THE UNDERGRADUATE CHAIR

This is our last month of occupancy, and we arise from the Undergraduate Chair with a good deal of humility and even a little wisdom. In reporting the activities of some twenty-three hundred undergraduates over a period of a year, we are conscious of having erred perhaps as frequently as we have been correct in our opinions. This we have learned, however: to beware for all time of confusing abstractions with reality. For instance, there is no "campus opinion" because there is no "campus." There are instead some twenty- three hundred individuals, thinking as they will; and those thoughts are usually beyond the understanding of almost all interpreters.

What has been done and thought during the year, however, can be summarized, at least a posteriori. And despite all the sound and fury, important developments have occurred. Yet with all this, we are not so sure that much actual change has been effected. Our days are too short: encouraging signs have been negated all along the line by old Dartmouth familiars like apathy and habit.

In the large, however, Dartmouth is a healthier college than it was a year ago. We believe it is a soberer, more satisfied and perhaps slightly more mature place at present. The contributing factors are clear in some cases, in others almost purely hypothetical. We guess as we can concerning Dartmouth's complexities, for categorical explanations are foolish at best; it is safer if "you pays your money and takes your choice."

Still a Familiar Campus Scene