Princeton University - Nassau Herald Yearbook (Princeton, NJ)

Page 19 text:

1936 Class Memorial Committee superb boldness many of us frequented the smoky confines of grogshops to quaff beer which tended to anesthetize the taste buds at once and other senses subsequently if a sufficient quantity were absorbed. Trenton and Kingston were celebrated in legend as being very entertaining, but turned out to be overrated. Kingston has been called a resort. A more apt term would be last resort. But not for long was the class to grope in this maze of apparent unreal- ities. We had not been here many weeks before the much heralded uni- forms were upon us. In them we encountered the first manifestations of professorial contumley. In them we had our initiation into that perfidious realm encompassing cramming, worrying and tutoring. We learned that although the number seven might under certain conditions be a happy one to see on the cubes, such is not the case when that figure appears on a long, narrow strip of paper hung in Nassau Hall. The annual Princetonian questionnaire submitted to the Freshmen re- vealed that only about one-half the class had any idea who the proctors ■were. The other half admitted a taste for fermented beverages. From this premise it seems to follow that before long the entire class knew the proctors.

Page 18 text:

with remarkable rapidity just where McCash ended and Dickinson began. Others, less fortunate, and not so well endowed with the pioneer spirit regularly took from one-half to three-quarters of an hour to get from University Place to a class in McCosh. It is even reported that one plump member of the class, who was later to become prominent in dramatics, missed two classes because he mistook the Chapel for Dickinson and waited in the former for several hours somewhat abashed that no professor appeared. At this early epoch in our college career we wandered about in what might be described as the limbo of unconsciousness. As Freshmen we were in Princeton all right. Dean Heermance had told us that. But somehow we felt that things could go along without our help. Commons was an unin- spiring place to dine and for some reason one could not help but feel a little droll parading around with a dink and a black tie. Such raiment was distinctive, to be sure, but thus attired it was not possible to reach any great heights of dignity. The words sophistication and freshman came to seem more and more antithetical. Prospect Street was the local Olympus where numerous gods and occasional goddesses congregated to partake of food amid sumptuous surroundings. Our recreation was, legally speaking, confined ro healthful athletics. Under cover of night, however, and with the feeling of intense deviltry and The Class Day Committee C xiv 3

Page 20 text:

-13 3E- We were introduced to local society at a mass debut given at Prospect and called the Freshman Reception. This affair was highly successful, if one overlooks the fact that most of the female guests were soon well taken care of by numerous upperclassmen who had found it expedient to appear as Freshmen that day. The class soon exhibited a marked inclination toward things athletic. If on the campus we comported ourselves in such a manner as to make the more knowing wonder if we had been apprised of the score, certainly this impression was dissipated on the field. The football team captained by Rulon-Miller was undefeated, untied and unscored upon; which fact Senior Members of the Triangle Club enabled the members of the class to discard their black ties. Ken Willis was highly instrumental in the victory over Yale, indispensable, it might be said, for his field goal was the margin of victory. This record is one that has, of course, not since been equalled, and no amount of combing the archives could uncover a similar record in the history of the college. It was at this time that certain nestors of the gridiron ventured to prophesy the renaissance of football at Princeton. To support their contentions they cited the splendid Freshman team and the advent of Fritz Crisler as coach. To say that these two factors were soon to achieve the long-desired result and [ xvi ]