Wholesale Hacking
By recent action of Pacific University’s Lettermen’s club
all hazing of freshmen has been abolished at that institution.
Their action followed growing opposition to the practice, gen
erated over a period of years, and given impetus by that school’s
dean of men.
No systematic hazing of freshmen at Oregon has been con
ducted for many years. The only actual all-campus hazing has
been conducted by the Order of the O as punishment to vio
laters of Homecoming and Junior Weekend traditions. But
hacking, and other forms of hazing, continues in the living or
ganizations.
Some fraternities on this campus have banned the practice,
following the ‘nationwide’ trend towards the abolition of the
use of force against malignant house members. But most of
them still utilize the paddle as a means of enforcing discipline.
“There is nothing quite as effective as a solid hack, or the
threat of such, to keep the boys in line,” is their feeling.
Yet it seems a bit undignified that discipline must be en
forced among college men in such a manner. By the time a per
son enters college he is entering manhood, is expected to be
able to think for himself and conduct himself in a reasonable
manner. That the threat of a hacking must be held over his
head to insure such action is unlikely. It would bring a little
more dignity to this University and show more wisdom in its
male students if the practice was discontinued entirely.
The only thing a paddle should be used for on the Oregon
campus is to direct a canoe.—F.T.
An Early Christmas
We hereby recommend that Christmas vacation be enjoyed
this year from November 5 through Thanksgiving, rather than
in late December.
Our reasoning is quite logical as well as very practical. You
see, November 5 is the Portland game. It looks as if nobody is
going to be on campus—and who will be nosing through a cal
culus book at a whoopee Portland party? Therefore all tests in
the ensuing week will be flunked—except by such spiritless
grinds who came here to get an education rather than to get
student rates at football games.
The next week will be the Cal game. Nobody on campus
again. Many more fine parties. And it is obviously a traffic
hazard to study on the way down south. Hence, many flunks
and another week lost.
On November 18 comes the climax, the distraction surpas
sing all distractions, the Homecoming game. Many, many
more fine parties, much horseplay, a dance, perhaps even a riot.
By this time, even the inteligentia will be too distracted to
look a 4 point squarely in the eye.
After three lost weekends, and the equally lost days be
tween, the cause of getting a passing grade is rather dim, so the
advisable thing for most people is to take an incomplete. They
can make up the term papers and projects during Christmas
vacation.
Of course that knocks the good cheer out of the gay season
al holiday—and so wouldn’t it be better to have the holiday in
November, that Ducks may dissipate with a clear conscience?
Why doesn’t somebody with initiative take up this move
with the board of deans?—B.H.
* # M* *
The Oregon State Barometer has gone whole hog on editorials flat
tering to the University. Not satisfied with one edit on the U. O. build
ing program, they ran the edit, word for word, a second time. The Emer
ald has not been so short of edit copy, or so pleased with an edit, or so
taken by one astounding event, that we have printed any one of our edi
torials twice, (at least, not without changing the wording.)
* * * *
Detour-Off Campus
The paving of Onyx between 13th and highway 99 adds an
other step in the preservation of student life on the campus and
opens the way to eliminate the 10-minute wait that motorists
must endure while students are changing classes.
With the temporary stop sign at 13th and University, very
little traffic is detoured off the campus as many motorists would
rather wait until the hour than drive an extra 12 blocks—from
13th to 19th and back again.
If the stop sign was moved back one block, to Onyx street,
motorists would be able to, and very apt to, detour the one
block to highway 99 and off the campus.
Under the present set up, motorists that do decide to de
tour go south on University. A street, though not as pedes
trian-packed as 13th during the rush hour, still is traversed by
hundreds of death-defying students in their search for their
next class. Few students cross Onyx street north of the corner
of 13th.
University officials and city fathers would be doing the stu
dents a great favor if the present stop sign were moved one
block east when Onyx is finished. Very little work would be
involved.—Bill Stanfield.
Sophomore Wisdom
Rest Haven
... by Bob Funk
When the pressure of eight
o’clock classes, 't e n-p o u n d
books, and delightful even
ings spent in the reserve
room of the libe becomes too
great for the average Web
foot, he resorts to one of three
things—pinball, liquor, or the
infirmary.
The first two border on the
passe. Pinball ofifers only
temporary escape, and liquor
has an alarming tendency to
wear ofif early some morning.
The infirmary, on the other
hand, is the perfect escape
from education, responsibili
ty, and room-mates. People
disappear into the infirmary
for months at a time—in fact,
a lot of those people who hav
en't been seen since that first
mid-term in their frosh year
may be found safe and happy
in the infirmary, weathering
the storm in a striped purple
pajama top.
Somehow or other the in
firmary doesn’t want you to
come in, grab a package of
pills, and leave again. It
wants to keep you for awhile
—get to know you. Those
people over there are lonely
—and they have their own
rather effective methods of
getting company.
Say the patient complains
of severe dropsy. Chances are
the infirmary will be alarmed
at this, dole out a couple of
sacks of aspirin tablets, and
send the afflicted one on his
way. But a common cold is
another thing.'The people at
the infirmary make a special
effort to meet everyone with
a cold, invite them to stay for
a few days, and if possible jab
’em a few times with a penicil
lin hypo.
Or at least penicillin used to
be the accepted treatment.
This year it’s sulfa chews. A
sulfa chew is a green version
of Chiclets cand y-c o a t e d
chewing gum. It's all doctor
ed up with a sugar coating,
artificial flavoring, and tastes,
delightfully, just like sulpha.
Chewing a chew is more fun
than pencillin shots, although
not nearly so dramatic.
Of course, getting out of
the place is quite another
matter. It practically calls for
a court order or a decree from
the President to be prouonc
ed cured, and subsequently
released. The infirmary is of
the opinion that no one is real
ly well, at least not until the
end of this week, and then not
until next Tuesday at the ear
liest.
However, a tangle with the
infirmary is something every
one should experience. And
everyone should try sulfa
chews. They’re really much
different tasting from Chic
lets.
A Couple of Weeks
People learned to condense a number of things during the
last war. Whole meals came in one little, tiny dry jackage: One
pill had enough vitamins to last a person a week. In the armed
services, languages, among other things, were taught in a
snappy, intensified six-week course.
Last summer the University took over, in a sense, some
ideas of condensation. After the regular eight-week summer
session was over, courses were offered in which a term’s work
could be done in two weeks.
Most of these courses were reading and conference on the
graduate level. But some were undergraduate classes—in busi
ness administration, psychology, and German.
The reaction of the undergraduates to the courses was
quite favorable. Meeting five times a week for two weeks, each
meeting four hours long, is no lark. Yet the students worked
hard and tried to get all they could from the course; something
which is seldom true of courses taught during regular sessionl
In the psychology class (Psy 202), results of the term’s test
(which was identical to that given after a regular term) show
ed the students averaged a little lower. But the results also
showed the students did not hit the depths sometimes found in
regular term test results.
The difference in knowledge gained was not considerable,
and hardly enough to take note of.
The advantages of the courses are many. To graduate stu
dents in education it offers a chance to pick up those hours re
quired by state law. Certainly spending two weeks at the end
of the regular session is less expensive than waiting til the fol
lowing summer, or attending a regular fall term. It gives them
an opportunity to make full use of their time.
To undergraduates it is a comparatively painless way in leng
th of time) to get requirements out of the way. Or it may give
the student an opportunity to take a course he might otherwise
miss. The two-week course is no snap. But it is sometimes bet
ter to get something out of the way fast, than to drag it out ov
er several months.
The program this summer was limited. It was the first time
it had been tried on the campus. It was in part a result of the
changeover from an 11-week summer session to an 8-week ses
sion; students starting under 11 weeks finding it difficult to
continue their plans of getting requirements when the system
was changed.
Whether or not the plan will be continued next year has
not yet been decided. From here, the idea seems to have definte
possibilities of being worked out to the advantage of the stu
dents and the University.
Our Readers Speak
This letter is in response to, and in agreement but with a
different aspect and outlook, with H. S. and the editorial
“Where's the Culture?” It is a good question since this is a
University, But the question needs some observation and an
entirely different aspect before we can conclude the subject
and hope that Oregon students will “infuse more cultural mat
ter into their programs.”
The 18th and 19th century ieda of cutlure was “Culture for
culture’s sake,” “art for art’s sake.”
But since this is the Industrial Age, culture as a definition
and aspect of a group has been also industrialized. The Indus
trial Age made man a machine to run machines.
We in college are here to widen our appreciation of litera
ture, the arts, the sciences, etc., but with the idea that it will be
helpful in preparing us for the machine that we are to someday
become in industry. Cultural subjects are like the oil in ma
chines, the coatings of paint and rust-proof protection—the
“finishing touch to the specialized machine man.
And because the world now runs on machines, because our
time is a matter of being and doing something at some set
time, instead of taking our time and not worrying about being
a part of this-national machine, we must look at the “cultural
courses” in this University, not with the idea of their being of
mere value for values’ sake, as it was in the 18th and 19th cen
turies, but rather that they are the finishing elements and
specialized coatings that will make us a more distinguishable
and outstanding machine in the world of industrialization.
Bruce Wallace.
Oregon W Emerald
The Oregon Daily Emerald published daily during the college year except Sundays,
Mondays, holidays and final examination periods by the Associated Students, University of
Oregon. Subscription rates: $3.00 a term, $4.00 for two terms and $5.00 a year. Entered as
second class matter at the postoffice Eugene, Oregon.
Don A. Smith, Editor Joan Mimnaugh, Business Manager
Glenn Gillespie, Managing Editor
Don Fair, Barbara Heywood, Helen Sherman, Fred Taylor, Associate Editors