HOSTILITY TO HARVARD

The recent growth of an unfavorable attitude toward Harvard at Exeter and Andover, and the low esteem, in which Harvard is held throughout the west have caused considerable comment and discussion as to why these conditions exist. The University has done much to combat the situation by modifying the entrance requirements and breaking down, by sane publicity, the barrier of misunderstanding which is keeping away many desirable students from other parts of the country. Problems that naturally arise in this connection awaken in turn a train of further questions, but may be classed in general under a variety of headings.

Are the entrance requirements here, which are unlike those of almost any other college, so peculiar in their demands as to frighten off a large number of prospective students? Is it Harvard's reputation in most point west of Buffalo, of being a "sissy" place which makes many men feel it undesirable to attend college here? Is our arrangement of vacations so unfavorable to the man living at a distance from Cambridge as to be an important factor in his decision regarding a choice of college? Is our athletic policy, which discourages long trips for return games, save under exceptional circumstances, a contributing cause? Does the fault lie in the lukewarm reception which is only too frequently given to school and college teams visiting us? Is the Harvard social system so designed that it repeatedly occasions detrimental resentment among a great many undergraduates and benefits but a few, and is this the one basic cause of the trouble?

These are some of the issues that confront the University, and the Crimson feels that much will be gained by their open discussion. it will devote, therefore, a large part of its editorial columns in the near future to a consideration of these problems and matters of a similar nature, and invites communications from anyone interested in their solution.