Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 1951)
Omzon daily EMERALD VOLUME LII UNIVEKSITV OF OREGON, EUGENE, MONDAY, JANUARY 39, 1951 NUMBER til Imperial Staff Secretary Tells End of Empire The Emerald introduces with to day’s article, the first of a series of three on the last days of the Japanese Empire, written at the request of the Emerald by Yoshiko Seki, of Tokyo, Japan, now study ing journalism at the University. During the latter days of World W7ar II, Miss Seki was secretary to Major Mikasa, of the Imperial Japanese General Staff, who is the youngest brother of Emperor Hir ohito. She served in this capacity from April, 1944, until the 'surrender in August of 1945. Following' the surrender, Miss Seki was named personal secretary to Prince Higa shikuni, prime minister in the sur render cabinet. She remained in the succeeding cabinet as personal secretary to Baron Shidehara, the next prime minister. It is from these experiences in the closing days of the war that Miss Seki writes. With the permission of Miss Seki, the Emerald has inserted editorial comments for the reader. By YOSHIKO SEKI My home, an attractive middle class residence about 20 years old, is situated in a suburb of Tokyo. Westerners who are us ually huskily-built may have to stoop to enter the front door, but they will step into what might seem to them a delightfully ar tistic combination of rooms and corridors—markedly devoid of excess ornamentation, in fact, a little bit on the severe, austere side, but wonderfully restful and quiet. There is a lack of color, but in the tone and finish of the' very few items of furniture, an air of age. This may strike foreign ers as pleasing, and again rest ful. Japanese people prefer na ture’s own colors. This is well symbolized in the unpaintod wood-work, straw-matting, and sand-finished walls in Japanese residences. There are trees in my yard, but they bore no blossoms on the cold, spring morning in March, 1944, about which I write. (The war had gone on for over three years, which had seen Japan extend its Empire to ail of the Western Pacific, including all the American possessions and those of Bri tain, France, the Netherlands, and a good part of China. A month earlier, the Americans had invaded the Marshalls, landing on Roi and Kwajalein. At the end of 1943, Tarawa had fallen, the Japanese forces had relinquished the Alaskan atolls and most of the islands in the South Central Pacific had been recaptured. .Ed. Note.) There were five members in our family at the time; parents, two younger sisters and myself. I had slept late this one morn ing, and was getting myself in to a pair of slacks, which were coming into fashion in view of wartime, shortages and bomb ings, when the doorbell rang. My mother went to see who was there. Excitedly she called me to the porch where a soldier in uniform was there to investi gate me. I talked with him for more than an hour, answering dozens of questions about my education, training, family circumstances, background and vocational ex perience. Finally he left, giving me an appointment to meet a Japanese government official who might give me a position. By that time every Japanese citizen was being put to work in a capacity where his or her ability was best suited. One could not engage in peacetime industry, as it was considered an easy job, even for women. For instance, salesgirls in var ious department stores were forced to serve in war factories and certain occupations were prohibited for young men to en gage in on the grounds that women could do the work. Everybody under 50 years of age worked under the jurisdic tion of the military regime. Be cause I had specialized in Eng lish in college, I was taken to the intelligence section of the Imperial Japanese General Staff. (Head of the General Staff was Hideki Tojo, also prime minister, and Army Minister. It was this organization which had directed the Japanese war t'PIcnsc turn to paije citjht) Wednesday Set March of Dimes Day for Students Wednesday has been designated as ‘‘March of Dimes Day" by Drive Chairman Lillian Schott. On that day efforts .will be made to collect a dime from every student on the campus,” Miss Schott explained. Houses will be contacted before Wednesday to report their collections, and their representatives have been asked to turn in their donations to Lillian Schott at Sigma Kappa by Thurs-dav. A Chi O Named Moonlight Girl Pat Foley, junior in applied de sign, was named Moonlight Girl of Phi Sigma Kappa at the frater nity’s house dance Saturday night. Miss Foley, who hails from Pen dleton, is a member of Alpha Chi Omega sorority. Other finalists for the Moonlight Girl title were Barbara Brabham, Fern Lyon, Sherry Antony, Don na Claire Ringle, and Thelma Savelich. Miss Foley's picture will be sent in for publication in the frater nity’s national magazine. «uuuun, cnairman oi the contact committee, has appointed Marcia Eagleson and Carolyn Mc Lean as her assistants. The 1951 March of Dimes drive will close Wednesday. It is difficult to estimate at this time how Uni versity collections are coming in, but the necessity for more dimes is still apparent and urgent, Miss Schott said. The National Foundation of In fantile Paralysis reports that four out of every five cases of polio treated are paid for by contribu tions collected during the March of Dimes drive. Flying speeches in behalf of the drive will continue this week. Plans for the proposed March of Dimes dance have been cancelled. No halls which could handle the benefit dance were available. Council's Choice Due Tonight For Court, Preview Chairman Two new members of the Stu dent Court and a Duck Preview weekend chairman will be selected by the ASUO Executive Council --tonight. Petitions for the three positions will be accepted until 5 p.m. to day, Barry Mountain, ASUO pre sident, announced. Interviews will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Union Board Room. Openings for a junior and a sop homore are available on the stu dent court. Mountain requested that more women apply for the vacancies, as the court feels the need for a feminine viewpoint in its decisions. With the present draft situation in hand, the court also believes that women should be trained to take over the court’s activities. A chairman for Duck Preview Weekend will be appointed tonight by the council. The individual pick ed by the group will be respon sible for the co-ordinating of the weekend, when Oregon high school students visit the University cam pus Apr. 13-15. Sports Night and constitution by-laws will be other topics of discussion at the council session, Mountain said. The proposed Asso ciated Women Students point system will also be presented for approval. Temperature Drops To 2J; Wind Lauded Eugene weather Saturday and Sunday was “sunny when you’re inside, frigid when you’re out side.’’ However, meteorologists at the Eugene airport praised the wind that reddened- noses this weekend and said that, strange as it sounds, it kept the‘temper ature from dropping lower than the 21 degrees recorded Sunday. Annual Dad's Day Scheduled for SU Fathers will be feted during the 22nd annual Dad’s Day week end Feb. 2d {o 26, with most events to be held for the first time m the Student Union. Reservations for housing accommodations for the weekend should be made immediately, Ann Darby, hospitality chairman, said Sunday. Tickets for the Oregon-Washington State game in the re Men ChooseCandidates For King of Hearts Candidates are: Jon Eremeff, AI of the annual Heart Hop Feb. 9 were chosen last week in men’s living organizations. The progres sive dance, sponsored by the YWCA, will be held in four or five women’s houses. Candidates are Jon Eremeef, Al pha Hall; Pierre Pasquio, Alpha Tau Omega; George McMath, Beta Theta Pi; Dick Buhr, Campbell Club; Bob Brittain, Cherney Hall; Dick McLaughlin, Chi Psi; Fred Schneiter, Delta Tau Delta; Leon ard Schroeder, Delta Upsilon; Ted Thoreson, Gamma Hall; Robert Jones, Hunter Hall; John Martell, Kappa Sigma. Stan Ruzicka, Lambda Chi Al pha; Jerry Irion, McChesney Hall: Ken Walter, Minturn Hall; Bob Halloway, Nestor Hall; Chuck Lairod, Phi Delta Theta; Mike Lal ly, Phi Gamma Delta; Wilson Wilt, Phi Kappa Psi: Martel Scroggin, Phi Kappa Sigma; Bill Burkheim er, Phi Sigma Kappa; Dick Pat rick, Pi Kappa Alpha; John Crim, Pi Kappa Phi; Jack Krieger, Sig ma Alpha Epsilon. Drama Meet Pre-Registration Begins; Three Major Plays Go With Ticket Today is the first day of pre registration for the 1951 North west Drama Conference with regis tration in the University Theater box office. Students may pay $1 to be ad mitted to all conference events, in cluding three major theater pro ductions, one of which is “Right You Are.” T “New Techniques and Methods in the Theater Demonstrated” is the subject of the conference, which will be held for the fourth time on the campus Feb. 8, 9, and 10. Besides “Right You Are,” the University Theater production, three other plays are available for conferees free of charge—"Angel Street,” by the Very Little Theat er group of Eugene; “The Guards man,” to be presented in the arena theater by the Portland Civic Thea ter players; and “Our Lady of Fati ma,” by the Abbey Players of St. Martin’s Academy, Olympia, Wash. University students who register for the conference may attend any performance of “Right You Are,” which opens this Friday and closes the weekend of the conference. Sectional meetings will be held Friday and Saturday during the conference. Sections on technical, business and promotion, direction and acting, and playwriting will meet Friday; and sections on high school, university and college, civic and community, and children’s theater will meet Saturday. Merv Hampton, Sigma Alpha Mu; Dick Ruckdeschel, Sigma Chi; Wayno Ballentine, Sigma Hall; Clark Gilman, Sigma Nu; Curt Finch, Sigma Phi Epsilon; Henry Wedemeyer, Sherry Ross Hall; Bob Bennett, Stitzer Hall; Chuck Isaak, Tau Kappa Epsilon; Bob White, Theta Chi; Arthur Bayly, Yeomen. First eliminations will be at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Student Un ion. The field will be narrowed to 12 at. that time. Candidates will be judged on four points—looks, personality, poise, (Please hint la page seven) hl l vtu M_-eiK)Tl snOUMl ue purchased as soon as possible, according- to Dick Moore, game chairman. The price is $1.80. “I would like to remind any stu dents petitioning- for promotions, decorations , awards, basketball game, and special events commit tees for Dad's Day that the dead line is 5 p.m. Monday,” said Dave Rodway, general chairman. Petitions may be turned in to Rodway at Phi Delta Theta or the ASUO office in the Student Union. In coordination with the celebra tion will be the clean-up contest, for which living organizations will be paired and assigned to designat ed areas on the campus. Last yeai the contest was not held because of a heavy snow which covered the grounds. Bobbie Chambers, Dad's Day Hostess of 1950, was selected by <Please turn to page eight) Box Office Opens Today For 'Right You Are' JAMES BLUE "Riffht You Are (If You Think Sol box office opens today at tho University Theater. The iroruc drama will open this Friday and ■ Play Saturday, continuing Wednes day, Thursday and Friday of next week. Direction of the Luigi Pirandello play is by Frederic J. Hunter. Thia is his first directorial task in the University Theater. Admission is $1, or season ticket stub. Cast in the play are Jam«; Blue, Tru Vosburg, and Ben Pad row in lead roles, and Robert Pet erson, Amerlia Raysik, Dorothy Polanski, Harold Long, Marth^ .• Stapleton, Eric Matthews, Helen May, Patricia Metzler, Vernon || Gates, James Welters, Patricia H Bellmer, Donna Knoll, and Patricia || White Nelson in subordinate roles. The play, which is presented as H part of the theater's Greater H Drama Series, was written in Italy p about 1920. It was given Lohdon H and New York productions, and“ featured Edward G. Robinson in the English version.