Wichita eagle., 1889-06-01
of education, in presenting the diplomas

| 10 forecast the future, we need but OBJ
serve the present. Agar period of life
| character is like the sand stone as it comes
from the quarry, being susceptible Of
many changes; pulyeriZed, cut into fam
| a site shapes or fashioned for walls, it can
| De ground, cut or hewn for the builders
| Use. If you build character on the foun-
dation of fidelity and sincerity to every
rust imposed in you, whether it be small
| IT large, each year will harden it until 1t
| becomes adamantine; and the finale will
De honor everlasting, or disgrace eternal.
| There in actual life, ever busy the de-
| structive and the upbuilding forces. The
! masonry of years can be overthrown IN
| moment. and the fair character, the mon
! ument of a life of painstaking, honest
| Flooding industry may be shattered in a
| moment of dissipation or dishonesty. The
| world demands of each the best services
! he is capable Of rendering.
Mans endowment fixes the measure of
| his duty to his fsllow-men. The man of
great ability who fails to do all in his
| intellect that does all he can, and remains
! q debtor to his fellow men.
| Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first
| principles.
| Have no friends who are not your
| equal" was the ADVICE Of an old philoso-
| pher, and is worthy Of your attention and
consideration.
The future demands disciplined, matur-
| ed. scientific thought. but the mighty
power by which the spirit of our age in
| structs and conQuers is living action. To
| accomplish anything, Thought and action
| must go hand in hand. Steam of itself
| accomplishes nothing; but as an agency it
| is power, everything, matchless. The en-
CINE itself is worthless alone, but with
steam it becomes invaluable.
| Stimulate your human engine with
| the steam of thought, and be
no dreamer, but a living actor.
| Let this truth be borne in
YOUR minds and sink deep into your hearts,
education without daily and unceasing
| labor is valueless. The uneducated man
| who has breasted the barrier Of invidious
| birth, and triumphed over the difficulties
| that surround him and fought his way to
| the front rank, would have accomplished
| much more had he been educated. You
must study and act. Study without ac-
| ton is useless. Action without study is
| laborious and wearisome; but as co-part-
ners are useful to each other. There is no
| work that thought does not tighten; and
| aside from the beneficial results to you in
| your business, education broadens your
| views, enlarges your mind, qulckens your
| understanding and enables you to be bet
| ter citizens and more useful to the COM
munity in which you reside, and the foun-
dation on which you have built your edu-
cation, if broad and deep, will uphold all
you learn in a lifetime. If shallow and
narrow, you must rebuild it, and COM
mence now the work of repair
These diplomas are not education, any
more than certified check is money.
Your diploma is but certificate that an
attempt has been made by the taxpayers of
Wichita to inculcate in your hearts the
love of learning and a desire to be edu-
Gated. Whether they have succeeded is
for you to answer, each for yourselves.
How much or how little you know is
known only to yourselves.
But when the world demands your SER
vices it will then appear whether you have
been faithful or insincere to the trust re-
posed in you by your parents and friends.
We hope your ambition has been so
quickened that you will no endeavor to ed
ucate yourselves in the channel you have
ere this selected, and in the meantime
CLEAN from the fields of knowledge that lie
athwart your pathway, to the end that
you may perform your part faithfully III
business and society when called upon.
In this life there is no such
thing as luck. Luck is simply
ing for grand opportunity TO present
itself you should seize the small ones and
be faithful until the larger ones come.
To the young men | have only to say
that society demands earnest, faithful,
capable, honest, moral, sober, industrious
young men, anu dS SuCu SuCC6SS dNditS
your efforts. That your ambitious dreams
may be realized, that the noble impulses
that move your hearts may never leave
you, that you may be useful and honored
members of society, and that the desire to
acquire knowledge may ever be as fresh In
your minds as feel sure the memory OF
this night will ever be, is the fond wish of
him whe now, in the presentation of your
diplomas, not only performs duty but
also a pleasure in which duty becomes
last, and the personal qualification felt in
being the instrument made use OF by this
city to usher you into the busy world,
equipped for its strife. in which your sue
cess VIII be governed by the measure Of
your capability."
At the fall of the curtain the stage was
Immediately crowded with the friends of
the graduates, all anxious to extend the
first congratulations. Each graduate had
been the recipient of flowers by the basket
full and several choice books were
amongst the collection of presents. These
were piled on the stage at the close and
the happy faces of those who had taken
their graduating honors formed pretty
picture.
THE CLASS EXERCISES.
The class exercises of the closing year at
the high school were held in the Crawford
Grand yesterday morning and We're well
attended, there being but few vacant seats
in the house. The recitations, orations
and essays were creditable efforts, compli-
menting both the teachers and pupils.
David Mccoy gave a humorous history
of the graduating class from the time its
members entered school until they ap
peared before their friends and teachers
claiming graduating diplomas. There
were eighteen in ALL and were written up
with their several characteristics and Pc
culiarties, if they had any, in most COM
plimentary manner Miss Jean Love told
the story of the historians life and made
it quite interesting and startling.
The choruseS and instrumental selec-
tions added much to the entertainment
and the witicisms introduced met with a
goodly share of applause.
Mr. Joel Harper's Grafton, Each Victory
Paves the Way for Others" was quite
eloquent and interesting, and evidently
thu result of much preparation and
Thought.
The class poet, Paul Brown, made de-
cided hit with a humorous poem. The
young gentleman has good ear for num-
bers and clever way of collecting and re-
citing agreeable facts in the guise OF
poetry.
Miss Grace Morris essay, "A Picture"
was loudly applauded and the author de-
served all the praises she got.
Glass Prophecy" by Miss Bertha
Mathis. was carefully prepared and well
read. This essay would have graced the
pen OF much older writer, and the little
lady has good cause to feel proud of her