©lb Hggie 
 
 ~"§^- 
 
 September, 1898 
 
©16 Bggte. 
 
 By FREDERIC A. MERRILL. 
 
 $u$s of Carpenter Sc Movc^omty 
 1898. 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 So here's to Old Aggie ! Come lads fill the glass 
 
 And drain to its dregs the old stein. 
 
 Come, light the long pipes ; draw your chairs closer up 
 
 While the curling flames lick up the pine. 
 
 So here's a cool glass for that site 'mid the hills 
 
 And the meadows so broad and so green ; 
 
 And here's to old Warner and Holyoke and Tom. 
 
 With Connecticut flowing between. 
 
 And here is another for days that are past 
 
 With mem'ries that never will fade, 
 
 When our young love was strong as the wintery wind, 
 
 And each was a lusty young blade. 
 
 It's needless for me to recall every spot 
 
 That pictures itself in the smoke, 
 
 The placid old pond and the bubbling brook, 
 
 The elm and the widespreading oak. 
 
 Each feature is linked to the thread of your life, 
 
 Close woven ; — the woof of your fate ; 
 
 And new that you calmly look back on your past 
 
 You realize your fortune too late. 
 
 Look well to your smoke that is curling about, 
 
 Amid its gray wreaths you will find 
 
 A memory tender and gracious and soft 
 
 Of a dear face now left far behind ; 
 
 Some thread, that is slender and leads you along 
 
 Through the pine-covered lane by the hill, 
 
 And brings back the thought of a sweet yesterday 
 
 That sweeps from your heart its cold chill. 
 
 You're old, I admit, but so are we all, 
 
 Still Aggie is ever as young, 
 
 As when you were there in your gay cap and gown, 
 
 And her praises so blithely you sung. 
 
 So here's to Old Aggie ! Now once again, boys, 
 
 A bumper ! A toast, if you will ! 
 
 Let's drink to the health, prosperity and wealth 
 
 Of that vine-covered spot on the hill, 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 Few colleges can boast of as many attractive features as 
 can the Massachusetts Agricultural College. Situated as it 
 is within the Connecticut valley, its location could hardly be 
 improved. To the north stretches the Toby Range of hills 
 
 with the grim Sugarloaf as a frowning sentinel : to the east 
 the Pelham hills lie in all the beauty of their peculiar blue- 
 ness ; to the south the volcanic Holyoke cuts the warm sky 
 and to the west, in the far distance, the Berkshires are 
 faintly outlined. 
 
 The little town of Amherst, with its broad common and 
 its spreading elms, has become historic as the seat of 
 advanced education, and from its quiet walks have come 
 many of the moving spirits of this great nation. The 
 atmosphere that pervades the whole valley is that of peace 
 and repose, fraught as it is with the historic legends of our 
 ancestors. 
 
OLD AGGIE. O 
 
 But a short distance from the center of the town is Old 
 Deerfield, and closer yet is that Bloody Brook where the 
 blood of patriots once flowed as copiously as the spring 
 freshets. Hadley. with its wealth of historic story, lies 
 nestled away among the lower hills, and to the south is the 
 rugged Notch and the Devil's Garden of disappearing stones. 
 
 Two railroads center in the town of Amherst and easy 
 access is had to the surrounding places of interest by means 
 of an electric road. The country drives are enchanting in 
 their sylvan scenery and the meadows teem with the richest 
 of flowers. 
 
 The College itself is situated about a mile from the town 
 and is quickly reached by the electric cars that run to the 
 north. The grounds are high and command a most beau- 
 tiful view across the green valley toward Mount Warner 
 whose peach-clad sides glisten in the noon-day sun. 
 
 During September, when college life begins, the little 
 town takes on an unwonted business-like appearance and all 
 is bustle and hurry. At the little yellow station of the Bos- 
 ton & Maine railroad piles of trunks are being hurriedly 
 transported to their several destinations, streams of young 
 men are surging toward the electric cars, bent upon reach- 
 ing their dormitories as quickly as possible, and hacks are 
 rushing about in indescribable confusion. 
 
 The casual visitor is breathlessly pushed and thrust into a 
 car in which hardly a seat is obtainable. The chatter of 
 renewed acquaintance is interminable as the car pushes its 
 way up the steep hill and so on into the town. A short stop 
 is made before the principal business blocks and then the 
 final journey is begun. As the car runs along north, the 
 country becomes more open, and delightful vistas of the 
 distant hills are obtained at each turn in the road. 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 The entrance to the college grounds is some distance 
 from the main buildings and the car is left where the long 
 curving driveway branches from the main road. The Col- 
 lege property extends on either side of this main road and 
 far up onto the hill where the vineyards can be seen. The 
 present estate consists of some three hundred acres and is 
 varied in character from the low rolling meadow-land to the 
 high, sandy hill-top. 
 
 From the entrance of the driveway there is a delightful 
 view of the campus and college buildings. In the fore- 
 ground there is a small pond with its wooded island, across 
 which can be seen the chapel and the two large dormitories. 
 Tall elms and rounded maples form a pleasing background 
 and break the uniform monotony of the western sky. The 
 entrance drive is between two rows of elms that arch above 
 and form a leafy canopy of much beauty. On the right, a 
 tarred footpath leads toward the college while about midway 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 between the chapel and the highway is a stone bridge arch- 
 ing the stream that supplies the pond. From the campus, a 
 most magnificent view is to be had across the valley toward 
 Mount Holyoke. 
 
 It was, then, upon this beautiful site that the government 
 turned aside from the throes of a civil strife to establish a 
 college for the study of agriculture and the kindred arts. 
 When the best blood of our brothers stained many a well- 
 fought field, those men in authority at Washington laid 
 aside the engrossing cares of military expediency and 
 established here a monument to human advancement. 
 With wonderful foresight these statesmen appropriated the 
 necessary means to educate the son of the farmer and of 
 the mechanic in a manner that would greatly benefit both 
 the recipient and the state. 
 
 It was the aim of the originators of this grand educational 
 movement, that the benefits of the institution should be put 
 
8 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 within the reach of all, and as time has gone on and new 
 appropriations have been made, a certain number of schol- 
 arships have been apportioned among the various senatorial 
 districts of the state so that it is now within the means of 
 every ambitious young man to get a college education at 
 little expense. 
 
 The development of the grounds and buildings has neces- 
 sarily been slow, but during the thirty years of the college's 
 existence the growth has always been forward. Some years 
 after the original grant, the United States Experiment Sta- 
 
 tion was added to the grounds and is now opened to 
 advanced students ; an extended course in practical chemi- 
 cal analysis is greatly facilitated by this acquisition. 
 
 With the growth of the college has come a more extended 
 influence, and what was once a mere experiment has 
 become an established fact. The originators of this broad 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 scheme of education never knew that thirty years after their 
 initial efforts in its behalf, the college would be educating 
 many whom, at that early date, the country was fighting to 
 free. 
 
 The natural evolution of any educational system furnishes 
 material for thorough study, and so it has been with the 
 growth of this institution. Inaugurated within somewhat 
 narrow lines, its policy has changed and become more pro- 
 gressive as time has sped by. The theories of scientific 
 propagation have received thorough test and have proven in 
 many cases to be of the best, and now all is orderly where 
 it was once the hazards of chance. 
 
 It has become a myth of the past ; this fact that the suc- 
 cessful farmer must himself dig in the ground. The farms 
 that mark our western lands are daily examples of the fal- 
 lacy that the farmer must be of the soil. The farmer of 
 the future is he who can comprehend and control the forces 
 of Nature, who can alter them to his will, who understands 
 the constituents of life and growth and who has the execu- 
 tive ability to manage his property upon thoroughly scientific 
 principles. 
 
 The day of the small, one-acre farmer has passed as 
 have our slow stage coaches ; he cannot compete with the 
 advancement of science. His little farm may support him 
 and his family in a meager way, but it is his neighbor who 
 has thoroughly mastered the laws of cause and effect who 
 passes him on the roadside. 
 
 And thus it goes throughout life ; an advancement in one 
 direction means a corresponding advancement in another. 
 The increased efficiency of our chemists has brought forth 
 a more thorough knowledge of soil analysis, and this in turn 
 has brought new fertilizers and new methods of raising 
 
10 
 
 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 crops. Then again, a thorough study of pests and fungus 
 growths has established their remedy, thereby saving much 
 valuable property that might otherwise be lost forever. 
 
 It is for the purpose of advancing all knowledge of this 
 nature that the Massachusetts Agricultural College is striv- 
 ing. Not only to teach its principles, but to disseminate 
 them ; not only to make thoroughly scientific men of its 
 students, but to offer to the agricultural community at large 
 the benefit of all scientific research. And this dissemina- 
 tion of knowledge is by far the most important work done. 
 
 Somebody once said that science is classified knowledge ; 
 if this be so, how simple it seems for us to say we know 
 this or that, when we have but to classify our results and 
 we are scientists. Yet how few in number are the people 
 who actually know a thing ! How many there are who take 
 their inferences for the actual facts ! The most difficult 
 problem in life is to be able to perceive what is absolute 
 
OLD AGGIE 1 1 
 
 and to be able to distinguish it from what is not absolute. 
 The theory of all education lies at this point. Man must 
 be taught to discriminate between what is and what is not. 
 
 For this very purpose have our agricultural colleges been 
 established ; they are to teach the young man the facts of 
 life and to give to him the power of observation. When 
 they do this, they have succeeded, when they do not they 
 have seriously failed. When thev teach him the laws of 
 Nature they must also show him their cause and effect ; 
 they must educate him in the manipulations of such forces 
 as are at his command and teach him their uses. 
 
 The advantages that the Agricultural College offers the 
 student in this direction can hardly be over-estimated. 
 Within these three hundred acres of land are all the oppor- 
 tunities for him to study the scientific propagation of crops 
 and animals ; all the necessary adjuncts to a thoroughly 
 practical knowledge of chemistry and physics ; all the 
 needed requirements for the study of his mother tongue and 
 the development of his body. Established by government 
 as is the college, military science has become an essential 
 not to be escaped and the routine exercise of weekly drill 
 has kept many a student up to good form, 
 
 The old laboratory building situated upon the banks of 
 the ravine was the first to be erected for college purposes. 
 It is of wood and was originally of two stories but later an 
 extra one has been added. It was built in 1867 for a chapel 
 but it is now used by the chemical and mathematical 
 departments. Its rooms are large and airy. The zoologi- 
 cal department uses one of its rooms as a laboratory and 
 during the winter term many a fish is cut to pieces only to 
 mysteriously disappear to some remote abode whose loca- 
 tion only the sophomores know. 
 
12 
 
 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 It is rumored, unauthenticated of course, that the souls 
 of the dead fish cross the ravine and find lodgement at the 
 Boarding House where they are reincarnated and served up 
 on Fridays. 
 
 This boarding house was built in 1868 by the college and 
 for some time was run directly under college authority, but 
 of late years the students have controlled its affairs them- 
 selves. Within its walls many a rousing time is had. 
 Here the " Kniepes " are held and now and then a " Com- 
 mers." These gatherings are fashioned after those enjoyed 
 by our German brothers and are primarily intended to bring 
 the students together socially. 
 
 The " Commers " is a trifle more formal. Here toasts 
 are proposed and guests entertained. These gatherings are 
 generally held but once or twice a year, and when Com- 
 mencement arrives the large drill hall is tastefully decorated 
 that the returning classmen may enjoy more room. 
 
OLD AGGIE. 13 
 
 At the head of the driveway leading from the main road 
 stands the Chapel and Library, a gray stone building. Back 
 of it stretches the Campus, flanked on the north by a large 
 red brick dormitory and on the south by the Drill Hall. A 
 mound upon the hill's crest marks the old mortar battery 
 and beyond is the small red and yellow powder shed. Over 
 the crest of the hill stretches the farm with its acres of 
 tilled land and rich pasturage. To the right, its white spires 
 peeping from the surrounding verdure, can be seen the little 
 town of Whately, while to the left the chimneys of North- 
 ampton belch forth their curling smoke, 
 
 Upon the campus is marked out the base-ball and foot-ball 
 fields and many a hard fought game is played upon its green 
 turf. The need of a better athletic field is sadly felt but 
 the boys do their best with what they have and plan greater 
 achievements for the coming years. A league for football 
 work was formed among the New England State Colleges 
 last year and the coming foot-ball season promises to be as 
 popular and successful as any that have preceded. 
 
 Athletics have become so firmly established in all our 
 leading colleges that they are looked upon as an integral 
 part of the curriculum. The essence of education is one- 
 sided if the mind be cultivated at the expense of the body. 
 Such educational facilities as are offered at the Agricultural 
 College for gymnastic work are very meagre and unsatisfac- 
 tory but the promises for future enlargement are favorable. 
 During the past year a coach was obtained for the foot-ball 
 team and a thorough system of training inaugurated. 
 
 By far the most important department for building up the 
 body is that of the military. Established by law, it requires 
 the presence of every student, unless he be physically dis- 
 abled, at its tri-weekly drills. The battalion consists of two 
 
14 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 single rank companies with the usual officers. The 
 instructor is a detailed army officer whose time of service 
 generally lasts about four years. The offices are obtained 
 by competitive examination but are divided proportionally 
 among the classes; for instance, a commissioned officer 
 must be a senior, a non-commissioned, as low as a sergeant, 
 must be a junior ; a corporal, a sophomore, while the fresh- 
 men become privates with those of the advanced classes 
 who have not been smart enough to pass the required 
 examination. 
 
 During the fall and winter, the drill consists of setting-up 
 exercises, company and battalion drill. For a few weeks 
 bayonet exercise and sabre drill is established, but this gives 
 way, as soon as the weather will permit, to out-door work. 
 In the spring, extended order and battle formations are used. 
 At that time the men are sent out in skirmish lines all over 
 the country for the radius of a mile or more. This feature 
 of the drill is very thoroughly taught and it is not long before 
 the young officers show great proficiency in handling the 
 men. 
 
 At Commencement, when the inspecting officer is around, 
 a sham battle is generally arranged, when the battalion is 
 divided into two forces, those on the defensive and those on 
 
OLD AGGIE. 15 
 
 the offensive. Then the field becomes the ground of many 
 a brilliant manoeuvre and hedges are captured and rail fences 
 destroyed. 
 
 Upon graduation each officer is presented with a 
 military diploma and the three most proficient are recom- 
 
 . 
 
 mended to the governor for commission as second lieuten- 
 ant in the militia. This is an honor much coveted by the 
 young soldier and it is a proud day for him when he leaves 
 his Alma Mater and dons the uniform of his state militia. 
 
 Across the Campus from the Drill Hall is the new South 
 College. It is a brick building three stories high, with two 
 wings at right angles and a tall tower in which is situated 
 the meteorological department. The dormitory rooms are 
 well arranged, there being a study with open fireplace and 
 steam heat, and two bedrooms. This makes a sort of suite 
 and is very convenient for the student. 
 
 In the basement are the baths and lavatories, and a 
 large room to keep wheels. The whole building is, as 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 indeed are all the buildings of the college, lighted by elec- 
 tricity and this convenience is appreciated highly by all. 
 
 In the northern wing of the building are situated the phys- 
 ical laboratory, the zoological museum and the agricultural 
 recitation rooms. Beneath the laboratory in the basement 
 is the new fire department, consisting of a hose cart and 
 several sets of ladders. A most efficient fire brigade is 
 maintained by members of the battalion and each man is 
 expected to fully know his duties and stations. Several 
 times during the college year, the hose cart is run out and 
 
 :1 
 
 imaginary fires are extinguished. Upon a hot day, if the 
 fire trip be long, there is much panting and catching of 
 breath as the runners on the ropes draw the heavy cart 
 along the roads and the salvage corps hustle the ladders 
 about. 
 
 The tower of the South College always has been an 
 attractive place to visitors and a place of dread for the 
 undergraduate. For the first there are the mysteries of the 
 weather bureau, for the latter there are the unpleasant 
 interviews with the President. Upon the second floor is 
 the Administration office, and any delinquent student is 
 sure of a very warm welcome behind its door. 
 
 The meteorological department occupies the upper floor 
 
OLD AGGIE. 17 
 
 and the roof, also the flag staff. Here are kept the records 
 of wind and rain, upon the Draper self-recording machines. 
 To specify each and every record would take too much 
 room for this simple article, but a few suggestions of work 
 done here may not be out of place. 
 
 By means of instruments upon the roof a careful daily 
 record is kept of the wind-force, the heat of the sun, direc- 
 tion of the wind, fall of rain, etc. So delicate are some of 
 these instruments that rain has been recorded as falling 
 when no moisture could be felt upon the ground below. 
 
 Signal flags are flown to indicate the coming weather 
 and telegraphic communication is kept up with Washington. 
 The amount of work done in this department is enormous 
 and of exacting quality. Hardly a party of visitors fails to 
 ascend the winding stairs to this room of instruments. 
 
 And when one has once reached the roof of the tower he 
 feels amply repaid for all his labors. The view from the 
 top is of unexcelled magnificence. The panorama of the 
 Connecticut Vailey lies stretched out below, with its cloud 
 markings and its sparkling villages, with its low rambling 
 hills and its tobacco fields. Light and shade play a phan- 
 tasy upon the green meadows and the distant puffs of white 
 smoke betoken the passage of a valley train upon its way 
 south. 
 
 To the north and west there are huge clouds rising, por- 
 tentous in form and ascending rapidly. Slowly at first, and 
 then with increasing vigor, they gather headway and rush 
 down the valley marking their course with a huge sheet of 
 rain. First the Toby hills, then Whately and finally 
 Warner are shut in, and a heavy rain soaks the ground. 
 And yet Amherst has not received a drop of that downpour. 
 At last the storm sweeps beyond Holyoke and Tom, and 
 
!o OLD AGGIE. 
 
 once again the valley is clear and fresh in the bright sun- 
 light. There is no better place to study the cloud effects 
 than on this high meteorological tower ; elevated as it is 
 above the surrounding trees, it embraces a view more 
 extended and varied than any other to be found in Amherst. 
 
 At the end of the north wing is the new physical labora- 
 tory. Until this last fall all the physical apparatus was kept 
 in the old chapel building, and the fumes from the chemi- 
 cal laboratory had in many cases attacked the instruments. 
 Now, however, this department has opened a large new 
 work-room where everything has been arranged to the best 
 of advantage. New and improved machines for electrical 
 experiments have been installed and power is transmitted to 
 the room by means of wires running from a dynamo in the 
 North College building. 
 
 Above the physical laboratory are the zoological recita- 
 tion rooms and museum. This museum contains a practi- 
 cal collection of casts, eggs, birds, etc. for use as illustra- 
 tions of biological growth. Large charts of excellent work- 
 manship form part of the paraphernalia of the course and 
 casts and paper-mache fac-similes of the human body add 
 to the instructive study here pursued. 
 
OLD AGGIE 
 
 19 
 
 The old North College dormitory was built in 1868 and 
 is therefore one of the oldest buildings on the grounds. It 
 has not the advantage of steam heat which the new dormi- 
 tory enjoys but it has one of the best views on the college 
 campus. The rooms upon the southwest corners are 
 especially attractive, with their continual sunlight and their 
 charming views. The rooms are arranged somewhat as in 
 the North dormitories, that is, a study with two bedrooms 
 opening out of it. 
 
 The old dormitory has many picturesque gables, and the 
 south face is well covered with climbing ivy. A large 
 piazza stretches across the front and tall trees shelter its 
 adjacent walks. Upon the ground floor, along the west 
 side, is the college reading-room. Here are to be found 
 all the daily and weekly papers together with the principal 
 monthlies. The students appoint committees to run the 
 
20 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 business side and certain papers are subscribed for from the 
 term taxes. At the beginning of every college year an 
 auction of these same papers is held in the Chapel when 
 the papers are " knocked off " to the highest bidder who 
 thereby acquires the right to receive his paper after it has 
 remained in the reading room its stated time. This read- 
 ing room is different from the one in the Chapel building in 
 that it contains the ordinary periodicals while the latter is 
 solely for agricultural and scientific papers. 
 
 The corridor that runs along the reading-room side is 
 nearly always thronged with eager students about the bul- 
 letin boards. On these are posted all matters of interest to 
 the students, and beside them in a glass case are posted all 
 military notices. Many a peculiar notice has found its way 
 to the board, and it has become a favorite place for posting 
 those things either lost or found. 
 
 At the other end of the corridor are the boxes, where the 
 mail is left twice daily. Full charge of its distribution is in 
 the hands of some of the students and it is their duty to see 
 that the mail is safely delivered. 
 
 It has often been said that the average young man does 
 not show so much taste as his sister in the decoration of his 
 college room. Perhaps this may be so, but for abundance 
 of decoration no sweet girl under-graduate ever equalled her 
 brother. There is always a sort of studied disorder about 
 a collegian's room which of itself is charming if not accen- 
 tuated too much. A mad arrangement of pictures, rugs, 
 couches, desks, etc., with a smattering of old pipes, will 
 surely please the eye, and if there be a flag or two, with a 
 stolen sign to fill some vacant spot, then the furnishings are 
 complete. 
 
 Yet all rooms are not like this. Some are furnished 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 21 
 
 upon a principle not to be deviated from ; some run to 
 shades of red, others to yellow ; some are musical in fur- 
 nishings, others athletic ; some sporty, others religious. In 
 fact, a student's individuality is easily exhibited by his 
 furnishings. 
 
 Q- 123 
 
 I ■ 
 
 A neat form of decoration that is decidedly in vogue is 
 the mounting of pictures cut from our monthlies. These 
 are often placed about the wall in the form of a frieze. The 
 hanging of pictures is another way the student has of show- 
 ing his individuality; some are severe and straight in their 
 hard lines ; others are set at cross purposes with a bit of 
 draping to add a little color ; while others are set at such 
 uncertain intervals that the natural conclusion is that only a 
 genius could be cranky enough to perform such a feat ; 
 some one has called such a scene " a convalescence of 
 arrangement " and so in reality it is. 
 
22 
 
 OLD AGGIE, 
 
 And then the pipes ! Who ever saw a real student's 
 room without a pipe ? Short pipes and long pipes : bull- 
 dogs, clays, briers and corn-cobs. Every sort of a pipe, 
 and every sort of a brand of tobacco. Student life loses 
 half its charm without these convivial pipes. Take a quiet 
 room, a friend or two, a book to discuss and a well-filled 
 pipe, — what greater enjoyment is there for the heart of the 
 student ? 
 
 " Two years old, this little fellow, 
 Yet he's strong and sweet and mellow, 
 Yesterday, to-day, to-morrow, 
 Always sharing joy and sorrow, 
 Sticking by me like a brother, 
 Soothing far more than a mother. 
 
 Two years old, and yet quite ripe — 
 
 My little bulldog, brier pipe." 
 
 The barn, wherein the cattle are kept, consists of a large 
 main building with three ells. The cost of the structure 
 was some $30,000 and it contains all the modern appliances 
 for farm work. The Dairy Department is situated in the 
 northern wing and is of unusual interest to the visitor. Here 
 the milk tests are made and the butter is churned. Bab- 
 
OLD AGGIE. 23 
 
 cock testing machines and the peculiar Pasteurizers abound. 
 A class room for the short course men is located in this 
 northern wing and during the winter months it is a very busy 
 place. 
 
 The management of the barn is intended to be of educa- 
 tional value to the student and to illustrate the best systems 
 and methods to be employed in farm work. Typical speci- 
 mens of farm stock, blooded cattle, fancy swine, choice 
 horses and noted herds of sheep, are always on hand for the 
 study of the student. Among the requirements of the agri- 
 cultural course is that the student shall be capable of judg- 
 ing the good points of any herd of stock. During the spring 
 
 term small parties of collegians headed by their professor 
 may be seen going to the barn for this purpose, or when an 
 especially noted animal cannot be brought to the farm, the 
 class generally makes a trip to wherever the animal is kept. 
 The methods employed down to the minutest detail in 
 the barn work are thoroughly scientific ; all the milk is 
 weighed, the silos are constituted of given quantities of feed ; 
 the cattle are fed at stated times and never allowed to vary. 
 All the milk obtained is pasteurized and carefully recorded 
 for future reference. ' 
 
24 
 
 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 Behind the barns, stretching out over the rolling land, is 
 the farm. Great care has been taken to thoroughly drain 
 the soil by means of tile drains set from four to six feet 
 deep. The system of drainage employed is very extensive 
 and complete, and has taken years of labor to perfect. 
 Across the western end of the farm runs a long stream and 
 into this all waste water enters. 
 
 The value of drained land can hardly be overestimated. 
 Corn that had been planted throughout a drained field grew 
 to be five and six feet high, while similar corn upon an 
 adjacent spot that was not drained did not reach three feet 
 in the same time of growth. The roots of the corn need 
 much air to accelerate its growth, and if the spaces between 
 the particles of soil be filled with moisture it is manifest 
 
 that the crop will not grow well. If tile drains be inserted, 
 the water-level of the soil will be lowered with the depth of 
 the drain and thus leave the soil above in good condition for 
 growth. 
 
 The subject of fertilizers has, of course, received much 
 attention at the College and on the farm may be seen vari- 
 
OLD AGGIE. 25 
 
 ous crops labelled as having so much potash, or so much 
 phosphorus for fertilizer. These various amounts have all 
 been determined by experiment after months of trial. 
 
 To the north of the college buildings are situated the two 
 experiment stations, that of Chemical Analysis and that of 
 Vegetable Pathology, both being called the Hatch Experi- 
 ment Station and being under the direct control of the gov- 
 ernment. These two buildings are of brick, well lighted, 
 while that of Vegetable Pathology has extensive green- 
 houses. 
 
 The work done at this experiment station cannot be 
 overestimated in its value to farmers. Thousands of let- 
 ters are answered yearly and hundreds of fertilizers have 
 been tested upon its grounds. Large beds are laid off and 
 planted in various crops to test their growth with each new 
 fertilizer sent to the station. The work is largely done by 
 graduates of the college who are working for a higher degree. 
 
 Upon the hill to the east of the College is located the 
 
26 
 
 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 Botanical and Horticultural Departments. Here are situ- 
 ated the vineyards and orchards, the flower houses and the 
 garden vegetables. The Botanic Museum and Laboratory 
 was originally built in 1866 but as new needs have arisen 
 the building has been enlarged until now it occupies fully 
 twice as much land as it did originally. The laboratory for 
 microscopic work is thoroughly equipped with all needful 
 appliances and charts. The upper rooms contain an excel- 
 lent herbarium which is one of the finest in the country. 
 
 The work done by this department is known throughout 
 the country and consists principally of the study of germ 
 diseases and their cure. Structural botany forms an impor- 
 tant element and every student is obliged to collect an her- 
 barium of one hundred specimens while in college. Moun- 
 tain days are red letter ones in the routine work, and barge 
 loads of young students may often be seen returning from 
 the wilds of Holyoke or of Toby with botany cans well filled 
 with specimens. 
 
OLD AGGIE. 
 
 27 
 
 The Durfee Plant House, a gift of the late Dr. Nathan 
 Durfee of Fall River, occupies a prominent position. The 
 house consists of two large octagons and many small wings. 
 Within this extensive house are kept many types of plants 
 for illustrative and educational purposes. Large palms and 
 banana plants spread their broad leaves to the ceiling; 
 orchids and cactus peep out amid the abundance of foliage 
 and the red geranium alternates with the paler pinks. The 
 grounds immediately surrounding the house are laid out 
 very artistically and kept in the best of condition. 
 
 Back of the Plant House is a large grape house and 
 beside this hitter, stretching toward the south are the hot 
 beds for garden truck. The whole plot of land from the 
 Plant House to the Entomological Department is devoted 
 to the raising of nursery trees and shrubs. Especially val- 
 uable trees are scattered about, or arranged in landscape 
 form with a strict regard to color effects. 
 
 Farther up on the hillside is the President's House, now 
 used by the agricultural department. It was built in 1884 
 for the president and is still college property. The view 
 
28 
 
 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 from its piazza is very extended and at night, when the col- 
 lege lights gleam through the trees in the valley below, the 
 scene is like one of some fairy land. 
 
 Upon the top of the hill extend the apple and peach 
 orchards. Large crops are grown systematically and suc- 
 cessfully as many a student can attest. It is a favorite 
 occupation of the young collegian to sally forth on some 
 moonless night, absenting himself from his room for some- 
 time, only to return laden with fruit, and many are the mid- 
 night suppers where grapes and peaches form the piece de 
 resistance. 
 
 Upon this same hill, but farther south, is the Clark Reser- 
 voir built but a few years ago. It is a large brick tank 
 capable of holding enough water to easily supply the college 
 for some time if the town supply should ever run short. 
 The fire system is directly connected with this tank and as 
 its elevation is something over 100 feet the water force is 
 sufficient to send a stream over the highest building. It 
 was only about a year ago that a new system of water works 
 was introduced. 
 
 The Entomological Department has its insectary at the 
 lower road, below the hill. This department occupies a 
 comparatively new building with an attached greenhouse. 
 The. work of the department relates to the investigation of 
 the life and habits of insects, their destructive powers and 
 their extermination. A large and valuable collection of 
 insects is thoroughly catalogued and carefully kept in 
 marked cabinets. Here, as at the experimental station, 
 most of the work is done either by graduates or by under- 
 graduates. In the green-houses plants are raised for the 
 insects to prey upon so that their methods of destruction 
 may be thoroughly studied. 
 
OLD AGGIE. 29 
 
 Such in fact are the many buildings of this vast college ; 
 such is the work that the results have always turned on 
 the best means to aid mankind in a continual struggle for 
 existence. That this work has passed the experimental 
 
 stage is beyond dispute as is evinced by the great increase 
 of letters for information from all over the. state. Within 
 the last year over 12,000 such letters were received and 
 answered personally by the various departments of the col- 
 lege. That the need of such a college is imperative is 
 being shown daily by the increase of its influence. 
 
 Here, amid the quiet valley of the Connecticut, can be 
 found every advantage possible to offer the scientific farmer 
 and horticulturist, and increasing classes attest to the fact 
 that the public is beginning to appreciate the work that the 
 State is doing for it. 
 
 The social life of every college is one of the essential 
 features when choosing an institution for education, and in 
 this respect the Massachusetts Agricultural College will 
 
30 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 compare very favorably with any other. There is an excel- 
 lent organization of the Y. M. C. A. that holds stated meet- 
 ings and receives addresses from prominent individuals 
 among its members. The Natural History Club gives quiet 
 talks at which are found many visiting professors and noted 
 men. The Aggie Life is the college paper, issued every 
 two weeks, and within its columns the feelings and doings 
 of the college are reflected. Its influence is increasing 
 yearly and the coming year holds out a bright future before 
 it. The Index, a yearly publication issued by the Junior 
 Class, contains the usual amount of squibs, notes, illustra- 
 tions and literary matter that is always found in like college 
 books. 
 
 There are four societies, of a secret nature, in college: — 
 the D. G. K., the College Shakespearean, the Q. T. V. and 
 the Phi Sigma Kappa. The D. G. K. is the only society at 
 present that has a house, the others having rooms in the 
 old North College. These societies offer many attractions 
 to the young student and within their rooms may be found 
 many comforts that are unobtainable elsewhere. 
 
 At this time, the plans for a new veterinary laboratory are 
 being considered and within a few weeks its sides will begin 
 to appear above ground. It is to be situated south of the 
 drill hall and near the southern boundary line. The build- 
 ing is to be of the latest improved ideas regarding the nec- 
 essary adjuncts for treating diseased cattle and will 
 undoubtedly prove to be a very valuable acquisition to the 
 college. The need of such an hospital where cases could 
 be treated and studied has long been felt but it was not until 
 this spring that a bill was passed through the Legislature 
 making the requisite appropriation for its erection. In past 
 years all veterinary work had to be done in a seven by nine 
 room, but soon this will be a matter of past history. 
 
OLD AGGIE. 31 
 
 Every college is strong just as its alumni is strong, and 
 in this strength Aggie is very fortunate. Among her past 
 graduates are men prominent in every profession in life. 
 " The successes of our greatest men are founded upon 
 those days and nights, when, in the lengthened vigils of study, 
 they laid an intellectual foundation upon which they built by 
 experience, until the very forces of Nature trembled before 
 their advance." 
 
 Aggie has done her share toward fitting her sons for the 
 broad battle-field of life and she remains true to those who 
 have carried her banner to success and fame in far distant 
 fields. Her influence has been felt on the one hand as far 
 as the lotus land of fair Japan and on the other, to the trop- 
 ical Pacific Isles. Her heart is always warm for her striv- 
 ing sons wherever they may be and her voice is always 
 raised for freedom and equality. 
 
 To those who, from year to year, are enabled to rejoin 
 their Alma Mater at her season of celebration, she can and 
 she does heartily offer them 
 
 A WELCOME. 
 
 Once more, ye hills reverberate the sound 
 That swells from Sugarloaf to Holyoke grim ; 
 
 Awake, old Deerfield, of historic ground, 
 And add your paeans to the interim. 
 
 Connecticut, from Whately to the bend, 
 
 More tortuous than the fabled snake of yore, 
 
 Catches your notes, and to their tones will lend 
 The sleepy singing of her log marked shore. 
 
 Far to the south old Nonotuck now stands 
 
 And bids ye welcome, sturdy sons of toil : 
 And Warner stretches out her golden hands, 
 
 Rich from the culture of a stubborn soil. 
 
 All these, and more, your triumph now doth mark, 
 They know your voice : they recognize your hand. 
 
 Full many a time, hath Pleasant after dark 
 Been welcome forage for marauder band. 
 
32 
 
 OLD AGGIE. 
 
 And yet, me thinks, 'twas at the Devil's Glen 
 That pranks were played that better not be told. 
 
 And Tom hath witnessed many scenes that pen 
 Would ever fail to paint in words o'er bold. 
 
 Such days are past and have been long forgot ; 
 
 The Freshman to the Senior, quickly grown, 
 Leaves such behind and scorns the simple plot 
 
 That once would seat him on a trembling throne. 
 
 The games once played have long since grown too old. 
 
 For childish fancies flutter as a dream. 
 Our frames are cast to-day in sturdier mould, 
 
 To breast the angry surges of Life's stream. 
 
 These well-loved walls that knew you once so well, 
 Have aged with you in years that now are past ; 
 
 They, too, on recollections often dwell 
 And with the day, do yesterday contrast. 
 
 Yet do they hold for you a welcome cheer, 
 
 Wide open doors, where latchstrings are not known. 
 
 Your names, to Alma Mater always dear : 
 Your efforts, she must always claim her own. 
 
 Her pride you are : her very busy boys : 
 
 Young nurslings once beneath her tender wing ; 
 
 The height of all her many hopes and joys, 
 Alone you soar ; alone your song you sing. 
 
AMHERST HOUSE 
 
 LIVERY AND FEED STABLE. 
 
 T. L. PAIGE, Proprietor. 
 
 Hacks to and from all trains. Tallyho and Barge, Hacks, 
 Double and Single Teams. 
 
 AMITY STREET, - - - - - - AMHERST, MASS 
 
 Lovell, 
 
 PHOTOGRAPHER TO THE CLASS OF '97, M.A.C., 
 
 MAKES A SPECIALTY OF COLLEGE WORK. 
 
 Class and Athletic Groups, etc. Hand Cameras and Supplies 
 in stock, and always fresh. 
 
 AMHERST, MASS. 
 
 E. D. MARSH, 
 
 10 Phoenix Row, ----- Amherst; Mass. 
 
 Students' Furniture a Specialty. 
 
 CARPETS, RUGS AND DRAPERIES. 
 
 I have the Ammunition to fit you with. On 
 your wav to the Post Office stop and look at 
 my stock of 
 
 HATS, CAPS, GLOVES, 
 
 DRESS SHIRTS, 
 
 Foot Ball Goods, Collars and Gaffs. 
 
 H^VfCRY CLARK, 
 
 COLLEGE O U T F I T T E R. 
 
 UNDER THE HOTEL. 
 
Wong Company Laundry. 
 
 Work delivered two clays after brought to the laundry 
 Students' work neatly and carefully done. 
 
 All Work First Class. 
 
 HENRY ADAMS, 
 
 ^Prescription Druggisi>Hh 
 
 i Cook's Block, - - - Amherst, Mass. 
 
 BOOTS AND SHOES 
 
 FOR EVERYBODY. 
 
 A FINE LINE OF STUDENTS' 
 
 DRESS SHOES, IN PATENT LEATHER, BALS. and CONGRESS. 
 
 A FULL LINE OF RUBBER GOODS. 
 
 FOOT-BALL SHOES AT LOWEST CASH PRICES. 
 
 SE3P" Repairing done while you wait. == ^3| 
 
 2 Phoenix ltotv. 
 
 G. S. KENDRICK, 
 
 DEALER IN 
 
 MEATS AND PROVISIONS, 
 
 South side Cutler's Block, 
 AMHERST, MASS. 
 
C. R. ELDER, 
 
 (Successor to \V. W. Hunt) 
 
 ALL KINDS OF 
 
 Heating, Plumbing and Gas Work. 
 
 HUNT'S BLOCK, AMHERST 
 
 L. W. GIBBS & CO., 
 
 James E. Stinson, Mgr. 
 
 Clothiers and Furnishers. 
 
 All the new things in Neckwear, Hats and Caps, Golf 
 Suits, &c. 
 
 COOK'S BLOCK, AMHERST, MASS. 
 
 JAMES F. PAGE, 
 
 CASH DEALER IN 
 
 STUDENTS' FINE FOOTWEAR. 
 
 PATENT LEATHERS, $2.50 to $5.50. 
 WINTER RUSSETS, #3.00 to $6.00. 
 
 Next to Post Office. 
 
 LYNN, 
 
 TAILOR, 
 
 AMHERST, MASS. 
 
DEUEL'S DRUG STORE, 
 
 AMHERST HOUSE BLOCK, - - - - AMHERST, MASS. 
 
 Deuel's Ice Cream Soda. 
 
 Huylers Candies. 
 
 Physicians Prescriptions carefully prepared. 
 
 J. P. CAMPION, 
 I^asttionatol^ Tailors 
 
 IHIIilTJHlY SUITS fl SPECIALTY. 
 
 O^p^All suits made in my own workshops. r _^J\ 
 Hunt's Block, - Amherst, Mass. 
 
 Jeweler. 
 
 Fine Goods, Low Prices, Skilled workmanship by Mr. 
 T. Noyes, Graduate Optician and Watchmaker. 
 
 2d doors North of P. O., - - - - AMHEKST, MASS. 
 
 JACKSON & CUTLER, 
 
 DEALERS IN 
 
 Dry and Fancy Goods, 
 
 AND 
 
 CHOICE FAMILY GROCERIES, 
 
 AMHERST, MASS. 
 
WHEN YOU ARE IN THE CITY CALL AT 
 
 Cbe fiampton. 
 
 Everything new and up-to-date. Near depot. Colored 
 Porter to meet you at every train. 
 
 KELLOGG & BURNS, Prop's. 
 
 W. W. BOYNTON, 
 
 MANUFACTURER OF 
 
 Pineapple, Lemon and German Tonic, Birch Beer and 
 Ginger Ale. 
 
 Fountains charged to order. 
 
 RIVER STREET, - - NORTHAMPTON, MASS. 
 
 CATERER, 
 
 19 South Prospect St., - - - Amherst, Mass. 
 
FRANK D. DEUEL, 
 
 SUCCESSOR TO DICKINSON & POMEROY, 
 
 Hack, Boarding, Livery I Sale Stable, 
 
 Northampton, Mass. 
 
 R. E. EDWARDS, 
 
 HEADQUARTERS FOR 
 
 DESKS, BOOKCASES, CHAIRS, COUCHES, RUGS, 
 DRAPERIES, &c. 
 
 - « ■ ^=? FREE DELIVERY. r=: -^ 
 25 and 27 Pleasant St., - - - Northampton. 
 
 c 
 
 ALL, 
 ATEI^E^. 
 
 Northampton, Mass. 
 
n 
 
 1982