The Letter

August 25, 1969

Dear Deke:

Naturally, I've given a good deal of thought to all aspects of the proposed merger. My conclusions add up to a firm opposition to it. (I'll be glad to discuss this with you at any time.)

As far as your questions for the Radcliffe Alumnae goes, I will only say as follows:

I would oppose the increase by one of Radcliffe enrollment if it reduced Harvard enrollment at all. In fact, I would favor a Harvard increase before one more girl was admitted.

Quite simply. I do not see highly educated women making startling strides in contributing to our society in the foreseeable future. They are not, in my opinion, going to stop getting married and/or having children. They will fail in their present role as women if they do.

No matter how significantly they equal or excel their male counterparts intellectually, there must be a fifteen to twenty-year hiatus in their intellectual life while they (most of them) fulfill their traditional role as mothers and/or "home-makers."

I refuse to believe that the future of our civilization will be benefited by the increase of the number of females at-tending top colleges at the expense of males.

When I see, as I have seen since 1946, the potentially first-class men we have turned down for admission to Harvard-not just in terms of the "numbers," but in terms of character and creativity, and when I see the bright, well-educated, but relatively dull house-wives who attended the "Seven Sisters," I honestly shudder at the thought of changing the balance of males vs females at Harvard.

If you want to put it coldly and logistically (but without any factual study), I am persuaded that the relative contributions to our society, in any area you wish to name (except motherhood), would be vastly more in favor of the males than the present proportional representation of 3 to 1 of Harvard vs Radcliffe.

I hope I am not being anti-feminist in the above, but rather that this is a realistic appraisal of woman's part in making our world sensible (or at least viable).

At the same time, I must admit that men haven't done a very good job; but the relative transference of responsibility to women seems to me utterly unrealistic.

Maybe I'm growing old.

As ever,

Dictated but not read by Dean von Stade.