Pagre 4
College Station, Texas
Wednesday, August 5, 1970
THE BATTALION
THE
A&M has long past-bright future
Texas A&M’s history began in
the fall of 1876 when 40 students
attended the school’s first classes.
A&M, the state’s oldest insti
tution of higher learning, has
grown to house a student body
of over 12,000 and an academic
structure of more than 60 depart
ments.
In July of 1862 President Abra
ham Lincoln authorized the Mor
rill Act permitting the Federal
government to offer each state a
grant of public lands which could
be used to raise funds for estab
lishing colleges specializing in ag
riculture and the mechanical arts.
In the first year of its exist
ence, A&M’s enrollment jumped
from 40 on Oct. 4, to 100 in Jan
uary and 331 in the spring.
In these early years, accom
modations were insufficient for
anything like this number. The
second and third floors of Gath-
right Hall and the second, third
and part of the fourth floor of
the Main Building were used for
barracks.
During cold winter months,
students kept these rooms warm
with fire wood. Each student had
his own axe, cut his own wood at
the common wood pile and carried
it to his room in his arms.
Wood piles were kept outside
each building with the owner’s
name above each, roughly on this
order, "This is John Jones’ wood
pile. Keep your hands off of it!”
The first floor of Gathright
Hall was used as a dining hall
with classes held on the first
floor of the Main Building.
As for the actual campus in
these early days, one professor
said:
“The campus was such a wild
waste that it was not considered
safe for children to be out at
night. The howling of wolves pro
vided nightly serenades. On one
occasion a wild animal wandering
over the campus threw the whole
community in a frenzy of excite
ment. An alarm was given and
the whole battalion of students
and some professors turned out
to kill it but in the high weeds
of the campus it easily escaped.”
The conduct of the professors
also left room for improvement
during the memorial ’76. Follow
ing complaints from throughout
the state the Board of Directors
fired the entire faculty.
A mathematics professor show
ed his contempt for being fired by
going fishing. “I can’t be both
ered,” he said.
In the late ’70’s the mid ’80’s,
Garland Jones succeeded Gath
right as president, four buildings
were constructed and the entire
curriculum was revised.
The school slumped badly in
the 80’s until Lawrence Sullivan
Ross was named president in
1890. Once the state legislature
even considered abandoning the
college, with the buildings to be
used as a Negro insane asylum.
Ross literally saved the school
from destruction. During his
eight-year reign, enrollment in
creased tremendously, the first
Corps trip was held in Houston,
property value reached $389,-
502.64 and most of all, the college
for the first time acquired a good ^
name among citizens of the state.
During the first years of the
century such events as a cane
rush between freshmen and soph
omores caused quite a stir.
One morning mysterious notices
had been tacked up at various
places forbidding any freshmen
to carry a cane past the bandstand
between 4:30 and 4:45 p.m. At the
blast of a bugle, at the proper
hour, groups of freshmen and
sophomores emerged from every
hall, clad in old clothes.
A freshman, attended by a
bodyguard, attempted the feat
and the struggle was on.
Reinforcements arrived and the
battle raged for two hours, but
without success on either side.
President H. H. Harrington’s
administration was rocked by a
student strike. After several days,
most of the students went home.
One student, crossing the Brazos,
was met by his father with a
shotgun. He returned. Harring
ton resigned. The same fate be
fell the administration of Ct
R. T. Milner, and he resign
Two tragedies enabled the w
pus to first take on its preti
appearance. In 1911 the mess la
burned and in 1912 Old Mainw
gutted by fire.
Soon afterwards Sbisa Dim|
Hall and the Academic Buili)
sprang up. Also, not long ate
ward, Guion Hall was built
o ^ u
£ G E
SK'JMVE.n
p R es' oENT
Dear Class o£ '13,
Choosing a university is a choice oi
^ c'Ule*
meet tYve ever increasing, demands placed p V
society in vlrvicVi "you live.
The Directors, Officers and Staff of University "National "Bank
extend to each of you a warm welcome to College Station.
University "National, the only lull Service hank in College
Station, has been serving Texas Aggies for over a quarter
century. Vie are conveniently located just across the street
from the campus, at North Gate, within easy walking distance
from the dorms. University "National stands ready to assist
you in all your hanking needs.
The first days on campus are hectic to say the least, and we
thought perhaps we might make things somewhat easier for you
by inviting you to open your checking account before your
arrival. Should you desire this service, simply clip the
application provided below and mail it to us. Vie hope this
will help in getting "one more thing out of the way".
Again, welcome to Texas A & "Ml University and College Station.
Vie are looking forward to meeting you personally upon your
arrival and if we might he of assistance prior or after your
arrival please contact us.
Very truly yours.
doe k. Sawyer /
"President
P. s -
, . v mai l service to parents.
oiier tree bank by ma
. c- c, 8c M
c oF TEXAS A
-rwE S\OE °
ON
UNIVERSITY NATIONAL BANK
P. 0. Box 2680
College Station, Texas
Gentlemen:
I will be a student at Texas A&M this fall and would like to open my checking account with the University
National Bank early.
Signature
Name (print) ~
Home Address
BEFORE MY ARRIVAL: (check one)
□ send statement to my home address
□ hold statements at bank
University Address
Initial deposit $
Upon my arrival in College Station I will notify you of my mailing address if not listed above. I will also stop
by and sign a regular signature card.
Fish put the polish to statue of Lawrence Sullivan Ross
Polishing ‘Sully’ one of many traditions at Texas A&M
INVESTIGATE BEFORE
YOU BUY!!
Insurance Policy Made To Appear As Investment
.... Beware of those salesmen who come to you
with a letter of recommendation from one of
your friends and try to get you “in on the ground
floor” of his fabulous company. It is bad enough
that he has probably already take your friend for
a commitment of a lot of money he could invest
to much greater advantage elsewhere.
company grows and makes better profits, but it
will, in nearly every case, take years to ever
recover the original investments.
What the salesman is attempting to do is to
get you to make what he represents as a highly
profitable investment which turns out to be an
extremely expensive and highly concealed series
of premium payments on a very limited insurance
policy.
By its very nature the special policy is dif
ficult to understand, lends itself to misrepresenta
tion, and defies comparison with other insurance
policies which the laymen may understand. More
often than not they are sold in high promotional
manner, represented as a one-time-only-opportu-
nity for a person to get in on the ground floor.
Most of the “deals” include a profit sharing-
dividend feature with the implication that these
dividends will continually increase in size as the
Highly polished, canned sales presentations
with exaggerated emphasis on the themes w
profit, investment, dividends and the like often
leave buyers unaware that they have merely
bought an insurance policy.
The above article recently appeared in the monthly publication printed by the
Better Business Bureau of Arkansas, Inc. (Little Rock, Ark.)
This message brought to you as a public service by:
Central Texas Association
of Life Underwriters
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