Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-12-07

veys among 40 colleges and uni
versities to learn what had hap
pened to that old-time perennial "shocker," the
report of hazing that sent half dozen fresh
men to the hospital and half a dozen upper
classmen packing home, expelled. Both papers
received, in answer to their inquiries, polite
letters from college presidents. In tones of
gentle surprise almost every one replied that
hazing was obsolete, that it had died natural
death or, in those few places where it still ex-
lists, that it was dying, would be entirely q
thing of the past in the next few years.
The schools questioned included some of the
most prominent in the United States-Princeton,
Yale, University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers, Penn
State Bryn Mawr, Bucknel Swarthmore, Le-
Nigh, lafayette, Columbia.
THE inquiry was carried still further. In
vestigators were sent to college campuses
TO learn the student attitude toward this one
time inevitable initiation into the joys and
privileges of higher education.
"Hazing?" came one Columbia sophomore's
nonchalant reply. "Oh, hazing was all right in
dads day. But what fun is there in watching
simple freshman push peanut down Broad
way with his nose? OF course, the frosh' have
TO wear queer hats and few things like that,
but those things are to help them more than
anything else 1t makes it easier for the fresh
men to get acquainted with each other"
At Princeton the sophomore questioned
laughed openly at the idea. "I was reading
just the other day about hazing," he said. IT
guess they used to be pretty rough with he
frst-year men, made them swim the canal and
all that, but it's as dead as the dodo bird now
Why, there hasn't even been any 'horsing' in
is years. and haZing died out before they took
TO 'horsing.' Hcrsing,' you know, was just a
matter Of making the freshmen march to their
meals in lockstep and keep pretty strict hours.
lay q hand on a freshie"
At Yale the answer was the same. "Oh haz-
ing doesn't amount to much any more. What
there is of it is connected with fraternity initi-
atoms, and it's pretty tame-queer clothes and
foolish stunts. But even that is dying out
Why? Probably for the same reason college
boys don't wear flowing mustaches any more
it's out of date"
AT Bryn Mawr pert young lady of 10
looked up from beneath a jaunty beret and
laughed at the question. How silly! Why,
there never was any real hazing at Bryn Mawr.
Girls just don't do such things. Oh, maybe in
mothers day they did put cracker crumbs or
salt in freshman's bed, but that isn't even
funny, now, is it?"
THOSE answers seem to just about sum up
the present-day attitude toward hazing,
It's not excruciatingly funny; it's out of date,
its childish. In these days of motor cars and
Va
things occupy their minds; other pastimcs,
other recreations, other ways of showing the
freshman that he isn't quite the all-important
parsonage he sometimes thinks he is Psyche
logical tests under faculty supervision perhaps
help to take the edge of "cockiness" of the
newcomer. Organized interclass contests help
TO take care Of the excess energy that once ran
wild. Other interests offer more sure-fire
amusement. And in this new day and age even
college students have begun to realize that COM
plete submergence of the ego is not always de-
sirable. Curtailment Of privileges sufices to
put the flrst-year men in their places-enforced
hours In the dormitories, bans against auto
mobiles for freshmen. restrictions against their
use of certain buildings, Railways or meeting
places.
To the Peter Pan grad of yesteryear all this
may seem quite nanby-namby. Why" he will
say, I'm my day" And he will reel of story
after story Of paddlings, canings, strappings and
all sorts Of physical hazing of gauntlet-running,
of icy baths, Of enforced personal service But
seldom viii he reveal those incidents that finally
brought just that type of hazing to its inevitable
end-broken bones, real physical beatings even
deaths
Fifteen. 20 and IS years ago every Autumn
found stories Of that sort of hazing on the front
pages Of every newspaper In America. Annap-
.s.,N'1i fts& evys2