+ EMERALD EDITORIALS +
Of Marriage and Athletics
With Oregon's first home football game
of the 1955 season coming up, the subject
of tickets is at hand. A lot can be said about
tickets, prices, seating and athletic cards,
but one sore point with a good percentage
of the students is a special—or the lack of—
ducats for student wives (or husbands).
It used to be that relatively few college
students were married, and generally those
were older and not too interested in athlet
ics. But the great number of returning vet
erans after World War II changed all this
and, with the high cost of living, the situa
tion is much different today.
More college students than ever before
have a husband or wife to help put them
through school. A rou'gh survey of Oregon
enrollment shows that more than 900, or
about 20 percent, of the nearly 5000 students
enjoy wedded bliss. This group is no longer
merely composed of grads, but rather of
students in every class and school.
Before we write about the ticket situa
tion, one should understand the reason for
so many married students. It costs more
to go to college than it used to, many take
longer to finish their education and the
trend is to get married younger, whether
in college or not. Thus married students
make up an important part of the campus
population.
Many of these couples have to scrape a
little to get through. Most of them like
athletics as a means of relaxation as much
as other students. L niversities need to recog
nize this fact, if only for the possible good
will involved and help them along.
This comes down to the athletic ticket
situation. Oregon makes no provision what
soever for special student wives tickets. But
they can't in football because of a Pacific
conference rule, initiated by the big south
ern schools, which says that student spouses
must pay either half the reserved seat price
or the general admission price, whichever is
less.
That means that student wives will be
paying $1 for home football games, the gen
eral admission price, which is less than half
of the S3 reserved seat charge. Meanwhile,
Oregon State student wives pay $1.50, the
general admission price there. Therefore
Oregon student wives get a pretty good
deal, but only in football.
In basketball, Oregon State for some
years has had special spouse prices, which
figures out at half the $1.75 reserved seat
price, 90 cents, the same as high school kids
pay. But Oregon student wives have to pay
$1.20 general admission prices during the
hoop season.
Last spring a study was made of the
problem and the ASUO senate wound up
by approving a ticket costing $4.50 for stu
dent wives, good for all athletic events dur
ing a term. But nothing has been done
since.
\\ e think the athletic department, the
school and the conference should make an
attempt to help those who keep them in
business. Surely student families need the
small difference in money that would be
saved from special spouse tickets. And they
would also gain some needed good will —
„{J.C.)
Something More
One of the University’s more cultural
sides begins tonight at 7:30 in the brows
ing room of the Student Union when the
first lecture of a series of browsing room
talks will be presented.
Plans for the Wednesday night meet
ings for this term have already been an
nounced. Included among speakers and dis
cussion leaders are many department heads
-and distinguished professors. The lectures
will include a variety of issues and subjects.
Last year student attendance at these lec
\
turt*^ was very poor, even granted that stu
dents usually have studies or dates on Wed
nesday nights.
Still one of the primary purposes of the
lecture series is to offer the student, the
faculty member and the town citizen some
thing cultural and educational. This purpose
is usually ignored by students in more ways
than just not attending browsing room lec
tures.
Oregon has frequently been accused of
being a party school and nothing more.
Perhaps attending the browsing room lec
tures is an indication that students desire
more out of college than parties, that they
want to learn something more than what
they are required to learn in their respec
tive majors.
\\ e hope so. And we hope there are more
of them.—(A.II.)
Slow Start
The new pre-draft age program of mili
tary training got off to a slow start Monday
morning at six Southern army posts. The
latest report shows that only (>48 men 17 and
18 years old have signed up for >ix months
of preparation for reserve unit assignments
in lieu of being eligible for the two-year
draft later.
The army's goal is to enroll 90.000 train
ees by June 30. A plan that should be con
sidered a comparatively good deal by hun
dreds of thousands of young men apparently
isn’t well understood around the country.
Otherwise, it would seem that more than a
few hundred would be enlisting.
Under the new law, waiting to be drafted
no longer gives a man exemption from post
draft service with the active reserves.
Draftees must follow their two years of full
time duty with a compulsory three years
in the ready reserve.
The required -ix months at training camp
is no snap. But it will be a strengthening
experience that could be useful in other
ways to those who try to make the most
of their time in uniform. And there’s no
question that it’s more convenient to those
who don't want the two-year active duty.
When the draft calls start increasing this
fall the number of men interested in pre
draft age training should begin to rise
correspondingly.
If it does not, Congress almost certainly
will be called on next year to provide some
other method of building up the presently
undermanned reserve forces.
Mo More Beauties
We noted with interest this week an edi
torial in the Daily Texan of the University
of Texas. The professional beauty is no
more, they said. Hallelujah!
At Texas the committee on general stu
dent organizations ruled that their coeds
may compete in only two contests each year.
Here, nothing.
Nothing, that is, except bigger and better
queen contests. It’s gotten to be sort of an
every-girl-a-queen routine. If you should
miss out on Sweetheart of Sigma Chi, then
perhaps' you can be Betty Co-ed. Should
you age gracefully, then you could be
Homecoming or Junior"Weekend queen, or
maybe even Little Colonel. To say nothing
of Moonlight Girl, Swamp Girl, Dream Girl,
White Rose, Rose Queen and Miss Ore
gana. Even if you’re married you still have
a chance—Dad’s Day hostess
How about a Miss Physical Plant to
change the sprinklers or a Miss Stacks to
shelve books at the library? Or a Miss
Romance Languages? They could rule all
year long.
Really, we’re not too serious. After all,
how would sororities rush without queens?
They might be forced into pledging Stella
Stanine or Agatha Activities. And what
would their national magaines use for pic
tures then?—(S.R.)
First Browsing Room Lecture?
“Kvrn though I’m flunking, I>r. Harnett, I alwu)» enjoy uttrnil
ing your lecturn,"
INTERPRETING THE NEWS
Wives Getting Scarce
Along the Gaza Strip
C’AIKO Wives are getting
scarcer every day in the Gaza
strip.
Living there are 250,000 ref
ugees who fled Palestine homes
at the outbreak of hostilities be
tween Arabs and Jews in 1948.
They are on 1T. N. dole in camps
in the Egyptian-held part'of Pal
estine.
Ah soon as the maturing
refugee girls receive their
school diplomas they are off to
seek jobs in (listant Arab coun
tries where demands for teach
ers, nurses and secretaries are
great.
Inflation of dowries has re
sulted from the shortage of eli
gible maidens. Bachelors have
complained of the fabulous sums
demanded as dowry. An average
figure reached recently is equi
valent to $3,000.
This desire of the refugee teen
agers to support themselves is
revolutionary in this part of the
world. In the rest of the Arab
countries the sons often remain
dependent on their parents until
they are well in their 20s. The
Kill* remain home after their
schooling until they are married.
But apparent!,) the last thing
this generation of educated
refugee girls Want* to ilo is to
marry a fellow refugee and
live In poverty.
Almost all the refugee girls
of age attend school* financed
by the United Nations. Parsing
in examination* is in many ca-'-.s
100 per cent.
As soon a* the girls receive
their diplomas they apply for
jobs in Kuwait. Iraq. Libya or
Saudi Arabia.
Demand for educated people
anil lh«‘ heat whlrh discourage*
people from working In these
underdeveloped but oil-rich
countries keep wages high, sal
aries are often tenfold those
for similar Jobs In Cairo, Alex
andria or Beirut.
Many girls plan to work two
or three years in them* desert
countries and save enough mon
ey for a college education Some
plan to go to the United State*.
Most of these girls send money
to their parents hack home a
novelty inthe Middle East.
or'ecjor?
1I4
^EGGLD
W HIM
Thr Oregon Daily Emerald is published five day« a week during (hr .rhool year except
during examination and vacation periods, ,',y the Student Publication! Hoard of ttwr t 'nj.
versity of Oregon. Entered as second class matter at the post office, Eugene, Oregon Sole
script ion rates: $5 per school year; $2 per term.
Opinions expressed to the editorial page arc those of the writer and do not pretend to
represent the opinions of the ASUO or the University. I 'nsigned editorial, are written by
the editor; initialed editorials hy meniliers of the editorial board. 1
GORDON RICE, Editor
SALLY RYAN, Editorial Page Editor
DONNA RUN BERG, Business Manager
---i- _
JAC K R A DI < If, Advertitiing Manager
JERRY CLAUS SEN, ANNE HILL, BOB ROBINSON, Associate Editors
SAM VAHEY, Managing Editor
ANNE RITCHEY, News Editor JOAN RAINVILLE, Asst. Advertising Mgr.
CHUCK MITCHELMORE, Sport. Editor NANCY SHAW, Office Manager
EDITORIAL BOARD: Gordon Rice, Jerry Clauasen, Anne Hill, Chuck Mitchclmoi e
Anne Ritchey, Rob Robinson, bally Ryan, Sam Vahey *
Asb’t. Managing Editor: Valerie Hcrah
Ass’t, News Editors: Kill Mainwaring,
Marcia Mauney, Loretta Meyer,
Cornelia Fogle.
Feature Editor: Carol Craig
Women’s Editors: Mollie Monroe, Cay
Mundorff.
1- * l
N.it’l Ailv. M«r,: Laura Morris
i lassificd Ailv. Mjjr.: l'at Cuuhnie
Asb't. Office Mur.: liecky Towlcr
(irculation M«r.: Ken Klanecky
Executive Secretary: Shirley I'armentrr
Ass’t Sports Editors; A1 Johnston, Jack
\Y llson.
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