University of California Berkeley - Blue and Gold Yearbook (Berkeley, CA)

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prerogative and duty led to the abridgment of, or trespass upon, what the students considered in an indefinite way to be their individual or public liberties, that criticism became at all vehement. Tust so long as the membership of the University remained small, just so long was it possible to continue amicably on such a basis. When the number of students increased into thousands, when the membership of the Faculties doubled and trebled and multiplied many fold, and when the equipment of the University was augmented in proportion, then came the crux. Difficulties, both internal and external, assailed the student body as well as the Faculty and caused the men who were chosen to guide affairs much anxious thought. They, in turn, led others to think with them, and from thinking they turned to planning, and finally out of planning came action. One action led to another and one after another different portions of student affairs have been subject to thoughtful consideration and control. The result is that few now remain for settlement in other than detail, for all have come under some general control, the proper point of view has been .blished. and the necessary and efficient machinery has been devised and installed for dealing with any and all matters relating to student interests. In the earlier days, the number of students was small and largely made up of men. At that time all were able to know one another well and it was simple to arrange common interests. As time went on, however, the numbers became larger and larger: the proportion of women in the student body in- creased ; fraternities, clubs, and athletic interests came in to divide the student bodv more

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responsibility, have come the solutions. They are all the result of the application of more business-like methods in student activities. The student body of the University of California presents certain charac- teristics which are intimately associated with the progress in the matter of student self-government. Dwelling apart from older institutions of the same sort, it has had to develop its own customs and points of view. It has had less of the tradition and influence of the old-time college at work in it. It has lacked many influences which determine the relationships existing between it and the Faculty, some of those which might have worked for good and so me which might have had an opposite effect. Slow to conventional forms and outward show of respect and reverence, it has been prompt to meet half way, at least, what it considered to be proper treatment, as well as to criticize what it considered to be inadequate or injurious treatment of its own rights and privileges, both political and social. In certain ways there has been less of the school-boy attitude and more the view of the citizen in the student attitude at this institution. The earlier view was that the Faculty had for its business, not only the devising of a proper curriculum, prescribing -of proper courses, instituting proper tests of efficiency, etc., but also of enforcing, if necessary, of proper behavior on the part of the student body. The effects of improper behavior of indi- vidual students, or even of larger or smaller bodies of stu- dents, upon the general inter- ests of the student body, seems to have had no part in their thoughts. It was only when some attempt on the part of the Faculty to carry out this 18

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and more, and cliques and factions necessarily arose to separate the once homogeneous mass of students. It was difficult to take any united action and the reputation of the University was at the mercy of any lawless or thoughtless few, without there being any central and authoritative bodv to take action toward control or regulation. The first definite step toward student self-government as a system was taken on March 16, 1887, when The Associated Students of the Colleges of Letters and Sciences of the University of California was founded. The I! hie and Gold of the Class of 1888 thus chronicles the fact : An organization of the student body has been perfected and we may soon expect to see a university spirit and that unanimity and harmony of action which can alone bring strength. As the adoption of the junior plug some eight or nine vears previously had marked the merging of individual and club spirit into class spirit, so the establishment of the Associated Students, with their own officers and committees, marks the merging of the class spirit and separate interests into the general interests of the University. At first the Associated Students had for their sphere the control of all student activities and interests, both general and athletic. The definiteness of its control was, however, not great; and about 1891 or 1892 the athletic interests, which had grown large and influential, were removed from their charge and placed under a new body, the Athletic Association, where they remained until a still stronger growth and attendant confusion caused the abolition of the Athletic Association and the making of the Associated Students again supreme over all student affairs in 1899. In the next year the 20