Mexico weekly ledger., 1917-03-22

spangled Banner" and the Rev. II.
p Atkins offered a short prayer, they
were seated at tables presided over
by members of the faculty.
The Academy band played during
the serving of a menu whose three
courses included turkey with dress
ing. potatoes, cranberry sauce, olives
cake and coffee. The band, orchestra
and quartettes, all under the capable
direction of Captain Convey, were es-
p~ecially entertaining. The band and
orchestra gave both popular and
classic selections. The quartettes
and the other students who were in
the vocal portion of the program sang
excellently and were encored time and
again.
After the banquet the guests re-
moved to the assembly hall and light
ing their cigars, Mexico-madc, and
made especially for the OCCASION. set
tied themselves comfortably in the
school benches, some Of them had
forgotten how to occupy many years
ago, and prepared to enjoy Col. Bur
toms address.
Col. Burton prefaced his remarks
with the statement that the conduct
of a military school was just as much
a business proposition as was that Of
any mercantile establishment Of size.
lie said the reason the Military School
was in demand was because it gave
more individual attention to the stu
dent. than a larger school or a high
school and that it had the boy I'M
der its supervision day and night.
He then spoke upon the advantage Of
a good school to a community. He
especially stressed the point that the
Missouri Military Academy was not
an institution to care for incorrigible
boys, but to educate youths who want
ed close attention from the faculty and
other features not to be had in high
schoola. He also dwelt upon the
splendid personnel of his student body.
The Missouri Military Academy is
a $4,000 corporation of which the
majority of stock is owned by Majors
Whitmore, Strock and Col. Burton.
That the equipment of the school to-
day, if it had to be replaced, had been
estimated by Ben Elliott, architect,
as worth at least $4,000, regardless
of the 20 acres of campus. The school
has a bonded Indebtedness of $4,000
and other Indebtedness of $1,000.
In the three years the Academy has
been under the present management,
$4,000 in debts have been paid and
over $4,000 in Improvements made
beside the building of the gymnasi-
UNI which cost fully $4,000.
When the present management took
the school there were Go students and
today the enrolment is 1876 and limit
ed to that number because there
is not sufficient room to care for
more. He said one of the arguments
the school advanced for students, af-
ter presenting their equipment and
buildings and faculty, was the clean
little city it was located in and the
unusual educational atmosphere here.
The student body spend an average
Of about $ 1000 a month pocket mon
cy here. The school, in the past six
and a half months, has done business
with IS local firms, spending over
$4,000 in Mexico. The expense of
feeding the students had gone &c.
$40 in excess of the estimate of the
cost made last year,
Col, Burton stated the country was
full Of people looking for school men
they could trust and that NJ. NJ. A.
was 50 firmly established now, if they
had the equipment, they could have
200 students this fall. If they a
do no better they plan to be pre-
pared by September to accommodate
at least $50 boys.
He said the school intended to ask
for a loan sufficient to aid in the
construction of another building.
No date had been set for asking this
money, and the proposition would be
one that would appeal to every bust
ness man. He received an ovation
when he took his seat, and Col. Bur-
tons plain business talk to the point
and with open frankness pleased
everyone present. They all felt they
had a deeper personal interest in the
Institution.
Major Whitmore made a short talk
'egarding the necessity of conducting
he school on a business basis to sue
.eed, and Major Strock followed bv
tating that if Col. Burton was given
proper cooperation he would not !
My give Mexico a larger school, but
that had no superior in this
ountry.
President j. W. Million, Of Hardin
said he believed the men I
resent could do anything they set
ut to do. That he was proud of Mex.
.o's splendid educational efforts and
we are developing an idealism
hlch would some day make us prou-
ar Of our wonderful public school
He said Missouri needed a
'y's junior college and that M. M. -