The 1869 Act of the Tennessee General Assembly conveying the 1962 Morrill Act Land-Grant endowment to the university required that all “physically able” students work on the university’s farm, “not exceeding two hours per day, except in the way of punishment.” Although this requirement had not generally been enforced, with the new president (Dabney) came a course in “practical agriculture,” which all students, except those pursuing an engineering curriculum, were required to take. In this course, students studied elementary chemistry, botany, and related topics and engaged in practical work. Practical work consisted of such activities as building walks around campus, filling ditches, grading the landscape, and planting trees. Students disliked the course, especially the manual labor feature, and a student rebellion in 1887 against the manual labor portion resulted in Dabney’s threatening to dismiss those who refused to participate. Future UT President James D. Hoskins was one of the participants in the rebellion. A second strike was necessary to effect modification of the course to eliminate the manual labor portion.