The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1898-02-01
Founders Day Celebrated In an Interesting
and Instructive Way.
GLOWING TRIBUTES TO GEN. ARMSTRONG
Ills Spirit sim Lives md Guides the
snstItutIon-The Gospel or Labor,
Love and Life Pref Penbody, of
rInrv"rd, Makes I" brilliant Ads
dress.

Inc hampton normal ana Agrtcul-
tural Institute was the scene Sunday
of an exceedingly interesting and sig
niticant celebration, the occasion being
the observance of Founders Day, in
honor of the birthday of General S. c..
Armstrong, who was the father OF
the institution.
The exercises were conducted in the
new Armstrong Memorial chapel, the
stage of which was very beautifully
decorated with lilies and other plants
little to the left of the pulpit stood
large portrait of General Armstrong
dlaped with the Stars and Stripes
upon the stage was saIted the negro
choir of forty-four volcAk In front of
which sat Rev. II. b. Hsassell, D. D.,
principal Of the school; Prof. Peabody
OF Harvard University; George Fos-
ogden, of New York, president of the
Board of Trustees, and Arthur Curtis
James, of New York
AT $3.50 D. m. the students lined up
on the campus and were drilled to the
tune of hymns played in march time
by the excellent band. They were then
marched into the chapel, which was al
ready nearly filled with visitors, many
OF whom were compelled to stand
during the exercises
DIR. Frissell first conducted religious
services, consisting OF prayer, doXo-
losy, the Creed Lords Prayer, Ten
Commandments and singing, including
steal Away Home" by the choir. He
then introduced Mr.. Ogden, who spoke
briefly Of the great debt Hampton and
the South owed to General Armstrong,
and emphasized the fact that the lat
ter's last wish was being carried out.
That wish was, Hampton must not
be allowed to go down." He then in
troduced the orator OF the day, Prof.
Peabody.
Prof Peabody spoke for an hour,
very eloquently and instructively. He
referred to the we'll known disinclina-
ton of General Armstrong to exagger-
ated praise, and spoke graphically of
him when he first conceived the plan
oil educating the negro. No one could
remember him, he said, without u
thrill of loyal reverence. There are
two ways in which such an institution
may begin, he declared, with n plan
and with n man. Hampton Institute
began with man. Its aims were his
aims, it's IDEAS his ideas, it's spirit his
spirit. The institution was the in
carnation of the dreams that came to
him during the war, when he first saw
the vision of a regenerated South.
The creed or Hampton Institute re-
duced to the least number of words
| was, he declared. Labor, Love and
Life" These three points he amplI-
fled very beautifully, but he could not
resist the temptation of charging the
South with n prejudice against negro
labor. while saying nothing about a
similar condition in any other section
of the country. He referred to in
stances where, at Tuskagee, some
white timers refused to work on a job
to which negro labor had been assign
ed; and to case where recently some
white girls refused to work side by
side In factory with some negro
girls whom the management had in
troduced, but the speaker did not al
Jude to the trades unions in the North
to which negroes are not admitted.
The speech, as a whole, however.
was very fair and very pertinent, and
it was well received. At its conclu-
sion a prayer was offered and the
school ended the exercises by singing
some wonderfully weird and beautiful
negro melodies.
The occasion was fifty celebrated In
this city by the alumni of the school
at meeting held in Queen Street Bap-
list church.