At the time when the discussion took place last fall concerning the most effective method of training inexperienced debaters, which resulted in the formation of the Sophomore Debating Club, another change was proposed, which, though not carried out, was nevertheless received with some degree of favor. This step was the combination of the Forum and the Union into a single club. This change we would again propose in the hope that it will receive more thorough consideration.

There are of course certain advantages connected with the two-club system which should not be underestimated. The chief of these is the stimulus of club rivalry. In practice, however, the benefit mentioned has hardly justified the hopes of those who favor the existence of two clubs. Rivalry has, it is true, sprung up, but few who have been familiar with the history of the clubs feel that it has been a rivalry of a healthy nature. Its fruit has been, to a large extent, lack of co operation.

As far as the regular club debates are concerned, the general practice has been to appoint a small number of principal disputants for each occasion,- two, as a rule,- and the attendance has not been sufficient to ensure an audience worth addressing. This difficulty can be obviated to some degree by uniting all the available forces, and an equally rapid rotation of speakers may be maintained by appointing four speakers for each debate.

If these questions of detail can be satisfactorily settled, it goes without saying that a single strong club will enjoy greater prestige, and receive stronger support than does either of the clubs today. Rivalry between class clubs is an excellent thing, but we do not think that it can ever be made very profitable between clubs which profess to cover exactly the same field.