The Washington times., 1901-07-14
HARVARD'S SROLL OF HONOR.
Sixty-eight Names on the Roster
of the Senior Alumni"

Heads the List-An Impressive
commencement Fcature-The An
uuaI Procession to Memorial Hall.
CAMBRIDGE. Mass. July lS.-The
most impressive feature of the Har-
ward commencement exercises is the
,rocession of the classes in the order
of seniority from the college yard 10
the alumni dinner in Memorial Hall
The procession ferns at the corner Cf
Massachusetts, Hall, the oldest build
ing now standing in TIE yard, and
marches half around the quadrangle be-
fore It issues into the street. 1t is head
ed by a brass band, behind which are
the faculty, the guests OF the Alumni
ssociatiCn-including those who lave
received an honorary degree at the
morning eXercises-and the sherlfts OF
Middlesex and Suffolk. the counties re
spectively of Cambridge and Boston.
The graduates follow, the scattering
few who represent the classes Of nifty or
sixty years ago being succeeded by con
stantly larger and larger delegations
until the youthful companies from the
classes Of the last decade are reached
al the close.
By a custom Of many years st1qi-
ing those who do not join the prcceS-
sion to the dinner are supposed 10 cheer
the passing procession, class by class,
as it passes in front Of University Hall
From year to year, now one ctANs, now
another. is received with special en-
thusiasm-a few years ago the class
of 1877, perhaps, with William E. Rus
sell as its most popular member, ami
this last year the class Of 1881 in which
Mr.. Roosevelt walked for The first time
since being elected Vice President. But
the cheer for the oldest graduates, the
little body of venerable mea walking at
tht head of the line, always SEEMS the
heartiest and most sincere. They com
pose the portion OF the procession 10
vi ich all the rest in=N iIably tends;
tIey are the living repositories Of the
ancient traditions which HarNart me1
talk about, perhaps, tEt little, but
which are really the most cherished
possession of the university. They are
evidently nearing the goal which to
reach means 10 become ;he oldest iiv-
ing graduate"
BY the term oldest living graduate"
however. is usually meant not the grad
uate of the college who has attained the
greatest number Of years. bat the one
who represents the earliest class;
strictly speaking, he should be called
the senior alumnus, since he ranks not
by priority Of age. SuC Of graduation.
a complete list of the senior alumni ter
the time being during The last 200 years
has recently been completed. beginning
with Comfort Star Of the class Of 1911
fifty years before any other American
college had been founded-who died in
England in III, down to Joseph W
Cross, of the class Of 1928, who is still
living. In all there are sixty-eight
names in this roster, making an aver
age OF almost exactly three years for
the two centuries which, roughly speak
ing, the record comprises. Thomas
Cheever, of the class OF 1877, held the
position longest. succeeding Samuel
Andrew, CT the class Of 1915, whose
death occurred in January, 173s, and
himself dying in December. I749. the
interval between the two deaths being
a day or two over eleven years and
eleven months. Oxenbridge ThacEer,
OF the class of 1898, survived his prede-
cessor, Salmon Treat, Of the class Of
1854. by a little over ten years. On the
other hand, Benjamin Willis, Of the
class of l740, ouuiyed his classmata,
Samuel Hale, by just three days. the
former dying July 13 and the latter July
10. 1907. But perhaps the list for the
11~-
be sufficiently interesting TO print en-
tire, for the reader TO extract his own
statistics 1t is here given, accordingly, i
each name accompanied b. the date Of
graduation and of death:
Tladdeus Mason. I72s, Is02 May / Joseph Lee,
1I2S, lst2. December 5: Samuel Miles. l73l, 1904
May; joseph Gardner, ls32. lrJ5. April 3; samuel
Hale. I7s0. 1891, July 70; Benjamin Willis, 1870
Jsjs, July i3; Joseph Roberts, I7sI ISL. April
20; David Phps, I74l, ISL, July = Joseph Waldo
I74I, Isle April; Peter FRYE. l744 1870 Feb
Tuary !; Nehemiah Porter. I785, Is20. February
29i Edward A Holy0ke, 1876, ls2g. March 81;
Paine Ninzate, Il59 Is5s, March Z: samson ;
Blowers, l'eS; 1872 October 25i Ezra GTeen,
les. lo44, July 255 Timothy Farrar. 1861. ls4g.
February p; James Lowell, 100. $50 July 10;
John Nelles. l5s2. 1875, September =; Asa An
drews, lIs8. lsj6, January IS; Jacob Norton,
l7s6 Is5s. January Il; Abiel Abbott, I7s7. 1859,
January u William SAWYER I7ss 1883 April Is:
Josiah Quincy. I7s9. 1864. July !; samuel
Thatcher. lltS, lel2, july Is; Horace B.uuey.
1871, Is75. August u; Thomas AspinwalI, lsOi
Is56 August ); William Freeman. 1904. 1879,
February y: Joseph Head, ls0i, Iss2, April II;
William Thomas ls97. IsS2, September %;
William Perry. ISL, 1851 January II; William r.
Sever. ISL IsS7, October ,; William Goddard
Isl5 l-ss. Nay 2; William ". Allen. IsI- Isss,
November .. samuel Z. Sevel. lsl7 lass. De
cernber 1Ji George Bancroft. lsI7 IsJl January
II; Frederick A. Farley. ISIS, 1872 March "A;
william II. FUuIiss, ls2J 1885. January 30:
Samuel " Chandler, ls2Z, 100. April 10; Joseph
W. Cross. Iszs.
II is curious 20 note in this list that
the senior alumnus Of 1900 graduated in
152S. ana his successor in 1900 graduated
in 1szS-each Of them, that is, seventy
two years out of college. Only four
Of the senior alumni have been ccnte-
narians: Edward A. Holyoke, 1746. 100
years months; Samson s. Blowers,
1853. 100 years months: Ezra Green.
1865, 100 years month; and Timothy
Farrar. 1867. 101 years months.
THE DANUBE'S GATES.