Oregon ^Emerald
ALL-AMERICAN 1946-47
The Oregon Daily Emerald, official publication of cne University of Oregon, published
daily during the college year except Sundays, Mondays, and final examination periods.
Entered as second-class matter at the postoffice, Eugene, Ore.
Member of the Associated Collegiate Press
BOB FRAZIER, Editor _ BOB CHAPMAN, Business Manager
BILL YATES JUNE GOETZE, BOBOLEE BROPHY
Managing Editor Co-News Editors
WALT McKINNEY, JEANNE SIMMONDS, MARYANN THIELEN
Associates to Editor _
WALLY HUNTER
Sports Editor _
PHYLLIS KOHLMEIER
HELEN SHERMAN
Assistant Managing Editors
VIRG TUCKER
Advertising Manager
National Advertising Manager.
Editorial Board: Harry Glickman, Johnny Kahananui, Bert Moore, Ted Goodwin, Bill
Stratton, Jack Billings.___
Office Manager ..Mar8e Huston Foster
Behind the Figures
Publication of departmental grades in Friday’s Emerald has
aroused a lot of campus comment. Associate Registrar C. C.
Constance warned that these departmental grades must not be
taken at face value, that they must be considered in light of a
number of other factors that make them what they are.
Music school grades averaged 3.16 last year. The grades in
the law school averaged 2.13. Does that make music students
smart and law students stupid? That’s the sort of faulty reason
ing Mr. Constance had in mind when he commented on the
report.
Grades passed out by the education school illustrate one im
portant point. The future teachers averaged 2.95. But the ma
jority of education courses are upper division, and the student
who reaches the junior year is supposed to be of a little higher
calibre than the run-of-the-mill lower-division student. The
same point is illustrated by the college of liberal ats, which of
fers most of the lower division work on the campus. Grades in
the college averaged only 2.42.
Another consideration is brought to mind by the phenome
nal 3.34 average in the department of classics. We may assume
that the student in Latin and Greek is a little more the scholarly
type than the run-of-the-mill student. He could probably do
better work in the other departments, too. The classics depart
ment, moreover, does not attract a host of students who have
little or no interest in the field. At the other end of the picture
is the departmnt of English, where the grades averaged only
2.37. English composition is required o4 all freshmen, and
English literature is required of most of them. 1 here are also
a number of students who sign up for English courses just for
the heck of it, or because they want to pick up a little “culture.”
It is understandable that the grades are lower in a field of this
■wide-open type.
The study also leads to the conclusion that the legendary
curve is, indeed, legendary. How about that 49 percent A grades
in classics? That's no curve, and rightly not. It would be un
reasonable to penalize a good student because he happened to
be in a classful of better students.
Then there are some factors that cannot be pinned down.
How about these big classes where attendance is the princi
pal requirement ?It is possible to get good grade's in some classes
if you just go and sit there for 50 minutes the required number
of times a week.
Also not to be overlooked is the tendency of some professors
to be tough, and the tendency of others to be soft. One or two
of these in a small department can make a lot of difference in
the departments grades.
But the study certainly made good reading.
Thanks, but No Thanks
The mails this week brought a letter from the board of direc
tors of “Comment," a journal of opinion published from time
to time in Columbia, Mo., where the University of Missouri s
“Missourian" is also published.
“Comment," the letter assures us, “is no way connected with
the University of Missouri." Nonetheless the new paper pub
lished because of “domination of student publications by the
University administration and restrictions as to the nature of
published material.”
The board of directors offers us advice, should we need it,
on starting a paper of this type here at Eugene.
We shall write to “Comment," and say thanks, but no thanks.
We shall also offer a carefully-chosen word of sympathy.
Experience in publishing a daily newspaper at Oregon has
thus far been very encouraging as far as the University adminis
tration has been concerned. There has been no time this year
Writer Says Japs Behave
Because We Force Them To
By HENRY KAMIN
Despite the impression that may
have been gained by reading Thurs
day’s Emerald article on how the
Japanese have reformed and no
longer hate us, all is not sweetness
and light in Japan.
We in the U.S. do not receive en
tirely impartial reports on Japan
because unfavorable news is dis
couraged by General MacArthur's
headquarters and the degree of
Japanese cooperation with the
Americans is exaggerated to cre
ate a favorable impression in the
United States and to encourage
the Japanese to even further co
operation.
The situation is not helped by the
reports given by prominent per
sons who spend a week in Japan,
interview Japanese leaders who
tell them what they want to hear,
and the occupation authorities re
late the wonderful job they are do
ing. Is it any wonder that almost
to a man they return with glowing
and optimistic pictures that would
be modified by more careful study ?
Are We Hated?
Thursday's Emerald article
states that the Japanese “don’t
hate you any longer.” This is quite
condescending and gracious on
their part if true.
It may be true that the aver
age Japanese no longer hates us,
but in the spring of 1946 I was as
signed by the Pacific Stars and
Stripes to cover the trial and sub
sequent conviction of Japanese
ringleaders responsible for the
mobbing and attempted murder of
three American soldiers near Tok
yo. That was but one incident, and
similar incidents had been increas
ing when I left Japan this summer.
Does anyone believe that the mil
itarists, the reactionary politicians,
the bureaucrats, and the industrial
ists we have ordered retired from
public office love us. I doubt it.
They are out of power at present,
but they and their supporters are,
and have been, sabotaging our re
forms to the extent that we have
permitted them to do so.
We Are Lulled
There has been case after case
of flagrant violation of the spirit
and letter of our directives, some
detected by the occupation author
ities and others not. On these oc
casions, when the Japanese have
put something over on an Ameri
can or made him look foolish, they
laugh behind his back because of
his childish trust. We can trust the
Japanese not to rise up against us
in revolution, but we are letting
ourselves be lulled into the belief
that, because everything is serene
on the surface, the Japanese are
abjectly acquiescent in letting us
run their country.
What about the father who lost
his son on Okinawa, and his wife,
home and business in the air raids ?
He is resigned and partly innured
to suffering and grief by inbred
tradition, but this does not stop
him from hating us inwardly. But
he is all smiles and hospitality in
front of an American.
The examples given of assimi
lation of foreign ideas by the Jap
anese in Thursday’s article are of
the adoption of the Chinese system
of government in the 12th century
and the 19th century adoption of
the Prussian military system. It
was not pointed out that one major
reason for the adoption of these
foreign systems was that they were
in accord with Japanese political
and military tradition and prac
tice. In the case of the adopted
Prussian military system, the Jap
anese rulers chose it because they
considered it the best means of per
petuating and expanding the ata
vistic and feudal Japanese social
order. Only the outward form was
added to the already present spirit.
Whether the alien democratic re
forms being forced upon the Jap
anese by General MacArthur will
be discarded or permanently adopt
ed after our withdrawal is a ques
tion that only history can answer.
Present informed opinion is that it
won’t be permanent until the post
war generation being reared under
occupation tutelage has assumed
control of Japan 20 or more years
from now.
Scrap bf Paper '
Thus it is safe to leave open to
question the extent that a “com
plete revolution in Japanese politi
cal institutions’’ has taken place.
True, Japan has a newly ratified
constitution whose “Bill of Rights,
the number one provision, is more |
precise and extensive than our
own.’’ But as Soviet Russia’s simi
lar free constitution illustrates, it
is merely a scrap of paper unless
enforced.
The Japanese know that their
new constitution was written Gen
eral MacArthur’s headquarters. In
deed, the indiscreet secretary who
revealed this fact was discharged
and sent home last year. Japanese
point out that the constitution’s
phraseology is foreign, the major
ity of principles have little or no
native roots, and paraphrase the
American constitution by parrot
ing, “we the mimics of the Ameri
can people . . .” Will this alien con
stitution remain in force after our
withdrawal ?
Doug lakes ’Em
The same principle applies to the
present government coalition com
posed of two of the three major
Japanese political parties, the So
cial Democrats and the Democrats.
They are socialist and middle of
the road parties respectively. This
government came into power and
has remained in office, much to the
surprise of American and Japanese
alike, not because it is stronger
than the entrenched and feudalistic
interests that oppose it, but be
cause General MacArthur has gi
vn it his continued public support.
We have performed what
amounts to a miracle in our oc
cupation of Japan, but there is as
yet no certainty that our reforms
will be permanent once the Japan
ese are in control of their own
country again.
that we have been enjoined from printing anything we felt
should go in. Several times the administration has disagreed
with us, and have even become a little angry at the Emerald
for "sounding off.” But there has been no attempt at pre-pub
lication censorship.
Lest others on this campus feel the need of writing to the
editors of Comment, the Emerald has tried, and will con
tinue to try, to publish letters and articles that do not neces
sarily agree with the opinions, expressed or unexpressed, of the
editor or staff of the Emerald. We are also willing to eat crow,
if the facts warrant.
Already this year we have refused to publish a number of1
letters to the editor. This has made us no friends, but the
Emerald does not feel it is obligated to print everything that
comes into the office. Letters that are carping, unconstructive,
abusi\ e, or \ iolent will usually be filed. The citizens who write
the letters in this file are invited to come pick them up.
Letters
To the Editor:
Most people who heard Adamic’s
speech would agree with all of
your editorial, “Money Well Spent,”
in Thursday’s Emerald. However,
you must have worked hard to
misconstrue the meaning of his
speech. The second paragraph of
your editorial read: ^“That set-up
was living refutation of some of
the allegations the speaker made
about American democracy, about
how far we have to go ere we equal
the democracy now being prac
ticed in eastern Europe.”
Adamic did say that in some re
spects we do not practice racial
equality to the extent it is prac
ticed in parts of Europe. The fact
that some members of minority
groups are attracted to Commun
ism would tend to verify that
statement. However, at no time
did he say that our democracy as
a whole is inferior to Communism.
He only asked that we remem
ber that it is too much to ask of
peoples with such heritages of au
tocratic government and bitter,
disruptive conflicts to acquire so
soon the luxurious trappings oi
Anglo-Saxon democracy. He asked
that we realize that their system
is seemingly working for them and
that we have the alternatives of
getting along with it (he did not
advocate that we adopt it) or of
going to war with it.
He pleaded that we find a mid
dle ground—the audience seeming
ly didn't care to look for one—and
avoid war. He also stated that with
the passage of time, each system
might absorb the better features
of the other.
Richard Smurthwaite
j 10 Years Ago
From Emerald Files
Capitalizing on two quick thrusts
into Cougar territory and playing
a dogged defense game the rest of
the day, Oregon’s Ducks won their
second conference game of the sea
son, upsetting Babe Hollingbery’s
Cougars 10 to 6.
Crumbling the EON ranks be
neath the weight of their mighty
forward wall, the Ducklings strode
to a 19 to 6 rout over Eastern'Ore
gon Normal.
Victor P. Morris, dean of the
school of business administration
will speak to women debaters on
the “Economic Aspects of War.”
Trial of a proposed control tie-up
with KOAC on a one-month experi
mental basis is now assured. In the
past it has been necessary for the
University students* to travel to
Corvallis to use the broadcasting
facilities there any time they need
ed them.
For the first time in nearly a dec
ade University of Oregon students
will enjoy a full four-day vacation
Day Manager
Bob Bechtle
Assistant Manager
Bob Zundel
Layout Staff:
Sally Schilling
Mamie Chan
George Melvin
Bob Zundel
Lynn Fritchman
Jim Ivory
Ccpv Desk:
Bob Hemingway
Bay Crowder
Jo Rawlins
Dizzy Turnbull
Dotty Sorg
Barbara Heywood, editor
A meter which measures the ad
hesion of liquids lo solids has been
invented by a University of Idaho
physicist.