Harvard's requirement of preparatory-school Latin for the degree of Bachelor of Arts, is brought under official fire for the first time in the last report of the late Henry Pennypacker '88, chairman of the Committee on Admissions. A serious bone of contention in recent years at other American colleges, the Latin requirement has persisted at Harvard in the form of a distinction between candidates for the A.B. and S.B. degrees.

S.B. "Means Ignorance of Latin"

Quoting President Lowell to the effect that "the Science degree means ignorance of Latin or Greek," Mr. Pennypacker said: "Many universities in this country which formerly offered two or even three degrees in their undergraduate college departments now offer but a single degree, that of Bachelor of Arts. Is it not time for us to consider the expediency of admitting all successful candidates without distinction of degree eligibility and making the degree finally to be bestowed depend on the nature of the individual's college work?"

Mr. Pennypacker's death since submitting this report renders it doubtful whether the dropping of the Latin requirement will receive official attention in the immediate future.

1933 Freshman Applications Off 40

Harvard at present requires three years of Latin or two of Greek from all entering Freshmen who wish to receive the A.B. degree. The S.B. degree, which has lost all significance as a recognition of scientific work, is awarded to those who are not eligible for the A.B. degree. Last year 801 Freshmen were eligible for the A.B., and 258 for the S.B. degree. Many colleges, including Yale and Amherst, have recently abolished the distinction by dropping the requirement of Greek or Latin.

Mr. Pennypacker's report shows also that the number of applications for admission to the Freshman class fell off from 1337 in 1932 to 1297 last year. The popularity of the Old Plan of admission, which Harvard authorities try to discourage, rose slightly last year, with 395 men admitted under it as compared with 384 the year before.