The MailSMOOTH FUNCTIONING

To the Editors of the CRIMSON:

Those of your readers who agree that Harvard employs its enormous wealth and prestige for essentially conservative ends that do little to reduce the misery of our poor or end the brutality in Vietnam may be interested in a reply I received recently from one of Mr. Pusey's assistants. I had written to request that no additional solicitations for contributions be sent to me, since I felt Harvard was too conservative and already too wealthy. Mr. Bentinck-Smith replied primly:

"...The only way we can get your name off Harvard's list is to request that your baccalaureate and doctoral degrees be rescinded."

As we muse that the tone of the letter might have been inspired by John Mitchell, we read on:

"Besides the absurdity of such a procedure, it would also fly in the face of the historical fact that you did graduate from Harvard and did get your doctoral degree here. Whether or not you owe anything to her for this period of your intellectual development is something you will have to settle with yourself."

My feeling is that I owe Harvard the admission that one can get a good academic education there, but beyond this, I owe very little to an institution that prefers to offend me rather than interfere even slightly with the smooth functioning of its bureaucracy for alumni affairs.