The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1903-10-12
Plant Their Beloved Flag
in Dead of Night.
FLOATS FROM SPIRE OF COLLEGE
'Deviling Committee" Had Charge Of
Last Nights Fun Which Was Car
ried Out so Successfully.

The Freshman flag floats in triumph
| from the spire of Whitman Memorial
| building. To the class of naughty
seven belongs the honor of planting
their banner in this heretofore mac
cessible place, At midnight last night
IL freshies gathered silently behind
the building and quickly brought to-
gether ladders, wires and ropes
which had been carefully secreted.
Four of the longest ladders in town
had been obtained and these were
dashed together and access to the
steep roof of the Memorial building
quickly gained. The freshmen are ex-
tremely reticent as to what they did
next but it has leaked out that they
dashed the four ladders together again
on top of the building and swung
them up to . the roof of the tower.
Then one of their number climbed the
ladder with the banner attached to
light pole 20 feet long, and arrang-
ed with wire hooks at the top to fas-
ten upon the weather vane. 1t was
the most daring feat ever attempted
in the history of the college perhaps.
Slowly he crawled up the rickety lad
ders encouraged by his comrades be-
low and finally dashed at the top Of
the swaying ladder 100 feet from the
ground he was near enough to slip
the loop Of the wire over one Of the
projections on the weather vane and
to fasten it there by tangling up the
other end Of the wire in the lettering
below the vane. 1t was a fearfully
risky piece Of business not onlyl for
the climber but for all who assisted
him on the steep slippery roof. The
class are very reticent about giving
the name Of the steeple mounter but
it was probably W. Merritt, of Walla
Walla. The dauntless dozen who did
the deed were O'Neill. Kennedy,
Graham, Wilkinson, Howard Merritt,
Vale Merritt, Dodd, Wolfe, ]. Ly-
man, Jameson, Niles and Wolfe.
A DeviIng Committee.
The trick was admirably planned
and admirably executed. At fresh
man class meeting a short time since
a fair freshman moved that com
mittee be appointed to devil the soph-
omores." The motion carried and the
"Deviling Committee" had charge of
last nights affair. None but the COM
mittee knew anything about the plans
until late last night and then they
quietly chose their assistants and at
3 o'clock this morning the flag was
up. Material had been collected In
abundance so that nothing was lack
ing at the proper time. 1t is said that
nearly half mile Of rope was on
hand.
The Freshmen Sleepy and Happy.
The freshmen are very much elated
over the feat. They are little the
biggest thing about the campus to-
day. They began to let off some VI
their pent up happiness at halfpast
four this morning by waking up
everybody in the dormitories with a
Boom a doodle rat a ia!
Sophie don't know where he's at,
Hobble. Gobble! Sis boom bluff.
Naughty seven. That's the stuff
They declare that the Sophs can
never get the flag down but are omit
ting no precaution to see that they
don't. Four men are On guard in the
tower of the building near the bell.
Should the naughty siXers attempt to
rush them they will ring the tower
o1o To hni
assistance 1t is their intention to
keep the flag up there "a hours at all
hazards and blankets were taken up
into the tower for the watchers to-
night. Breawfast and dinner were
sent up to them in a basket.
The Sophomores Determined.
The Sophies are fewer in number
but declare that the flag must come
down. One prominent Sophomore
said to a Statesman reporter, I'VE are
not dismayed. We are going to have
it, They held a meeting at noon to
decide on a course of action. One
thing that adds to the chagrin of the
Sophomores is the fact that for the
| last two weeks they have had watch
ers out until II o'clock every night,
but they knew nothing of the trick
the Freshies had turned until break
fast time this morning. Singularly
enough the class of 1906 has no rep
resentative among the boys at Bill
| lings now which accounts for the fact
that the Freshie doings were undis-
covered until so late an hour.
Some interesting doings are in pros
pect during the next "a hours for both
classes are resourceful and deter
| mined.
The Sophomore believe that the
flag was put up through a hole in the
tower roof and they plan to get it
down again in like manner later in
| the day.