The death, on May 9, of John Williams White, professor of Greek in Harvard University, touches a large number of classical workers who have come into relations with him through his teaching or his writings, and concerns many a student, past or present, who may not have known his name, or a word of the language and literature which he professed. For the interest in Roman private life and Roman archaeology which so largely governs the teaching of Latin today is the result of a movement in the Greek field in which he played a large part. He was the first chairman of the Managing Committee of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, of which the corresponding school in Rome was the natural follower. He was an active and controlling worker in the American Institute of Archaeology, which of course covered the Roman field as well as the Greek. In particular, he gave the first methodical course in Greek private life in this country, illustrating it with the lantern; and he thereby set the model for the courses in Roman private life which presently were given in various institutions.
John Williams White was born in Cincinnati, March 5, 1849. He was graduated from the Ohio Wesleyan College, Delaware, Ohio, at the age of nineteen. Three years later, in 1871, he received the degree of A.M. from his Alma Mater. In this same year began his long and happy married life. In 1874 he was appointed tutor in Greek at Harvard. In 1877 he received the degree of Ph.D. from Harvard and was appointed assistant professor. In 1884 he became full professor. He retired in 1909, not for rest, but for unbroken work.
Recognition came to him in many forms, among which were the degree of LL.D. from Wesleyan and Ohio Wesleyan, and the degree of Litt.D. from both the English and the American Cambridge.
His thirty-five years of service at Harvard were spent in activities both varied and strenuous. From the beginning he threw himself ardently into teaching, and with singular success. His animated manner, which was the natural expression of a vigorous mind, itself deeply interested, commanded the interest of his students. Hence, while he exacted a great deal of work, he always had large classes-a fact which added much to the staying power of Greek studies at Harvard in the face of adverse influences. He also entered into personal relations with many of his students, making them welcome guests at his house; and out of not a few of the acquaintances thus formed grew enduring friendships.
He came into large contact with another aspect of college life, as chairman for many years of the athletic board at Harvard. For this work he was especially qualified by his quick sympathy with youth (perhaps one should say, his own unquenchable youthfulness) and his personal interest in many sports. He was a formidable tennis player, a lover of the life of the woods, and a skilful hunter and fisherman.
His dissertation for the doctorate was upon a syntactical subject. But his permanent interests proved to be literary and archaeological. The latter have already been mentioned. The former ranged from an excellent book for beginners in Greek, through college textbooks, to such volumes of monumental power as The Verse of Greek Comedy (London, 1912), and The Scholia upon the Aves of Aristophanes (London, 1914). These last two books belong to a projected great edition of Aristophanes for which he had made elaborate collections of manuscript and other materials, and to which he had long been giving all his energies and all his hours.
He had met an earlier malady of the gravest character with incomparable courage and decision, and, as it proved, with complete success. He had every reason to hope for years of unchecked activity. But, aside from the cutting short of the work which would have been the crowning achievement of his life, the manner of his death was that for which he had prayed. The name of the illness, angina pectoris, carries grim associations. But in his case there had been but slight indications, and the actual passage from life, coming in the course of an ordinary forenoon and with no warning, was made with such swiftness as to bring to his face only the expression of painless calm. WILLIAM GARDNER HALE, UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO
In Memoriam: John Williams White
by William Gardner Hale
The Classical Journal Vol. 12, No. 9 (Jun., 1917), pp. 585-587
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Money box in shape of a temple, from house 25 in Priene; 2nd century B.C.. , Photo by Marcus Cyron
Reprinted from Bitcoin.org
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Are you dissatisfied with the Savings Account and CD Interest Rates your bank currently has on offer?
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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION16 CFR Part 23Guides for the Jewelry, PreciousMetals, and Pewter Industries
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Country House Essays, the book is now in print. This is an eclectic collection of both original, and historical essays, poems, books, and articles created for our loyal reader hear at CountryHouseEssays.com. It is jam packed with reprints of articles from this website. The cost is $49.95 for this massive [...] Read more →
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Harvey Wiley, Chief Chemist of the Department of Agriculture’s Division of Chemistry (third from the right) with his staff, not long after he joined the division in 1883. Wiley’s scientific expertise and political skills were a key to passage of the 1906 Food and Drugs Act and the creation of the FDA.
“Saint John’s Gate, Clerkenwell, the main gateway to the Priory of Saint John of Jerusalem,” black and white photograph by the British photographer Henry Dixon, 1880. The church was founded in the 12th century by Jordan de Briset, a Norman knight. Prior Docwra completed the gatehouse shown in this photograph in 1504. The gateway [...] Read more →
The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee has a long heralded tradition of assisting farmers and growers through it’s Agricultural Extension Service. The following bulletin entitled Grape Growing in Tennessee discusses the Muscadine variety of grapes among others. Muscadine grapes are often found growing wild in Tennessee. On my grandfather’s West Tennessee [...] Read more →
Resolution adapted at the New Orleans Convention of the American Institute of Banking, October 9, 1919:
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Reprinted from FineModelShips.com with the kind permission of Dr. Michael Czytko
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A Lecture Delivered at the Guildhall, March 2, 1853 by Rev. H.M. Scarth, M.A., Rector of Bathwick.
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Eadweard Muybridge was a fascinating character. Click here to learn how Eadweard committed “Justifiable Homicide” after shooting his wife’s lover in 1874.
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Photo Caption: The Marquis of Zetland, KC, PC – otherwise known as Lawrence Dundas Son of: John Charles Dundas and: Margaret Matilda Talbot born: Friday 16 August 1844 died: Monday 11 March 1929 at Aske Hall Occupation: M.P. for Richmond Viceroy of Ireland Vice Lord Lieutenant of North Yorkshire Lord – in – Waiting [...] Read more →
Dr. David Starkey, the UK’s premiere historian, speaks to the modern and fleeting notion of “cancel culture”. Starkey’s brilliance is unparalleled and it has become quite obvious to the world’s remaining Western scholars willing to stand on intellectual integrity that a few so-called “Woke Intellectuals” most certainly cannot undermine [...] Read more →
Notes on the intaglio processes of the most expensive book on birds available for sale in the world today.
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Western prairie quiet broken by forged steel Sage Grouse dance, feathers of resplendent golden lace oblivious to Manifest Destiny’s race Juniper trees observe from high peaks Wisps of threadbare clouds converging on progress
The Interrogation of Joan of Arc by Cardinal Winchester
Pussy Willow wielded a real broad sword Honed with diamonds and emery board They say she cut her own umbilical chord The day she strapped it on to serve her Lord
Liquorice, the roots of Glycirrhiza Glabra, a perennial plant, a native of the south of Europe, but cultivated to some extent in England, particularly at Mitcham, in Surrey.
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EIGHTEEN GALLONS is here give as a STANDARD for all the following Recipes, it being the most convenient size cask to Families. See A General Process for Making Wine
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From How to Make Money; and How to Keep it, Or, Capital and Labor based on the works of Thomas A. Davies Revised & Rewritten with Additions by Henry A. Ford A.M. – 1884
CHAPTER XXVI BANKING AND INSURANCE.
I wish I could write all across the sky, [...] Read more →
From A History of Fowling, Being an Account of the Many Curios Devices by Which Wild Birds are, or Have Been, Capured in Different Part of the World by Rev. H.A. MacPherson, M.A.
THE RAVEN (Corvus corax) is generally accredited with a large endowment of mother wit. Its warning [...] Read more →
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Snipe shooting-Epistle on snipe shooting, from Ned Copper Cap, Esq., to George Trigger-George Trigger’s reply to Ned Copper Cap-Black partridge.
——
“Si sine amore jocisque Nil est jucundum, vivas in &more jooisque.” -Horace. “If nothing appears to you delightful without love and sports, then live in sporta and [...] Read more →
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This beautifully illustrated New Testament based on the 1611 KJV Bible is published in Limited Edition of 500 Copies World Wide. Included at the end of the text is an unabridged copy of Albert J. Edmunds 1917 classic work, The Oldest Resurrection Documents. Edmunds’ book on the Resurrection utilized source [...] Read more →
Take to every quart of water one pound of Malaga raisins, rub and cut the raisins small, and put them to the water, and let them stand ten days, stirring once or twice a day. You may boil the water an hour before you put it to the raisins, and let it [...] Read more →
Money box in shape of a temple, from house 25 in Priene; 2nd century B.C.. , Photo by Marcus Cyron
Reprinted from Bitcoin.org
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PAINTER-WORK, in the building trade. When work is painted one or both of two distinct ends is achieved, namely the preservation and the coloration of the material painted. The compounds used for painting—taking the word as meaning a thin protective or decorative coat—are very numerous, including oil-paint of many kinds, distemper, whitewash, [...] Read more →
What follows is a chapter from Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward’s 1852 treatise on terrarium gardening.
ON THE NATURAL CONDITIONS OF PLANTS.
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Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. “Forward, the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns!” he said. Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. Home Top of Pg. Archives [...] Read more →
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If you’re looking for that most refreshing of summertime beverages for sipping out on the back patio or perhaps as a last drink before walking the plank, let me recommend my Blunderbuss Mai Tai. I picked up the basics to this recipe over thirty years ago when holed up in [...] Read more →
Kneller was born in Lubeck, studied with Rembrandt in Amsterdam and by 1676 was working in England as a fashionable portrait painter. He painted seven British monarchs (Charles II, James II, William III, Mary II, Anne, George I and George II), though his [...] Read more →
The following recipes are from a small booklet entitled 500 Delicious Salads that was published for the Culinary Arts Institute in 1940 by Consolidated Book Publishers, Inc. 153 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill.
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Grapes are the world’s leading fruit crop and the eighth most important food crop in the world, exceeded only by the principal cereals and starchytubers. Though substantial quantities are used for fresh fruit, raisins, juice and preserves, most of the world’s annual production of about 60 million [...] Read more →
THE VALUE OF EVEN TEMPER IN ATHLETICS—SOME OF THE FEATS THAT REQUIRE GOOD NATURE
In the writer’s opinion it becomes necessary to make at this point some suggestions relative to a very important part of the training in jiu-jitsu. Good nature is as essential [...] Read more →
The downloadable audio clip is of FDR’s Second Fireside Chat recorded on May 7th, 1933.
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Sitwell Family; From left: Edith Sitwell (1887-1964), Sir George Sitwell, Lady Ida, Sacheverell Sitwell (1897-1988), and Osbert Sitwell (1892-1969) – Oil on canvas by John Singer Sargent
Reprint from the Sportsman Cabinet and Town & Country Magazine, Vol.1, Number 1, November 1832.
MR. Editor,
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Tuna fish being weighed on quay-side in Greece – Photo by Tom Oates
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Exhaust blackened dirty snow Bleak City cold winter sting Cars in ditches Tire chains and rock salt Doughnut shop at four am Factory whistle blows at five Hot coffee on the dashboard Eyes on the road Front wheel drive Cadillac I’ll make it on time
Country House Essays, the book is now in print. This is an eclectic collection of both original, and historical essays, poems, books, and articles created for our loyal reader hear at CountryHouseEssays.com. It is jam packed with reprints of articles from this website. The cost is $49.95 for this massive [...] Read more →
Harvey Wiley, Chief Chemist of the Department of Agriculture’s Division of Chemistry (third from the right) with his staff, not long after he joined the division in 1883. Wiley’s scientific expertise and political skills were a key to passage of the 1906 Food and Drugs Act and the creation of the FDA.
Group of Thuggee – From Harpers Magazine – Dec. 12, 1837
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St. Valentine kneeling in supplication – 1677 by David Teniers III
There is nothing more delightful than a great poetry reading to warm ones heart on a cold winter night fireside. Today is one of the coldest Valentine’s days on record, thus, nothing could be better than listening to [...] Read more →
Before meeting with an untimely death at the hand of an unknown assassin in Rome on January 11th, 1996, master forger Eric Hebborn put down on paper a wealth of knowledge about the art of forgery. In a book published posthumously in 1997, titled The Art Forger’s Handbook, Hebborn suggests the following [...] Read more →
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Pencil sketch of Sir Charles Lock Eastlake by John Partridge (Queen Victoria’s favourite portrait painter), 1825
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The Queen Elizabeth Trust, or QEST, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of British craftsmanship through the funding of scholarships and educational endeavours to include apprenticeships, trade schools, and traditional university classwork. The work of QEST is instrumental in keeping alive age old arts and crafts such as masonry, glassblowing, shoemaking, [...] Read more →
The element copper effectively kills viruses and bacteria.
Therefore it would reason and I will assert and not only assert but lay claim to the patents for copper mesh stints to be inserted in the arteries of patients presenting with severe cases of Covid-19 with a slow release dosage of [...] Read more →
“The Leda, in the Colonna palace, by Correggio, is dead-coloured white and black, with ultramarine in the shadow ; and over that is scumbled, thinly and smooth, a warmer tint,—I believe caput mortuum. The lights are mellow ; the shadows blueish, but mellow. The picture is painted on [...] Read more →
