The Washington herald., 1916-02-10

to think l shall succeed in doing this.
In taking a place on the program / am
simply keeping a promise and following
the impuse of my heart to speak word
of appreciation of Harvard,-the Harvard
that has been the mother of opportunity
to so many thousands like myself in the
preparation for the great battle of life.
MY good friend and colleague, Rep
resentatlve Winslow CHarvard, $50, is
responsible for the nature of my re-
marks tonight, In an tnnocent CONVEX
sation with him at an unguarded mo-
ment, speaking of my personal expert
ences at Harvard, / gave my grateful
enthusiasm full sway, describing a
certain line of experiences and .oppor-
tunities open at Harvard to the poor
student and man of limited means. l
was telling how i found Harvard the
sympathetic helpful poor boys COL
lege, as we'll as the place where the
sons of the rich were found. There
/ found the only requisite to fair treat
ment, equal opportunity, and generous
interest to depend only upon brains,
character and ability.
My friend. Representative winslow,
gave It as his candid Judgment that this
view of Harvard deserved to be more
frequently presented and more widely
known, and exacted the promise which l
am now attempting to fulfill. l find 1t
more difficult than usual in speaking TO
you tonight. because l have promised TO
speak of personal experiences at HarI
ward, and / trust you will pardon what
may seem to be personal references. |
want to speak rather of Harvard. as of
a friend out of the heart of a friend.
Experience n Delight.
My experiences at Harvard were a de-
light, a pleasure, and a revelation. i say
a revelation. / will tell you why. Like
every schoolboy l had read of Harvard
of its famous past and glorious history.
When a hired hand on the farm and
later country school teacher 1 had
family dreamed n wish that the lines Of
fate might so fall for me that the oppor-
tunity might some time come to me to
attend Harvard. But as Whittier puts it,
it was a wish ! hardly dared to own.
When at last strangely and suddenly
the opportunity came to go to Harvard,
could not resist, although | could not
see how or the way. because my COM
mittee of ways and means. strive as
hard as II may, could provide no suffl-
cient revenues for such an undertaking.
II contemplated the matter with a
great deal of foreboding. My informa-
tion about life at Harvard gathered
from write-ups in the press and some
verbal reports gave me the impression
that Harvard was, of course. a great
college and famous university, but a
place where life would be hard for a
poor man. where success would be diff
ficult to achieve: because such a thing
as social equality. brotherly feeling.
and kindly treatment and equal recog-
milton with the sons of the rich and
powerful would be well nigh lacking.
with these impressions in my mind, |
repeat, l went to Harvard twenty-five
years ago with a great deal of fear and
foreboding. I think I would have been
utterly discourage about going at all
but for two things. and first Of these
was the first great lesson l ever learned
in life, and that was that God had given
me just ten avenues to success or wealth
in life-the ten fingers on my two hands
and that II lever wished to get any
where in life it absolutely depended upon
myself and was up to me to make the
effort and take the chances; and. second.
the further purpose that had always
been with me day and night. that when
of age-as we say on the farm-I would
begin the fight for a college education.
Was Glorious Fight.
And let me say in passing that it
was a fight. and 1t was a glorious fight
to me, and the happiest years of my life
because Providence helped me to make
Il a winning fight.
We'll, my friends. ] found about ev-
erything at Harvard just about exactly
the reverse of what l had imagined.
What was my delight to find Harvard
the friendliest college / had ever at
tended! The freest from can't and social
caste! The one college offering the most
complete equality. L found the most
generous and kindliest of friends in both
students and professors and the greatest
70 hair nj he
your way. and at the same time have the
respect of ALL
"Of what Harvard stands for. and
always has stood for, 1 would love to
speak had l the time to do so. 1 may
say in passing that Harvard stands for
the American idea of true nobility
nobility of purpose, nobility of service.
nobility of charcter. In standing for these
things she is standing for the highest
things in life. The development of nobfo
character Is at last the only things worth
while; for when governments perish ana
thrones decay, till time shall write her
finis on the scroll of the ages, the
character of true manhood will survive
I bathed in Immortality. In this land of
ours. bounded by oceans and favored by
Heaven, We want no kingship, but the
kindship of noble hearts. no empire bur
the empire of equality, no aristocracy but
the aristocracy Of noble character.
Harvard's Great Presidents.
Here she stood in the past with
, dense provincialism all about her, ever
standing for broad nationality, civil
/ liberty, religious liberty, and the in
destructibility of the Union.
"Of Harvard's great presidents and
great scholars i would love to speak.
! did time permit. What remarkable
men have been presidents of Harvard?
At first, over-towering men of brain
power. Then the transition period OF
brain power and action combined; as
exempliied in Elliot and Lowell. So
| fruitful has Harvard been in great
ness that to call her roll Is to name
| the immortals-
II trust you viii not misconstrue my
purpose In thus speaking Of Harvard
My only purpose is to plant the germ oi
hope, IL I may, in the breast of sonS