STATE COLLEGIAN Published on Thursday of each week during the college year by the students of The Pennsylvania State College in the interest of the Students, Fac ulty, Alumni and Friends of the college. Entered at the Postoffice. State College, Pa., as second class matter Editor in Chief C. N. FLEMING, 'O9 Assistant Editor H. A. HEY, 'O9 Associate Editors R. W. KRISE, 'OB. S. W. BLOOM, 'OB. G. E. MILLER, 'OB A. W. FISHER, 'lO. K. B. LOHMANN, 'lO. J. F. MATTERN, 'lO Business Manager J D. WOODWARD, 'OB Assistants N. B. HIGGINS, 'O9. P. B. BENNETCH, 'O9. F. H. BERKEBILE, 'lO SUBSCRIPTION di. 50 per year or $1.25 if paid within 30 days after date of subscription. THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 1908 EDITORIAL. The announcement of the refusal by Swarthmore college of the Jeanes bequest will probably be welcome news to the alumni and undergradu ates of the institution. No extended review of the facts of the case seems necessary, in view of the prominence of the incident. At the time the be quest was first made public various rumors credited the property involy ed with values ranging from more than a million dollars downward. The committee appointed to ascer tain the amount of the bequest found that the actual value of the proper ties involved would in all likelihood not exceed forty thousand dollars, and exclusive of certain portions the IHE STATE COLLEGIAN acquiring of which would involve tedious litigation, the value is prob ly not more than ten or twelve thousand dollars. In this case it seems to have been more blessed to give up than to re ceive. The committee apparently paid little attention to the relation of the bequest to the question of athletics, deciding simply whether the gift, wittx its probability of costly law suits, was really worth accepting. To the undergraduates however, the refusal has a vital significance. Whether athletics occupy a proper sphere in college life is a debatable question. The familiar argument that a college is primarily an institu tion of learning is true, yet a blind adherence to this doctrine should not cause us to lose sight of the fact that there are other phases of col lege life which are of relatively great importance. If the acceptance of such a gift as the one under discus sion involves the permanent discon tinuance of intercollegiate athletics or of any other form of college ac tivity which has not been conclusive ly proved to be detrimental to the best interests of the institution, such acceptance should be given only after most careful deliberation. A meeting of the Athletic Asso ciation will be held no doubt within a week for a final discussion of the new constitution before its adoption. This should be of interest to every man in college and should be well attended. The alumni as well as the student committee have worked faithfully on this constitution and they turn it over in as good shape as they are' able to put it. There will still be opportunity for any im provements that anyone may sug gest. For this reason we would urge the importance of attendance at this meeting and of careful thought upon the whole matter. The fact that the constitution of any organization is the foundation of its whole system of government makes more impera tive the duty of framing a strong constitution at this time. Music In The Air. Yale has just given a $3OO prize for her new Alma Mater song "Yale, Mother of Men," the words and music of which are original with a Yale alumnus. Why cannot the State College Athletic Association make some such offer, open to all alumni and undergraduates? With in,a year, it is safe to say, State would possess a ringing song of Alma Mater. An excellent com mittee of judges is not hard to select, and a year is not too much time to allot, Commencement of 1909 to be the time for the announcement of the prize winner. No college spirit is better or truer than that of Penn State, and our present Alma Mater songs are good ones, but what we want is a splendid, swinging song peculiar to our college, our White and Blue, our Nittany Lion, and our magnificent mountain ranges , ith Old Main in the foreground, a scene implanted forever in the minds of the loyal sons of Pennsylvania State! Why not get buoy, and get things moving in the right direction. An Alumnus. A Popular Stag. The . stag dance given at Mc Allis ter Saturday night by the Cadet band proved the popularity of such affairs, for a large number of stu dents attended, and fully enjoyed themselves. The good floor, good music, and liberal reply to encores were appreciated by all present,
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