Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1916-05-11
SPEECH OF COY. CAMERON.
AT Orange County Commencement
HillsbOro May 3rd.

Ladies and gentlemen and young
friends of the schools of Orange. It
gives me great pleasure to be here
today to enjoy this interesting occa-
sion and to congratulate you on it's
success. I had desired simply to be
with you and to mingle my pleasure
with yours. But being called on for
some remarks I would be recrea1nt to
my great love for the people Of this
community, this dear old town and
this dear old county were to remain
silent. For here I have spent some
of the happiest years Of my life. Yes,
even in war and reconstruction days
l had some happy times.
During the Confederate war I was
the messenger moy Of the Ladies Re-
lief Society and carried some refresh
ments to nearly every train that pass
ed here with sick and wounded sold
iers.
Then I went to school to Miss Hen
rietta Heart, and after the war to
Mrs. Hersh in the little office of Mr..
Willie Hayes yard. Later to the far
famed Hughes Acadamy, near Cedar
Grove.
Orange has always been distin-
guished for her fine schools: the
Hughes Academy-the Bingham
School-the Barracks and the Cald-
well Institute for boys-Miss Barwell
Misses Nash and Colock for girls s-and
the University.
And I should have gone to the Uni
versity except for the fact that it was
closed during the dark days Of re-
construction and unable to offer me
drink at the fountain of her know
ledge. But I am gratifed to recall
that the first work I did in my return
from my graduation at the Virginia
Military Institute in the summer of
1875 was to take charge of the work
of repairing the buildings under my
fathers direction for reopening for
September of that year.
We had no appropriations we had n
endowment, we had no educational
funds of any kind, we had no depned
solely upon the contributions OF
friends of education. Some Saturdays
I could not pay off the hands, which
embarrassed me greatly. But fortu-
nately had two gentlemen as head
mechanics whom I had known from
my youth: Capt. Richards, of this
town. was the head mason and Mr..
Utlev, of Chapel Hill was the head
carpenter. I would go to them and
ask what to do, as we had no money.
All honor to their blessed memory in
the reply they gave me. They said
1--WE had not the advantage of eduac-
ton, but if opening the doors OF this
University on the 10th of September
will give that advantage to the ris-
ing generation of young men in North
Carolina, they shall swing wide open.
You 90 to Durham and get us some
rations and we will do the best we
can until you can get some boney."
And that was done. The University
opened six professors, 60 students, an
appropriation of $115,000.00, $4,000.
90 of which I secured in the last
LEGISLATURE when the appropriation
committee had allowed it only $105,-
100000.
And some years ago, when called
upon bv the Governor to present the
needs of the University to the Legis-
lature. I was fortunate in securing
about the first large sum the State
had given for buildings in nearly a
century. But I had the commanding
aid of your townsman, Hon. S. M.
Gattis. And we put that money into
the new dormitory that stands next
to main street in Chapel Hill.
Ever since I did that first work at
the University have been interested
in educational matters, not only as a
trustee at the University, and as the
agent of the owners of st. Marys at
Raleigh, until sold by them to the
~
Episcopal church and as a trustee Of
my neighborhood school on Flat Rives