Page:Syria, the land of Lebanon (1914).djvu/82

SYRIA, THE LAND OF LEBANON. Indeed, there is no other college in the Near East which would have any chance of winning in competition with the "S. P. C." So the enthusiasm finds a vent in cheering for the various schools of the university and for the class champions. Three of the departments—the preparatory, academic and medical—are each as large as many an American college. The competition among these runs very high, and to-day a banner is to be given to the one whose members shall score most points. Now the various department "yells" have stopped for a moment, and an upper classman starts the college cheer, just as inane to read and just as soul-stirring to hear as are those of Harvard or Yale or Princeton. There is a good deal of singing, too. The college song, like that of Cornell, is set to the tune of "Annie Lisle," but the words are full of local allusions—

Suddenly an usher comes running from the gatehouse with the news that the governor's carriage is in sight. It can hardly be true, however; for it still [ 52 ]