New-York tribune., 1903-03-08

the floor and cut them out; to cohlFlnuLe
q cent or a eruff Nor as the fancy strikes,
to aid a young student in his subscription Tor
a Fourth of July punch. Old women OF coloI
do not pretend to be able to tell whether the
youths beside them will pay their fares or
request their hands in marriage or brush theT
the troubles Of their highly cheCkered careers
A Commonwealth-ave. baby on hne spring
afternoon soon learns to expect a KISS from
every gayly decorated male who appears on
the scene-an initiate who may easily nave
kissed thirty such infants previous to this one
There are other little incidents that the fel-
lows mention to a newspaper man with an air
of 'it wouldn't do to print"-the regular yearly
custom of decorating the fagpoe in front OF
the Law School, and after hauling the deCOra-
ton up to the top cutting the halyards, so
that the Cambridge police have to shoot at 1t
all the early morning to break IT up ana end
the scandal The tale is rivalled by the story
of the two medical students who bought at
a crowded drug store in Boylston-st. two
direction of their initiators, and distributed
to the waiting throng as the extra OF the best
''Evenin' Paper, last edition
Let it not be supposed that all OF these Har-
ward stunts utterly pointless. Surely there
is true scientific spirit in requiring the lucky
neophytes to arise at 3 in the morning, walk
over to the chilly Charles River and drop in a
pebble to see which way the tide is running
Nowhere is found a greater devotion to the
spirit of cleanliness than when these same
| young gentlemen, a half hour later perform
| their ablutions in the Bratte Square horse
trough, icy cold. How many OF their religious
/ lives have dated from this same first morning
! when they proceeded, uncravated, uncolared
4
/ for morning prayers! Rarely Is Iouno on d
/ Boston elevated car such politeness in giving
/ up seats as is required Of these neophytes' or
such courtesy as when the neophyte takes on
his hat to every policeman. Kind solicitude for
the neatness of others is personif1ed in the Iad
| who stands at the entrance of each Harvard
SQUARE car and with a small broom politely
/ brushes the coat Of each passenger as ne en-
| ters A most laudable desire to save properly
/ at cost of life and limb is shown in that graphic
| scene where several men, hidden under desks
and chairs, at the sound Of the bell rush out
! like the fire engines they initiate and eXtlh-
| guish la cuspidor the dimlnutlVe paper liIe
! started on the hearth by an upper class man. II
| is undoubtedly good exercise Tor a IneLoer per- o.
! the crew to practise his stroke with two tooth-
| picks especially in the presence OF half a nun
| dred of Boston's girls, at Huyler's ana II IS
| magnificent training In patience 10 ron d pea
! nut up Park-st. hill with the same kind Of an
! instrument. Pride takes its pTOVerDlal ran
when one of the members of BostOn's most Sc
| Loot families stroIls up and down TremOnt-st,
| Droclaining vehemently, L am CaDot! am
| a CABOT" The motormen and conductors do
| not seem to recover from their resentment at
| being hailed by a youth who when the car has
| stopped quietly rests his foot on the STEP tles
| his shoe and remarks, gratefully, Ihank you;
| I-c,, nav 90 on now" If a neophyte stop five
| cars in succession and accomplish TINS niue
comedy his reputation is MADE forever IN the
! often the stunts are more complicated. in
| VOWED and difficult. The sturdy old New-Eng-
| land spirit surely came to life again IN thaC
| DotTiotic- freshman who travelled from LeXinG-
| ton TO Concord one night recently, knocking at
/ I'll IN, - for,,,1o,,sa door and shouting to each
/ alarmed inmate: "ThC Regulars are coming! Inc
! Regulars are coming!" Rare dramatic promise,
! more or less visible, distinguished an lncldent
I in a drug store opposite the TOurane. TWO
vou0p men undoubtedly perfect strangers to
! each other walked in and asked innOcently Tor
chocolate vichys After tasLlng OF mem l,t 9L.t
| men were suddenly seized with the most violent
| pains and the store became a turmoil. Ihe
| clerks and the proprietor sampled anXiousy the
! chocolate syrup, the cream, the vtchy; doctors
! were sent for: q crowd gathered; some one rang
/ in an ambulance cali; three buTly policemen took
| charge of the establishment, and the joke might
I 6oyro hoovo 6{
! trolabIe giggIe Of a man in a red cap. The
/ whole party wrathfully elected.
| One of the fraternities has commendable
/ practice of recurring its initiates to write and
| present a play in the presence OF It's distin-
| gUished body OF alumni. This is rather more
/ edifying task than blacking an upper class man.
| shoes or running around John Harvards statue
/ fifty times, or chasing an electric car into the
i subway or, if he be the hundredth and last
! man in the ten tens of the Institute of ITO
| or the eightieth in the "Dickey,' suffering the
! woes and sorrows of outrageous rough house"
| Rough the procedure often is, from the time
/ the members Of the "Dickey" come in body
down the street with their peculiar song
/ through the exciting procedure Of calling their
/ chosen victims from their rooms, Immediately
/ assaing them hustling them, just as they hap
/ breathless tUlabled, -maltreated, to the end of
/ the weeks running" as that time of torment
! is termed.
/ But all this unpIeasantness fades away from
/ the vision Of the lucky one when he stands
! John Harvard's statue, or Claverly steps, and
hears the crowd of his society men cheer him
! Often there other mitigating features OF the
/ running; Boston girls are not too unkind 10
/ these neophytes dressed up and sent in TO call
/ or them, with a lot of embarrassing directions
! TO remember; many blindfolded lad, having
danced with young woman. who suppressed
with difficulty her natural giggles has found
MS way back to her in more conventional garb.
i At one party. at least, when the neophyte had
10 act as butler for his friends the plans of the
initiators were foiled by the appearance OF the
young girl OF the house as the maid with whom,
or course, they could not condescend TO converse.
ppt VINO was on terms of the most delightful
equality with the butler. A prominent member
I OF Boston publishing firm made his acquaint-
! arce with his business house Ia q most un-
! fortunate manner. With a tremendous bundle
I Of newspapers and magazines under each arm.
he was obliged 70 go TO the head Of the firm and
represent himself as young author who desired
I TO publish some OF his works. On his immediate
dismissal, his chances were not improved by the
/ question his tnittators had commanded him to
ask. Mr.. -. do you really believe Jonah was
/ in the body OF the whale three days?" How
ever the neophytes may renounee all claims to
/ humanity and take vows Of humility and alb
| soluts obedience, there ie much compassion felt