440 STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



institutions of our Stalo? While tlif denominational (•oliof;;('S represent 

 tlieir special sects; Avhile the State Normal School exists for the educa- 

 tion and li-ainin«j; of a <-ertain class, aiul for that alone; while the Uni- 

 versity itself stands for hi<;her literary and ])rofessional traininjj; to 

 which few indeed of the masses can hope to attain, the M. A. C. can 

 truthfully be said to rei)resent the best and hi<,diest interests of every 

 bread winner within this jjjreat commonwealth. It does not surround 

 itself witli a hi<rh wall of entrance requirements; it ]>lac('S The hij^hest 

 possible value on the clear head, the wiilinj; heart, and the steady hand; 

 it recognizes the eternal truth that manual training and mental develop- 

 ment must go hand in hand. 



Is it to be wondered at, then, that we are ])r{)ud — justly proud, of our 

 Alma Mater? Not alone because of her splendid ecjuipment and beau- 

 tiful grounds, nor yet of the brilliant array of well known men of science 

 who have taught witliin her walls or who have gone out to other 

 colleges and universities; but because she stands with open arms to 

 welcome to her halls of learning, to her laboratories, to her workshoi>s 

 and to her farm the sons and daughters of the great middle class; that 

 army which constitutes the bone and sinew of our country; which does 

 its work and produces its wealth; which protects it alike from internal 

 danger and from foreign foe; which constitutes the great stratum be- 

 tween the foam and the dregs on which the hope of the nation and the 

 race depends. As a function of this all-powerful factor in the ])roblem 

 of our national life, the Michigan Agricultural College may look with 

 confidence into the future, and be assured of glorious things. 



ALUMNI ORATION. 



The orator for the occasion w^as W. K. Clute, '86, of Ionia, who spoke 

 on "Tile Value of Ambition." 



Mr. President, Members of the Alumni Association and Friends: 



My sincere pleasure in meeting here today so many of the alumni and 

 friends of the College liiave no doubt is the common sentiment of all. 



It will not be my purpose to regale you with any of the flowers 

 of rhetoric, but simply i)luck a few grasses and present them to you, 

 hoping they will not be too green and that they will remain fragrant in 

 your memory. The general expectation of so numerous and respectable 

 an audience at a college of the renown of this one naturally produces a 

 feeling of such diftidence and apprehension in him who now has the 

 honor to address you, and he therefore craves the indulgence of friends 

 while he submits a few thoughts upon "The Value of Ambition." 



A quality which demonstrates itself as having much to do with all 

 truly great and successful persons or nations is ambition. Combined 

 with other qualities which are possessed by all, it produces marvelous 

 results. Its proper cultivation is the improvement of the human race. 



Ambition is a passion and must be controlled. To attain coveted 

 positions, candidates for fame and fortune too frequently abandon the 



