man's eyes fill with tears when he relates the story of that humble maid, Joan of Arc, who did so much for her country and then met such an awful death. The Englishman never hears the word "freedom," but that he thinks of John Hampden or Oliver Cromwell. But these hearts do not throb with patriotic love more than that of the Scotchman when he hears the name of William Wallace.

On the death of King Alexander the Third, Scotland was in a state of violent turmoil. Pretenders of the crown flocked in on all sides. It seemed that every noble Scotch family was being drained or searched to find another claimant.

King Edward of England was called upon to act as arbitrator between the rival claimants, but seeking only his own exaltation, he declared himself king. Then collecting his armies he marched into Scotland and at Holy Rood made the Scottish nobles swear allegiance to him.

From time immemorial, Scotland had been a free and independent state, excepting a few short periods. The Romans, Saxons, and Normaus, in all their conquests, had never yet made Scotland bend the knee, and now she resolved that she would regain and retain her independence.

But who was to lead her in this noble task, with no king, no leader, no head of the state, and with her castles garrisoned by English soldiers? Out of this despondent situation there arose a commander in the person of William Wallace, whose enthusiastic and untiring efforts in the cause of freedom soon won him the undying love, the devoted good-will and the sturdy support of all his countrymen.

His beloved wife was wantonly murdered by a cruel English sheriff and the only object remaining upon which to pour out his great love was his country and her freedom. Outlawed by Edward, as a traitor and a robber, with a price set upon his head, he became the crown of Scotland's glory.

At the head of his sturdy Scotch highlanders and peasants, he routed the ranks of haughty English and forced Edward to retreat, his armies beaten, his nobles scattered, and his vassals proven false. Thus was exposed to the world, the perfidy and rascal-like assumption in Edward's seizure of the Scottish crown.

Follow Wallace all through his life from battle to battle, as with a handful of soldiers, he defeated forces many times his

superior in numbers, and steadily advancing rid his country of her invaders. Follow him, as he was brought to trial by the jealous Scottish nobles, stripped of his honors and cast aside, with a heart bleeding and broken for his country. Follow him through all of this, and you must place him among the loftiest heroes of all the ages.

But what was the end?

Wallace, Scotland's greatest national hero, perished a martyrexecuted like a malefactor-but the fault lay not with him. His blood be on the Scottish nobles of that time, who falsely convicted him as a traitor to England. He, it was, who, when all the other Scottish nobles swore fidelity to the English king, never once bowed the knee to Edward, but stood alone, like a great immovable rock, shaken by neither storms nor troubles.

When he died it seemed Scotland, too, was destined to fall, but not so! All was not lost! At the time when all seemed involved in ruin, his death aroused his countrymen to redoubled efforts to avenge it; and when Robert Bruce, fired by Wallace's noble example, came forth from his concealment, victory was soon theirs and Scotland again was free.

Wallace sleeps; six centuries have passed by, but his name and fame are yet fondly cherished by his people. Ay, and centuries will still roll on; his tomb may moulder and fall away to dust; but, as long as there is a mind to conceive and a heart to feel the virtue of true patriotism, Free Scotland is his monument, beyond the touch of time.

R. M. FOSTER, JR., '08.

THE ART OF DEBATING.

One of the many things which have been prospering in Westminster College in the past few years is debating. For a time it was considered of minor importance, and as a natural result few took part in that sort of public speaking, but now the students have begun to realize that the art of debating is not an easy one nor an unimportant one.

The fact that a man can sit down in a quiet secluded place and by much thought and almost painful effort write and commit

an eloquent oration does not prove that he can rise in any meeting and concentrate his mind sufficiently to express himself clearly and convincingly. If any student aspires to the debating platform he must necessarily develop the one thing of self-possession. Almost any one can memorize a speech and practice it until he can appear before an audience and let the words roll from his trembling lips with at least some show of eloquence, but to be able to stand before an audience and think quickly and express those thoughts concisely and clearly is very different, and is a faculty which nothing but experience can develop. Now in preparing a debate there are a few things necessary to do, and they are the things I wish to discuss.

The first thing, in my judgment, is to learn just exactly what the question means, which is very easy to do by consulting some good authority, as the encyclopaedia-not the dictionary-and see what is meant by the terms used in the question. Then, after having the terms defined and clearly before your mind, stop for a moment and think. Think what the question really means, and while in the mood try to discover the "clash of opinion," that is, the points on which you and your opponent disagree; find what you must prove or disprove. Then after getting the meaning of the question and the "clash of opinion" clearly before your mind there comes the next important step, of finding evidence to substantiate your position on the question. And in searching for evidence to support your position do not fail to investigate the evidence on which your opponent bases his position, or in other words, do not fail to make a thorough study of both sides of the question under discussion. Know both sides or you are not properly prepared to meet the enemy. In getting this evidence don't rely on the magazine articles too much, be very careful of your authority, choose men or books that are recognized as authority on such subjects. Read extensively and be prepared to shift your position and meet the enemy face to face no matter what turn he may take.

The last but not the least important part of preparation in debate is to speak quickly and earnestly. Have your speech so well in mind that you can throw your whole soul into it, put vim and enthusiasm mixed with fire and pepper into your speech, and the result will come.

N. T. CAVE, CAPT., 07-08 DEBATING SQuad.

There is a theory which pierces the haze surrounding the manner of constructing the pyramids, those colossal wonders which have withstood the wear of ages. The first glance at those massive monuments of the Pharaohs, leads one naturally to ask himself "How did they do it?" And there is immediately pictured in his imagination these giant blocks being placed in position one upon another to a dizzy height by the use of derricks and hoists with swarms of slaves laboring under the cruel taskmasters. But would investigation prove this to be the actual method used? The "building blocks" of the pyramids have the same composition as the cement blocks used for building purposes today. Natural rock quarried from the earth could hardly have lasted these centuries but would have worn and crumbled to pieces before now.

Overlooking the discovery and use of cement by these Egyptians, centuries ago, the first discovery of cement in this age was about 1824, in the Isle of Portland in the British Isles. From this it receives its name, Portland cement. Within the last few years cement has entered the sphere of usefulness as never before and is fast crowding out other materials used in construction and building. It was first used in the form of mortar to hold brick and stone in place, and this is still an important use. But in some cases this mortar was found to last longer than either brick or stone, so blocks of it were made and used for building purposes. Concrete is rapidly replacing metals, wood and stone in constructing bridges, railway roadbeds, dams, walks, fence posts, paving, tunnels, foundations, entire buildings; and even experiments for small vessels of concrete have proved successful. But when used

in bridges, tunnels, buildings, etc, the concrete is usually re-enforced by steel rods or heavy wire netting. Concrete is composed of one part cement to two parts sand and six parts broken rock. Thus the cheapness of this material is rapidly bringing it into use..

But the manner of making this cement is very interesting. A summer's vacation spent in a laboratory of a large cement plant has given me considerable insight into the manufacture of this article. A plant is always situated where both shale (brick clay) and limestone are accessible. After being quarried the shale and

limestone are mixed, one part shale to two parts limestone, then dried and ground into a powder so fine that 90 per cent of it will pass through 10,000 a mesh sieve, that is, 10,000 holes to the square inch. In a "pug mill" this powder is mixed with water until very thin then it is run slowly in a large revolving cylinder, 75 feet long, 6 feet in diameter, lined with fire brick. Through this kiln the mud constantly passes; the intense heat causes it to roll up in little balls as the kiln revolves and it comes out red hot "clinkers." These "clinkers," after being ground will make cement but it hardens immediately upon coming in contact with water, thus preventing its being molded or worked. To prevent this, about one part of "jip" is ground up with every five parts of "clink("Jip is a white chalky rock containing a large per cent

of silicon.)

The cement is now made; it is run into large bins and, after being tested for tensile and compressive strength and fineness, is sacked and shipped.

SELDON BARROWS, '10.

FRATERNITIES.

PHI DELTA THETA.

In the calendar of Phi Delta Theta, the fifteenth day of March is Alumni Day, and is celebrated universally throughout the fraternity. So Missouri Beta chapter of Phi Delta Theta tended its hand very elaborately to this celebration. On March 14, Brothers George Banta, first president of the general council, now president of the Zeta province; F. R. Cowles, vice-president of Zeta Province; J. J. Tigert, professor of philosophy of Central College, and C. F. Lamkin, arrived to participate in the annual celebration.

At one o'clock the active chapter, local alumni, and distinguished visitors assembled at the Phi House and had their picture taken. Again at 7:30 they met at the Phi Hall, where C. B. Allen was shown into the mysteries of Phi Delta Theta. Then came the delicious spread, after which the active chapter was entertained by Phi Delt speeches from the alumni and guests, Brother Lamkin acting as toastmaster. The local alumni present