Freshmen
Edition
The Battalion
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS, THURSDAY, AUGUST 23, 1956
Section 2
Football Season Means Your First Corps Trip
By JOHN GUMERT
Battalion Staff Writer
As football season approaches,
the typical Aggie begins to think
of the excitement of the games and
corps trips. You freshman Aggies,
or Fish as you will be known, will
soon go on your own first Corps
Trip.
There are several things you
should know before embarking on
this first adventure, so let’s see
just what a Corps Trip is. A Corps
Trip is made by the entire corps
(even some seniors) to two out- of-
town football games. This year we
A&M has one department that a
student will find difficult to dodge,
if you step out of a doimiitory
without a book, most of the time
you will be headed for an activity
sponsored either directly or in
directly by the Office of Student
Activities.
With offices on the second floor
of the YMCA and headed by W. L.
Penberthy this department is con
cerned with almost everything that
happens on the campus.
Aided by C. G. (Spike) White,
W. D. (Pete) Hardesty, Fowler
B. (Barney) Welch, Penberthy
heads an organization that involves
intramural athletics, student enter
tainment and all clubs and organi
zations on the campus.
Boasting one of the most com
prehensive intramural athletic pro
grams in the country under the di
rection of Welch this is one phase
of life at A&M that involves more
students than any other besides
have trips to Dallas and Austin for
the SMU and TU games.
As is the custom before each
game, the Corps has a praade down
the main streets of the town. This
arouses team spirit and also the
anger of the citizens of the far
city who suddenly find 3,000 wild
Ags loose in the streets.
Another popular custom at Corps
Trip time is to hold a yell practice
on some prominent landmark in the
city. Now, you probably had pep
rallies in high school. Well, a yell
practice is the same thing—only
bigger and louder, as you freshmen
classroom participation.
This program is aimed to provide
an opportunity for every student to
take part in a large vai-iety of
sports and to encourage and pro
mote competition between students
not eligible for varsity partici
pation.
Clubs and organizations come
under Hardesty and over 300 clubs
are available for the student to
join. These range in interest from
the departmental organizations to
hometown clubs.
These offer extra - curricular
activity and the opportunity for
students to widen contacts and ex
periences out of class. The leader
ship and cooperation developed by
participating in these activities
prove to be invaluable training for
students after graduation.
Organization finances is a phase
of the Office that is not of general
knowledge. Across the counter of
the OSA passes some half a mil-
will soon find out.
After the game, there is much
celebrating and many outfits throw
parties at the local places. These
parties are a great source of enter
tainment, and the Aggies have
never in the history of the school
lost a party.
Now you have a general idea in
mind of what to expect on corps
trip, let’s look at the details.
Our first corps trip this year is
on Nov. 10 in Dallas. That means
that we cut class the week of the
Nov. 6 so that we can prepare pro
perly for the event.
lion dollars annually. This money is
used to bring speakers to the cam
pus for various clubs, furnish
films, pay for barbecues and other
organizational entertainment.
Student Entertainment as such
comes under White. The most re
nowned phase of this is the A&M
Town Hall. Held in the G. Eolle
White Coliseum which holds 8,500
people such programs as Fred War
ing and his Pennsylvanians; Boston
Pops Orchestra; Fujiwara Opera
Company and The Ballet Russe de
monte Carlo appear annually.
These are scheduled to appear on
the program for this coming school
year.
In addition to Town Hall and for
those who enjoy movies Guion Hall
is available. Under the manage
ment of Tom Puddy the theatre
runs daily from 1 p. m. until 10
p. m. The Aggie Players, under
(See ACTIVITIES, Page 4)
One of the first preparations is
to try to get a date for the game.
Now, that is no problem for you
Fish, because you are right out of
high school and haven’t lost con
tact yet; also, you still have some
remnant of manners left and girls
won’t be afraid of you. By the way,
if you have any extra dates, I live
in Dorm 3, and . . . Oh well, back
to the main points.
After working all week to get a
date, you also start lining up a
ride. If you have a car of your
own, as do most freshmen, this is
no problem. However, if you are in
the fix most upperclassmen are in,
you will probably be hitchhiking or
riding with one of your Fish bud
dies. Either way is all right as long
as you get there in one piece.
The problem of when to leave for
a corps trip is one of gravest con
cern. According to the Military
Science Department, most Ags
leave Thursday before drill. Ac
cording to the professors, the time
is set at sometime early Friday
Student Activities Dept.
Completes College Life
morning. The Aggie, however,
sweai’s that he can’t get away be
fore 5 p. m. Friday. Take your
choice. I’ve tried some of each, and
I believe in the old adage “The
sooner the better.’^ Besides, no-cut
probation isn’t too bad.
After leaving the campus, with
a sigh of relief, because this is
probably the first time you
have left since you signed on
the dotted line in September,
you make a bee-line, not for
Dallas, but for her neighbor to the
north, Denton. It seems that at
Denton they have a college just
full of beautiful babes just dying to
go with Aggie freshmen (or just
dying to go, period) who always
throw a dance for us Ags on Corps
Trip. Well, you may take your
chances up there, but remember:
stay with your Fish buddies and
never let more than three of you
Money, A Problem
At Inexpensive A&M
One problem always confronting
a new student at any college or
university is that of money. A&M
is one of the cheapest institutions
in our state to attend, but even
here the incoming freshman should
keep a few basic principles in mind.
Have some method of keeping up
with your money and the carrying
around of large sums of money in
your billfold is one way to learn
—the hard way‘
Don’t carry any more money with
you than you will need during any
one period of time, don’t come to
A&M with all your money tied up
in a large check for you will find
difficulty in cashing it.
We suggest you take out a check
ing account with one of the local
banks or your bank at home and
keep track of your money in this
manner. This will aid you in
learning to keep account of your
money and stand you in good
stand in the years to come.
Find out what you expect to
spend the first few days then you
will have some idea how much you
will need. Books vary in cost from
$15 to around $25, depending upon
whether or not you buy them new
or used. Shop around for your
books and usually you will find a
price more in line with your pocket-
book.
get separated.
After a wonderful (Note: Any
relation between this and the actual
adjective is purely coincidental.)
time at the Tessie dance, you load
up and depart for Dallas, arriving
about 2 a. m. Although you haven’t
a place to stay, never fear. Just
go downtown to the lai-gest hotel
and find one of your buddies •who
has had the foresight to reserve a
room and sack out in the bathtub or
some other likely place. Remem
ber, your Aggie buddy is always
Avilling to lend you a place to stay,
provided you chip in on the bill. I
remember one buddy of mine who
rented the entire bridal suite in
the Hotel Adolphus for 16 cents
per man. But that’s neither here
nor there—it just shows you what
Aggie ingenuity can do.
Well, Saturday dawns bright and
early. You dress in your best uni
form (which somebody has slept
on all night), borrow a buddy’s hat
(yours is either left at school or
hanging in some Tessie’s room),
and set out to get some breakfast
before the parade.
As usually happens, you have
half finished breakfast when it’s
time to form for the parade. You
gulp down the last of the coffee and
run, too. After standing around for
two and a half hours, you hear the
band start playing and march off
with the corps—banners wmving,
white gloves swinging, sabers
shining (if the CO makes it. We
lost our CO one year and had to
use a junior. Nobody knew the
difference and the CO made quite
an impressive sight at Senior
Court the next week).
The parade is uneventful. After
stepping on old streetcar tracks—
(Parades are always held on
(See CORPS TRIP, Page 3)
uu
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