4
Battalion Editorials
Page 2
THE BATTALION THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 1952
Mud-Slinging Enters
Campaigns; Issues Lost
F 1 P. WHIPPLE could have been talking of
the present presidential race when he
said: “The strife of politics tends to unset
tle the calmest understanding, and ulcerate
the most benevolent heart . . . There are no
bigotries or absurdities too gross for parties
to create or adopt under the stimulus of pol
itical passions.”
Translated to the politician’s common ver
nacular, “He who slingeth mud on me, will
get some in return.”
Both Sen. Richard Nixon and Gov. Adlai
/ dare do all that may become a man;
Who dares do more is no7ie.—Shakespeare
Politics Take
Backseat Soon
AN $18,235 EXPENSE account, that mess
in Washington, control of the tidelands,
and the war in Korea are the news making
the headlines today.
But there is another item that now is at
tracting as much reader interest as those
front-page stories—the hot pennant races in
the major leagues, and the coming world
series. Americans should be thankful they
have such a wonderful pastime to take their
minds off the problems that are continually
facing them in their everyday life.
With both leagues taking until the final
week of the race to come up with a champion,
the majors have provided a campaign close
enough to thrill any sports enthusiast. With
the World Series coming up next week, even
the torrid presidential race will have to step
aside for a week while the Bums from
Brooklyn battle either the Bronx Bombers
or New York or the Tribe from Cleveland.
No matter who the Dodgers play, the
man on the street will be enjoying his first
respite between the summer’s nominating
conventions and November’s general elec
tions.
And he needs it.
It is easy to tell when you’re on the
wrong road. You hardly ever see any detour
sings.—Anonymous
Long Awaited
Dream—Reality
W7HO SAYS FIVE years at A&M was wast-
W ed?
For many of the architecture students or
petroleum engineering majors or campus-life
majors, a change worth waiting for is here.
Even the seniors, juniors and sophomores’
dreams are coming true. This doesn’t affect
freshmen.
Long debated and longer awaited paving
of Spence St. (the old hole-filled trail behind
the New Area dormitories) is now under-
vray.
Life is worth living.
The Battalion
Lawrence Sullivan Ross, Founder of Aggie Traditions
“Soldier, Statesman, Knightly Gentleman”
The Battalion, official newspaper of the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, is published
by students four times a week, during the regular school year. During the summer terms, and examina
tion and vacation periods, The Battalion is published twice a week. Days of publication are Tuesday
through Friday for the regular school year, and Tuesday and Thursday during examination and va
cation periods and the summer terms. Subscription rates $6.00 per year or $.50 per month. Advertising
rates furnished on request.
Entered as second-class matter at
Post Office at College Station, Tex
as under the Act of Congress of
March 3, 18t0.
Member of
The Associated Press
The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for republication of all news dispatches cred
ited to it or not otherwise credited in the paper and local news of spontaneous origin published herein.
Rights of republication of all other matter herein are also reserved.
News contributions may be made by telephone (4-5444 or 4-7604) or at the editorial office room, 202
Goodwin Hall. Classified ads may be placed by telephone (4-5324) or at the Student Activities Office,
Room 209 Goodwin Hall.
FRANK N. MANITZAS, JOEL AUSTIN Co-Editors
Ed Holder Sports Editor
Harri Baker City Editor
Peggy Maddox Women’s News Editor
Today’s Issue
Bob Hendry
Jerry Bennett
Gus Becker
News Editor
Assistant News Editor
Sports News Editor
Jerry Bennett, Bob Hendry, Joe Hipp, Chuck
Neighbors, Bob Selleck News Editors
Gus Becker Associate Sports Editor
Jerry Wizig. Jerry Neighbors, Hugh Philippus
Gerald Estes Sports News Writers
Bob Boriskie, Steve Lilly, John Moody, Bob
Palmer. Arnold Damon Statf News Writers
Jerry Bennett, Bob Hendry Amusements
Joe B. Mattel
John Winslow, Ed Fries
X. X. Davis
Gene Ridell, Perry Shepard..
Bob Godfrey
Bob Selleck
Roddy Peeples, IveitU Nickle.
Editorial Writer
City News Writers
Circulation Manager
Advertising Representatives
. Photo Engraving Shop Manager
Photo Engraver
Staff Photographer
•••••
V-..• •. -v g§ —-f
Stevenson are on the court now, each return
ing mud balls — some in the forms of lobs
other in smashes.
Nixon used $75,000 of the GOP party’s
funds to explain an $18,235 expense account
he was given long ago. His radio and tele
vision broadcasts were carried across the na
tion. The public answered by phone calls
and telegrams to Republican Party headquar
ters everywhere.
Last night, Nixon got together with his
doubles partner, Gen. Eisenhower, and to
gether they probably will formulate tactics
which will leave Adlai hurting badly.
Democratic Chairman Stephen Mitchell
demanded Ike fire Nixon when the $18,235
question came before the public. Before the
Republican’s top man had a chance to answer,
GOP leaders delivered a serve of their own:
“Stevenson had a fund from which state
employes’ salaries were supplemented.”
Nixon brought this out in his speech and
also hit Sen. Sparkman, the Democratic vice
presdential hopeful. The Californian said
the Alabaman has kept his wife on govern
ment payroll, and that was all right. But
Sparkman should, Nixon continued, come be
fore the American public and explain what
outside sources of income he might have had.
Issues have ceased to be the question in
the voting public’s mind. The campaign has
passed that stage.
Voters will cast their ballots in a manner
which William Bennett Munro described
many years ago.
He said: “People vote their resentment,
not their appreciation. The average man
does not vote for anything, but against some
thing.”
Too bad . . . it’s true.
An educated man is one who has finatlly
discovered that there are some questions to
ivhich nobody has the answers.
—Boston Globe
New Goal Set
With Name Signs
|V/|AROON and white signs have gone up on
seventeen buildings throughout the cam
pus, naming the course of study taught in
these various halls of learning.
Now, only one thing remains to be done.
That is for the signs to stay up. Some stu
dent may cogitate the brilliant idea that one
of these signs would look better in his room
than in its proper place on the side of the
building.
We hope he stops first to think that these
name-signs were not put up for the benefit
of freshmen trying to learn the names of
the buildings on the campus, but instead for
the enlightment of A&M visitors.
If the signs that recently have been put
up during this experimental stage stay where
they are, then the Office of Physical Plants
will tag all buildings, and will cease to be
“nameless.”
This is a goal for which to strive.
lSi’ : '
M
's^U-.vV.-
-ttozg/.
.. Jj-i'N-
any
ARTS AND DARTS
My Son 6 Red’ Has
Communist Threat
Represented
nationally by
National
Advertising
Services,
Inc.,
at New
York City.
Chicago,
Los
Angeles,
and San Francisco.
By JERRY BENNETT
Battalion Amusements Editor
(“My Son John” starring Rob
ert Walker, Helen Hayes, and
Dean dagger—Paramount—Pal
ace Theatre.)
“My Son John” places the late
Robert Walker in the Communist
Party, in a sincere cinema effort
to show the dangers of Red in
filtrations into our society.
Walker portrays the black sheep
of a red blooded family who would
rather study than scrimmage with
his two athletic minded brothers.
Consequently, he becomes a Com
munist and joins the energy spy
ring. When he finally sees the er
ror of his ways, he is in too deep
to pull out.
On this relatively simple theme,
Paramount has constructed a mov
ie whose unlimited possibilities
for adult entertainment are lost
in its final revision into second
childhood.
Sound Principles
Although the films principles
are sound and its theme above
average, “My Son John” loses its
intended punch by, too .much over
acting, hackneyed misrepresenta
tions on the character of Commun
ists and patriots, and a standard
sugar coated ending.
Helen Hayes and Dene Jagger
both turn in moving performances
but often become carried away
with their own enthusiasm caus
ing several scenes to border on
slapstick comedy. By cataloguing
all Communists as intellectuals
and all patriotic Americans as
athletes or American Legionnaires,
“My Son John” substitutes realism
for ridiculous generalizations.
For once Communists are por
trayed as sincere believers in their
work instead of merely a group
of pinkish American gangsters
trying to muscle into labor unions.
Activity Accounts
Total 800 for 51-52
Eight hundred club and conces
sion accounts were supervised by
the Student Activities office for
the year 1951-52, accoi’ding to
Pete Hardesty, business manager.
These accounts included such
items as unit soft drink machine
funds’, expenditures and incomes
for home town clubs, technical
societies, departmental student or
ganizations and religious societies.
Incomes ammounted to $167,-
200.32 while expenditures totaled
$147,100.41.
Since regulations require all or
ganization deposits be made with
the Student Activities Office, this
office performs wide ranges of
banking services, Hardesty said.
Last year 2,138 of these seiwices
were supervised, in addition to the
payroll, he added. Approximately
2000 deposits wei’e made in this
banking service, Hardesty said.
Although this point goes far in
showing how dangerous Commun
ists can be to a democratic society,
Walker’s final act of reforming in
favor of mother love and the stars
and stripes seems rather unlikely.
Robert Walker, as a sarcastic
Red, turns in the show’s best per
formance. Due to his untimely
death before the movie was finish
ed, several of “My Son John’s”
final scenes had to be used from
“Stranger on a Train” in which
Walker also starred.
Walker’s portrayal in these two
films shows the untimely death
robbed the screen of one of its
greatest young actors.
Cotton Advisory
Group Plans Meet
A&M will be host to the Nation
al Cotton and Cottonseed Advisory
Committee to the U. S. Depart
ment of Agriculture Sept. 25, 26,
Acting Director R. E. Patterson
has announced’.
Some of thd best known Texas
and out-of-state research leaders
in the field of cotton and cotton
seed will take part in the meeting,
he said.
The technical sub-committee,
which advises the main committee,
will also meet at College Station
for the two-day period, Dr. Pat
terson said.
THE AGGIE-NIZER
Spence St. Gets
New Re-Topping
By JOEL AUSTIN
Battalion Co-Editor
OATS OFF! Sound the trumpets! Spence St. is being re-
-H paved.
Seems as though the wheels of progress were rolling
long before we realized. In Tuesday’s paper we asked some
thing be done about the terrible condition of Spence St. Work
started Monday to completely repair the road. How’s that
for results.
We have word from Howard Badgett, manager of physi
cal plants for A&M that a new hard top street will be fin
ished in the next few weeks.
How many years have we been waiting for repairs to
this particular street which runs between the “new” cor$s
dormitories and the golf course?
Badgett says the long delay was due to much wrangling
between the top wheels about another street which is to be
built within the next year near Spence St.
It will be a continuation of the concrete street which runs
behind the System Administration Building. Money has al
ready been appropriated, but decision of where it will be
built is still pending.
Cars, Drivers to Enjoy New Street
With the new hard top on Spence St., students won’t be so
ashamed to drive their cars down it as in the past when it was
good for nothing more than a testing ground for people who want
ed to find rattles in their cars.
As one student commented before repair work began, “It has so,
many patches you can’t find the original pavement.”
The street will not have a topping of too permanent a nature,
since it will be torn up as soon as the concrete street is com
pleted in the next year or two. But Badgett assures us it will
be more than adequate to safely handle traffic until the new*
street is completed.
We were .assured by Badgett that the pipe line being put
underground fi’om the new athletic plant out to the northeast edge
of the campus will not disrupt traffic during home football games.
It was our prediction that the line would progress to the vicinity
of Kyle Field about the time of the games.
He says if the ditch digging does get that far before football
season is over we can be sure that streets will be left open for
traffic.
•
Seniors Should Watch ’Selves
A&M students always stand out when they wear uni
forms anywhere off the campus. They don’t stand out for
reasons our friends at Forty Acres might think of, but with
their distinctive uniforms, it is fairly easy to spot an Aggi<r
when you see one.
In Houston Saturday night many boisterous Aggies cele*
brated all over town after A&M defeated University of Hous
ton. But they let their enthusiasm run away with thevi
pride of appearance.
•
Many seniors were seen walking down Houston streets and in
hotel lobbies with their ties loosened and sleeves rolled part way up.
It may be a senior privilege to do things like this, but it also
. points to just the kind of senior class we may have.
What good is a “Keep off the Grass” campaign if seniors walk
on it, yet make underclassmen stay off. These things are made
senior privileges supposedly to kjeep the underclassmen, at least,
from doing them.
The seniors have their preogative to supposedly do as they
please. All they are doing is displaying the authority of being a
senior. The same goes with wearing of the uniform in public.
Seniors like to take advantage of this new privilege, but they are
hurting no one but themselves and the reputation of our corps.
Several people not enrolled in A&M commented about the poor
appearance of many cadets. Don’t think they aren’t aware of how
you look at all times. It would pay for you to also be that way.
LETTERS TO THE EDITORS
Houston Fight Has ‘New’ Story
Editors, The Battalion:
We in F Battery have read your
article on one of our freshmen who
supposedly picked a fight in Hous
ton.
Let me say it’s pretty disgust
ing to us who know what really
happened, to read your blown up
article. I didn’t think The Battal
ion would stoop to the cheap “scan
dal sheet” tactics of The Houston
Press—especially when the repu
tation of an Aggie was concerned.
We would at least expect you to
get the facts on the situation be
fore you printed the story. How
ever no one has bothered to in
terview the Aggie involved or any
of the Aggies who witnessed the
blow.
We always thought it was one
of the principles of fair play to
present^both sides of the story.
The attached statement is what
happened according to ten eye
witnesses of the incident.
Here’s to more objective news
coverage in the future.
Signed: •
Forrest Simmons ’53
Chuck Phillips ’53
. Fred. R. Grote ’53
Richard Cire ’54
Frank Vitrano ’54
(Editor’s note: the following
is the story submitted by these
men as “the actual story” in an
incident involving an A&M
freshman and a member of the
Chicago Cardinals pro football
team.)
Returning to the Rice Hotel, a
crowd was noticed milling around
a gild sitting on the curb in front
of the side entrance of the hotel.
An upperclassman was in a verbal
disagreement with one Mr. Don
Joyce, a six-foot-three, 250 pound
guard for the Chicago Cardinals,
that resulted in the forceable seiz
ing of the upperclassman’s collar.
A freshman reacted to this act
of violence by slapping the of
fenders hand down. The offender
came up to the freshman and said,
“Would you like to staid some
thing.” He put his hand upon the
freshman’s shoulder and told the
freshman not to touch him. The
freshman reacted to this by push
ing the husky football player back.
Upon pushing Don Joyce back,
one of the five football players hit
the -freshman, it was not Joyce.
Joyce regaining his ballance was
ready to slug the first thing that
stepped in front of him, this hap
pened to be McCarty who had just
stepped up, and wanted to know
what was going on. Don Jo^ce
cocked his arm back for another
blow, while freshman Bruce Mc
Carty, seeing this, put his hands
up in defense to no avail.
The force of Joyce’s fist, that
struck McCarty’s face, dropped
him to the cement where the lat
ter’s head hit the cement, knock
ing him out. McCarty was taken
to the hospital immediately after
the police arrived. Mr. Joyce and
a noisy bystander were hurried in
to a squad car and removed from
the scene.
Witnessed by:
Allen M. Brandt ’56
Charles D. Atherton ’56
R. Bruce McCarty ’56
Miguel A. Duz ’56 ’’’
Rofo Delahoussaye ’56
John D. Sessions ’56
Ferdinand Dischler ’56
Philip R. Baker ’56 *
Frank Vitrano ’56
(Editor’s note: Our informa
tion came from the Houston
Police Department. The officer
who made the call related the
facts as they were printed in
Tuesday’s Battalion. Our report
er told the facts as they were
told to him by the policeman.)
LPL ABNER
The Girl He Left Behind
By A1 Capp
fofuwswn
^ “ M-NEVAH MINDTH'KISS
PUT TH'BAG ftACK ^
OH,WHUTA REUIEF —
BUT —ON T'OTHER
HAND-WHAT
AINSULT.^
"c-J
*