The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-05-22
THE FIRST CLASS
WAS GRADUATED
From the Baptist female Uni
versity Yesterday.
DR.. VANN'SFINAL CHARGE
Two Able Essays Read by Miss Wooten
and Miss Shields.
LOVELY MUSIC FILLED THE INTERIMS
Graduating Class Yesterday Afternoon Organ
lied the AIumnae Association. Faculty
and Trustees BarqIet the
Grad Iates.

Grad JateS.
The graduating exercises of the Baptist
Female University yesterday morning
were very impressive and very beautiful.
AS at all of the other commercemen:s
ceremonies this week. there was big
crowd, and everything went off with the
utmost dispatch and smoothness. The
chapel presented lovely appearance,
with its decorations of flowers. One side
of the room was reserved for the stu
dents, nearby all of whom wore white.
The seniors sat on the platform and it
was pretty background they made in
their white summer dresses.
The exercises yesterday were especially
notable from the fact that this is the
first class to go out from the Baptist
Female University. This fact was beau
tifully touched upon by DR.. T. E. Skin
ner in his opening prayer and by DR..
Vann in his baccaleaureate address.
At eleven o'clock the procession Of
seniors, led by DR.. R. T. Vann, pres-
dent of the University, and DR.. T. E.
Skinner of this city, and ushered by two
young ladies of the junior class. came
MP the aisle and took seats upon the
platform. After the reading of scripture
in Proverbs. and prayer by DIR. Skinner,
Miss Eliza Rebecca Wooten, of LAGRANGE
read an essay entitled "The Jew: A Lit
crary Study"
Miss Wooten in very able and eX-
quisitely worded paper contrasted Mar
loves treatment of Barabas in THE Jew
of Melta'' with Shakespeares picture of
Shylock in "The Merchant of Venice"
The Savageness and inhuman passions
of the one were compared with the more
life-like and human nature of the other.
Then a view of the Jew from the intel
1ectual standpoint was shown in Les
sings character OF Nathan the Wise.
At the conclusion of Miss Wooten's
essay, Miss Hattie Purefoy rendered most
faultlessly on the piano Griegs Berceuse
and The Enchantress of Jeusen.
An essay on 1.-TWO Exponents of Saxon
and Teutone Races" was then read with
great ease and power by Miss Margaret
w. Shields. of Scotland Neck. She Sc
lected. Shakespeare and Goethe as the
two exponents of the great races, and
compared the simplicity of the English
playwright with the culture and vast
depth of the German poet and dramatst.
1t was a fine piece of work.
Prof Kesler, conferred diplomas upon the
following graduates;
Margery Kesler, summa cum laude.
B.A.4
Mary Estelle Johnson. Elizabeth Par
ker. Rosa Catherine Paschall. cum laude;
Mary Perry, Margaret w. Shields, cum
laude: Minnie Wilma Sutton, Elizabeth
Gladys Tull, Eliza Rebecca Wooten, So
phie Stephens Lanneau, summa cum aude
Diploma in Music--Virginia Grayson
Diplomas in Art-Beulah Beatrice Bow
den. Elizabeth Parker
Certificate in Muisc-Jessie Thomas
Brewer.
Certificates in Art-Minnie Daniel Nell
Gray Ezzell.
Certificates in Business-Ada Parker,
Dora l.. Parker. Phereby Potter.
Certificates in Shorthand-Margaret Lee
Cain, Emma Harrington, Rosa Williams
Phillips. May Bennett Royster, Sarah
Tatum, Lillian Louise Woody.
Cum laude" was explained to mean
that a percentage of never less than 81
had been made in all grades, and
s'Summa cum laude'' that percentage OF
never less than 95 had been made in all
grades.
Besides the two essays read, the sub
jects of the seniors theses were given out
as follows:
A Study of Method and Personality
Mary Estelle Johnson.
The Mosquito in It's Relation to Dis
ease-Margery Kesler
Anaximander and his Theories-Sophic
stephens Lanneau.
Some Abuses of Our Pension System
Elizabeth Parker
Lyric Poets and Poetry-Mary Perry.
The Evolution of the Right Triangle
Rosa Catherine Paschall.
The Modern Poetic Drama-Minnie
Wilma Sutton.
The Poets of the Victorian Rennais-
sance-Elizabeth Gladys Tull.
After the diplomas had been all con-
ferred. DR.. VanD delivered his farewell
charge to the first class to leave the
University, as follows