University of Kansas - Jayhawker Yearbook (Lawrence, KS)

Page 62 text:

58 THE JAYHAWKER JIM DONAHUE KING ARTHUR JUNIOR, THE PRIZE HUSHEE

Page 61 text:

OCTOBER, 1935 57 The college student looks at war An Unprejudiced Article on One of the Great- est Problems That Youth Will Inevitably Face by WILLIAM UTERMOHLEN AT THIS TIME, as at a time little over twenty years ago, there is an imminent prospect of another European war, with its probable effect of involv- ing the whole world during its course, and the cause of peace is at the most critical crisis it has known since that time. Any such a war will inevitably affect the United States, perhaps only in an economic way, perhaps to an extent far surpassing that of the last one. As leaders of the nation in the near future, college students should feel an especial interest and responsibility in these affairs, and to stimulate that attitude is the pur- pose of this article. I think that it will be taken for granted to say that we as a whole are quite strongly for peace. The expe- rience of the United States in the World War should have taught us that trouble is all that war brings, even to the vic- torious side. The present-day war debt situation, with foreign nations unable to pay their debts to us because they are spending the money for armaments, is only one small example of this fact. The subject of the cost of war, in lives, money, and lowering of cultural standards, is almost a trite one; and yet wars continue to wreck the lives of men and of coun- tries. The latest and best authority for col- lege student sentiment towards war and war problems is the recent poll, con- ducted by the Literary Digest. Sum- marizing its results briefly, this poll showed: That sixty-eight per cent of all students voting believed that the United States could stay out of another war; eighty-four per cent said that they would fight for their country if she were in- vaded and eighteen per cent if she were the invader ; thirty-seven per cent believed in a navy and air force second to none as a way of staying out of war; ninety-one per cent advocated government control of manufacture and distribution of muni- tions and armaments and eighty-two per cent believed in government conscription of all resources of capital and labor in time of war; while the vote on whether the United States should enter the League of Nations was practically even, for and against. The University of Kansas vote showed her students were somewhat more for the cause of peace than the nation as a whole, and much more in favor of entry into the League. Thus, so far as it was indicative, the poll showed a general pacifistic trend of thought. Why, then, does this situation exist, in which we want peace and have war in its place? It is because no one can agree with anyone else on how peace should be attained; energy necessary to further the cause of peace is expended in futile argument. The result is talk and inac- tivity and more war. The United States and Great Britain hold the key positions in the world peace situation today, and of these, the United States is the more important. Many students believe that if the United States would enter the League, with a policy of aggressive action, she could preserve world peace. But how far should she go in this policy? Should she be willing to go to war for the sake of a cause as she professedly did in the last war? Or should she preserve an attitude of absolute neutrality and aloofness from foreign affairs, as some think? Or should she follow a middle course of economic sanctions, through the use of embargoes and stopping of sources of credit? Or should she have a responsibility at all for what goes on in the world outside of her boundaries? And, granted that there is an ideal solution to the problem, how should the people be brought to feel that it is the right way? The writer thinks that the United states should enter the League, with ex- emptions from the military sanctions clause now in the League Covenant. In the world of today, we cannot continue to live in the isolated state advocated by Washington and still thundered out by standpatters. He thinks that military sanc- tions are worse than useless as a meth- od of ensuring peace, and that the logical and best course for the United States to follow in case of a foreign war would be one of strict economic sanctions. The neutrality resolution recently passed by Congress provides for an embargo on munitions only in case of war ; an effective economic sanctions program would place an embargo on all supplies, and credit as well, to all warring nations. Comments on the poll quoted above have disclosed several interesting fea- tures of it not apparent on the surface. One is that a vote for peace or a declara- tion of intention not to bear arms, when voted in a quiet peace-time, and what the individual who cast that vote will do in case war is declared, and the myriad influences of the clergy, the administra- tion, and the militarists are brought to bear on him through the press and the radio, are two separate and probably op- posite things. This brings up the ques- tion of the actual nature of the interest that most college students have in peace; and the sad fact is evident that in most cases it is an entirely passive one. It can- not be too strongly said that this passive attitude is the greatest block to the tri- umph of peace. Until people will become actively interested in it, peace will re- main only a theoretical thing. Some assail those who declare they will not support their country in case she declares war as being unpatriotic and dis- loyal. But what is real patriotism? Is it blind obedience to an undemocratic mili- tary authority, or is it trying to serve your country for her best interests ? Is one who goes to war for his country in this era of civilization loyal to her best interests? These are the questions that the youth of today must answer. In conclusion, I think that the bring- ing-about of a peace sentiment that will endure in the United States cannot be accomplished over night; that such a result will be accomplished only by pa- tient years of education over several gen- erations, and that there will be many bitter disputes before men agree on peace. And yet I also think that war is not in- evitable as many others think; and hope that the common sense and ideals of the better and truer American people will establish the peace-cause as a permanent monument of their culture and civiliza- tion, and that ultimately the whole world will join with her in this movement.

Page 63 text:

OCTOBER, 1935 59 Field day at the state U. or The waver boys at college A Drammer in What We Fondly Hope Someone Will Recognize as the Style of Katherine Dayton by BARBARA BRAMWELL CHARACTERS: Mrs. Pachacamac A spare-looking lady of uncertain age and more uncertain bearing. She is dressed in rich looking clothes which are easily recognizable as the fashion of last year. Her clothes hang on her as if she had recently lost weight. She has evidently been careless for her garments are fraternity-pinned together. She tries nervously to con- ceal this. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk A lady outwardly of independent bear- ing but in reality a person of quite as politic and fraternal a nature as Mrs. Pachacamac. She is dressed quietly, not to say obscurely. Her gown is of variable fabric, predomi- nantly baby pink and baby blue. She is very weak, but that is to be expected since the birth of her child occurred only last spring. SCENE: A dark stone room belonging to Mrs. Oread-Kayhawk, which, if we were morbid-minded, would look to us like the inside of a tomb. Mrs. Oread-Kayhawk is discovered rocking aimlessly from one side to the other. Mrs. Pachacamac enters, left. In fact, we really didn ' t know whether to put her in the show or not, because we didn ' t think her capable of much action. Mrs. Pachacamac Darling! How are you? I haven ' t seen or heard anything of you for so long. Mrs. Oread-Kajbawk (Hopelessly attempting to rise) I ' m so glad to see you. I haven ' t seen anyone for so long. However did you find me? Mrs. Pachacamac I just followed that Lane winding away from the D. U. house. Mrs. Oread-Kayhau-k (Beaming complacently) Oh, yes! That ' s a new one we put in last spring. Mrs. Pachacamac (Snippily) The D. U. ' s say they had noth- ing to do with its placement. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk (Soothingly) There, there, dear. At least you ' ve the Wright on your side. Mrs. Pachacamac (Edging into a chair) And how is your dear little son, PSGL, getting along? Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk (Rather worriedly) I really can ' t say. I don ' t have anything to do with him. You know his nurse, Lyman, has complete charge of him. Mrs. Pachacamac (With emphasis) Yes, indeed, I know! Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk But the little dear has grown amazingly. He ' s so big and robust now. Mrs. Pachacamac His nurse is making quite a problem child of him for me. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk Really? Mrs. Pachacamac Yes. He encourages PSGL to play all over my territory. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk I didn ' t know that. Why should the little dear play in your territory when he has so much of his own? And yours is so small, too. (Sympathetically) I ' ve heard you ' ve lost so much ground lately. Airs. Pachacamac You have no idea. I ' ve lost so much. Why, just look at me. You can see I ' m using only what I have left over from last year. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk Yes, and you had so many things planned, didn ' t you ? I hear you needed all the office space available to accommodate your machinery. Mrs. Pachofamac That ' s true. But when I knew the crash was coming I just decided that I ' d help your fair-haired child dear little PSGL ! and give him less work to do. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk What did you do for him? Mrs. Pachacamac I just okayed some bills that had been lying around for ages (Deprecatingly) You know how slow I always was about bills, anyway. I fixed these up at the last minute so he won ' t have to decorate so many offices. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk But he wouldn ' t have minded. The darling is young yet, of course, but I think he ' ll get to be as fond of that sort of thing as you are. Mrs. Pachacamac I don ' t doubt that. (Bursting into tears) I ' ve had so much trouble! And PSGL has worried me so! Your son is so hard to get on with! Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk Don ' t be too hard on little PSGL. He ' s Born a lot too, you know. Mrs. Pachacamac So I understand. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk (Changing the subject) Let me see. How many of the Waver boys are there in college now? Airs. Pachacamac Oh, lots. You really should get out soon and see for yourself. Mrs. Oread-Kayhauk (Doubtfully) We-ell I don ' t know. With little PSGL managing so well Airs. Pachacamac I must be running along. But before I go Here ' s what I came o r er to ask you. Just how long is Field day going to last? (The curtain falls too soon for us to hear Mrs. Oread-Kay- hawk ' s final speech.)