Enrollment Drops to 4,340 As College Registers Today

The cheerful spring term begins paradoxically today--Groundhog Day--with the freezing of the month's first slush and the prospect of signing cards continuously for five minutes.

A total of 4,340 students who have lasted through the fall term (approximately 100 will have dropped out of the College by 5 p.m. today), will register this afternoon, but initial class meetings will be held this morning even before registration starts.

Only the customary "Acts of God" will be considered legitimate excuses for the failure of a student to register in person today, Registrar Sargent Kennedy '28 announced last night, and fines will start at the usual $10 mark.

Yesterday's five-inch snowfall and today's predicted storm probably will not be considered as valid excuses except in certain cases involving transportation.

Kennedy said that 48 students will be returning to register after "leaves of absence." Over half of these are veterans. All undergraduates not in residence during the fall term will register in 3 University Hall from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The drop in the total enrollment can be accounted for by the usual reasons--the draft, financial and academic difficulties, and mid-year graduation.

Undergraduates whose last names begin with letters A through M register this afternoon in Memorial Hall from 1 to 3 p.m. Men with names beginning with letters N through Z will register from 3 to 4 p.m. with a special joint registration for late arrivals starting at 4 and lasting until the final deadline at 5 p.m.

Radcliffe students do not register for the spring term but must file their study cards before Feb. 10. The deadline for College study cards is also Feb. 10, at 5 p.m.

General sectioning for courses will be held tomorrow in Memorial Hall for all students from 2:30 until 4 p.m. First section meetings start Friday.

Four new courses, including two in Economics, will be offered during the spring term. All these courses will begin tomorrow.