Barre evening enterprise. (Barre, Vt.) 1898-1898, 1898-04-29
ASYLUM TO COLLEGE.
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITIES LEGAClES
FROM CLOOMlNGDALE.
Themselves at Home Among the Stu
denta - Old Toms Ec1actioux on the


Themselves ut Home Among the Stu,
denta 1870 Old TOMS Reflection, on tho
Change From Old to New TN nates."
Many years ago, when the present
Columbia university site was simon
pure country and was known far and
near as Eloolainglale, there came to
gladden. the hearts Of the rather ire
sponsih.e inmates q frisky little kitten
which through the period of its early
infancy vas just like any ordinary kit
ten, bat as time went on gave promise
Of becoming beautiful and imposing
tomcat. AS the years rolled around tie
said Tom, realizing that much was ex-
pected of him. gave up his kittenisll
antics, probably feeling that in a COM
petition with the other inmates the
margin Of profit in tho nature of fame
was altoTet, or too small to permit Kim
to enter the lists. AS a result Of much
pondering there settled down upon him
q dignity far il excess of his station.
He took up his fixed residence at Bloom
ingdale, and for several years acted in
the capacity Of janitor and night watch
man, Inspecting carefully all those who
went in as we'll as those who came out,
the latter being far easier task. What
a motley company was that! And what
an oppurtunity for the PSYCHOLOGICAL
study Ci humans presented itself to Tom!
Lut times and circumstances do 0c-
casicually take a tumble, and in the
shuttle Things sometimes get mixed and
settle down 20 Il queer level. One fine
sumner dsv the placid Tom, Stunning
himself with content, SAW a strange
caravan pass out through the gates,
and, A0t Was stranger still, it never
came back Surely such a freak had
never happened before. Here was food
for thcu@ht. In tie middle Of his specu.
lationH before his point Of view was
propel'" udjustcd-for thinking i; ii
more lul0riou> process for cats than for
fclks--a now and wholly rntried race
Of people appeared before Tom and APP
Iropriated everything in sight. Wise
and int lliccnt as Tom was in many
ways, not hint of the gossip had
reached him about the sudden change
Of Tune that Lad turned out all his
CID Is, to whom, queer and crazy
as thty were, be had grown accustomed;
had seat them far away to new home
ana lad left in their lace small army
jut as motley and apparently just as
Gucgr, who lad taken complete posses
sion AMI ltgrn to tear down and destroy
everything. Confusion worse confound-
ell lCigned for several years There was
label CT tongues Weird structures
Suddenly sprung up from nowhere and
picking up things the size Of an Ordi
nlry house, swung them through the
air IS j, thov were tossing rubber balls.
Sure ly. Thought Tom the old ones never
played any pranhs half so queer. Still,
Tom h2d been brought up in il unique
sohool. Far be it from him to 10 snr-
rrised at V hat Ee saw I!c learned,
therefore, II watch events ana to deter
mine uG0n Il course aft rward.
So ell daring the years that Column
bias new buildings were in progress
Tom transferrod his living quarters to a
stable On One Enndrt d and Sixteenth
street, spending his days PROV ling
around the excavations, wandering
through all the subterranean passages
and, as the buildings progressed,
through the different rooms and even to
the racfs. Iut Tom kept a-thinking and
a-loohiNc. Ills whole future was at
stake, and the matter required caution.
Evidently lie decided that the new
place, though vastly changed from all
res} Il! hlt,nce to tie Old, might still
pruv9 Ere t,y good place after all.
| Tor Il time, it is true, be was On the
| fence not being quite able t. decide II
/ out ion 80 niumeutous in the life Of d
to.lcat. But one day be went a.strolling
a: W Witnessed tie sophomore cane rush.
! Ten he felt Limat If at home. No more
uncertainty for Ibis catl 1t looked rs if
all hiscld friends had cone hack again.
CT, il not t. ntacsaLeW inmates coul0il t
| b. 81 uNfliiy different from the Others
/ That cgno rush clinched matters for
Tom, ana he is now one Ct the NEST re-
fl. ctld meni,;, Of the university facul-
t.. His 5, ,ial abiding I lace is the
| library, whore he stretches his majestic
PROPORTIONS and suns himself ly the
hour He has grown sleek and hand
some and wanders around unMoleated
with ly tread and a high intellec-
tual tilt to his head, There seems to be
a silent urdcrst lnding on the part ct
tine officials and the students that the
cat is privileged animal, a sort Ct
mascot, " hose llLGities are not to be
iuflineod UPON. no one thinks Of in"
quilting hi, dignity by an occasional
cares3 CT even Il gentle stroking. He
goes his own way, simply taking no.
tice, lat rendering 10 account to any
one, The task of providing Tom with
three meals day has been assigned to
II social Janltor, and tho hint has been
dropped, at least 80 gossip runs, that if
Iom up. X tite is found to be capriclous
Ind to inuicato highly refined palate
q few expensive tidbits may lie pur-
chased and the same charged to the ad-
ministrution.
Another legacy besides the cs~ which
Columbia received from BLOOM: iugdald
is an aged servitor whose early years
were devoted to faithful performance
Of duty for those unable to care for
themselves. He, like Tom, was unwill-
ing to migrate when the asylum was
moved to White Plains. The supcrin-
tendent, approaching the faithfulness
of the cid man. has retained his serv-
ices, and he nov does work around the
grounds. Lat ~ tho boys dstigured the
trees and parts If the uil(hngs ly tack
ing up huge posters advertising concerts
and other college shows, When the su.
perinttndeut charged the old man with
liberalization OF dutY and told him he