The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, March 18, 1965, Image 1

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, March 18, 1965, Image 1

Newspaper Page Texttor Car* —Service Foreign Can* TA 2-451] ECRml^ I V° luroe 61 EN tE GOLF tSE i for play i 12 P- m. daily Highway 6 S 0 Station phone 846-8097 Che Battalion Texas A&M University COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 1965 Number 1$ AVK divf* nee- eligi- have liars. Farm that ears lyone d ION. IUJN0B All-Male Substitute Bill Gets Senate Committee Approval Measure Would Prohibit Full Coeducation At A&M )RTEZ 822-0672 Kperience Area S BUDDIES jet at treet, lents, us to By TOMMY DeFRANK Staff Writer AUSTIN—Sen. Andy Rogers’ bill to prohibit com plete coeducation of A&M cleared its first legislative barrier Wednesday night as the Senate Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs approved the measure on a voice vote. Approximately 150 students, several of whom spoke in favor of the bill, looked. on as it was adopted despite opposition by A&M President Earl Rudder, various university and former student offi cials and two campus leaders. The lone dissenting vote was cast by Sen. Walter Richter of Gonzales, who argued that the bill’s approval would set a dangerous precedent by re stricting the authority of a college board of directors. “Society would be better off if we allow our boards the privilege of making their own mistakes. I don’t think they would make any big ones. We should give them authority without having the Legislature interfere,” Richter contended. Watered - Down Su bstitute The bill was a watered-down committee substitute for Rogers’ SB 290, which barred women completely from attending classes during regular sessions. Rogers said that the substitute was necessary in order to comply with a 1958 court decision regard ing the legality of refusing to admit coeds to a state-supported school. “This bill is the best we could get and still be constitutional. There’s no use passing an unconsti tutional law which a court would knock down,” he explained. The substitute upholds the present university policy of allowing wives and daughters of faculty members and wives of students to attend classes, and also admits persons who are pursuing an academic goal which could only be reached at A&M, or who are pursuing an A&M graduate degree where undergraduate requirements could not be fulfilled at another school. In his opening remarks Rogers declared his intention was to enhance the university’s service to the state and not to incite a quarrel over school tradition. No Gig- 9 Em-Aggies Bill "I am fully aware that this is a public tax- supported institution and its primary purpose is to serve the taxpayers in whatever way is best. This bill, as far as I am concerned, is not an old school fight for a bunch of traditions or a Gig-’Em- Aggies approach. “We are very sincere in our attempt to make A&M one of the best possible institutions to serve the general public of the State of Texas,” Rogers said. Sterling C. Evans, chairman of the Board of Directors, testified that passage of the measure would hamper the school’s progress. “To take this (bill) and tie down the Board forever and say no to changes which perhaps would be necessary . . . would be a serious handicap,” Evans asserted. “We have a great future and we certainly hope this Legislature will not try to hinder the Board in making decisions that would be desirable,” he added. Rudder maintained that such a measure would damage the university’s goal of continued upgrading of the faculty. “If we try to take authority away from the Board, you will have a difficult time getting profs to come to A&M ... If you pass this bill, I've got faculty members who would leave tomorrow. “Leave the authority to run the university in the hands of the people whom you approved as the governor’s appointees,” he appealed. John H. Lindsey, past president of the Associa tion of Former Students, and incoming president John Younger explained recent resolutions passed by the organization. A 1963 resolution expressed wholehearted support of the Board, while a reso lution passed early this year asked the Board to consider possible changes in policy regarding com pulsory military training and coeducation. Neil Keltner, commander of the Corps of Cadets, supported the decisions of the Board and claimed that the present coeducation status had not harmed the Corps. “I can see where limited coeducation has had no detrimental effect on the Corps,” Keltner said. Student body president Frank Muller testified that he had recently visited Virginia Polytechnic Institute, where coeducation has been established, and he found no indication that coeducation had damaged that school’s corps. He also doubted that full coeducation would create a serious influx of female students to A&M. Both students admitted they were speaking as individuals and not for the student body. ‘Biggest Brainwash Job 9 Students speaking in favor of the bill, included Larry Jerden, junior from Smyrna, Tenn.; Stephen Tubre, junior from North Highlands, Cal., and Joe Bush, Temple iunior. Rogers, a 1946 A&M graduate, ended his case by claiming that the public has been led to believe that the school will suffer if coeducation is not implemented. “The biggest brainwash job in the last 10 to 15 years has been conducted to convince people the school will die and have no growth unless it goes coed . . . There is no evidence that says you’ve got to have coeds to have quality and growth,” he charged. “I was well-pleased by the serious attention given by the committee to the bill and I was naturally quite pleased by the vote. I was also quite pleased by the manner in which the students conducted themselves. Several members of the committee told me they voted for the bill because of the quality of A&M students represented here tonight,” he claimed. Rogers explained he would wait until the “most likely time” to bring the bill before the full Senate. He also said he intends to wait until action is taken on a similar bill introduced in the House by Rep. Mack Edwards of Pattonville. The bill was referred from the Education Com mittee to the Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs after Rogers complained that the commit tee’s chairman, Sen. Bill Moore of Bryan, had re fused to grant him a hearing. Moore did not attend Wednesday’s hearing. ROGERS (LEFT) WINS MOMENTARY TRIUMPH AS EVANS, RUDDER, COOPER WATCH . . . A&M officials glumly see Senate committee approve all-male substitute bill. COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR SENATE BILL NO. 290 The full substance of the bill approved by the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs Com mittee Wednesday night: A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to the eligibility require ments for attending Texas A&M University; amending Article 2607, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925; and declaring an emergency. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: Section 1. Article 2607, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, is amended to read as follows: “Art. 2607. BRANCH OF UNIVERSITY, (a) Texas A&M University, located in Brazos County, and by the Constitution made and con stituted a branch of The University of Texas, for instruction in agriculture, the mechanical arts, and the natural science connected therewith, shall be managed and controlled as herein provided. “(b) Except as otherwise provided by law, to be eligible to be registered as a full-time under graduate student in a fall or spring term at Texas A&M Universtiy, a person must (1) be a male person; or (2) be the wife of a male person registered full-time in a fall or spring term at Texas A&M University; or (3) be the wife or female child of a member of the faculty of Texas A&M University; or (4) be intending to enroll in a class, pursue a course of study, or use facilities not offered at any other state-supported college or universtiy, or be seeking an academic goal which for any reason can only be achieved at Texas A&M Uni versity; or (See Bill No. 290 on Page 2) AFTER SENATE DEFEAT Bill Opponents Leave Hearing In Sore Mood Opponents of the limited co education bill given Senate com mittee approval Wednesday night left the hearing displeased, dis gruntled, and in some instances, downright disgusted. John H. Lindsey of Houston, past president of the Former Students Association, was among those unhappy over the commit tee’s action. “I am extremely disappointed by the decision. I’m displeased with the restriction that the com mittee is intending to put on the Board of Directors. If they put this one on they could put another on at a future date. The Board is much closer to the A&M situation than the Senate,” Lindsey claimed. “This bill would take policy making away from the Board. It would preclude any decision to be made for 20 or 30 years to come. It is much broader than just this coed issue, and I would hope that the Senate would not accept it,” Sterling Evans, chairman of the Board of Directors, commented. Rep. David Haines of Bryan announced afterwards that he would oppose the bill if it goes to the House. “This matter should be left strictly to the Board, and I’ll back them up all the way. They are the closest to the scene and see the overall picture best. They have been delegated authority for the school and they should have complete authority,” Haines asserted. “I think the committee is set ting a dangerous precedent. We came down here knowing that the bill would pass through the committee, but that doesn’t mean it will pass the entire Senate,” said Neil Keltner, Colonel of the Corps. “This substitute bill maintain ing the status quo is deceptive. It’s still leaving the power to run A&M in the hands of the Legislature instead of with the Board,” Keltner added. Former W. Virginia Governor Tells Of Downfall ig his tions. more ploye Fhese once visor, form- js are has a ; who so an these volv- onnel >by is nent. form- ! how rial is your PANY i pi oyer Discovered In Chicago Driving Taxi Cab; Attributes Drinking As Cause EDITOR’S NOTE — A report er recently found William C. Marland, 46, fromer governor of West Virginia, driving a cab in Chicago. In the ex-governor’s own account, he tells how drink ing caused his downfall, how he literally lost himself in a big eity and how he found himself a gain before the newsmen did. By WILLIAM C. MARLAND Writer For The Associated Press CHICAGO UP) — When I stepped down from the governor’s office in West Virginia in 1957, I opened an office in Charleston where I practiced law and engaged in in dustrial development. The next year I campaigned for the Demo cratic nomination for the U. S. Senate, and I was unsuccessful. My thoughts then turned to industry and I accepted a posi tion as director of sales for the Western Kentucky Coal Co. I came to Chicago in that capac ity Jan. 1, 1959. I held the posi tion until July 1961. Shortly after I arrived in Chi cago, within seven or eight months, my drinking had resolved itself into a 24-hour-a-day pro position, with all the attendant evils and a significant reduction in ability to handle by duties. I neither cared then nor since as to why this had taken place. The important thing was that it had. I made sporadic attempts to go on the wagon, with little success. Finally, it was clear to all concerned, including me, that my association with that company should be terminated. So it was. Immediately thereafter, I sought refuge in the alcoholic ward of a mental institution. As the days passed - surprisingly enough, rather swiftly - I seemed to gain some capacity to think through my problem in a some what better fashion than ever before. At the end of 30 days I was able to walk out of the hospital with some conviction and hope that there might be a chance for me to arrest the march of this disease called alcoholism. As the days, weeks and months rolled by, I was gratified to know that my hope was neither un founded nor illusory. My first attempt at employment was in a position that entailed considera ble travel. Traveling has always been an occasion for rather excessive consumption of alcohol. But now I was able to spend many days on the road in hotel rooms con ducting my affairs without even the slightest help from John Barleycorn. This gave me added confidence. While not without an occasional thought or even tempetation to have a drink, I found it more and more easy to resist the idea and the temptation. However, I was not yet able to do the job satisfactorily and I quit late in 1961. My next position was in my chosen profession - the law - in Chicago through the winter and spring of 1962. And during that winter and spring my ability to do without alcohol increased con siderably. But still, to me, my character and personality left much to be desired if I was to compete in the give-and-take of business affairs. There was a tendency to shrink from such contacts. Im patience was a very dominant characteristic. It was at this time that a firm conviction set tled upon me that I must, as it were, begin from the beginning. However, there was the practi cal problem of maintaining, or helping to maintain, a livelihood for my family - my wife and four children. It occurred to me that a cer tain anonymity and retirement could be achieved best by han dling a taxi on the streets of Chicago. Naturally, my character re belled at the idea of what many would consider such a menial po sition. But, more and more, the value of this type of job was apparent. I qualified as a public chauffeur and went to work in the summer of 1962. At first I was somewhat afraid of a new and strange job, so completely divorced from any I had ever had, and my ignorance of the mechanics of such a job— which I now know are not incon siderable. But, since the car did roll when I pushed on the gas, the new taxi driver began rolling around the streets. I was gratified and happy to notice, after the first two or three weeks, that this job could be done. This new-found elation was short-lived because the more pro ficient I became at the mechan ics, the more irritated I became at the mistakes anyone makes at any job every day. I usually magnified my own out of all pro portion to the seriousness. For a year, at least, it was a tossup as to which side of my character would win. But after about a year I began to discover that I was consciously consider ing the advisability of doing the right thing rather than intuitive ly doing the wrong thing. Now I said “considering.” I was still somewhat distant from the goal of automatically doing the right thing. At this particular time my idle moments were devoted to intense thinking of a reflective and ana lytical nature. Meanwhile, the actual job of driving a cab had value to me as a therapy. And I must admit the more or less independent life of a cab driver appealed to me more and more. My plans for returning either to my chosen profession or my former way of life were suspended indefinitely. I also found it interesting at the time to write many of my thoughts in essay form and to read them over. This continued, and almost imperceptibly a See Story ...Page 3 change in my whole personality took place. Meanwhile, the business of whisky on occasion of irritation or momentary glimpse of pros perity faded further and further until it seemed to have no part in my conscious picture. I would say that its threat, while always recognized, lost its potency. It was like an unarmed bomb. It seemed to have lost its capacity to gather enough strength to plant its own fuse. This neutrality persisted until about six months ago, when my thoughts began turning more and more to a positive attitude and a stronger and stronger desire to leave the neutral zone. Finally, on Jan. 1, 1965, I took an extended leave from the Flash Cab Co., with whom I was then associated. I spent several weeks in quiet contemplation of what direction my future should take. I also discovered that my confi dence that I could operate on another plateau had congealed. So, when I returned to my cab driving, my thoughts were pri marily on the mechanics of leav ing that for something more challenging. Hot Checks Cause Little Alarm At A&M

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, March 18, 1965, Image 1

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