ST. PATRICK BROKE UP ENTIRE COLLEGE - One thousand strong the boys and girls of the Iowa State College flagged classes at ten o'clock this morning and headed by the Dutch band and the senior engineers they marched downtown where a big demonstration took place.  The line of march was headed by 200 men in tall green tiles and green socks.  Each smoked a clay pipe.

Mayor Tilden was lifted in an auto and made a little speech of welcome, Atty. Underwood followed with a classic address on the immortal Saint.  Football Captain Scott made a few remarks and Senior Civil Engineer Eby took the stand for St. Patrick.  Parley Sheldon and Henry Wilson finished the program with soothing words of praise for the man who chased the snakes out of Ireland, and every speaker on the program affirmed the claim of the senior civils that St. Patrick was an engineer.

"We'll all have Mahogany Hogs" as sung by the civils made a big bit.  The gang piled onto the college car but when Parley Sheldon told them he'd let the college girls ride free if the boys would get off the car, they piled off and walked back to school.

The St. Patrick day celebration participated in by nearly the entire student body of the Iowa State College last Thursday stands in a class by itself, it being the only demonstration of college enthusiasm ever decently conducted in the city, and it must be admitted that from the standpoint of recreation, wholesome enthusiasm and good fellowship it was one of the greatest celebrations in the state.

The students asked for a vacation to celebrate the occasion, the authorities refused to grant any and the students of the engineering department took the matter in their own hands.  The result was that the bunch stampeded and made St. Patrick's day a matter of history at Iowa's greatest educational institution.

Headed by the senior civil engineers the bunch paraded the campus and then came downtown.  The were dressed in tall green tiles, and wore green socks and ties.  Some carried picks and shovels and others pushed wheelbarrows.  The all smoked short clay "poipes."  They had a bunch of parodies on Irish airs and they sung them.  Then they got some of the prominent citizens of Ames to speak to them, and then gave three cheers for the fair co-eds and sent them back to the college.

From main street the parade marched north to Story street and over to the Central high school building where they danced and sung and celebrated for a while and then they marched back to the college where they had a baseball game and a big time in the afternoon.

We are informed that the professors in some of the departments were instructed to be just as severe with the students as possible and to stick each of them $2 for an examination if it was deemed advisable, but we are told that the professors didn't do it.

Sometimes the students carry college enthusiasm too far, but last Thursday's celebration was a very commendable one; was heartily enjoyed by the town and college people alike, and it stirred up more red corpuscles in the veins of the college students than "College Day" set aside by the college as a holiday, would stir up in a thousand years.

It was a bright day in the middle of April, 1913.  St. Patrick sat on the golden stairs leading to the Royal Mansion, smoking his old Irish pipe.  He was thinking of the good times he used to have when he lived on earth in Ireland.  As he was meditating over the past he unconsciously drew his jack-knife from his overalls’ pocket and commenced to carve the image of a shamrock on the golden staircasing.

Before the shamrock was finished he heard footsteps near.  He looked up and to his surprise St. Peter was standing before him.  “Patrick, what doest thou?” exclaimed his highness.  “Have I not rebuked thee often enough for thy misdoings?  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, unless thou redeemest thyself I must banish thee from this land.  Canst thou give me any reason why thou shouldst remain here?”

“But I canst not take thy word as the sole evidence.  Hast thou any proof that thou wert a blessing on earth and art deserving of a place among the saints?”

“Faith, Oi can prove it to ye beyond a doubt the thickness of a red hair,” exclaimed the Irishman.  My mimry is dear to the hearts of the Americans themselves thot the laddies in the colleges hold sacred the day of my birth.

“But never before war there sich a cilibration as the one this year by the Oirish Civil Ingineers of Iowa Shtate College.  These loyal shpirited byes got their hades togither and sez, ‘This is the birthday of the Pathron Saint and niver a class will we attind before the sun sets over yon western hills; but we’ll shpend the day a rejisin and a boostin for ould St. Pathrick.’  And bejabers, St. Pether, they lived up to their wurrd to the very minute.

“Afore the marnin services had hardly commenced, these true Oirish ingineers were a marrchin out of their Ingineerin buildin dressed in full regalia.  They war decorated from head to foot with the green of Erin and they all war a smokin Oirish poipes oidinticle with my own.

“Ner did they fergit thot they war ingineers.  Ivery blessed one of em war a carryin a shpirit level, the shpirits in em alookin like the ould Oirish rum thot me and my friends used to dhrink, while we war on airth, but it were truly nothing but soapsuds thot had a yaller color.

“And as they marched acrost thot school yard they war foiner looking thon any sojers thot iver sot foot upon the ould sod.  But they was a goin to wake up the rist of the school to the fact thot their Pathron Saint war an ingineer, so they ramparted thru buildins a singin songs and a shootin firecrackers with all their might.

Written on the back of this postcard: Dear Folks, Got the money and socks.  Thanks.  Everything is good here, but awfully monotonous.  This picture was taken on St. Patricks day.  No school.  Big celebration.  Eddie

“It war quite ivident thot the Prisident war under the imprission thot these fellers war not Oirishmen, for he expected thim to return to their classes in fifteen minits.  So he decided to put it to a vote whither they should go back to wurrk or not, and when they answered him it were loike a bomb had busted in the midst of em, fer every blasted one of em hollered ‘NO’ from the bottom of his heart.  And, faith, whin the Prisident raelized thot the ‘nays’ had it he war willin to give in.  And whin the bye they called ‘Capper,’ leader of the bunch, comminced to explainin the tradishion to him, he shtated thot he refused to argue with a red-headed Oirishman.

“This last shtatement cheered the byes considerable, and as they filed out of the office, they all war singing a song in honor of the Prexy to the tune of ‘Johnny fill up the bowl.’

“Then, begorra, what did these civils do but hand out the refreshments to the purty gurrls who war a fallerin em around and a helpin em cilibrate.

“Faith and bejabers, Oi niver ixpect in the past ner the future to have again sich an honor bestowed upon my mimry.  It sure was lucky for that College to have the same birthday as me, fer the ceremony war shure a credit to the school.  And now, St. Peter, what is yore verdict?”

“Thou shalt keep thy name as Patron Saint,” replied his highness, “and thou shalt be given the highest seat in the Royal Castle, for thou art deserving.”