The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-09-25
Doors Opened at State lnstitu
ton For 1870 Freshmen
FEWER MEDICAL STUDENTS
This Is Due to the Fact That Entrance
to This Department Requires One
Year Of Collegiate Instruction
President Benton Spoke.

Burlington, Sept, 25.-President Guy
Potter Benton of the university of Yer
mont to-day gave the student body
"Some Lessons on Reconstruction" in
his address opening the l22nd session Of
the state university Because of in
adequate accommodations in the college
chapel, the exercises were held in the
gymnasium.
The preliminary registration shows
1870 in the entering class. For the first
time the college of medicine opened
along with the colleges of arts and
sciences, engineering and agriculture.
The requirements Of this college now in
clude one year of academic collegiate
work. The change has had the effect of
cutting the number of prospective doc
tors down to a low figure but it has, on
the other hand, raised the institution in
the eyes of medical authorities.
The enrolment of the state univer-
sty is now over six hundred which
makes the total attendance a record
breaking one by large margin In the
freshmen enrolment the old classical
college of arts and sciences leads off in
point of numbers followed by the coll
leges of engineering, agriculture and
medicine, respectively
President Benton said in part:
The appeal which | bring to this
body of young people is for the cultiva-
tion of a hcalthful spirit of personal re-
construction reconstruction based
upon an intelligent conception of past
events, an intelligent appreciation of
present opportunities and an equally in
telligent understanding Of future possi-
bilites. Sanity in the reconstruction
process is the motto I would have You
take now, and for all time as your
motto.
"You ask when is the opportmc time
for personal reconstruction? The an.
swer is when the spirit of the age de-
mands it. I know of no better time
for intellectual reconstruction than dur
ing the period Of college life. The
superficial and frivolous wait until the
beginning of the new year to put into
execution their reconstructive rcsolu-
tions. They make use of the artificial
divisions of the calendar as excuse for
delay and when the work Of tearing
down and rebuilding is begun with no
better motive for the action than a
change of figures in the almanac. it is
not hard to understand why there is so
little heart in the work Of destruction,
and why the work of reconstruction
ceases before the new year has grown
older than the cries of infancy.
Now is the accepted time; now is
the day Of salvation This was the
declaration of the inspired writer near
ly two thousand years ago. 1t is as
true to-day as then. A new day. new
week, new year, may make one ser-
Gus and. if this seriousness leads to
review Of the past and reflection on
the mistakes Of the days that are gone
before, if it brings realization of the
larger possibilities of a reconstructed
life. then the new day, the new week.
or the new wear is the opportune time
for the beginning of the reconstruction
process in the life of any individual.
Whenever the sense of need is realized
by the thoughtful person, in mid day, in
or in mid year, the time is at
hand for the beginning of the recon
process"