A conference of constructive criticism of social service work was held in the Parlor of Phillips Brooks House last evening. The meeting was attended by about eighty professional workers, undergraduate volunteers and others interested in the movement. D. P. Ranney '12, chairman of the social service committee, presided.

E. D. Smith '13, social service secretary, in outlining the work carried on through his department, brought out the fact that after a man had been secured to fill a position, the question of whether he was successful or not depended both on his own qualifications and on the way he was received by the settlement.

An hour's time was devoted to a general discussion in which a number of very interesting points were brought up. It was shows that very few undergraduates realize the importance of this kind of constructive work as an adjunct to their college studies, and that the learning to grasp the point of view of the non-collegian element in society was as difficult as it was a valuable accomplishment for a college man.

The failures of nearly all the Harvard volunteers in settlement work are found to take the form of irregular attendance, the causes for which were either poor adjustment of the man to his position or the fact that he intended to work only in an abstract sense, and therefore lacked the enthusiasm necessary to carry him through the practical sacrifices demanded by his work. Failure on the part of the settlement was often traced to a deficiency in giving the volunteer definite work to carry on and in not explaining to him how this work was to be done or of what value it really was.

Mention was made of the monthly reports and the special committee reports showing the important characteristics of the work done by Phillips Brooks House in following up the volunteers it had sent to settlement communities. The gradual improvement shown in the work was attributed to the more definite understanding which has been growing up between the settlements and the student volunteers, together with a more systematic policy on the part of the social service committee.

In closing the meeting the settlement workers emphasized the fact that they considered the work done by Harvard volunteers highly worth while because of its educating effect on the students as well as on account of the net gain derived by the settlements