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■etaraS aa immMw aaMat Jaly I, 1U« at tha Mata CaUaaa, Pa. Pat Of flea atn tha act W March I. 1171.
DIEHL McKALIP. Editor
STAFF THIS ISSUE: Night Editor, Fran Fanucci; Copy'Editors, Phyl Propert, Rog Beidler; Assist
ants: Bill Eisenberg, Jane Casselberry, Becky Zahm, Barbara Budnick, Ron Arentz, Pauline Metza. Ad
Staff: Peg Porter, Nancy Peterson.
Revised Constitution Good But Conservative
The revised All-University constitution, to
be presented to All-University Cabinet tomor
row night, is essentially the present constitu
tion rewritten in more specific terms.
It has maintained “confederate-type” student
government and made two major changes: the
addition of a supreme court to the judicial
system and a provision for Cabinet to rescind
acts of major organizations considered detri
mental to University and student welfare.
Other than these, the constitution generally
defines terms used in the old doctrine and
throws out a few verbose passages.
The constitution is basically good, although
conservative. It allows Cabinet and the Supreme
Court the power to recommend only.
At present this seems proper. It would take
much careful thought to decide if Cabinet, or
any student legislature, could and should have
further power. But thinking of future years,
We are faced with an honest question. What is
a student cabinet’s capacity for assuming pow
er and responsibility?
The administration has slated at various
times it will vest in students as much responsi
bility as students show themselves capable of
responsibility is to be judged. Will Cabinet,
working under a confederate-type constitution,
EVER have chance to show the required amount
of responsibility?
, There is little doubt that Cabinet will event
ually pass the bulk of the revised constitution.
But we urge the members to understand what
they are passing.
Lucky Numbers
We are sorry, but you upperclassmen cannot
live in the West Dorms unless you hold one of
240 lucky nurpbers.
' This is the case as the Department of Hous
ing goes about the task of filling the dormi
tories for next fall semester. It is a game of
chance to dwell in Hamilton, McKee, Watts.
Irvin, or Jordon Halls. The rest of the openings
will be filled with incoming freshmen.
According to the present plan of selection,
anyone may apply for West Dorih housing if
they will be a senior with a 1.0. or better All-
University average, a junior with a 1.5 or bet
ter, or a sophomore with a 2.0 or better next
year. From all these applicants, representatives
of the Association of Independent Men will
choose 100 would-be seniors, 70 juniors, and 70
sophomores.
Anyone else who wishes to enjoy the rela
tive pleasures of University dormitories will be
put into the Nittany and Pollock dormitories.
This includes many upperclassmen, men who
have given money and one or more years of
satisfactory study to the University, who will
be placed in these less desirable and convenient
facfiilies.
The reason the upperclassmen are pushed
aside is to make room for the frosh. The com
paratively luxurious quarters in the West Dorms
are dangled as bait before the eyes of pros
pective students. And it works. Often this
swings the balance and brings a student here
only to be pushed out in favor of another crop
the next year.
Suffer on, uppreclassmen; there seems to be
no recourse. The frosh live like kings for a
year at least. In the meantime only a select
240. select in that their name came out of a
hat first, will enjoy what belongs to all oi you
because of your seniority. Gain solace, if pos
sible, in the fact that there soon may be good
dorms for all.
Hell Week: IFC Releases Survey Results
By DON SHOEMAKER
Results of the survey on hell
week practices, taken by. the
Interfraternity Council hell
week practices committee,
show that 96 percent of the
fraternities polled feel hell
week is necessary, and should
be continued.
This is to be expected, and
perhaps hell weeks do serve a
purpose. Most fraternities feel
they serve two purposes:
1. They get necessary jobs
done.
2. They unite the pledge
class.
According to the results of
the survey, it seems that hell
week practices are aimed to
ward fulfilling one of these
two purposes. The question is
how well do they succeed?
Results, based on replies
from 30 of 52 fraternities which
were sent questionnaires, show
that:
One hundred per cent
make pledges do more house- .
cleaning than usual.
Forty-three per cent do
work in the community dur
ing hell week.
Fifty-three per cent as
sign pledges work during
0V Sattg ColUgian
•Atari* Is m tkariMiMr!
Sicmw to TBS ran LANCE, M. lUf
breaks in class schedules.
Thirty-seven per cent re
quire pledges to do personal
favors for brothers. '
These practices, we suppose,
could be classified as fulfilling
the first purpose—getting work
done.
The rest of the activities in
cluded in the report seem to
fall under the second purpose:
uniting the pledge class. Re
sults here showed:
Seventy-three per cent re
quire pledges to recite house
histories over the phone.
Seventy-six per cent use
general hasing practices in:
eluding quiz sessions, mock
rituals, and various mental
and physical ordeals.
Thirty-seven per cent pad
dle pledges.
Sixty-six per cent require
pledges to wear coats and
ties during hell week.
Thirty per cent require
pledges to carry various ob
jects to class. These include
anything from goldfish to
basketballs.
Thirty per cent take pledges
on rides out of the borough—
and usually make them walk
back.
THE DAILY COLLEGIAN. STATE COLLEGE. PENNSYLVANIA
WILLIAM DEVERB. BuilnMt Manage*
Specifically, we ask that they assure them
selves they really want Cabinet to have the
power to rescind acts of'member organizations
deemed “detrimental to the good name of the
University and the welfare of the student body.”
We suggest at this point Cabinet'demand a
definition of these terms. What constitutes a
detriment to the good name of Penn State and
what IS the welfare of the student body?
'We ask further that Cabinet understand the
proposed court system, and realize that under
it, so far as external power is concerned, the
Supreme Court and Cabinet are on a par. Both
can recommend only.
However, so far as control or check over
each other are concerned, the Court has the
advantage. It can reprimand or recommend ac
tion to Cabinet; Cabinet is given no say over
actions of the Court. f '
Nor does the revised constitution define the
court!s powers or plate any restrictions on pos
sible penalties given. In short, the Supreme
Court will be checked by the administration
only.
The revised document does not warrant cyni
cism. Except for those parts pointed out above,
the constitution is a , good clarification of stu
dent government policy.
But Cabinet and the student body must not
be naive about its implications or blind to the
inhibited, sort of student government it is
perpetuating.
Drivers: B eware
' A mental case streaked down the Pennsyl
vania turnpike at 100 miles per hour yesterday.
He stopped when he smashed into a tractor
trailer truck the state police had commandeered
and parked across the highway.
Mental cases going 100 miles per hour are
not the only maniacs of . the roads. So is anyone
who drives a speed which is excessive for con
ditions. So is anyone who even fails to stop for
a stop sign, let alone a truck parked cross-ways
on the highway.
Also, it might be pointed out the 100 mile
per hour case actually came out better off than
anyone who might be involved in a minor ac
cident. He did not live to have to answer for
his. mistake, if it can be called that.
This case might serve, too, to illustrate an
other point: It proves you can not trust the
other driver. There that dam truck was parked
across the highway and what could the poor
fellow do about it. You 'just can not count
on the other fellow to do even his share of
thinking, let alone some for you.
So, remember, do not come anywhere near
imitating this chap’s speed or carelessness. It
does not take a truck or 100 mile per hour
speeds to stop a faulty driver.
Gazette...
Today
CHESS CLUB. 7 p.m.. 3 Sparks
KAPPA-PHI KAPPA, 7:30 p.m., Tau- Kappa Epsilon.
NEWMAN CLUB. Daily. Rosary, 4 ;80 p.m.. Our Lady of
1 Victory Church: Novena, 7 - p.m., Churcfi
PERSHING RIFLE, 7 p.m., Armory. Class A Uniform - >
PENN STATE BARBELL CLUB. 7 p.m., 102 Willard
PLAYERS ADVERTISING CREW, 6:46 p.m., Schwab
UNIVERSITY .HOSPITAL
John. Arnold, Stephen Behman, Richard Brandt, James
Byrne, Richard 'Coats, Helen Cunningham, Hans Gach.
Robert Hackman, Maria Hammel, Irene Jacob, Lawrence
Lillicotch,. William Murray, • Marcia Ripper, Jane. Schrope,
Joyce Stark, Carol Turner, Florence Woolley.
Under a *iermanent pre-ini
tiation code recommended ; by
the committee, fratem i ties
would be required to confine
all hell week activities to the
house, with, the exception of
community work projects.
Sixty per cent make
pledges go on scavenger
hunts.
Forty per cent require a
pledge trip.
Eighty-six per cent prac
tice hasing during meals.
- Fifty-nine per cent assign
physical activities, such as
push-ups, during hell week.
Twenty-three per cent as
sign pledges to participate in
events outside of the houses.
These events include sere
nades, races, and so forth.
Under practices governing
hell week, the survey showed
thßt:
Thirty-three per cent give
pledges pre-hell week warn
ings.
Sixty per cent assign broth
ers to govern the administra
tion of hell week.
Three per cent require a pre
hell week physical examina
tion for pledges.
(Continued on. page fim)
—Peggy McClain
Little Man on Campus
. you .—_ j g' ihe
assignments for the same course when Giffon taught it in the
summer.—They both give the same blue books. —Now, you
wanted to take English 4..;"
Wood or Splinters?
Adam’s Other Rib
Wooden'obstacles or platforms—which will the three political,
parties come up with this campaign season? Good planks, “vote*
getting” planks, or no planks at alk are the three alternatives. .
The trend so far seems to be away from the plankless platform,
that Lion party came up with last fall. Apparently campus politicos
feel that this is neither a strong enough vote-getting device for .an
AU-Univerity election nor a con
crete enough pattern for potential
leaders to carry into office with
them.
The parties may have a good
point there—to the extent that
specific planks would have been
wasted in the fall election. Only
two All-University Cabinet seats
—frosh and sophomore presidents
—came out of these elections. Two
men could do little, on their own,
in the way of legislation.
Thus, plank 1 e s s platforms
(which essentially were pledged
to be conscientious student lead
ers and support and advance good
student government) were about
the only things the fall elections
could have hoped to fulfill.
The spring elections are
a slightly different story. Five
Cabinet seats come from these.
Five among 25 (the total num
ber of Cabinet seats) does hot
look particularly impressive on
paper, but five "devoted" stu
dent. leadenT can spread an
amazing amount of influence.
Thus, it seems that planks
might have a worthwhile role in
this spring’s campaign. BUT
there,.are planks and there are
planks.
The iihi group may be con
sidered with the greatest skep
ticism. These include the "iih
prezsive sounding but impossl-;
ble" run of promises that , sel
dom escape party platforms.
They , are manufactured to at
tract attention to the sponsoring
party and are included on the
list with little intention or hope,
on the part of the cliques Or
candidates, of being carried Opt.
In this category were such for
mer planks as revision of wo
men’s hours, elimination of Sat
urday classes, revision of dormi
tory housing procedure, ad infini
tum, all equally unfeasible for
parties because they do not lie
within the scope of Cabinet. or
the classes.
Also in this category are planks
already initiated by other, cam
pus groups, and promises .to “in
vestigate this”- end ‘'look . Info
that’’ land inevitably stop at that
point). And the seemingly favo
rite, type in this category is the
plank to “support" L a. foregone
(and more or less obligatory) idee,
like Centennial, freedoiQ. or thel
weather. . .
The wewd category ofplaaks -1
WEDNESDAY. MARCH V, 1955
By Bibler
By fEGGY McCLAIN
cap-be defined only as feasible
by students, fairly original, and/
meeting a current need/'. It "is"
hard to dig up exdmplee> o#;.,
these from campus pdUticel-hi»r
lory, because parties , hayu come
up with very few of them in, the
past .
However, even this type i* of
plank cannot be considers! the
sole criteria for judging candi
dates.and their parties.-A surplus
of Votes cast for a candidate does
not. guarantee fulfillment of cam
paign promises.
Unfortunately, or fortunately
as the case may be. candidates
once elected are theoretically
divorced from their . parties.
They are under no legal obligel
- to try to put through patty
planks. The only check parties
and the student body has' on
these elected officers is .accum
ulated pressure to "do some
thing about what you. prom
ised." o(ten, even this gets no
results.
And thus, of
greatest value in looking- over
and selecting party planks. Prom
ises, falling under , both of the
above Categories, will no doubt
show, up on campaign literature.
- Probably the -safest rule to
follow when trying to .decide
! just hoar feasible a plank is. is
either check up on it or forget
about it . . . or better yet. de
mand that campus parties do
the ..checking before the plank
is published. So be it; (
Constitution Revisions
by WSGA
Women’s Student Govemoment
Association Senate discussed re
visions of the elections code and
bylaws of the proposed Constitu
tion-yesterday.
Senate will meet at 6:30 tonight
in the WSGA room in White Hall
to continue discussion of the pro
posed code and bylaws.
Tonight on WDFM
MJ MW3ACTCIM
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