WAY MEN FOUGHT

In the Crimson this morning is printed an impressive letter of "The Young Men of Harvard from Some of the Older Men of Harvard." It is signed by thirty-five members of the Class of 1917, most of whom fought in the World War. the letter will command the respect of every undergraduate, if only for the deep feeling that is clearly to be seen in it. These man have read the petition recently circulated at Harvard, voicing "determination never, under any circumstances, to follow in the footsteps of the students of 1917." In answer they have passionately affirmed something few would deny--that they, those students of 1917, acted bravely in defense of high ideals. The students who have signed the petition are no less to be respected for their sincerity and depth of conviction.

The gentlemen of the Class of 1917 assert that the duty of every citizen to bear arms in defense of his country is not open to discussion. But they agree that the country's policy is a fit subject for though and discussion by every citizen. It is this subject with which the petition deals. The document, signed by hundreds of Harvard students, is not an ironbound pacifist ukase. Behind it is the reasoned conviction that the way in which America drifted toward war in those years was unintelligent and unworthy of our nation. These are the footsteps we are determined to avoid.

The heroism of the men who fought is all the more tragic because it grew out of such fumbling, and achieved results so far below their hopes. The men who put their names to the petition are determined that blindness, hysteria, and selfishness shall not dominate our thinking again.