Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1908-01-23

Statement Of President Hardy a. to
His Action in the Case.

Statement Of President Hardy a. to
His Action in the Case
Agricultural COLLEGE. Miss. ian. is. 1905.
To the People of Mississippi:
deem ii my duty. in addition 20 sen,l-
ing circular letter to each patron Of
the collere, TO give to the public. who arr
almost equally interested in the welfare
OF thi. great institution. the fact. a. I
ses them leadiug up TO the late unpless-
sntness.
Nearly all newspaper reports have in
d'csted that thsre was a mi.couception
Of the nature of the real issue. The
waters have hsen xrratly mu,Iiiesi. There
never has bsen any conaset between the
Prssid~nt Of the collegv aud the senior
class. nor between the president Of ths
coliege and ths srra, student body. The
ssnior class and student body. not -eeinx
the under-eurEents that we're perfectly
visible ta The pr~-il~nt. had nHisintsr-
Preted his motives. ami therefore he
never blamed the -.Hior class nor the
studen, body for thu position they as
sumed relative 20 hrs action IN having
Mr.. Blsnton to withdraw. And while
every stu'ient. from the highest 10 the
lowest. wss in an unlawful combination.
contrary TO the college regulations. which
prohibit combinations for re,irs-s Of
grisvsRces. the president did not under.
take to punish any oue for such combina-
tions. nor will he
The following j. a brief synopsis Of
thu whole matter;
I'm the Afternoon Of D~cembcr t1th
there was presented to tn. president by
a committee Of the senior class set Of
resolutions. calling his attention to the
conditions of the old mess hall. The
resolutions We're presented by Cadet 1t.
Col ;. c. Ward. Maj J. W. Rigby and
Capt. p Il BlantOn. The president told
them that they could not condemn the
old mess hall in more severe terms than
he had condemned il 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 a very few
weeks. He told them that he had al
ready employed a new cook at a salary
Of nearly one hundred dollars per month.
who would be here on December 2sth
land the cook came at that date). lie
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 Decembsr 3d. 1906, Immediately after
Mr.. Gallawsy's death, to elect a steward;
and again at the close of last session,
which was le-s than three scholastic
months previous To this very time; that
only one student had ever complained
to him of the inefheiency Of the stew
ard. and that the president had men
toned the subject to this student, Maj.
J. VI. Rigby. before his opinion was ex-
pressed. The president told him that
he had come to the conclusion that the
steward was lacking in executive abil-
ity, and that he had already informed
the steward and the board, and was on
the lookout for capable man. and that
such a one would be employed as soon
as he could be located
The president told them that the board
of trustees and himself. together with
Professor Ard, were doing all in their
power to hasten the completion of the
new mess hall, which, with the new
equipment that was being put in at
cost OF more than four thousand dollars,
would give them the best and most COM
plete mess hall in the South. The pres-
ident told them that in view of all these
facts it seemed to him that they had
become unduly impatient, and the presi-
dent felt that their petition was an
unnatural. one. which could be ac
counted for only by the theory that
they had been poorly advised The
president thought. and still thinks, that
the senior class and the entire student
body were honest in their efforts, and
were entirely ignorant Of any improper
Influences that were at work, and there
fore the president never blamed a single
man for signing the resolutions, or for
presenting the resolutions, nor had he
ever thought OF furnishing a single man
for any connection with the affair. There
Is never a month that passes here that
petitions Of some kind do not reach the
executive Of the college, and never in
the history Of the college has a single
boy been punished either for presenting
such petitions or for signing such petit
tons.
The resolutions were presented De-
eember 18th, as stated above, and in i've
minutes after those presenting the reso-
lutions were out of the presidents Office
he had the steward before him and gave
him a very severe lecture for allowing
conditions to become worse, and in
structed him to get extra help and put
the mess hall in the verv best possible
To Make Bath sllppers-
From a bath towel which Is worn In