Seventy Years Of The Worcester Polytechnic Institute: Page 78

was not exhausted." He proved this by another gift of $2,000 in 1878, and the following year, he "and a friend" contributed an equal amount. An anonymous gift of $500 for lectures in Geology was received in 1877. Mr. Salisbury added $2,000 for current uses in 1880, and Mr. Walker $1,000 for the same purpose in 1881.

An interesting and helpful gift, amounting to $4,660, was received from George F. Hoar in March, 1873. This amount was, he explained, "the sum due me from the United States, under a law just passed, as arrears of pay for my services as member of the Forty-second Congress." He referred to the much-debated "salary graft" action of this session, by which congressmen increased their income, much to the disgust of such conscientious members as Hoar. He requested that the income from this fund be applied to the payment of tuition of students from towns in the eighth congressional district of Massachusetts as it existed during the Forty-second Congress, when he was its representative. He thereby established the Institute's first scholarship, excluding the general provisions of the Boynton gift.

During the decade following the first commencement there were several significant changes in personnel of the Corporation. Most of the replacements were among the exofficio members, particularly mayors. Worcester found no man so worthy as Mayor Blake to succeed himself indefinitely. George F. Verry, Democrat, long a successful attorney, was mayor in 1872. Clark Jillson, chief justice of the district court, defeated Verry for the next term. He was in turn defeated by Edward L. Davis, son of Isaac Davis, a graduate of Brown and Harvard, and treasurer of the Washburn Iron Co . Jillson returned the compliment by defeating Davis in 1874, and by defeating Verry a second time in 1875. He ran again in 1880, but unsuccessfully. The mayor from 1877 to 1880 was Charles B. Pratt, proprietor of a submarine exploration business. The next incumbent was a doctor, Frank H. Kelley, who had served as first president of the city hospital and held various

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Last Modified: Fri Jul 30 11:15:25 EDT 1999