Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1894-05-23
CoMMAycFmRsT WEEK.
Closing Exercises Of Jonesboro traoed
School.

Closing Exercises Of Jonesboro (iraoed
School.
The Jcnesboro Graded School lust closed
one OF It's most prosperous years. The en-
rollment this year was 3O4, which is the lar
gest 1t has ever been. The Baccalaureate
sermon wat preached Sunday morning by
DR.. Kincanon, OF Bristol, To a large audience.
On Monday morning the oral examina-
lions we're begun In Temperance Hall, These
examinations we're very Interesting, and
showed that faithful work had been lone by
both teacher and pupil. These examina-
ions closed Wednesday at moo On Tues
evening DIR. Warner, OF Knoxville, delivered
q lecture on "The Forces That Win,r which
was indeed a fine lectures: some say the best
they ever heard in Jonesboro. Those who
die not hear IL certainly missed a treat.
On Wednesday evening those contesting
for the Essay Medal read their essays, after
which was given the Temple OF Fame. The
essays were all good, and reflect honor upon
all those contesting, but the committee tho't
Miss Doake Bradshaw had the best one. The
Temple Of Fame pleased everybody. In 1t
were represented at least fifty characters,
all well represented and some perfectly 80.
This was decidedly the best managed enter
tainment ever given at the close Of school
we have reference to the crowd-for when
enough had been admitted to fill the house,
no more we're allowed 10 enter. 1t was the
best behaved crowd seen on such an occasion
Thursday was Commencement Day. Long
hAfNsa L.. 81 hn.f, H. -... ~uAs F.II m.
church presented a most beautiful appear
ance; the floral decorations being superb
A dense bank Of flowers made a beautiful
background for the speakers. The class GER
tiainly deserves credit for the decorations,
both on Sunday and Thursday. The gradu-
ating class: was composed Of twelve men,
bers-the largest class in the history OF the
school. The graduating exercises Of the
class were good, and reflect honor upon the
school. The first speaker was William
Reeves, subject: Revolution. He said
"'What is history but q fable agreed upon?'
These words were the dying words OF NapO-
leon, the great tragedian, who for twenty
years made Europe his theater and war his
bloody trade. History is more than o fable.
1t is more than an epic dream. 1t deals with
the real. Life is not romance. Neither is Il
comedy. II is tragedy, and history is its re-.
hearsal. The world Is Its stage-men the
tragic actors, naSions the tragic factors, and
revolution the tragic facts. Man, by nature.
is a revolutionist. His life is a war Of one
ceaseless revolution, an eternal crusade for
the truth and for the right. To say that life
Is revolution Is but the simple statement of
q great truth. 1t is revolution, or 1t is moth
ing"
Of creation is but the evolution of revolu-
ton. Energy Is the essence of life. Rest is
but the suggestion of death. There Is mo-
ton everywhere. LOOK where you may, ma
lure Is Instinct with the powers of moving,
pulsing life. Her rivulets ripple and run as
they sing the song of the brook. Her rivers
rush and roar as they seek the sea. Her
oceans ebb and flow as In thunderous surge
they lash the beetling cliffs. He proceeded to
show that what are called the destructive
forces In nature are but the remedial ener-
gies Of revolution. In conclusion hi said:
~ declare it-it is the verdict Of all history,
mat IN the grand movements of the world to
its mHlenial destiny the most potent factor,
next to God, is revolution"
The second speaker was Miss Nell Mason,
who had chosen as her subject "Songs." She
first defined the two different kinds of music,
vocal and instrumental. Instrumental mu-
sic, she said, as the breath of some spirit,
the impress Of some soul.n She spoke of the
lasting influence Of the great music compo-
sers Of the world, and said "vocal music Is
more thar a breath or impress OF the soul,
est form of music" She spoke of the differ
ent kinds OF sOngs; of the powerful influ-
ence they have upon mankind, and how q
song written with an aim Is often made aim
less by singing in a careless, thoughtless way.
She compared our life to q song, and said
those about us are listening day by day to
the strains we send forth, concluding by say
Ing: "Let us ever sing the songs that are
MR. and pAIla IL. tl,at. o, a,,A H.
that are abiding in their memory and price,
less In their worth. Let our lives be as songs
OF comfort and cheer, and some day we shall
be given 'harps of q thousand strings tuned
to the melody of heaven and vibrating the
sweet tenor OF redeeming love-"
Next on the program was an essay, entitled
"The Months of the Year, by Miss Susie
Rogan, who said:
"a year, In the proper sense of the word, Is
the time which elapses between the depart
ure of the sun from either equinoctial point
I'LL 1t again arrives at the. some place. The
years are divided into twelve months, or
they might be called the children of the
year. Each has a different name and ma
ture. January wal SO named for the god ia
nus, who had two faces, looking In opposite
directions. He viewed the past year with
n of those faces, the coming year with the
other. February was an unfortunate month
from the very first. The Romans did not ex-
pect to have this month, but found the year
Incomplete without 1t. March was named
from Mars, the god OF war;. This name was
very appropriate as winter and spring con-
tend for the month. II laid the foundation
for some OF our old jokes, as March FORTH
addressed TO the retiring President. April Is
one OF the daughters of the year, but she
she sheds so many tears that she makes her.
self unpleasant. The word comes from the
Latin word which means TO open. II might
be said to open spring. May Is by common
consent the symbol of flowers n poetry,
music and moonlight, women and children.
Juno was the daughter OF Saturn and wife Of
Jupiter. With all her vices, she kept Jupiter
hot Hence the name, June July was
named from Julius Caesar, and August from
his uncle, Augustus Caesar" She spoke OF
September as being, according TO the old le-
gend, the month In which the creation of
the world was finished, and October the
month In which Adam and Eve were driven
from the Garden Of Eden. Then of bleak
November, and last of December, with all its
festivities, and closed by saying, "We may
consign with loving thoughts gray old De-
cember, the last of the months, to the grave
as we consign with loving hands and hearts,
our aged dead to their last narrow earthly
house, and as we confidently hope for the res
may expect that old December is only SEEM
ingly dead, and that nature will, by soft yet
powerful influence, bring again the beauties
OF spring and summer"
C%hauncey Hacker was the next speaker.
His subject was ~ WILL" He said:
"The will is the most important function
of the mind. 1t is the handspring of all our
actions. We are what we are chiefly through
the exercise of our volition. If we would rise
to distinction we must first will to do so. No
ever became distinguished by more ac-
cident. There Is but one pathway to true
greatness and he who would rise above the
struggling masses hat crowd the foot of the
mythical ladder Of fame must take for his
motto the words l have chosen for my
theme" He showed that in our country il
Is not the rich alone who rise to places OF
honor, but even the poor by energy and am
bition may obtain these high positions, He
also showed how these high Stations In life
were reached, not at one bound but gradual
ly, how even the greatest architect Of the
universe took six days in which TO build the
world" He produced numerous examples
from history, both ancient and modern, OF
the power OF the human will. "Demosthenes
and Cicero he said, 'were not great orators
by accident. Horace and Virgil we're not
born poets. Robert Fulton, Benjamin Frank
lin, Cyrus Field, Thomas A. Edison, and
thousands of others who.have distinguished
themselves in the field ofinvention, are each
and all but so many bright examples of the
triumph OF the human will. But" he said,
81 can not close without again directing the
attention of my classmates to the magic
words of my theme. AS we separate today