Boston College - Sub Turri Yearbook (Boston, MA)

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END OF A ROAD various activities and opportunities available at Boston College. We settled down quickly after that first week. By this time we knew the location of the Library Building, the Tower Building, the Science Building, and St. Mary ' s Hall. We could find T-304 and S-8 without first asking directions from some very amused upper-classmen. We sat in awe and silence in the Latin class, and in the mathematics class our eyes did not waver for a second. The weeks flew by — and the football season was upon us. Saturday after Saturday we hiked out to Fenway Park to watch our mighty Eagles beat all opposition into helpless submission. New cheers and new songs were in evidence throughout Boston. Give it to Mike! could be heard any Saturday afternoon out at the ball field, and a new song was sweeping the College, a parody on the famous war song, Praise the Lord and Give the Ball to Mike. We knew we had a great football team. We were ready for the Cross . Already plans were being made for a trip to New Orleans and another crack at the mythi- cal championship. We will never forget that bleak, desolate Saturday when the once glorious Eagles were ground into the mud of Fenway Park. It was beyond understanding — beyond belief. But understanding came that night as we danced In the ballroom of the Hotel Statler, and the chill whisper swept through the room : The Coconut Grove is on fire!! It was difficult to settle down to our books once again after the excitement of the past weeks, but the semester exams loomed before us and rumor told us to expect the worst. Christmas vacation arrived with all the fes- tivity of that beautiful season ; and with this brief respite came preparation for the mid-term examinations. New Year ' s Day saw Boston College being entertained by Alabama in the Orange Bowl. A score of the more financially able students made the trip to the warmth of Golden Florida, but the majority had to be satisfied with the radio account of the great game. Exams came and went — and always the regret that we had not studied just a little harder. Although the tension of the exams was past, an element of anxiety still re- mained, for the rumble of war grew more distinct and evidences of its influence appeared on all sides. Study had become deadly serious business, for now Uncle Sam had a hand in it. The Army Reservists were leaving every day, and the V-1 and V-12 students awaited their notices by the hour. The change had come with sudden swiftness. One month we were preparing for football — the next, for war. As we strove for some equilibrium during this unsettled period, the inspiration and understanding of the good Jesuits helped far more than we will ever realize. But their numbers, too, were being diminished, as one after another left the serenity of classroom life for the stench of the battlefield. We continued to study, plaj ' — and pray. Boston College started its United War Fund Drive in conjunction with the City of Boston on January 22 of the memorable year 1943, and on the same day the Music Club was forced to disband due to transportation difficulties and a dearth of students. Oh yes, gasoline rationing was catching up with us more and more. Now the hoys were more in- terested in getting a C on their front windshield than an A on their report cards. But gas or no gas, most of us were out to watch the Eagles put up a great game against Dartmouth on January 24. On the forensic scene, John Nicholson was elected President of the; Marquette, but the activities of this organization were also restricted because of war conditions. In February, B.C. began its unprecedented war pro- gram, instituting an accelerated college course. New Freshme n stumbled through familiar corridors, just as

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WE STAND AT THE A History is the narrative of events. Yet the proximity of these events is such that it would be exceedingly diffi- cult to get a true perspective under our present limita- tions of time and of space. Conscious of these limitations, we can only present the facts and their immediate effects upon our beloved college. The Class of ' 49 is a heterogeneous group, composed of members of different age groups and background. The reason for the appearance of these various elements is the same reason for all the confusion and disorder in the world at large today — the after-effects of World War II. The greatest of wars caused these changes, and since the men of Boston College were so seriously and fundamentally influenced by that conflict, we find it best to divide our history into three distinct phases: Pli ne I would include those uncertain days during the earlv part of the war when men entering Boston College in 1942 could only study and wait uneasily until their number was called to enter the Armed Services. Phase II might be called the Struggle on the Heights — the difficulty that Alma Mater experienced in keeping her doors open to students who had not yet been called into service. In this phase, we might also consider the nearly six-hundred sons of Boston College who were writ- ing their own history in the many battles being waged on every continent throughout the globe. Phase III we may aptly call The Return of the Veteran — a presentation of the problems and difficulties which the veteran had to contend with, and those which Alma Mater had to face in helping her sons readjust their academic life. Following as closely as possible this order, we begin our history: I ' HASJi I . . . Anxious Da)s. Though seven long years have now passed, it seems as if it were only yesterday — that great September of 1942. It all started with that long walk up the sun-drenched hill from Lake Street, down the avenue between the stately linden trees, and into the hustle, bustle and con- fusion awaiting us under the towers . How we were in another world — a world of forms, endless forms to be filled out in duplicate and triplicate — a world of ques- tions, questions from secretaries, clerks, and from equally confused fellow-freshmen. Slowly the confusion subsided and a certain order took its place as we filed into the Library Auditoruim for our orientation. Here we were introduced to the Jesuit system of education as we listened to the welcome from the Dean, the simple and heartfelt speech from the Student Counselor, and outlines of the 28

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OUR GOAL ACHIEVED we had a few short months before. The Freshman Dance was held at New England Mutual Hall this month, and it was a gala evening as we danced to the music of Bob Shaw ' s music. Midway in the festivities, Nick Flynn, president of the Senior Class, presented to Jack Sheehan, our president, the class banner to carry with us for our four years at Boston College. March, at Boston College, was both a good and a bad month. It started off with the Dramatic Club pro- duction of Room Service . The hockey team finished its season with an excellent six won, two lost, record. To- ward the end of March, however, the bad news came. The Army Reservists were called into active duty. About the same time, the Navy Department announced that Lieutenant Joseph Gately, one of Boston College ' s greatest heroes, had been cited for distinguished service. On April 2, two captains of the French Navy visited the Heights and related to the French Club a first-hand account of conditions in Nazi-occupied France. B.C. re- turned to the sports pages of the country when Herb Mc- Kenley, the Jamacia flash, cavorted over the cinder track for Coach Jack Ryder. Our Freshman year was nearly over. Finals remained — and then back to school after a week ' s vacation. But before leaving the Heights, we went out to cheer the baseball teams in the last fling before athletics at B.C. were relegated to the informal status. Our Freshman year came to a close in May of 1942, and for most of us it brought to a close our college career for the next few years. Before we left, there was the Farewell Dance at the Liggett Estate whi ch was declared by all to be one of the finest dances ever attended during their college career. It was a grand way of saying fare- well for awhile to our Alma Mater, and even to this date it is vivid in the minds of those who attended. PHASE II . . . Struggle on the Heights. From June of 1943 until June of 1945, men of Boston College were spread throughout the entire world. Prac- tically every gravel-crushing outfit from the 1st In- fantry to the Roaring Lion of the 106th had a Boston College representative. From the storming of the beaches at Normandy to the surrender on the Elb ; and from the fall of the Philippines to the formal surrender of Japan on the brightly-polished decks of the Missouri, the men of Boston College were there ! ! In the absence of the great numbers of students , life on University Heights nearly petered out. The pulse of life was feeble as the student body was reduced to a scanty few. The arrival of the Army Specialized Training Unit was an adrenaline shot to the dying heart. This unit, plus the arrival of spasmodic groups of high-school graduates, helped to keep open our doors of learning. It was June 11, 1945 that witnessed the arrival of a handful of new students to University Heights. Since this group was, for the most part, composed of high school graduates who had not entered the service and were destined to graduate in the Class of ' 49, we can continue