The Battalion College station (Brazos County), Texat LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
PAGE 2 Thursday, February 26, 1959
BATTALION EDITORIALS
. . . Our Liberty Depends on the Freedom of the.
Press, And It Cannot Be Limited Without Being
Lost . . . Thomas Jefferson
By J. M. ROBERTS
Associated Press News Analyst
The Western Allies now face
the concrete prospect that in
stead of trying to talk the com
munists out of a Berlin crisis
they will have to make definite
plans to meet a blockade against
their garrisons there.
They have tested the theory
that Soviet Premiem Nikita
Khrushchev might accept some
face-saving device rather than
pursue a dangerous brinkman
ship and found him unwavering”,
at least for the time being.
Both sides are now using
brinkmanship with a vengeance.
President Eisenhower has replied
in kind to Khrushchev’s Tuesday
statements regarding the im
possibility of negotiating Ger
man settlements.
Khrushchev said he would cre
ate an independent state in the
1c SALE
STILL IN PROGRESS!
★ LONG SLEEVE SHIRTS
★ SLASKS & IVY LEAGUE PANTS
LOUPOTS
IT PAYS TO TRADE WITH LOU
THE BATTALION
Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the stu
dent writers only. The Battalion is a non-tax-supported, non
profit, self-supporting educational enterprise edited and op
erated by students as a community newspaper and is under
the supervision of the director of Student Publications at
Texas A&M College.
New Ideas Brought to Light*
On Corps Mess ha It Problem
Just Eating— That’s All
Harrassment in the messhalls continued yesterday in a
fashion not unlike the lemming migration to the sea—no one
seems to understand it—it just continues to happen.
As yet the efforts of college administration and Corps
leaders to curb superficial and unnecessary harrassment of
freshmen has been shrugged off by all-knowing cadets who
find strength in the age of policies rather than in their logic.
There are those in the Corps who still firmly maintain
that Duncan is the proper place for discipline—and the ideal
time is during meals—between bites.
This dual role of the dining halls—eating and training—
is the crux of the argument on messhall conduct. It is this
double responsibility that interfers with normal eating rou
tine and causes unplesantness—tension during mealtime.
Despite what the campusology experts say, freshmen
do NOT march into Duncan to “give meal service, listen to an
nouncements and help the waiter.” They don’t go there to
be corrected, instructed, harrassed, coddled or babied.
Amazing as it may seem, they go there to eat.
And anything that interferes with this single objective
is obviously in need of study and improvement.
The question then, is not one of discipline at all. The
purpose of the messhall is to feed the troops and that’s what
it’s set up to do. This “added attraction” of harrassment is
neither provided for by policy or with equipment and is there
fore most out of place during mealtime.
This doesn’t seem too difficult an idea to grasp. Yet
judging from current events, it appears to be a major invo
cation of the worst kind of radical thinking.
In a word, it’s a request to limit the activities in the
messhall to eating and take care of “discipline” lessons in
more logical locales.
This doesn’t seem to be asking too much of the men of
Aggieland. . .
Interpreting
Khrushchev Unwavering
On Red Blockade in Berlin
Editor,
The Battalion:
It seems whenever the discus
sion arises concerning discipline
in the messhall the advocates of
“New Army” do their best to
show what this discipline does to
underclassmen, instead of what
it does for them.
If there weren’t so much nega
tive thinking at A&M—not just
concerning the Corps but other
things as co-education and ath
letics — the enrollment here
might be near 8,000, a better
building program might be in
progress and A&M would be one
of the top colleges in Texas.
What, you ask, is the reason
for discipline in the messhalls?
It’s kind of hard to explain this
to someone who has been in the
Corps, who still can’t realize
what this discipline means . . .
You said in your article Tues
day that messhall discipline was
the number one reason students
in the Corps leave A&M. Let us
ask this: what if the freshmen
leaving said their main reason
for leaving was that English
103 was too hard? Would you
have college authorities make
this course easier ?
Here is the point we’re trying
to make: Discipline is an im
portant factor in the education
of young men—especially young
men who have been tied to their
mothers’ apron strings for 18
years. It seems that we would
be failing in our duty if we
didn’t give these men what they
need as much as, if not more
than, the hours and grade points
necessary to graduate.
David H. Plylar et al ’60
What’s Cooking
German East, and that anyone
violating its borders—that is,
anyone trying to force their way
through a blockade—would be
considered an aggressor against
the Warsaw Pact nations.
The President says the Soviet
attitude offers little promise for
peace and that the United
States will not give an inch in
defending Allied rights and i’e-
sponsibilities regarding Berlin.
Khrushchev also took the oc
casion to denounce Allied propos
als for banning nuclear tests
and insurance against surprise
attack through aerial observa
tion.
Khrushchev wants a summit
conference, perhaps so he can
stand before his own people as
a leader among the world’s lead
ers, and the wine or being at
tended by a British prime minis
ter appears to have gone to his
head.
The following clubs and or
ganizations will meet tonight:
7:30
Angelina County Hometown
Club will meet in the YMCA.
Plans for a party will be dis
cussed.
Beaumont Hometown Club will
meet in the YMCA. Club Sweet
heart will be choosen at this
meeting.
Dallas Hometown Club will
meet in Room 107 of the Bio
logical Sciences Building. A foot
ball film will be shown.
Social Whirl
Thursday
Aggie Wives Bridge Club will
holds its regular meeting this
evening at 7:30 p.m. in the Mem
orial Student Center.
Animal Husbandry Wives Club
w r ill meet 7:30 p.m. in the South
Solarium of the YMCA. Guest
speaker will be Mrs. D. A. Hard
away wUo will speak on home
preparation for the school child.
of the Student Publications Board
— j- ' an; J. W. Amyx, Sch
ces; Otto R. Ki
McMurry, School of Veterinary Medicine.
Student Pul-’ications, chairman; J. W. Amyx, School of lingineering ; ilarry nee Kidd,
School of Arts and Sciences ; Otto R. Kunze, School of Agriculture; and Dr. E. D.
ire L. A. Duewall, director of
ool of Engineering; Harry Lee Kidd,
tion,
ber
The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A.&M.. is published in College
Sta-
second - class
s Post Office
ation, Texas,
\ct of Con-
rch 8, 1870.
MEMBER:
The Associated Press
Texas Press Ass’n.
Represented nationally by
National Advertising
Services, Inc., New York
City, Chicago, Los An
geles, and San Francisco'
Mall subscriptions are $3.50 per semester, $6 per school year, $6.50 per full year.
Advertising rate furnished on request. Address: The Battalion, Room 4, YMCA, Col
lege Station, Texas.
We Aggies like to read about Wee Ag
gies. When a wee one arrives, call VI
6-4910 and ask for the Wee Aggie Edi
tor
A future Aggie date, Elizabeth
Jean, was born to Mr. and Mrs.
Gordon Barker ’55, at St.
Joseph’s Hospital Feb. 20.
A future Aggie was born to
Linnie Pate at 9:42 a.m. Feb.
20 in Bryan Hospital.
* * *
A future Aggie was also born
to K. R. Davis ’58, in Bryan Hos
pital at 1:54 p.m. Feb. 20.
President Roosevelt signed the-as-
you- go income tax bill in 1943.
Mr*
REPRESENTS THE
Jefferson {jlandard
Jefferson Standard, now
guaranteeing 2%% on policies
currently issued, has never
paid less than 4% interest on
dividend accumulations and
on policy proceeds left on de
posit to provide income. 4%
IS THE HIGHEST RATE OF
INTEREST PAID BY ANY
MAJOR LIFE INSURANCE
COMPANY. This means EXTRA
INCOME to Jefferson Standard
policyholders and beneficiaries.
Call or write for full in- ^
formation today.
2601 Texas Avenue
Phone TA 2-0018
Denton County Hometown Club
will meet in Room 3-D, MSG.
Del Rio Hometown Club will
meet in the YMCA.
El Paso Hometown Club will
meet in Room 104, Academic
Building. Plans for the club pic
ture and the Easter party will
be made.
Fayette & Colorado Counties
Hometown Club will meet in
Room 3B, Memorial Student Cen
ter. A football film will be
shown.
Galveston County Hometown
Club meets in the Gay Room of
the YMCA.
Marshall Hometown Club will
meet in Room 105, Academic
Building.
Sons of Service will have its
picture taken for the Aggieland
in the Ballroom of the MSC. Uni
form will be Class A winter with
Ike jackets and boots for sen
iors.
Southwest Texas Hometown
Club will meet in Room 108,
Academic Building.
Tyler-Smith County Hometovfn
Club meets in Room 101, YMCA.
Wichita Falls Hometown Club
will meet in Room 106, Academic
Building. Plans will be made for
spring functions.
Texarkana-4-States Club will
meet in Room 223, Acad. Bldg.
Coryell - Hamilton Hometown
Club will meet in Acad. Bldg.
Health in Danger
From Poor Food
Editor,
The Battalion:
...A number of freshmen have
quit the Corps and the pretended
cause of this great desertion is
the so-called hazing in the mess
hall. Now let us view the facts
in their true light. Today we
had the honor of eating a so-
called Hungarian goulash, which
resembled the contents of a can
of dog food.
Should a human being (even
a freshman) be subjected to this
kind of treatment? No wonder
so many freshmen ”go home com
plaining of empty stomachs and
over-wrought nerves . . .
Can you imagine what it is
like to experience a gnawing in
your stomach all day long? What
a helpless feeling it is to know
your very health is in danger.
Now you may ask, how can
so many put up with this injus
tice ? The truth is each person
eats each meal with pretended
gusto because he realizes it may
be the last half-decent meal of
the week and has resigned him
self to make the best of the
situation. ■»
It has been also called to the
attention of many of the fresh
men who wish to return to the
old messhall procedure that only
five minutes is taken from the
actual meal by questions from
upperclassmen.
Let us be sensible and realize
that the real reason for the de
crease in freshmen is not from
hazing but from the food they
get. In short, before school of
ficials make changes in the
Corps, why don’t they first
make the necessary changes in
the food.
William V. McLeod et al ’62
ATTENTION ART LOVERS!
Since our very successful color print and brush
stroke painting sale in December we have had many
requests to carry an assortment of these in open stock.
We have recently made an arrangement with the
largest print house in America to supply us with a ro
tating selection of both prints and brush strokes. Our
first shipment has just arrived and is now on display.
Periodically, unsold numbers will be returned and a
complete new selection will go on display.
COME IN AND SEE THEM TODAY
ALL PRINTS
99c
ALL BRUSH STROKES . . 81.98
We Also Have Matching Frames and Mat Boards
Ags in Service
John Webb ’57
Air Force 2nd Lt. John A. Webb,
son of Mr. and Mrs. I. M. Webb of
West, Texas, graduated from the
basic pilot training program at
Webb Air Force Base, Texas, and
has been assigned to duty with
one of the USAF tactical units.
Lt. Webb graduated from A&M in
1957.
Don Arneson ’57
Air Force 2nd Lt. Donald G. Ar
neson, son of Mrs. C. Arneson of
Brownsville, Texas, recently grad
uated from basic pilot training
school at Webb AFB. Lt. Arneson
is a ’57 graduate of A&M. He has
been reassigned to one of the Uni
ted States Air Force’s tactical units
for duty.
-ALTERATIONS-
Uniforms or Civilian Clothes—No Job Too Small Nor
Too Large.
—Only Experienced Personnel Employed—
—WE RENT FORMALS—
ZUBIK’S
Uniform Tailors
North Gate
On Campus
with
MsxQhuhm
(By the Author of‘'Rally Round the Flag, Boys!" and,
“Barefoot Boy with Cheek")
THE PEN IS MIGHTIER THAN THE SMOOCH
Back in my courting days (the raccoon coat was all the rage,
everybody was singing Good Morning, Mister Zip Zip Zip, and
young Bonaparte had just left Corsica), back, I say, in my
courting days, the standard way to melt a girl’s heart was to
write poetry to her.
I don’t understand why young men today have abandoned
this gambit. There is nothing like poetry for moving a difficult
girl. What’s more, poems are ridiculously-easy to write. The
range of subjects is endless. You can write a poem about a girl’s
hair, her eyes, her lips, her walk, her talk, her clothes—anything
at all. Indeed, one of my most effective love lyrics was called
To Maud’s Pencil Box. It went like this:
iolSWilW JtvMtMis:
In your dear little leatherette pencil box
Are pencils of yellow and red,
And if you don’t tell me you love me soon,
I’ll hit you on top of the head.
Honesty compels me to admit that this poem fell short of
success. Nothing daunted, I wrote another one. This time I
pulled a switch; I threatened myself instead of Maud.
Oh, Maud, pray stop this drivel
And tell me you’ll be mine;
For my sweetbreads they da shrivel
And wind around my spine.
My heart doth cease its beating,
My spleen uncoils and warps,
My liver stops secreting
Soon I needs be a corpse.
When this heart-rending ballad failed to win Maud, I could
only conclude that she was cruel and heartless and I was better
off without her. Accordingly I took back my Hi-Y pin, bade her
adieu, and have not clapped eyes on her since. Last I heard,
she was working in Galveston as a Plimsoll Tine.
But I did not mourn Maud long, for after Maud came Doris—
Doris of the laughing eyes, Doris of the shimmering hair, Doris
of the golden tibiae! Within moments of meeting her, I whipped
up a torrent of trochaic tetrameter:
Oh, my sweet and dulcet Doris!
I love you like a Philip Morris
With its mild and rich tobacco
In its white and scarlet pack-o.
I’d swim from Louisville to Natchez
For Philip Morris and you and matches.
Well, of course, the dear girl couldn’t resist a poem
—what girl could?—and she instantly became my sla\
the rest of the semester she carried my books, washed
and cored my apples. There is no telling where it all
have ended if she hadn’t been drafted.
So, men, you can see the power of poetry. Try it yourself J
p that
For