New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-10-21
OXFORD UNDERGRADUATES
WRITTEN AND UNWRITTEN LAWS OF
DRESS AND SOCIAL ETIQUETTE
IN THE UNIVERSITY.
Prom The National Review.

trOduces fashion in dress the Tiee 49,,
cenor and heads Of college are to sit in in5g-
Hlent upon II Cap and gown must always ne
worn IN public. Fines. or lines" are TO he +Ta
punishment Of those who refuse to comply with
the vice-chancelloT's orders
The undergraduate must be revereot tox,o-z
his seniors-even the Bachelors have a claim an
nls respect; he must not wander or Finger in
me lohn' ne must not enter the houses Of the
to~nsI'eople without reasonable excuse he
must uot attend the Town Council meetings the
Sessions. or the Assizes- Tayerus vino -br-,s
and similar places Of resort ara forEi6Ia, 80
while shops where 'herha nicotiana (sive To-
baccc) oTdInaTe venditur' are anatherpa mara
hathas and may be visited only -'ex causa neces-
torres spurobanda-~ The scholars r71,st aIts+.f-,
rom games which cause danger 10 life: hunting.
aIc-lely anu hawking are forbidden Under
graduates must not drive in carriages unless
they are siclly. and may not keen a horse ar
servant unless they have written permission
Almost al these regulations have been rnodf-
i-l ia d striking manner by unwritten Ian:
the garment Of "subfusc~ hue IS no longer CON
PElsc-y. and The Times in a Leader sor7a
months ago remarked The IN =ergra 5ilate Of
the early years OF the century affected gorgeous
N--StIoais ana was more less Of q dan5v.
his IN d. steele successor walks the High or ne
kings Parade in the costume of an acrobat or
G. q groom Cap and gown, al oxford a least
are now compulsory only al lectures and other
college functions. and after dinner in the even
Ing. Lines abolished as a punishment.
laFerns' OF, al any rate, restaurants are toierat
&C. louacco SHOPS are universally and shameless
y trequeniec- The phrase games which cause
danger 10 life has been held not To include
Rugby football The rule as 10 driving is .
curious instance Of the capriciousness Of IN
written law one obtain leave TO drive
dogcaTt, driving tandem is however strictly for
bldoen and sternly suppressed.
'-TosHERs~ AND COLLEGE MEN
One Of the best features Of Oxford is this. that
q mans parentaEe is never discussed or in
CURED into. II is taken for granted that ne Is
= gentleman. whatever his appearance may be
unless he proves himself TO be the contrary.
tF14E aD,zT-4I "a
there are exceptions. Sometimes we may hear
q man express contempt for his neghbor be
cause he Is q nobody, and complain that the uni
FtEsiA IS open 10 al sorts OF Founders now
adays- Such are happily rare: IN general
pstrician and plebeian live terms Il amity
with one another, and meet on terms OF equality
with one another. 10 their common advantage
This Is hardly the case with the unattached
students (they cali them "toshers' in varsity
sIang)- Living apart. and outside the pale of
college life, they do not get the opportunities
which roz,e in rba way n the college men s1d
50 they have none Of those feelings Of solidarity I
and esprit de corps which knit together men
Of the same college and tend 10 place them on
the same footing Hence. II Is always well TO
enter at q college II possible, Al any rate during
q part Of ones tine al the varsity for IS the
college life which supplies that peculiar training
which Is one Of the chief virtues and advantages
Of q university career
Readers Of that Iniuitable novel. ~Nerdant
Green viii remember many mistakes made by
the hero They were mistakes which he could
mol well avoid, rs they were breaches Of IN
written law, which as a Law Of details, IS most
Sem too trivial to be mentioned: they concern
dress the proper way Of wearing academicals I
and thousand other details One curious point
Is that undergraduates never shake hands with
ou- another If you ask twenty freshmen 70 /
Breakfast. the probability Is that eighteen Of /.
them Viii iustincliyeiy hold out their HAMS TO
you on entering the room. Ask the same twenty T.
men q week two later and not viii 90 /
s1- a good morning and nod viii be all that /
YOU VIII get This custom applies only to IN 1
CerETaduates. and not 10 dons II Is customary 4
n shake hands with q don. Indeed. q good
story told Of 2 young varsity man. elected /
=lICV u his college AZ early date. Shortly 4
after his election ne gave a breakfast party 10
run1ry q his college friends. who We're still il Z
s-aru pLpiliari. To MS horror, when they came /
in they al shook hands with him They looked /
on him as q don though ne had spent his under /
graduate days with them.
SUNDAY DRESS
The etiquette Of dress is most confusing. As
mentioned above. the --sBbfUsC- hues Of the
statutes have been changed by common con
sent still Up quite recent times IL was con
Stored CONNIE i faUt 10 put dark clothes on
Sundays Now this custom is dying out and
afsity men may be seen in knlckerbockers
ana Norfolk jackets On the day Of res. F3r
this change the bicycle Is partly responsible. !
i i only fair add that a large section Of
UNDERGRADUATES condemn the spirit OF innoya-
ton which allows light coats and bicycling
SUNDAY But theirs il a lost cause Time was
y han even Inc river a forbidden JOY the
- rbzt n now il SWaTTnS II the Summer with
TYl1n-E and Canadian canoes. Caps-that is TO
say cloth caus-Tere LabOoed that day: now
they are 10 be seen in thousands, though the