The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-06-11
BARNARD GIRL GRADUATES
THE CLASS OF 100 HAD A LIVELY
CoMMES CEMENT TINE.


College. and the new aumnD arc pinching
themselves to be sure that they are really
A. BIS From Saturday until Thursday last
week ease and idleness were words utterly out
OF place in the vocabulary OF the Barnard
senior. Besides various little private enter
prses of her own. she and her twenty other
classmates had a due share. as spectators or
actors. in tho three public exhibitions. two
sermons. Ave public receptions. three class
dinners. two concerts. five large luncheons.
the annual meetings, the dances, and all the
other incidental festivities that made up the
commencement season OF Columbia University.
The exercises began with agymnastic exhi-
bition on Saturday afternoon, an occasion in
tercstng in itself to the spectators. and en-
Joyable also. to the Barnard girls. giving them
an opportunity OF investigating tho commo-
diouS swimming tank, crew rooms. and the
other places usually closed to visitors. On
Sunday, too, the twenty ono girls OF the gradu-
ating class might have been found II sought
diligently. tucked away among their 400 broth
ers. listening TO the baccalaureate sermon
given by the Rov. DR. Mcconnell. Under these
circumstances the girls. II modest. might per.
haps have felt themselves numerically OF
little avail. and might have considered
it fitting to appropriate only small part
Of the sermon to their Individual needs. At
least this would have been the eXpe ricnce Of a
graduate of a woman's college who had passed
successfully through the trials OF four years
and had been rewarded at the end by COM
mencement at which she had been temporarily
the soul. centre and pivot Of the whole college
universe. 1t would have seemed strange in
deed to such one to be obliged to serve
as postscript to the commencement OF q
mans college, but the Barnard girls are well
content with what is theirs. and have no signs
As..I tIz,, a 80
crave They feel certain that they can match
pleasure for pleasure with any graduate of
Vassar. Smith or Wellesley and have few
pleasures left to boot
Could anything have been nicer. for instance.
they would say, than the glorious dance in tho
gymnasium on Monday night. which the Column
hia seniors contrived and managed all by them
selves. leaving to the Barnard girls only the
guests Then the promenades between times
over the cool campus. III with hundreds OF
present such q scene unless the girls had toiled
and fused. harried the caterer. supervised
the hanging OF the lanterns. worried over tho
programmes and attended to all the other hun
bred and one preparations themselves? No.
the. Barnard girl feels that. equipped with
such an object lesson. she can AFFORD to be gen;
erous to other aIumnw. Then, again, could
any woman's college without great eXertion
import such .fne body Of men as the Column
bia seniors? Ii so. why should the representa-
tives OF the feminine gender at any function OF
awoman college commencement outnumber
A Barnard girl who has studied logic and
philosophy under Columbia professors is not
going to Weld to any i-founded argument OF
superiority. and II you ask her she will main
tain stoutly that no one eyer had nicer com
that it was really almost like a commencement
IN com mencement You had the distinction
OF sitting in a good seat. for example. at the
class day exercises. where you could hear all the
speeches and prophecies and Jokes and see all
the remembrances given one day to the Column
bia seniors. and the next day you could do 1t all
over again yourself at Barnard. Her eyes will
glisten as she speaks Of class day. Tor 1t was
really a very merry afternoon. The exercises
mometer stood somewhere about !S'. but the
heat seemed only to make the orators moro
Miss Virginia CrOcheron Gldersleeve. Presi-
dent OF the class, gave tn, the solutatn3ry tory:
Adelaide Camilla Hoffman. the Secretary.
called the roll and Miss Gildersleeve. ap
nsar,e red, once more as class hs,oriop Delight,
from time to time. and the friends OF the class
as well as its members were ready to vote the
written BY Miss Alice Duer. followed
NJ ISIS Marjorie Jacob. the class prophet. was
finished no eirI f"t doubtful Of her future ire.
The Class Poem, by Mi IS Grace Harriet Good
ale made the girls feel anlet and thoughtfnl
dispcled hy the whimsical speeches and Jokes
of Miss Adelaide Camilla Hoffman, who man
nounced at the beginning that no one Of tho
class need feel neglected. as not one had been
tempered their mirth over tn" Jokes OF their
classmate not knowing what the unGanly bum
dies in the clothes basket might have in store
being also fond of golf. received a driver led
with an ostentatious bow Of green aud white
ribbon. the class coors. The girl who was
ever ready for any emergency that col;
leg" or life might have to offer walked
ar her p 20 suae 'FUnf % caH Of
baked beans with tomato sauc" The
student who was reported 70 have been SO
that she had found it almost impossible to
have an .uninterrupted moment was, pre-;
to keep them away. ON the side toward
!hS taudicnce; in great letters was the legend,
row "t henTt T nerced nv TSa snE
bore it away with the blank side toward her.
and her blush Of sunrise when she turned It
begged ratheticaliy that there should be moth
the historian regretted 10 say that the request
snn come too late pf the
was Finished. ali of 20 and rs many
Of the '0S girls az were present joined In sing
ing tho senior parting song sung for the first
II II III" I9r.ors md corridors Of Nilhank Han
served the guests with cool things to drink and
FL s sanofy HS aH tEc Of nS N ~
class day. BUT 1t was precedent cs
tablished with such n struggle between
those favorng cap and gown for class
day and those desiring cool white muslins
that the c!as. was almost torn asundcr by the
shock. The different factions finally compro-
missed by wearing their pretty gowns at the
dance z ven 10y Barnard on the evening OF class
day, and peace spread its wings over the class
OF !'S before It separated But If any Of tho
~ anti-cap- and- gownSts were present last
Tuesday afternoon they must have smiled
smiles of malicious sati faction when they saw
the seniors slowly melting before their ewes in
their thick robes OF black, while they them
selves ate ices and enjoyed the airiness OF their
iasrinatlng girlish' OrgardieS.
The class day exercises were the most char
acteristic ~ the week for the Barnard seniors.
Tor in these they met together aS Il class to re-
call and strengthen class relations and to show
themselves as n unit to their friends. They
held dance In the evening and tn" next day
merged again with tn" different departments
OF Columbia and became but an incident to the
endless procession OF men that marched down
the library stops and into the gymnasium TO
receive the degrees that they had earned.
After the formal exercises the Barnard seniors
had luncheon and SAID their last good bys,
with no observers to cmharrass them.
Barnard this year shows SO many changes
that. II they should continue in like proper
ton, the college will hardly know itself in a
few years FisEe Hall has ho"u opened and
weathrrcd most successfully its first year in