The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-06-28

kloLuse aLtsnslohs We ueaeraLaduste
and wake beneath the elm treea The occasion
IL especially notable as one Of the few Of the
year when the Yale man really dresses up;
when. throwing inside the sack coat aud soft folt
S ast tTionsh GSSuB Blos SO psoT foFtG 4 2 eeo l%SS hS Sis
dressed gentleman.
Glass day at Yale-or, as IL is still called. in
the old.fsshioned style, presentation day-be-
gins at II o'clock In tho morning and continues
until Q in the afternoon; Yale still retains. the
grafton, which are, delivered IN tho Battell
Chapel In the morning, and are perfunotorlly
haps. however, the p~oettcal and oratorical effu-
sions of the young mon are not so popular as
held e 'i IN the afternoon, IN R'0P The innrsSSos a Sro
phitheatre, In the college yard. All tho
ing sofa pillows and window cushions upon the
rough pine boards, which are zealously held
down for their cir allotted g, guests by sweeps and
warm, but the overhanRinR elm trees, for those
fortunate enough to get Beneath their shade,
o'clock the prostate bIeachers are entirely hidden
from view by q variegatod array of crisp mus.
tid' HtShVI iacsd p ps SoRopT T6 Hs %dn{ yh nue eio SaS
OF tobacco smoke. proceeding from elongated
Sisy PlSiGs; aP ePsss. the Tep SSTned n aEnT Sii Of so t9s
Of unconventional positions upon the rough
benches that have done service for
many college generations. A Yale class
day is the most informal proceeding in the
world. There is no presiding officer; the speaker.
oOAik iBoLOno SNllO " ny iii Clhbb-
mates. mounts q plain deal table, and, amid the
constant interruption of the boisterous listeners.
proceeds with his harangue. On the mention of
every mans name come loud cries OF Put him
upl Put him upIi,, And the congregation, is
is elevated upon the shoulder of his cisssmstes
for the inspection and admiration of the assem-
blaRe. Meanwhile the attendant supplies the
visitors, with the traditional commencement
lemonade and each gets a souvenir In the shape
of a class.day pipe.
The commencement girl enjoys it all i'm
monBely. of course. 1t is probably her first eX-
perience at a Yale class day, and sho is in no
mood to sympathizc with the critic who sees in
undemocratic nping of n transatlantic custom.
,ho in the Wittic CT ms, OF the histSria \ only
mencement girl Is not quite the central figure of
class day. The real occasion OF her supremacy
Is In the evening, when she dotfs her shirt waists
and her musllns and blossoms out in evening
dress as the bright star Of the senior promo
made. The senior prom. Is nominally held
in Alumni Hall, but as a matter OF fact the old
building is really nothing more than a base of
itself, lighted up with its brilliant rows Of Jap
ancso lanterns. with its quiet hooks between
the old buildings. with its endless walks under
the old elm trees, that really makes the senior
prom. the most delightful social occasion at
Yale. There is little attempt at dancing after
the first few numbers. as the hall could not hold
one-tenth OF the guests, and the event becomes
in fact, as well as in name, a promenade. The
commencement girl finds the usual amount OF
amusement in the efforts of the stays, who
divide their time between their ATTEMPTS at
themselves In the scramble for supper. The
senior promenade, according to the popular
verdict, is the shortest event in the college cal.
endar. although the carriages do not begin to
rumble home until sunrise.
II Is perhaps a somewhat fagged-out young
woman who climbs upon the tally-ho on Tuesday
afternoon and is whirled out to the Yale field
to witness the great commencement Yale-liar.
ward baseball game. Her face has lost a little of
It's glow and her eyes a trife of their sparkle,
but the old enthusiasm returns as her favorite
f foT@ Ya 1Isk almost Ss r inva a. shf ruins Min sF this eo a%rence.
ment game. The scene at the field is Of n kind
to rouse the enthusiasm of a less animated
spirit than the Yale commencement girl. There
are blue flags, blue parasols, and not lnfrequent-
ly some unusually enthusiastic commence
tailor-made gown of this color. Probably the
feature that willinterest her most. with the ex-
graduates, who turn out to the ball game in
classes from as far back as SO TO the class of
classes go 3 wh niwo WAS attend tts 5r' tbs Sass shas yeST. The II 9
body and usually march on to the field. across
the diamond headed by a brass band. 1t is al
more demonstrative they become. The old
white. haired grads from away. back in the
fifties sing and cheer and roar and caper around
whenever their college makes a telling point.
Whatever may be their sense OF decorum In the
outside world they surely forget ii on the after
noon OF the conmonccmont baseball game. 1t
takes u good deal OF courage on the part of the
mass of blue, and it is probably owing in a great
degree TO this fact that the Yale men seldom
Enthusiastic MS the assemblage may be in the
afternoon. however, 1t is nothing in comparison
with tho bedlam, of the evening. Perhaps tho
commencement girl may be a little tired out by
the excitement OF the preceding day, but it is
useless for her to expect any rest for some hours
to come. Tuesday. evening Is dedicated to the
celebration OF the baseball game and to the class
reunions. The balconies and windows Of the
hotels are crowded with the commencement
visitors, for there Is n great deal to see. In the
early evening the classes parade up and down
Chapel street wearing dark coats. duck trousers
ana straw hats. frequently headed by n band.
They whirl about the streets to the tune of
Omega lambda Chi,' interspersing the song
with the Yale yell. As darkness comes on the
booming of cannon crackers acts as a safety
valve to the OVERLOOKING spirits of the Yale men.
In the midst Of the uproar the girls and their
chaperons are taken to the Hyperion Theatre
Banjo clubs. The clubs attempt to make them,
selves heard above the roar OF the outside world,
usually with ind different success. After the con-
cert the girls go back to the hotel. but it Is use
campus is illuminated by a bonfire, which
scOrches the branches of the old elm trees.
There is a continuous round of cheering and
singing and fireworks until the early hours OF
the morning. In the early dawn the old and the
younger graduates. somewhat the worse for
wear. get under cover. AM 1t Is only until then
that there is any thought of rest.
The next morning the campus, covered with
the debris of the previous nights celebration. ia
hardly in trim for the several commencement
exercises scheduled for the day, and the old
grads, as they limp out OF their beds after three
or four hours sleep. are even less so. BY this
time the commencement girl herself is begin,
ming To show evidences of the eXcitements and
sleeplessness OF the previous days. She manages
however; is aRail submitted to the staring pro
cess in the chapel, and II she is unusually for.
tunate. succeeds in getting q gallery seat dur
Ing the commencement dinner in Alumni Hall.
dents reception In the Art School on Wednes
day evening.