•2\r.\ 



OIUTrAUV NOTICE. 



It is '>ur paiurul duly to record iu Ihii^ .loiirnal the death ot" two, 

 (.four uieuibers. r/,v., the Kev. Father V . Dreckuiauu, s..i.. and 

 Lt.-Col. K. Iv. Kirtikar. i.M..^. (Hetd.) 



VxVA. I' ATI IKK I'. DillK'KMANN. s..i. 



Fr. Dreekmann was lioni at Soest iu Westphalia ou the 1 J th 

 August 18-10 and joined the Society of Jesus at the age of nineteen. 

 After going tlirough tlie usual comprehensive course of philosophi- 

 cal, scientilic aiul theological studies, he was sent to India. It is in- 

 teresting to note that he was posted to this coimtry b}'' a mere acci- 

 dent. It was arranged that he was to goto Ecuador as Professor of 

 Physics, and lie had already begun to study Spanish when an inquirj'- 

 came from his superiors if he would proceed to India. He willingly 

 consented. Six weeks were all that was allowed to him to learn the 

 language iu iMiglaud, and at the end of that period he sailed for 

 India and arrived in Boniba}- ou the loth November 1874. 



He was posted to St. Xaviers College. Being appointed to 

 superintend the boarding establishment for a few months, he 

 was soon made Professor of Physics. A former student of his 

 writes ot this period : '• Being of a scientilic turn of mind and 

 having a natural predelection for scientific pursxiits, Fr. Dreek- 

 mann had devoted considerable attention in his student days to 

 the study of science and thoroughlj?- mastered its principles. Alathe- 

 matics and Phjsics were his speciality. Having a clear intellect 

 and a powerful memory, thouiih hampered by a weak husky voice, he 

 soon succeeded iji arrestino- attention and oainedthe confidence of his 

 students. Talkiny' of his memory, I am reminded of his habit 

 of working out the most difiicult problems in Trogonometry and 

 Physics from memory alone, without touching the black-board, and 

 inculcating the same habit upon us. Whetlier it was a problem 

 iu Heat or Soiind, or a complicated example in the co-etiicient ot 

 friction, the same method was followed, and when, at the end, 

 the qiiestion was put to us, as was his wont, ' \^ it clear?", and 

 the whole class with one voice answered : ' No, Father, it is not ! ' 

 it was a stud}- to watch his face, simple, innocent, guileless, won- 

 dering for the nonce how a set of rational beings could reall}^ be 

 incapable of understanding 'such a simple thing.' "" 



In 1884, Fr. Dreekmann was made Principal of St. Xavier's 

 College. In 1882 already he had been elected a Fellow of the 

 Bombay University and was a member of the Syndicate for over 

 '20 j^ears. That his work in the educational line was appreciated 

 w'Q may judge from a few remarks made l)y the Director of Pidjlic 

 Instruction in his oflicial report for 1902-07 : " The Principal, 

 Fr. Dreekmann, is one of the oldest members of the University, 

 -and one of its wisest and most trusted advisers."' 



