USA > California > A history of the new California, its resources and people; Vol I > Part 28
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Father Villiger was the first of the presidents, and the only one until the appointment of the Rev. Robert E. Kenna, in 1883, who was not an Italian exile; but like his predecessors, and most of his successors, he too was a fugitive from revolutionary hatred. The difference between his career and that of his Italian brethren is that Father Villiger escaped with greater dif- ficulties because the revolutionists of Switzerland were more diligent in searching out and imprisoning the Jesuits, than were the revolutionists of Italy. But he escaped none the less and embarked for America in 1848. For twelve years he was Superior of eastern colleges, and backed by the experience thus acquired he came to Santa Clara as we have seen, in 1861. Besides the material improvements mentioned above, Father Villiger was untiring in perfecting the interior discipline of the College. One of the noteworthy incidents of his presidency was the presentation of a drama for the benefit of the wounded soldiers of the Civil war. The drama was well attended, and though the College was deeply sunk in debt it was able to contribute in its humble way toward relieving the heroes of the war.
As the College had taken such gigantic strides under Father Villiger, his successor, the Rev. Aloysius Masnata, had little or nothing to do except keep up the high standard which the College had already reached in studies and general discipline. The next president, however, a man of indomitable energy, the Rev. Aloysius Varsi, was not content with what had been already accomplished. The rapid growth of this country consequent on the opening of the railroads demanded similar developments at Santa Clara. People were flocking westward and great prospects were open to the College if it could offer suitable accommodations. Father Varsi took in the situation and began the stately edifice since known as the College Hall. It was a
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magnificent structure for the time, though at present it cannot compare with our educational buildings scattered so lavishly through the state.
In 1871, while Father Varsi was still president and under his patron- age, the California Historical Society was founded at the College. On June 6 the members assembled for the first time and in the assembly were to be counted California's most prominent men. Among those who re- sponded to the first call of Father Varsi were John T. Doyle, John W. Devineville and Tiburcio Parrott, while Hubert H. Bancroft, Hon. C. T. Ryland, W. W. Palmer, Horace Davis and others signified by letter their desire of being identified with the society. Father Accolti, as the oldest pioneer present, presided at the meeting, while Henry C. Hyde acted as secre- tary. H. H. Bancroft allowed the free use of his magnificent library in San Francisco and did all in his power to further the success of the under- taking which Father Varsi had set on foot.
In view of the improvements of the past few years we might be in- clined to conclude that there was money in the education business, as indeed in former years people actually did conclude. "The Santa Clara regents have wealth whencesoever it comes," was the common opinion, and consider- ing the enormous cost of labor and material prior to the opening of the railroad, we can readily understand how reasonable such a conclusion was. The fact is, however, the inner history of Santa Clara during those years of progress is peculiarly unintelligible. The Jesuits were flying in the very face of bankruptcy, their debts were increasing, but so long as they re- mained within payable limits they cared not. What if bankruptcy did come ? Their present expenditures were wise because necessary, and provided there remained the wherewithal to satisfy their creditors their personal interests mattered little. They came to California poor and homeless, could they not repeat the process and return whence they came? But there was no such danger ; their creditors were wealthy men who, while trusting the Fathers, hoped to see Santa Clara College emerge from her debt glorious and triumphant. " What gave the Fathers credit," says an early historian, "was their solid piety and goodness of life, their eminent and known learning, their progress even in the modern sciences, mathematics, physics and chem- istry, especially in their accurate and reliable assays and analyses of minerals, to determine the exact amount of silver, gold or other element contained in
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the specimens offered for examination,-an affair of the highest interest for California at that period of time." But whatever the willingness of bene- factors to lend, the Fathers were anxious to free the College from the burden of debt and so from 1873 till the present time all their surplus money has gone toward liquidation. In 1873 the debt was $118,279.46. Father Brunengo, the seventh president, reduced it to $98,703.03 by 1876, but it remained above ninety thousand until in 1891, under the administration of Father Kenna, it was reduced to the manageable sum of $14,000. Since that time it has never gone far beyond this mark, though unfortunately even to this day there is a debt on the institution.
We are now prepared to continue our narrative of events from Father Varsi's time. His two immediate successors had enough to do in grappling with the financial problem, though both Father Brunengo and Father Pinasco did much to improve the general appearance of the College and to perfect internal discipline. It was not, however, until Father Kenna's first presi- dency that affairs began to improve. With the debt practically removed Father Kenna was enabled to attend to further material progress. In 1884 he addressed a letter to the former students, many of whom he had known personally, for he himself was a Santa Clara alumnus, and in his letter he expressed a desire to erect a College chapel which should be a fit memorial and a substantial proof of the affection which the "old boys" bore toward their alma mater. It was an appeal for contributions and the response was both immediate and generous, and in 1888 the memorial Chapel of Santa Clara College was dedicated under the invocation of the Immaculate Virgin Mary. It is a magnificent structure and, though not as yet fully complete, an apt place for the present and future students to beg from the Father of Light inspiration in their studies and guidance for their after life.
In giving this brief outline of the men and the doings of the last thirty- nine years, for we have now reached 1889, we have said nothing of the subordinates, of the men who were not raised to the dignity of command, merely because they were needed elsewhere, in the class-room or the lecture halls. Some of the presidents may not be known outside the College circles; but there are some who, having identified themselves with the history of Santa Clara, have for their learning and intellectual caliber gained a world- wide reputation. Of these we could mention a long list of names, and add
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to each name a long list of achievements. Among the dead we could name Veyret, the scientist and mathematician; Pascal, the classical scholar and litterateur: White, the playwright and poet; Pollano, the philosopher and theologian; Bayma, the man of universal powers, the scientist, the mathe- matician, the classical scholar and the English author all in one; Young, the rhetorician ; Shallo, the poet and philosopher; Caredda, the disciplinarian and musician. These among the dead; still among the living we can point to Fathers Neri, Leonard, Cichi, Traverso, all octogenarians, but with the exception of Father Leonard, full of vigor and life. The rough pioneer days agreed with them.
The list would be too long for our purpose; a brief mention of some few will suffice. Joseph Bayma was a man of most varied attainments. His epic poem "Christopher Columbus," in the octava rima of Tasso, is of recognized merit and marks him as a poet. His five volumes of mathematics written and published at Santa Clara justify us in calling him a mathe- matician. As a philosopher and scientist, his "Treatise on Molecular Mechanics," highly commended and much studied at Oxford and Cambridge, is a sufficient guaranty of unusual ability. Besides this treatise he has written a complete course of philosophy, and during his residence at Santa Clara his regular contribution to American magazines gained for him a reputation as an English scholar, a rare gift for one who did not begin the study of English until his thirty-second year.
Side by side with Bayma lived and labored the Rev. Edmund Young, who, if he has left no printed books to testify to his ability, has a sufficient recommendation in the men he trained in oratory and English composition. The Hon. D. A. Delmas is one of his pupils; Stephen M. White is another and a great number of like orators and statesmen can and do date back their inspiration and success to the humble Jesuit who for several decades directed the Literary Congress and taught English literature at Santa Clara.
Nor must we omit the name of Father Caredda. His life was not of such a nature that his reputation could go far beyond the walls, and yet there is not one of the 13,700 students who during the past fifty years studied at Santa Clara, who does not remember and remembering feel a warm affec- tion for the dear old man who during the long period of thirty-four years (1855-89) acted as prefect of discipline and general musical director; and
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in this latter capacity he continued to be of active service till 1890. Father Caredda, like the other Italian Fathers to whom the existence and preserva- tion of Santa Clara College is due, was a victim of the religious persecution of 1848 when to be a Jesuit, in Piedmont at least, was to be an enemy of all things patriotic and just.
This brings us up to the last decade, to the presidency of Father Riordan and the second term of office of Father Kenna. Father Riordan's energetic character did much in a dull time to keep up the prestige of the College, while Father Kenna's second term of office has been made memorable by the Golden Jubilee celebration of 1901. This celebration following so closely on the fiftieth anniversary of the discovery of gold, of the admission of California into the Union and other pioneer events, caused not a little stir in the west. People were made to realize that side by side with the early settlers in California was a body of men laboring for something more enduring than gold. The Jubilee year of Santa Clara, besides doing this, brought together the former students old and young, and if one observed, he would have been astonished by the great number of worthy alumni. We shall give but a brief statement of the names of the more prominent men who had gathered around their alma mater on that occasion. Nearly every walk in life was represented. Clay M. Greene, Valentine and Charles Mc- Clatchy, Franklin K. Hitchborn and Charles Jessen were among the liter- ary men who were present. The Hon. D. M. Delmas, Hon. James D. Phelan, Hon. William Lorigan, Hon. James Campbell, J. J. Barrett, John O'Gara, were some of the orators who returned to pay their tribute of re- spect to Santa Clara.
The production of the "Passion Play of Santa Clara College," a sacred drama written for the occasion by Clay M. Greene, an old student, and dedi- cated to the Rev. R. E. Kenna "gentle playmate of the author's tender years." added greatly to the success of the Jubilee. This play has been received with more than usual applause and on two different occasions; it has been con- sidered by competent critics as equal and by some superior to the famous Oberammergau drama; it has been in demand ever since the Jubilee and was reproduced in 1903. It will be presented at the World's Fair at St. Louis, 1904.
We have thus traced the history of Santa Clara College up to our
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own times. To-day the work of education is still going on within its walls and the College rests on the same broad basis of self-sacrifice which character- ized the early Fathers. Without endowments, without wealth, without an oversupply of modern accommodations, it has a proud name and reputation as an institution where knowledge is imparted and the moral elements in man are not neglected. In view of this name and repute, we shall describe the college as it stands to-day. Humble though it is outwardly, it has a cer- tain inner worth which should not be overlooked
The stranger entering in through the faculty building to the inner court finds himself in a magnificent garden, luxuriant in date palms and the choicest growths of Santa Clara's fair vale. Looking about him from the center of this court, he is attracted by the unusual appearance of the lower story of the surrounding building. It is of adobe, a remnant of mis- sion days; the walls, some three feet thick, are either ivy-covered or of a beautiful green tint corresponding to the verdure of the garden plants, which in winter as in summer retain their vitality and beauty. If the visitor is fortunate enough to obtain a guide,-and as a rule he is so fortunate, for the members of the faculty, if not engaged in class work, act as guides,- he is taken through the college grounds and buildings and notices, as he proceeds, a wonderful combination of antiquity and modern improvements.
Passing from the garden into what is known as the vineyard,-it was a vineyard once and retains the name,-he is shown a little grove of olive trees and some few fig trees, ranging in age from one hundred to one hundred and thirty years. At the far end of this vineyard there is an hetero- geneous collection of small buildings and articles of unknown import. It is Father Ricard's weather bureau and observatory, not actually completed, but for ordinary astronomical work quite sufficient. There is, besides the sidereal clock connected with Lick Observatory, an eight-inch equatorial telescope, supplied with incandescent lamps which throw a subdued light on the verniers and render work at once easy and effective. Then there is a complete set of weather indicators all supplied with electrical recorders, by means of which the Rev. Professor is able to give seldom failing weath- er forecast to the daily papers of San José.
The visitor is next conducted to the main library, where he finds some eighteen thousand volumes of all ages and conditions. He is told that this
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Commentary on the Psalms was printed in 1492, that this quaint looking work is a relic of the old Douay College, that such and such a volume was used by Cardinal So and So in the Council of Trent; and if curious to learn the source of such book rarities, he is easily satisfied. The early Fathers, exiled from colleges of great age and great prestige, took care to secure whatever in the line of books they could conveniently take with them across the ocean, fearing that the marauding persecutors would con- vert their time-honored libraries into sleeping rooms or dancing halls for the revelling socialistic soldiers, and throw the valuable volumes into the waste piles. Thus the library at Santa Clara was enriched with rare speci- mens of books. But these ancient volumes do not make up the entire pres- ent collection ; there is besides a department for modern publications, where we find the best works of poetry, fiction, oratory, history, science and all that modern research had added by way of commentaries to the ancient classics, from the Delphini professors down to Andrew Lang. It is a con- trast marked and interesting to the student and, if from these books he directs his attention to the beautifully wrought Carara marble statues of Grecian and Roman celebrities, he feels that he is indeed in an atmosphere of learn- ing. The building is in itself despicable, but all that thirst for knowledge could supply is there and there in lavish abundance.
The building connecting this Library with the College proper is known as the infirmary, where students convalescent or ill receive private rooms, together with nurse and medical attendance. At the extreme end of this building the visitor is introduced into the " Redwood " office, the sanctum of the College magazine, where a regular monthly publication, averaging sixty-five pages, is managed and edited by the students. This " Redwood," which has a fair reputation among College journals, is the outgrowth of " Owl," the first College magazine west of the Mississippi, a paper which was published monthly by the students of Santa Clara as early as 1870.
This editorial office looks out on the College campus, an extensive piece of property covering several acres and surrounded on all sides by buildings of various shape and age. The large dining hall is the first attraction for the visitor. It is capable of accommodating 225 students and is at present filled to its uttermost.
If the visitor makes the circuit of buildings from left to right he is
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first brought through the class rooms, ordinary for the most part except in the commercial department. Here the work is conducted in a practical manner and all the contrivances necessary for practical work are in evidence. For this purpose the hall has been fitted up with well appointed offices repre- senting the more important lines of business, such as Importing, Jobbing, Forwarding, General Agency, Merchandise Emporium, Banking, etc. These offices are ranged along the wall, while the central part of the hall is occu- pied by standing desks for general commercial business. Adjoining this department is the art studio, where the students who apply themselves to architectural, mechanical or artistic drawing, have appropriate fixtures and a complete stock of apparatus. It seems to have been customary for many years to select a masterpiece of the term and as a reward of merit hang it on the walls of the studio, where at present there are some rare specimens of painting and drawing.
The next point of interest is the Scientific building; elegant though old and time-worn. Here the visitor finds besides a chemical and a physical laboratory a well appointed physical cabinet, complemented by a paleontolog- ical and mineralogical museum. The cabinet contains a valuable collection of instruments, the museums have several thousand conchological specimens, fossils, petrefactions, volcanic matter and so on, and the chemical laboratory is furnished with all the necessary instruments for assaying, chemical analysis, and general research. (Note: I was informed before my visit to Santa Clara that the present professor of science, Rev. Richard Bell, S. J., was rivaling Marconi in wireless telegraphic work. I of course doubted very much that any great success in this matter would result from individual and unaided research. It was indeed incredible and yet at the time of my visit I found the reverend scientist busy at his newly constructed instrument. These instruments were for the most part of his own construction. I exam- ined them and asked if any results were obtainable. I was answered in a very practical way ; Professor Montgomery, Father Bell's assistant, conducted mme to a distant lecture hall which was separated from the cabinet by some three brick walls. Here I received through the telephone ear-piece distinct dots and dashes, as distinct, in fact, as those produced by the ordinary telegraphic recorder. The successful working of the contrivance made me determine to bring the professor before the public as a greater Marconi, but
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when I heard that the same effects were had between Santa Clara and St. Ignatius College, San Francisco, a distance of fifty miles overland, which. is equivalent to over four hundred on sea, I thought it more advisable to leave his well merited fame to the near future when it is sure to place California before the scientific world as it already is before the literary world as a progressive and original state.)
Leaving the scientific building and crossing the College campus to the senior Library, the visitor finds a spacious hall equipped with all the facili- ties imaginable for indoor recreation; billiard tables three in number, and a variety of parlor games which engage the students during rainy or other- wise inclement weather. Separated from this room there is a reference library and a wealth of current magazines. Like the Gymnasium and Social Hall this reading room is under the supervision of the students, who impose fines for any thoughtless breach of rule and when necessary even suspend members who fail to comply with the rules. The College auditorium which adjoins this building has a seating capacity of two thousand. The stage setting is elegant, though the visitor's attention is chiefly drawn to the Passion Play Scenery, rich in oriental colors and designs and of an artistic touch rarely met with even in the larger threatres. The light system, too, arranged by the College electrician, Dr. George Montgomery, is for variable effects peculiarly unique and effective. Beneath this auditorium is a spa- cious dormitory, which like the three other sleeping departments is under the supervision of members of the faculty. But this dormitory, together with the gymnasium and social hall, are of the ordinary. The next attractive feature is found in the "Congressional Building " attractive inasmuch as it is the old " California Hotel " built some eighty years ago, and also because for the last thirty or more years it has been used as the assembly hall for the Literary Congress of Santa Clara College. The inauguration of this debating society and its methods have already been mentioned. What remains here is to examine its present standing. Each of the two branches has its own hall decorated with the pictures of former " Senators " and " Rep- resentatives." The president's desk is on an elevated platform, and on either side are the desks of the principal officials. All in all it is a pretty good minia- ture imitation of the Congress at Washington: but the resemblance is greater in the conduct of business. At the weekly meetings there is always
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some important question discussed, and the method of procedure is that of approved parliamentary law.
The Memorial Chapel, so called to perpetuate the generosity of the alumni, who in response to an appeal from the Rev. Robert E. Kenna sent donations lavishly and willingly, is the last but not the least feature which the visitor admires. It is a building of moderate proportions, crude and incomplete exteriorly, but with the exception of a few columns beautifully finished within. The altar-piece, a work of artistic beauty, the stained-glass windows and the statues, reprsenting some particulars of Catholic dogma or Catholic history, all unite to impress the students with a sense of devo- tion and religious fervor as well as with the importance of moral education in this age of material tendencies.
Such would be and such were, in the case of the present writer, the impressions left by a hasty visit to the college as it is to-day. The peculiar contrast of outward poverty and inner worth is very striking, but it was thus from the beginning and from the beginning success crowned the efforts of the devoted professors. There is some talk of a new Santa Clara College of larger and more modern buildings. When they are erected, as they will be in the near future, the name of Santa Clara will attract students, who are now deterred by the absence of exterior accommodations; and in num- bers, as even now it is in successful training, the College will stand among the first of our educational institutions, not as a rival, but as a worthy co-worker in the cause of intellectual and moral culture.
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CHAPTER XXI.
LIBRARIES OF CALIFORNIA.
One of the marked features of social life in California is seen in the many public libraries of the state. Not in the cities alone, but throughout the rural areas, libraries abound. In striking contrast to many prevailing conceptions of it is a fact that California is not a country of Indians and untutored pioneers, for every school has a library, almost every village con- tains an organization of book-lovers.
Close in the wake of the Argonauts came the founders of the public school system, and this was the original stimulus that started men to build- ing libraries. John G. Marvin, the pioneer superintendent of public schools, took an early stand for libraries, and in 1863 Professor John Swett reëchoed the high recommendations of Superintendent Marvin. From these persons the high school and district school libraries were the nucleus of the sentiment that led to the starting of village libraries.
The generous interest, thus outlined, which California has ever shown in the widest education of her young people by culture through books, has extended to her cities and towns. In 1878 a general library law was passed, supplemented by the more complete statute of 1880, providing by local taxa- tion for the establishment and support of free libraries and reading rooms in all incorporated cities and towns, the maximum rate allowed being one mill on the dollar.
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