The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-06-19
BUTLER COMMENCEMENT
SOCIAL EVENTS I'LL IN THE LAST
DAY OF SCHOOL.
Concluding Exercises and Comforting
of Degrees at the College-stock-
holders Meeting To-day.

The forty-eighth annual commencement
of Butler College came to a close yester-
day morning. A number of social events
occurred yesterday afternoon and last
night, but the final exercises were the COM
mencement address and the presentation of
diplomas to the seniors. Long before Harris
Orchestra struck up the opening music, the
chapel and gallery were crowded. There
were twenty-five members i'm the senior
class. and in addition the degree of master
of arts was conferred upon Harry o.
Pritchard. 'O2. and John Peter Meyers. 'O1.
and the degree of doctor of laws upon James
r. Challen. Those receiving the degree of
bachelor of arts We're: Edith Abbott. Chi
cago, ILL.,; Mary Baldwin, Indianapolis;
Charles Allen Barnett. Vevay; verle Will
son Blair. Plainfield: Ruth Braden, Indian
apolis; Josephine Bower Garfield, Indian
apolis; Rosa Dark, Indianapolis; Helen
Downing, Greenfield; Earle Mason Edison,
North Bend. Neb.; Pearl Leroy FOUGHT. Up
per Sandusky, o.; Katherine Griffin, Green
field; Henry Lewis Herod, Indianapolis;
Long, indianapolis; Jasper Turney' Moses,
Indianapolis; Wayne Dee Parker. Rensse-
laer; Sara Charlotte Powell. indianapolis.
James Garfield Randall indianapolis;
nellie Senour, Indianapolis; Charles Eu-
gene Underwood, Pennville; Chester Gar
field Vernier, Liberty; Arthur Ewing
Waters, North Salem.
The invocation was read by Rev. Lewis
Brown, of St. Pauls Church, after which
President Scot Butler introduced the orator
of the occasion, Rev. Jesse j. Haley, of
Cynthiana, KY, associate editor of the
Christian Century.
REV. JESSE ]. HALEY'S ADDRESS.
The subject of his address was 1.-The
Problem Of Life from the Modern Point
of View" Mr.. Haley said, in part:
Life is an opportunity to acquire knowl-
edge as a means of growth. Every college
is a monument to the fact that man is here
universe In which he lives. Ignorance is
sin, and in the twentieth century it is the
objectionable sin. Ignorance stops growth
and stunts development, and must itself
amongst the young men and women of our
day, IL not a molluse, is a monstrosity.
He or she is a belated specimen that 1t
would puzzle a naturalist to classify. No
age has equaled ours in it's facilities for the
acquisition of knowledge. Plato rejoiced
that he was human and not a beast, male
and not a female, Greek and not a Bar
barian, and a citizen of Athens in the time
Of Socrates. But what was all that to being
an American citizen of Anglo-Saxon blood,
of the Christian Church, in the glorious
ter fifty years a common man in the United
States than a hundred years of Plato's
genius in the Athens of the time of SOcrateSi
Where. with our graded schools, seminaries,
academies, colleges, universities, the print
ing press pouring out an incessant stream of
literature discussing all kinds of questions
and making all kinds of knowledge avail
able, there is no excuse for a lack of either
education or information. knowledge is in
the air. and If a man cannot take it in
through his brain the pOrosity of his skin
should do duty as a useful absOrbant. II
he have no head, his hide may stand i'm as
a substitute. Ignorance, / repeat, is the UNI
p~ardonable sin of the twentieth century,
for If a man does not know he cannot
grow.
Life, according to this modern interpreted
ton. is an opportunity not only to acquire
knowledge as a means of growth, but to
build character as the end of growth. In
fact. the end and purpose of education. re-
ligion, civilization. life itself, is the evolu-
ton OF manhood, the perfection of charac-
In character. 1t is the only salvation worth
having or to be had. 1t is the greatest
thing in the world, the basis of everything.
and the end for which all other things were
made. the far-off divine event TO which
the whole creation moves, Is the ideal
brought down to the real I'm human life. If
you were endowed with the genius of Ho-
mer, the wisdom of Solomon, the wealth OF
Croesus. the learning of all the schools and
the tabled years OF the wandering Jew, and
had not character, 1t would profit you moth
Ing. Your life would be a failure at the
one point where failure would be hopeless
and incalculable. Knowledge without char
ecter would make a Jobs Satan or a Goe-
the's Mephistopheles only the two COM
bined could make a Christ or a Christian.
The greatest passage in all literature is
this short one I'm the margin of the book
OF Ecclesiastics God hath put eternity into
the heart of man. If we fail to recognize
this and to build upon it, the pessimistic
philosophy of life will best fit into the facts
Of our history Life, according to this Christ
learned from the Master, is not only an
opportunity to acquire knowledge as a
means of growth and to develop manhood
as the end of growth; ii is an opportunity
TO render service as the supreme mission of
the growing man. 1t was a saying of Car
man is BORN But hell is not 50 easily
given TO 'shudders,' for hell must be per-
fectly aware by this time that thinking
men can easily be tempted to devote all
their thoughts TO matters and problems
which in their solution will be no menace
to her own authority. When educated and
Thoughtful young men and women go out
from our colleges, whose thoughts and aims
are consecrated TO the highest ends of ex-
istence. hell may wisely take TO shudder-
ing, for there is no influence so destructive
to the powers of darkness or so potent in
the extension of the kingdom Of God. In
spired personality Is the great power Of the
world. and one educated man or woman.
IL their moral culture equals their inteIli-
| gence, IL their faith matches their learning,
can redeem a whole community from the
animalism and sordidness that ends In
death. Hitch your chariot to a star young
| means by that poetic phrase, aim high. LEI
| your ideals be great and lofty. and then
when you lift yourself higher. you will lift
others with YOU. The hero of one of Ibsen's
| life are hopelessly irreconcilable with high
faith and lefty principle. and man must
| choose between being sordidly practical and
] nobly fanatical-' l do not believe that thai