The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1912-08-17

view school one OF the most interest /
ing features on the program was the /!
reading of a letter written by one OF /,
the old scholars, Thaddeus Hill. OF Ia I
coma, Washington. His letter in full
follows:
in September, 1875. school opened
for the first time in the then newly
rebuilt school house at Fairview. At
roll call during that and the succeed
ing term, Ella Hodgin. Ella Williams.
Jennie kerlin. Alice Straw bridge. Liz
gle Strawbridge. Lizzie Pickett. Will
Morrow. Will Kerlin, Charley Williams
Mary Hall. Sina Clark. Gussie Sic
weke. Cheney Williamson. Ida Hall.
Alice Hodgin. Maggie Williamson.
Chris Williams, Eddie Williamson,
Nellie kerlin, Mary Hart. Matte
Hart, Laura Pickett. Jane Nance.
Emma Nance, Ed Morrow, Ben
Strawbridge. Elmer Hall, Eddie
WOOD. Charley Strawbridge, Frank
Kerlin. Frank Barker. Henry Pickett.
Sanford Henning, Jesse Morrow, Jim
mic Williams. George Pickett, and Will
bur Hall answered present.
Looking back across more than two
thousand miles of space and more than
thirty years Of time, I see again the
faces gathered there And seeing
them. as | saw them then. il is hard
for ME to realize that those boys and
girls are now men and women fast
nearing middle life. The years do
not leave us and find us the same,
yet the pictures memory keeps OF
friends and scenes from which We are
away. are pictures of them as We saw
them last So. instead of men and VA
men. whom perhaps l would not know
should | meet you. l see YOU still as
boys and girls And so as boys and
girls ! greet you. hardening back TO
those glad days when life was all be-
fore you and when to you all things
seemed possible.
! 1t is good for us TO go back at times
to recall the hope and enthusiasm
| of youth-to revive our trust in all
| things and TO sweeten and tender our
! hearts toward one another. We are
! prone to draw the curtains of our own
! personal interests so closely around
us that we lose sight of many things
! that would add color and sweetness TO
our lives. A wider outlook on all af-
fairs of life tends to reduce the import
ance of our own personal troubles.
and gives us strength and courage.
These reunions are good things. They
help 10 keep alive the old associations.
and to rekindle friendly interest and
to make you young again. | am glad
to greet you.
How many changes have come. and
what wonderful years these thirty
odd years have been, What wonder
full growth and development. They
have brought us the telephone. the
selfbinder the combined harvester and
thresher, the gasoline tractor with its
train of gang plows, the wireless tele
graph. the automobile. the motorcy
Gle, the electric interurban railways
the aeroplane and the X-ray and rad
ium.
And along with the development OF
physical and mechanical science has
come the growth of social science
More and more people are looking tc
their collective interests, and this il
well, for with the rapid concentration
of wealth in the hands of a very few
the opportunities for free and indie
pendent effort are growing less and
less. The number of land owning far
mers is growing smaller every year
while the number OF tenant farmers IL
increasing There is TO longer any
free land. We in the far West know
that only too well. And so the fac
is being driven home to the minds o
many, that something must be done
to give the people access to the land
And too. in the minds Of people every
where is growing the belief that Il
the worker belongs the full produce o
, his labor. And so in hitherto hopeless.
hearts is springing up the hope Of the
cooperative commonwealth. The hops
of a time when a man may work ant
fear not. When children shall be for
: ever freed from the present life sap
ping toll OF the factory, and shall hav.
their full inheritance of the JOY ant
. freedom of childhood When womel
. will no longer be forced to sell thei
bodies for bread, but shall stand fortl
radiant in the light of home and moth
erhood. We are nearing the dawn o
: a new and wonderful time and / cal
wish for each OF you nothing bette
than that you may soon see the com
/ ing light and catch the spirit and up
lift of that new time. That you ma.
= understand fully the significance o
: the economic changes now takini
place, and understanding them, d.
your part toward the development O
, the new industrial system.
You may perhaps. be interested il
I hearing something of this far North
west. II is in some respects a sombr
l., country. yet il is a wonderful one
Here we are as far north of you a
you are north of Florida. Yet here tn
grass is green all the year. and tn
e roses are frequently in bloom unit
j Christmas time In the long days @
June. one can read out doors unit
D nine o'clock. but in winter tits mos
: dark at four We rarely have thunt
@. er and lightning while cyclones neve
, come No extremes of heat or COLI
Some glorious days and yet man