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handsome granite stone was ruthlessly destroyed,
and scarcely a trace of it remained.
After the Civil War.
So much for the conception of the enterprise
which was destined to be held in abeyance for
years, but the hope of which never was abandoned.
At the close of the war, as soon, and almost sooner
than seemed possible, the people of the South and
especially the workers in (the Episcopal chujrch
determined to renew their efforts for the establish
ment of a Southern University. But now the finan
cial question was one which had assumed gigantic
proportions—not only was ready money not avail
able, but money was almost unknown in the South,
even for the bare necessities of life—how then
could contributions be hoped for a purely ethical
purpose? And perhaps, it is right here that the
most striking feature of the entire project is to be
seen. Although Bishop Otey, with his clear judg
ment, Bishop Elliott, with his gifted and
scholarly mind, and Bishop Polk, wfith
his devoted allegiance to his calling and
his Church, had all passed away, the germ of their
enthusiasm seemed to have grown with their pass
ing, and had strengthened under the deep difficul
ties which surrounded the movement until it finally
emerged fully equipped for a new struggle.
At the .close of the war young Bishop Charles
Todd Quintard who had served all through the
years of active fighting as the beloved Chaplain of
the First Tennessee Regiment, became possessed
with the deep desire to continue the work on the
University—but alas! even the old deeds to the
tract of land on Sewanee Mountain had been mis
laid—there was absolutely nothing remaining of the
work done by his predecessors save the undying
wish for the institution. By a happy chance the
old deeds were recovered, and Bishop Quintard,
knowing the deep sympathy felt for the South by
our English cousins beyond the sea, determined to
lay the plans for a University before the prominent
members and officials of the Church of England.
But before doing this he decided to have some ac
tive steps taken in this country, and in writing of
this time tells that “On Wednesday, October 11th,
1865, the day of my consecration, I wrote to the
late Rev. John Austin Merrick, D.D., a godly and
learned man, urging him to join me at Sewanee
to see what might be done in the way of reviving
the work. That was a little band that gathered
around the rustic cross I had planted in February,
1866., just where the Oratory of St. Luke’s Theo
logical School now stands. The Rev. Dr. Merrick,
Rev. Thos. A. Morris, Major George R. Fairbanks,
than whom the university never had a truer friend,
with a few lay folk joined me in prayer for grace
both to receive and know the things we ought to
do, and also that we might have power to faithfully
fulfil the same.”
Laying the Corner Stone.
An eye witness of this ceremony describes it afc
being one of the most impressive in the history of
the South—the cold winter’s day, almost at its
close, the faces of these men, bearing the look al
most of divine selection, the barren country side,
the rustic cross, seeming almost too fragile to with
stand the winter winds, but the great light of a
high and noble purpose softening and brightening
the scene.
The event, as a forerunner of what the coming
years was to bring, was even more significant than
might be considered at a first glance. Bishop
Quintard left for England immediately thereafter,
and but for that trip it is safe to say that the
present magnificent institution of learning, the
thriving Southern town, a center of culture, refine
ment and progress, the myriads of Southern youths
fitted for high positions in the history of the na
tion, might never have been.
England’s Help.
While in England Bishop Quintard attended the
first Lambeth Conference and became intimately
acquainted with the leading lights in the Episcopal
Church. Chief among these must be mentioned the
Rev. Francis W. Tremlett, D. C. L. of St. Peter’s
The Golden Age for May 31, 1906.
Church, London, whose interest in the work on the
Unversty of the South was unfailing and whose
influence was far reaching. American Bishops from
every section of the country wrote to English pre
lates regarding the movement which Bishop Quin
tard was forwarding and contributions from every
source, often entirely unsolicited, were received.
Bishop Quintard himself did some noteworthy work
while in England and made numerous friends in all
classes.. In actual figures the amount raised by
Bishop Quintard was only about $50,000, but this
amount was considered sufficient by the trustees of
the University, to enable them to enlarge the work
already begun, and although the buildings were of
wood, the chapel most plain, the student accommo
dations of the simplest, yet the spirit which animat
ed the work, the universal interest manifested in
it, was of a character so marked and so unusual,
that from the very beginning until the present day
the work in Sewanee has steadily increased, and
the standard of scholarship ranks closely with that
of any similar institution in the country.
No Sectional Feeling.
At the beginning, there was danger of associating
sectional feeling with the University, because of its
location and because of its name, but this idea
seems to have been disposed of finally and satis
factorily, when, in 1857, Bishop Otey, in an address
at Lookout Mountain, said: “Why should this en
terprise be deemed sectional rather than national?
Is it because we have used the name ‘Southern Uni
versity?’ The name is a convenient description;
it is no party war-cry, no sectional pass-word. All
such interpretations we utterly disclaim Is it be
cause it is founded on Southern sol, and must pro
mote chiefly the interests of those contiguous to it?
Some geographical position it must needs have.
* * * Its location looks simply to the wants
of a region greater in extent by 7,280 square miles
than the original thirteen States of the Union; a
region whose urgent necessities can be met only by
an institution set up within its borders. * *
We contemplate no strife, save a generous rivalry
with our brethren as to who shall furnish to this
great Republic the truest men, the truest Christians
and truest patriots.”
This utterance applies now as then—it applied
with prophetic force throughout the years that im
mediately followed—it carried weight in England,
it carried conviction in this country, and it or the
spirit of it, so permeates the life of Sewanee today,
that its student body numbers members from every
section of the country, north, east, south and west.
In fact, on a recent visit to Sewanee, the writer
was interested to observe a Japanese student in
one of the theological classes, and it was learned
that several of this nation as wll as other foreign
ers have sought training in the University of the
South.
Student Enrollment.
While mentioning the students of the present
institution it is worthy of note that tire applica
tions for place at Sewanee very often exceed the
accommodations—that the number at the last term
was 80 and when graded by states there was scarce
ly one in the Union that did not have its represen
tative at Sewanee. Then, too, there is a loyalty,
an unswerving devotion to Alma Mater which char
acterizes all who have ever studied its classes, that
insures for Sewanee the undivided interest, pride
and support of its graduates, just as was rendered
to it by its founders. This feeling is also manifest
in the hearts of the instructors and professors, and
it seems almost unbelievable, but it is nevertheless
true, that during the several occasions of financial
stress which the University has known, the salaries
have been materially diminished, but the instructors
have never been known to resign or this account,
and have in some instances even refused positions
which promised higher remuneration.
This fact seems the last needed testimonial to
the place held by the University of the South in
the hearts of the people.
(Continued on page 10.)
News of General Interest.
The deep sea is more populous than the land, each
square mile of ocean having a population of 120,000,-
000 fish.
Jerusalem has so far become modernized as to
have two good daily papers, each with a fairly large
circulation.
It has been recently stated by a German investi
gator that crime is most general where the scale of
the wage earner’s pay is least, and it would seem
from this that social misery and personal need was
a factor in creating crime, thefts particularly.
Another evidence of the fact that English is de
stined to be the future language of the world is seen
in the recent statement of Baron Takaki that four
fifths of the Japanese boys are now studying Eng
lish and that inevitably this will be the future lan
guage of that Empire.
The growth of the Florence Crittenden Mission
work is little short of marvellous. The National
branch of this organization reports that for the last
fiscal year fifty-nine homes were maintained in the
United States; one each in China, Japan, France and
Mexico and that the total number of girls cared
for was 8,187.
As a refutation to the charge that poets are always
poorly paid it is of interest to note that on one oc
casion James Smith of London wrote a clever bit of
doggerel praising a printer named Strahan which
so pleased the old gentleman that he added a codicil
to his will leaving Smith $15,000. As the poem was
only eight lines in length this might be called the
highest price ever paid for verse, i. e., $1,875 per
line.
In Georgia much practical good is done by the
clubwomen of the State. Three model schools are
supported by them, and they also employ an art
eraft worker who travels among the mountain people
to teach them the art of producing salable work.
The prevalence, too, of the library movement is due
to Georgia club women, and it is rare, indeed, to find
a rural school in the State which has not access to
some circulating or traveling library.
In commenting on the points of superiority that
the Mahometans can claim over the Christians, the
Bishop of Hereford, England, remarked on his re
turn from a recent trip to the Soudan that he was
much impressed with the abstinence from strong
drink of the Islam. “It is a shame,” he said, “to
us as a Christian people, if we remain behind the
Mahometans in temperance, sobriety and self-con
trol.”
Nearly 400 women suffragists recently approached
the Premier of England, Lord Campbell-Bannerman,
with a petition that they be allowed to vote. They
were much dissatisfied with the courteous but posi
tive refusal of the Premier to grant this request, and
when he intimated that he believed it would not “be
many years” before this attitude of his might be
reversed he was met with derisive and hissing re
sponses by the would-be suffragists.
The seismograph (pronounced sice-mo-graf) is that
rare and unusual instrument on which earth quake
records are kept. In a stable at Shideon, the Isle
of Wight, Prof. John Milne has established a sort of
earthquake headquarters, and he claims to be able
to show by his charts what part of the earth is to
be avoided in planning for building of cities or other
enterprises liable to be disturbed by earthquakes.
If the cable companies had had Prof. Milnes com
pleted charts they could have saved four millions of
dollars in laying the Atlantic cable. The discovery
is comparatively new, but is gaining the attention
of the scientific world.