Using training he received at Harvard and Tufts, a Foreign Service Officer a now "marrying off some 1,000 G.I.'s to Japanese girls in a marathon race against the expiration date of the so-called Oriental War Brides Act." So writes Nyles Bond, who is second in command at our embassy in Japan, about Jim Martin--both of whom are graduates of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.

Situated just off Tufts campus in Medford, the Fletcher School was founded jointly by Harvard and Tufts in 1933, to "offer a broad program of professional training in international affairs to a elect group of graduate students." Its birth, however, was difficult and uncertain. When Austin B. Fletcher, president of the Tufts Board of Trustees, left a bequest of $1,000,000 for a law school, many universities were interested.

But Dean Roscoe Pound of Harvard Law took the lead and drew up a plan with President Lowell and John Cousens, president of Tufts. The exact function of the proposed school provoked a controversy over the conditions of Fletcher's will and made it necessary to petition the Massachusetts Supreme Court.

In a short time, a favorable ruling was handed down, mainly because the plan called for teaching subjects prescribed by the State Department and foreign offices.

Tufts Takes Over

In 1935, the agreement of joint administration was altered to give Tufts the responsibility for administration with the "cooperation of Harvard." This cooperation took the form of a Joint Academic Council of seven men, which includes President Conant, Provost Buck, Dean Mason of the Public Administration School, and Dean Griswold of the Law School.

Although the council acts mainly in an advisory capacity, it also arranges part-time faculty exchanges. Recently, Griswold agreed to lend Louis B. Sohn, assistant professor at the Law School, for teaching at Fletcher.

Student Exchange

This arrangement also allows Harvard students to take courses at Fletcher, with reciprocal privileges for Fletcher students at Harvard graduate departments. At present, 11 Fletcher students and four Harvard graduate men are taking advantage of this plan. Furthermore, library privileges are interchangeable.

Another group which keeps close contact with the school in the Board of Advisers. Made up of leaders in the domestic and international scene, the board reports the latest developments in world affairs. "They contribute to the total program which," Dean Robert B. Stewart explains, "provides a broad background for careers in the State Department, diplomatic service. United Nations and in other international agencies."

Fletcher attempts to give its students "the tools of analysis" through contemporary and historical studies in international law, economics, and diplomacy.

In order to integrate this policy with the actual program of the school. Fletcher encourages government officers to enroll for advanced study. This year, three men in the U. S. diplomatic corps, two officers from the Japanese Foreign Office, and representatives from the governments of Australia. Thailand, Pakistan, and New Zealand are attending.

Visiting Diplomats

Stewart stresses the significance of having diplomats from various nations in a program of international study. He says it is "the most important development in the history of international educational exchange...We had German students in the days of Hitler. But at least these men...learned to understand one another--an important feature. I wish we could induce Russia to send a few men here for training."

The percentage of foreign students has increased over the last five years. During the school's first year, the 21 students attending all lived in the United States. In the fall of 1945, as Stewart took over the dean's office, six students arrived from foreign countries. A record of 22 students out of 50 come from abroad this year.