PROOF OF ONE PUDDING

There will be many who look upon the barren results of the CRIMSON's Eating Ballot as a substantiation of the well worn axiom that one may lead a horse to water but one cannot make him drink. Certainly there is opportunity for the analogy, in spite of the fact that the project concerned men and food instead of horses and liquid refreshments. One hundred and eighty five signatures are adequate proof that, whatever be the cause, a university dining hall with club tables is not the present be-all and the end-all of the student appetite. And the question arises--is "the eating problem", after all, merely a mirage? Do not the present figures indicate that the food situation is satisfactory and that attempts to change it only create unnecessary difficulty?

The CRIMSON remains firm in its belief that the custom of "eating around" is on the decline. The proposal which it backed may not have been the correct one, it is obviously not the popular one. It was, nevertheless, an attempt and as such cannot be considered futile. Only by investigation will better conditions be reached. Failure in one experiment does not prophesy failure in all.

President Lowell, demonstrating an admirable willingness to continue in his efforts to remedy what he believes to be an artificial state of affairs, has repeated the offer of the Corporation. Whenever five hundred men signify their desire for a dining hall the University will erect it. There is apparently no valid reason why the student attitude should change by next fall, but if such proves the case a hall will be built.

The CRIMSON sees no reason either to commend or to deplore the results of the ballot. The response reveals that the project was not sufficiently attractive to gain adequate support. Therefore it must submit to at least a temporary halt. There are, however, other avenues of approach to this problem. Eventually there will come a change in eating habits in Harvard University; realizing this, the CRIMSON has tried to prepare for that change. That its essay has not met with success is in no way a proof that its efforts have been misdirected.