The Undergraduate Chair

THERE'S NO USE to stand on the bank and shiver contemplating the possible frigidity of seasoned alumni readers. Though the water may be cold—warmed by my appreciation of the opportunity, I jump in. So here goes.

It was along about the 25th of March that Hanover made up its mind that spring with its sun baths, and baseball, and no overcoats, and green grass, and long congenial evenings was here. And it was glad. Reluctant to dismiss from its mind a skiless winter and a snowless Carnival, it was nevertheless ready for spring and scorned the Spring Vacation, country-wide early April blizzard, and accompanying haggard weather conditions. Said one undergraduate, "I like to ski, I like winter, and I like snow, but if it can't come when it should in January and February, to hell with it." But spring, late as it was, came to the North Woo"ds and brought with it its Junior Blazers and Senior Canes and groups lounging around on the fraternity piazzas, and wire fences to keep people off the new grass.

For the period regarded as dull as the uninterrupted weeks before Spring Vacation, and a few weeks after (when the faculty successfully put the screws on students and cover a lot of territory by virtue of the lack of any absorbing extra-curricular activity), there was plenty going on this year; this, because organizations contemplated, "We'll plan it for the end of March or early April when there isn't anything doing."

That may partly have accounted for absorbing events such as the North Country Fair, the Interfraternity Play Contest, Variety Night, various lectures and debates, and even the Luboshutz-Nemenoff piano recital, for all I know. There have, during the past month, been other campus activities. There was the student peace poll in which Dartmouth pledged, for itself, neutrality; there was the Model League conference at Northampton at which delegates from all campuses, including Dartmouth, thrashed out the problems of the world, determined who was to blame for present world crises, and why. There was the announcement of Graduate Fellows, Senior Fellows, as well as the announcement of the death of the student proposal for a science survey course at the hands of the Science Division. There was the announced change by President Hopkins of fraternity rules—and the consideration by the Interfraternity Council and the houses of limiting chapter sizes and of reorganizing rushing and pledging.

And there was the great undergraduate ovation following a trumpeted declaration that Tommy Dorsey, famous trombonist, and his equally famous orchestra, would swing for the Green Key festival. Thus for a period in the second term when there was traditionally "nothing doing," Dartmouth this year did pretty well for itself.

EDITOR'S NOTE: With this issue, RalphN. Hill '39 of Burlington, Vtassumes occupancy of The Undergraduate Chair. Heis Associate Editor of "The Dartmouth " aformer editor of "The Dart," and a member of Beta T-heta Pi fraternity. He prepared for Dartmouth at Burlington HighSchool. Hill succeeds Ben Ames WilliamsJr. '38 as undergraduate editor of the ALUMNI MAGAZINE.