For the entire two hours and up until Professor Scott called the examination to a halt, Jim sat there writing as fast and accurately as his arm and brain would permit. He had been a little slow at first, but as time went on his memory seemed to return and he remembered more. When the allotted time was up he handed in a sheaf of papers that would lead one to believe that Jim Curwood had written a full length novel.
A few anxious and worried days went by before the big news came telling of the results of the examinations. Jim Curwood had passed the difficult examinations with “flying colors,” while over one-fourth of the others had failed. He was jubilant and overjoyed at his great success. Immediately he rushed off to the telegraph office to send back the news to all of Owosso.
James Oliver Curwood plunged deep into college life. Now, besides being a part of the university he was also a resident of Ann Arbor. It later became known that it was not only the studies that interested him but, strange as it may seem, being a resident of Ann Arbor gave him a soul-satisfying thrill, a thrill so great and real that for many years afterward Jim could never quite fully describe it.
The weeks that followed were filled with the usual pranks and escapades that come to all college students, and Jim was by no means an exception. Being a freshman was not an altogether happy affair, what with the periods of “hazing” and “paddling” and peeling of onions that became parts of his daily existence. But through all this Jim’s sense of humour never left him and, while he did not particularly enjoy these “persecutions,” his understanding of them made them easier to bear.
At last came the time for Jim to take notice of his financial standing. He had paid his tuition fees, purchased his books and all minor colleges fees had been taken care of. Even his room and board were paid up for the entire first semester. Still, Jim was running short of cash. So he set out in search of work. Any job that paid any wages at all was what Jim Curwood wanted and would take. Luckily there was a university employment agency on the campus and Jim lost no time in contacting it. For several days he practically haunted the agency and at last after a week of waiting he secured employment at a house that needed someone to tend the furnace and take out ashes after school hours. Though the compensation was little it helped Jim immensely to carry on his college work.
It was not long before a similar position presented itself, and this together with the first one, netted him the then magnificent sum of $6.00 weekly. Jim’s education, at least for the present, looked a little more secure.
As the first year at Ann Arbor was rapidly drawing to a close, the final examinations came up. Jim soon began the ever tiresome task of studying. The light in his room burned from early dusk until early in the morning. This was one time when he realized that he must burn the proverbial “midnight oil.”
After many long, hard hours of intense study, Jim managed to pass the examinations. His first year at the University of Michigan had been a success and he was quite proud.