THE YALE QUIP.

On opening what we took to be the latest number of Life we were astonished to find at the head of the page, (it was the fourth page, by the way, where there are no illustrations) the unfamiliar title The Yale Quip. Not that the Quip is in any respect like the journal of which it is a manifest imitation, from title page to the last advertisement, except in its typographical work. For we must confess that the paper is a great disappointment. After hearing its praises heralded abroad by the News in such terms of flattery, we expected something better.

The first thing that invites criticism about the paper is its cover, which is by all odds, the best thing in it. We seek in vain through the columns of the paper for the name of the artist, (Harrington), appended to this production, and fear that this is only another evidence of the prevalence of professionalism at Yale. But, although the picture, despite a little faultiness of execution, is pleasing, considered as an original production, it is far from satisfactory. If imitation is the best flattery, then Mr. Mitchell, the editor of Life, should be very much pleased ; for even the title page of Quip is copied. Almost every figure in it is adapted, and poorly adapted, from either the old or the new cover of Life, and the central figure, which shows a trace of originality does not strike us as having any connection with the paper. On the title page we find the motto of the paper "Haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee jest and youthful jollity, quips and cranks and wanton wiles."

The introductory "To the Campus" is better than the average of the reading matter, but the rest of the editorial page is spoiled by a series of editorials on the name and reception of the paper. From these editorials we learn that Quip is "a girl," and from this infer that the central figure on the title page is a portrait of the fair daughter-in-law of Life. We think the editors should have adopted the name suggested in the last editorial, the Yale Brace, as indicating the decided need of the paper. The first picture (on page 5) is enough to spoil any paper, and the joke (?) attached reminds us in its lucidity of some of the recent editorials in the News. The initial letters on the next two pages, particularly the B, and the fantastic drawing illustrating the emotions of the anxious paterfamilias on the receipt of letters from his son and from the faculty, are quite good. The merit of this last picture would lead us, however, to expect better work from its artist, Mr. Case, than the picture he offers us later on "Politeness as a Fine Art." The other pictures are fair, although we suggest to the artist who designed the illustration of the new Yale shell that he should have placed the cannon on the bow of the boat rather than on the stern. The two articles "So Benevolent," and "Our New Shell" are up to the average of college standard, but we fail to see the merit in that on "What do You Wear?" The arrangement of the reading matter, resembling that of Life, is very pleasing, so much so that we think the Lampoon might return to this method of arrangement with advantage. The paper contains many things that would hardly be considered appropriate to a Harvard paper, but much of this is chargeable to the proverbial weakness of a first number. Typographically the paper is perfect. Altogether, although the paper is far below what we expected, and although we fear for its lasting success, we look for much improvement in the subsequent numbers, and wish it long life and prosperity.