Loans to the Class of 1958 increased 300 percent over the preceding year, as the result of a successful experiment with the Class of 1957, John U. Monro '34, Director of the Financial Aid Center, announced yesterday.

A total of 122 freshmen received $39,350 in long-term loans from the College, compared to 34 members of '57, who were awarded $10,200 in last year's experiment.

The awards to '57 broke a long-standing precedent, and a general rule still used at many colleges, of not allowing freshmen to borrow from the school. "If, how-ever, we know the freshmen well enough to give them scholarship money," Munro said, "we can certainly feel justified in awarding them loans."

Flexibility Provided

The new loan plan allows greater flexibility both to students who get scholarships which do not cover all their need, and, also, to students not awarded any outright gifts. Previously, if a scholarship student needed aid above scholarship funds, it was necessary for him to work. He now has the option of taking a loan instead, or of decreasing his work load and taking a smaller loan.

Financial Aid in the form of loans was particularly applicable to the Class of '58, since it suffered a scholarship cutback, which was intended to compensate for a larger number of awards and acceptances in the Class of '57. Percentage of students on scholarship in the class was trimmed to the level of the Class of '56.

The Aid Center offers maximum loans of $400 per year to undergraduates.