Letters to the Editor

The Sexes

TO THE EDITOR:

As a woman at Dartmouth College, I was both confused and hurt by the Trustees' recent decision on the sex ratio. If the College is truly committed to coeducation, I do not understand why a woman should be rejected in favor of a less qualified man. The Trustees have publicly stated their belief in "the education of men and women with a high potential for making a significant positive impact on society." If this is true, then why do we have our present sex quota? Do I, as a woman, have less potential than a man?

If the Trustees believe in the intellectual equality of men and women, then it would seem that equal access should be implemented as a matter of principle. We have been told that it is "just a matter of time" before equal access comes to Dartmouth. But is discrimination something that should be slowly phased out, or something which must be corrected as soon as possible?

I am not alone in my confusion. The Trustees' decision has spurred a wave of activism at Dartmouth. Initially, a petition for immediate equal access was signed by over 800 students. There was also a highly successful teach-in day of workshops and presentations of various view- points. Now this campus-wide reaction to the decisions has resulted in the formation of the Committee for Equal Admissions. The purpose of the CEA is to organize future investigation into and action against discrimination in the admissions procedure at Dartmouth.

The CEA has received support and information from members of the student body, the faculty, and the administration. Research groups have formed to study discrimination in recruitment for and admission to the College. But we would very much like to get more input from the alumni(ae). There has been no organized, comprehensive alumni(ae) opinion poll on the issue of the sex ratio.

We have been told that the alumni body in particular is not ready for equal access. Is this true? Do the alumni(ae) believe that women are not qualified, or should not be allowed, to participate in "the cutting edge of social change?" Please correct me if I am wrong, but I cannot believe that they do.

Hanover, N.H.

TO THE EDITOR:

While I appreciate the Trustees' and the administration's efforts to explain the January decision on the admission of women, I still cannot understand it. While preparing fact sheets for the February 8th teach-in [protesting the decision], I found gross deficiencies in the arguments favoring the decision.

The decision did not explicitly endorse a policy of equal access by sex, which would apply the same academic and personal criteria to men and women while recognizing that women may have had limited opportunities for extracurricular activities in their secondary schools. The Board merely implied that the numerical guidelines will be equivalent to equal access in some future year.

Contrary to rumors circulating in Hanover, the policy on coeducation has not and will not have a detrimental effect on the College's income. According to Robert J. Finney '63, director of development, the annual Alumni Fund has doubled since women were admitted to Dartmouth. There is no substantial evidence that future Funds may be hurt by decreasing the number of male undergraduates. Capital funds drives, bequests, and other income sources are rarely influenced by the admissions policy of the College.

The presence of women undergraduates has improved student life. Road-tripping to women's schools is no longer the absolute necessity that it was several years ago. Dartmouth women and Dartmouth men together built bonfires, made Carnival statues, led Freshmen Trips, and sang the alma mater. I'm glad student attitudes no longer laud singing songs like our "Our Cohogs" with its maliciously insulting lyrics about Dartmouth women, and breaking the windows of female dorm rooms. To argue that our football team suffered because of coeducation is absurd — every college that beat our team last fall had no sex admissions guidelines.

The Board was caught in a quandary between preserving traditions and moving ahead. In some ways the impact of the Dartmouth Plan of year-round operation and the national job market has changed the College more than coeducation.

For 200 years the College was a male institution. For five years the College has been a male institution that admitted women. I hope that in 1978 Dartmouth College becomes a coeducational institution that admits men and women.

Hanover, N.H.

(The development director says, "The AlumniFund has indeed doubled since the coeducationdecision, but there is no known relationshipbetween that decision and the remarkablegrowth of the Fund. The Office of Developmenthas no statistical evidence and no way of obtaining statistical evidence on the effect of alumni giving as a result of these decisions." Ed.)

TO THE EDITOR:

To characterize the Board of Trustees' recent decision on admissions policy as discouraging would but scratch the surface of my profound regret at its action.

A year ago the Board used language which bespoke recognition of the contributions women have made and continue to make to the College. One looked for a more enlightened attitude toward women, hopefully reflected in an admissions policy which wholeheartedly endorsed its ostensible purpose of bringing together students with both diverse personal interests and intellectual abilities. Working effectively toward this goal, however, would require a selection process based on each individual's merit and potential regardless of sex. It would require that the College take steps to eradicate the view I've met with time and again that women somehow dilute or contaminate the quality of the Dartmouth experience, in direct proportion to their numbers. Those of us led to hope for such changes have been sorely disappointed.

Nor can I help but see the Board's decision as an affront to Dartmouth women's proven abilities, evidencing a shortsighted disregard for the achievements of women alumnae and students. In my class and field alone, for exampie, there are women from the Class of '76 in about a dozen law schools throughout the country. Surely the College takes some pride in its association with individuals who, during their four years at Dartmouth and afterwards demonstrate that potential for which they were selected. The Board's decision in a sense belittles these women's accomplishments - an honest appraisal could not lead to continued unjustified restrictions on women's enrollment

Lastly, I object to the Board's manner of dealing with such an important subject. The idea is to make a very gradual (and therefore more palatable) move to admitting greater numbers of women, promising neither those for or against that Dartmouth will or will not eventually go to sex-blind admissions. A politic Board managed to sidestep a controversial issue which might have had adverse effects on fundraising mandated by financial pressures. Yet this kind of stop-gap measure satisfies no one who looked for a decision that would come to terms with admissions-maintained male supremacy at Dartmouth. The Board notes Dartmouth's pre-eminence in higher education. In order both to maintain that pre-eminence and to provide that young women entering college have equal access to a quality education, Dartmouth should unequivocally open its doors to capable individuals, be they men or women.

New Haven, Conn.

A Puzzle

TO THE EDITOR:

This is the month when work for the Alumni Fund should be moving into high gear and the Class of 1917, planning its 60th reunion, of course wants to do its part.

Although the writer has been in close contact with Dartmouth during the past few years, it has always been a puzzle to find out which way the financial situation is being resolved. A speech may indicate that the Medical School is an unanticipated expense, or that the projections of the endowment fund are disappointing in view of a recurring minimum of five per cent inflation. It is also clear that the year-round operation to provide more time and space for additional students was necessary. There seem to be insufficient funds which could be used for new dormitories. In spite of these difficulties, my hope is that we are running in the black.

A simple summary of the sources of income and their distribution would be accepted with enthusiasm by alumni who are neither close to members of the Alumni Council nor that select group of Trustees who presumably receive the data periodically and know the answers. It seems to me that we would more willingly increase our yearly donations as we are asked to do if we could have access to more detailed information.

Montpelier, Vt.

(See the May issue. Ed.)

Deficiency

TO THE EDITOR:

As a faculty member I receive the ALUMNI MAGAZINE, and read it regularly. It is an interesting and informative organ — one of the best of its kind.

The latest issue was especially interesting particularly the lengthy article on TM by Pierre Kirch. Although not an apologia, the article was notably lacking in pointed and appropriate criticism. My comments are intended to correct that deficiency.

Notwithstanding the possible benefits of meditation in the generic meaning of the term, TM as it is ballyhooed and proselytized by its zealous proponents is one of the foremost cor games of the 20th century. The pseudo-scientific jargon, the unsubstantiated claims, and the rhetorical gobbledygook which surround TM and are propagated by its adherents boggle even the mildly critical mind.

It is regrettable that so many young people and others have been and are being marks in this con-game. It is also regrettable that Dartmouth College is giving direct support to the game

Some years ago I gave a course on "The Psychology of Credulity" in which, among other things, the students and I attempted to analyze critically the ways in which people were bamboozled, misled and brought to believe in a wide variety of assorted nonsense. The next time I give this course you can guess what one topic of analysis will be!

Hanover, N.H.

International Study

TO THE EDITOR:

When the "'64 Class Questionnaire Results" were passed to the Trustees, one of them, Donald McKinlay '37, in turn posed another question: "What should Dartmouth's role be in the next 25 years and beyond?" Since I am extremely interested in this issue, I am writing to you as editor to highlight one aspect of future education that Dartmouth should consider soon. Albeit my present position makes me slightly parochial, it is extremely obvious to me that education at Dartmouth should strive towards awareness of the interactions of nations - "internationalization" of the curriculum, to coin a new word.

I have been serving with the Royal Navy of Great Britain for the past nine months as an exchange officer. I was given a two-week general cultural awareness course by the U.S. Navy prior to coming to England but had to ferret out specific facts about the country on my own. I felt that I was sufficiently prepared to integrate into the British society with minimum inconvenience.

It was an awakening for my family and me. After nine months I have still a lot to learn about the political, economic, and cultural systems. Not without some joy I might add because the conversation required to overcome a faux pas certainly has broken the barrier to communication on several occasions. However, a concentrated term of study on Great Britain would have greatly assisted in my transition into British society. In future, Dartmouth undergraduate education should provide the background for students to go abroad in their future employment.

The whole point, then, is to provide in future Dartmouth curricula three or four courses on the political, social, and economic aspects of a particular area, be it large such as Africa or more specific such as Saudi Arabia. These courses should be in addition to the language requirement. Perhaps a term could be spent in that nation researching some particular social aspect of that area or nation. The internationalized curriculum should also include the aspects of statesmanship.

I'm not suggesting that the main course of Dartmouth education should be away from producing superb scientists, businessmen, or educators but that these students should all be required to minor in the study of a particular nation. They should all be exposed to how others live and solve their problems. The problems of various nations are generally the same, but the solutions are vastly different. It is not our task as a nation today to impose our will on others but to absorb their methods with the ultimate goal to be the understanding why other methods are as effective as our own. I believe this can only be achieved by concentrated study of a nation's structure.

A minor field of international study may appear to be reducing the electives available to the student. However, the study of another nation in itself requires the branching from science or social science into the political, economic, and cultural aspects of liberal education.

Having spent nine months so far working for a foreign navy has perhaps polarized me on international study, but I believe it is well worth consideration in the future direction of the college.

Somerset, England

Party

TO THE EDITOR:

Herewith one unanimous ballot voting the letter (to-the-editor) of the year award to Thomas Machura '60. Do urge him to write often.

San Francisco, Calif.

(Mr. Machura's letter, in the February issue,concerned the phrase "Chicago party" and itsmany connotations, which, apparently, includegangs and police and guns. Ed.)

Lifetimes

TO THE EDITOR:

The spectacular color photograph of Mt. Moosilauke on the cover of the December ALUMNI MAGAZINE did little to prepare me for the letters-to-the-editor contained therein. These comprise two on the coed issue, four on the ongoing Hovey-Eleazar Wheelock-Indian discussion, two on the Dartmouth-Harvard contrast, one each in praise of the band and an alumni tour, and five corrections of mistakes that appeared in earlier issues of the magazine. These topics are representative of the types of letters printed in most issues.

Are the letters you print actually representative of the letters you receive? In view of the social evolution taking place in our world and from the perspective of the proposed effect of the "Dartmouth Experience" on its graduates, I am amazed at the continuing extraordinary inconsequence of these topics and at the narrow-mindedness expressed in the letters.

The class notes section of the magazine brings another aspect of this matter to mind. People do die eventually and a responsible alumni publication such as ours should, and does, provide information on who of our former classmates are no longer in the land of the living; but aside from the exception of the obits, there is never any "bad" news reported. We are told about reunions, visits and binges with former classmates, new marriages and their resulting children, graduate degrees obtained and especially professional promotions and titles. We never hear a thing about any of the "bad" news of Dartmouth graduates being sacked from jobs, bankruptcies, divorce, affairs, bouts with alcohol, nervous breakdown, depression; one whole aspect of life is completely ignored in the class notes. In my own experience, the "bad" news that I submit to my class secretary is not included in the class notes even though some of the "bad" experiences (divorce, dropping out of graduate school) have had the most benefice effects on my personal growth and happiness. At what level does this filtering of news occur? Do alumni who have been fired or divorced not report this to their class secretaries, or do the secretaries edit in the "good" and edit out the "bad" news?

It is this sort of editing, at whatever level it occurs, this labeling of events as "good" (reportable) and "bad" (unreportable) that causes much of the personal grief resulting from what, after all, are only events that occur during a lifetime.

Calgary, Canada

TO THE EDITOR:

Thanks for including the thoughts of Bob Zovlonsky in your "Vox" column last issue [February]. It speaks to me in a way which, while not unheard of, is uncommon in a magazine written by and for over-achievers. I think most of us who come to Dartmouth are active, aggressive people oriented toward achievements in the world of events and things. Pleasant and inspiring of envy in one way, but no person can share in the events and achievements of another.

What we all can share, but most often deny even to ourselves, are the small feelings of insecurity, loneliness, or mediocrity on which every life turns, and the satisfactions of our inner lives is knowing we can live with, and transcend, these feelings. Please tell Mr. Z that, although I do not and cannot share his experiences, I appreciate his willingness to share his life with me.

Montpelier, Vt.

TO THE EDITOR:

I am a graduate of Columbia and have not set foot on the Dartmouth campus for nearly 50 years so it may seem to you unusual that I write to you at this time - or any time. There is a reason, however, that I believe you need to know.

I am a teacher at a state university, in contact with students daily, and I hope that each day some small portion of this institution rubs off on them in the form of deeper knowledge, inspiration, or increased understanding. While I have been here, a matter of more than ten years, I have had reason to believe that many of my students have been permanently marked by their passage through this institution.

I know that I bear the mark of Columbia. The turmoil of the sixties tore me apart and my loyalty to my alma mater is subject to some question but its mark on me is permanent. I am a Columbia man.

But my loyalty to an institution is not the subject of this letter. I have recently seen a copy of the DARTMOUTH ALUMNI MAGAZINE and could not help but turn to the pages of class notes. There, first before all others, was the message of the secretary of the Class of 1902.

I know this man. I know that the mark of Dartmouth which he bears is borne proudly and with strength. I know that he spends his days in writing, not to his classmates - for there is now but one - but to their sons and grandsons. I know that more than a few hours which should have been spent in building his own strength, he has given freely to build the strength of his beloved Dartmouth. I know that many men and women whose knowledge and memories of Dartmouth are far dimmer than my own have contributed to the Alumni Fund in memory of their fathers and grandfathers in response to the letters this man has written because he wore the mark of Dartmouth.

I myself owe little to Dartmouth. I do owe an enormous, unrepayable debt to this man. I bear his mark. I therefore enclose my check to add to the contribution of the Dartmouth Class of 1902 to the Alumni Fund.

Pueblo, Colo.

Poor Johnny

TO THE EDITOR:

In the January issue, the lead article is entitled "Johnny Can't Write? Who Cares?" The following quotations from that article may indicate to some people that Johnny has company:

Last sentence first paragraph - "Not everywhere that might profitably have been visited, I admit - but a fair sampling and all my deadline allowed."

"... a simple straightforward sentence that says what somebody means ..." Yet the first sentence of the third paragraph of the article contains 84 words.

"College Board verbal scores have been steady at Dartmouth for the last three years."

" ... many seniors graduate writing embarrassingly poorly."

"Many a student ... is apt to appear shortly on his doorstep ..." (feeling small, no doubt).

"'Too few writing exercises in high school,' says Peter Bien, and improper correction of what there is.'"

"The buck was not being passed, however."

"It plays its part, doubtless keeping students of all ages away from the written word, and so do advertising (with its sentence fragments and clever misspellings), newspapers (even the New York Times omits apostrophes), and computers (most of which do not use apostrophes or capital letters)."

Clearwater Beach, Fla.

TO THE EDITOR:

This concerns Shelby Grantham's article "Johnny Can't Write? Who Cares?" I taught journalistic writing for five years (long ago) at The George Washington University.

I quickly discovered that it had occurred to no student that his writing should be interesting. Students spend their school years writing for "teacher" on such punchy subjects as "How I Spent My Summer Vacation."

My second discovery was that each and every student thought it sheer outrage that he should be required to rewrite anything.

My third discovery was that none had the slightest notion of how to organize their material.

Needless to say, no student even considered how to maintain reader suspense.

About grammar, punctuation and spelling I will say nothing.

To this day, I am not sure that good writing can be taught. It is hard, hard, hard. If a student can be guided to write clearly, interestingly and with logical organization, the teacher has done his job.

I like to recall Red Smith's dictum that writing is easy; all you do is insert a clean sheet of paper in your typewriter and then sit there staring at it until tiny drops of blood appear on your forehead.

Bethesda, Md.

TO THE EDITOR:

Dr. Grantham's excellent article ("Johnny Can't Write? Who Cares?") reminded me of mv dismal performance in English 1. I did not give up, however, and have recently written a lengthy paper on shipboard medicine. The Navy is using this paper in its orientation program for incoming physicians. I now enjoy writing, but I still find it difficult and often frustrating.

I am disheartened by the quality of writing that I see from high school graduates in today's Navy. I suppose that the proper use of the English language has suffered as a result of "relevancy," the Vietnam era (remember "protective reaction?"), and the "new freedom." The last has been most damaging. Words ceased to have meanings. We could "let it all hang out," "do our own thing," or "like man, let it happen." I was told recently that the above phrases were part of the evolutionary process that English is undergoing. I think perhaps the term agonal gasps would be more appropriate.

It is unfortunate that I was 25 before I discovered that the English language is a logical, fascinating means in which to communicate. I think now that more writing should have been required in all of my courses. Too often, English courses demand perfection in structure at the expense of content; science courses demand excellence in content at the expense of structure. Dartmouth students are intelligent enough to find a middle ground.

Finally, who wrote the caption to the picture on page 13? Or has Kiewit finally done away with punctuation?

Santee, Calif.

TO THE EDITOR:

The article "Johnny Can't Write? Who Cares?" leaves a somewhat misleading impression. One comes away feeling that schools don't do enough to promote good writing; at worst, they just don't care. But that is not the worst. Bad writing - writing filled with jargon and dully written, with interminable sentences filled with tangled constructions - is positively encouraged by many in academe. A student fairly quickly senses that many consider good scholarship and easy reading to be incompatible. And he learns that it is easier to get a good mark when one's sentences are 30 words long than when they are 15.

The development of anything resembling a style seems to terrify these academic bureaucrats. One experience of mine particularly irked me. My first year at Harvard Law School I had to write a paper (that was to be my average, four papers in four years). The professor's comments were generally favorable but he had misgivings about the writing. I quote from the comments: " ... certainly you have a readable style — sounds like David Brinkley. ... I enjoyed reading this paper very much... When you get to doing 'legal' writing, I hope you use care in choosing the places where you stylize your writing."

Baltimore, Md.

TO THE EDITOR:

Here are just a few of the changes that have been wrought upon the Hanover Plain in the past ten years about which I have kept my mouth shut: Eleazar out, Betty Coed in; Indians put down, the police force put up; rousing "wah-hoo-wahs" nixed for unrousing "rouses," ROTC thrown out and then let back in the hard wav And all of this has been done to the mellifluous, polysyllabic, obscurantic, Chinese gobbledygook accompaniment of the College officials and Trustees as they obfuscate policy about the proper quota of ladies and other matters. It's been mighty hard to keep still. through its

But last month the College through its magazine kicked, nay, trampled on, another old tradition with a publishing act even more odious than any of the above named crimes. So now I must speak. You have dared to print an article on writing (complete with an illustrated bookshelf) in which you ignored totally the one pure Dartmouth gospel which towers over your pedantic Fowler and all the others on that illbegotten bookshelf of yours. I refer, of course, to The Golden Book on Writing by David Lambuth. Kenneth Robinson, Hewette Joyce, Benfield Pressey, and Anton Raven - God bless them all.

And shame on you for forgetting them.

Saint-Jean-De-Luz, France

The Symbol (cont.)

TO THE EDITOR:

As a member of the Alumni Council for the past three and a half years, I have frequently received the comments of local alumni on a variety of actions taken by the Board of Trustees.

Two major issues have completely dominated all others during this period: 1) class composition and 2) the Indian symbol.

My feeling is that the action taken by the Board at its January meeting on the class composition issue has met with general approval among alumni. This is most encouraging because the Board's action on the other issue - the symbol - has met with strong, widespread, and continuing disapproval among many alumni.

It is apparent that the overwhelming majority of ail Dartmouth alumni want the Indian returned to Hanover. Many undergraduates, perhaps a majority of them, would favor it. And, by now, everyone knows that many native Americans also would approve.

At a Dartmouth Club of Rochester luncheon over the Christmas holidays, in an informal poll, 13 of 21 alumni present and 14 of 19 undergraduates favored reinstating the Indian at Dartmouth.

Yet, the Board, in its precipitous action late in 1975, attempted to banish the Dartmouth Indian forever.

Just a few weeks ago, Miami University (of Ohio), returned the Indian to fully approved status at that college. "Chief Miami" will now appear at Miami basketball and football games and at other special events.

He (a Miami senior) will wear the costume, approved by the chiefs of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma, of a native Indian dancer. The Oklahoma Miamis have officially authorized Miami University to call its team "Redskins."

Apparently, all Miami constituencies are Pleased with the action taken there.

Let's bring the Indian back to Dartmouth, too.

Piţsford, N.Y.

TO THE EDITOR:

In case no one else has done it, we enclose a recent AP release which appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle - regarding Miami (Ohio) University's sensible solution to a volatile matter - the use of an Indian symbol. We enclose the entire article, but quote the important part:

"Miami has started over on a new image for its Indian, seeking guidance from the original source almost every step of the way. The university invited and then hosted two Miami chiefs, who offered advice when artist John Ruthven was commissioned to paint an official Miami Indian."

Shape up, Dartmouth!

Portsmouth, N.H.

TO THE EDITOR:

You have already graciously printed my views on the abandonment of the Indian symbol by Dartmouth [December issue]. I notice that it continues, judging from the correspondence, to be very much an important current concern of many alumni.

I enclose a UPI report which appeared recently in the Los Angeles Times, and presumably in papers nationwide, regarding a similar issue about the demeaning of the Indian at Miami University in Ohio, and how a little probing elicited the information that the Miami Indians felt the symbolism in the term "Redskins" to be an honor. I wonder if any similar research was done on the Dartmouth Indian as a symbol of courage, honesty, selfassertion, and machismo, rather than the more invidious qualities imagined by some to be lurking there. Were any Indians consulted? Did the administration make the decision to scuttle?

Since the ALUMNI MAGAZINE is the most logical vehicle to reach a cross-section of all alumni, I wonder if you might reprint this dispatch as enclosed, to serve as a springboard for further communication from alumni.

Norwalk, Calif.

(A portion of the UPI report: "It may soundlike a simple announcement, but for Miami officials it represents a major decision - and a bigrisk. After all, it was a little Indian dancing thatgot Miami into big trouble a few years ago.

"Various Miami students who donned the Indian costume became involved in stunts withmascots from other schools - usually studentsdressed as animals. What was supposed to be astoic and powerful Indian turned out to be acharacter on the warpath chasing a six-footcartoon-like falcon.

"The anti-Indian movement, led in fact byseveral Miami professors, hit the school withfull force. The Indian dancer disappeared.Although the nickname 'Redskins' was notdropped, it was downplayed.

"But because a tribe of Miami Indians oncelived where the school stands today, manyMiami officials continued to believe 'Redskins'was the most appropriate nickname for the university and wanted the school to be proud of it.They didn't believe their nickname and Indiansymbol - if handled properly - demeaned Indians.

"So, school officials went to the 1,500-member tribe of Miami Indians now living inOklahoma and asked if they thought theschool's nickname insulted them. The MiamiIndians answered that they considered thenickname an 'honor' and even drew up a treatywith the school.

"Filled with phrases like 'as long as the windsshall blow,' the Miami Indians stated, 'We ofMiami blood are proud to have the name MiamiRedskins carried with honor by the athleticrepresentation of Miami University." Ed.)

TO THE EDITOR:

It's now official. It's Dartmouth University according to page 3, column 2, of The Bulletin January 1, 1977. So Dartmouth loses another distinction.

Resignedly, The Bulletin also reports, "The issue of a College symbol (specifically the Indian symbol) refused to roll over and die. More letters-to-the-editor, mostly from alumni." One wonders if this statement implies that alumni do not count.

Recently, there was another tomahawk tempest in Hanover. The Bulletin brings us up to date on that: "Some voices were arguing that the Hovey Grill murals had to go because they allegedly were demeaning to Indians. Others argued against censorship of art no matter how offensive to the individual viewer (cf. Orozco). The murals are still there." (Sigh!)

A distinguished alumnus has asked me, a Yankton Sioux, to express my reaction to these Hanoverian madnesses and to the oversensitivity of the so-called "Native Americans." As an Indian I was proud of a New Haven newspaper item on November 1, 1930, which headlined, "Two Real Indians Here Today with Dartmouth Band." These Indians were Roland Sundown '32, the band soloist, a Seneca, and I, the band leader, a Sioux.

In the perspective of Hanover's enlightened "Native Americans," "Sunny" and I should have felt demeaned, a state which has become a Hanover cliche. But we were naively proud to be singled out by the newspaper as, "The two Red Men [who] are the only two Indians attending Dartmouth College at present. But had we felt demeaned - we didn't - we had the Indian's saving grace, a sense of humor. Apparently, humor is now in short supply at Dartmouth University.

When I translated "wah-hoo-wah" from the Sioux language for the March 1974 issue of the DARTMOUTH ALUMNI MAGAZINE as "Snow' Ah, Snow!", I thought the previous pejorative mistranslation of our distinctive Dartmouth cheer would vanish. I honestly felt that snow would continue falling in Hanover. Or has that meteorological phenomenon also disappeared at the command of a computer?

Say, a computer as the Dartmouth symbol might be most appropriate at that. It's raceless. mindless, colorless, sexless, and humorless. The whole world could identify with this symbol in a sterile age. Everyone could devise an individualized computer symbol, or totem, appropriate to his/her point of view.

I guess I'll get to work on mine now: a computer totem with rising smoke signals spelling out in Sioux - wah-hoo-wah.

St. Paul, Minn.

(The Indian symbol issue aside, The Bulletin forJanuary also said that Dartmouth still callsitself a college "because its fundamental aMoverriding commitment is to undergraduateeducation...." Ed.)

TO THE EDITOR:

Let those who mourn the passing of the Indian symbol be of good cheer! That which is historically significant will return.

It will return when Americans cease their currently fashionable and frantic preoccupation with guilt.

Duxbury, Mass.

(William Smith is professor of psychology at theCollege. Ed.)