Omaha daily bee., 1903-06-20
LARGEST in ITS HISTORY
Omaha High School Graduates Its Banner
Glass Numerically.
EXERCISES SIMPLE AND APPROPRIATE
Creighton TheRter Packed with
People 20 witness the Closing
scene of It's Local school
Career.

scene of It's Local school
Career.
Cherishing a particular flush of exhulta-
tion because It was the largest class In his
tory, 159 students were graduated from the
Omaha High school last night. The final
exercises we're held at the Creighton thea
ter and the conclusion of their first ed
ucational epoch was observed In orthodox
manner with the girls in white and the
boys in black in tiers upon the stage, a
limited number of orations by members OF
the class, musical numbers by the gradu-
ates and well-seasoned addresses of presen-
tation by the gentlemen who have been In
authority. No stiffness and only con-
venient formality marked the proceedings |
The audience was as big the theater |
would hold and the applause from loving !
hands as frequent propriety would per-
nit Exuberance of the younger class |
men spent itself In a few good-natured
yells. The decorations were confined to |
few palms and roses and carnations on !
the stage and the bright drapery of the !
boxes The affair was well appointed and
well handled and pleasing to the eye and
the ear.
A rather pronounced characteristic of
three orations of the six was their per-
sonal tendency, local men and local condi- !
tions finding favor with Mr.. August Sven
son and Mr.. Roy Sunderland, while Mr..
Sidney Singer defended the Jew with the
right of one OF that race. Mr Sunderland
grafton on THE Future Of Labor Unions
was awaited with, interest by the stage
hands, who were rather lax in their at
| tention to the remainder of the program.
In the Boxes.
The boxes were filled with past and pres
| ent students of the school. Boxes A and
B, adorned with yards of crimson and
| white, held many of the 'O2 class: boxes E
and F, draped in pink and white, members
| OF the Browning society; box c, in blue and
purple, members of the defunct p. L. s.
society; box d. bower of gold and white
and garlands OF daisies, the Alice Carey
! Literary society, and boxes and II,
crowned with green and gold, the members
of the Junior class.
| Rev. John Ross offered the invocation.
The officers of the cadet battalion, in white
| duck trousers. belts and sashes, then filed
| upon the stage and received certificates Of
proficiency in tactics and the manual Of
arms from Superintendent c. G. Pearce,
| who made a brief address. The officers
were: Captains: Hugh E. Wallace, Eugene
Harris, James Fair, Leslie A. Higgins,
Ernest Kelly, Herbert w. Chaffee and AL
| bert Fairbrother. First lieutenants: John
! r. Dumont, also adjutant; Frank r. Cree
! don, also quartermaster; Ralph s. Hart,
also medical aide; Edward NJ. Meyer, also
of the signal corps; Byron X. Eaton, Stan
ley NJ. Rosewater, Morris Taylor. Roy
! Sunderland, Adolph Sachs, Claud II. Rob-
ertson, George E. Clark, Ralph Coher.
l Second Iieutenants: Frank C. Neal. Denton
\ Slaughter. Richard L. WINS, Donald c. Bal
lard and Roy II. Findley.
On Municipal Government.
Politics in Municipal Government" was
the theme of the opening GRAFTON by Mr..
August Swenson. Mr.. Swenson used the
term politics" to apply to national poll
tics, which he urged should be separated
entirely from local affairs He argued that
the intrusion of national party lines into
municipal affairs cannot be but baneful.
1t is used as a lusty campaign cry. he said,
to blind the vital issues and causes the
needs of the city to be forgotten Knowl-
edge and experience should be the criterion
in selecting men for office and the terms
should be no longer. The system according
to the speaker, should be arranged so that
man might devote his entire life to
studying and practicing the science of
municipal government He pointed to GER
tain events in the last campaign in Omaha
as hopeful indication in the right direc-
ton.
Miss Cora Evans played on the piano
"Recollections of Home" by Mills
Miss Ellen True in her grafton dealt with
THE Women of History" She handled the
topic in a general way, using a few ex-
amples. but taking a broad view. She
pointed TO the significant fact that the most
| t0hIx
women Nave been held in the highest es-
TEEN, contrasting the west with the east.
The defeat of Persia at the hands of
Greece in the olden days she attributed to
I the inspiration of women and their tutelage
; as mothers. AS long as China keeps women
in bondage she will remain under a cloud,
in Miss True's opinion, who inferred this
is the sole reason for China's backward
l ness
Miss Emily Cleve's violin solo, 'Hejra
Kati," by Hubay, was encored and she
was forced to respond with another selec-
: ton.
In Defense of the Jews.
Il speak to Justify the wrongs and to de-
stroy the prejudices against a race of which
am proud to be a member" announced
Mr.. Sidney Singer, as he began his oration
on THE Jew" amid burst of applause
Jewish nation had been the equal of any
mentioned names OF the philosophers, poets
musicians and writer's the race has pro-
duced to destroy the assertion that the Jew
is not intellectual, and declared that az
scholars members of the race rank with
= any. For consistency Of religion the jews
have been prosecuted in every land for $50
years, yet they have survived, the very
:. persecution being their salt of preserva ton
= There has been no deterioration in the race
= = according to Mr.. Singer, because the Jew
cannot be crushed The reputed avarice o.
u the Jew is thing Of the past he declared
and asked II there were any more liberia
y. contributors to all kinds of public and pri
= vate institutions than the Jews in justia
u cation for his assertion. Judge the lev
as you would the people of America. Eng
: land OF any other nation" said the speake
: in closing
Harriet Beeeher stoves Influence.
Great beauty of elocution marked Mis-
Madeline Hills grafton on Uncle Tom
Cabin" Her effort was a tender and
beautiful tribute TO Harriet Beecher Stowe