Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III THE PUBLIC PULSE Shortly before nine o'clock the next morning the president entered the campus and walked toward his office. The wind had veered and was clearing the sky of clouds. Miniature ravines in the gravel walk showed the effect of the recent downpour, and the matting of dead leaves under the trees was noticeably thicker. The tart and bracing quality of the air sent the blood tingling to his finger-tips and stirred his mind with high resolves for the coming winter. As Babington neared the center of the grounds the library chimes began to ring, the paths became thronged with students, the sun burst forth at last, and a belt of yellow light swept rapidly across the campus, touching the moving picture with sudden life and color. Every one noticed the erect form of the new president. His expression was genial and serene, and his white felt hat seemed more cheerful and informal than the tall silk in which he had made his first appearance in Argos. The greetings he received were as various as the natures that offered them. A woman student bowedwith shy admiration. Some of the men saluted in the military fashion they had learned; a few looked straight ahead without a sign of recognition, being either too indifferent or too proud to speak to one who did not know them personally. One group of girls passed by tittering. The president looked benignly on all, as if he welcomed an opportunity of speaking. The variety of greetings interested and amused him. When he reached the door of his office he found a long line of students waiting for an interview. In his inaugural address he had invited them to come to him with their troubles and perplexities, and they had taken him at his word. The heartiness of the response was somewhat of a surprise, but he included...