Lehigh University - Epitome Yearbook (Bethlehem, PA)

Page 14 text:

The dedication of the addition to Fritz Lab, with its 5,000,- 000 pound testing machine, marked the opening of a new era of strengthened relations with industry and Lehigh. An early morning fire in Williams Hall completely destroyed the third floor of the Metallurgy wing of the building. Damage was estimated in excess of SI 00,000. An enthusiastic, jazz-loving crew of Le- high students had a wild afternoon when Wilbur deParis and bis baud conducted a dixie-land concert at the Frolics.

Page 13 text:

The Vear in Reuieuu The 1955-56 academic year started oul like- any other year with the be-dinked freshmen swarming confusedly over the campus trying to orient themselves to college in general and Lehigh in particular. However, subse- quent events were to put a mark of distinction upon this year, to set it apart as a year to remember. Returning undergraduates were greeted with the sight of a huge physical transformation taking place on South Mountain. Cranes, bulldozers, skeletons of steel, piles of brick and stone, and vast holes torn in the earth of the Mountain were everywhere. As they looked upon the construction rising about them, the students could very definitely feel a sense of participa- tion, for through their organizations they had con- tributed $10,000 in student funds to the Packer Hall- Dormitory program. Another development that had taken place over the Summer which somewhat dismayed the students and their bill-paying parents was the increase in tuition as of Fall 1956. Following a nation-wide trend, Lehigh was forced to increase tuition $17 for arts and busi- ness students and $200 for engineers to meet rising education expenses. F.arly in October a power failure plunged the entire campus into darkness. With the absence of light mak- ing study impossible, the students looked for diver- sions and hit upon the idea of paying a visit to the girls at Moravian. Crowds of students, singing as they went, marched down campus, across the New Street Bridge, and proceeded to the College where they serenaded the girls. The appearance of an irate Dean of Women and several police squad cars persuaded the students to disperse and wend their way back to the dorms. The minds of Lehigh men turned back to more ser- ious matters with the visit of General Carlos P. Ro- mulo, Philippine Ambassador to the United States. The former president of the UN General Assembly en- lightened his audience on the situation in Asia and emphasized that we need to put more stress on the spiritual values to win in Asia. The same weekend was the occasion for the visit of some 3.500 parents to campus. A bullet luncheon with members of the Faculty, a gridiron victory over Bucknell, tours of the campus, and inspection of the new Health Center were the highlights of the Par- ents ' Day. Fraternity houses and residence halls enter- tained the parents at parties and dinners that evening. The dedication of Fritz Lab drew over 300 promi- Freshman Week has its trials. Perhaps the greatest shock is the receipt of a sizable hill for a handful of books, after years of free education. nent industrialists, engineers, and guests to campus for the ceremonies which included speeches by Eugene- Grace and Dr. Allen Austin, director of the National Bureau of Standards. Putting their pride and joy, the World ' s Largest Universal Testing Machine, through its paces for the benefit of the audience, the engineers had the giant nut-cracker pulling steel bars like t.nt and reducing wood sections to splinters. The machine ' s odd shape soon had wags dubbing the lab The Nut- cracker Suite . South Mountain went into its customary semi-annual eruption with the arrival of Fall House-party which was particularly hellish with the theme of A Night in Hades . Over 1.000 couples kicked their hooves to the red-hot horns of the Sauter-Finegan orchestra. against a backdrop of devil ' s skulls and other grotesque figures. Saturday afternoon the Engineers trampled Temple into the turf of Taylor Stadium to put House- party participants into the proper moeid of celebration for the traditional living group parties that night. Any celebration on the part of the members and guests of Delta Tau Delta and Chi Psi was short-lived, however, as parties serving alcoholic beverages were forbidden by the Dean ' s Office for an infraction of the House- party rules. A jazz-concert in Grace Hall wrapped up the weekend.

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Less than two weeks later an epidemic of intestinal infection hit Lehigh, bedding five men in the new Health Center for a while and incapacitating scores of others. It might be said that for a few days, at least. Lehigh students were the most miserable in the coun- try. Hut it soon passed and life on the Mountain returned to normal until snow, wind, smog and the Lafayette Football Team descended from out of the East to bring misery all over again. The College of Arts and Science came out with a new Honors Program designed to provide tor compre- hensive, advanced study at the undergraduate level. Due to begin in hall L956 it consists of special seminars in the four basic areas of human knowledge. Arcadia elections were held in December instead of March for the first time. The platforms of the twenty- two candidates consisted of the issues of eating plans for the new University Center, twenty-four-hour health service, parking problems, and student-administration relations. December brought the announcement that Lehigh would receive S° 3T000 out of the Ford Foundation ' s half-billion-dollar grant to be used to help increase faculty salaries in the College of Arts and Science. Seniors shattered all records for the Insurance Gift Plan as hard working solicitors turned in an unprece- dented number of subscriptions. A strictly Non-University function which was pri- vately sponsored but attended by a large number of the student body, dates, and friends was the Stan Rubin- Wilbur deParis Dixieland Concert immediately before Christmas Vacation. Jazz, beer, and Lehigh students turned the affair into a blast ' ' that will live long in the memory of students and Deans alike. The issue of the Broun and While for January 10 read more like a New York tabloid than a college news- paper as it carried stories on two major campus fires, and three auto accidents which resulted in the death of one Lehigh student and serious injury for another. A spectacular early morning fire gutted a wing of Williams Hall causing an estimated S100.000 damage and the loss of much valuable research materials, books. and reports. Only the stupendous efforts of the firemen kept the entire building from being destroyed by the blaze which was visible for miles. Some thirty-eight hours later horseplay on the part of a few students resulted in tire which quickly trans- formed a room in Dravo into a charred shambles. The students involved were subsequently permitted to with- draw from the University. Basketball Manager Frank Witherineton was the The south side of Pucker Hall was tin scene of activity all through the year as the new addition sloul) rose from the ground. The inside of Packer Hall indeed looks different now than it did during the days when it housed classrooms, drawing rooms, and offices. Only the trails ttere left standing dur- ing the renovation. 11