Evening star., 1938-12-04
Meeting Next
Fall to End
Program
Officials Hope to
Erect Memorial
Building
By John Thomson.

Saturday will be the birthday of
Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, kindly
scholar who became the father of ed
ucation for the deaf in America.
Out at ivy-covered Gallaudet Col
lege for the Deaf, in Northeast
Washington-the only college for
the deaf in the world-this day will
touch off celebration of its 18th
anniversary as a collegiate insti-
tuition
There will be special exercises in
the college chapel, with both faculty
and students participating, and
students will lay a wreath on the
statue of Gallaudet on the campus.
Gallaudet died in the fall of 1851,
and thus never saw the school named
for him on well-kept Kendall Green.
But his younger son, Edward Miner
Galladuet, was made its first presi-
dent, and he headed the college
until his retirement in 1910, when
DR.. Percival Hall, its present head,
assumed direction.
BY February 8, the birthday of
Edward Miner Gallaudet, the college
officials hope to have sufficient funds
in hand to go ahead with plans for
building in his honor. Already the
college has raised $4,000 through its
alumni and others for a building
fund which, with accrued interest,
now amounts to $65,O00 A supple
mentary fund is being sought from
Congress now so the work may
begin.
But the exact birthday of the COL
legiate department itself is April 8.
1t was on this day in 1864 that Abra-
ham Lincoln signed a special act of
Congress giving to the Board of Di-
rectors Of the Columbia Institution
for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind, in
corporated by Congress seven years
before, the right to confer degrees in
the liberal arts and sciences.
And at a special commencement
exercise in June of that same year
John Carlin, a brilliant young deaf
man, who later became a celebrated
miniature portrait painter, carried
of the first degree-honorary mas
ter Of arts.
In the continuing program Of cele-
bration Kappa Gamma Society of
men students, graduates and faculty
members will hold special banquet
celebration at the Dodge Hotel
March 8, for which a large number
Of alumni are expected to return.
The o. w. L. S., women's group, will
also hold banquet on this same
date.
On April 8, college authorities are
hoping to arrange a large radio
broadcast hook-up to bring to the
entire Nation a picture of the IS
years of college service to the deaf.
Later, at commencement exercises
June 3, it is planned to invite here
representatives of neighboring COL
leses in the Middle Atlantic States
group, of which Gallaudet is a men,
Der, before whom students will ex-
plain the work of the college.
At the same time honorary de-
grees may be granted to a number
Of educators outstanding in their
contributions to the deaf.
Beginning June 10 some 1000
alumni will take over the campus
for four-day celebration under the
auspices OF the Alumni Association.
The final event in the program
will be a meeting of all heads of
schools for the deaf in this country
and Canada on the campus In the
fall. Headquarters for the conven-
ton will be the Dodge Hotel.
1t was in 1914 that Alice, deaf
daughter CT DR.. Mason Cogswell,
q prominent Hartford, Conn. physi-
clan, became the spark that touched
on the torch Of education for the
deaf in America.
Thomas Gallaudet, then edwin
ity student and friend of the
physician, grew interested in the
child and experimental with teach
ing her the names of certain OBJ
tects. He was so encouraged by
his preliminary success that he
urged DR.. Cogswell to get a regular
teacher for her.
The outgrowth of the suggestion
was that DR.. Cogswell and friends
raised some money and Gallaudet
found himself bound for Europe to
study methods of teaching the deaf
there.
In London and Edinburgh he was
unable to learn a thing. The in
stitutions were the jealousy guarded
property Of single family.
Much discouraged, he sailed to
France and was most warmly re-
ceived at the Institut Royal des
Sourds Muets at Paris. He returned
to America In 1916 not only with q