Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1866-08-22
COMMENCEMENT AT 0BERLIN.

| COMMENCEMENT AT 0BERLIN.
The Ladies' Day''-The COnciO atl
CIerum-The Afternoon Commence
ment Exercises.
| Special Correspondence OF the Cleveland LEADER
OEERLIN, August q, 1866.
To-day has been the "Lsdies' Day" par
e1esLIeacc. As most of our readers know,
the Oberlin University is divided into
three main departments each Of which
graduates annual classes. The Ladies De-
partment claims Tuesday for itself, and
Wednesday is divided between the Cole
giate and Theological graduating exer-
cises. Tuesday morning, however, was
occupied by the C0ncio Gd CLsrHm, which
was preached by the Rev. E. H. Fairchild,
from the text, Acts, oath, 10th; And
herein do 1 exercise myself, to have con-
science void of offense toward God and
toward men, The sermon recognized
conscience as the true and safe guide ofmen
and maintained the doctrine that he who
followed conscience did right. It was one
of marked ability, and was listened to
with interested attention by the large Gu-
dience present.
This afternoon at 2o'clock the spacious
College square which spreads its greenery
ioyously over ten acres in the very center
of the town, and the smaller square ad-
joining it on the north, surrounding the
big church in which for twenty years the
exercises of Commencement have been
held, were surrounded and filed with the
signs and omens which presage Com
mencement The square itself was lined
with countless buggies and wagons, car
riages and carts, in which Lorain county
annually comes up e7 nIaSSe to celebrate
the occasion. The melon and ice-cream
venders, which once a year settle down on
| Main street for two days, and then fold up
their tents like the Arabs and IS silently
steal away, were doing thriving busi-
ness. The sidewalks in every direction
seemed like streams pouring an endless
current toward a common center. That
center, the great church, over1Owed long
before the exercises scommence,and groups,
| gay with ribbon, dress and shawl, hung
around the church steps and moved to and
fro in theyard under the shady trees.
It is the immemorial programme Of the
0berlin ladies' day that the ladies of the
institution, numbering from three to four
hundred, meet at the college chapel and
thence march, two-by-two, white -robed,
| bare-headed, across the college-green to
| the church, where seats are reserved for
| them in the galleries. The programme
was carried out this year, though the
| gathering clouds, which burst half an
| hour later into steady rain, caused much
apprehension among the white-robed
maids aforesaid. Across the square swept
| the sweet procession, between the ranks
| of gazers at the doors, up the church
stairs and into the vacant benches of the
| galleries, while the pealing organ rang its
/ welcome, and the sea of faces, fans and
bonnets which swept along 70 the utmost
| verge of the high ampithestre above and
| the deep aisles below, stirred and swayed
with curiosity and recognition.
On the platform-the old fashioned pull
pit is this year transformed into CON-
| modious platfOI m, in front of which fes-
/ tooned wreath forms q low bastion. On
| the platform are seated the President elect
of the College, Professor j. Il. Fairchild,
| the Rev. Samuel Wolcott, of Cleveland,
Hon. T. D. Parish, ESQ. of Sandusky, 8
venerable Trustee of the College, Miss
| Dascomb, the excellent Principal of the
Ladies' Department, and the members OF
the Ladies Board of Managers of that
Department The opening prayer was
made by the Rev. Mr.. Wol-ott, after
which ensued the following order Of exer-
cises;
Louise P. Allen, Oakham, Nass
Rachel J. Chambers, Bacyrus
The Lif. with5at aui the life Within,
| eDslia NJ. CrookeF, Pierpont
| Elizabeth Dalton, Columbus
LauraA. Day, Essex, Vt
MUSIC.
| " And the greatest of these is Charity
Adelaide F. Deane, Conneaut
- olzra a. Dewey, Aurora
'r'-> Gertrude FOOto. Detroit, Mich
The Pride of Lexington,
| Maria P. Grant, Conneaut t
MUSIC.
- = Lucinda E. Hamilton, oberlin
Au'-'' Sarah X. Hunter. oterlin
% = Harriette S. Kinney, ObsrIin
SIS Christ Divided
Mary F. Lane, Toledo
MUSIC.
N-''' '-- Harriet A. MeCIeuand, Russia.
Mary Morgan, Fox Lake, Wis
Alice 1. Norton, oberlin
The Stimulus to an Active Life,
L. Armenia Partridge, Gustayus
MUSIC.
01' Ora Reedsr, oberlin
s5ice Islands in the SEA Of Life,
Charlotte N. Steele, obsTlin
-H' : Adelis III. sturtevsnt, Cleveland
->-p'- anu O--'7 colessiA Nj. Teunant, Camden
| MUSIC.
| Presentation of Diplomas.
| pESTDIcrIoN