Another Varsity Club

This morning, or some Monday morning seen the Corporation will have to make its final decision whether or not to authorize the construction of a new Varsity Club on Mr. Auburn Street with $250,000 of the bequest left to the University by the late Allston Burr '89.

Normally such an authorization would be a logical consequence of the approval of the project which the Corporation voted last Spring. But in this case, there is enough doubt about the wisdom of the project and enough opposition among the student body and alumni to justify a careful reconsideration of the issue. The two vital questions are "Has the University a moral obligation to use part of Mr. Burr's money to build a Varsity Club?" an d"Is a new Varsity Club important enough to warrant the expenditure?

There is no doubt that during his lifetime Mr. Burr, who donated the money for the present building, showed great interest in such a project. But the fact that the he put no restrictions on his last gift is proof in itself that he did not wish the University to feel bound by a "moral obligation." the best way to honor his memory is to use his unrestricted gift in the way that will help the University most, not to yield to pressure for a special project.

There is already a Varsity Club, improved this term by the resumption of a full-time training table. It does not seem wise to spend a quarter of million dollars to move that training table and other club activities to another building several blocks away, when three are so many better ways of spending the money. A four-block walk is not the key to Harvard's athletic problem, and a new building does not mean a new football team.

At present, when all private universities, including Harvard, are in a precarious financial position, every cent of available money must be spent carefully. It is not careful spending to build a second Varsity Club with a quarter of a million unrestricted dollars.