Mary Washington College - Battlefield Yearbook (Fredericksburg, VA)

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has shown that the students themsel es are its sternest guardians and executors. From the in- ception of the system in 1842 to the present time there is no record of anv faculty action against a student for violation of the Honor S stem. It is indeed a precious heritage. The actual machinery of the Honor Svstcm can best be understood b - reference to the printed Explanation of the Honor System with which each student is familarized upon his entrance to the Uni ' ersity. The outstanding features of pro- cedure in cases of suspected iolations of the s stem are as follows: 1. Any student believing that breacli of the Honor System has been committed shall, with the assistance of such students of the University as he may desire to call upon, investigate the matter as secretly and speedily as possible. After a thorough in estigation, if the} belie -e the sus- pected person guilty of a violation of honor, they shall demand that he explain his conduct. In case the investigating group is satisfied that the suspected student is not guilty of improper con- duct, there shall be no further proceedings, and nothing connected with the case shall be made public. If, after hearing his explanation, or after he has refused to make an explanation, the in estigators are still convinced of his guilt, they shall demand that he leave the University at once. 2. The accused must then either lea ' e the Uni- versity, or demand of the President of his Depart- ment that the Honor Committee be convened to try the case. The case shall be tried as soon there- after as is conveniently possible, giving primar} ' consideration to the accused. 3. The Honor Committee shall consist pri- marily of the Presidents of the five departments of the University. When sitting upon a trial, the Vice-President of the department of which the accused is a member shall constitute the sixth member of the Committee. 4. On the trail of a case, the President of the Department of which the accused is a member shall act as the Chairman. Minutes of the trial shall be kept by an employed stenographer if pos- sible, or by the departmental vice-president form- ing the sixth member of the Committee. These minutes shall be in the custody of the Honor Committee, and it shall be their duty to see that they are properly stored for safe-keeping from year to year. 5. On conviction of the accused, the Chairman shall report the name of the convicted student and the nature of the offense of which he was found guiltv to the Registrar, who shall notify his professors, parents, and the Alumni Secretary. In case the accused is declared innocent, the minutes of the trial shall be immediately destroyed. 6. At the trial before the Honor Committee, both sides mav be represented by counsel from the student bod ' , but not otherwise. Such counsel shall have the privilege of examining the witnesses with relation to the facts of the case, but no argument shall be permitted except at the request of and within the discretion of the Honor Com- mittee. The accused shall be at liberty to say what he chooses in his own defense. Witnesses in 28