Imperial Valley press., 1912-11-07


tories and explaining 10 him how cloth
is made. He also read to him BY the
hour.
But the boy himself did not learn
to read until long after the average
age when children are supposed to
read This is rather remarkable when
one thinks of the omniverous appetite
for books he has always had. But
when he did learn to read he more
than made up for lost time. He is, at
the present time, one of the most wide
ly read men in this or any other
country.
In the autumn of 1870 the wilson's
moved to Columbia, S. c., and three
years later Woodrow, who was then
II, began his scholastic career at Da :
wilson College While this institution
was father obscure as compared with
the great colleges of the North, the
elder Wilson deliberately selected Da-
wilson as the starting point for his
sons college work, because of the su
perlor character of it's faculty. Da-
wilson is still flourishing and is now
well equipped, but at the time Wood
row wilson attended there it was rath-
their own rooms, filled their own lamps,
cut and carried in their own wood and
brough, water from the old pump.
About the only record young Wilson
seems to have made at Davidson was
the ability to dress, cross the campus
and get into his seat quicker than any
BODY else. He is said to have accom-
plished the feat on several occasions
before the chapel bell stopped ring
ing.
In September, 1875, Woodrow Wilson
entered the freshman class at Prince
tor. There were 1913 young men in
the class Before the war Princeton
had been the most favored northern
college by the young men of the South
but after the war their numbers began
TO fall off and at the time Woodrow
Wilson enrolled but very few of the
students hailed from south of the Ma
son and Dixon line.
He devoted all his energy and every
faculty he possessed to the furnishing
and the training of his mind to the
end that he might be an authority on
government and the history of govern
ment and be a leader in the affairs
of his country.
In those days he was not remark
ably ready in extemporaneous speak
ing. Today he is without a peer in
the nation in the art. There have beer
very few men in public life who have
dared to trust themselves to deliver
important speeches without carefully
writing them out, but to get Mr.. VIII
son to write a speech in advance is q
hard matter.
While at Princeton he wrote q
searching article on congress, which a
once stamped him as a youth Of ex
traordinary caliber. This article was
published in the International Review
and in it the young Princetonian point
ed out that most of the Legislative
business of the country was carried oI
by small committees behind CLOSED
doors This was the first time th'
matter had ever been brought home Il
the people of the country and it starte,
them to thinking.
Wilson made the point that the ma
tion's business ought to be done in the
open. ought to be threshed out in pub
lie discussion. Even at that early day
he lifted up his voice against secrecy
He declared that was the atmosphere
in which evil and corruption flourishet
and that the only remedy was publicity
After leaving Princeton woodrow
Wilson went to the University of Vir
ginia, that great institution of liberia
learning founded by Thomas Jefferson
He spent a year there, studying u
the law department under the abl'
guidance of DR.. John B. Minor.
In 1902 DR.. Wilson was elected presi
dent of Princeton. A change was sadl.
needed in the administrative affairs o
the university and the trustees recos
nized Dr. Wilson as the man to effec
them.
But his splendid stand for democ
racy and work at Princeton was no
overlooked by the people of New Jer
sey and so they called him away from
the irksome affairs at the universit'
t. be their governor and thus launche'
him upon a political career, which TO
brilliance and rapidity of fine achieve
ment is unparalleled in this country
Mr.. Wilson was elected governor .
New Jersey by plurality of aboa
so, 900.