St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1903-06-17
COMMENCEMENT WEEK.
Sermon TO the Graduating CJass.-Al
umni Reception.-NeMsO Of the Week

umnf kecept1on.-NewsO OF the Week.
The South church was crowded to the
doors Sunday night to listen to the SER
mon to the graduating class by Rev. DR..
S. G. Barnes. The pulpit was very taste
fully decorated with ferns, buttercups
and white peonies.
The text was 2 Tim. III: "For God
gave us not the spirit of iearfulness, but
of power and love and discipline" This
was taken as sketching the character of
the ideal man, fearless and strong. al
ways loving and always learning, find
ing in God the source of courage and
power, of high devotion and aseless
progress.
The address to the graduating class
was as follows: These scenes OF the
closing year are familiar, annually re-
peated in all the history OF the Academy;
familiar for generations and centuries in
the story of the human race. They
hardly 60 back to the beginning, for
primitive man of the stone age probably
did not have an academy; but they Ger.
tainly are coeval with mans recorded
history on this planet. Yet to you they
come as something novel and unique in
your personal experience; conspicuous
instalment of that inheritance of getting
and losing, OF meeting and parting that
transforms the youth into the mature
man. Today your hearts are wistful
and tender, thinking of those who once
were your comrades, but. who have
dropped from your ranks because OF sick.
ness; thinking especially of one whom
the finger of death has touched, and who
has passed to another school in a differ
ent land, Minnie Carpenter, whose men,
ory you cherish; thinking too that those
who now stand by your side will soon be
widely scattered, some in the schools OF
higher learning, Others in the various
walks of life for which yoa have been
seeking preparation during these years.
At such time, when many thoughts are
struggling within us, it is good to be
sobered and steadied by the thought of
responsibility, and to remind ourselves
that our lives are in our hands. So runs
your class motto -"Jeder ist seines
Glueckes Schmied;" every man is the
architect of his own fortune. No man
need fail if any of you do fail, it will be
your own fault. Every man may win
true success if he will, but he must will.
The temple Of your lives must be built by
yourselves; your generation may be lib.
eral in furnishing you the materials, or
you may have to share the exigent ex-
perience of the Israelites who had even
to gather the straw for their bricks; but
whether much or little material is fur
nished you, every brick and stone that
goes into the temple will have to be laid
by your own hands, and whatever of
honor belongs to it will be yours alone.
And yet not alone. For strong tonic
as is the rallying cry" can, must,
will, there is stronger word still,
"God knows, God cares, God helps"
The greatest thing in this world is not
the will of man, but the will of God, and
the human will uniting itself with the
divine will. What can withstand His
will?" and whoever connects himself
with that will must needs succeed.
Hitch your wagon to starr; aye,
follow the chariot of God into the battle,
and defeat is impossible. Ever remember
that the true man is necessarily the self.
made man, no one else can make him,
and win for yourselves the JOY of seeing
the ideal character shaping itself day by
day in response to your unceasing and
indomitable efforts. But ever remember
that the highest style of man is only
possible where man works with God,
working nightly according to the
mighty working of God in him, and
place yourselves in his hands as living
block might commit itself into the hands
of a sculptor, to be shaped into the image
of God. For such soul, life here may
be long or short, visited with earthly
success or with earthly failure; but
amidst all the things that are uncertain,
one thing is sure; the goal of such a life,
its sure end, is place among the spirits
of the just made perfect, it is the crown
of righteousness and the glory of God.
May such be the life of each one of you.
1t is hoped by those having in charge
the arrangements for that occasion that
the Alumni reception and reunion, Fri
day evening, at Academy Hall, will call
out large attendance. The success of
former gatherings of this nature war
rants the expectation of goodly num-
ber this year. Brief remarks by interest
ing speakers, singing by vocalists who
are always heard with pleasure, and
other features will add to the social at.
traction of the evening. AS was stated
last week, it is hoped that the word may
be "passed along" and that those who
might not otherwise be reached by any
form of notice may be notified by their
friends, who are informed as to the occa-
sion.
AS has been the custom heretofore, any
tickets to the graduating exercises which
remain after the members of the grad
uating class have drawn their own will
be placed for distribution at Bingham's,
at p. M, today.
The class of 1902, through one Of its
members, S. E. Richardson, presented to
the Academy, this morning, it's class gift.
This practice has been in vogue for sew
eral years and has resulted in making
the Academy Hall an exceedingly attrac.
tive room. The gift OF the class OF 1902
is in the form of two handsome busts,
one of Washington and the other OF Lin.
coin, placed on brackets of unique and
historic design. They are the work of
the Capron Brothers of Boston, who
have produced so much fine work of an
artistic and decorative character. A
beautiful class banner and the class