The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1913-10-23


The "reminiscences of the third year,
the second in that chapel room, while
replete with Incidents, will be passed
over without further indulgence on our
time.
This room was finished late in Sep
TENDER, 1887, but not furnished until
later. Chapel exercises were first
held here in the spring of 1888. Most
OF the students had been enrolled and
classified and were in their places by
classes. The exercises were conduct
ed by DR.. Lewis McLouth the then
president. After the opening exercises
the three new faculty members, Prof.
keffer and Misses Mason and Folsom,
were introduced. The professor made
a speech, announcements were read,
and our duties began at once. Regular
devotional exercises were held in this
room every school day morning for
many years and there vas a very gen.
eral attendance OF the faculty and
whole student body. Some years later
the hour was changed to suit condi-
tons. One morning, l remember, 1t
was DR.. McIouth's turn to lead the
exercises. A hymn was announced, the
college choir, sitting in the seats to
the right, In attempting to sing the
hymn, broke down in the middle of
the first stanza and before the singers
could readjust their voices, the presi-
dent arose, opened the Bible at the
goth psalm and read the first line as
follows: 20 sing unto the Lord a new
song" Laughter took the place of our
devotions for a few moments. Time
does not permit to relate other Incl
dents. This roo has been used for
a chapel and assembly room since the
spring of 1888, just a little less than
26 years. 1t Is just a little older in
service than you students are old in
years and mayhap some of the faculty
members.
Early in DR.. ]. w. Heston's admin
istration, obligatory attendance at
chapel was done away with and the
hour on Tuesday was denominated as
General Assembly hour. The aban-
donment of general attendance at
chapel was due to certain criticisms
from a few of our then citizens who
claimed that a state institution had no
right to compel students to attend de-
votional exercises. These criticisms
mostly came from one source, that of a
group of men who called themselves
Liberals and did not believe in
churches. For a time thereafter regu-
lar chapel attendance fell to it's lowest
ebb. 1t was a problem that the faculty
had to cope with in earnest and with
varying success. The morning exer-
cises have varied in character and
have been more or less well attended.
At one time the institution had about
ten days of rival chapel exercises.
This was in the famous year of 1898.
On April 10th of that year, on account
of a difference between faculty and
students, the majority Of the latter
bolted chapel and classes and a col
lego revolution was on in all its i'll
considered fury. Most of the dormi-
tory students went out with six Of
their fellows, who had been expelled
for issuing a certain manifesto, upon a
refusal of the faculty to ~re-instate the
offending members. An attempt was
made to hold a meeting in the chapel
Immediately after the regular chapel
hour but the doors of the building
were inconsiderately locked against
them. A large proportion of the
irate members Of the college classes
formed in a body and in column of
twos marched to town and held a
meeting in the county court room. Re-
porters were not admitted so that no
authoritative accounts Of that and
othCi hCCtih6o VIZ = Y hdu' INCiy
day for a week the boiling body met at
the court house and held their exer-
cises at the same hour that exercises
were being held on college hill. At
each of the court house meetings
speeches were made by students,
fiery enough it is to be presumed, and
by n or more Of the citizens who
sympathized with them in their griev-
ances. Action was taken to oust the
boilers from the dormitories but they
held their rooms till the climax came
when over a hundred left college in a
body. This is the only instance Of
dual chapel exercises in college his
tory.
This old chapel DON has been used
for occasional meetings of students at
which faculty members were not ex-
pected to be present but these have
been few and far between. For several
years seniors and juniors were requir.
ed to deliver orations and we general
ly listened to n or two every morn
ing. There was this advantage to the
youthful orator; he was always assur-
ed Of an audience, whether sympa-