Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1876-03-31
0QliImington yorum..
WILMINGTON, N. c.,
FRIDAY, MARCH 81, 1876.
THE DEIVESSgFY-H TT =
TRUSTEES WE'RE ELECTED


TEf Il DNIVESSIEY-HO IT'S
TRUSTEES WE'RE ELECTED
The Iorchlight admits that in it's
article in reference to the University,
it may have used "words that would
have been avoided in more careful
writing" 1t also very frankly ex
presses its readiness to withdraw what
ever words it has used inj udicouf ly
and whatever statements it has made
under wrong Impressions. Indeed
the writer of the article III qucs-
non declares himself to have once
been a student at the Univer=i
ty and still to be its nnvary-
ing and earnest friend, and protests
that he does not intend to be drawn
into any oontrov, r:y that may place
him urou the stand as q witness ugains,
his anna mater.
We are truly glad to find the writer
. in the I0rchligW to be q friend and
not an enemy to the University, and
we promise him he will ever find the
Journal ready to cooperate with him
most heartily in bringing to light and
in curi1g any defects there may be in
it's management and conduct. We say
this candidly and frankly.
But before we conclude this article
we wish to correct Misrepresentation
in regard to the manner of electing
the present Board of True tees. The
ZorcAlight says:
owe heard in Raleigh that the
present Board of Trustees were mainly
selected by some two OF three gentle
men. Doubtless they did the best
they could. 1t is possible to make a
better board. We do not fancH that
way of selecting them.
The facts of the case are briefly
these: Certain gentlemen from differ
ent parts of the State, some half dozen
perhaps then in Raleigh, who had
long and zealously labored for the
restoration of the University did, after
careful canvass of the State, make
out a list of gentlemen whose position,
intelligence and influence and whose
devotion to its interests pointed them
out as proper to be made Trustees of |
the University. This list embraced |
members of every religious denomina-
ton and of every political party in the |
State. By the time the list was COM
plete dlctum or opinion of the Su-
preme Court was found intinating th at |
q Trustee of the University was an "of-
fcer," and as under our constitution a |
man cannot hold two offices, it necessi-
tated the striking from the list good |
many names, at least four Judges of |
the Supreme Court for example and |
several members of the Legislature, |
some of them known to be among the |
most devoted friends CT the University
in the State. When the day appointed
for the election arrive it was realized
that the Legislature had quite an ele-
plant on it's hands. for the reason that
there were "a Trustees to be elected
and to be elected ViUa rOce by joint
vote of both Houses. A flctious MI
nority might have made the election
an almost interminable proceeding.
Objection was made, too, that a
''slate' had been fixed up by
parties, not members of the Legis-
lature, to control the selection of Trus-
tees. Some confusion followed, that
BODIED not well for the struggling Uni
versity, in the midst of which it haI-
pened to strike some one that as
there were Ga Trustees and Con-
gressional Districts it would simplify
matters if it was agreed to elect at
q time and to permit the members
from each Congressional District to
caucus and nominate Trustees. This
WAS at once agreed to by
The members of the Legislature and
without consultation with special
friends of the University who were
lot members. !
The writer of this we'll remembers 8
he d;smay he felt when told of the 8
l9reement, for he saw at once aud =
allied affection to the fact that if ad-
lered toit would enable the Rad calls to +
ppoint negroes as Trustees in the First +
nd Second Congressional districts. q
But Q! lection and protest from those f,
lot members awaited nothing. The n
everal caucuseS were held and nomi- \
ations made and confirmed that ~
mashed into fragments the "slate" h
lat had been carefully prepared with G,
ne utmost regard to every interest Y
nd in its stead substituted the present r,
Oard. These are the facts of the ~
ase and in stating them we speak not u,
ON hearsay. !,
The writer in the 7orchHgltt, in ~
HON we now recognize an old and =
steemed friend, is mistaken in think O,
g the election of the present Board III
Trustees was controlled ''by some \,
70 or three gentlemen" ~