The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1907-05-31
Messenger Bureau,

IldItl1Ht " ~ S
The commencement exercises at the
Agricultural and Mechanical college
were held today in the Pullen Memo
rial hall. President Winston. in his
address to the graduates. gave a mum
Der of interesting facts. He said that
the graduating class, 81 in number,
were the survivors Of 250 who had en-
tered the college four years e and
that the college cours was a great
test of the capacity and endurance OF
a boy. The average age of the grad
Mating class is % IL years and the
average age of all the students in the
college is 20 1-3 years. He regards this
as probably the highest average in the
south. DR.. Winston stated that this
had been the best year in the college
history, that not a death or a serious
Illness had occurred among the stu
dents, teachers or employees, totaling
nearly 600. Orations were delivered by
three of the 50 graduates. these being
c.. L. Garner, Of Beaufort; J. E. Tur-
lington, of Johnston county, and w.
B. Truitt. The latter was awarded the
gold medal for the best grafton.
He and Garner won the highest hon-
ors in scholarship during the four
years course. l.. A. Virgins won the
first prize and G.. w. Hill the second
for earning the most money by agri-
cultural labor.
A charter is granted the Young
Woman's Christian Association Ct
Asheville. 1t has no capital stock and
intends to erect a building for its uses
Another charter is to the Wolf Rock
Granite company Of Wilkes county,
capital stock $40O,00O 1t will be Or
ganized at Mount Airy. G. w. Hin
shaw, William Woodroffe and Thomas
WoOdroffe are the stockholders. The
Ford Undertaking company, Gastonia,
rs. 900 The Riddle, Boiling & Brown
Company, Siler City, general merchan.
disc, $4,000.
In the: Pittman auditorium at st.
Mary's there were 625 seated persons,
but at the dedication last night over
a thousand were in the building. On
a bronze tablet at the main entrance
is the following inscription. eliza
Battle Pittman; born March Ord. 1863
Died July 3rd 1883. In this building
a mothers love commentaries Il
daughters virtues" This building
greatly adorns the beautiful campus of
St. Mary's female school, which is cas-
lily one of the most beautiful places in
Raleigh. The. commencement this
year is more largely attended than eve
before and the new building is OF
great value in every way.
Your correspondent furnishes the
Memphis Commercial-Appeal, the
great paper of the Mississippi valley
with cotton reports covering North
Carolina each week. That paper pub
fishes nearly 20 columns Of the cotton
crop of the country this week. It's re-
ports show that the cotton crop is
20 days late, has been replanted large
ly; that there is a slight decrease in
acreage, that the vitality of the plant
is low. that the stands in general are
rather unsatisfactory; that in many
places planting is yet in progress, and
that cultivation is greatly delayed by
h late start.
The Brotherhood of Locomotive En-
gineers has pledged itself to the eX-
Denses of the analysis Of the contents
of the stomach of c.. r. Strange, engin,
eer, whose death is strongly suspected
by them to have been due to poison.
An analysis in such a case is costly,
the expense being 1t least 5000 it is
said.
At st. Mary'G female school toda.,
there were class day exercises and
these of the alumnae. The feature of
the evening was the dedication of the
Pittman Memorial building, with the
address by Bishop Nelson, of Georgia.
Confederate veterans in large num-
bers left today for the great reunion
at Richmond. \ number Of these who
went from here had pine branches in
their hats. Three went from the
Soldiers Home. The local camp took
the confederate veteran drum corps
from mere. t ; i