Feeling apparently that they serve only as an appendage to the Harvard-Yale rivalry, and rather resenting their position as filling for the legendary Big Three, the "Daily Princetonian" has come forth with a proposal for a so-called Ivy League of seven colleges, presumably to parallel the Big Ten of the Middle West.

Brothers' Keepers

But even discounting the fact that the proposal comes from the Tigers' resentment at playing Dartmouth last every year, doubts may be entertained as to the probability that such an organization will realize the "so many practical benefits" that are claimed for it.

Presumably, the bogey of professionalism is to be laid for good and all by this "organized association". This has not been the case with the Big Ten, where only Chicago has clung to honestly amateur standards. Recruiting varies in blatancy among the other nine, and at Wisconsin there has recently been under discussion a plan to organize "athletic scholarships" specifically for ability upon the playing field, and to create a fund to be administered by the dean, to reward these cave men.

True, it would be nice to have such a uniform athletic policy around here, but if it can only be obtained by a letting down of our own standards, it is hardly worth the candle. One would need a singular degree of optimism to expect all the gentlemen around us, now the proud possessors of the best football teams that money can buy, immediately to metamorphose into little angels. Virtue will, in all probability, continue to be its own reward.

The other one of the two "so many benefits" that are adduced to prove the "Princetonian's" case, is the establishment of more interesting schedules. There is little wrong with the Harvard schedule at present--it is plenty hard enough. And who would want to trade the about-to-be abandoned Army and Navy for the mess of pottage obtainable by scheduling Columbia or Pennsylvania?

And as for the long view. Our athletic endowment is far in the future, when we shall meet only Yale. But until then, there seems small need to apply additional pressure to our poor gladiators--they play a hard enough schedule as it is. Even the cash interest hadn't ought to force them to work harder. It should be remembered that it is not the "Princetonian" editors who play a big game every Saturday.