RESPONSIBLE MINISTERS

It will be extremely interesting to observe the outcome of the experiment in student government which Yale is about to inaugurate. The Yale Student Council, which has hitherto been almost purely an advisory body, is to assume the functions of a court of appeals in matters of student discipline. Students who feel dissatisfied with the action of the Dean's office will have a chance to present their case before their fellows.

The Dean is unquestionably the chief point of contact between the student body and the administration, and it is perhaps unfortunate that most students meet him only in his capacity of disciplinarian. An unsympathetic person in that office can go far to destroy the good will of the students toward the faculty. Such a contingency is above all to be avoided.

It seems questionable, however, whether the institution of a student disciplinary body is the best way to go about it. No undergraduate can possibly have the prestige, or the aloofness from student affairs which would be necessary to judge his classmates. The ill feeling which has occasionally arisen over the way the Student Council conducts such a comparatively uncontroversial matter as the class elections is an example of the student attitude toward such matters.

The system, used at Harvard, of having several assistant deans who have graduated recently enough to be in touch with student opinion, and yet possess the impartial attitude of faculty members seems, to be the best solution of the matter.

Student government when applied in moderation exerts a desirable influence upon the college, but its importance can be over emphasized.