Vou IX. No. 22,
NEW HAVEN, CONN., WEDNESDAY, FEB. 28, 1900.
LIEUTENANT LEDYARD'S DEATH,
Details of it Received in Letter from
a Sixth Infantryman.
The- Detroit. Free Press publishes a
letter received by Mr. Henry B. Led-
yard, father of the late Lieutenant Led-
yard, ’98, from Herbert S. L’Homme-
dieu, a private in Company K, Sixth
United States Infantry. It gives the de-
tails of Lieutenant Ledyard’s death in
the Philippines. It is dated Castialana,
Negros, P. I., December 31, and reads
in part as follows:
“Lieut. Ledyard left Bacolod the even-
ing of December 4 with fifteen men of |
Company M, in pursuit of 30 men (Fili-
pinos) who had deserted from Bago,
and in following them came upon the
enemy heavily intrenched at Haceruda,
Pelencia, seven miles from La Carlota,
where K and H companies are stationed.
But as I was on detached service at Ha-
cienda, near the place where the battle
was fought, the two other men and my-
self hearing the firing went over to see
what the trouble was.
We found that the enemy had opened
fire on the Lieutenant and his small
detachment, and found that they were
outnumbered 40 to 1.”
The enemy were found first in the bed
of a river and well protected. Lieuten-
ant Ledyard charged with his small com-
pany and they retreated to their trenches,
where shortly they again opened fire
by volleys and showed their great num-
bers. The Lieutenant continued to ad-
vance with his men until near to the
enemy, when he gave the order to lie
down and continue the firing from that
position. The letter continues as fol-
lows:
“At last the Lieutenant, thinking we
were not making headway, said, “Give
it to ’em, bays,” and gave the com-
mand “Rapid fire,’ and was shot while
getting up to make a charge. He was
on his knees at the time he was shot,
the ball entering the center of the fore-
head, killing him instantly.
“Not being able to hold our ground
without our commander we started to
retreat toward La Carlota, in the direc- -
tion marked on the diagram with an
arrow. Arriving there about I o'clock,
we reported to Col. Byrne, who left
immediately with fifty men for the scene
of action. When we arrived we found
that they had fled, excepting a few who
had stayed to bury their dead, but we
followed so close that they were forced
to fly for their lives, and when we came
to the Lieutenant’s body we found that
they had started to take off his clothing,
but we were so close that they did not
get anything. We found his shoes and
leggings about Ioo yards from his body,
which they had dropped in running. We
buried him at the place on the diagram
marked F until a coffin could be ob-
tained. i have in my possession a pair
of cross-guns which I took off of his
shirt. I will send them to you if you so
desire. Allow me to express my deep-
est sympathy for your great loss.”
Mr. Ledyard has also recently re-
ceived a letter addressed to his son at
Negros, P. I, and returned with the
endorsement, “killed in battle.” It read ‘
as follows:
Headquarters First Division,
Eighth Army Corps,
Mania, P. I., Dec. 18, 1809.
second Lieat, A, ¢ 7
U. S. Infantry: pute “hee
Sir:—I have th
fa € honor to j
that the division inform you
commander, Maj.-Gen.
Henry W. Lawton, U. S&S. Volunteers, :
in his final report of an expedition to
the province of Cavite, Luzon, P. IL,
June 10 to 22, 1899, dated October 9,
1899, recommended you for brevet first
lieutenant United States Army. The
following is an extract from the Gen-
eral’s report:
“CAVITE EXPEDITION.
“T have the honor to make the follow-
ing recommendations: * * *. ana
“Second Lieut. A. C. Ledyard, Twelfth
Infantry, for highly meritorious service.”
(Appendix, page 218, a.)
Very respectfully,
CLARENCE R. Epwarps,
Lieut.-Col. Forty-Seventh Infantry,
U.S. V., Acting Asst, Adjt.-Gen.
a a
Harvard-Yale Debate.
The subject for the Harvard-Yale
debate, in New Haven, March 30, has
been chosen and sent to Harvard, who
has the choice of sides. It is: “Resolved,
That Puerto Rico be included within the
customs boundary of the United States.”
Harvard’s reply is expected soon, prob-
ably not later than the last of the week.
The-managers of the Debating Asso-
ciation have decided to ask a committee
of representative men from the Faculty
and local graduates who are interested
in debating to take charge of the coach-
ing for the debate and make the final
selection of the three men who will
represent Yale. This is made necessary
by the absence of Dr. E. V. Raynolds,
80 S., who has taken a large part in the
training of the debaters in previous
years, and by the inability of President
Hadley, owing to increased duties, to
give any time to the work. Dr. Ray-
nolds was obliged to go South some
weeks ago on account of his health and
he is not expected back in time to give
any aid before the date of the debate.
The preliminary trials will be held this
afternoon.
——_ ee
Intercollegiate A. A. Meeting.
The annual meeting of the Intercol-
-legiate Athletic Association was held
at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, New York,
Saturday, February 24, fifteen universi-
ties and colleges being represented.
President Oliver Shiras reported a sur-
plus in the treasury of $1,478.65, from
which a dividend of about $10 will be
paid to each college. These officers
were elected:
President, A. G. Mason, Harvard;
Vice-Presidents, F. M. Eshleman, Haver-
ford, and J. E. Moore, Georgetown;
Secretary, F. A. Young, New York Uni-
versity; Treasurer, W. R. Quinn, Co-
lumbia; Executive Committee, J. D.
Dana, Yale; A. G. Mason, ex-officio,
Harvard; H. H. Langenberg, Princes
ton, and C. L. McKeehan, University
of Pennsylvania. Oliver Shiras was ap-
pointed Manager for this year’s meet
and W. B. Curtiss, referee. Brown and
the University of California were re-
instated to membership in the Associa-
t10N.
After the general meeting Yale and
- Harvard representatives met at the home
of H. S. Brooks, Yale ’86, and dis-
cussed the probability of a return set
of games with Oxford and Cambridge.
The meeting was entirely harmonious
and, if, as it is hoped, the Englishmen
can come to this side, the place of meet-
ing will quickly be settled.
Harvard men at the meeting were: E.
J. Wendell, A. N. Rice and A. G. Mason,
and Yale men, H. S. Brooks, C. H.
ahaa Bascom Johnson and J. D.
ana.
SOPHOMORE SOCIETIES,
Conference Committees Chosen —
Seniors Together—Letters Invited.
Graduates who have from time to
time regretted what they have con-
sidered a decrease in Yale’s democratic
unity in recent years, could return to
the Campus and spend with pleasure a
few days with the men of 1900. They
would see something which would do
their hearts good—the members of the
Senior Class, many of them, sacrificing
personal interests, working almost to
a man to solve a problem which involves
Yale’s good. This most desirable state
of affairs has developed from conditions
which only a week ago promised to
produce one of the meanest situations
that Yale has had to face in recent
years.
It has always been said that 1900
numbered a large proportion of inter-
ested, thinking Yale men. For a long
time many of them, both in and out of
Sophomore Societies, have been con-
vinced that there is something radically
wrong with Yale’s social system. This
opinion is not a new one at Yale; it
has obtained in all the recent classes but
circumstances indicate that it has been
most strongly held in the present Senior
Class. :
Realizing that something must be
done, the Sophomore Societies last Fall
elected a joint committee to consider the
situation and recommend such modifica-
tions of the existing system as they
thought advisable. It was reported
around the Campus that the committee
were contemplating no move more radi-
cal than an increase from seventeen to
twenty in the membership of each
society and a postponement of the active
campaign from Christmas until Easter,
and that some of the Sophomore Society
men were unwilling to grant even this
slight reform. Whether true or not,
the report confirmed some of the more
active non-Sophomore Society men in
1900 in their intention to draw up
and circulate the petition to the
Faculty for the abolition of the Sopho-
‘more Societies, published in the last
issue of the WEEKLY. The non-Sopho-
more Society men had come to as-
sociate the very existence of the Socie-
ties with the evils which they saw in
Yale’s social system, so that the petition
met with ready and almost universal sup-
port. They felt that abolition was
necessary and that the Faculty was the
only body to which a petition seeking
that end could be addressed: further,
that force would be required to bring
about the desired result and that Faculty
action alone could be effective.
The members of the Sophomore Socie-
ties were indignant when they heard of
the petition. They said that they had
been treated unfairly and that the non-
Sophomore Society men should have
given them a chance to take some volun-
tary action before attempting to force
them to vote themselves out of existence.
Two days after the petition had been
presented to the Faculty some of the
signers had copies of the _ petition
printed, preceded by a few explana-
tory sentences, urging the alumni to
interest themselves in the matter, and
these were sent to all the members of
the last ten classes.
And so matters stood for several days.
Both sides saw nothing but fight ahead
and both were determined to make it a
hard one. It seemed to be generally
understood that the Faculty would have
to act before any steps could be taken
towards a settlement.
Copyright, 1900,
by Yale Alumni Weekly.
Price 10 Cents.
In the meantime however, all the in-
terested ones of both factions had an
opportunity to consider the matter, and
with the first excitement over, the ques-
tion came to be generally discussed by
the Society and non-Society men. This
discussion has worked a complete trans-
formation in the situation. The Sopho-
more Society members have learned for
the first time how intense is the feeling
against their organizations, how well
founded it is, and further, that there
are certain good elements in the pro-
posed substitutes for the present sys-
tem. The petitioners, on the other hand,
have found that they have a reasonable
set of men to deal with and that vastly
beneficial changes are possible which do
not involve the abolition of the: socie-
ties. All are agreed that a radical re-
form is necessary and all are willing to
come together on a common footing and
try to devise a system which will be the
best for Yale. .
COMMITTEES CHOSEN,
On Saturday a representative of the
Societies notified Mr. H. B. Wright, ’08,
who is in intimate touch with under-
graduate affairs through his position as
General Secretary of the Yale Y. M. C.
A., that the Sophomore Societies had
empowered the six Senior members of
their Joint Committee to confer with a
committee appointed by the petitioners.
Mr. Wright issued a call for a meeting
of the signers of the petition on Mon-
day evening in Osborn Hall. The meet-
ing was largely attended and was called
to order by Mr. Wright, who introduced
Mr> “Nathan: A. “Smyth; -’97.:°.5 Mr.
Smyth made an open declaration against
Sophomore Societies in the Junior Ex-
hibition of 1896, and since the circula-
tion of the petition, has been actively
interested in securing an amicable ad-
justment. Mr. Smyth outlined the sit-
uation and urged that the committee
chosen be given full power to act on the
petition inasmuch as the Sophomore
Society men had requested that it be
withdrawn.
A resolution from the floor was passed
providing for the election of the com-
mittee of six, empowered to take such
action concerning the petition as they
thought advisable except withdrawing
it permanently.
The men nominated were: J. D.
Dana, J. M. Hopkins, J. B. Hartwell,
er Swan; 4 B.-Lombard, Ea
Park, C. B. Thompson, M. P. Gould,
E. B. Hill, J. W. Miller, N. W. Bart-
lett; Ex W. Ong; Wi: Bruce, Wee:
Maloney, Jr., P. C. Walcott, G N.
Whittlesey, A. J. Baker and F. Carter,
VP: Aes ,
The election resulted in the choice of
the following: J. D. Dana, J. P. Lom-
bard, EA: Park, M2. Gould. Bow
Ong and P. C. Walcott.
These men constitute the Joint Com-
mittee of the Sophomore Societies: R.
J. Schweppe, Chairman, and M. L. Mc-
Bride, ‘H Boule; C. E. Sullivan and 48
E. Davis, Eta Phi; J. M. McCormick
and P. A. Rockefeller, Kappa Psi.
COMMUNICATIONS INVITED.
All communications on the Sophomore
Society question may be addressed to
the “Committee on Sophomore Socie-
ties, Care the YALE ALUMNI WEEKLY,
and will receive due attention.
“Appeal to the Graduates.”
The following statement is self-ex-
planatory : :
“In view of the question that has been
asked as to why the appeals which were.
sent to the graduates were not signed,
we would like to make some explanation.
The appeals were not intended as a let-
