Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-07-19
HERALD Correspondence
Beloit College Commencement.

Commencement week is ever mark |
ed with white stone in the College |
boys memory. Coming at the end
of the hot summer term, when the
natural promptings of the Students
heart incline him to lie lazily stretch
ed at length on the green grass OF
the Campus, under the cool shadows
of the oaks that raise their rustling
heads above it, instead Of digging at
the allotted lessons in Chemistry, or
Mathematics, or Greek and being
preceded by the thorough and trying
written annual examinations, Com
mencement time brings few hall
cyon days in which one can hear,
and see, and think as much or as
little as he likes, with no College
bells or recitation marks to modest
or make him afraid. Then those who
have passed from College halls to
the scenes of busy life return with
words of counsel and cheer for those
who are laying the foundation for
similar activities then the honored
members Of the Corporation lay their
heads together and concert plans for
the welfare Of the institution, and
everything puts on its best face and
fairest dress.
The year of study, however i'm
proved, is soon spent, and the sever
est examination cannot always last
so the beautiful morning OF Sunday,
July 10th, ushered in the week which
places each class Of undergraduates
one step higher on the College rolls,
and causes those who for the year
have occupied the envied Senior seats
to look back with tender regret upon
the College scenes they are leaving
forever, but forward with high hope
upon the life opening out before them,
The first Commencement exercise
was the Baccalaureate sermon Sab
bath afternoon by Pres. Chaplin, from
the text Ps. Al 1-3, beginning
owe have heard with our ears, o
God, our fathers have told us, what
work thou didst in our days, in the
times Of old" 1t was happy idea
of the Presidents, thus by this me-
mortal sermon to leave impressed
upon the minds of the 20 boys the
fact that the year of their graduation
is the 250th anniversary of the land
ding of the Pilgrim Fathers; and
surely in no way could the speaker
better give parting counsel than by
pointing to the example of those men
of old, who risked and endured eve
rything for the sake of those founda-
ton principles, briefly epitomized by
the President as being Liberty Of
individual opinion, and Responsibility
for individual action"
In the evening the various congre-
cations of the city joined in a union
service at the First Congregational
Church, to listen to the address
before the Missionary Society by
Pres. Sturtevant of Illinois College,
who, in an able and witty address,
opposed the pretentions of those
self-styled philosophers of the high
est culture" who assert that Chris
tlanity is failure, and that it is
folly, or worse than folly, to attempt
to propagate among heather nations
q worn out superstition, ready to
crumble away at the slightest touch
Of those men "of the highest culture
He forcibly and eloquently argued
the adaptability Of the Christian re-
ligion to the cravings of the human
heart and the needs of the world,
and showed that the claims of mate
realistic scientists that they occupy
an advanced standpoint because they
refuse to take cognizance of anything
which does not present itself to the
outward senses, is not less preposter-
Gus than would be the complacent
belief of nation of deaf mutes, that
the delight Of ordinary people in the
pealings of a, deep-toned organ is 6
childish weakness, to which they are
far superior.
The debates and exhibitions of the
literary societies, perhaps on the
principle that one may get too much
Of even such good things at one time
are distributed through the year
and the only exercise of general in
terest on Monday, is the address
before the Archaan Union. which was
delivered this year by Rev. Johr
Allison, of Milwaukee, who alarmed
his audience at the outset by threat
ening to deliver an Grafton divided
into First, Secondly and Thirdly, anC
these heads each trebly sub-divided
after the most approved oldfashionec
sermon-model, and then relicve &C
them by giving an address unusaally
free from any such old-time tenc,
posts. His theme was "Passins
Events" and the lecture contained
numerous racy hits at current ten
denotes and follies
Tuesday afternoon large audi
ence assembled to listen to what i.
one Of the most attractive of Com
mencement exercises, the Prize Dec
lamation, by members of the Fresh
man and Sophomore classes; the
speaking was of quite uniform excel
lence, and was listened to with much
interest and attention throughout
Among the speakers from the Fresh
man class, Mr.. Eugene Ell. Lewis, o.
Potosi, in particular, won high enco
NUNS by his manly self possession
and truly oratorical style of speaking
At the close the various other prizes
of the year were awarded to the sue
cessful competitors.
| The annual meeting of the Society
of the Alumni was held Tuesday
evening. Major J. NJ. Bundy, of the
class OF '53, editor of the ". Y. Ere.
ming Mat, was orator of the evening
and it was very pleasant to hear the
versatile editor, fresh from one of the
most practical callings of life, devote
his Grafton to a plea for the preser-
walton and continuation of the pres
ent system of classical study as
pursued at Beloit and similar institu-
tiOns. bearing his Testimony IN ne