The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1869-06-19

ing to parental pride, may say that
you, in the intellectual, in the lite
rary pathway, can walk-advance
alone. From henceforth. in the ac
QUESTION of knowledge, you may each
be self reliant. This is your COM
But we'll as you have earned your
present honors, you cannot afford TO
stop here. The occasion itself presents
an opportunity to admonlsh each one
of you not to think that berause you
have completed your studies and your
school DAYS are passed, that the Work
of self-improvement IS also finished
You should rather think and feel that
you have only entered upon career
of intellectual Advancement and I'M
provement which should continue
through life. You go from here clothed
with the power to make your lives
useful. perhaps illustrious, aud to
adorn the communities In which your
future years may be cast; but this can
only be accomplished by a continued
devotion to independent self culture.
You should each bear IN mind that
one Of the primary effects of lnteilee-
tual culture is usefulness in whatever
sphere of life the future may open TO
you. How much your success IN life
may depend upon your respective ac-
quirements of knowledge Is almost
impossible, by any given standard, to
measure and determine. To make a
good education and future self-culture
both useful and desira bic, it is far
from necessary that either teaching,
or what is known as one of the learn
ed professions, should become your
business or occupation in life. 1t IS
full time that the popular error.
that education and knowledge
are useless among the laboring
and mechanical classes of society, was
forever exploded. Those who, by
this false molten, either by words or
acts, impress the youthful mind with
this erroneous idea, and thereby dis
courage or otherwise prevent the
completion of thorough course of
study, upon the supposItlon that me-
chanical branches Of labor are TO be
pursued, inhict a great injury and loss
upon society, and an irreparable
wrong upon the yOuth-a wrong which
can only be summed up By the blum
ders and fixtures of a whole lifetime.
Il tAG t1OlEcStOB4 JUS uGS5 u UNI0 pa
ten in which you may be engaged,
will not, of itself, confer upon you
honor, but it will be the manner IN
which the duties of that business, &C.
cupation or profession are performed,
from which, if at all, the honor will
result. But In whatever laudable
pursuit you may hereafter be engaged,
let your aim be to stand at the front.
And, now 10 conclusion, permit me
to express the hope that you will,
each of you, appreciate aud constantly
feel the importance of continued
efforts IN whatever station you may
be called to occupy, to cultivate and
improve your minds and enlarge
your stock of knowledge, and at the
same time you will realize that your
mental culture is not intended to be
a barren attainment, but one full of
good and usefulness, not only TO
yourselves, but to others; that you
will aim to ditfuse radiance of bic s.
edncss all along the respective path
ways of your lives; that. as in the
ancient mythology, the Muses-the
tabled goddesses of literature and
song-were supposed to descend from
Mt. Helicon, and going abroad to
diffuse every production of genius, so
may the world, on every hand, feel
the inspiration of your elevated
worth, aud be stimulated to deeds OF
nobleness and benevolence.
Turning to the audience, Judge
Parrett seid the spectacle before
them was ample compensation for all
the money they had paid for school
tax, aud assured them that the hopes
they had entwined around the High
School should not be turned to ashes.
Professor Willett addressed a few
parting words to the class, after
which the class sung, in excellent
style and with much feeling, the fol
lowing beautiful ode, the music and
words of which arc original:
Loud swell our songs, our strains are glad
When happy hours are flying;
| Low fall our notes, our hearts are sad
When hours we love are dying.
| Our school~day scenes were bright and gay
And strong the ties that board us:
| Sweet fiow'rets bloomed along our way,
And loved ones gathered round us.
CHORUS.
YesI the long days We're bright, and each
| mornings fresh light
| Through our lives sent the broad sunshine
danctngs
But those daSs fitted past, those fair flow
( els faded fast.
And that sunshine no longer is glancing.
( Our feet have eIambered up the hill,
That lead fl ON Iife's sweet daWning,
| Yet glad hearts, beating lightly still,
| Reflect the beams of morning.
| Though far beyond those SUBMITS show,
| TowartI which our feet are hasting,
1 Dark shadows IN the vale below,
Tell how the day is wasting.
/ CHORUS.
1 But the fields we draw near, white with
| And tie rip he'd grain waiteth our reap.
Let i us up and away, ere the close of the
From life's labor our hands shall be keep
ing.
To you who stroye with loving voice,
/ Where wisdom oilers to our choice,
Rich treasures aud immortal
/ To you, dear schoolmates, cherished long
To you--fOrg0tteu never
! We sing to-day oar parting song
sad song, before we sever.
CHORUS.
When our barkg evermore, on that beauti
Beyond deaths rolling river are landed,
| Nay we sing once again, in a joyful refrain
Rev. j G. Bowden then pronounced
the benediction. and the audienc,
began slowly to dispense, while too
| Crescent City Silver Band playeC
another delightful air.
Then commenced q scene of thrill
ing eloquenee-the parting Of th,
other pupils with the graduating
class. Every fioe was suffused will
tears, aud the partings were patheti
and highly affecting.
We have given the programm
without remark. We can only sa
the orations and essays were al
credi'ajle, and some of them of