Page 4
THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1974
Corps passes through turbulent period Arlfe’* 1 P*
By WILL ANDERSON
This is the second of a four part
history of the Corps of Cadets.
The Batt will focus this week on
the Corps in recognition of Mili
tary Weekend—Ed.
The years from the turn of the
century to the end of World War
II were turbulent for the Corps
because of rapid growth.
In 1908, the school was almost
wrecked by an incident involving
the wife of the president, H. H.
Harrington. Ironically, Mrs. Har
rington was the daughter of Law
rence Sullivan Ross, who had ad
vanced the school so far.
One of the most popular profes
sors, C. W. Hutson, had a visiting
son. The son’s baby developed
whooping cough.
The Harringtons also had a ba
by — the only one of several to
have lived. Mrs. Harrington was
anxious of her child’s health and
persuaded her husband to quar
antine the Hutsons.
The students thought this un
fair and, finding protests useless,
began to leave the school. For
mer students convinced the cadets
to return and both the Hutsons
and the Harringtons departed at
the end of the year.
Complaints of hazing were com
mon but little effort was made - to
stop it until January, 1913. The
faculty expelled 22 cadets.
The Corps was angered and
presented President Robert T.
Milner a petition bearing the
names of 466 cadets of the fresh
man, sophomore and junior
classes. They demanded the rein
statement of the cadets with no
penalties.
In reply, the faculty expelled
the 466 signers.
The legislature tried to end the
troubles of the school by moving
Play presents
tragedy of sin
A tragedy of the human condi
tion is the subject of “Rain,” the
Aggie Players production which
plays in the University Center
Forum this week.
Based on a story by Somerset
Maugham, this play is about a
faritastie missionary; Rev. David
son (Paul Bleau), who secretly
lusts after Miss Sadie Thompson
(Aileen Wenck) whom he sus
pects of being a prostitute. David
son deludes Miss Thompson and
himself, believing he intends to
save her from her sinful past and
send her to prison to do penitence.
His tragic end is the result of re
pressed human drives overcoming
their restraints.
Dr. MacPhail (Lynn Lawhon)
is Davidson’s intellectual opposite,
being wryly humorous where the
Reverend is zealous and righteous.
“You have a sufficient good opin
ion of yourself,” says MacPhail,
“to bear mine with equanimity.”
Davidson’s wife (Julia Jones) is
a stiff, masked, pathetic carica
ture of a woman, enduring a lone
ly, sexless existence with a hus
band who allows only the proper
religious outlet for natural ener
gy-
Davidson’s chief opponent for
Sadie’s trust is Sgt. Tim O’Hara
(Jim Marks Dennis), with whom
Sadie had planned to take up a
new life in Australia before she
attracted the missionary’s atten
tion.
Directed by Robert W. Wenck,
assistant professor of English,
this play runs through Saturday,
at 8 p. m. for $1, in the Forum.
*J5pfnamba
Eddie Dominguez ’66
Joe Arciniega ’74'
mm
IHTliKMi
If you want the real
thing, not frozen or
canned . . . We call It
“Mexican Food
Supreme.”
Two Dallas locations:
3071 Northwest Hwy.
352-8570
2131 Ft. Worth Ave.
946-0645
it to Austin and consolidating it
with the University of Texas. For
mer Aggies managed to prevent
that and more than half of the
student were eventually rein
stated.
The next year the forest serv
ice, extension services and exper
iment stations were added to the
growing system. The YMCA was
built to provide recreation—some
thing the campus lacked.
The pool halls in the YMCA
seemed to represent vice. An
English professor would read
poetry aloud there each afternoon
to improve its reputation.
Three years later, the Corps be
came involved with another dis
agreement, World War I. The en
tire senior class volunteered for
active duty.
The 55 Aggies who died in that
war are still symbolically honored
here, It was also during this war
the “Aggie War Hymn” was writ
ten by J. V. Wilson as he stood
guard on the Rhine River and the
uniform was changed from the
cadet grays to olive drab.
The school continued its growth
and, in 1931, was given a third of
the state’s Available Fund. Reve
nue from public lands increased
the college’s growth and still
benefits it.
When World War II started,
more than 18,000 Aggies served
in the armed forces. A&M pro
vided more officers, 13,000, than
any other school including the
service academies.
Aggies seemed to find each oth
er no matter where they were.
Muster, an annual event begun in
1903 to honor Aggie dead, was
held by Aggies from Europe to
the Pacific.
Six Aggies won the Congres
sional Medal of Honor. One of
them, Dr. Eli Whitely, is now a
professor of agronomy at TAMU.
The fire that swept through
Archie’s the morning of Feb. 19,
may have started from a ciga
rette, said Raymond Janac, Bry
an fire marshall.
Archie’s a nightclub located in
an old residence on Texas Ave
nue, suffered extensive damage,
said Janac.
“The fire’s progress seemed to
indicate the fire started in the
SE corner of the third floor,” said
Janac. “There were seveni
couches there and a cigarette
have fallen between the cult
Janac said one firemanHi|
jured by falling debris butle
treated and released.
The insurance company ii
appraising the damage, sail
nac, but as far as the fire it
ment is concerned, the invt
tion is closed.
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TATIONARY 20SHEETS
20 ENVELOPES
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SILVER n
FLIPPER
FLIPS A RAIN
LIKE SHOWER
UP TO5,000 SQ. FT.
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