Saturday, May 3, 1919

Very beautiful mild day. To College 8:30 to 12. To Country with Father and H.H. Planted corn, potatoes, peas, etc. Home. Chored around in P.M. John and Anna here. Aeroplanes performed over city all P.M. in connection with Liberty Loan. Took bath. To bed.

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Here is some information I found on the internet about Liberty Loans:

Details of the Loans
The Liberty Bonds and Victory Notes were issued under authority of the Acts of Congress approved April 24 1917, Sept. 24 1917, April 4 1918, July 9 1918, Sept. 24 1918 and March 3 1919, and pursuant to official Treasury Department circulars. 

These loans were made to help finance the war effort. Here is more information about how the government sold the idea to the public:

Campaigns of education were inaugurated making widely known the causes of the war, the object sought by victory, and the necessity of financing the Allies and supporting the military arm of the Government. To the thoroughness of the educational campaign may be attributed much of the success of the issues. It convinced everyone that each man, woman and child must " do his bit." It made an army of workers with an individual responsibility. No device to assemble crowds was ignored, and there was no assembly without its speakers. Bands, processions, parades, balloon ascensions, flights of aeroplanes dropping leaflets, steeple climbers, altars of liberty, " Nation Days " for aliens and citizens of foreign birth, and, later, captured tanks, cannon and submarines, pyramids of German helmets - all were used. Walls were covered with special cartoons; magazines and newspapers contained full pages of advertising.

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This is the end of my transcription of Stanford's 1919 Journal.  If you have come to this blog in the middle, please go to the May 4, 1919 post to continue with Stanford's account of his life in the year 1919.

The 1920 Blog continues here: Datebook 1920.  See you there!!

Friday, May 2, 1919

Bright day. To college 8:30-2:30. Down town. Bowled at Morse, ducks and big pins. To Mission Study Class 7:8 P.M. To Armory for drill. To Charge of Company for ten minutes.

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I guess Stanford got to be in charge of his ROTC company for a brief spell. He doesn't mention how it went, but he was probably successful, considering the leadership skills he showed later in his life.

Thursday, May 1, 1919

Bright and fair in morning. Turned to rain in afternoon. To college 8:30 to 12. Father and Uncle John to country to make garden. Home in P.M. K.S.P. meeting at Y.M.C.A. Initiation of Merlin Finch. Bowled at Star. To bed 12 P.M.

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So here we are at the beginning of Stanford's friendship with Merlin Finch.  We are almost back to the beginning of the diary, as well.

Wednesday, April 30, 1919

Beautiful mild bright summer's day. To College 8:30 to 2:30. Down town. Rolled my first duck pins. 5 games. Average 86. First ball a strike. Home in evening. Wrote letter to Wagner. To bed 10:30 P.M.

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You don't hear about duckpin bowling much anymore, but I think it was popular in earlier times. My father was a fan. Here is the link to a Wikipedia article on the subject: Ducks.

Tuesday, April 29, 1919

Cool fair day. To college 8:30 to 2:30. Studied in P.M. Played tennis in yard. To college to Allison-Foote debate. Philomatheans won. W.? Swart won $50 prize.

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Here is some information about the Allison-Foote Debate, taken from the Union College Bulletin: Special War-Time Catalogue, 1918-1919. Vol. XII, No. 1, November 1918:

Allison-Foote Prizes. Mr. George F. Allison, of New York city,
and the late Wallace T. Foote, of Port Henry, N. Y., founded a
prize for the encouragement of debate in the literary societies.
The prize consists of $100 in cash, and is awarded as the result of
a public competition between representatives of the Adelphic and
Philomathean Literary Societies. Fifty dollars is awarded to the
society presenting the strongest argument. The remaining $50 is
awarded to the debater who makes the best single speech, regard-
less of his society relations. Contestants must have engaged in at
least ten debates in their respective societies during the college
year immediately preceding. All further details are left to the
determination of a committee, consisting of the president, the
dean of the college, and the professor of Rhetoric.

I was unable to locate any information on Mr. Swart, who apparently presented the best single speech. 

Monday, April 28, 1919

Clouds and rainy. To College 9-2:30. Down town. Bowled at Morse. Supper. To Merris's home for K.S.P. Committee meeting. Hayes and Smith there. To bed 10:30 P.M.

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Not sure who Smith is--it's probably a man because women are always referred to by their given names.

Sunday, April 27, 1919

Very beautiful mild day. To Church and Sunday School. Took walk with Hayes and H.H. in P.M. on Gray and Albany Roads. To Epworth League. Good meeting. Quartette [sic] sang. Talked. To bed 9:45 P.M. Thankful.

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I looked up Gray and Albany Roads on the map, but found only Gray and Albany Streets, and they are pretty far apart. So, I'm not sure where Stanford and pals walked.