An excellent editorial on the Union, other editorials on the Advocate's plans for the year, four poems and a number of prose articles make up the first number of the Advocate, which appeared last night. "Morning on the Swamp," by Roy Pier, is a vivid piece of poetical description, marked by simplicity and no little beauty. "Sunlight," another poem,--unsigned--is well and pleasingly phrased. "Summer Songs," by A. D. Ficke, seems rather carelessly put together, and the effect of a number of good lines is offset by commonplace phrasing and halting rhythm; as a whole it is not up to the usual standard of the writer's work. A sonnet by W. Bynner is almost unintelligible to the average mind; perhaps the author understands it.

"The Midnight Freight," by I. M. Adams, is a story one enjoys, reading. A swift and strong style of narration has made the plot and the characters seem vivid and real. "An Experiment on Deduction," by A. Hollingsworth, is well planned and written. The rest of the prose in the issue is not interesting.