Davidson College - Quips and Cranks Yearbook (Davidson, NC)

Page 28 text:

Classes were qnickiij forgotten us WIXTER brought one of the most severe storms the community had known. The daily P. 0. TRIP was threatened with alteration. Students and faculty observed their crowded classrooms with dismay. Spirited remarks were forthcoming, and almost everyone made some comment about the unwise decision of the Board of Trustees to enlarge the student body. But the de- cision was irrevocable, and the rooms swelled with the fetid fetii of studenthood. Amid the solemnity of opening classes Freshmen inanely chanted their cry : Hey ! Hey ! We ' re the ones ! We ' re the class of ' 61 ! Their days of significance, however, were passing. There would be moments during Rush Week when the College Man felt his importance, but for the most part, he meekly conformed. He had assimi- lated enough Davidson lore and manner- isms to look almost-smooth on his first visit to the pig-pen on Selwyn Avenue in Charlotte. He glanced at his new crew cut and straightened the new tie. The folks were quite impressed when Parents ' Day finally came. There were the usual gripes. Chapel and ' espers came around as inevitably as classes. The as.signments and the parallel were .soundly cursed. It might be added that no one was impressed when word got around that the Physics Department was now departmentalized. The daily P. O. route was threatened with alteration, but the new path did not become a reality for several months. The innovation of the new language laboratory meant that in addition to owning a pony, l!ie Davidson student now had to apply a smattering of mechanical knowledge to his education. Study had thus become unbear- alily complicated.

Page 27 text:

. . . MASS HYSTKRIA. torn tiiifii riiailx, chcircd prucils . . . STrDKSTS AM) FACri rV ohsrrvtd tluir croicdt ' d chissi-donis icitli disnuiii. With awe he watched the upperclassmen rirajj hack from their summer experiences. He eaves- (li-()l)pe(l on tales from Myrtle Beach ail the way 1o Walla Walla. A lot had hapi)oiied. The only place it apparently did nut happen was at Fort BragR. He made a mental note not to take advanced ROTC. The line at the Bursar ' s office reminded one of a two-hit peej) show, liills were paid and tickets were houKht while the secretaries were mentally seduced. The registration tables became the focal point of the upperclassmen ' s attention. Sophomores ploried in their first electives. Juniors contemplated their niaicis. In mass hy.steria, amid torn fin rernails and chewed pencils, Seniors counted hours and re- checked quality points. Confusion reijrned for several days as quite a few people deserted .some of the professors while there was still time. Durinjr that period, the Collepe Man began to find his place. His cap assumed its automatic fold, and he boujrht his pipe at the stud. The mould was the same; only the faces varied from vear to year.

Page 29 text:

This inis tin UliKUAL AL ' TS PUOCUAM at its l.rst. Sonic i)raise(l the niorits of ;i jJi-oKressive liberal arts education, while others wondered where such an education mi ht be found. Still others indifferently sought deliverance throujrh an escape to the Mooresville flick and thi-ou h the indulgence of spiritual refreshments while they were anchored among friends. About the only ones who showed .serious evi- dence of individual initiative were the honors students. This was the liberal arts program at its best. These students pursued their partic- ular interests through the haze of the profes- sorial smoke ring and its accompanying obser- vations. St lid II had thus liccomr I ' XBKA RA HL Y COM PLICA TED. Cidt of CAFFEISE PHILOSOPHERS met dailij at th ' sfiidi lit I ni ioriinn. Still others found the choice pieces of their educational experiences in the dormitory bull se.s- sion, that wonderful boon to procrastination. The tf i)ics ran.ired from the nature of man and immor- tality to Mansfield ' s exciting body and Mc- Cutchan ' s enlightening mind. These recessed at regular intervals when everyone adjourned from cubicle, otlice, and library to join the Cult of Caf- feine Philosophers at the .student emporium. Thus, by effectively blending both the Old anfl the New. Davidson progressed with a minimum of difficulty.