dedication “ 1 the leaning pine - paul smith's...

D e d i c a t i o n “ 1

The Leaning PineAn unusual pine tree stood near the shore o f St. Regis Lake fo r a lm os t 300 years. T h is p ine grew , due to an accident o f nature, a t a sharp angle to the he ight o f 125 feet. It a ttra c te d the a tte n tio n o f the f irs t students when they arrived a t Paul S m ith ’s College in 1946. In 1947 the S tud en t C o un c il decided to sponsor a con test to select a sym bo l fo r the college. A fo re s try s tuden t fro m E lm ira He ights, Mew York, John Hayduck, drew a s im p le draw ing o f tha t un ique pine. T he Lean ing Pine d ra w in g th a t w e a ll know became the o ffic ia l sym bol fo r Paul S m ith ’s College.

And the tree stood un til Novem ber 11, 1971. F orestry s tuden ts in 1971 had th e ir too ls inspected and graded for con d ition by the ir ins truc to rs . S tudents spent considerab le t im e p repa ring th e ir axes and o ther tools fo r th is inspection . One s tudent was displeased w ith the lo w grade he rece ived on his axe, and on the way back to his dorm from p ick in g up the axe, h it the Lean ing P ine severa l tim es. T h is s tud en t, s till fum ing because o f the low grade he received, ta lked w ith ano the r s tud en t and a t tw o o ’c lo c k in the m orn ing on N ovem ber 11, 1971, they chopped dow n the Leaning Pine.

The cam pus and c o m m u n ity were stunned when they learned o f the vanda lism . A sec tion o f the tru n k of the Leaning Pine hangs in the L ib ra ry as a m em oria l to the tree.

The pine m ay no t stand ta ll on the Paul S m ith ’s College cam pus, b u t its likeness does. T he li t t le d raw ing of the Leaning Pine graces college sta tionery , pu b lica tio ns and appare l. T he Lean ing Pine m ay have died in 1971, bu t its m em ory lives on. We, therefore, dedicate the 1986 ed itio n o f the St. Regian to the m em ory of the Leaning Pine.

LEANING PINE

For many years a tree may stand With Mother Nature’s helping hand Though it may lean as if to say “No gravity can spoil my day"

The mighty leaning pine stood tall On Paul Smith’s Campus, Braving all For many moons it touched the sky Through many storms it would not die

Then we reach that dreadful night In darkness nor yet touched by light Across the campus with live plans Came men, axes in their hands.

And then with all its thundering might It crashed to earth in the still of night With a mighty roar it struck the Ground.

They do not heed the final cost Another nature’s wonder lost What took years to bring about Thoughtless man has again wiped out.

Clark F. Mosher This poem originally appeard in the 1971 edition of the St. Regian