THE MICHIGAN DAILY ._SUNDAY, MAY4_9,L9 35 a as a. a ie+vr ai. .i.a a a 111111ii IN 111 11111 it anced. Efficiency, specialization, and humaneness would give the United States a fighting machine far more powerful than others its size. The SOAP BOX Letters published in this column should not be construed as expressing the editorial opinion of The Daily. Anonymous contributions will be disregarded. The names of communicants will, however, be regarded as confidential upon request. Contributors are asked to be brief, the editor reserving the right to condense all letters of over 300 words. Literary College Elections To the Editor: The unusually low turnout for the recent elec- tion of a Literary College vice-president of the Union shows again, as did the sophomore and freshman elections last fall, that Literary College students are not inteersted in an election system that does no more than elect an officer. They want to have a good time at their elections, with rounds of caucuses and heavy campaigning preceding the election, and a little shady work at the polls themselves. Unfortunate as such sentiment may appear, the fact remains that an honest election in the Literary College is no longer worth the pains involved in holding it. With nearly 4,000 students in that division of the University, a ballot of less than 100 cannot be said to be an effective vote. It be- comes merely a question of which candidate can get 40 or 50 students to take the time to vote. Far better then let the Literary College students have their fun, and let the petty politicians strut their stuff for campus parties, than hold a mean- ingless election under the Union's present strict management. The parties will check each other from too much dishonesty, and after all, the results of any election on campus are in no way vital to the welfare of the student body as a whole. The elections interest only those who take part in them, and should be arranged to suit those who do. -C.S.L. As Others See It An Overdue Experiment (From the Columbia Daily Spectator) FINAL EXAMINATIONS still reside in the future. The spectre of those gruelling days and nights is fairly remote. But the hour of reckoning, according to the tes- timony of every student who has attended Colum- bia College, inevitably arrives. When it does, there is a traditionally feverish, desperate entreaty for a one-week respite before the start of exams. There is a moaning prayer for an interlude which will provide time for what is euphemistically termed "review." At that junc- ture, however, it is too late; the request, if granted, would wreck the long-planned administrative pro- gram. It is a futile, hopeless cry. In anticipation of these unhappy days, therefore, we believe that an urgent, widespread movement for the institution of such a study period should be inaugurated at once. If student sentiment for this plan is clearly revealed - and we are con- vinced it will be - the administration could pre- pare to act immediately to fulfill the plea. It is fairly well established by now that, whatever the resolutions of February, a vast number of stu- dents will be fatally behind when exam week rolls around. There are sound reasons for this situa- tion. Many students work their way through col- lege and simply have not the time to prepare adequately during a semester. Many students carry programs so arduous that they must neglect certain parts of them. Many students are deeply engaged in extra-curricular activities which every educator recognizes as a vital phase of undergrad- uate life. These are the bases for introducing the plan. There is no guarantee of success. It may serve the wrong people - those who have no pressing de- mands for their time and will take this as an opportunity to intensify their loafing. But it is not a fantastic scheme. It is in opera- tion at numerous universities throughout the coun- try. It seems long overdue at Columbia. Student Board should launch the campaign at its session tonight. Such action will receive the unqualified endorsement of the student body. We Have Endured (From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch) WE'RE A HARDY PEOPLE, we Americans. Con- sider what we have endured. When mah jong swept the country, the national fiber held firm, and the Chinese invasion at last was banished to the ash bin. For awhile, no one could keep house without a ouija board, but we rallied from that venture into the psychic. Pee-wee golf be- came a major madness, but the addicts have re- covered and the corner lots have gone back to weeds or sprouted beer taverns. Pogo sticks hopped in and hopped right out again; put-and-take and yo-yo twirled themselves, in oblivion; America marched on. Its stomach survived the home-brew recipes of the prohibition era; its endurance met the test of the tree-sitting and flagpole-sitting epidemic; it wobbled through the wearying rounds of the late marathon dance. Cross-word puzzles, once a mass mania, have been stabilized as a mild and dignified institution. Soft- ball and pingpong similarly have been modified into minor sports. The stock market was for a span the great national craze, and we are now laboriously- walking back, shaken but not shat- tered, from that ride. Again the nation finds itself in the grip of a Gargantuan popular hysteria, but need we de- spair? The ubiquitous chain letter is following the ancient pattern. It is denounced by press, pulpit and postoffice. It interferes with business COL LEG IATE OBSERVER By BUD BERNARD "Sorority Girl," '36, sends in this contribu- tion : ODE TO THE SENIORS It happens every year, but you can't get used to it, You know you should, but you simply can't do it. They can't just stay on and on, you know. I know; but it always seems such a blow. They come, and stay for four long years They liken unto landmarks the little dears They get in our hair, they give us a pain They take our best; we lose, they gain They wear our clothes; they steal our lines, We get their lessons and pay their fines, They cut their classes; we give the answers; They steal our men cause they're such good dancers. They borrow our money and never pay it back We offer a cigarette; they take the whole pack - And then they have the nerve to make a dirty crack We trod down town in a steady downpour We tiptoe downstairs to let them in at four. By means of heavy brainwork and concentration We get them out of a trying situation And get ourselves a case of nervous prostration. But on they breeze as if all went well And though there's an urge to tell them to go- you know- Wo feel that way too- But it won't just do. They're privileged; they're seniors; they're leaving. We're not; we're staying; we're grieving, But not for long, because soon will be our chance; And will those underclassmen have to do a song and dance! Deductions of psychology professors this last year: The standard of the passing grade is a fiction. But grades are a necessary evil - The objective test is surging to the fore - Judgments made rap- idly on true-false questions are generally more accurate than those pondered over, with many erasures - Cramming is effective for passing an exam, but not for the retention of knowledge. A professor at Indiana University had just returned with a companion from India. He was relating some of his experiences to his fellow professors. "When I was in India," he said, "I saw a tiger come down to the water where some women were washing clothes. It was a fierce tiger but one woman, with great spresence of mind, splashed some water in its face - and it slunk away. The group of professors looked dubious about the veracity of his story. "Gentlemen," said his companion, wishing to clinch the story, "I can vouch for the truth of the story. Some minutes after the incident occurred I was coming down to the water. I met the tiger, and, as is my habit, stroked its whiskers. Gentlemen, the whiskers were wet." A W ashington BYSTANDER By KIRKE SIMPSON WASHINGTON, May 18. T COULD be just coincidence, yet "Young Re- publicans" sounding off in the Midwest about shaving Solid South influence and voting strength down in the next party national convention syn- chronized remarkably with first whispers of pros- pective candidate activities in the Southern states. Senator Dickinson of Iowa, for instance, recent- ly went speech-making south of the Mason-Dixon line. Representative Ham Fish of New York, who admits willingness to be drafted next year by a great "patriotic" movement, also recently visited among the Southern brethren. And the whispers credit one or another possible G.O.P '36 standard bearer with even more definite maneuvers to or- ganize the Southern delegations in their own be- half. F THE WESTERNERS do raise the issue of Southern representation in the next Republican national gathering, when they get together in June for their "grass roots" policy talk, they will be biting off a large chunk. The Solid South, due to the two-thirds nominating rule of the Dem- ocrats, has exercised a veto power very often over selection of the Democratic presidential ticket. By the same token, the Solid South, largely rep- resented by Federal office-holders or former office- holders on state delegations, has had a mighty im- portant voice in Republican convention affairs. When a Republican president was in office, which has been most of the time, it was a positive voice, even more influential than the negative function- ing of Southern Democrats.. The G.O.P. executive committeeman from Geor- gia, Josiah Rose, says he has heard of the mid- western idea of disfranchising the South to a large extent in party councils but not from Chairman Fletcher or the National Republican organization with which he "is in close touch.". No one will doubt that. The last place Mr. Rose would hear of such a thing would be from Republican national committee headquarters. Mr. Fletcher has plenty of trouble on his hands without that. Y ET CHAIRMAN GEORGE OLMSTEAD (lies Moines) of the national young Republicans probably is right in saying that the subject "is the C. LEI DICH TRAVEL BUREAU, Inc. 150 WVest ILafayette, Detroit (No Branches) STUDENT TOURS to EUROPE, Independent or Conducted. a Day and Up Ask for Mr. Decker! He can save tume andmoney on any itiner ary. He knows all about Summer Schools abroad. CADILLAC 4524 ,' Special U. of M. Sailing o 4AJROPE -- _.r _ r..----___ _ _ --- - ----- with the University of Michigan Union Dance Orches ra on the HAMBURG-AMERICAN Flagship "NEW YORK" June 20, 1935, from New York -DAY ALL-EXPENSE .32 STUDENT TOUR . . for Students over 19 years - $281.00 A Few Choice Accommodations Still Available. For Information- JULES HALTENBERGER, '36E, Union Travel Desk 10-11 a.m. or KUEBLER TRAVEL BUREAU, 601 East Huron St., Ph. 6412 L .911! Ii. s 3r I EXAMS are Approaching 0 " 0 Inspect Our Complete Line of STUDENT and COLLEGE OUTLINES at 75-c each We Urge You To Bring in Your USED BOOKS and Receive Highest CASH Prices. I II -I i i I i I t ,i { The College iookShop 322 Sou'th State Dial 6363 L- -J i- u the Michigan Alumu Official Publication for Michigan's Alumni 26 Issues Per Year--920 Pages 4 QUARTERLY REVIEW NUMBERS of 10 0 pages each. A publication worthy of your University's fine aca- demic reputation. 12 MONTHLY NUMBERS of 28 to 3 6 pages each. 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