G
THE HESPERIAN.
I
out a very interesting trait in his character that is; not very
widely known. It was written when Lowell was a member
of the Harvard faculty; at the time "Harvard contested with
the 'Lowell's' on Iloston Common for the 'silver ball' and it
shows the lovable character of the great man who could be
so interested in the smaller things w.hich his scholars deemed
precious." The letter is as follows:
Ki.mwoou, 27th May, 1867.
Dear ,
We hear that you are inclined to play the Roman father
and not let stay here to play the next ball match with
the Lowell club. This must be some of the old leaven of
presbyterianism. I can testify from the evidence of my own
eyes that he is essential to the success of our nine who are
really the muses, only disguised. JNow do nc a good lellow
and let him stay for it is of great consequence that we beat
the Lowell-chaps who arc a little stuck up. I am sure Mr.
, had he not gone to Europe, would have taken that
side of the question. Remember ttiat even a Roman father
would have allowed something for friendship. I am fast get
ting to be an old friend. With kindest remembrances to Mrs,
, Hclicve me, always cordially yours,
J. R Lovi:u..
Such an appeal as this could not be resisted. The "silver
ball" was won by Harvard and Lowell was undoubtedly
instrumental in bringing about the victory.
ALUMNI AND FORMER STUDENTS.
Editor Alumni Department, IlESrr.RlAN:
In the trip just concluded I visited tluee of the Australian
colonies. Australia is a very interesting land to the natur
alist, tourist, student, or man of the world. There is the
same high civilization that we sec in every Anglo-Saxon com
munity. Its gieat cities are centers of culture and refinement
as well as of manufacture and commerce. The differences
apparent in the every day social life are slight. One notices
rather the points of similarity.
But putting aside the social phase and viewing the laud
from a student naturalist's stand point, what a wonderland is
before us. In the words of Marcus Clark, the Australian
novelist: "In Australiu alone is to be found the grotesque,
the weird, the strange scribbliugs of nature learning how to
write, trees without shade, flowers without perfume, birds
who cannot fly, beasts who have not yet learned to walk on
all fours, a land of fantastic monstrosities." From ocean
beach to mountain top stretches the gieat, silent forest, the
"wild dreamland" of the Hush. The Hush, a meaningless
word to the stranger, yet, to the dweller in its recesses, what
a world of meaning it unfolds. To sec it in early spring
when the wattles arc a flaming sticak of yellow and the air is
heavy with scent, or in the evening just as the great silver
moon rises in the east. The gnarled and twisted gum trees
with their bare white trunks and ragged branches lisc like
ghosts or monuments of the dead. They reach back to an
age co-eval with the first man. Could they unfold the mem
ories of the forgotten past what mysteries would be made
clear. Now they stand like grim sentinels of the past, true
to their duty and their sacred trust, watching over the dead
races of mankind.
To sec the Hush again in summer when the hot winds
have curled and dried every blade of grass and tender thing.
When above is the merciless, brazen sky, beneath, the dry
baked earth that burns our feet, and all around is the ocean
of burning air. Or perhaps there is an open flat that reminds
one of some bit of old world forest, only that the grasses arc
dead and brown and the shining leaves of acacia and euca
lyptus take the place of cool-leaved oak and elm.
In the, early dawn when the mist wreaths rise, you watch
nature's family at their morning meal. A great gray kan
garoo hops noiselessly about, stopping to nibble a bit here or
browse there. Make no noise for his eyes are bright and his
cars sharp. The presence of man has taught him to look out
for danger. A stately emu leads her flock of striped young
sters where the scrub is thickest and where the young grass
grows. An iguana is out rabbit hunting. You hv.ar his
scales rustle as he runs through the undergrowth, or seeing
you, makes for a hollow tree. Hut hark, some one else is
abroad this morning. To hear him laugh his sense of the
ridiculous must be well developed. Search brings to light no
foot pi hits. A solemn, gray kingfisher flys from a tree lop
and takes himself and his laugh off together. The laughing
jackass is a born humorist for no matter how mirth provoking
his jukes, he preserves a grave countenance. He is the last
person Horn whom one would expect such a disturbance. A
flock of bright green paroquets whirls away. No fear of your
getting near them unseen again. Three or four dozen pink
and white gulahs or cockatoos are digging up grubs under
neath the gum trees for a living. Shoot one and his com
rades arc very loath to desert him. They circle and return
time af'cr time, making a great din with their short sharp
sci cams. There arc all sorts of small birds, some with a few
sweet notes but nothing that could be called a song. Their
plumage is mostly of the soft subdued colors like the dull
grays and greens of the ugelulion mound them. Reptile life
is plentiful ranging in size from tiny inch long lizards to huge
carpet snakes and iguanas. You glide from tree to tree and
bush to bush and if quiet enough you may surprise a wild
turkey in some open bit of plain or grass land. One false
step or one broken twig and he is away with heavy flight.
Near the water holes and sheep tanks arc flocks of wood duck
and great gray or blue herons. Altogether the sights and
sounds of the Australian bush aic new and strange. Whoo
evei is a student of nature will find untold ticasurcs.
JakiuU. Smith, '88.
Editor Alumni Department, Hr.si'l'.ltlAN:
Looking over Ihc lctteis from the alumni it strikes me
that this is one of the plcasnntest fcaluies of our paper, and
thinking that "a word from the north" might be acceptable,
I shall proceed to "effuse."
Dakota climate is by no means so terrible as the average
outsider considers it. So far it has seemed to me to be very
pleasant. True it is at times lather cold, but one docs not
feel it so much as the atmosphere is so dry. It is windy.
Nebraska zephyrs cannot hope to compare with those of
Dakota. Someone has truly said that there is no such thing
as climate here, only samples of weather.
For so young a state South Dakota stands well up, educa
tionally. There arc a few things, however, that Nebraska
can justly pride herself in, and which ate conspicuously
wanting here. One in studying the history of the schools of
both states is at once struck with the fact (hat cs the people
are so the school must be. The accredited school system is,
as yet, in its infancy licic, and it is a noticeable fact that our
best students arc those coining from these schools. The
standard of admittance Is much lower here than there, but it
is steadily coining up. It seems Jo me that some educators
have n wrong idea of what the standa'd should be In state
institutions, at least it diflcis from mine. The state schools
aic for the people. In a new state the educational standard
is necessarily low and can only be raised as the general edu
cation of the state is raised.
The system of accredited schools established in many
states is one of the best means of accomplishing this result,
systematically. This is well shown in Nebraska. There are
of course drawbacks to this system, Some schools do not do
Sf