100 years ago in Pullman: New Washington State President Ernest Holland begins 30-year tenure, stressing importance of humanities

From our archives, 100 years ago

Two names familiar to all of today’s Washington State University students – Enoch A. Bryan (of Bryan Hall fame) and Ernest O. Holland (of Holland Library fame) – were honored in a Pullman ceremony.

Bryan was Washington State College’s outgoing president, having “just retired after a term of (nearly) a quarter century.” Holland was the incoming president, and would serve for another 30 years.

Holland, in his induction speech, rejected the idea that the state college should be strictly a technical college and leave the humanities to others. He declared that “the cultural side of life was essential, along with that of the practical, in order that the highest type of citizenship might be achieved.”

Bryan, for his part, declared that “the desire for an education is a necessity of all the people, and not a luxury for the favored few.”

After Holland’s induction, the college “yell leader” took to the floor and hollered, “Now, then, let’s raise the roof!”

The assembled students complied with a roar.

From the banking beat: About 25 bank clerks competed in a test to become the Spokane banking “speed king.”

They had to take 150 checks and add them correctly while on a timer. One clerk finished in just over two minutes and 36 seconds, but his sum was off by 10 cents, so he was disqualified. So J. Stevens of Old National Bank was declared the winner at two minutes and 40 seconds.