The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-09-17

The vulgar rapacity of militarism nat
uralIy fastened its tentacles upon the
higher sources of social refinement. With
new aims and with abnormal methods OIL
government, the military constitution OF
Alabama established Board of Educa-
ton"
When the board of education came to
the feature of university supervision 1t
came by the law of its life the Board
Of Regents
The board of education was body pol
itc, disbursing the public school money
and selecting arbitrarily the subordinate
officers and the teachers of the system.
Control of the fund without inspection
and selection of sub offices and teachers
were functions of authority in the board
very conveniently dovetailed into the dom
mating character of the state government.
The board of regents invented the meth
DDS controlled the uses and fixed the lin
its of state support of the university. The
personnel of the conglomerate authority
had been selected with an eye to the ca
pacity in the individual member for ex-
pert depreciation upon the ordinary Gus
toms of public service and for theft of
public assets.
Noah B. Cloud, scalawag lieutenant 20
Yancey and surgeon in the Confederate
| military service, was made president OF
the board of education and ex-officio pres
itlent of the board of regents. The men,
bership in full was 10. The powers OF 1t
were legislative without restraint except
in the qualified veto of the governor.
Never was a public institution so brazen-
ly set up and maintained to fatten knaves
and sap the foundations of public virtue
as this. Two members came from each
Congress district Another scalawag on
the roll was Rev. Thomas a. Cook, SUI
| peranuated clergyman of the Episcopal
| church, sufficient where he was put to
fill place that more capable man
might have USED to confess conspiracies
| and demand decency.
| Around the circle sat George l.. Putnam,
| oarpetbagger, leader of riots in Mobile,
late defaulter in school funds; William
Miller of the Mobile custom house, car
retbagger from Butler county; Rev Will
| liam II. Clayton. carpetbagger, conse-
Grated TO missions in Dekalb county and
| the adjoining region. The reverend mis-
! sionary soon became escape from dur
ance He was charged with the murder
of Congressman Haughey and was lodged
| in tail at Moulton without ball. Thence
| he escaped December 49, 1869. On the
board was Claytons son in law, Andrew
| Is. Collins.
| few days before the military legisla-
| ture met in June, 1868, the ancient board
of trustees of the unipersity met at Mont
| gomery. They reported the new build
| ngs ready and advertised the reopening
| of the institution when the fall season
| Henry Tutwiler
was chosen president by the trustees His
| acceptance being problematical. DR.. w.
S. Wyman was selected as alternate. All
| vacant faculty chairs were filled at the
same meeting of the trustees and all Sc
lections were of gentlemen of established
| reputation for efficiency.
The next month the military legislature
met and Smith was inaugurated governor.
| The law required the board of educa =
| ton TO meet contemporaneously with the
| Legislature. Resolving itself into the
board OF regents, it notified DR.. Wyman
of the confirmation of his election, which
| had been by the trustees. Professor Tut
wiler having declined, as had been antici-
pated.
| This part of the work before II com
| pleted, the board fingered without order
| Thereupon Rev. William Fl. Clayton,
missionary. arose to question or per-
| sonal privilege. He desired to say that his
! 2 ppohtment came as a surprise to NM
| The thought that first engaged his nina
was what is regent? He expressed the
suspicion that few OF his colleagues could
explain to him the meaning of his new
office. In turning over the leaves of
| classic In English literature. he had dis
| covered an answer. Holding over his
| head a CODY of Paradise Lost" he con-
tinued: Some of you never heard of this
book. 1t explains what a regent Is. /
now read and ask for your attention.
First in his cast the glorious lamp was
| seen.
Regent of day and all the horizon round
| Invested with bright rays, jocund to run
His longitude through heavens high
| road: the gray
Dawn and the Pleides before him danced
Shedding sweet influence
The voice of his reverend father-in-
law having ceased Regent Gustavus &.
Smith offered resolution that "all
acts Of any body, since the secession
Of Alabama. pretending to have been
the board of trustees of the University
lof Alabama, are hereby declared void
and OF no effect"
Dr. wyman. president, heard the
Unanimous aye by which Smiths
resolution passed. Without a word
spoken, he seized his hat and made
for the door.
In a few minutes the too much elect
ed president was waited on at the pri-
waite residence to which he had gone
lby the secretary OF the board. one
bush. Bush brought a copy of the
resolution unanimously electing Wy
man to the presidency of the univer-
sity. Instantly the president elected
-, tl,af 70 q