The Undergraduate Chair
After the greater part of the haggling over a fair price for second-hand furniture had taken place and after most of the post- vacation greetings had been shouted out, the College came together in Webster Hall for the opening chapel service of the year. The President's speech, which followed, was devoted to consideration of the present-day cost of education, a statement of the need for a realignment of educational forces to care for the demands of a world physically and intellectually different from the world of the college of the past, the desirability of youth's adopting a more humble outlook on the world, a plea for enthusiasms, a look at the duty of the colleges in relation to the political arena in the background and a plea for cultivation of friendships in college and the use of the many gifts proffered to the college men. The editorial comment of The Dartmouth in part was:
It seems profitable to turn quickly from a warning on President Hopkins' opening address of yesterday, "the youth of today . . . could be patient to serve a longer apprenticeship before arrogating to itself an assumption of complete wisdom in all matters affecting its own world" to his fine challenge in the opening address of 1922 to the College to help "the individual student to this acquired characteristic of a desire for truth and to knowledge of the principles under which it can most advantageously be sought."
More typical of the college scene than the gathering in Webster Hall was the 1932-1931 football rush on Hanover Common the next day. Only one or two boys had to be cared for in Dick Hall's House after the melee. Not all is beer and skittles for the entering freshman, however, for the long hours of talks introducing him to various aspects of college life come in this opening week. When this "Advice Week" is over, the new member of the College is full of useful information and well-meant counsel.
The Class of 1932, by the way, has only 585 members, or fifty less than the class which precedes it had at the same time. That brings the total undergraduate enrollment down to 2100, a figure set by the Trustees. Undoubtedly this successful limitation of the freshman class will please many of the members of the Faculty and those of the student body who have been in the college community long enough to know that too many young men are going to college in these years of American upper-class prosperity and that much of the effort of hard-working instructors is perhaps going to waste.
One very hopeful sign for Dartmouth's educational efforts is the exceptional use of the Library reading rooms. Although no figures are available now on an increase in the number of books taken from the shelves, there can be no doubt that the undergraduates are taking full advantage of the comfortable facilities of The Tower Room and other reading rooms. Noisy dormitories and fraternity houses are no longer the only places available for study.
There is reason to believe that this college year will bring a spontaneous expression of undergraduate interest in intellectual and artistic affairs not so evident on the campus in the last two years. The political campaign has aroused activity in The Round Table earlier this semester than in the previous autumn seasons, which are usually so completely taken up with* football interest. A Political Symposium put on by The Round Table one evening in the second week of October last month brought James H. MacLafferty, a congressional war-horse from Hoover's home state; Harry Elmer Barnes, a professorial liberal and sociologist from Smith College, and Powers Hapgood, a pleasing young radical whose wife is the Socialist nominee for Governor in Massachusetts and whose own background is the coal mining country of Pennsylvania.
Congressman MacLafferty, sent up at the last moment by the Republican Speakers' Bureau, arrived twenty minutes late and was consequently behind the discussion all evening although he was the first speaker. Professor Barnes said he thought both major parties were thoroughly incompetent to cope with present-day political and economic problems, but that Governor Smith personally held such promise for a liberal administration that there could be no doubt whom to vote for. Powers Hapgood, who has bucked police methods in Pennsylvania and in Boston at the time of the execution of Sacco and Vanzetti summer before last, gave the most capable and pleasing talk of the evening.
An article in The Dartmouth by L. W. Doob '29, President of The Round Table, published a day after the meeting, gave the results of two ballots taken at the meeting. Here is a quotation, "A ballot was filled in by the audience that attended The Round Table's symposium before the speakers ascended the platform. Another ballot was collected at the close of the evening. The purpose of the procedure was to ascertain whether or not people are influenced by a political meeting. Before the meeting, Hoover led with 166 votes, Smith followed with 77, and Thomas was third with 34. The second ballot gave Hoover 94, Smith 63 and Thomas 32. Thus Hoover received 60% of the votes at the start and only 49% at the end; while Smith advanced from 28% to 33% and Thomas from 12% to 18%. The significance of these figures tends to be made slightly invalid by the with- drawal of 88 voters before the second ballot could be taken."
The Round Table has also been active this autumn in establishing a new non-literary magazine, The Tomahawk. The purpose of the new publication is said by the officers of the organization to be the extension to the printed page of the liberal club's constitutional purpose, "stimulation of undergraduate interest in political, economic and social questions." Professor H. R. Bruce of the Political Science Department, Professor A. J. Scarlett of the Chemistry Department, Mr. H. F. R. Shaw of the Economics Department, Professor H. E. Barnes of Smith College and various students are the contributors to the first number. Although The Tomahawk appears to have more life than any other publication on campus, its future is dependent upon more financial support from the students than has been shown to date. The Faculty has swelled its subscription lists considerably.
The artistic needs of the undergraduate body are being attended to with no less interest. The Arts is actively promoting discussion of literature and painting by holding occasional meetings. It also' sponsored a gathering which met to hear T. C. Colt '26 talk on the exhibit of modern American art, which he brought up' front a gallery in New York City. The Tower is carrying out its function of supplying an outlet for literary expression under its two new editors, C. B. Gaynor and E. W. Merkerl, both seniors.
Activities more picturesque, and commanding more undergraduate attention than the publication of magazines or political meetings, were Delta Alpha, and the fraternity pledging, which took place formally the midnight following the Norwich game and the termination of the annual sophomore frolicing with the freshmen. Delta Alpha this year fell a little, flat in the dormitories, the rumor goes, because the chinning sessions took place while the'freshmen are ordinarily attracting the attention of the second-year class. The parade arranged by dormitories brought forth thePusual wild men, harem girls and Wheelock Indians to enliven the game against Norwich.
The formal pledging Saturday at midnight, although anti-climatic because the greater number sophomores had been sunk for the 27 hours preceding, called forth the milling around and whooping it up which the letdown from a strain demands. As usual the sophomores seemed to be delighted and the fraternities were congratulating themselves on the good they pledged.
More men were taken in than ever before, the total reaching 388. An idea of the size of delegations in these days of second-year rushing can be gained from this: A group of eight representative old fraternities took in a total of 151 sophomores or almost 19 per fraternity. Eight typical younger fraternities admitted 87 men which averages about 11 to the delegation. Larger active chapters are needed to maintain houses financially when men from only three classes belong to a fraternity at one time. Last year the same two groups, old and young fraternities, took in about ten fewer sophomores each, a fact which illustrates the greater number of men being admitted.
Considerable discussion of second-year rushing has taken place in the fraternity houses and Interfraternity Council. The president of that organization, F. H. Andres '29, worked actively for a return to freshman pledging, but the discussion was practically closed after The Dartmouth published an interview with President Hopkins on the subject.
Voicing emphatic opposition to any change in the present rushing system, President Hopkins in an interview given The Dartmouth put an end to any campus rumors which forecast a return to first-year pledging.
Describing the improvement in the life of the College which has followed the adoption of sophomore pledging, President Hopkins stated that during the three years of sophomore pledging both the number of freshmen separated from college and put on probation has decreased at a considerably greater rate than would be expected under the normal selective process. During the last five years of freshman rushing which ended in 1924, the average number of freshmen passing all their courses in the first semester amounted to 66.3 percent of the class; under the three years of sophomore rushing this number has increased to 72.6 percent. ... "I see no reason for changing back to the old method," the President declared, "which was a bad intrusion on the freshman year. The first few weeks in college are the most crucial, and with rushing under the old system the man who came here with any reputation at all had no chance to do any work during this period."
Further citing the advantages of second- year pledging, President Hopkins emphasized his belief that fraternity distinctions should not be introduced before the members of the incoming class have formed their common acquaintances, and that the freshmen should be protected from the narrowing influence of the fraternities until they have become well established in the life of the College. . . .
- In reply to the statement that second-year rushing placed a greater financial burden on the fraternities, there being only three classes to pay the expenses instead of four, President Hopkins pointed out the increase in the number of men pledged which has resulted, a change which he called beneficial to the College. During the last five years of freshman rushing the average number of men pledged was 303; since then the average has jumped to 370.
