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L: Yes. Mr. P. K. Yonge had been chairman of the Board of Control
for many years and sort of felt personally responsible for the
three institutions of learning, A &M College as well as Florida
State College for Women and the University of Florida. He
had known Dr. Lockey in Pensacola, maybe elsewhere, but in
Pensacola. I'm sure Mr. Cawthon, the superintendent of
public instruction at the time, knew Dr. Lockey. He may have
been known to other people here, but apparently the State
Board f Education had agreed to his appointment even before
it was taken up by the Board of Control. He was in Tallahassee
for several days but he didn't go to Gainesville.
In those days they had the Pentagon policy in reference to the
Board of Control. In other words, everything was secret--top
secret. There were very few announcements as to where the
Board was going to meet or what they were going to do. As
far as I know, there was no agenda. However, certain people
could go to the office of the Board of Control on the campus
out at Florida State College for Women, and there find out
everything that was going to happen from old Mr. John Diamond,
the secretary of the State Board of Control. My friend was in
that position. He was the principal of the high school here in
Tallahassee at the time. So I found out who was going to be
appointed, and I wired Major Riley. He must have received the
telegram Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning. I didn't hear
about this until much later and I did not question people too
much about what happened. I had discovered that it's better to
get information by listening than by asking questions. Maybe
other people don't think that.
P: Obviously, by this time the support that had been generating for
Jimmy Farr, who was acting president, to be appointed had
dissipated.
L: Well, I don't know that there was ever much support on a state level.
There was local support and support among some of the alumni
for Jimmy Farr, and when the Board met Saturday morning, it had
telegrams from alumni all over the state protesting the election
of this Californian unknown person in Florida. Ralph Stoutamire
and B. C. Riley got together and they organized the alumni who
may or may not have supported Jimmy Farr, I'm not sure. I imagine
they were supporting Jimmy Farr. But they organized the alumni
and they had a big protest in Jacksonville. Unexpected.
P: Against Dr. Lockey.