Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-12
STUDENTS TO PLAY
HONOR TO VIRGIL
Exercises Honoring Latin
Poet Will Be Held at Gen.
trail School Friday.

The Latin Department of the WASH
ington Public Schools with the co-op-
Grafton Of the Community Institute.
will celebrate the 2.o00th anniversary
of the birth of Virgil at special sxer-
cises Friday evening at 8 o'clock IN the
Central High School Auditorium.
DR.. Bruno Roselli, founder and chair.
man Of the Italian Department Of Vas.
sar College. Poughkeepsie, N. Y, and an
authority on italian literature, viii be
the lecturer on this occasion, which all
lovers Of the classics are urged to attend.
DR.. Roselli will speak on The Second
Millennium of Virgil" whose anniver-
sary, which actually occurs Wednesday,
u being observed at the later date for
the benefit of public school pupils.
A number of distinguished guests
have been especially invited to be pres
ent at the Virgilian exercises. These in
| clude members of the STATS Of the
Italian and French embassies and DR..
w. Coleman Nevis. s. j., president
OF Georgetown University author Of a
special article on the Virgil anniversary
appearing in the National Geographic
Magazine, and Rev. r. Rush Rankin,
| s. j., dean Of arts and sciences OF
Georgetown.
DR.. H. B. Learned, acting professor Of
history at Leland Stanford University,
in California, and member of the Dis
trict Board of Education, will introduce
the speaker. DR.. Roselli is one Of the
most prominent lecturers on the Amer
lean platform. He has been sianally
honored by the italian government for
his wartime services as well as for his
cultural achievements. At the age OF
81 he was elevated to the rank Of on
Ger Of the crown of Italy and has since
literary attainments. He was also
awarded the Italian Military Cross for
his exploits at the front.
After the war DR.. Roselli came to this
country and for q while was attached
to the Italian embassy, his services be-
ing demanded and obtained shortly
afterward by the War and Treasury De-
partments of the American Govern
ment. Eight years ago an exchange
professorship brought DR.. Roselli to
Vassar College, where he soon built the
largest Italian department in the coun-
| try. He has lectured in AZ States.
The meeting Friday night Is being
held in connection with the Nation wide
program sponsored by the American
Classical League, of which Prof. r. ".
D. Magoffln of New York University Is
|
are being held in honor of the second
millennium of the greatest of Latin
poets who is generally conceded the
| greatest poet of all time. Two Washing
tonians are serving on the national
committee in arranging for special
studies and activities In connection with
the celebration. They are Prof. z. c.
Richardson of the Library of Congress,
who is chairman on activities in IL
braries, and Miss Mildred Dean of Gen.
/ trail High School, chairman of the COM
mittee on Virgilian reading.
MusSolini has addressed a letter to
| Prof. Magofin in which he makes q
popular appeal for support of the Vir-
gilean celebration. In this letter the
Italian dictator said: Love for his
country and love for his countrymen;
the two great loves of Virgil are the
bases of that spiritual movement that
we have called Fascismo It Is for this
reason that Virgil lives and will live
through the millenia-in the soul Of the
italian people"
Tickets for the exercises Friday eve
ming are on sale at T. Arthur Smith,.
the A. A. A. and at the Franklin Ad
ministration Building.