 1899; Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi. One of the few dignified members of the faculty who smokes a real “corn-cob” is “Pa”. Not until the last two years did we really learn to know him. A real Engineer is he, and a fine teacher, always striving to make the course mean more to the student. It is one of his rules that he never assigns any problem that he does not do himself, and this always afforded us some consolation as we oiled our “slip- sticks” after hours of calculation and deep men¬ tal exertion. Seriously, however, we owe “Pa” our sin- cerest gratitude for his earnest efforts in our behalf. Page twenty-eight ± 92,6