Age-old Moral Issue Starts Struggle in Radcliffe Dorm

Purity has reared its ugly head at Radcliffe. Although the horrid event took place last spring, it was only last night that the complete story came to light.

The Radcliffe Purity League was born in the midst of a minor political revolution in one of the dormitories. An attempt to oust a student Hall president from office resulted in splitting the members of the hall into two warring factions. The political issue soon faded into insignificance. After 32 of the 79 girls living in the dorm refused to sign a petition calling for the removal of their student leader, the majority labeled them the "dirty thirties," a name carrying the stigma of immorality.

Form Purity League

The 47 lost no time in banding themselves into the "Radcliffe Purity League" and attempting to sabotage the love life of their more fortunate and more beautiful sisters of the "dirty thirty." The purity leaguers were the object of the withering scorn of the 30 who lampooned and lambasted them in verse and song. Under the leadership of a glamorous inner circle, euphoniously known as "the filthy few," they advertised the causes of the puritanical attitude in parodies like the following, which was sung to the tune of "Caesar Was a Roman":

"There are some girls at Radcliffe Who live just like the dead. They study hard from morn to night And sleep in an empty bed. Although they live vicariously They're sad and lonely, too-- Because they have no Harvard Freshman With whom to pitch the woo."

Striking back more directly and effectively, the stay-at-home Purity Leaguers took to waiting in a body on the balcony over the lobby of the dorm and kibitzing on the final, more intimate moments of the dates of the popular "dirty thirty" girls. When the unfeased glamour gals refused to let themselves be upset by this tactic and allowed their Freshman dates to take longer than the allowed five minutes in bidding them good-night, the kibitzers moved down and surrounded them.

Efligies were hung on the balcony by the "dirty thirty" as well as a placard placed in the lobby under the name of the Purity Leaguers, stating "Are you prepared to meet your Maker? Well, you can't meet Him here!"