Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1892-06-26

the call was for meeting OF the Build
ers' Exchange for September 2Nth Ito
consider and aid in the establishment
of school for the mechanic arts
He leaves the reader to infer that the
Exchange did something. But this
body. which DR.. Page describes as 80
Hourising" and 50 Interested IN the
school, did not respond to the call, ana
no meeting OF the Board OF Dlrectorsor
exchange occurred again for three
months. At a meeting of the Builders
Exchange January IL, 1880. the secre-
tary reported that the exchange rooms
with the consent Of the Board OF Dl-
rectors, are now being used by a night
school, which is success so far and
great want in the city," &c. The "con,.
sent" as matter of fact, was that OF
Secretary Thomas Elicit and President
Harry b. Owen.
THE ORIGIN or THE INSTITUTE.
II was in July of 1884 Mr.. Howard
called at my Office, and we engaged in
general conversation. / said to him {:
{" Howard, let us start some enterprise
or other" lie replied =" How about
starting q mechanics institute p We
talked the matter over during several
months. and worked while we talked.
In our letterof September 18th *. l.Z.l
we not only outlined TO the public all
the classes. but stated that several lead
ING mechanics had been already con-
suited " inregard to the project, and that
some of our young men here-coliege
graduates been secured to teach,
and in orr letter to the state. signed
ga" September ljth), we slid that
the good work should begin at once
and that "in year it would secure its
own success
| had offered my Office. in Shafers
building. for the school : but Captain
Ellett's letter appeared in the state sep,
tcmber 18th rendering us the room OF
the Builders Exchange. We had not
, .lculated upon this offer, but of course
Gladly accepted it. And ] gave due
credit for it in my letter. But we soon
found the room inadequate, and most OF
our teaching was done upstairs over the
Builders Exchange, and Mr. Howard
and myself advanced the rent when
Furman Upper demanded 1t, though
we were afterwards paid back by the
Mechanics Institute. This the record
shows. DR.. Page says | am mistaken
about holding meetings III my room
and seeing Captain Ainslie beforehand
10 get him to act as president In CON
firmation / refer to George j. Hooper.
Jr.. and Captain Thomas Elicit, who
accompanied Inc to see Captain Ainslle.
DIR. Page says that the president, Cap
tain Ainsle, and Vice-President Starke
were members of the Builders tx
change. He is mistaken. Their
names do not appear on the rolls.
We. the teachers, opened school on Ocso-
Der 18th and stood unsupported until
December ;, 1884. Then We issued q
call. not for the Builders Exchange, but
for the citizens generally, to come for
ward and adopt our work. They came,
and among them unquestionabiy we're
members OF the exchange. but also, as the
record states, many members of the bar
and the manufacturing classes. The
call written in the rough may be seen at
the Mechanics Institute to-day III Mr..
Howards handwriting. Captain Elicit
aided us as an iHdiCidU0i IN suggesting
names and sending the notices around.
ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS.
When the meeting convened Mr..
Ainslie WAS Mt once by common consent,
called to the chair. and Mr.. f.. Il. Archer
introduced the programme. The orlgl-
nal exists IN my handwriting at the Me-
chanics' Institute. Ii begins with a
preamble. which recites that night
school OF III students had been sue
cessiulIy" established in the city; that
the Council had been asked to give
= 900 to its support, and that bill
had been introduced in the Legislature
70 appropriate 500. 900 to the insti-
tute. provided the city would give
SO. 200, and private individuals and
corporations $1,000 more. These
measures were and could have been no
one else's but our work. ! mean the
work Of Mr.. Overton Howard and my
self. assisted 10y James c. Lamb and W.
Il. Higham. The programme ended
with a resolution appointing a committee
of thirteen 10 act III conjunction with
the teachers to carry these measures out,
60 adopt constitution, &c. Even Or.
| Pages presence on the committee is due
10 me, as he will find By consulting the
original paper, where the names are all
written out in my handwriting.
The committee met on the evening oil
the same day, and | submitted to them
the draft Of constitution which was q
part of the scheme and was prepared by
Inc beforehand. And yet, because Of
the absence of the record OF our pro
ceedings, / said in my letter to the DIS
| PATCH that | WAS chairman OF the
committee to draft the constitution, Dr.
Pages chooses to throw discredit upon
me by stating that / was chairman OF s
committee to print the constitution anc
bylaws. Now, as the constitution was
already prepared by me, there
WAS. in fact, no need of com
mittee to prepare it. but what
intended to say was that l wrote
the constitution and bylaws, and th'
committee Of thirteen, to whom / sub
mitted it, recognized the fact by putting
| me NJ tue utuc VI u NOlhiiAAttOC VI ehiN'
10 print and repOrt the same to the mex
meeting Of the citizens-a portion of thu
record which Or. Page cuts down to {
mere power to print. And a few day
later in answer to the inquiries of -
Friend" explained in the public paper
over the signature OF "a Member Of tn
Institute the sources from which | haC
prepared the constitution. Captain Ell
lett has the cutting at the Mechanics In
stitute.
CHAIRMAN FROM THE START.
The teachers carried on the schoo
without interference, and the next meet
ing of the citizens did not occur TIL Jan
nary %, 1885. Then the president AM
vicc-presilent. board OF managers, an,
committees were determined upon. DR.
Page was absent from this meeting, an
nominated Ashton Starke as vice-presi
dent. When / sad | was chairman O
the Committee on Canyassing | wa
really correct, and DR.. Page was wrong
We determined to put John OFT FORWARD
in preference TO myself, becaus
1 ,rae willing n do the work ANYHOW