Waterbury evening Democrat., 1903-06-24
THlRTY-FoURTH ANNUAL
Commencement Exercises at Convent
 de Notre Dame Last Night.


 de Notre Dame Last Night.
 The thirty-fourth annual commence ment exercises of the Convent de Notre Dame were held in the grand assembly hall in the convent building last night The Right Rev Bishop Tierney pre- sided and presented to the ten young ladies who have just completed their courses of study premiums of honor.
 The exercises were witnessed by an extra large audience which taxed the seating capacity of the hall beyond limit and occupied all available stand ing room. Bishop Tierney. occupied a seat in the front row, and near him were the Rev Fathers Slocum, Curtin, Crowley, Frederick, Grenier, Martin and Sullivan of Waterbury and Father Nea1e of Terryville. The young lady graduates, who occupied positions on the stage, banked with palms and potted plants, presented pretty picture of youth and blossom. On either side of the hall were seated the undergraduates, attired in white dresses, also the members X of the alumnae. The cozy little hall never looked prettier. It was festooned with WF6aLnE ana nOWcfS. l-At
 The exercises were very interesting and were much enjoyed. The essays by the young ladies showed excellent preparation thorough knowledge of the subject matter and were delivered in a fine and clear style. Especially pleas ing was the essay by the valed1 d1ctorian. @The Rose Garland of the Evanescent- by Miss Anna Bowes, was an allegory 1s~.R. S.,a II, 0A nf youth of to-day to live frivolous, God less and sensuous life, and, by compari- son. showing how much more happi- ness was to be derived from leading a Christian and virtuous life, and in. cluded the following beautiful senti- ment:
 "A thousand touching associations of the past crowd upon us, on this closing day of our school life, fl Hing our hearts with emotions of mingled pain and pleasure. No matter how golden may be the promise of the future that stretches out before us, no matter how glorious may be the destiny awaiting Us in the unknown years to come, eacn one of us, dear graduates, mastered by the sweet recollections of Auld Lang Syne, cannot but feel inclined on this occasion to cry out with the sweet singing bard of Erin:
 {" tNe'er tell me of glories serenely
 adorning
 The close of our day, the calm eve ot
 our night,
 Give me back, give me back, the wild
 freshness of morning,
 Her clouds and her tears are worth
 evenings best light
 Tn the essay by Miss Louise Holohans on the "Olive Branch of the Imperisha- ble," the olive wreaths of the graduates were compared to the olive crowns of. the ancient OIympian victors and also contained this paragraph on character
 We take with us character. Char. acter, that mystical texture of the will. the intellect and the heart, which we were here obliged to weave within us; that grand result of Christian educa- ton, of faithful correspondence with discipline and duty. This is indeed our olive crown of the imperishable, the immortal. On this fadeless wreath, dear bishop, paternal friend, we hum ply beg your blessing."'
 Miss Louise Kilroe,s essay on t"The White Shield of Expectation" showed that this young lady has a deep mind and knows how to impart her knowl-f
 
 handled in an able manner her subject, "Constantia ct Virtute, and spoke with 8 rich emphasis and clear enunci-f ation.
 The music was a feature of the exer- cises. Seldom has Waterburians the pleasure of enjoying such sweet and lovely music <It was delicious and the audience almost went in raptures over 1t. The playing Of the orchestra was worthy of special mention as was the singing of the soloists, the Misses Daly, Heritage and Fay. in the "Vocat Polka" Miss Harrington in the "Jubi- laute," and Miss Loughlin in the "CIass Song. Grand was the playing of Miss Louise Holc1aan, violinist, and Miss Julia Brennan harpist.
 In recitfng the dialogue from the Esther Ira gedie," which was written in French, the graduates manifested an excellent knowledge Of the French lan- guage and spoke with true Parisian ac- cent
 Just before the conclusion of the ex- ercfses few remarks were made to the graduates by Bishop Tierney. He referred to the fact that they were l just now starting out in life and that as they went along they would find many opportunities of doing good. The true and educated women can do much. l They should be the leaders in reform 1 ing women not so good They accom- l plished more in this direction than any other persons. There is a wide field for the educated woman who guides her footsteps along the path suggested 1 by the motto. "Constantfa ct virtute' 7 He admonished them to always remem- 1 Der their motto, to practice what it stands for and to model their lives after those of the good sisters who have so we'll guarded their interests during childhood. Tn conclusion he wished them 8 happy Christian life His re- marks were warmly applauded. The program was as follows: Marche du Commencement ........ 1 ............ Notre Dame orchestra Vocal Polka .... ............ Brahms l Chorus
 'The White Shield of Expectation | MISS hllrOe 1 CaDrice- VaIse .......... Thomas \ y N TD... A.