The Days of a Man 1885 



up in the finance committee of the senate, one of 

 t h e m, Hugh D. McMullen of Dearborn County, 

 Dearborn spoke sarcastically of the chairman's attitude. Wil- 

 lard thereupon arose in high dudgeon and threatened 

 to resign the chairmanship. McMullen immediately 

 moved that the resignation be at once accepted; 

 the motion passed by acclamation, and Willard 

 found himself high and dry. He afterward re- 

 marked that "you cannot do anything in a legis- 

 lature full of university alumni." 



rbe At the same session the senator from Sullivan, 



member w j 1Q O pp OS ed any further endowment of the Uni- 



from r i r -n r 



Sullivan versity, set forth a fantastic argument. Referring 

 to William B. Creager, then superintendent of schools 

 in his county, he spoke in substance as follows: 



Six years ago Bill Creager was working out road taxes in 

 Sullivan at a dollar a day. Then he went to the State Normal 

 School at "Terry Hut." Then Sullivan hired him again, this 

 time as teacher, and had to pay a hundred dollars a month. 

 Then he went to the State University at Bloomington, which 

 we support with our taxes. He comes back and we make him 

 county superintendent ^and pay him two hundred a month. 

 That isn't fair. We pay for the schools and he gets the benefit, 

 while we lose six dollars a day because Bill Creager has been 

 eddicated. 



Still another member "from down Cincinnati 

 way/' a saloon man of German origin, had never 

 heard of universities, and asked what they were for. 

 I explained their purpose to his satisfaction and ap- 

 parently secured his vote. It is, of course, only fair 

 to say that the majority of the legislature were 

 competent, steady-headed men, largely farmers and 

 country lawyers. I may also add that the most 

 competent and helpful of all were often attorneys 

 C 292 ] 



