30 LIFE AND WORK OF DR. A. A. MURPHREE

of the old college recall his amazing ability to select charac-
ters and to produce plays.
 "President Murphree gave at least one big play each year
at the College," one of the students relates. "He would.place
us in our parts and rehearsals would begin. Dr. Murphree's
big, though boyish, figure commanded the stage like a field
marshal. He would interpret each of the parts for us and
drill us in speech, gestures, and action. Many an amusing
incident occurred during those rehearsals, for Dr. 'Murphree
got lots of fun out of dramatics. When he saw that the play
was progressing satisfactorily, he would announce to the wait-
ing community that the play would be given on a specified
date and the whole town would turn out."
 Dr. Murphree had participated in athletics in his own col-
lege days at the University of Nashville and continued his in-
terest in athletics through his administration of the College,
and in fact throughout his years of leadership of the growing
University of Florida. At the College, he got out and per-
sonally assisted in the coaching of the football and basketball
teams. He sent out the first Florida inter-collegiate football
and baseball teams to go out of the state.
 President Murphree brought the first national fraternity to
Florida with the organization of the Alpha Psi Chapter of
Kappa Alpha, in 1903, and became himself a member. Ben
Meginness, lawyer of Tallahassee, was a charter member.
 President Murphree was at that time, as throughout his
entire life, an outstanding layman in his church. He was a
Baptist and served as superintendent of the Sunday school of
that church in Tallahassee almost the entire time he was at the
College. He was not merely a nominal Sunday school offi-
cer, but went at his duties in the same administrative spirit
that he displayed as an educational leader. He never forced
his creedal views upon others, but was a staunch example of
Christian living.
 On one stormy Sunday morning, the regular organist for
 the Sunday school failed to appear. Superintendent Mur-
 phree drafted his niece, Mary, to play. She protested that she
 could not play well enough, but he responded:
 "Come on and hit in the high places and I'll sing!"