SAVING FUEL

The Student Council last night passed a resolution favoring the proposed plan of moving all College exercises back one hour in an effort to save fuel. It was voted to have the College pass judgment on the question, and if an affirmative verdict were returned, to place the matter before the Faculty, who would make the final decision. It was not expected that this measure would sail right through without opposition, for it entails a certain amount of inconvenience. An opinion full of opposition is published in low in which the writer sincerely disagrees with the proposed plan. This is just what the Student Council wants, for such a change would never be made if the student body is not behind it.

And yet we feel that the writer has overlooked much that is worthy in this scheme. It is not advocated that students go to bed late and get up early. The idea is rather to go to bed earlier and get up early. We admit that habits are a difficult thing to change, but we rather rely on the inherent rationality of man. There are 1,681 undergraduates in College. If only half of them realized that to get up an hour earlier and do good work meant getting to bed an hour earlier, this would mean the saving of 840 hours of light each day. We ought to admit that half of our undergraduates are rational. This also does not take into consideration the saving in the library and other buildings. College chapel will simply be an hour earlier. Everything will be the same except that we shall be doing things one hour earlier. If we are willing to assist the Fuel Board in this patriotic work, the saving will not be so insignificant as it would seem.

The difficulty of the plan is rather for students who live outside of Cambridge and who have to come in every day. The Council thought that even these men would be willing to fall into accord with the new schedule. But it is from these men that it wishes to hear. By all means let us have serious discussion, since it is a question for the undergraduates to decide before the Faculty takes any action on it. The plan will not interfere with preparation for the coming mid-years, since even if it is favorably received, it will not go into effect before the new term.