The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1921-05-25
DR.. WILLIAMS TELLS
OF RECENT TROUBLES
AT HOWARD COLLEGE
Retiring President Says Nov
ing Question Is Original
Cause of All Dis
agreement

DR.. Charles B. williams, who is
shortly to retire from Howard college,
yesterday issued formal statement
regarding recent troubles at the in
stitution. He says the plan to remove
the college from East Lake is the
original cause of the differences. His
statement reads;
I'm the interest of Howard and her
friends I deem it wise to let the gem
eral public and the many friends of
the college know the real facts about
the situation.
Il. The original cause of all the
tt ouble is the moving question. Last
July the president called NEE
OF the trustees and they voted to Sc
cure the Woodlawn option. A certain
citizen of East Lake is known to
have asserted then that he would see
to it that the president was moved
instead of the college, Several times
the internal management of the col
lege has been interferred with, the
students bein gadvised not to yield to
the president. In spite of this outside
opposition the internal affairs of the
college have continued in accord with
the wishes and plans of the admins
tration tuntil within the last few
weeks.
20. l sought to make adjustments of
the faculty so as to have in the chem
istry and physics departments, as well
as in biology, not only a real scientist
but an outstanding Christian man who
might exert a wholesome religious in
fluence on the student body. The
members of the board were In heartily
sympathy with this policy. In fact,
one man arose and made the motion to
drop the name of the then incumbent
of this chair, but L pleaded for fur
tker testing of him tout as to his re-
ligious influence. l continued to do
this until | found his conversations
at the dining table were positively
against some of the cherished funda-
mental principles of our Christian re
llgion. Perhaps we cannot get teach
ers of science who are as conserva-
tive as our pastors and deacons. but
do believe our Christian colleges
ought to employ as teachers of science
Christian men who believe heartily in
all the fundamental verities of Chris
tianity
/ Furthermore believed that, under
the aforesaid stress we could have
only one regular professor in the Eng
lish department (this meeting the re-
ouisite of an Al standard college)
and that the assistant professor
should be a southern Baptist in hearty
co-operation with southern Baptls'
views and welding a personal lntlu-
ence for a mighty constructive CHRIS
ton programme in the college. l also
believed the same thing was true III
the modern language department
that only one regular professor coulo
be employed, and so l did not ano
could nominate for reelection one
of my best personal friends, Mrs
Nichols, who has filled the position
during the absence of Dean Dawson.
49, also undertook some necessary
reforms among the student body es'
pccially among the fraternitles. Ihi'
thu. board instructed me to do. dc
this as tactfully and diplomatically al
POSSIBLE, and yet l have every reason
to believe that the minority opposltloi
outside persuaded the fraterniues t'
believe that my demands OF them wer'
unjust and exorbitant.
II have done my duty. l nave
worked and lived and prayed for
programme.
fr-fARLES B. WILLIAMS.