Page Two
THE SALEM 1T E
February 24. iQ^n
^aouJJAf Bifitem
An honor system works both ways.
Like a tire with a small nail in it, an honor
system with one break isn’t severly damaged
—it’s completely put out of operation. It de
pends besides honor, on the presupposition of
a system—one that is closed and inclusive.
And if the honor of one element is broken,
then the System suddenly ceases to have any
nieaning.
All of which means that here—as anywhere
—an honor system is not the peculiar quirk
or possession of the student body, nor a thing
from wliich the faculty can be detached and
aloof. It implies the participation of the in
structor as welt as the student: otherwise, it’s
little more than a sometime {*h-eoccupation of
college students. The implication is, without
the participation of the faculty, that it’s only
a means to an end, a thing you drop when
,you leave school. It even implies, without
facultj^ inclusion, a deliberate untruth.
There are, of course, many manifestations o^^
faculty inclusion in this system. One of the
most important of these is the nebulous no
man’s land of grading. It’s of the greatest
importance that the relevance of the system
be remembered here, since, despite the occas
ional admission of exterior standards which
make grading an absolute, it’s by and large
a personal process.
Honor in grading, too, implies that the sys
tem be open and free to examination at all
times. Where grading’s been done on a per
centage basis—where the answers, that is; are
pat and final, right or wrong—it’s not hard
to know the score most of the time. But
when an instructor doles out five grades a
year, and. makes up the semester average
from that, it’s important that the student be
allowed to know where she stands—and why
she got there.
So it was a little unpleasant, recently, when
a student here was handed a mid-semester de
ficiency by an instructor who refused to ex
plain either the deficiency or the way it was
reached. This isn’t questioning the merits or
demerits of the student in question. But she
ought to have had. the right to see how she
got the low blow. Else the system was rend
ered suspect.
Some instructors—while we’re on the s.ub-
,iect—believe they have the right to make cut
ting a means of deciding the final grade of a
student. We won’t labor the point; it’s an old
story in every college in the land. At the
same time, it 4»ight be time for a reminder
to instructors that the privilege of cutting is
extended on the supposition that a student
has attained the maturity to know when she
needs to go to class—and when she doesn’t.
If she can get by with less classwork, it’s her
affair; if cutting leads finally to a lower grade,
it’s also her affair. But the cutting in itself
has no place in tlie determination of that
grade, and if it does—and it has happened
here—the theory of cutting is betrayed even
as it’s espoused. This is another of those
breaks we were speaking of—not a big one,
of course, but remember the puncture in the
tire. It doesn’t take a big one.
So that’s all we’re talking about—you don’t
have an honor system without complete parti
cipation. That’s what an honor system is,
when all the Big Thinking’s been done, and
that’s why sometimes all of us need a re
minder of it. It goes for the students—
without saying. WE can hope the saying for
the faculty isn’t necessary again.
^alemite
Published every Friday of the College year by the
Student body of Salem College
Downtown Office--304-306 South Main Street "
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EDITORAL DEPARTMENT
Editor-in-Chief Dale Smith
Associate Editor Joan Carter Read
Associate Editor Ruth Lenkoski
Business Manager
Robert C. Gray
Assistant Business Manager .... Mary Jane Hurt
Advertising Manager Mary Faith Carson
■\ssistant Advertising Manager Bosalyn Fogel.
Circulation Manager Helen Kessler
Facult}' Advisor
Miss Jess Byrd
Editorial Assistants: Lila Fretwell, Lola Dawson,
Polly Harrop. Sis Pooser, Clinky Clinkscales, Fay
Stickney, Be'tsy Farmer, Liz Leland.
Music Editors Cammy Lovelace, Kathryn Pitts
Typists; Ann Sprinkle, Janet Zimmer.
By Sybel Haskins and Winkle Harris
Activitus looked over -|ter glasses from her
lieight of superior wisdom as a member of the
.junior class, “Law yes. I’ve had sophomoritis
myself. You can’t quite know what it is yet,
just being a freshman. Wait until next year.
You'll probably go through that period of
storm and stress, too. How well I remember.
1 was a SOPHOMORE in college. Life was
reaching a crucial point. I had to stop and
take stock of myself. After all, here I was
almost ready to go out into the world, and
what was I prepared to do. NOTHING. I
tore my hair; I paused dramatically on thres
holds. Then, finally, I was the practical one.
What was I getting out of college? I was
preparing to do nothing which would earn
me any money, and ,vou can’t live without
money. Then. AHA! Inspiration. I would
transfer to a place where I could learn to be
a secretary. Evervbody wanted secretaries.
In two years I would be the First Secretary
of the Assistant vice-president of the world
famous firm of Birkhead, Birkhead, Birkhead
and Zombi. I would be a CAREER woman.
Everybody in the smokehouse felt the same
way. We all knew we had to be prepared to
make money when we got out of college. So
we all applied to the greatest University for
Irndies, where we could get one, two or four
years of secretarial work.
We felt wonderful. Life was beginning to
take on MEANING. We took all the courses
necessary for transfer—Analytical Geometr.v,
Relative Biological survey. Anatomical .survey
and a few others. We started working harder.
We laughed our- heads off at the people
who told us we were wrong, that we were
really getting something even though- we didn’t
know it. AYe snickered when anybody said
that this way we were improving our minds,
whereas in a purely meclianical job we woirld
become dull and mechanical people. After
all, we were sophomores in college, we knew
what life meant and we knew what we had to
get out of life. AA^e weren’t getting what we
wanted. AA’'e were going to TRANSFER.
AA"e didn’t transfer. I don’t know whether
I can tell you why. Maybe it was because
someone who had been to secretarial school
said that she regretted what she had done,
sat in an office from nine to five, getting
the same salary as any high school girl with
a few years of typing, and gave us logical
reasons why. Alaybe it was for sentimental
reasons, we had developed an affection for
the school and liked the girls. Maybe it was
because we were a little less sure of ourselves,
a little less certain of what life meant and
of what \\'e wanted to get out of it. Alaybe
—AVell. I guess it was a mixture of many
reasons that brought ms back—.
Acti snapped out ol her daydream. She
looked at the freshman pityingly, “I guess
you'll just have to go through it. I can’t ex
plain such things. You think you’ve, got tro
ubles now. Just wait. In what lies the jus
tice of man's higlier aims concerning the re
lative position of his philosophy? I am search
ing’ for the answer—I am seeking KNO'Y^-
LEDGE. I can’t be bothered with trivialities.
Zdito^:
Ex-comp students will be interested to know
that George Melville is still writing stories
and is making A on composition at Indiana
University, according to a letter Miss Byrd
received from him this week. In fact, George
is working now on a novel.
George also has some good things to say
about the Salemite. He writes:
“I don’t take the school paper here, but I
have read a few issues of it. I don’t get the
idea that the students who work on the
paper get a kick out of it as they do at
Salem. There is a professional tone to the
paper—a reporting that observes rather
than feels and writing that is based on mini
mizing words rather than producing tone
and atmosphere. Ronny Aiken could have
given them some pointers.”
Leach’s Views
that no regular publisher
by Robert Leach
The Salemite has kindly pres
sured me into sharing its editorial
page this week. I can think of no
more timely nor controversial sub
ject to approach than that of the
Roman Catholic Church in relation
to American democracy. For de
cades there has been a tacit assump
tion in our country that adverse
discussion of religious practices is
per se intolerance: especially if any
particular faith is explicitly named.
That assumption is categorically
challenged by Paul Blanchord’s
authoritative work entitled AM
ERICAN FREEDOM AND CATH
OLIC POWER. Blanchard’s thesis
is that the Catholic Church is con
trolled by anti-democratic Italian
personnel, who are systematically
seeking the control of American
political life, by maintaining author
itarian management of American
Catholics in an obscurantist paro
chial school system—and seizure of
the American School System.
Instead of picturing a mythical
“1984” type of development, Blan
chard describes carefully Vhe 1950
Quebec situation, where the Church
had captured the public school
system. Instead of depending upon
his own personal observation and
judgment, Blanchard is scrupul
ously careful to quote extensively
from authoritative Catholic sources.
Topics dealt with include: organi
zation of clergy; attitude toward
the nation; education; medicine;
birth control; miracles; commun
ism'; and Catholic censorship. So
strong in fact is Catholic censor
ship through threats to advertise
touch Paul Blanchard’s book
appears under the sponsorshio •
the Congregationalist Church Pr
and the book has risen to'a*’
best seller lists, although such '
strong newspaper as the Nkvv
YORK TIMES has,been kept h
advertising the book, because
fear of recrimination. °
It is my opinion that Blanchard
has dope us all a great service bv
openly presenting the whole pro^
blem—removing it ’from the realn
of hush-hush, which is destructive
of freedom of opinion. Whether
or not the reader agrees with his
solutions, every faih-minded person
must admit that he presents the
facts approximately as they are. H
appeals to all Americans to pre'
serve the Public School system
free of sectarian control, and he ap
peals particularly to the great body
of non-Catholic -Americans, to as
sert pressure to bring the viewpoint
of the American Catholic clergy
in line with the ideals which the
laity holds. The book is careful
to differentiate between the theo-
logical-liturgjcal position of the
church and its social theories and
advocated practices. It is not the
Catholic “religion”, but its socio
logy which, is under fire. How to
act creatively in a spirit of love,
and yet to remain true to freedom
of conscience is the problem which
is presented by American Freedom
and Catholic Power. A challenge
to all -American faiths is put to us
equal in its importance to the capi
talist-communist dichotomy so fre
quently in our minds.
World News
by Mary Lib Weaver
British Elections
Yesterday the people of Great
Britain voted in their national elec
tions. The Labor Party in pre
election polls were expected to win,
but not until the last vote is
counted will the election outcome
he certain. The Conservative
Party promises lower taxes, and the
Labor Party promises full employ
ment. Neither party has offered
Y practical solution to one of
Britain’s number one problems—
housing. If the Labor Party wins,
Clement Attlee will be Prime
Minister, and if the Conservatives
come out victorious, Winston
Cliurchill will again become leader
of Great Britian. The Labor Party
lias been in power for four years
now. During this time it has de
valued the pound. Even with this
in its background, the experts pre
dict another victory, though not a
landslide for the Labor Party.
Coal Strike
The refusal of coal miners to re
turn to the pits has led to some
talk in Congress on legislation to
allo\v the government to seize the
mines. The President does not
now have seizure power. Federal
Judge Richmond B. Keech has
given another “stop strike” order
to John L. Lewis and the United
Mine Workers. It is to run until
March 3. If this order is not fol
lowed, big fines may be put on the
union. Also a contempt citation
against the union may^ be brought
up. Since Lewis has twice ordered
his miners back to work, and they
have refused both times to follow
these orders, some Administration
authorities have speculated that
Lewis himself may be cleared of
all contempt charges. Negotiations
betyveen Lewis and the coal op
erators a're continuing, but their
progress seems slow. The nations
coal supply is diminishing. The
Ford Motor Company is consider
ing a cut-back in production, and
New York State has been ordered
into a brown-out and coal ration
as a result of the coal strike. Some
officials feel that the miners will
hold out until they’ get their desired
five day’ week.
Leppert’s Reviews
by Betty Leppert
The History of Impressionism is
the type of book that any student
would enjoy looking through—art
major or otherwise. With its 472
pages filled with 407 plates (22 in
full color) detailed accounts of the
various historic group exhibitions,
and complete characterizations of
the impressionist painters, based
on innumerable documents — some
of which are little known or even
unpublished—should interest anyone.
This brilliantly organized, infor
mative book is a prerequisite to the
true understanding of impression
ism as an all important development
in art history and as a major
source of contemporary art. In
deed, we are fortunate to have this
new book among our stacks for
all to enjoy.
Groges Seurat—John Rewald
John’ Rewald produced an excel
lent historical and critical analysis
of the events in Seurat’s life.
There are 97 five illustrations, in
cluding photographs of detail and
four color plates. The author de
finitely showed how facts about
art should be presented and yon
yourself may judge this material.
It is at your disposal.
Tbe Art of tbe Renaissance i®
Northern Europe, by Otto Benesch,
is a discussion of Durev, Grune-
wald, altodrfen, cranach, Holbein
Breugel, the Masters of the Nether
lands, the school of Fontainebleu,
to poets of de Pleiade, and the
great scientists of the late Renais
sance. It is beautifully illustrated
with representative works of
period.
Tbe History of Modern PaintiW
is a book that any connoisseur or
“dilletante”, here at Salem College
should be exposed to. It is an his
torical conspects of the gf®**
schools of painting and chief ad
movements from Bandelaire
Bonnard, and contains a number o
color prints by Monet, Ce’zainne,
Vuil Vuillard and others, with com
ments on each work and its artist