The River Falls times. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1894-1933, 1920-05-06

daughter was always at the head Of
her classes, now | know. | am very
glad to meet you" The gentleman
told me he never met finer man and
would always remember him with
pleasure.
PRESIDENT Parker took great interest
in the business of the city. His leisure
moments were spent in visiting the
buildings that were being erected ana
in talking TO the workmen, looking at
the plans, and sometimes making
valuable suggestions. He was AWAY
q welcome visitor. He was as court
eous to common laborer as to a con-
tractor, and in all the years it was my
pleasure to know MIN, | never neard
anyone speak i'll of him.
When the Normal building was de
stroyed by fire, the citizens rallied to
his support and freely gave up the
churches and public halls that the
school might go on until the buildings
could be rebuilt, and | know may
safely say that every citizen was very
sorry when he resigned from the
presidency OF the ScnooI.
He was a great friend of the boys
of the Grand Army, and was very
much interested in their description of
the battles they were in and in their
lone marches, and made it a point to
attend all their public gatherings. IL
fact he was so much in love with them
and they with him, that he was
unanimously voted an honorary mellal
Der of our Post, and after he moved
| to California, he always correspondeh
with some of the Post and when any
one of US received letter or card it
was always read in the Post.
/ President Parker was a very gener-
Gus man, too much SO for his own
good, but he could not see people in
! trouble without lending a helping
| hand. He was in every sense of the
word, "a gentleman from the Old
| School"
/ | will close by reading extracts from
a card I received from him few days
/ before his death. 1t shows how like a
brave soldier he faced death. He says,
"After a year of bodily enfeeblement,
I am made aware of the fatal dropsical
condition of abdominal section. | shall
/ survive briefly with much suffering
already experienced. Please bear TO
| the comrades my grateful remem-
brances of honorary and personal at
tentions. | have had 807a years of
JOYOUS life. God has been just to me.
move courageously to new quarters.
w. D. Parker"
The last speaker, Miss Rosa Cheney,
entered the primary department. when
the school opened and went up to her
senior year with Mr.. Parker as
president.
Anyone who was a student Of the
River Falls Normal during the pres
idency of W. D. Parker, should wei
come an opportunity to express ap-
probation of that remarkable man to
whom we are all so greatly indebted.
[ knew Mr.. Parker as head of this
school from the day entered the first
grade in The Teaining Ach0cl sittiSo
child. until | graduated. 1t has also
been my good fortune, as it has been
the good fortune of many of Mr..
Parker's old students, to know good
deal of him in these later years. 1t
has interested me to try for today to
recall my youthful impression of him.
[ realize that as child was entire
ly incapable of. analysing character,
and even now there is much about this
/ friend that mystifes me. His was
surely a unique personality. Few
teachers have, | think, exerted so
strong an influence. 1t seems to me
that in the early days of the school
his will dominated not only the faculty
and students, but in great measure,
the whole community [ marvel at
this. How was it possible? He had
sterling qualities of character, but
other teachers with the same qualities
have often failed to deeply impress
! their students. He must have had a
strong personality, a great force OF
will. Circumstances may also have
favored him somewhat. He was our
first president, and though this must
have made his task more difficult, yet
when he succeeded, he received the
honor and gratitude which is due to
| +boso who Law foundations He was