Daily Arizona silver belt., 1910-05-15
Berkeley Institution Com pletes Half Century
 of Existence
CELEBRATION FOR
 WEEK IS PLANNED
Has Grown from Humble Beginning to Great Ed
 ucational Center

BERKELEY, Cal, May 14-A weeks celebration of the golden jubi- lee of the University of California was ] begun today in commemoration of the founding of the institution and the work it has accomplished during the fifty years of its existence. Hundreds of graduates and other friends of the university are returning for the semi centennial celebration. In honor of the i occasion the city of Berkeley as well as the college buildings and grounds is profusely decorated in the university colors, blue and gold.
 The program prepared for the celebra- tion is replete with interesting and at tractive features and includes the reg ular commencement exercises of the un- iversity. The senior ball, the presen- tation of a Greek play and a big ath- letic meet on California field are among the events scheduled for the remainder of this week. The athletic meet is to be held tomorrow and will have as it's participants the crack athletes of the five great universities of the Pacific coast-W Washington, Nevada, Oregon, Stanford and California.
 The baccalaureate sermon is to be de- livered Sunday and on the following day there will be numerous class and fraternity reunions and other affairs of a social nature.
 Tuesday has been set aside for the main exercises of the golden jubilee celebration. The days program will be gin in the morning with the delivery of the jubilee address by President Ar thur T. Hadley of Yale university.
 In the afternoon ''good of the un- iversity" will be held in the Greek the ater.
 A monster Illuminated parade Tues day night, marching through the streets of Berkeley and across the campus, will furnish the big spectacular feature of the celebration. The pageant promises to be one of the most magnificent af- fairs of its kind ever seen in this sec tion of the country. A huge dragon, manipulated by students of the univer- sity from China, VIII be one of the special features. The Japanese students will also have a unique float in the pageant and the Indian students and luG CHJduiSH sbuu6uIS VIII unique features. At the conclusion of the pageant there will be a grand pyro- technic display on the university camp us
 The university was founded first as the College of California, and from a humble position has grown to be one of the most important centers of educa- tion in the United States, while among its graduates are numbered scores of men who have distinguished themselves in the professions, in commercial life and in the political world.
 The ''father of the university" was Professor Henry Durant, who estab- lished school in Oakland in 1853. The College of California was, through his influence and suggestion, incorporated in 1855, and he was enabled to bring about the organization as working institution some four or five years later. Prof. Durant continued his connection with the institution until he was en- abled to bring about the consummation of his hopes by merging it into the Uni versity of California. This he accomp- lished in 1869 when the College of California, which up to then had been maintained as private corporation, transferred its rights to the University of California, which had been organized and approved by the legislature the year before. Prof. Durant became the first president of the university and served in that capacity for about a year.
 Since 1871, in which year. President Durant resigned, the university has had seven presidents, as follows: Daniel Colt Gilman, 1S7l-76; John Le Conte, 1S76-Sl; William Thomas Reid, 1881 S6; Edward Singleton Holden, lSS6-SS; Horace Davis, lsSS-9O; Martin Kellog, 1s93-99; Benjamin Ide Wheeler, ls99- 1910.