Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-10-10
NROPHOGEN.
President WaRtOn's Side OF the story
"A Bitter Edacatfonal War.

i OOllege3 and signed CrO55 IlalnS, anu
knowing your love Of truth and justice, l
ask for space in your valuable columns to
make statement showing the other side,
from disinterested standpoint, and, IN a
measure, to do justice to the party assailed.
The uncalled for and unproYoked arti6e,
with its cunningly devised tactics Of the
s'holy cloth" underneath its air of assumed
virtue, cannot hide its malignant spirit and
the cloyen foot of sinister motive.
Such an article, coming as it does from
the Cross Plains party, is not strange; It is
in keeping with their other acts and treat
ment of President Walton-unprOvOked,
yet still pursuing, though distant, still per-
scouting.
With your permission will give you a
brief history of the present troubles and
fortunes of Neophogen College and IFS
founder, President J. N. Walton.
NiEe years ago, President Walton, after
his return from the war, with health much
impaired by exposure in the field, establish
| ediD Cross Plains, his native place, small
school, which, by his scholarly aItainmeIis.
coupled with industry and untiring energy
soon became widely known and largely pat
ronized from distance. The first building
was an old fashioned log house, situated in
be village Of Cross Plains-onS in which
other teachess lad failed and gone away
disheartened. The unpretending building,
while his school was in fun blast, was in
cendiarized by SOME prejudIeed yillager.
But, nothing daun,ed, President Walton,
built in short time, without assistance,
fine two story frame school building. He
occupied the building for some years with
great success and increasing popularity and
numbers-saye from the people Of his own
village, who, from prejudice and envy, sent
their children 20 other schools and neigh
boring villages.
In the summer of 1873, President Wal
ton bought of Chas. Howard, the beautiful
farm and location of the late NeOpho-
gen College. Late in July, while the cholera
aged 10 featfully, he commenced under many
disadvantages, to build large and haDd-
some College. The evidence of prosperity
and renewed energy upon the part of Wal
ton reused all the latent fires of envy, ieal-
Ousy and hatred of his old prosecutors.
Walton was a man Of limited means. They
commenced system Of petty any annoy
ing befiecutibn, which for virulence Snd
malignant continuance has been rarely ex-
celled. Every day developed some petty
scheme Of injury; in the village, ON the
highway, in the city, eoerylchere, they
stTove to iniure his credit. They had not
good word for, but only maledictloiss
against the man who was so nIanfully stIiv-
lug for the advancement OF his fellov-man
and the improvement and profit Ofhis native
village. In the little village there were but
three property holders thar stood by him,
and were not directly in the fight against
the school. This may seem strange, but il
is nevertheless true.
Such was the status of affairs when the
College began TO take form and place upon
The lovely and commanding eminefice that
OVerlOoks the village, when, after his al
most superhuman efforts to get the build
ing ready by the beginning of the term
(Sept. 1), they made one last grand effort
to crush him by bringing to bear all the
paper they could gSt tosSther on certain.
day. But this, like their other Efforts
failed. The College was a reality, and
large school, made mp principally of stu
dents from other States, was the result of
extensive and iidicious adyertising-pOssi-
big the lSrgest catalogue circulation ever
issued by an American college, over zO;c09
having been sent out in one month. The
future of the school looked bright
and hopeful; the trade. Of the merchants
greatly incTr5asgd, and the viiiags pitt oil
prosperous air. II was thought that the
spirit of persecution would soon be thing
OF the past. The faculty and students were
making great efforts TO have grand COM
mencement in June, 1874, then near at
hand, when, alas. deep in the night, when
children and girls of a tender age were
asleep in the upper rooms of the College,
the fieudish hand OF the incendiary and
would-be assassin applied tie tofcii 20 The
College, and the aecumulations, the toll
and labor Of years, were soon swept away,
many Of the young ladies barely es-
Gaping with life.
do not mean. nor do l charge this
fiendish act upon the community at large,
because know they would not counten-
anse such sn aeti and l know there are
good and honorable men in Gross Plains.
One would, however, naturally suppose
that such great misfOrtunes would lave
elected some sympathy. The smoke was
still rising, the fire still burned, the morn
ing came. and with il an officer from these
same merchants, with lcvies in their hands
to attach, for fear Of loss, the remnant of
household goods saved from the red ruin
of Walton's fortune. This was the SYM
paihy OF these generous merchants"
Where is tliy "shylocl9" Walton thy pound
of flesh!
The young ladies were 'tsupplied with
what theF reduiredr for cash or on short
credit, though there were many synpathlz-
ing hearts and many kind acts were done.
But the merchants sold, as usual, for profit,
though it was kind, nevertheless; but, while
| give them credit for kind acts, cannot but
remember that they had no sympathy for
the creates sutierest of them all-One who
had been their greatest beneiactOr:
The subsequent enthusiastic meeting"
was superinduced and stimulated by more
liberal offers from other localities, and this
spur TO generosity was the prOmptiBgs and
self-intereSl. After much wranglinS. the
citizens proposed to buiid 4 college and
rent to President Walton for a term Of
wears, at ten per cent. On the investment.
What liberality! Vanderbilt, standup and
blushl They had four months in which to
build twelve Thousand dollar house, and
were TO have il done by the fourth
Monday in September. This they
failed % do. Then the committee refused
to put in the fixtures for heating and other
fixtures necessary for conducting a school.
This they wished Walton TO do; and there
were other impOsitiOns which President
Walton, being high-spirited man, would
not submit 20. He had labOred in good
faith and earnestly four months, and had
spent over one thousand dollars in adyer-
tisements 10 build up large school for the
fall term. His students were coming in and
he had no place for them. The committee
having failed to get the building ready.
He was, therefore, forced, with much re-
gret, to leave bis native village. Without
a murmur at his great loss, without a re-
prOach for the wrong they had done him;
but with an earnestly expressed wish for
their future success, he moved his school to
Gallatin, where he was welcomed with
open arms, the Principal Of Howard Col
lege-Prof. Hibbitt-Iesigning in his favor.
There he secures a large commodiOus Col
lege, well furnished, at low rent.
Are these not sufficient reasons for Pres
ident WaltOn's leaving a place where he
has few friends and has received no assis-
tance9 This howl Of indignation which
they set up is the howl of the wolf that
seeks its prey. "The sceptre has departed
from Judah, and they rail at their folly.
1t would more become the faculty of the
new school at Cross Plains to try to build
up a school upon its own merits than to
81 ,,,,I.r The ebo1ot.r Of mama IN r,ieLr