In 1861, when the literary society of Brown was arranging its annual reunion, the question of a poem, of course, came up. It was finally decided that Fitz James O’Brien, a brilliant young Irishman, should be invited to officiate as poet of the occasion. O’Brien was a native of Limerick, Ireland, and born in 1828. His father was a lawyer and his mother a woman of uncommon beauty. Fitz James was educated in Dublin. He came to this country in 1852 with letters of introduction to prominent Americans. He quickly gained entrance to literary and fashionable society, where his talents soon made him a great favorite. He wielded a prolific pen. Among his contributions were: “The Ballad of Sir Brown,” “The Gory Gnome,” “The Wonderful Adventures of Mr. Papplewick” and “The Demon of the Gibbet.” Among his poems, in addition to those mentioned, were: “Down in the Glen at Idlewild,” “The Zouaves,” “Helen Lee,” “The Countersign,” “Sir Brasil’s Falcon,” “The Song of the Locomotive,” and “The Prisoner of War.” His stories include “The Diamond Lens,” “The Golden Ingot,” “The Dragon Fang” and “The Pot of Tulips.” O’Brien enlisted in the Seventh New York regiment and marched with it to the defence of Washington. At the expiration of his term of service he returned to New York and started in, personally, to raise a regiment to be known as the McClellan Rifles. It was while thus engaged that he received the invitation to attend the exercises at Brown. After considering the matter, he replied, expressing regret at being unable to accept. Said he: “A regiment of rifles which I am now engaged in raising demands all my time. If you can put me on the track of one hundred good men, you will please me better than if you crowned me with bays. If there is a spare population up your way, I would take a recruiting trip thither, and present my regrets in person.” So he did not come and the assemblage at Brown was denied the sunshine of his presence. O’Brien died of a wound received in battle and was given a soldier’s burial in Greenwood. Nowhere was his death more deeply felt than among his friends in Providence. I have already alluded to James G. Dougherty of the class of 1865. In 1862 he enlisted in the Tenth Rhode Island Volunteers, and saw service in Virginia. The close of the war was enthusiastically celebrated at Brown. Dougherty was chairman of the committee of arrangements and introduced President Sears to the great gathering assembled on that occasion. Mayor Doyle of Providence was also among the speakers. There was music, an illumination and unbounded enthusiasm.