University of Massachusetts Amherst - Index Yearbook (Amherst, MA)

Page 19 text:

We are respectfully requested to communicate to the Index. What! we, Freshles, so low down in the depths of ignorance, and so awkward and uncouth in military evolutions, to place a communication beside that of the learned and stylish Sophs. Are we, who are expected to retire at the latters ' commands, and to be suffocated with smoke at their pleasure, to receive equal courtesy from the upper classes ' I If so, an inconsistency is apparent ; and either the Juniors have descended from their proper level, or the Sophomores lack the civility of gentlemen. To facilitate a solution of this, we beg leave to refer any one to the President ' s tal on the morning of Sept. 3d, which, by the way, is the happiest lecture we have yet heard, and one that we fully appreciated. JSTow we do not propose to take up your space with our griev- ances and trials, but we earnestly hope, and do believe, that the day is not distant, when all class prejudices will have been banished from the colleges throughout our land. We are pleased to note that the better sense of stu- dents, in many of,; our institutions of learning, has gained the ascendency over hazing, while in others rigorous measures are taken for its suppression. Of the many in- stances that we might cite, we notice Williams College, which has recently, through the efforts of its Faculty, put an end to the disreputable practice. Commenting upon the same, a leading educational journal remarks :

Page 18 text:

10 THE INDEX. when it was the custom of the Sophomores to tuck the Freshmen nicely into bed, so as to make them feel more at home, only five or six of the Freshies could be found around the dormitories, as a mania for sleeping down town seemed, to have possessed most -of them. This same night our infant, at the head of a valiant crowd of Sophs., made a midnight visit to one of the new ar- rivals, but finding himself confronted by a graduate of Yale, he thought it would be prudent to retire and in- gloriously retreat. One evening, near the first of the term, when we were quietly studying, we suddenly heard a cry for ' 78. Of course we obeyed the call and found that it proceeded from the Freshmen, who were on the Campus, yelling as loud as they could. By the noise they made they must have been inspired with a great deal of courage, but we soon formed our men and sent the thermometer of their ardor down to zero, by giving them a little rush backward, for exercise. After this, we shook hands, and since then our relations with them have been very pleasant and friendly. There is a great deal said, at the present time, against rushing in our colleges. But we can see no harm in rushing as we do here, where such good feeling exists between the classes. Now, we will close, hoping that when we again have occasion to write for the Index, our numbers will not have decreased, and we shall have gained much in knowledge. H.

Page 20 text:

12 THE INDEX. We hope for the good order, good sense, and good reputation of one New England College, if in no more, that the execution is as eif ectual as the hangman ' s knot, and that there will be no resurrection of a barbarous practice, either in body or in spirit. In some colleges Sophomores are required, on pain of expulsion, to sign papers to the effect that they will, un- der no circumstances, haze a fellow student, while differ- ent methods for its abolition are resorted to in others. How the change is effected matters not, but that it be done we believe all candid persons will admit. Class of ' 79 ! How distant does that sound. What endearing friendships will be consummated, and what ties dissevered, ere Old Father Time brings ' round that now distant year. But the moments pass quickly, and the days glide by, and the months and years roll on, classmates, slowly, but yet so surely that, ere we are aware of it, o ur four years will have passed, and we be launched upon life ' s fluctuating tides. Hence the need that we improve to the utmost our opportunities, and that we cultivate those virtues and principles which are requisite for our guidance when our college days are over. In the Faculty of this college we are fortunate. Of them with whom we have had intercourse, we speak in unqualified terms of praise. We appreciate their in- terest in us, and hope to merit their constant favors. Let us not receive the false impression that to them alone is intrusted our success in the pursuit of knowledge ; that they are responsible for any failure in the fulfillment of our mission here. Classmates, it lies with us ; it is for us to decide what progress shall be made and what attain- ments acquired,; what duties perfoimed, and what slighted ; and it is we who are amenable for any lack there may be in our acquirement of the studies here pursued. Then may we so improve the present, and be so influenced throiighout our course that, looking back, we can see not one cause for regret. The future is be- fore us. May it bring days of prosperity to us all. B.