THE SALEMITE
Friday, October 3, 1958.
RATS
Rat Week has come and gone—again. Each year the campus is
deluged with outlandish costumes, inane serenades, and strained tempers
when the Freshmen are properly initiated into college life.
For one day and a half the college suffers a regression into the
immaturity of the initiation; and the Freshmen go on as they did before
—no better adjusted and no better acquainted with the ways of college
life.
Do not construe this to be a criticism of this year’s sophomore
class. It is not that. If there is any dignity in such an occasion, then
this year’s sophomore class has attained it more than any other. At
least the torment has been milder.
Now, can anyone tell The Salemile why college women, who range
in age from eighteen to twenty-two years, persist in this undignified,
immature, and useless practice? Can anyone say what possible positive
values such a practice has? How does it further social adjustment?
Precisely, what is accomplished ? And for whom is it done ?
Student Center Yields
Poor Investment Returns
In 1956 the College built a Student Center for the pleasure and use
of Salemites. The investment has not given even fair returns. Why
no one has used the Center remains a mystery; but the fact that it
should be used is a problem being worked on by the Student Center
Committee.
The greater part of the Student Body bypasses the Center on their
way to and from classes, so inconvenience of location is certainly not a
liability. However, its assets are many—colorful and comfortable furni
ture arranged nicely, a free juke box and TV,, a telephone; good light
ing, a snack bar and men’s room; and plenty of ash trays.
The Center provides on-campus daters with a place where they can
make noise without disturbing dormitories; it could be used during the
day as a meeting place for faculty and students outside of class, minus
the confusion and crowdedness of the soda shop across the street; stu
dents could convene there after classes for a cigarette and refresher
glance at their lecture notes; or perhaps they could discuss points brought
out by the professor. This is not to say that students do this; but
wouldn’t it be a good idea ?
The Student Center Committee is trying to make the place even
more lucrative.
What do you want ? An engraved invitation ?
Day Student Center Is
Inadequate, Unattractive
While the commodious Student Center goes to waste, the Day Stu
dent Center upstairs houses thirty some commuters in two cramped
unsightly rooms. Somehow the Day Student Center never receives the
attention of the administration when time for redecoration comes around,
perhaps because the day students themselves do not make their situation
known.
The large room which is considered the Day Student Center is cold,
uncomfortable (wicker furniture isn’t conductive to sitting) and useless
as a place to study. For the most part it is used by organizational,
groups from the college and the city, for conventions, lectures and dances.
The Day Students are cramped in their two rooms in the back
rooms too small to accommodate them comfortably, and too unsightly
to be hospitable. In addition, the day students are forced to hear the
organ in Old Chapel all hours of the day—though the music may be
pleasant it is also disturbing, particularly when the girls want to study.
Periodically the rooms are converted into dressing areas and make
up center for stage productions in Old Chapel. And the litter is not
always cleared after each performance.
No one ever hears complaints from the day students because they
do not frequent the dormitory social rooms and gripe along with the
rest of us.
As one stoical day student remarked to me “We are cramped—I’d
like to see the wall between the two rooms taken out to ease the traffic
between the rooms. But I guess we can make do. If it only weren’t
for that ORGAN !’’ ^
^alemtte
Published every Friday of the College year
by the Student Body of Salem College
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Editor-in-chief Jean Smitherman
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Feature Editor Erwin Robbins
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Headline Editor Sarah Ann Price
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Columnists: Sandy Shaver, Mary Jane
Mayhew.
Faculty Advisor Miss Jess Byrd
Typists Irene Noel, Joanne Doremus
Asst. Advertising Manager Lynn Ligon
/Jncund
Don’t let the above title throw
you. It seems that campus acti
vity has been centering around the
flagpole during the past few days.
Frequent visitors’ to this area were
little girls with clothes upside down
and backwards ■—■ heads bedecked
with yellow ribbons and name tags,
hair pressed down with baby-oil,
and paint or frustrated expres
sions on their make-up-less faces.
You see, the flag-pole is neutral
territory where RATS are safe
from sophomore terrors.
As annual as RAT Week (can t
understand why we call it Rat
Week since it lasts for only one
day) is the inevitable discussion
on the good and evil of such a
ceremony. Is the ultimate objec
tive to properly indoctrinate fresh
men to college life? To foster
sophomore-freshman relations? To
get to know the freshmen better?
Letters to the Editors
Assembly
Dear Editor,
After last Thursday’s assembly,
I heard several fellow students ask
if the answers to the questions
posed by the Student Council
would be published in the next
issue of the Salemite.
For the information of those stu
dents who perhaps want their edu
cation pre-digested and handed to
them on a silver platter, may I
point out the fact that the library
on the Salem College campus is
located on the corner of West
Street and Church Street, across
from Clewell dormitory. It is open
five days a week from 8 a.ra. to
10 p.m.
—Sallie Hickok
Color-heaven
Dear Tendrils,
The color scheme in your article
last Friday, though symbolically
very interesting, would be a castas-
trophe in reality according to the
rules of good interior decoration.
This catastrophe happened on
Salem’s campus Iiowever, in the
Home Management House.
Of course, all of the home eco
nomic majors were delighted at
the idea of a clean, re-papered
house. We sincerely appreciate
what has been done but are sorry
to report that the new interior
goes against all of the principles
of decoration that we have been
taught.
It is quite evident • that Mrs.
Snow, our department head, did
not plan the redecoration process.
According to her teaching in the
past, the new interior has no plan
or controlled use of the various
colors and textures which could
have been used so successfully.
The home economics students do
say, “Thank you,” to the person
thoughtful enough to want to im
prove our house, but we do wish
that they had consulted someone
who knows interior decoration be
fore putting up the present “catas
trophe”.
Each piece of wallpaper used is
lovely in itself, but they have been
put together in our house in such a
way that we are ashamed of it.
'Yes Tendrils, we like your colors
as symbols, but we are sorry that
Salem has just about the same
colors used in reality in the Home
Management House.
Lucinda Oliver
Lewis Terms GuignebeiTs
JESUS Valuable Reading
Jesus by Charles Guignebert, Professor of the History of Christianity
in the Sorbonne (University of Books, N. Y., 1956), is probably one of
the best of the fifteen or sixteen attempts by twentieth century his
torians to apply latest methods of historical criticism to the ages-old
problem of the life of Jesus and beginnings of Christianity. Guigne-
bert’s book appeared in French in 1933, but was not available in English
translation until 1956, and was acquired by our Salem College library
this year.
In his foreword to the book, Robert H. Pfeiffer, Hancock Professor
at Harvard, says of Guignebert’s work: “Aside from the present volume,
only Maurice Goguel, The Life of Jesus (1933; French original, 1932)
may be regarded as a serious attempt to write a critical and objective
historical work, free from personal preconceptions.” Another quote
from Pfeiffer’s foreword characterizes the book’s general point of view:
“We need to be reminded-again by Guignebert of the strict and sober
discipline required of the true historian. Guignebert disclaims both the
preconceptions of the Christian dogmatist and those of the rationalist,
and adopts the methods and ideals of the true historian.”
Only a historian equal in caliber to Guignebert would be qualified
to judge the success of Guignebert’s book in achieving and maintaining
this high ideal of impartiality. However, the ordinary lay reader can
not help but be impressed throughout the book by the author’s sincere
determination to maintain the point of view of the “true historian,” as
well as be impressed by the painstaking scholarship of this great Biblical
historian from the University of Paris.
In Part I, “The Life of Jesus,” Guignebert treats thoroughly all the
traditional problems concerning Jesus’ name, his birth, his family his
childhood and education, his public career, his death and resurrection
He tries to cull out the simple historical facts from among all the hodge
podge mass of accretions from the Hellenic mystery cults and from the
changes and additions made by early Church theologians and apologists
to establish some pet doctrinal point.
“The Teaching of Jesus,” Guignebert applies the sharp
tools of historical criticism again to cull out the nucleus of Jesus’ teach
r/niTi u” contradictory sayings and doctrines
well-meaning apologists with some sort of doctrinal axe
to grind.
f *7*’® Death of Jesus and The Easter Faith,” seeks the
facts that can be supported best by historical evidence from among the
He_also tries to giv
”—on which
Anyone interested in getting just about as close to tK= u- j
historical facts in the life and career of Tes^s is lo
mid-twentieth century stage in the development of histo ^ th‘S
find Jesus by Guignebert valuable reading. science will
-Dr. Michael Lewis
To give the sophomores that up
perclassman feeling? Whatever the
goal—the resultant end is the same;
a few get their feelings hurt, some
even cry, some are passe, some
take it with a grain of salt and
enjoy themselves. There are some
hard feelings—there are some who
become closer acquaintances and
there is always the rumor that
“Ratting was so bad this year that
next year’s class isn’t going to
have it.” We’ll see.
Our “maiden’s monastary” was
invaded by a real true to life
Yankee. His name was Harvey
something or other and he hails
from Brooklyn, New York, Sarah
Ann Price was his constant com
panion. Harvey was a refreshing
change from the otjierwise almost
stereotyped southern gentleman
that darkens our portals.
Three weeks of school can’t pass
without the mentioning of jewelry
exchanges. Mary Cox, Connie Mc
Intyre, Ruth Bennett, and Toni
Lamberti seem to prefer adorning
their outfits with pins. Hov/ever,
there are an astounding number of
Salemites that decided to swear
off glittering pins and bulky rings
—and “return them to their right
ful owners.”
Did you know we have a Patti
Berg and Sam Snead on campus?
Miss Byrd and Dr. Gramley teamed
up and played together in a Scotch
foursome. Although they were not
‘the victors—I’m confident they gave
their opponents a fit.
The cries of Mrs. Snow were
heard in the Home Management
House this week. Home Nursing
Class had a visitor in the form of
“a little black snake.” Shirley
Ann Hardy came through with
'flying colors as she stomped on
the squirming intruder and put an
6nd to his wiggling. The riot was
quailed!
Juniors and seniors remember
the foreign student, Christa Men-
zel, from Hamburg, Germany.
Christa is now the fiance of Ralph
Seivers, a Winston-Salem lad she
became acquainted with during her
year at Salem. You see, absence
can so make the heart grow fonder.
Tendrils may have found himself
in color heaven—but he should
have wandered down to the dining
hall to see the real color improve
ment. Cheers to whoever is re
sponsible for the painting and re
arranging in the dining hall. The
seating arrangement is so confus
ing that it’s next to impossible to
pair-off in “class cliques.” I’m of
the opinion that this is good. Of
course, for a few days I felt as
though I was walking into a room
full of strangers and could never
seem to locate a familiar face. But
integrating classes isn’t so bad—
'is it?
Monday is the first time I’ve
seen Salemites leave assembly open-
mouthed and befuddled. I dare say
some of us were a bit taken back
by Jean Smitherman’s onslaught of
questions. However, if such an
approach is necessary to provoke
serious thoughts in our otherwise
unprofaned minds—I say good, the
means are justified.
Do you want to be a “culture
vulture” ? How many were present
last Monday night for Joan Jacob-
owsky’s voice recital. The program
lent itself to the musical tastes of
almost any listener with a variety
of French, German, Spanish, or
the more familiar English songs.
Continue to attend such concerts
and aid in making your liberal
education a little more liberal.
Being a true and faithful mem
ber of this institution’s Senior
Class, I have decided to plug the
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