Texas A&M
OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER
OF THE CITY OF
COLLEGE STATION
DIAL 4-5444
The B
College
alion
ROOM 5, ADMINISTRATION BLDG. —VOLUME 42
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS, THURSDAY MORNING, APRIL 1, 1943
2275
NUMBER 117
Hoffman in 7th Year f T ew ? n T a,)sh ? ts
. n i . Now in Longhorn
As oymphony Leader Picture Contest
psir
r j
Ernst Hoffmann, in his seventh
year as conductor, has made the
Houston Symphony an orchestra
that not only wins the acclaim of
critics and the re
spect of musi
cians and guest
artists, but one
that has wide
“audience appeal”
as well. Under
his able leader
ship, the orches
tra has given not
only entertain
ment but something more lasting,
a better understanding and appre
ciation of musical masterpieces.
Hoffmann has a wealth of exper
ience and a rich musical back
ground. His father was a mem
ber of the Boston Symphony Or
chestra for 36 years and young
Hoffman, at the age of six, be
gan studying piano with him. At
the age of eight he took up the
violin and later continued his
study of the piano with world
famed pianist Harold Bauer.
He was graduated from Har
vard “cum laude” at the age of
eighteen, served a brief period in
the army, and then finished his
musical education at the Univer
sity of Berlin, graduating in 1922.
At that time European experience
as well as training was considered
a necessity for a musician so Mr.
Hoffmann became assistant and
then first conductor of the Breslau
Opera and Symphony Orchestras,
which he combined into a single
unit, the Silesia Philharmonic Or
chestra.
The Breslau orchestra with its
one hundred twenty players was
such a success that Hoffmann was
often invited to be guest conduct
or at performances of the Berlin,
Vienna, Munich, and Posen (Po
land) Philharmonic Orchestras.
Returning to the United States
in 1934, Hoffmann first appeared
at the Lewisohn Stadium in New
York. Later he was asked to head
the newly formed Commonwealth
Symphony Orchestra in Boston.
He developed this group of 95
men into such a highly profes
sional body that he attracted wide
spread attention and was invited
to become regular conductor of the
Houston Symphony Orchestra.
The orchestra will be on Town
Hall Tuesday, April 6. in Guion
Hall.
Easterwood Paving
Directed by Ex-Aggie
The Austin Road Company is
moving in equipment for the pur
pose of paving Easterwood Field
and work will begin as soon as
possible, according to Dean Gibb
Gilchrist of the School of Engi
neering. If all goes well, the first
of August should see the work
completed.
Tyre L. Bell, ’13, vice-president
and general manager of the comp
any, is in charge of the construc
tion. Bell was a backfield football
star during his college career here.
Aircrew Trainees
Begin Flight Work
Early Next Week
Scores of aviation students of the
308th Aircrew College Training de
tachment will get their introduc
tion to flying Monday at Easter
wood Airfield, Major Selwyn C.
Woodard, detachment commanding
officer, disclosed yesterday.
After waiting anxiously for two
months to try their wings, several
academic sections will be trans
ported to the field for the first of
ten hours dual instruction which
all members of the detachment are
to receive while at College Station.
The aim is not to reach solo status,
the commanding officer said.
Major Woodard announced all
instructors will be civilian and that
the roster is nearly completed. A
number of Interstate Trainers,
similar to the Piper Cub monoplane
style of ship are available for the
program.
Which sections will get first
chance at the stick was not re
vealed, but the major reported ev
ery man will receive flight instruc
tion before leaving the post. Train
ing periods wlil be for one hour
and the ten hours will be given
in the shortest time possible, if
not daily* Major Woodard said.
The airport is situated about a
mile west of the campus. It is con
sidered a good field with plenty
of room and relatively smooth
hunways.
Major Woodard cited records
showing 50 odd men in the wing to
have had previous time in the air,
ranging from a few to 186 hours.
Navy, Air Corps Welcome
To Turn in Photographs;
Everyone Here Eligible
Only a few entries have come in
for the Longhorn Snapshot contest
which opened Tuesday and will run
until 5 p. m. next Monday, accord
ing to Marvin McMillan, editor.
Prizes for the best Aggieland
snapshots will total $15, with a
first prize of $5; second prize, $4;
third prize, $3; fourth prize, $2;
and a fifth prize of $1.
McMillan explained that as many
entries as possible are wanted as
this is the only way the Longhorn
staff may get pictures for the
Aggieland section of the 1944
yearbook. Film shortages and a
time limit prohibit a lot of picture
taking, especially by those students
with professional type equipment,
so the Aggieland section must be
fille dentirely by the snapshots
turned in by the corps.
“We want everyone in this con
test,” he went on, “because it will
not only help us out very much,
but might put a couple of bucks
in your own pocket.”
Skinnay Ennis, Bob Hope Band,
To Play for Corps Ball, April 16
Service Dance With Ennis’
Outfit Following Saturday
Greeks Paid 9c a Day
To Enlisted Men; They
Didn’t Have 10c Cigars J n p as ter Reading
The Greeks had an idea about
paying enlisted men which does
not jibe with Uncle Sam’s, accord
ing to Dr. Arthur P. McKinlay, pro
fessor of Latin, emeritus, at the
University of California.
“The Athenians paid their sail
ors nine cents a day, not through
a lack of money hut for fear some
of them would injure their health
by spending their money on things
which bring on sickness.” So spoke
Alcibiades the general, 410 B.C.,
in Thucydides, VIII, section 45, Dr.
McKinlay reminds.
English Teachers
Experiment to Aid
Ed Timmons Typical Ex-Aggie,-
Says Africa is Like New Mexico
This is the story of a typical ex-
Aggie. There are thousands like
him, fighters every one!
Lieut. Ed A. Timmons, 1942 grad
uate of Texas 'A. & M. College
from Amarillo, for 8 months sec
ond in command of an Army engi
neer company in England, is now
“somewhere in Africa,” according
to a recent letter received by his
wife.
“Africa is a country about like
New Mexico,” Timmons writes.
“We are up in the mountains, liv
ing in pup tents, and it really gets
cold nights.
“For a while we’ll be working
day and night,” the 24-year-old
Army construction officer con
tinues. “We have a time limit on
this job and I told my men today
that if we don’t get all our work
done in the first 12 hours a day,
we must in the second 12. Ke know
what the boys up at the front are
going through and intend to help
them all we can.
“We’re having fun trying to
speak the languages over here. I
can get by on Spanish, but French
is something else. I don’t even try
Arab.” ,
Lieut. Timmons worked in gro
cery stores and was a solicitor for
Major John Boyce of World War I
in the insurance business in Ama
rillo while attending Amarillo Col
lege. He was president of the stu
dent council there in 1937-38 before
transferring to Texas A. & M.
He is the second of five boys, all
connected with the armed forces,
of Mr. and Mrs. Jerome Timmons,
313 Mississippi St., Amarillo. Mr.
Timmons is a defense worker.
An older brother, Lieut. Blake
Timmons, 26, former Amarillo
and Austin news writer and politi
cal figure, has been a Brooks Field
aerial observation officer and is
now on the commanding officer’s
staff of the Lubbock twin-engine
bomber pilot school. Bascom L.
(Bud) Timmons, 22, is a Naval
Cadet of the University of Texas
Unit scheduled for active sea duty
soon. Dick, 18, is in the Naval Re
serve at West Texas State College,
Canyon, and Curtis, 16, a star back
of the Sam Houston Rangers last
season, is a private in the Texas
Defense Guard.
Mrs. Timmons, an Amarillo High
School graduate who was with
Lieut. Timmons during his senior
year at A. & M., is living with her
parents and is employed by Retail
Credit Company there while her
husband is overseas.
School Systems
Gather Clothing
For Russian Relief
E’ducational authorities and
school system officials of two
states and more than thirty cities
in every section of the U. S. have
sponsored campaigns to collect
clothing which will be shipped
through Russian War Relief, Inc.,
to civilian sufferers in the war-
tom areas on the Russian front.
State-wide drives were initiated
by educational officials in Ken
tucky and Georgia, where more
than 350,000 boys and girls of ele
mentary and high school age set a
goal of 2,500,000 garments.
Georgia’s “Share Your Clothes
with Russia” campaign was spon
sored by the Georgia State Depart
ment of Education, the Georgia
Education Association and the
Georgia Congress of Parents and
Teachers. Kentucky’s “Clothes for
Russia” drive was also sponsored
by the State Department of Edu
cation, which granted George
Yates, principal of the Versailles
High School, a leave of absence to
supervise the clothing collection.
The pattern in Kentucky and
Georgia was duplicated in cities
throughout the country. Washing
ton, D. C.’s School Board distrib
uted a leaflet to children in the
public schools urging them to bring
clothing which would “Help a Hero
by Helping a Hero’s Family.” Rob
ert L. Haycock, acting superintend
ent of schools, in a letter to all
school officers, wrote:
“The civilian population of Rus
sia has played a tremendous- part
in the great war effort against
Germany but at an unbelievable
cost to theViselves. The great suf
fering of the Russian people is
common knowledge; they are in
dire need of the everyday necessi
ties of life. Some of this suffering
we can help alleviate. The school
officers ask the cooperation of the
school teachers and pupils in this
drive for clothes for Russian War
Relief.”
Governor Declares
Statewide Clean-Up
For Fire Prevention
Coke Stevenson, governor of the
State of Texas, has designated
April 4 to 10 as Health and Clean-
Up Week. Everyone is urged to
take part in the observance of this
week so as to help prevnt fires
that do untold damage every year.
In his proclamation, Governor
said that now, more than ever,
careful attention should be paid to
the clean-up campaign “in the in
terest of better health and fire
prevention.” Because every loss in
every community weakens the na
tion in its battle against oppres
sion, the campaign sponsored by
the Texas State Health Depart
ment and the State Fire Insurance
Department, should go over better
this year than it has in the past.
RED CROSS WORKERS!
The Red Cross surgical
dressing room will begin
opening on Thursday night
from 7:30 to 9:30 and will
be open every Thursday
thereafter. Miss Peggy Camp
bell and Miss Sara Allen
Gofer will be in charge. The
room is located in the Dean
Puryear residence.
Everyone is urged to be
there to help with making
surgical dressings. The rea
son for the opening of night
hours is for day-time work
ers to have a chance to help.
Three Sections Used
To Try New Methods Of
Increased Proficiency
The Department of English has
authorized experimental work in
remedial reading for three sections
of English 103 i n an effort to find
ways of increasing the reading
proficiency of freshmen. The sec
tions are being taught by C. Lav-
erty, A. S. Limouze, and K. A.
Spalding. The drill in remedial
reading is being correlated with
the work in fundamentals of lan
guage and composition carried on
in the regular sections.
In the experimental sections, it
is hoped that ways will be found
to improve the student’s ability to
comprehend what he reads and to
speed up his reading pace. In order
to direct the student’s attention to
the construction of sentences and
paragraphs and the organization
of the complete composition, a spe
cial text is provided in which ex
ercises and tests call for attention
to minute dettails of prose selec
tions.
Although the work is still in
the experimental stage, the teach
ers of the sections report that the
students are responding well to the
work and are showing improvement
in their ability to write good Eng
lish and to comprehend what they
read. The teachers feel that those
students who find English compo
sition a difficult subject are show
ing improvement.
Safety Foremen
Discuss Diets,
U S Compensation
The effects of diets on accidents
and compensation benefits for fed
eral employees for injuries were
principal topics discussed Tuesday
at the second day’s session of the
two-week ESMWT course at A. &
M. College for safety supervisors
and foremen from military instal
lations in the Eighth Service Com
mand area.
The course is being given by the
Industrial Education department of
the School of Engineering under
direction of Ed L. Williams, and
about 25 men are in attendance.
Replaces Regimental Balls and Dances;
Dormitory May Be Vacated for Guests
Skinnay Ennis and his orchestra, featured on the Pepso-
dent Show with Bob Hope each Tuesday night, has accepted
an offer to play for the Corps Ball on Friday night, April
16, and the Service Dance the following night, Saturday,
April 17, according to an announcement made by Rodney
Brauchle, social secretary of the senior class.
Present plans call for the dance to be held in Sbisa
Hall, as the Grove is not large enough to accommodate the
’ huge crowd expected for the Ball,
said Brauchle. This dance will re
place the individual regimental
balls balls previously scheduled but
necessarily cancelled.
Ennis is most noted as Radio
Comedian Bob Hope’s side-kick on
the Pepsodent Show each Tuesday
night. He is not only an orchestra
leader, fronting one of America’s
present day “name” bands, but also
an actor, comedian, and singer, do
ing vocals with his band in his own
inimitable whispering voice.
Brauchle pointed out that we
are very fortunate in obtaining a
band as prominent as Ennis’, and
he was secured only because the
Bob Hope show is in Fort Worth
that week appearing before serv
icemen.
More details about this band and
the ball will appear in the Bat
talion in a few days, Brauchle said.
Examinations For
Navy A-12 and V-12
Applicants on Friday
The examination for all A-12
and V-12 applicants will be run off
as scheduled on Friday, April 2
at 9 a.m., according to Dean F. C.
Bolton. The exam will take approx
imately two hours of the student’s
time. Arrangements will be made
for the boys to receive, authorized
absences.
The utensils needed will be two
soft lead pencils and a clear mind.
Everyone is required to be at the
Assembly Hall at the appointed
time so no one will have to be
disqualifid because of being late.
Applications for taking this N
exam are obtainable at Dean Bol
ton’s office. These applications
must be filled out at his office,
left there to be approved, and be
fore the exam they must be gotten.
United Science Club is Unique,-
Meets Only Once Each Semester
By Sylvester Boone
This marks the third year that
the United Science Club has been
functioning and every indication
points to another successful year.
Two things were in the mind of
Dr. C. C. Doaks when he became
the originator and the sponsor of
this club, and these were to have
an annual inter-club contest and
to afford a linking with the Texas
Academy of Science. The Steering
Committee, consisting of the pres
idents of the various clubs, decides
the plans for these annual contests.
The United Science Club has
^only one meeting in a semester
and this is devoted to discussion
of the contest and reading papers
written by the various members.
Membership of this club consists
of all members of the various other
clubs connected with science. Dues
amount to one dollar per semester
with the privilege of entering a
paper for judging. The next meet
ing will be on April 28 when the
competing papers will be read.
Papers should be written with
any scientific matter as the sub
ject and handed to the sponsor a
week before the date set for the
reading. Each contestant will read
his own paper at the April 28
meeting. The contestant also has
to be a member of a member club.
Member clubs are those which are
of a scientific nature.
Prizes are given to the winners
after the meeting which is held
during the semester. Two gold
medals and a eash award will be
the prizes for the coming contest.
Westinghouse Electric and Manu
facturing Company donated $190
to the club last year which help
ed pay the contest winners and
keejp the club going. Dues of the
member clubs and other donations
help with expenses.
A total of $58 in cash, six gold
medals, and paid memberships to
the Texas Academy of Science for
six students was given last year’s
winners. A similar amount is
hoped for in this contest. Winners
of the 1942 contest were Leo Baily,
Martin Howard, and John Roming.
These three placed as the top three
both in 1941 and 1942. Other win
ners included A. H. Wiliams, Joe
Kelsy and S. V. Burks. Prizes
range from one to fifteen dollars
to the various places.
The Texas of Science is made
up of college students who are in
terested in furthering scientific
research. Other aims of the United
Science club, besides sending dele
gates to the Academy and sponsor
ing the contest, are to try bringing
the various science clubs into one
coordinated group, promote inter
est in science and promote friendly
inter-ejub rivalry.
Conservation
Conference Held
By Feed, Stockmen
A program of conservation to
close the gap between the known
shortage of protein feed and the
supply available for producing
milk, poultry products and meats
was discussed by a committee rep
resenting feed and livestock pro
ducers on the A. and M. College
campus today.
W. P. Bomar, associated with a
milling concern of Fort Worth,
presided, and representatives of
livestock organizations, dairy and
poultry groups throughout the
state, USD A agencies and special
ties from departments of A. and M.
College took part in the discussions.
Bomar explained that it was the
purpose to set up a committee in
each county to take a message to
all parts of the state of the dire
necessity of conserving protein
feeds. He said that it was a volun
teer program designed to sell the
idea of conservation to all feeders.
If set up quickly he believed it was
the most direct way to avoid ra
tioning of protein feeds. He said
there was nothing in the program
to ask producers to buy only mixed
feed, but it was desired to obtain
their cooperation in mixing a min
imum quantity of protein with oth
er feeds in order that all buyers
should get their pro rata of avail
able supplies.
A. L. Ward of Dallas said that
205,000 tons of soybeans had been
processed in Texas and Oklahoma
thus far this year, one quarter of
which could be sold to the trade by
the oil mills. B. F. Vance, admin
istrative officer of the A. A. A.
announced that the Commodity
Credit Corporation had turned over
200 carloads of this for distribu
tion in Texas. He added that Texas
had obtained a larger proportion
of protein feed than any other part
of the country. Texas, it was
brought out, has 9^4 percent of the
animal unit, including poultry, in
the United States.
Bomar said that manufacturers
have little protein feed in bulk for
sale because of-a backlog of orders
requiring it for mixed feed. Mills
are shutting down at intervals be
cause protein material is not avail
able. Members of the committee
stated that mixed feed was plenti
ful in some parts of the state
while a shortage existed in others.
The committee continued its ses
sion through the afternoon.
Air Trainees
Will Hold Wing
Dance April 9
Prepare for a cheer, Misters.
The 308th ACTD will hold its
first Wing Ball the night of April
9, in Sbisa hall—the mess hall to
you aviation students—at which
time the much cooler “suntans”
will supplant the O. D.’s as the
official attire the detachment.
This was announced last night
by Lieut. Albert S. Kelley, plans
and training oficer, who said a
ful weekend program is being con
templated.
Men of the detachment are urg
ed to invite their wives and girH
friends to attend the affair. Plans-,
likewise are under way to have
a large number of young womeiti
present for those men uable to ob
tain dates.
Lieht Kelley stressed khakis’
and only khakis will be worn to
the dance. The suntans, however,
must be laundered and altered to
fit well before they will be ac
ceptable. He emphasized that wing-
men should dispose of this matter
promptly.
Announcements regarding what
band has been booked for event,
the number of Texas “belles” that
will be available and other details
will follow in subsequnt issues of
the Battalion.
Student Activities
Committee to Meet
The Student Activities Committee
will meet at 1:30 p.m. Friday,
April 2, in Dean F. C. Bolton’s of
fice. Dean Bolton urges all mem
bers to be present.
REQUEST SLIP FOR HOUSTON SYMPHONY
ORCHESTRA
Mr. John Lindsey, Student Manager
Town Hall
Student Activities Office, Campus
Dear Mr. Lindsey: Please ask the Houston Sym
phony Orchestra to play as an encore if at all possible:
(Selection)
Signed:.
(Send to Town Hall, Student Activities Office, basement of the
Administration Building.)