Reporters' Notebook

Buddy, Can You Spare a Dime?

A story on page one of today's Crimson reveals that Harvard College's budget crisis has forced Dean L. Fred Jewett '57 to answer not only his own phones, but the phones for his entire office for two hours a week.

Shortly after our reporter confirmed that bit of information with Jewett, the phone rang. It was Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III, returning a call. After a brief interview, Epps said he would have to call back later because he was using a pay phone.

Now, we know that Harvard is facing a slight budget crunch, but things must be pretty bad if the dean of students is forced to make his business calls from a pay phone. In an anticlimactic denoument, The Crimson later learned that Epps had been courteous enough to return his calls from a conference he was attending at Tufts. The phones in the dean's office, we are assured, are working just fine.

Flagus Ex Machina

One Crimson reporter, who miraculously found time to attend the theater, reports that, in the middle of the student-produced musical The Errols three huge Confederate flags descend onto the stage. The flags, of course, are presented within the perfectly proper context of the plot, and the director managed to avoid the controversy that has surrounded other flag-hangers. But given the recent popularity of that Southern symbol, the producers of The Errols might consider holding a used flag sale after the show closes. We understand there might be some takers.