4(i4 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE 



It may seem a peculiar spectacle for an avowed friend and beneficiary of 

 a collejic to openly advocate a lowcrino; of the standard of excellence, and 

 a clieapi'iiinii of expense to the student, but unh'ss we cau do this, we 

 are sim{ily couipetiuu' with the university on its own <iround, and we shall 

 be beaten. Such con^itetition is not the business of a land ji;rant. college. 

 We must seek out our niissicui, and carry it out rejiardless of jnide or 

 prejudice. \Miere we lunc tiied to ('(jual or excel the university we have 

 in so far failed in our fundamental object and design. 



Von will say. this is a practical world, and that tlie training must be of 

 such a character that the men and wiunen who go out shall be able to 

 earn a salary from the day of commencejmMit. That because we do not 

 otter some money-earning profession to our graduates our number must 

 of necessity be limited. You will say that, for instance, a. normal school 

 has a distinct advantage, and in some respects this is true. But comp,;red 

 with our school, the design of any otlnn- in this State is indeed nai-row. 

 for here we should jtrovide a practical education for the largest and best 

 class in our country. It must be possible to design a course which shall 

 interest the best activities of young men, and which will kee]) tlu^m in 

 touch with the best educational nu'thods, all with the exjienditure of a 

 comparatively few dollars, and make it practicable for any young man 

 or woman of small means and moderate ability to obtain an education 

 which will fit him for the moderate successes of life, and ojien up for him 

 vast i)0ssibilities. We have heard almost too much about training lead- 

 ers and educating first class men. The rank and file of men need some 

 kind of an education, and we must provide some place for the great army 

 of second class men. 



The success of this school in the ])ast has been wholly in the hands of 

 its Board of Control and its Faculty. Is it not time that they had the 

 advice and criticism of an intelligent alumni. It has been our custom 

 during the ]»ast to meet at least once in three years, to congratulate one 

 another, and to have friendly intercourse. Shall we stop here? Have 

 we not arrived at a time when these meetings should be productive of 

 something more than mere reminiscences? Is it too much for us to de- 

 numd that the alumni have an nctive and ejiinest ])ait in the manage- 

 ment of this College? We are no longer children. Already there are 

 gray heads and bald heads among us. Already there are many who take 

 jiride and pleasure in shajdug our governmental affairs. Shall the college 

 which did so much for us in the ]»ast be forgotten? We ow^e it to our boys 

 and girls to give this institution the benefit of our (^xi»(Mienice and our best 

 efforts. Have I gone too far in asking that as alumni we do all in,onr 

 ]>ower to keep this institution close to its original purpose, and close 

 to the great industrial classes for whom it was intended? 



We would all feel gratified if we could know that our Alma Mater 

 was spoken of as one of the fii-st collegers in the land, but have we not a 

 higher duty in securing for our College the re])utation of doing, in its 

 ]>articular line, the most good of any institution of its kind in this 

 country? 



Shall we by this course lose some students? T^ndoubtedly. But we 

 would gain ten where we lost one. If a young man don't like the sort of 

 an institution which this was designed to be. he oueht not to come here. 



Let us assume for a moment, which is not true, that all the bright boys 

 will go to the university? Is there no place for plodders? Let us assume 



