Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-06-06
ALUMNI HAS ITS
ANNUAL REUNION
Members Gather at High School
to Welcome Glass of 1910
to Fold.
BID Mr.. BROWN FAREWELL
Principal Makes Last Official Appear
ance-J. F. Darby Makes
Brief Talk.


high school came to close Saturday
evening with the annual reunion OF
the alumni, at which the class of 1910
: was ushered into and welcomed by
the alumni at a banquet held at the
high school Four hundred members
of the Rock Island High School Alumni
association were present, and the oe-
casion was one long to be remembered,
as it was more than reunion OF the
: alumni. 1t was a farewell to Principal
H e. Brown and a renewal OF &C
quaintance with ]. F. Darby. former
principal A fine banquet was served
: at Z o'clock under the supervision OF
: the executive committee, assisted by
the members of the junior class The
banquet tables were arranged in the
halls on the second floor and the en-
tire space was utilized on account OF
f, the large number present There
we're representatives. of nearly every
: class which has graduated in the high
school course in this city since 1874.
Welcomes Incoming Class.
President Olaf Atkinson called the
meeting to order after the conclusion
of the banquet, and he gave short
talk, in which he spoke of the benefits
to be derived from high school edu-
. cation. He impressed upon the mem
bers of the association their duty to
. see that the coming generations re
'ceive the same benefits. A welcome
was extended TO the incoming class, to
. which Swift Richie, a member of the
: class, responded. He expressed the
sorrow of his class at having to leave
the high school, but said this was off
set by the joy of expectancy.
Mrs. Cora L. Eastman, member of
the faculty as we'll as a member of
the class of 1875, spoke with pride of
tIe quality of the classes which are
now graduated each year from the
school, and then she likened the cere- /
monies of the present day with those
: attending the first graduation.
Others Make Short Talks.
Charles Woodin,' a member of the
class of 1906 voiced the regret of the
entire association at the fact that Mr..
i7Brown is to seek other fields in which
10 work. He related a few of the ex-
periences which he and the other bad
boys of the class of which he was a
member had with Mr.. Brown, and he
assumed for the boys considerable
credit as having been instrumental in
a large way for the success which Mr..
Brown had
Bernard D. Connolly of the class of
SO gave the incoming members a lit !
tie advice, among which was the as
sertion that high schools days are not
the happiest of ones life despite all
r-r o1,t- h.
Kenworthy of the class of 81 followed
Mr.. Connolly and related a number !
of his own experiences as a lad in the |
schools, among which was the story of
his first appearance at the high school
which then served the needs of the
pupils of the city He we'll remembered
that occasion because of the whipping
which accompanied it as the result of
his having been apprehended in some
school boy act of INSTRUMENTATION. He
also told of how the first alumni asso-
citation was organized, that of Rugby
university in England.
Bids Pupils Farewell.
Mr.. Brown himself was the next
speaker on the program and his talk
was one of farewell, as he said it
would be his last appearance in an
official capacity before the association.
He replied to the talk of Charles
Woodin and asserted that boys were
not nearly as bad as they thought they
were and that Lis association with the
bad boys had not been as disagree
able as they at times imagined He
spoke of the success which has at
tended his work since assuming the
principalship of the school in 1903,
and said that much of the credit was
due the teaching corps. In this con-
nection he lauded the three lady teach
ers, who were here when he came, and
who will still be here after he leaves.
He said that 10 Mrs. Eastman. Miss
Rush and Miss Hellpenstell was due
more credit than to himself for the
advancement which the high school
has made in educational ranks He ex-
pressed regret at having TO leave Rock
Island, which he said was the scene of
what may be his happiest days. He