Leverett House yesterday offered $1000 for half of Winthrop and threatened to wage "a war of defense" if it wasn't ceded peacefully.

In demanding "the return of Gore Hall," the Bunnies produced a map from the Widener archives, showing the College in 1700. According to the map, President John Leverett then owned a "pasture and cornfield" covering most of the present Yard.

Hutch students insisted that President Leverett's land stretched down to the Charles River, and that "Winthrop House has unlawfully and imperialistically aggrandized onto this property, building upon it the structure 'Gore Hall'."

In a letter to Master Ronald M. Ferry '12, they demanded "the return of Gore Hall and the liberation of its residents from foreign enslavement."

"We trust that the cession will be peaceful," the students said, "but we are prepared to fight for our lawful domain, in the name of justice and peace, if your aggression persists."

Speaking for the Bunnies, David Binder '53 said that Leverett would pay Ferry $1000 "as a fair consideration for improvements made on the property since 1700." According to Binder, the Leverett treasury has a $1,500 surplus.

After liberating Gore, Binder said, "Leverett plans to begin a long-needed program of democratization."