Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

Edioriak Freedom The Gamecock believes in the old adage that discretion is the better part of valor. Following this logic, it believes that there are controversial situations that can be set tled quietly without publicity. On the other hand, as a newspaper we are duty bound to iWform students of facts so that they can form and voice opinions. Frequently it is dif ficult to decide the course of action. It is for this reason that the facts of the issue brought on by the resignation of student members of the Assembly (Convocations) Committee are presented on this editorial page. We.have listened to both sides, and pre sent our findings here. There is no concrete policy that is fol lowed from the top to the bottom of the University administration. The situation concerning the American Federation of Musicians confirmed this. The Gamecock was told by the Business Manager of the University that the recent proposal of the Student Council would be granted. Assuming that this was a "policy" we asked President Smith if he had any comment, and he immediately took an opposing view. As for the Assembly Committee's situa tion, it shows that same lack of understand ing. According to the students, there are three incidents that brought about their resigna tions. 1. It was proposed that Mrs. Clare Booth Luce, a playwright, congresswoman, and na tional figure, be invited to speak to the stu dent assembly. Faculty members, or a fac ulty member, indicated that the adminis tration had turned thumbs down on that se lection. The implied reasons, as the students were led to believe and as they have stated, were religious (Mrs. Luce was receitly con verted to Catholicism) and political. 2. For many years it has been a practice to invite the glee club from a local Negro college to sing at an assembly. Faculty mem bers, or a faculty member, indicated that the administration did not approve of this. 3. It was proposed that a native of India be invited to speak. Again it was pointed out that the administration would not consent. It is understood that members of the fac ulty on joint student committees are there to represent the administration. If the stu dents on the Assembly committee were told by a faculty member of that committee that the proposal was unacceptable, it was logical for the students to assume that the word was passed from the Administration. This whole matter was discussed at the re cent meeting of the Student-Faculty Rela tionship Committee. The Gamecock deplores that the students who testified either ne glected or refused to name the person or persons who gave them to understand that P. O.'s Plight Joe Lawrence, postmaster at our 4,092 box post office, revealed some startling statistics this week. Over 4,000 pieces of mail, including first class, newspapers, post cards and packages are handled there daily. In addition several thousand notices are distributed. (Last Tues day there were 16,000 notices to be put up.) Each Tuesday and Saturday there are over 4,000 Gamecocks to be distributed. A Veteran's Viewp Hey, how you? perplexed when I'm glad to see that everyone is ished to receivi talking to everyone else but I, and quarter. With a several thousand others who must to the Marshal call the dormitories our habitats, reimbursement wish someone would do some talk- G.I. Bill of Rig Ing to the janitors, payment would It can be understood, to a cer- ment was nec lain extent, why the floors have what eve went remained cluttered with paper and shall's Office. other trash part of the titne, for Labor of thi, repairs have been taking place, be very hard to new floor plugs put In, and Walls Is, in all proba patched up. That required some force employed disorder. However, the whole situ- The complaint ation seems to boll down to the that the job jus faet that only occasionally, In fact Some sort of almost never, does one see a jani- be played over tor doing his allotted duties. and irresponsibi Once In a blue moon is a wastea ward redcaps. I paper basket emptied and only half to be held aceo as often is a floor swept. The for the fulfilim mere idea of a dusted dresser or obligations and a scrubbed lavatory is too much whose job It isi to even hope for, and clean In i In on. instance a veteran was Improvement w< mueh pleaedtsee the hred help A few of th scrubbing hds floor but was rather are efficient aa 6 Speaking.. the speakers and programs were unaccept able. It not only forced the committee to deal in generalities, but also The Gamecock to do so in presenting the issue. President Smith was asked at the meet ing who had given the faculty members of the committee such instructions. No one was named. The President said, "I know of no objection to Republicans or Roman Catho lics either. We have them on the faculty." He later told the committee that he did not want any communistic ideas brought on campus, and added, "I don't think we ought to have any Negroes on campus." He pointed out that it was against the state law for them to enter the University as students. When asked why he was against the Ne groes performing, he said, "I don't think it's any question to be brought up." Concerning the invitation of the Indian to speak here, President Smith expressed the opinion th'at in view of the United State's foreign policy we should not have any spreaders of propaganda that did not back up our representatives in Europe. President Smith remarked that he was in favor of freedom to express opinions, but he voiced disapproval of presenting "dis torted views." "Let us have all sides of questions," said a student. The president then qualified his previous statement to "not give the wrong side." Chairman Wallace Coleman asked, "Who is to say what is right or wrong?" "The administration is put here to lead the students," replied the president. And so the facts came out. It was obvious that the opinion at the top and the bottom of the administration was not identical all the way through. In some cases it was the same. The handicap was in not being able to pin down one person or persons who had said or implied the dissenting reasons. The fact remains, that somewhere along the line there was a mix-up. That the situ ation came up is a manifestation of that fact. Just exactly what was- accomplished at the Student-Faculty Relationship Commit tee meeting is hard to say. Perhaps a better understanding was given a better chance. It was all frank and open. One faculty member observed, "I think it is part of our job as educators to give them (students) all cQnflicting views." Said another, "As long as issues in Amer ica are kept in the open, we are safe. I don't agree that we shouldn't hear all sides. I think that it would be decidedly wrong for the University to take the view that we don't hear views we don't like. Maybe we shouldn't be so conservative. It is time for the administration and the student body to think seriously about policy of freedom of speech." The job of handling all of this is tre mendous. The Gamecock offers this solution: A large bulletin board, perhaps ceiling high could be placed against the wall backing the stairs leading to the book store (facing the P. 0.) The board could be divided into sec tions for each day of the week and "lost and found." Organizations could place their no tices in the proper places. Here is a project for a student organiza tion that wants to do something for Caro lina. il:By ED MOE the job was fin- the boys in tenement ten. Every a demand for a day he comes through and faith n air of authority fully straightens up the place. scheming darkey While on the subject of redcaps s Office to receive let's wander to another type-the there under the freshman caps. Many of the frosh hts. Of course, no veterans, and even some upper be given. No pay- classmen, have expressed their de essary. I wonder sire to wear the traditional barnet med or If the jani- and Black rat cap. KSK has in over to the Mar- the past offered these hats for sale at a nominal fee. The profit type should not went for operating this service get. In fact, there fraternity throughout the year. bility, a sufficient The same plan was anticipated this for that purpose. year but the Canteen wanted the rests on the fact profits for its own. The argument t Isn't being done. is still In abatement and so no mupervision should rat caps. Personally, I feel that this responseless Kappa Sigma Kappa is a worthy a battalion of way- organization and should not be f one person were deprived of that, their only Income. untable and liable The Canteen fund. go to the gen snt of the various eral .athletic fund which shomvld, duties of those it would seem, be bulging at pres o sweep, and dust, ent in view of football attendance, reneral, a marked unless It is true, as is rumored, uld be inevitable. that astronomical sums have been m dustpan experts paid out' to teams such as Alabama can he verifie by to come to Couia fos ae "MIND YOUR B Letters Of Open letter to the Student-Faculty Relations Committee: I have been asked to state my views on a subject about which I have formed a considered opinion during the past year. It is in my nature to act, using the available means at hand to gain an end, rather than loudly, but ineffective ly, proclaim my views; however there comes a time when the dumbest of mutes will speak. To begin, let us state with can dor that South Carolina is a con servative state. She has been slow in achieving much needed govern mental reform, educational im provements, better race relations, and in formulating sound busi ness, labor and farm procedures. Because this Is so, we can well as sume, even dogmatically assent, that all state institutions and their employees will reflect the attitude of the state. You may have noticed the time worn marker in front of the school which reads that as the university goes, so goes the state. Therefore, if this be true, wherever the steps of the university are directed, there also will follow the path of state policy. To wit, if the univer sity is liberal and progressive, then the state and its people cannot help being the same; for the peo ple are the universty, and uni versity teaches its people. They are one. Thus we are faced with a prob lem, sinmply stated, whlthhei the policy of the state is to be imposed on the university; or whether the university will make,,or at least help to form, that state policy. I have here the temerity to ask the question; why is the state of North Carolina as progressive as it is ? Is it not because the Uni versity of North Carolina has dared to face the facts, has seen the real issue, and has acted with forceful leadership ? I say that is and will be the truth! The Student Assembly Commit tee is a good illustration of my argument. If that committee en gages speakers who are forward moving, thinking, able men, then that is educating our future lead ers along the right lines; however, if that committee chooses, or is forced to choose, speakers other than men who talk much but re peat trite phrases, who profess greatness but admit smallness, and who say much about nothing, then our future leaders can only be as they are. While serving on that com mittee, several times there have arisen cases that I thought would greatly benefit the university. However, two obstacles arose: one would be that the minority, usually students, could not pass the meas ure or have that speaker; the other was that the committee as a whole would agree on the program, but knowing state policy, would agree not to offend the administration, and behind the administration, the legislature, and fearfully but vaguely seen, behind the legisla ture, the people of South Caro lina. I ask you: Is this the right attitude to take? In the first place It shows to me that the university Is not even making a vague Impression on state policy: it has taken on the color of its surroundings. It is hu man nature we know, to take the easy way out; but as the world has come to know through bitter experience, It Is statesmen who have vision, yet being not widely visionary, and who yield not their principles that lead aright. Petty politician., seeing only the needs of tomorrow, who are tossed about with every turn of the tide are rampant. This state needs states men. However, we must not judge too harshly; It Is with all the deep, human sympathy that all my. . USINESS, BUD" 'N ? Resig*nation. mature years can inuster that I lool4 upon those "powers that be." As one becomes older he naturally becomes more conservative; his home, his position, and his family depend upon his protection. We, who are young and independent, need fear no one because we have nothing to lose. However, whether we are young or old, mere age can not change the issue; it must be faced by all. This is free speaking, yes, but it seems the truth to me. Yet to me the greatest injustice in not piesenting all the facts is that we Insult the students' intelli gence, nay, we even prevent him from using that "little-used" brain at all. Can we prevent atheism by forbidding Godless ideas; can we keep Christianity by only present ing one side of the Christian Idea; in short can we be saved or for bidden from anything by refusing to give all the facts? I say we can not. You may remember that the Nazis endeavored to mold the minds of young people by burning all so called "non-Aryan" litera ture; they succeeded to a great extent, but can we say they did right? To my mind educated peo ple will choose rightly when given a choice between good and evil. At least they deserve that choice. You may recall that Thomas Jef ferson was my predecessor in that thought. Do the facts bear him out? Sincerely yours, GORDON SHOEMAKER. Dear Mr. Chairman: I feel that the Student Assem blies of the University are a nec essary program. I feel that these Assemblies are a valuable means of presenting to the students new, broader ideas and fresh view points from outstanding speakets. I feel that these Assemblies should be planned primarily for this pur pose. My views conflict with those held by the Administration of the University. While I have enjoyed working with the members of the Assembly Committee and greatly appreciate the honor of being a member myself, I feel .my views too strongly to be an efficient worker on this program, restricted as it is by a policy that requires guest speakers to be chosen by their denomination, race and po litical party rather than for their intelligence and worth of interest, and requires all programs to re flect the ideas of an ultra con servative administration and meet the approval of the State Legis lature. I neither advocate, nor would I approve of a radical as sembly program but I am com pletely uninterested in working un der the present provincial policy. It is for these reasons that I hereby submit my resignation from the Assembly Committee. Respectfully, THOMAS W. BENNETT. Dear Mr. President: In view of the fact that the Pro gram Chairman, as well as the other members comprising the Student-Faculty Assembly Com mittee, is restricted as to whom he may select to appear on the Assembly Programs and because of my overcrowded schedule this semester, I find It necessary for me to resign this position. Since the higher administrative Authorities have consistently proven* themselves intolerant to certain programs planned by the Student-Faculty Assembly Com mittee, I find that the field of "ta vored" speakers has been so nar rowed and the hardship of obtain ing suitable programs so Increased, that I have neither the desire nor the time to remain on this com mittee. Sincerely, JERRY MEACHAM. uldrhs nioate ... . This week I rather felt that it would be a bit more to the point If I, rather than my usual line of aimless but engaging chatter, would endeavor to do something con structive for USC. This as you know is a bit unusual for this paper, however progress gathers no moss. First, I would like to bring up the subject of Sunday night movies. I'm not a crusader, please understand that it's just my shining soul that's gleaming, but if I were -well, as you all know so well, curfew is at eleven on Sunday night, and for some strange reason the people who run the movies are just not on the ball. In another of my deep and exhaustive investigations, I questioned them as to the possibility of having one of their boys run down here, grab the minute hand of that astound ing clock. I say this with all due reverence, for this is the only clock in the world that doesn't agree with any one's time, including naval observatory. Since airmail has come down to five cents they may get the time here sooner, and, to continue this long and definitely in volved sentence, cry "Curfew shall not ring tonight." They were, however, most uncooperative, and dismissed me with a wave of the hand saying, "We should pay over time to one of our boys so your girlie should not be doing overtime. Never the day shall come." Well, it seems to me that the only solution is (yeah you guessed it kid) let them stay out 'till eleven thirty, on, shall we say delay in route. This would seem most ap plicable at this school so the girls and their dates might, for the first time in there lives, finally see the end of a movie. Speaking of shows, I heard about a stage show the other day that advertised on it's marque "FIFTY BEAU TIFUL GIRLS-FORTY-FIVE BEAUTIFUL COS TUMES." I understand that eleven students, eight po licemen and six professors were critically injured in the rush. Somehow it's beautiful to me how people respond in suppressing vulgarity, as this show no doubt must have been. "Saturday's Children." Wonder how the shows at the fair are this year, "FIFTY BEAUlIFUL (in Lit Abner's words "sob") GIRLS." A most remarkable paper was received in The Game cock office the other day. I believe .that it was called something like "The 'Femperance Trumpet." Anyhow, that seems to me like a mighty fine name for a paper like that. It has an almost martial ring to it, doesn't it? Well, to get on with my story, it first naturally quoted the evils of the "Demon Rum," and quite accurately too, according to the best medical authorities; then, lost in the rapturous sound of its own voice it started quoting from the newspapers of the week on affaires de Booze. One particular story caught my eye as I rapidly perused the columns, I quote: "Blankville, N. J. At a large uptown hotel the other ight a party was being held. The entire third floor had been taken over by the party. The screams and laughter coming from the party so annoyed the other guests on the floor that they, in desperation, had finally come down to the room and remained sitting unhappily in there. Finally, the party reached such a pitch that the local police were called in to break it up. They took all of the party to jail with the exception of one lady who would not come down from the central chandilier. She said that she had been invited to the party and that she'd be doggoned if any ole policeman was going to make her make a spectacle of herself." The column closed with the usual New Yorkerish com ment, in their opinion; "And to think that some poor traveling men were probably trying to sleep." If any of you happen to remember last Saturday's column you might remember that I spoke of the front gate, the entrance to our ivy covered cloisters, well a brilliant solution to that vexing problem has been brought to my attention by one of our compatriots. Unless, this license taking is for some specific reason, I see no reason in the world why this could not be ap plicable. Here is the proposal as given to me. Why not use, instead of the method used now of taking license numbers and making the poor guy thumb through a sheaf of papers three pages long, a system of numbered a tags, hanging on a board having the same number of tags as parking places. When a car enters the gate have the man stick the tag under the windshield wiper, then retrieve when the car leaves. In this way a constant check could be kept on the number of cars within these walls and also would permit the gateman to tell at a glance just how many spaces were available and how many were in use. THE GAMECOCK CROWING FOR A GREATER UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA Founded January 30. 1908. with Robert Elliott Consles as she first editor. THE CAME. COCK Is published by and for the students at the University of South Caroline in Co. Iambi. seml-weekly. Tuesday and Baturday, during the coleg. year except holidays and Editorial and business offices are located in the eats basement of Sime dormitory Adyr tising rates are 65 cents asn inch. Deadlines for Saturday edition5 editorial and socky. 3 p. m. Wednesday; newt and sports. 3 p. m. Thursday. Deadlines for Tuesdaey edition; edi. terial and society, 3 p. m. Friday; m ews and sports. S p. m. Sunday. Opinions expresned by columnists end letter-writse are not necessarily those of THE CAME. COCE. Publishing does not censitute an endorsement although the right to edit is reesred. CHARLES H. WICKENBERG, JR... EDITOR-.IN-.CHIEF MARY E. SHOUN.............MANAGING EDITOR CANDY TAYLOR. .. .. .... . .BUSINESS MANAGER MARIAN RODGERS . SOCIETY EDITOR MIKE KARVELAS ----------.....NEWS EDITOR MARY SAYE GASTON........FEATURE EDITOR CHICK SHIELS... .. ......POnRTS ED,TOR