The following appeared in a farewell editorial in The Daily Northwestern, on May 28:

They say Harvard is the best university in the country. It has the tradition, the faculty, the money; it has everything, its graduates say.

There are lots of us who would like to think that about Northwestern. Because we have everything Harvard has--and more. We're old, loaded, in a good location, have an overall brilliant faculty, and even have girls.

Why not, then, the reputation?

We think the reason is nerve. Time and again it's Harvard in the news, it's Harvard taking a positive stand. Time and again it's Harvard professors on the block, on the Pulitzer Prize list, on the witness stand. But the reputation is still solid, the trustees still support it, and they're still turning 'em away every year.

Because it's a university with nerve.