The Portland daily press., 1862-10-27
COMMUNICATIONS.
Correspondence of the Press
Letter from Brunswick.
BowDoIN COLLEGE, Oct. "a, 1862.
soPHoMoREs AGAIN.

soPHoMoREs AGAIN.
Editor of the Press If there is anything
connected with College life, in regard to which
all decent students are peculiarly sensitive, it
is concerning the honor of their class. As in
the world outside college walls base men,
sometimes disregarding the good name and
honor of their country, recklessly disgrace
her, so In College, am sorry to confess, there
are, now and then, men so lost to every sense
of honor that they care not what may befall
the individuals of their class, or the class it.
self so long as their own mean, self interests
are advanced thereby. l have been led to
these remarks from seeing it stated, in a re-
cent number of the Portland Transcript. in
substance, that the entire Sophomore Class in
Bowdoin College, had been suspended for cut
ting recitation, because they were obliged to
recite to a Freshman Tutor, but that five or
six backed down and were reinstated.
/ suppose the TranscriD: man will pardon
me, if say that the whole paragraph is un-
true; for the entire class was not suspended,
those that were suspended were not sent away
for "cutting, they didn't acut" because they
recited to Freshman Tutor and no five or
six backed down and were reinstated
or those who were in town, on Friday Oct
3, all but five or six were suspended; and it
was because they refused to "make up' two
recitatioris, from which they, two days previ-
Gus, had absented themselves. Though their
being obliged to recte to the Freshman Tutor,
and their being deprived of the privilege of re-
citing to Prof. Smyth, in Mathematics, may
have occasioned some difficulty to the Tutor.
in the recitations, and indirectly may have
had something to do with the "cut,"-that is
to say, if the class had been reciting to Prof
Smyth, there is every reason to infer no trou-
BILE would have occurred,-still, the occasion
of the cutting, ifthere is any assignable reason
for it. was that 'adjourns," repeatedly asked
for during the time, had been denied them and
that day they had met with another refusal from
the President, who it is supposed was governed
by good reasons. But it is needless to advance
reasons in extenuation of the conduct Of those
who, themselves have never endeavored to
justify their action on the ground of any inju-
ries or indignities received.
Five or six were not suspended with the
class, for the reason that they were either out
oftown, at the time of the transgression of
College Laws, or they had "leayes" to go out
of town, and were under no obligation to be
present at the recitation.
Except in the case of one individual, who is
marked man, there has been no backing
down on one side or the other; so far from its
being the case, every man who was suspended
at first is in that envable condition now, and
the indications are that they "are all bound
to hang" whether they wish it or not, till the
College Government see fit TO receive them
once more into favor.
THE GYMNASIUM.
One of the regular institutions connected
with the College is the gymnasium, under the
direction of the well known instructor in ca
lsthenics, Professor William E. Dole, who has
held this responsible position for two years
past, except during short time last winter,
while in charge Of large gymnasium in Mon
treal.
Under Prof. Dole's peculiar training the
general health of the students has greatly i'm
proved, so that the pale, emacated thin-faced,
woe-begone wards of Minerva are now as rare
as in former days they were numerous
1t is but a few years since Trustees of Insti-
tutions of Learning have begun to abandon
their bigoted notion that the harder and the
more untiring the study of the student the
greater progress, whether healthful physical
recreation was obtained or not and we are al
ready beginning to reap the fruits of a re-
formed policy in the robust forms and steady
limbs of collegians. In some Colleges the
gymnasium fever has ragged for short time
with great virulence, but soon died away In
such cases wrong course has been pursued
by the guardians of the College No one has
: been placed in charge of the gymnasium to re-
duce to a system the science OF gymnastics:
or If persons have been put in charge they
have been those destitute of the requisite
ability, or wholly unacquainted with the re-
sponsible position intrusted to them. But in
the outset We were very fortunate in securing
The services of person so faithful aud efi-
cient as Prof. Dole.
though he has never received a sufficient
compensation for the duties devolving upon
him, he has kindly consented to remain. until
we have begun to regard him as much of
fixture here, and as much one Of the Faculty
though his name never appears in the cata-