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Battalion
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1968
COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS VOLUME 64, Number 40
Telephone 845-2226
Bonfire Fund Drive
Reported At $630
Work Is Underway
At Cutting Area i
071
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DEMOLITION STARTS
The Farm Research Barn, one of A&M’s oldest buildings, nears the end of its days as
| lumber is removed from the framework. The 61-year-old structure is being demolished
because it is “outdated.” (Photo by Larry Frisk)
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1917-Vintage Research Barn
Falls To Demolition Crew
By DAVID MIDDLEBROOKE
Battalion Staff Writer
One of the oldest buildings at
A&M is being demolished.
The Farm Research Bam, also
known as the Veterinary Re
search Barn, is being tom down
because it’s “outmoded.”
According to J. E. “Jocko”
Roberts, supervisor of the re
search farm from 1938 until last
year, the barn was built around
1917 by the College of Agricul
ture, and was first used to house
eight hungry mules.
“Even in ’3i8,” Roberts said,
“we used mulepower. They were
hungry for the simple reason
that we didn’t have enough to
feed them.”
The bam was approximately
65 feet high, and construction
was patterned after the Wiscon
sin style barn. This style, said
Roberts, has the animals below
and feed stored above.
“THE STYLE is very labor-
wasting,” Roberts pointed out.
“The hayloft was high up, and
the manpower needed to pitch
the hay was unbelievable.”
In addition to feed', fertilizing
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LARRY McMURTRY
McMurtry Speech
Slated Tonight
Texas novelist Larry McMur-
by, whose novel “Horseman, Pass
became the movie “Hud,”
speak on “Contemporary
Texas Literature” at 8 tonight
the Memorial Student Center
Assembly Room, according to
Clint Machann, Literary Arts
chairman.
Literary Arts is a subcommit-
tce of the MSC Contemporary
Arts Committee. The public-free
program will be its first presen
tation of the year.
McMurtry grew up in North
Central Texas ranching country,
n ear Archer City. He is a gradu
ate of North Texas State and a
Cuggenheim Fellowship recipient.
A faculty member and artist in
residence at Rice University, Mc
Murtry is known as a literary
critic and writer on contemporary
Texas life.
He twice won the Jesse Jones
fiction Award given by the Texas
Institute of Letters.
UaiverBity National Bank
‘On the side of Texas A&M.
—Adv.
chemicals, grain and related items
were kept in the upper section.
The lumber used in building
the barn is of a type that isn’t
seen much anymore, Roberts said.
“The quality cannot be ap
proached today,” he commented.
“Lumber is not cured enough.
“By cured, I mean left to dry
after cutting. The timber in that
bam is well cured and well pre
served. That bam is sturdy. It
was built to last.”
THE ROOF of the bam had
three pitches, or angles, rather
than being in a straight line.
This type of construction pro
vides more storage space in the
upper section, especially at the
top.
Since the roof angles three
times, the sides of the upper sec
tion are straighten than a normal
loft. At the top, it is more
rounded than pointed. The effect
is more space, plus “a sturdiness
that is amazing,” said Roberts.
Roberts added that he believes
the style of the barn to have been
brought to this country by the
Dutch. The Wisconsin bam is
used in the Midwest, especially
for dairying.
FOR A dairyman, the set-up is
ideal. In the summer, help is
101 Fish File
For Posts In
Dec. 4 Voting
More than 100 freshmen have
filed for the first freshman elec
tions this year. Gerald Geistweidt,
Election Commission president,
said Wednesday night.
By the end of filing Wednes
day afternoon, the number of
candidates had reached 101, rep
resenting a “tremendous increase
since last year’s elections,” ac
cording to Gesitweidt.
“A list of the candidates can’t
be given out until all of their
qualifications have been checked,”
Geistweidt explained. He said the
names would be released Thurs
day evening.
“Each freshman candidate
should make sure he has read
and understands all the rules of
the elections,” Geistweidt em
phasized.
A place for the balloting has
not been secured yet. So many
freshmen have filed, Geistwedt
said, that two balloting places
may have to be used to handle
all the voters.
Positions up for election are
president, vice president, secre
tary treasurer, social secretary, 4
Student Senate positions and 5
Election Commission positions.
Elections will be held Dec. 4, and
the run-offs Dec. 12.
available to pitch the hay into the
loft. Then when winter comes,
the animals can be kept inside,
and one man can keep them fed
using the force of gravity to help.
In 1957, the College of Veteri
nary Medicine moved west of the
railroad tracks, on Farm Road 60,
and took over the barn. In the
11 years it has had the barn, the
College has used it as a dog re
search colony facility.
“We were using the dogs to do
research on hip dysplasia, on a
grant from the National Institute
of Health,” said Dr. Alvin A.
Price, dean of the College of
Veterinary Medicine. “Hip dys
plasia is an abnormality of the
hip joint that currently affects
about 250,000 people in the United
States.”
NOW, THE Vet College no
longer needs the building. New
buildings have sprung up around
it, and it has become an eyesore.
There seems to be no use for the
barn, so it is being torn down.
“It’s kind of sad to see it go,”
sighed Roberts, “but it just be
came outdated. It is part of an
era that this newer generation
will never know.”
By DALE FOSTER
Battalion Staff Writer
Student donations of money to
pay for the hunters’ lease on the
Bonfire cutting area officially
totaled almost $400 Wednesday
afternoon, announced Memorial
Student Center Student Finance
Cashier Jo Scanlin. She said at
least $230 more was collected but
not yet turned in.
“These first donations were
mostly from Corps units in the
First Wing and Fourth Group,”
Miss Scanlin said, “with addition
al contributions from other out
fits and some dorms.”
“I have $230, turned in from the
civilian students, which hasn’t
been recorded at the Student Fi
nance Center,” commented Civil
ian Yell Leader Garry Mauro.
“I also know of two civilian
dorms who turned money directly
in to Jo.
“DAVIS-GARY Hall collected
$50 within two hours after the
Battalion came out with the story
Tuesday afternoon,” he added.
“Up until that time, nobody, not
even dorm presidents, had known
about the money problem.”
“There are also numerous com
panies and squadrons as well as
individuals who were unable to
turn in their donations today,”
added Head Yell Leader Bill
Youngkin Wednesday night.
Youngkin explained that the
only way Aggies can use the cut
ting area is to buy up the hunters’
lease on the land. The Bonfire
budget has insufficient funds to
absorb the added cost.
Cost of buying the lease is
$800, or 50 cents from each of
16,000 students. The cutting area
is the same as last year, about
six miles out of Bryan on the
north side.
Seniors Plan Annual Walk
The Elephant Walk will be
held Tuesday, starting at the
statue of Lawrence Sullivan
Ross and winding across the
campus, announced Head Yell
Leader Bill Youngkin.
Seniors will gather on the
mall in front of the Academic
Building at 12 noon. The Walk
annually precedes the football
game between the Texas Ag
gies and the Texas Longhorns.
Seniors traditionally partici
pate in the Elephant Walk to
symbolize the fact that they
are nearing the end of their
membership in the “Twelfth
Man.” The Walk is so named
because it has been tradition
ally compared to an old ele
phant wandering off to some
secluded spot to await the
coming of death.
As part of tradition, seniors
will wear only one spur on
their boots for the last Corps
Trip, Youngkin noted, because
“it takes just one spur to ride
a steer.”
“A HUNTERS’ lease has never
been bought on the cutting areas
in the past,” noted Youngkin.
“Actually, last year hunters were
using the back part of the cutting
area as their deer lease. This
posed some problems, though, and
this year we had to get the area
all to ourselves.”
In the future, he continued, the
financial problem involved in buy
ing the deer leases on cutting
areas will be only one worry for
those in charge of Bonfire prepar
ations.
Even if the funds are available,
another problem will be that it is
getting harder to find large
enough timber stands. Property
owners are finding that the trees
are good for the deer, which in
turn provide a substantial extra
income for land owners during
hunting season.
JUNIORS AND seniors who do
not have afternoon classes today
and Friday will be working in
the cutting area. Lanes will be
cut into the cutting area both
days with the possibility of the
first logs being brought out late
Friday evening.
Actual construction of the Bon
fire began Monday with the set
ting up of light poles. Lights
were installed Tuesday and Com
pany D-l erected the 93-foot cen-
terpole. Full-scale work will
begin Saturday and continue
through Tuesday. All undergradu
ate classes will be dismissed on
Monday, but graduate classes will
meet.
Plans for the Bonfire are pro
ceeding well so far,” said Young
kin. “Everybody is working hard
and the work is on schedule.
“DONATION of equipment has
also gone well so far,” he said.
“The only thing we might need
is more trucks and tractors. We
have 10 trucks assured, several
more promised, and a few not
sure.
“I would like to have from 16
to 20 trucks. The more we have,
the faster we can haul the logs
to the stacking area. We can also
always use more tractors as they
cut in half the time needed to
haul the logs at the cutting area.”
The finished Bonfire will be lit
before several thousand specta
tors Tuesday night, preceding the
Thursday “Turkey Day” football
clash with the Texas Longhorns.
Signifying “the undying love
of every Aggie for his school and
the burning desire to beat the
hell out of TU,” the greatest sym
bol of Aggie Spirit will culminate
many hours of hard work.
TIMBER!
Walter Dabney, of Company D-l watches as the top of a
newly-installed light pole starts earthward at the Bonfire
site south of Duncan Dining Hall. Once smoothed, the pole
tip had floodlights installed to light the work area during
night stacking work in the next few days. (Photo by W. R.
Wright)
UC Approaches 88 Per Cent
College Station’s United Chest
fund-raising drive has attained
almost 88 per cent of its $27,500
goal, announced Edwin H. Fen
ner, campaign chairman. Wednes
day’s tabulations show the drive
has collected $23,000.
“I am very optimistic that we
will reach our goal, if the co
operation of the donors contin
ues,” said Fenner, assistant di
rector of the Engineering Ex
tension Station at A&M. “I ap
preciate work of all solicitors of
the campaign and cooperation of
the donors to the campaign.”
Joining Fenner in heading the
drive are Joe Sawyer, Jack Brad
shaw, W. T. Riedel, and Dr. Lu
ther Jones.
The United Chest divides the
funds earned with 16 civic and
charitable agencies.
These agencies are Boy Scouts
of America, Boy’s Club of Amer
ica, Brazos County Counseling
Service, Brazos Valley Rehabili
tation Center, American Red
Cross, College Station Commun
ity House, Inc., College Station
Recreation Council, Girl’s Club
of Brazos County, Girl Scouts
Area Council, Salvation Army,
Texas Association of Mental
Health, Texas United Fund, Trav
eler’s Aid of America, United
Cerebral Palsy of Texas, Inc.
and United Service Organization
(USO).
Flag-Raising Set
Before Fish Game
A special flag ceremony will be
part of the pre-game activities
when the Texas A&M Fish clash
with the Texas University Short
horns on Kyle Field Friday night,
D. A. Anderson, Brazos Valley
Shrine Club Vice President, has
announced.
“The flag raising ceremony will
be conducted by the Legion of
Honor Unit from Shrine Arabia
Temple in Houston,” Anderson
said, “and promises to be a most
impressive event.
The Legion of Honor unit with
in Shrine is made up of members
of the VFW with activities cen
tered around the U.S. Flag.
The Fish-Shorthorn game is
sponsored by the Brazos Valley
Shrine Club in cooperation with
the A&M Athletic Department to
raise funds for charity.
Tickets for the event are avail
able from local banks, or from
any Shriner, Anderson concluded,
in urging a big turn-out for
charity.
National Survey Shows
Student Fees Here Rank Among Lowest
WEATHER
Thursday — Cloudy, occasional
rain afternoon. Winds Easterly
5 to 10 mph. High 63, low 46.
Friday—Partly cloudy. Winds
North 70 to 15 mph. High 62,
low 38. , , j
Kyle Field — Partly cloudy.
Winds Calm. 58°.
By TOM CURL
Battalion Staff Writer
An education at Texas A&M
may be expensive as far as the
students are concerned, but the
same education at most other
colleges and universities would
cost much more.
A recent study of student char
ges at the 100 member institu
tions of the National Association
of State Universities and Land-
Grant Colleges showed that A&M
ranks ninety-third in costs of
tuition, fees, room and board.
In other words, only seven of
the 100 schools are less expen
sive than A&M.
The total for these charges for
two semesters at A&M averages
$848. The least expensive school
to attend is the University of
Puerto Rico, with average char
ges of $694. The most expensive
is Cornell University in New York
with a cost of $3,450. Massachu
setts Institute of Technology fol
lows closely with $3,214.
BY VIRTUE of its ranking of
ninety-third in order of expense,
A&M ranks eighth in order of
increasing costs. The University
of Oklahoma ranks fifth just
behind Prairie View A&M, which
ranks fourth in increasing order
of cost.
Besides Texas A&M and Prairie
View A&M, four other Texas
schools are members of the as
sociation. They are the Univer
sity of Texas at Austin ($864),
Texas Southern University
($899), University of Houston
($1,025) and Texas Technological
College ($1,091). These six
schools make Texas the state with
the most members.
Considering only tuition and
student fees, Texas—Austin and
the University of Puerto Rico
tie for the lowest with $144 each.
MIT is the most expensive school
for student tuition fees with
$2245. Texas A&M has an aver
age of $192.
DELAWARE STATE College
has the lowest room rent at $175
for the two semesters. The Uni
versity of California is highest
with $1025. A&M rates are $224.
Of the schools reporting sepa
rate figures for room and board.
the University of Oklahoma has
the lowest board costs with $225
for two semesters. Highest is
the University of Massachusetts
with $680. A&M is $432.
The low cost of an education
here is no accident. Careful plan
ning and wise purchasing help
keep the costs to students rela
tively low, according to A&M
officials.
“The act of Congress that es
tablished land-grant colleges and
universities had as a major pur
pose the finest possible education
at the lowest possible cost,” noted
Howard Vestal, director of man
agement services.
“TEXAS A&M has held to this
charge better than any other land-
grant institution,” he continued.
Vestal explained that the dorm
itory system, food services de
partment, student apartments and ‘
the laundry service are self-sus
taining organizations. They exist
solely on funds they take in and
are not dependent on each other
or some other outside source of
funds.
Col. Fred Dollar of the food
services department explained
how A&M can charge less for
board.
Extreme care is taken in pur
chasing different foods with the
emphasis on economy, he said.
Canned goods are stored in the
basements of Duncan and Sbisa
dining halls.
“INSOFAR AS possible, we
buy our annual requirement only
once a year,” Dollar said.
He explained that samples of
the canned goods are opened and
checked for quantity, weight, and
quality by the trained staff of
the food services department.
“This system of purchasing has
proven rather satisfactory over
the years,” he remarked. This
economy-minded buying method
results in savings of as much as
30 per cent over the food costs
of some cafeteria chains.
Perishables such as fish and
meat are purchased only from
plants under inspection by fed
eral health agencies.
MEAT IS purchased in the
form of wholesale cuts and re
duced retail cuts by the A&M
staff. Money is also saved by
the department doing most of
the baking.
Dollar pointed out that the
student menu committee repeat
edly approves menus that are
economical rather than more ex
pensive ones offered for their
consideration.
Dollar was especially compli
mentary of the staff of the food
services department.
“They work very diligently to
make the money stretch as far
as possible,” he commented.
Unlike food services depart
ments at many other schools,
A&M has its. own maintenance
staff for the dining halls. This
staff is on constant call to re
pair any breakdown or handle
any problem that arises in the
dining halls.
Bryan Building & Loan
Association, Your Sav
ings Center, since 1919.
B B & L —Adv.
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