Reminiscing -- With Comments

The 1905 graduating class at Iowa State, the one in which I graduated, held their 60th reunion on June 4 and 5. It was a fine occasion for those who could come, but less than one-third of the class are still living and many of them could not attend. What a change has taken place at Iowa State -- now Iowa State University -- since 1901 when I enrolled! The reunion was an occasion for recalling things past and so today I am doing a bit of reminiscing.

I grew up on a farm twelve miles from the nearest accredited high school and that, of course, was in the horse and buggy days. My formal education prior to entering Iowa State College was acquired in a one-room school. In spite of all the criticism of the one-room rural school, I still have a high regard for it. At least one could advance in studies as fast as one was capable of doing in the school which I attended. I am of the opinion that with all our modern conveniences, fine buildings and equipment we are not giving enough attention to the fact that education depends more on the attitude of our boys and girls toward education than anything else. Any normal person can get an education now if he is determined to make the effort.

I did not attend school during the crop-growing season after I was 13 years of age although I did go to school winters for a few years. We had, however, good books, papers, and magazines to read. My favorite at that time was the "American Monthly Review of Reviews", edited by Albert Shaw, a distinguished graduate of Grinnell College. It was the equal or better than any other magazine published now.

I attended the World's Fair at Chicago in 1893 and the Iowa State Fair on several occasion in the 1880's. I made trips to Chicago and to St. Joseph, Missouri, when we were shipping livestock. I also spent a few days at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition in Omaha where I saw and heard President William McKinley. The foregoing were the more important events.

The bad and really most difficult year in my experience was in 1894 -- 71 years ago, the year of the great Mid-western drought, the worst Iowa has ever had. I was 13 years of age, father was sick. I stayed out of school to help. We had several hundred head of cattle. Along with an older brother, I made two cattle drives -- one for 29 miles and another 25 miles. The last drive of 25 miles in August was to find feed for cattle. I worked steadily all spring, summer and fall pumping water, hauling water, dipping water out of wells for livestock, and helping to save all possible feed for the winter. We cut no hay - had to depend on corn fodder. Father left home for the winter on account of his health. The bottom dropped out of the cattle market and we all but lost our farm. I remember the happenings of 1894 -- 71 years ago -- as vividly as any other year since. It was a year of difficult problems, which in my opinion were as important to me and my education as any subsequent year in college or university.

I became interested in Iowa State College. I saw students from Iowa State parade at the Iowa State Fair, and I got a pamphlet issued by Iowa State. It was nicely illustrated showing students at work in laboratories and classes. But most important to me, it said that any boy of good character 16 or 17 years old or older could enter the college in the preparatory course.

And so on about February 10, 1901 -- when I was 20 years old -- with a trunk filled with extra clothes, a pillow, sheets, and comforters -- for we had to furnish our own rooms -- I was assigned to Room 6 in the West Cottage at Iowa State. I was quite surprised when I opened the door of No. 6 to find such a bare room. And to add to the bareness there were a lot of box elder bugs, perfectly harmless of course, that had somehow gotten into the room. I might add that that was a box elder bug year and entomologists told me they were everywhere in the late winter and spring of 1901. I expected to find steam heat in the room that cold February day, but what I found was a little wood stove with a flat top so one could warm water, which was to be my source of heat. In addition to the stove, there was a flat top table and two steel cots. There was no carpet, no bookcase, no furnishings, and two straight-backed chairs, for later as it turned out, I was to have a roommate.

You will be interested in what I bought for the room, for I kept an exact record which I still have of all my college expenses during the 4 1/2 years. I have mentioned bringing with me a pillow, sheets, and comforters. In addition, I purchased a mattress, bedspread, a rocking chair, broom, dust pan, bucket, fire shovel, tin cup, drinking glass, tea kettle, soap, looking glass, pitcher, and wash pan. When I started the fire in the stove with wood carried from the wood pile back of the dormitory and had gotten the foregoing articles in the room, I was settled and ready to undertake the exciting task of acquiring an education at Iowa State College. During my 4 1/2 years of student days I made my own bed, swept the room -- such as it got -- and, of course, dusted the furniture. Most of the time I had two roommates. We saved space by getting lumber and building a three-story bed, one steel cot for each story. I was the smallest and slept on the top story.

What a change now -- 60 years later! Student quarters now in dormitories are comparatively luxurious to what they were then. I recall a few years ago the Board of Regents had quite an argument over whether a telephone would be placed in each room for student use in a dormitory which they were building. This, of course, would save the student the exertion of walking to the end of the hall to use a house telephone. What is very much needed more in addition to expensive quarters for students is low-cost quarters for students who are short of money. I do not think that it hurt my college grades at all by taking care of my own room; and in my opinion, the same would be true today.

I have a very vivid recollection of the day I classified. That spring term of 1901 all new students had to pass President Beardshear's desk. I was pretty well back in the line and must have looked like an unpromising candidate for a degree since I was just recovering from an attack of grippe. Finally my turn came and the President must have noticed my appearance for he smiled broadly, gave me a cordial handshake and said, "I am indeed glad to see you. What will you take?" I explained that I had been out of school for several years, had never attended high school. He said, "That is all right; we have a course for young men like you. Take this schedule, sit down at one of the desks, and figure out what you will take this spring. Then at the end of the semester, you will know what course you want." Beardshear had truly remarkable influence over students. He was a great builder of Iowa State College and much admired by the students.

Entrance requirements are decidedly different at Iowa State University now from what they were in 1901 as all of you will note.

I started at first to work at least part of my way through college. I worked in the barns for which I was paid 11 cents an hour. I sawed wood back of the dormitory for 15 cents an hour. The faculty was building a golf course and I pushed a wheelbarrow of dirt around filling up holes at 15 cents an hour. That's where I first got acquainted with Dean Curtiss, of the Agricultural Division, for he was supervising my work. I soon decided not to compete with local labor on such a high-wage basis and since times were better on the farm, I borrowed money for my college education which I paid back with 6 per cent interest.

One question often asked is how much did it cost to attend college 60 years ago. I have the exact record of what it cost me. My mother paid for the first term in preparation for entering during vacations working on the farm, the total cost to me for four years was $1,364.53. This included transportation back and forth from my home to college and all of what may be called extra-curricular expenses. The tuition of my grandson at the University of Pennsylvania for one year cost much more than the above amount.

The college authorities were quite liberal in permitting off-the-campus trips 60 years ago. I was studying livestock and during my four years of college work I made two trips to the International Livestock Show in Chicago, one of which I was on the college Stock Judging Team; three trips to the American Royal Livestock Show in Kansas City, and I also made a trip to the World's Fair in St. Louis when cattle were shown. In addition, I attended each Iowa State Fair. I took trips to see livestock on farms. I also made trips for athletic contests, debates, and oratorical contests and YMCA conventions, one of which was held in Geneva, Wisconsin. I always held a season ticket for athletic contests and lecture courses. In short, I spent money liberally when it was essential in furtherance of my educational work and associations on the campus.

As you hear these figures of my expenses 60 and more years ago, please, remember that a dollar then was worth a lot more, two or three times as much, measured in the things it would purchase than a dollar will purchase today. Our national wealth has not increased nearly so fast as our dollars. We fool ourselves, mislead and befuddle the public when we compare in dollars the gross national product of today with that of a few years ago. A dollar today is not worth half as much in purchasing power as it was a quarter of a century ago, but we compare our gross national product now with our gross national product a few years ago and brag about our increase in wealth. How foolish can we get and how long can this sort of thing continue without getting us in trouble! Other nations have had very bad results from such economic management. We should have a measuring device that gives an accurate account of increased wealth. We do not have it now.

I spent four wonderful years at Iowa State. Buildings and conveniences which students have now are luxurious compared with what students had 60 years ago. Then, as now, however, inspiring and dedicated teachers are most important in getting an education and we had good teachers. I was fortunate in my student contacts -- students of high character and purpose who can always be found on college campuses.

In addition to regular classwork, I consider what are designated extra-curricular activities important, for example, debating, taking part in active literary societies, etc. I was student manager of the Iowa Agriculturist, worked on student committees and the YMCA, etc. The foregoing is a very brief and fragmentary version of how one person appraised education at Iowa State College 60 years ago.

Source: transcribed in its entirety from manuscript

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