A large audience assembled in Sever 11 last evening to listen to a discussion of the merits of a university club. Messrs. Proctor and Lee argued for the affirmative; Messrs. Poppleton and Rich for the negative.

The affirmative side of the debate ran somewhat as follows: The formation of a university club would be consistent with the general tendencies now at work in Harvard College. The old hard and fast lines between the different classes, and between the professors and the students, have been eliminated. Compulsory chapel has been abolished, hazing has disappeared, and the elective system has done much to elevate and broaden our college life. A university club would be a valuable auxiliary in this movement. It would fill a place which no other college society can fill, since the object of other societies is to promote intercourse only between one class of students. A university club would embrace all classes. It would tend to break up fractions and cliques. It would bring together congenial men, who might not otherwise become acquainted. By the facilities which it would offer in the way of interesting magazines and papers, it would attract a great many men at odd hours in the day. The club rooms would be an excellent place in which to pass the time between recitations, a purpose which the library now meets very imperfectly. Visiting teams and distinguished lecturers to the college could be entertained there by their friends, and an opportunity would in that way be offered to the students in general to make their acquaintance. Such a club, as it is proposed to establish, would be of great service in bringing together the instructors and students and in making their mutual intercourse more intimate, and more valuable to both. A change like this in the spirit of our college life would do much to help Harvard in the opinion of the outside world. Prof. Barrett Wendell, who spoke from the floor, laid stress upon the importance of making the fees small, and advocating the admission to the club of all good students of one year's standing.

On the negative side, it was argued that a university club would do very little to break up cliques and factions in the college. It would not even reduce the friction between them. The club would be the scene of political intrigues, which would be without a parallel outside of those notorious faction fights, which have done so much "to make Yale infamous." At the present time, there is less hostile feeling between different societies at Harvard, considering its size, than at any other college in America! Such a club as the one proposed would not tend to promote sociability among the students, because it would not constitute a common bond of sympathy or interest. Men of different tastes and social position cannot be induced to mingle with each other by any such means. This is a difficulty which cannot be obviated. The great cost of the undertaking, and the correspondingly high fees, would tend to keep many students from joining it. A university club was established some years ago at Yale, and it has proved a conspicuous failure.

The debate was decided in favor of the affirmative.