PURPOSE OF COLLEGE LIFE

Great success attended the thirty-seventh anniversary dinner of the CRIMSON which was held in the Trophy Room of the Union last night. Besides about twenty-five former editors of the paper, President Lowell and several members of the Faculty and of the Student Council were present as guests of the CRIMSON. Representatives of the Yale News, the Daily Princetonian, and the Cornell Sun also attended the dinner. Between the courses the University Glee Club double quartet sang a number of songs. F. Ayer, Jr., '11 acted as toastmaster.

R. C. Walker, speaking for the Yale News, took as his subject the effects of a college paper on broadening college spirit. With its many good effects, college spirit is nevertheless liable to make the undergraduate think solely of his alma mater, because he either goes to college for study, or else only to make acquaintances. By publishing items of general interest and by keeping in touch with other universities, the Yale News is trying to obviate this disadvantage.

J. C. Kennedy of Princeton first discussed the friendly relations between his university and Harvard. In the past four years, baseball has been resumed and the triangular intercollegiate debate has been installed. Furthermore, the Freshman football team played Princeton last fall and it seems very likely that the university teams will meet within a few years.

Talking about President Wilson, Mr. Kennedy declared him to be the most popular man in Princeton today. Both he and President Lowell are trying for social reforms, though perhaps by different means; and it is to be hoped that both may be equally successful.

The topic which S. Griffis of the Cornell Sun discussed was the future of college journalism. The possibilities seem to be more in the editorial column than in the news. Students today are prone to take on an assumption of vacuity, which of necessity is reflected in the editorials. They are not up to the standard of the rest of the paper and there is place for a man of force and personality to express his own opinions. The undergraduate is at college to get ideas, but as long as he pretends to be unwilling to do this, the influence of the editorials of college dailies must be weak. It is in that line that improvement is to be looked for.

J. Richardson, Jr., '08.

The essential point about the system of Freshman advisers is to create friendship with the incoming undergraduate; this simply consists in getting down to rock bottom, and there is no halo about rock bottom.

The position of the Freshman adviser is simply that of an adviser and not that of a commander. By open play he can always inspire confidence; the problems and difficulties should be openly presented and will be squarely answered. The burden is on the adviser, for he must pave the way for such relations. He should discover what the Freshman is interested in, and should discuss those topics with which he is familiar.

In the past the difference in ages has led to a mutual shyness; the new system of young advisers is the good one. But because their relation to the Freshmen is based on friendship, there is no reason for a lack of parental supervision. Plain talk should be the basis, for it will always endure.

Dr. G. W. Prothero.

Talking about English college papers, Dr. Prothero recounted several reminiscences of his own early experiences. A paper was started at Eton in 1864--the first one in England. Its start was adventurous and so it continued for its short existence. Radical papers also had short lives; but in the sense with which we speak of American college papers, no such thing existed in English universities until within the last few years.

Our papers are comparable to the severer studies in college and should be encouraged. A man in college ought to learn to write well and play fairly, and this college journalism teaches. Furthermore, those who work for the dailies in our universities should enter the field of newspaper work, for scholastic qualities ought to distinguish the journalism. The college paper gives a man ample opportunity to say things clearly without meanness. Reporting teaches a man speed and accuracy. In these ways and in other similar ones, academic work on a college journal prepares the undergraduate for whatever future work he may take up. This is the great mission which dailies like the CRIMSON have to fulfill.

Dr. G. A. Gordon '81.

"The Value of Criticism" was the subject which Dr. G. A. Gordon spoke upon. Criticism is good judgment applied to those things in which one is deeply interested; it is not pleasant to receive at the time but we appreciate it later. The highest forms of humor and morality are identical, and when the former deteriorates, the latter declines also.

The two things which especially stand out in the remembrance of his college career, Dr. Gordon went on to say, are the consciousness of the great many different kinds of power in men and the value of examinations. The former teaches respect for other men and respect for ourselves; respect for the things one can do and for the things others can do. Examinations are often made fun of today, but to pass a hard, thorough test--whether mental or physical--is something to be proud of. Physical courage and caution are both necessary to a man's development and both come from worthy tests and from criticism. So it is with mental strength; a man wants perfection in his work, and any criticism which brings him nearer his goal is indispensable and ought to be appreciated.

Journalism is an activity which ought to engross college men greatly. It is the only aspect of American life which has deteriorated in the last thirty-five years. We need an invasion of academic spirit, honor and sacrifice to raise it above its present mediocrity and to make it an open, powerful and beneficial influence in our modern life. A university paper such as the CRIMSON offers a great opportunity for college men to prepare for such an invasion.

President Lowell.

"Mr. Toastmaster, Hosts and Guests of the CRIMSON: Dr. Gordon has illustrated his idea of criticism by drawing invidious comparisons between Cook and Peary. I prefer the criticism that was made by a western farmer who had two cats, Tom and Gerry. When he was asked why he did not call them Cook and Peary, he replied because neither was a pole-cat.

"When the Duke of Wellington became Chancellor of Oxford he expressed regret at being forced into contact with so many literary men; and for the same reason I feel in an uncomfortable position. I shall now become serious despite the fact that when a speech loses its humor, as Dr. Gordon said, it becomes immoral.

"There has been some mistake about the subject of my talk this evening. What I said I was going to speak on was the atomic theory, the House of Lords, the solar system, and the destiny of man, and I took this as I did not want to travel outside my province.

"It looks as if one would begin by asking why a man comes to college, but that is like a man's asking why he had himself born; there are but few men who can explain that rationally. When you are born, it becomes important to ask why. If you say you came to college in order to get a degree, it seems like saying you were born in order to get a decent funeral--you leave out all the interests of life coming between the birth and the grave.

"Or, if you say you came to perfect your mental powers, to acquire a vigorous and strong mind, then in order that you may do this, you must begin at the beginning; and in beginning you must learn to discriminate between the things eternal and the things temporary. In the latter you may think I am speaking of journalism, but I am not. The nearest I ever came to journalism was to be asked to be a co-editor of a paper that did not exist. I replied I did not think I was fit for