CLASS OF 1876

The "forty-fifth" reunion of the class of '76 has become a memory for those classmates who had a part in it; and it remains to give those who were unable to be present an impression of what sort of reunion it was. Certainly it was a good one; every one of the '76 group in Hanover, looking back to those five serene June days, would say as much as that. But there are those who would go farther and maintain that this latest gathering has not been surpassed in the history of the class; while still others believe it has not been equaled by any of the eight regular reunions previously held.

Comparisons are not, perhaps, the most illuminating method of getting at the essentials of an event of this nature, but one is tempted to indulge slightly in this direction on recalling that the promise of the "forty-fifth" was not all which could have been desired, and the outcome, numerically, not impressive. It is probably not too much to say that the committee, while working with admirable energy and painstaking, and desirous of securing the presence of the largest possible number, were not interested in numbers for numbers sake, or in any showing which should not minister to what was less conspicuous and more vital. They wished a reunion which should be rich in friendliness, harmony, and good cheer, and, if possible, should possess something of that special felicity which cannot be brought about by planning with any certainty, which comes, or may not come, one can never surely tell why, but which "is the highest attainment of happy social gatherings of this nature.

Something of this quality the reunion had, due as we now see to good planning, but due, also, if one may venture to conjecture, to a happy combination of circumstances in which the weather played no unimportant part; due in some degree to the absence of recent class bereavement or threatened loss; due to that thankfulness which springs unbidden in the hearts of classmates when they appreciate anew the privilege of assembling amid scenes which take on new charms with each return to them; due to the ever-lengthening vista in the valley of memory and an ever-increasing sense of the value of it; due to that sudden gift of insight into the worth of what is passing, still only half understood; and due most of all, perhaps to a closer fellowship, an ever-gaining sense of mutual dependence, of giving and receiving, growing naturally with the years, and cherished as the most significant feature of college reunions and the one which lives sweetest in the memory.

It is interesting to note that of the fourteen classmates in attendance, nine had been present at the dinner in Boston earlier in the year and that of the remaining five, four had been present at the "fortieth." Barr made one of the group assembling twenty years ago, but Pratt had had no vital part in the class fellowship since his freshman year. Dr. Stimson of Worcester sat down with the class at dinner as the fifteenth man, present there not so much from courtesy, being a brother of "Stimmy," as for his own sake, and the worth of his own friendship, of which the class had had a taste previously. Then Dr. Stimson and Goodhue had been medical students together, from which affiliation a life-long friendship had resulted. There was only one disappointment among those who expected to be in Hanover; the Colorado floods made it impossible for Stimson to start East at this time. No one came unexpectedly at the last moment, as has sometimes happened at past reunions.

The representation, beside the two already mentioned, included Ryder, Bridgman, Gale, Goodhue, Hardison, Hay, Hibbard, Hill, Kivel, Piper, Thayer, and Tripp. The ladies present were Miss Martha Hay and Miss Amy Hay, Hay's sisters; Mrs. Ryder, Mrs. Hibbard, Mrs. Gale, Mrs. Gardiner and Miss Gardiner, Mrs. Ned Kenerson, nee Miss Ryder, Miss Ryder, Miss Hay, Miss Hardison, and Miss Rose, an acquaintance of Miss Hardison. Three sons were included in the '76 group: Ned Kenerson, Dr. Tripp, and Dan Ryder, and all three had claims on the interest and regard of the class. Ned Kenerson is never indifferent to any man who was a classmate of his father, and this regard, genuinely but unobtrusively he is sure to make evident. Dr. Tripp had just received his degree of M.D. from Cornell Medical School (in New York City), and is entered for service in the Massachusetts General Hospital in the fall. Everyone felt with Dan Ryder in his disappointment at not being able, on account of protracted illness, to finish the course and receive his degree at this time with the class of 1921.

The order of arrival in Hanover was as follows. The Hibbards, Hay and his company, a nd Dr. Pratt were on the ground Friday (June 17). Hardison, with Miss Hardison, Miss Rose, and Piper, motored up from Newport, N. H., Saturday morning. The arrivals Saturday afternoon were Ryder and his party, Mrs. Gardiner and her daughter, the Gales and Kivel. Bridgman, Barr, Hill, and Tripp came from the "Junction" in Ryder's car Sunday; and Dr. Stimson and Goodhue motored up from Worcester, Mass., the same day. Thayer arrived Monday. This prolonged pleasure of hand-grasp and greeting, almost like a quadrupling of the joy of arrival, has always been a feature of class reunions and always will be; but there was something more in the '76 hand-grasp this year than in the years gone by. Those who gathered were not just the same that they were five years ago. Is it too much to affirm that they were keener toward reunion? And would it not rather be strange if there was not something closer in the hand-grasp which could only come when the time was ripe for it?

The original assignment for rooms had been to South Massachusetts, but unexpected returns in another class, also occupying this hall, made it necessary to give '76 accommodation in College Hall; and there the class were quartered. A few, perhaps, at first felt the change unfavorably; others considered the location a good one. It was somewhat more public than South Massachusetts, and there was no special assembling room; but the location gave a new tang to personal intercourse with classmates and college mates, was convenient for meals, and, as the weather was continuously fair, the large parlor was never more than sparsely occupied if One wished to remain within and yet not retire to one's room.

The only occasion on which nearly every member of the '76 group was gathered was at Dartmouth Hall, Monday, 3.30 o'clock, for the taking of class and group photographs. This event, with the customary touches of humor, over with, all the ladies and about the same number of classmates repaired to the big tent on the campus for ice cream, cake, and punch. Tables with white covers had been brought across from College Hall, and two student waiters were in readiness. Mrs. Ryder poured the punch, and daughters of classmates aided the students in serving. There was no entertainment beyond social intercourse at the tables, which seemed enough. The weather at that hour was perfection; a breeze came gently under the tent, open on all sides; all around on the campus and in the streets was the picture of commencement activities; —gay companies of young people, the older "grads," sounds and voices near and distant borne pleasantly to the ear. This event was in the nature of a recognition of the ladies and a slight tribute for the part they played in making the reunion so full a success.

The class dinner was on Monday evening, at 7.30 o'clock, in one of the rooms of College Hall. Four tables were set; in the center of each a beautiful bouquet of roses furnished by the Dartmouth Dining Association, and at each plate a white carnation to be worn as a buttonhole, provided by Mrs. McClary. The dinner was an unusually good one, but it seems unnecessary to describe it in detail. To adapt the opening lines of "Anna Kerenina"; all good dinners are more or less like one another, but every bad dinner is bad in its own particular way.

Following a delightful hour over the viands, came items of business. Ryder presided. Mrs. McClary was voted thanks for her remembrance of flowers, and the secretary of the class in appreciation of his services. The nominating committee was Kivel, Goodhue, and Thayer. As Goodhue and Thayer were passing out of the room together, the former was heard murmuring, "This is the long and short of it." The list of officers brought in by the committee and unanimously elected, was Ryder president, Tripp vice-president, Piper secretary and treasurer, Stimson, Hill, Hardison, Tripp, Kivel, Mrs. Ryder, and Mrs. Hibbard executive committee; the president of the class to be ex-officio chairman of the committee. It was voted to print a report of the "forty-fifth" with illustrations. A tax of ten dollars a member was levied, and the executive committee were given power to increase the tax if necessary. Tripp reported on the literary material left by Gardiner, and was given power of use and disposal. The office of class agent was added to the list of officers. The duties of this executive office relate largely to the raising of funds for the College.

Before the speaking Professor Richardson of the faculty was introduced to give an outline of the plans for the Memorial Athletic Field and the progress made in securing funds to cover the expense. This feature was not a part of the original program for the evening, but it was fittingly there and welcomed, for it related the class in the hour of its festivities with the College.

Ryder continued to occupy the chair in the after-dinner speaking. Nearly .every member responded more or less at length when called upon. It had been announced that each classmate should tell a story, sing a song, or make a speech. Nobody ventured to sing, at least, to the outward ear. Thayer declared the thing impossible for him. A few stories were told, there were bits of reminiscence and "apologia," but whatever turn the responses took they were as varied as the personalities of the speakers and in the nature of the case, interesting. Pratt, the long absent member, lucidly gave an account of the course of his life and thinking and some of the conclusions at which he had arrived; and Barr, absent longer than anyone except Pratt, spoke more briefly in something the same vein. Kivel and Tripp, members with Hibbard on the committee in charge of the reunion, spoke once and again in the after-dinner program and during the transaction of business, the latter casting a well-directed dart at "yellow journalism." Gale, affected more vitally by the war than most of those living in the "States," discussed certain post-war problems and states of feeling from the British and Canadian point of view. Bridgman referred to the latest Boston reunion and told a story. Dr. Stimson spoke for "Stimmy," and for himself as well, deeply appreciative of the place he was given in the class affection. Goodhue outlined his experiences when on vacation in Florida. Hardison referred to the swift passing of the years, and recited two contrasted sonnets on "Opportunity1." Hill gave an account of an important building program of the Brooklyn Public Library. Thayer, unable to sing, was willing to voice his opinion of tendencies in education, and Piper read several recent letters, a telegram to Mrs. Gardiner from her son, and verses contributed by Andrews.

Not a large delegation attended the graduation exercises and the dinner Tuesday. 76 is now rather alarmingly near the head of the column, and nearly in the front row of seats, where, to be sure, there is a little advantage of seeing and hearing. The platform of Webster Hall on commencement day is a goodly sight, and so is the auditorium altogether. The speaking and other features both at Webster Hall and the gymnasium, though no less significant than usual, seemed brief, and were soon over.

An account of the Hanover sojourn would not be complete unless a brief reference, at least, were made to some of the quieter features : —to walks and strolls, singly or by twos and threes, through the pine wood bordering the river, across the golf field, in the Vale of Tempe, in Dartmouth Park, on the Tuck Drive, or on the roads leading out of Hanover, north, south, east, and west. Auto trips were taken, also, out into the fair country everywhere about the town. One of these trips was greatly enjoyed. Hibbard had invited Kivel, Pratt, and Piper for a run to Lyme; up the river on the New Hampshire side, back on the Vermont side, a distance up and back of twenty-five miles, more or less. How the eye feasted on the ever-changing panrama of river scenery,—gleaming water, river banks, bare or wooded or dotted with dark evergreens, and the distant misty hills and mountains. More than half the return distance had been covered when someone recalled walking on that road with companions one dark and unusually'warm September evening freshman year. The little company of plodding students were becoming choked with thirst. At length they heard the sound of running water by the roadside. In the darkness they quenched their thirst at a watering tub and continued their tramp toward Hanover. A watch was kept from the auto for this roadside tub; soon it came into view, or another tub in its place, with the water running into it as musically as it ran nearly half a century before.

The dispersing began Tuesday. A number left on trains. Bridgman accompanied Ryder and his party in their car as far as Bellows Falls. Dr. Stimson and Goodhue, Hay's company, the Gales and the Hibbards, left as they came, in automobiles, choosing their hour. Hardison was ready at two, and was one of the last to leave.

The "forty-fifth" has come and gone as other reunions have come and gone, and as the "fiftieth" will come and go all too soon. In a brief hour it became a memory, an insubstantial pageant of mind and heart, but how rare. Really it is not too early to begin to get ready for the "fiftieth." College events are as punctual as the stars, and one cannot and would not escape them at the appointed hour. It is a great joy and privilege to partake of the feast spread at a college reunion. To the full significance of this privilege and joy, who can set the bounds?