LIFE AND WORK OF DR. A. A. MURPHREE


Once in a while, when he did become angry, there was a real
explosion. He woald tolerate no impertinence or shiftless-
ness on the part of his pupils. At one time, the class in ana-
lytics had not been keeping up with their work and one morn-
ing they walked into the classroom to discover an exceedingly
stiff and difficult examination on the board. No one passed,
and the monthly grades suffered accordingly. The next month
there was a great increase in diligence in his class-rooms.
 "Dr. Murphree never had any difficulty in finding the cul-
prits after a student escapade. The day after Hallowe'en, for
instance, when a number of missing gates had been reported
to his office, he would .call all the boys together and ask the
guilty ones to stand up. They usually responded, especially
if they had known him from previous experiences, and the
matter was speedily readjusted. In case the guilty student
did not respond when first called upon to do so, Dr. Murphree
would take each student separately and begin a process of
elimination by a series of questions worthy of the most bril-
liant lawyer. He was always successful in his contacts with
his students because he thoroughly understood boys.
 "Dr. Murphree was a very popular teacher. After a
storm, which had completely destroyed any power of resist-
ance from a student or students, everything would become
calm and peaceful again, the guilty ones would receive a rea-
sonable talk, and the matter was closed. He did not harbor
a grudge against a student and was always fair. The students
appreciated this and would love him the more after the storm
had calmed down."