The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, February 08, 1956, Image 1

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, February 08, 1956, Image 1

Newspaper Page TextThe Battalion Number 82: Volume 55 COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS, WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1956 Price 5 Cents Great Issues Speaker Asks Faith In Mankind Story on Speech Written As Personal Impressions By BILL. FULLERTON Norman Thomas, in oponing - his talk at last night’s Great Issues, indicated that a nation to remain strong must have faith. And then this great American, backed with the warmth of a highly apprecia tive audience and bothered toward the close by a persistently itchy nose, proceeded to demonstrate by word and eloquent sincerity the type of faith that can fulfill the promise of American life. Great Issues Announces More Speakers Three outstanding- speakers have been scheduled to speak on controversial subjects dur ing this semester for Great Issues programs. The speak ers are pi'esented by the Memorial Student Centei’’s Great Issues Com mittee. Norman C. Thomas, political philopsophei’ and ordained Pres byterian minister, spoke last night on “A Faith for Our Times”. Hodding Carter, liberal editor of the Greenville, Miss., Delta-Demo- ci-at Times, will speak Feb. 29 on the problem of desegregation. Car ter, called the “Hot Middle” editor, is in the middle of the school de segregation fight since he has chosen to fight both sides at once. In his editorial he has denounced both sides of the issue for then- approaches to inter-racial issues. T. V. Smith, called the “Sage of Syracuse”, will be the next speak er in the seines April 20. He is a native Texan and a graduate of the University of Texas, and is now a professor at Syracuse University. Jjinith will speak on the subject, “Capitalism Unbloated”. His pub lic service has been quite varied and has included radio and TV programs, State senatorship in Il linois, Illinois congressman - at- large, and authorship of some 20 books. The Great Issues Committee has tentatively planned a program with Harold Stassen on May 1, as well as one or two others who will be announced later. His was not a. political speech, nor was it an ideological oration: he did not try to convert anyone to Socialism. Thomas preached, for this is the medium of faith, social or religious, on the need for a unified social faith in America—a faith that he saw lacking in our modern times. Did Thomas describe this faith? Tie said what it was: a faith in the worthfulness of effort, in the sin cere belief that man hasn’t done all he can to bring about the peace that the world so desperately wants, a faith for the validity of faith in mankind and faith in the validity of all religions. But he could not give to the au dience such a faith; oiily the indi vidual can realize faith. Thomas could not give to us what we want ed; he could only describe in words and in the sincerity that was so obvious in his person what was his own. The closest his talk could come was in describing the nega tive effects which accompany a lack of faith. This description was the main part of his speech, a description that ranged in subject matter from a lack of crusading zeal in the younger generation—in my genera tion—to the pressing problem of d e s e gre ga ti on. Thomas drew on facts, just a few of which I might mention were the millions of displaced persons in the world, the cold and almost brutal fact of our thermonuclear weapons, incidents such as the vio lence in Auburn College over the presence of one Negro woman who wanted to pursue higher and bet ter education, and others. But this man, humanized by the deepness of his own faith, interpreted the facts in relation to mankind. An inter- pretation, I might add, that is all too often forgotten in an era of cold objectivity. And an interpre tation that-prevents me from try ing to give an entirely objective report of his speech. The main fact you might say that Thomas denied was the present prosperity of America. He re minded us that ours was not a well-distributed prosperity. He also reminded us that ours is an econ omy pulled out of a depression by a major war effort and sustained since this rise by huge expenditures (See WRITER’S, Page *2) Bait Coverage To Include All College View Starting- today, 260 families in College View will receive The Battalion every day in stead of just on Thursday as it has been in the past. Until the Student Publications hoard met yesterday and voted the change, there were 2<>0 families who had the paper delivered to them only on Thursday. This sit uation existed because of the higher cost involved when these persons didn’t pay their activity fees. The business department of The Battalion received a letter in No vember from Stanley Duitscher pointing out the interest and de sire the residents of College View have in receiving the paper daily. After a survey was made to de termine just what the cost would be, the publication board members unanimously agreed that The Bat talion should be delivered to all of College View even though it will cost the paper more money. The extra cost will run around $600 pel’ year to serve those who don’t pay their activity fee. Ross Strader, student publica tions manager, said that he hoped the voting of the board would serve as an answer to the letter from Duitscher since he couldn’t give a satisfactory answer until the cost survey had been made. TYPICAL AGGIE LOOK—James McNaughten, freshman from Milam, gives out with the typical Aggie or any other College, expression when paying for books. All of the local bookstores have had a busy week as students prepare to DS during the coming semester. Town Hall, Feb. 15 Houston Symphony To Play By THE MUSIC EDITOR Town Hall will continue its roai-- ing pace of entertainment next week when it presents the Hous ton Symphony Orchestra with Sir Thomas Bee.cham conducting. The program will open at 8 p.m. Feb. 15 in White Coliseum. Sir Thomas is one of the great figures of the music world, com bining an audience-winning per sonality with outstanding music ianship. The appearance here is one of only three he will make in Texas, and the Town Hall staff feels that his appearance here with the Houston Symphony is a rare opportunity for the people of this area. He has done what he pleased and said what he pleased and, by un orthodox methods and speech, has accomplished more for the musical life of his country than any con temporary. His jokes between numbers and singing during them has won him endearment with Tex as audiences. Civilian Weekend A&M Goes Western “The Daddy of Westeim Swing”, Bob Wills with his Texas Play boys will storm Sbisa Hall March 10 as A&M goes western with the second annual Civilian Student Weekend. During the past 20 years Bob Wills has remained at the top of the list as America’s number one western dance and show band. The celebrated radio, television and motion pictui'e star is still the most-copied western band leader in the nation. Having introduced more than 400 songs, he has received gold recoi’ds for million-record sales for tunes such as “Home in San Antone,” “Trouble in Mind,” “Iowa Jima Isle,” “Steel Guitar Rag,” “Take Me Back to Tulsa” and “San Antonio Rose.” His Western Dance Music in all its native vigor and authenic sound has attracted a large fol lowing over a period of years, and has earned him the title of “Daddy of Western Swing.” The name of Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys as a box office at traction is attested by the fact that the biggest turnout ever to attend a dance on the West Coast, 8,808, were on hand recently when the Texas Playboys were in Los Angeles. Wills hails from a family of famous fiddlers. Both his grand fathers had won the hearts of Tex ans who had seen them walk off with the highest honors from prac tically every fiddle contest they entered. His father was known as a champion fiddler and great show man. There were 17 close relatives in his family who were prize-win ning fiddle players. Also to be featured at the Civil ian Weekend and barbecue will be Buster Satan and his Rhythm and Blues band who currently are fea- tui’ed at the Three by Twelve Club in Dallas. Manning Smith, local square dancer and president of the Square Dancing Association of. Texas, will be master of ceremonies. Boh Wills and His Texas Playboys To Be Here For Civilian Weekend Hob^ood Named To Farm Research Price Hobgood of the Depart ment of Agricultural Engineering has been named to the Farm and Home Equipment and Structures Research Advisory Committee by Secretary of Agriculture Ezra Benson. In a letter to Professor Hobgood. Secretary Benson said, “Member ship on this committee offers real opportunities for you to aid the Department (USDA) in solving some of the problems facing farm ers and farm homemakers in re gard to farm buildings, farm ma chinery, and household equipment. “The advice and counsel of the Farm and Home Equipment and Structures Research Advisory Committee aid us in developing needed research on all aspects of farm structures and farm machin ery reseai’ch.” First meeting of the committee which Professor Hobgood would be expected to attend will be held in Washington, D-C., Feb. 29-March The Houston Symphony Orches tra can hold its own in the field of greatness, too. High regard for the orchestra is held in Houston and in the many cities where it has appeared on tour. Guest conduc tors and soloists have had warm praise for the ensemble. Sir Thomas himself, who appear ed with it during the 1954-55 sea son, has called it one of the finest orchestras in the United States, and Leopold Stokowski, now its music director, Ernest Ansermet, Bruno Walter and other eminent conductors who have in recent years appeai’ed with the Houston Orchestra have been equally en thusiastic about its quality. The average age of the music ians in the Houston Symphony is 30, well under that of many other orchestras, and is one reason for the vitality and extra zest for which the group has been acclaim ed. A typical season includes: 16 student conceits, five “Pops” con certs, 20 subscription concerts, 24 broadcasts heard throughout the Gulf Goast area, 21 summer park conceits and 20-40 out-of-town concerts. This orchestra was the first southern one to tom* above the Mason-Dixon line. Regional tours are frgquent, and many cities of the Southwest which do not have their own orchestra have “adop ted*’ Houston’s as their own. In the spring of 1955 Stokow ski, in accepting the invitation of the Houston Symphony Society to become music director for the Houston Symphony Orchestra, said, “I see in Houston the possi bility of building one of the great est orchestras of the world.” A rare chance indeed to see and hear one of the fine orchestras of our nation conducted by one of the greatest men in the world of mu sic. Bobby Wilkins Improved After Spinal Attack Bobby Wilkins, freshman A&M student and son of Lt. Col. and Mrs. Taylor Wilkins, is reported improving in Bry an Hospital after an attack of spinal meningitis last week. Wilkins entered the hospital last Friday afternoon, and was in a co ma for several hours. Doctors at the hospital have tapped Wilkins spine to remove fluid collected there as a result of the disease. Also reported improving w a s John Lynn Barkley, a veteran stu dent majoring in Pre-Veterinary Medicine, who was stricken with internal hemorrhages and a col lapsed lung during final week. Mrs. G. W. Pollan of College Station has received a letter from Barkley’s wife who said a tube had been placed in her husband’s side to drain fluid from his body. The lung has started functioning again and he is breathing much easier. Doctors have started exercising Barkley but there has been no di agnosis as to what his trouble is as yet. Barkley is in McClosky Hospital in Temple. He was first taken to the College Hospital where blood transfusions were ad ministered before he could be moved to Temple. Cvl. Seniors, Etc. Can Get Pictures Civilian seniors, graduate and veterinary medicine students should have class pictures for the 1956 Aggieland made Feb. 6 thru Feb. 17. Civilian students growing beards may have their pictui-es made dur ing the week of March 12-16. The schedule is as follows: Feb. 9-10—H-N Feb. 13-14—O-S Feb. 16-17—T-S Portraits will be made between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the Aggieland Studio in North Gate. Physics Assistants Wanted For Spring Laboratory assistants are need ed in the Physics Department for the spring semester’. Students who have completed sophomore physics courses with superior records are needed to assist with instruction, grading and handling of appara tus in the laboratories. Compensation is 90 cents per hour for new assistants and $1 for experienced assistants. Ap plications should be turned in to J. G. Potter in the Physics Depart ment. Weather Today CLEARING The light rain will clear off around 4:30 this afternoon leaving the temperature lower from a slight cold front. Tomorrow is forecasted as clear. Yesterday’s high was 66 degrees with a low at 7:30 this morning of 55 de grees. Temperature at 10:30 a.m. today was 56 degrees. SNOWBOUND—Many A&M students like T. L. McMordie Jr. from Odessa were forced to register late due to the severe cold w T ave which gripped Texas late last week and is still hanging on. One advantage of registering late is you don’t have to fight the crowds—or do you ?

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

Texas A&M Newspaper Collection

The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, February 08, 1956, Image 1

Are you interested in including a title to our archive?

Follow us!