PAGE TWO
With the Editor—
Absentee Voting ! Why Hot !
MI But Six States Have It
When election day rolls around nest month the
2,000 Penn State students who are of voting age
will have to travel home if they are to exercise
the prerogative' to vote. .
Pennsylvania is one of only six states which al
low no absentee voting whatever. The others are
Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey and
New Mexico. South Carolina allows absentee
voting only in its primary election.
The students this year will have to go home to
vote and this year more than any other year it'is
their duty to do that. The decision in November
is going to have a far-reaching effect on American
history, more far-reaching than normal decisions
normal times.
But after November it will be time to raise a
cry for something else: Absentee voting for Penn-
sylvania
The only provision Pennsylvania has made for
anything like absentee voting is one guaranteeing
absentee vote to men in military service: "When
ever any of the qualified electors of this Common
wealth shall be in actual military service, under
a requisition from the President of the United
States or by authority of this Commonwealth,.
such electors may exercise the right of suffrage in
all elections, by the citizens, under such regula
tions as are or shall be prescribed by law, as fully
as if they were at their usual places of election."
There is no reason why Pennsylvania can not
and should not enlarge on this service. At the
last session Of the state legislature such a bill came
up for passage it had paSsed the previous legisla
ture but, because it had to be an amendment to the
constitution, it had to be passed again. It failed of
passage, he reasons being that (1) absentee voting
would be very-hard to administer, and (2) that in
other states a very small number of voters take
advantage of the enfranchisement they receive.
These are not reasons.. They are excuses. If
there is no more objection than that, Pennsylvania
needs and must have absentee-N7oting.
Interestingly, the last bill for absentee registra
tion had some of its origins in State College. In
3937, Frank W. Ruth, Jr. '39 and Francis H. Szym
czak '3B introduced a measure advocating absen
tee voting before the Intercollegiate Conference
on Government held annually in Harrisburg.
The- measure was approved by the collegiate
group and thereupon the Penn State students re
quested Senator Frank W. Ruth of Berks County
to introduce the proposal to the General Assembly
and make it law.
The 2,000 Penn State students who are of voting
age will do well to send postcards home in the
next few days reminding their candidates for the
General Assembly that they want absentee voting,
that $5 or $lO to go home to vote is too much.
These poscards should be sent now. It is a politi
cal truth that they will be more important before
election than after.
THE DAILY COLLEGIAN
"For A Better Penn State"
Successor o the Penn State Collegian. established 1904. and
the •Free Lance. established 1887
Thursday Morning. October 17, 1940
Published daily except Sunday and Monday during the
,regular College year by the students of The liennsylvaAia
State College. Entered as second-class matter July G. 1984,
at the post-office -at State College. Pa..',onder the act of
March 8, 1879.
Editor
Adam A. Smyser '4l
Women's Editor—Vera L. Kemp '4l; Managing Edito r
—Robert H. Lane '4l ; SPOrts Editor—Richard C. Peters
41; News Editor—William E. Fowler '4l; Feature..
—EdWard T. K. 'MeLo'ile '4l; Assistant Managing . Editor--
ttiyard lifooth '4l ; Women's' Managing
Heit em ekel 4 1. 41; ifocneris Promotion Manager—Edythe
Ri
, Adtetrisink Manag&-401m H. 4 11Mmas "41; Circulgtion
Manager—Robert G. 'Robinson ' 4l; Semitic Secretary-7.12th
Goldstein '4l ; Senior Secretary—Leslie fi. Lewis '4l.
Gordon Junior . Editorial Board-44bn Baer "42, R. MOen
n '42, Ross S. Lehman '42, William J. MelCriiitht "42.
Alice M. Murray '42, Fit Nagelbenj '42, Stanley 3. Ptleitto
- '42. Jeanne C. Stiles '42.
Junior Business Board—Thomas W. Allison '42. kaal
M. Goldberg '42, James E. MOCaughey '42, T. Blair Wallace
'42, Margaret L. Erubury 't2, Virginia Ogden '42, Fay E.
Rees '42.
Graduate Counselor _
eratcr
Pkssociated ColleEsictte Press
Distributor of
Colle6iale Disest
Editorial and Business Office
313 Old Main Bldg.
Dial 711.
CA on: . nrinix Editor This Is4l.
N6wr., Editor This Isioi
Women's Ismue Dii V>r
roribormiro A.:.-:.sti.m...
susii►ess Matiager ,
Lavirieitce S. Drielier '4l
_-____C. Russell Eck
Downtown Office
119-121 South Frazier St
Dial 4372
_Pat _Natreltwrg '42
__John A. Baer '42
Alice M. Murray '42*
Clem J. O'lrits
CAMPUSEER
The outhouses nave reverted to the . ..farmers, the
Mountaineers are back in the "hillscaressing their
still, the lovely coeds are againspeaking to under
graduates, Hickey's business has slumped back to
nomal, and Jack Dixon is recovering from the
-black eye he got fighting with an alumnus for his
bed.
Alumni weekend (god bless it) is but a jangled
memory, and the picturesque hamlet nestled in
the Nittany mountains is once more a symbol of
serenity.
Heil houseparty!
Love Made His Life
A Living Hell
Romance . . . the tender musings of a youth in
love . an exotic. spirit maiden floating through
his dreams. What could be more fragrantly sen
timental than the following epistle d'amour,
penned by a freckle-faced idealist in Econ. 21
class: •
Darling Snuffle,
Please stop haunting me, how can I concentrate?
"Spitter" is talking about value and other com
plicated things and I sit here and dream of you.
Let's get married and stop torturing each other. I
better be careful or I will tell you just how much
you mean to me and that's bad . . . so the older
boys tell me. flarling, Saturday just can't come
soon enough for me, so that I can again hold you
in my arms.
Little Boy Love Again
It remained for Beatrice Mensch, Alfichio, to
come through with the neatest bit of philosophy in
Speech 200 class as she spoke eloquently on the
subject, "Why I Came to Penn State."
Said the charming Miss Mensch, "I came here
with the idea of being a teacher—but now I've
decided to join 50,000,000 other. American women
and let the teachers teach MY children."
p.s. She goes steady with a sigmanu
Confessions of a Columnist
We are at the head of one of the most nefarious
fifth 'cloumns ever to terrorize a 'college campus.
Our spies are everywhere. Nothing can escape
them. Behind their glazed eyes and apelike -fea
tures keen brains plot literary annihilation for
you and you and you!
Campy for dictator! • . .
Our spies know three lovely Thetas will leave
tomorrow for Annapolis ... they know why Char
lotte Miller will date a certain graduate counselor
this year . .. they are watching Earl Johnson make
Marion Eberts an Alpha Zete tradition .. 7 . they
have discovered what fatal charm Harrlet Stubbs
holds for Don Taylor.
The secret of the empty AOPi house is an open
book to them ... as is the baffling mystery of Bud
Smyser and the alumni mailing room. They know
the thrilling story behind Sally Searle's returned
Delta Sig pin . .. why Wally Patton was sitting in
the Cornerroom - at 3:30 a. m. Sunday . . . why
Dottie Savard is going home this weekend . . .
Why Bob" Lane hangs around the Gammafoobeta
house . . . where Jane Lindemuth learned all the
answers
They predicted that all of last year's graduates
of a certain sorority would get married toute de
suite except Jane Romig . . . they read in Boy's
Life, October issue, why Penn State boxers have
lots of zip, according to' Dr. Leo Fred Florian
Houck himself . . they knew Marsh Miller was
going to pin Jane Firestone . . . they know what
sorority is doing cutthroat rushing . . . and why
Dalton and'Cramer are moving into a third floor
closet in the KKG house.
Beware! You may be next!
Join Our Lonely Hearts Club
• Want to get mail from strange women? It's
easy—Campy will fix everything. •Look what he
did for the notorious corner room cutie featured'in
IRA week's cairn* who received the following
epistle in this week's post from Knox • SChool,
Cooperstown, N. Y:
Dearest Eddie:
Reading abOnt your rare exploits in the Colleg
ian I thought you would make an interesting cor
respondent. How far is it frorn•a ping pong table
persons (male of course) that I never knew under
Persons (male of cource) that I ever knew under
the ping pong table of the Roney Plaza in Miarrii.
I just adore lacrosse arid you being a manager
makes me even, more interested in knowing you.
Life is so boring!! The Only future I have is'the
Army-Navy game, Cornell week-end, and Lake
Placid for a week . . Any chance of joining the
under a table at Lake Placid?
All yours, (practically)
BETTY KALLET.
THE DAILY-COLLEGIAN.
Lovingly yours,
GINGER/
Letters to the Editor--
Correspondent Asks
Story Correction
To the Editor,
In fairness to thelocal telegraph
office I would like to make the
following correction and observa
tion regarding .the incident of the
delayed Life message reported in
your column "A Lean and Hungry
Look."
1. Receiving time on the tele
gram was 7:46, not 7:30.
2. Since one Messenger boy only
is on duty at night, and this mes
senger was out at 7:46, there was
necessarily some delay in deliver=
ing message.
3. Ordinarily the office, placed
in this position, could telephone
message in Rec Hall. But there is
no way to receive a telephone
message in IRec Hall. -
Special note to column writer:
Our renowned soccer coach_ spells
his name "Jeffrey."
Sincerely,
Ridge Riley
Two Oirls Challenge
Butler's Statement
To the Editor,
You, in your editorial of October
8, expressed the belief that, "It is
time for us to forego democracy."
Because we live in a country that
is still democratic, it is our priv
ilege and our right to reply to
those sentiments.
Although your prime purpose
to second the convictions Dr. But
ler expressed before 'the Columbia
University faculty last week, you
added opinions of your 'own which
were bah confused arid confusing.
In the first place ; Mr. Editor, it
may be true that the New' Deal
has taught us dependence, but it
is a moot question whether the
New Deal has made us depend
on the state, as you so blithely as
sume. Rather has it not made us
more dependent upon a democ
ratically-Controlled and regulated
government? In a totalitarian state
the words "government" and
"state" are synonymous, it is true,
but in this country, still laying
claims to democratic ideals,',gov
ernment means "expression" of the
will of the people." Therefore your
statement that the New Deal con
verges toward fascism is open to
.much question.
. Your assumption that. "we are
so near the brink of socialisin and
fascism . . . " was stated as a fact.
But is it? We challenge you, Mr.
Editor, to take an objective survey
of this, a typical college campus,
for the purpose of deter Mining
how many students would prefer
a socialistic or fascistic way of
life to the democracy we now have. I
And, after all, Mr. Editor, since we
are still a democraby, the will of
the people is the way of the gov
ernment!
"The signs say now that we
can't stay out." Such a negative
prognosis is unjustified. In the first
plade it is pure defeatism, founded
upon irrational fear. Is. such an at
titude worthy of an American,
whose fundamental right is
,"life,"
as well as "liberty, and the pur-
YOU CAN'T AIL
AN CAPTAINS--
BUTI •
WE LAN ASSURE YOU -• • -
UNIFORM HIGH DUALITY
IN OUR PORTRAITS
PENN STATE. PHOTO SHOP
214 East College Avenue
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17, 1940
eraiti'll:Eletlel
000,00,Pte#,.:
Robert "Spanky" Graul '4l Was
elected president of the Cody
Manor Lion Club at a meeting
Monday night.
Other offiCers chosen for the '4O
- term were Steve Zayack '4l,
'Vice-president; Bill Freet '43, sec
retary; Jack Ligo '4l, .treasurer;
Jack Fred- '43 and Gene, Skweir
'43, social chairmen; Larry "Cherv
enak '44, cltib "reporter; and John
OgsydZiak '4l, athletic chairinan.
Immediately after the eleCtions,
the - Club began - plans for an ex-'
tensive program of activities, in
cluding a fall •house party, frequ
ent informal dances, and partici
pation in intra-mural athletics.
Town Churches And PSCA
Conduct Worship Study
The churches of State College
and the PSCA are cooperating in
conducting study of worship. The
group will meet weekly Until No
vember 9, in an attempt tO dis
cirVer the value and puipose of
worship.
Various approaches to worship
and methods of ma t king it
,more
-effective 'Will lie studied. Do:iris E.
Nes '42, student cliairthdri, an
nounced that Miss lone V. Sikes,
associate director of Westminster
Foundation, is resource leader of
the group.
suit of happiness?"
In the second place, to say now
that we can't stay out is the'sarne
as for Great 'Britain to have said
several months ago, "France has
been conquered; we can't win.
Let's surrender now." Are we to
be guilty of less courage?
Therefore, is it time to start
fighting now? Is it time to forego
democracy to save democracy? Be
cause Dr. Butler propounded these
identical theories in• 1917 does not
mean that he was right then or
now. '
-No, Mr. Editor, Dr. Butler is
wrong!
Sincerely yours,
Lois Notovitz,
Gertrude Hecht