The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1908-01-25
TROUBLE At A. & N. COLLEGE
Statement Of President Hardy az to
His Action in the Case.

His Action in the Case.
Agricultural College, Miss, Jan. IS, 1905
To the People of Mississippi:
deem it my duty, in addition to sent
ing a circular letter to each patron O
the college, to give to the public, who ar
almost equally interested in the welfar
OF this great institution, the facts as
see them leading up to the late unpleas
antness.
Nearly all newspaper reports have in
dicated that there was a miscon,eptio,
of the nature of the real issue. TIL,
waters have been greatly muddied. There
never has been any conflict between tn,
president of the college and the senio,
class, nor between the president of the
college and The great student body. The
senior class and student body, not seeing
the under-currents that were perfectly
visible to the president, had misinter
preted his motives, and therefore he
never blamed the senior class nor the
student body for the position they as.
sumed relative to his action in having
Mr.. Blanton to withdraw. And while
every student, from the highest to the
lowest, was in an unlawful combination.
contrary to the college regulations, which
prohibit combinations for redress of
grievances, the president did not under
take to punish any one for such combina-
tions, nor will he.
The following is a brief synopsis of
the whole matter:
On the afternoon of December 18th
there was presented to the president by
a committee of the senior class a set of
resolutions, calling his attention to the
conditions of tie old mess hall. The
resolutions were presented by Cadet 1t.
Col. S. c. Ward, Maj. J. NJ. Rigby and
Capt. f. r. Blanton. The president told
them that they could not condemn the
old mess hail in more severe terms than
he had condemned it in his report to the
board of trustees, which resulted in the
transferring of the funds that were in
tended for a new chemical laboratory
to a new mess hall, which will be ready
for occupancy now within n very few
weeks. He told them that he had al
ready employed a new cook at a salary
of nearly II hundred dollars per month,
who would be here on December 2Sth
land the cook came at that date). He
told them that the steward, of whom
the resolutions complained very bitterly,
was of their own selection; that the
board of trustees had selected him be-
cause of their unanimous petition, and
that they had approved him twice within
the last year; first, when the board met
on December Sd, 1906, Immediately after /
Mr.. Gallaway's death, to elect a steward;
and again at the close of last session,
which was less than three scholastic
months previous to this very time; that
only one student had ever complained
to him of the ineffciency of the stew
ard, and that the president had men,
toned the subject to this student, Mai.
J. NJ. Rigby, Before his opinion was ex-
The president told him that
re had come to the conclusion that the
steward was lacking in executive abil-
ty, and that he had already informed
he steward and the board, and was on
he lookout for a capable man, and that
'uch a n would be employed as soon
s he could be located.
The president told them that the board
# trustees and himself, together with
Professor Ard, were doing all in their s
'ower to hasten the completion of the
mess hall, which, with the new 1
auipment that was being put in at a S
ost of more than four Thousand dollars, t
-ould give them the best and most COM b
lete mess hall in the South. The pres i
lent told them that in view of all these v
acts it seemed to him that they had f
ecomc unduly impatient, and the presi-
felt that their petition was an a
nnatural one, which could be &C r.
,unted for only by the theory that il
hey had been poorly advised. The P
resident thought, and still thinks, that c.
re senior class and the entire student b
ody were honest in their efforts, and a
ere entirely ignorant of any improper o.
1~1uences that were at work, and there Il
re the president never blamed a single a
an for signing TIE resolutions, or for CT
'esenting the resolutions, nor had he II
'er thought OF Furnishing a single man j,
any connection with the affair. There t.
never a month that passes here that b.
of some kind do not reach the al
of the college, and never in Ok
history of the college has a single al
y been punished either for presenting ii
oh petitions or for signing such petit cl
tn
The resolutions were presented De-
mber 18th, as stated above, and in five OF
inutes after those presenting the reso> to
lions were out of the presidents office ad