The San Francisco call., 1909-05-25

LAW TO Be UPHELD
Board of Education Says There
Is Nothing TO Do but En-
force Statute
Rabbi KapIan Declares Frats
Would Bar Abraham Linz
coin and Jesus Christ

High school frsternalism found
stout door to which ii had no key
yesterday when it sought TO parley with
tie board OF education in the matter of
the enforcement of the state law re-
Gently enacted against the secondary
school organizations. Several OF the
representatives of the "frats" sought to
interest the board by stating how pre-
eminently worthy the organizations en-
braced in the interfraternity council
were as compared with the lesser
breed" of school societies, but School
Director Thomas f. Hayden said: This
matter is not very exciting; all we have
to do is to enforce the law" Then the
lads and their attorneys went out.
RABBI ATTACKS FRATERNITIES
Rabbi Bernard Kaplan remained in
the directors room and delivered a Bit
ter denunciation of the fraternities and
rebuked President O'Connor of the
board for his seeming apathy in treat
ing with the young folks. Rabbi Kap-
Ian declared that the spirit of the fra
ternities was such that neither Lincoln
nor Christ would have been chosen to
membership had the "frats" existed at
the time Of their school days. He also
Neil as an illustration of the pernicious
influence of the frats.
Rabbi Kaplan said:
These frats are a detriment TO edu-
cation generally and menace TO de-
mocracy They are a detriment to those
who belong to them. as it turns their
attention to social pleasures rather than
to their studies 1t is as Professor
James of Harvard said, A man can not
be a dude and a student Professor
Jordan of Stanford university had TO
send a letter TO the fraternities TO call
attention TO their inferior scholarship.
1t also interferes with the education of
those who do not belong to the fraterni-
ties. because the treatment they receive
from the fraternity members makes
them lose their love for their school.
There is the case of the high school girl
of this city who committed suicide on
account of the Sights given her because
she did not belong to fraternity
INTERFERE WITH DISCIPLINE
"A school teacher tells me that fra
ternities Interfere with discipline That
by reprimanding member of a fra
ternity a teacher incurs the displeasure
Of other members, as they hang to-
gether very strongly and the result is
that the teacher may hesitate to repri-
mand a fraternity member.
But their most deleterious influence
is on the true American spirit of equal
ity If Abraham Lincoln went to the
public schools he could not have been
admitted to some of these fraternities
on account OF his clothes and uncouth
appearance. Jesus himself could not
have been admitted because he was the
son of q carpenter and Of humble origin.
These things interfere with the proper
development of the American principle
of equality and justice for al"
President O'Connor advised the
speaker that the matter had been set
tied. Rabbi Kaplan replied earnestly
that the president of the board should
not have intimated that if the law was
adiudged unconstitutional he would let
the fraternities continue in their
course.
PLEA FOR FRATERNITIES
Warren Manley, a graduate member
Of the Gamma Eta Kappa, and secre-
tary Of the interfraternity council, and
L. r. Weinmann of Phi Sigma, attor-
ney for the council, were the spokes-
men at their hearing.
NauIev very carefully eXpla lned that