Every day it seems to become more evident that the authorities in charge of the Widener Library are doing all they can to make the Reading Period a success. Mr. Lane's letter, printed in an adjacent column, is further proof of this perhaps not wholly appreciated fact.
Equally true it is that the Reading Period is putting a pressure on the Library and on the nerves of the student body which serves to bring out the defects contained in both these systems. If there is any weakness in the supplies at the library, or even in its aid, it cannot hope to escape detection under the present conditions. If, on the other hand, any student has not been careful of his diet or has not slept sufficiently, the fact is sure to become appareat the minute he finds himself rebuffed by any of the minor defects of the library.
The Widener authorities, fortunately, have not taken the sometimes trivial criticism levelled at them in the spirit of "Go on, we're down, step all over us!" No matter how busy they have been, they have always seemed willing to take on one more burden. They have welcomed criticism, shortcomings of which have been brought to light only under the acid test of the Reading Period.
But, if air conditions are really as bad as they have been described, couldn't some way be found to make the Engineer stick to his--ah--guns after 5 o'clock?