🚀 go-pugleaf

crawfsh@anet-dfw.com passed along:

>If you go to the following URL you can read about the matter.

>http://www.dixienet.org/hv/aggie-fight.htm

Personally, I think the guy is wasting the money of whoever 
is foolish enough to send it to him.

Texas A&M didn't come into existence for the Confederacy,
but rather in spite of it.  It was Lincoln/Congress's passage
of the Morrill Land Grant Act in 1862 that allowed for "donating 
public lands to the several states for colleges to benefit agriculture 
and the mechanic arts."  It "provided the states with land at the 
rate of 30,000 acres for each member of Congress to support state 
agricultural colleges."

I have a hard time believing that Lincoln's intent was to
create a military training ground for the Confederacy (although,
some gentle readers with more conspiratorial slants might not).

Texas A&M admitted its first students in October of 1876, eleven
years after the Civil War.  It wasn't until 1879 when the Texas
Military Institute (which wasn't formed until 1868 [hint: three
years after the Civil War]) joined with A&M that there was a 
Corps of Cadets here.  There was no "Confederate States of 
America" at that point, since the last southern state, Georgia,
had satisfied the criteria for readmission back into the Union 
in 1870.

As for Jefferson Davis being offered the first presidency,
I imagine that it was due more to the fact that he was a
West Point graduate and successful planter than the 
fact he was President of the Confederacy.

However, it was Jefferson Davis, after declining the offer, that 
recommended the person who would become A&M's first president,
Thomas S. Gathright.  Did Mr. Davis suggest a gung-ho Confederate?  
From: 

http://www.tamu.edu/library/cushing/collectn/univarch/texag/articles/95/9506.html

'Poor health and the responsibilities for the boys placed in his
care [students at the private school he founded] were said to have 
prevented Gathright's service inthe Civil War. In truth, as 
Texas A&M history professor Henry C. Dethloff points out 
in _A Centennial History of TexasA&M University: 1876-1976_, 
Gathright was, at best, "lukewarm in his support of the Confederacy."'
               ^^^^^^^
Seems to me Mr. Davis was more concerned with recommending a 
qualified candidate than trying to perpetuate a form of government
that had, by that time, aleady demonstrated its lackings.

In short, members of the Corps of Cadets are trained in hopes that
they will serve in The Armed Forces of The *United States* of America.
At no time in this school's history have cadets been trained to serve
the Confederacy.  Texas A&M is an institute of the State of Texas
and the State of Texas is a part of the United States of America
(despite the efforts of the so-called Republic of Texas).  Yes, 
ex-Confederate soldiers did play a significant role in the early 
days of the university.  So what.  The Confederacy was gone before 
Texas A&M opened it doors. In fact, I imagine it would be rather 
hard to find an institute in The South that came into existence 
at the time that didn't have a large number of ex-Confederates 
involved.  

The Confederate insignia has no place in the Corps of Cadets
at Texas A&M University except buried in the photos in the 
school's archives of the early faculty and administration.

I personally applaud Major General Hopgood, and the administration, in 
attempting to remove (yet) another blight upon the Corps of Cadets, 
Texas A&M University and the State of Texas.

As for the page's call to "bring as much pressure to bear as we can",
although the Association of Former Students On-line E-mail Directory
results page explicitly states "This page is for use of Former Students 
of Texas A&M University. Any use of this information for commercial, 
political, or marketing purposes is prohibited.", there are limited 
mechanisms at this time to prevent supporters of the SLRC's lawsuit 
from SPAMming Former Students with solicitations.

I would urge all Former Students who 1) have their e-mail
address listed in the AFS's On-line directory and 2) receive
solicitations from the supporters of this lawsuit and
3) think their e-mail address may have been harvested from
the AFS's directory, to report the transgression to the AFS
so that they may take the appropriate legal actions.

Jack Perdue
Class of '96 - Two year supporter of the AFS Century Club
jkp2866@unix.tamu.edu

cc: afs@aggienet.tamu.edu

In article <6ag278$end$1@news.tamu.edu>, jkp2866@unix.tamu.edu 
(Jack Perdue) says:
>
>Personally, I think the guy is wasting the money of whoever 
>is foolish enough to send it to him.
>
 

**********************************************************************

SAVE your Confederate Money!!!!!

The South will rise again!!!!

I'll give the guy credit - he's got some mighty clever wording there
that is likely to cause at least a few idiots to part with their 
money.

Terry at Lake Bastrop

(Bastrop is the home town of Confederate War hero, Joe Sayers, who
later became Governor of Texas.)

********************************************************************