BETHLEHEM, February 1882.
[DEAR DAD:]
You may remember a conversation we had at Squan about
hazing in which you said it was a very black-guardly thing and
a cowardly thing. I didn't agree with you, but when I saw how
it really was and how silly and undignified it was, besides
being brutal, I
thought it over and changed my mind completely, agreeing with
you in every respect. A large number of our class have been
hazed, taking it as a good joke, and have been laughed at by
the whole college. I talked to the boys about it, and said
what I would do and so on, without much effect. Wednesday a
junior came to me, and told me I was to be hazed as I left the
Opera House Friday night. After that a great many came to me
and advised and warned me as to what I should do. I decided
to get about fifty of our class outside and then fight it out;
that was before I changed my mind. As soon as I did I
regretted it very much, but, as it turned out, the class
didn't come, so I was alone, as I wished to be. You see, I'd
not a very good place here; the fellows looked on me as a sort
of special object of ridicule, on account of the hat and cane,
walk, and so on, though I thought I'd got over that by this
time. The Opera House was partly filled with college men, a
large number of sophomores and a few upper class men. It was
pretty generally known I was going to have a row, and that
brought them as much as the show. Poor Ruff was in agony all
day. He supposed I'd get into the fight, and he knew he'd get
in, too, sooner or later. If he did he'd be held and not be
able to do anything, and then the next day be blamed by the
whole college for interfering in a class matter. He hadn't
any money to get into the show, and so wandered around outside
in the rain in a great deal more excited state than I was.
Howe went all over town after putting on his old clothes, in
case of personal damage, in search of freshmen who were at
home out of the wet. As I left the building a man grabbed me
by my arm, and the rest, with the seniors gathered around; the
only freshman
present, who was half scared to death, clung as near to me as
possible. I withdrew my arm and faced them. "If this means
hazing," I said, "I'm not with you. There's not enough men
here to haze me, but there's enough to thrash me, and I'd
rather be thrashed than hazed." You see, I wanted them to
understand exactly how I looked at it, and they wouldn't think
I was simply hotheaded and stubborn. I was very cool about it
all. They broke in with all sorts of explanations; hazing was
the last thing they had thought of. No, indeed, Davis, old
fellow, you're mistaken. I told them if that was so, all
right, I was going home. I saw several of my friends in the
crowd waiting for me, but as I didn't want them to interfere,
I said nothing, and they did not recognize me. When among the
crowd of sophomores, the poor freshman made a last effort, he
pulled me by the coat and begged me to come with him. I said
no, I was going home. When I reached the next corner I
stopped. "I gave you fair warning, keep off. I tell you I'll
strike the first man, the first one, that touches me." Then
the four who had been appointed to seize me jumped on me, and
I only got one good blow in before they had me down in the
gutter and were beating me on the face and head. I put my
hands across my face, and so did not get any hard blows
directly in the face. They slipped back in a moment, and when
I was ready I scrambled up pretty wet and muddy, and with my
face stinging where they had struck. It had all been done so
quickly, and there was such a large crowd coming from the
theatre, that, of course, no one saw it. When I got up there
was a circle all around me. They hadn't intended to go so
far. The men, except those four who had beaten me, were
rather ashamed and wished
they were out of it. I turned to Emmerich, a postgraduate,
and told him to give me room. "Now," I said, "you're not able
to haze me, and I can't thrash twelve of you, but I'll fight
any one man you bring out." I asked for the man that struck
me, and named another, but there was no response. The upper
classmen, who had just arrived, called out that was fair, and
they'd see it fair. Goodnough, Purnell and Douglas, who don't
like me much, either. Ruff was beside me by this time. He
hadn't seen anything of it, and did not get there until he
heard me calling for a fair chance and challenging the class
for a man. I called out again, the second time, and still no
one came, so I took occasion to let them know why I had done
as I did in a short speech to the crowd. I said I was a
peaceable fellow, thought hazing silly, and as I never
intended to haze myself, I didn't intend any one to haze me.
Then I said again, "This is the third time, will one of your
men fight this fair? I can't fight twelve of you." Just then
two officers who had called on some mill-hands, who are always
dying for a fight, and a citizen to help them, burst into the
crowd of students, shouldering them around like sheep until
they got to me, when one of them put his arm around me, and
said, "I don't know anything about this crowd, but I'll see
you're protected, sir. I'll give 'em fair play." One officer
got hold of Ruff and pretty near shook him to pieces until I
had to interfere and explain. They were for forming a
body-guard, and were loud in their denunciations of the
college, and declaring they'd see me through if I was a
stranger to 'em.
Two or three of the sophomores, when they saw how things
were going, set up a yell, but Griffin struck out
and sent one of them flying one way and his hat another, so
the yells ended. Howe and Murray Stuart took me up to their
rooms, and Ruff went off for beefsteak for my eye, and treated
the crowd who had come to the rescue, at Dixon's, to beer.
The next day was Saturday, and as there was to be a meeting of
the Athletic Association, of course, I wanted to show up. The
fellows all looked at my eye pretty hard and said nothing. I
felt pretty sure that the sympathy was all with me.
Four men are elected from the college to be on the
athletic committee. They can be nominated by any one, though
generally it is done by a man in their own class. We had
agreed the day before to vote for Tolman for our class, so
when the president announced nominations were in order for the
freshmen class, Tolman was instantly nominated. At the same
time one of the leading sophomores jumped up and nominated Mr.
Davis, and a number of men from the same class seconded it. I
knew every one in the college knew of what had happened, and
especially the sophomores, so I was, of course, very much
surprised. I looked unconscious, though, and waited. One of
the seniors asked that the nominees should stand up, as they
didn't know their names only their faces. As each man rose he
was hissed and groaned down again. When I stood up the
sophomores burst into a yell and clapped and stamped, yelling,
"Davis! Davis! vote for D!" until I sat down. As I had
already decided to nominate Tolman, I withdrew my name from
the nominees, a movement which was received by loud cries of
"No! No!" from the sophs. So, you see, Dad, I did as you
said, as I thought was right, and came out well indeed. You
see, I am now the hero of the
hour, every one in town knows it, and every one congratulates
me, and, "Well done, me boy," as Morrow '83 said, seems to be
the idea, one gets taken care of in this world if you do
what's the right thing, if it is only a street fight. In
fact, as one of the seniors said, I've made five friends where
I had one before. The sophs are ashamed and sorry, as their
conduct in chapel, which was more marked, than I made it,
shows. I've nothing to show for it but a red mark under the
eye, and so it is the best thing that could possibly have
happened. Poor Ruff hugged me all the way home, and I've
started out well in a good way, I think, though not a very
logical one.
Uncle says to tell you that my conduct has his approval
throughout.
DICK.
To which letter my father promptly replied:
