Every now and then, the attentive ear picks up sounds of criticism about food in the university dining halls. Refrigeration seemed to be a problem last spring and resident manager Wilbur Blew said, "we are working to have cold water and milk at the meals next semester."
Blew also explained the reason for the dining halls' "miserable job" on soft-boiled eggs:
"Because of the large quantity of eggs, they had to be cooked by steam. Steam in the morning varies; consequently, so do the eggs."
Packer Hall is nested on a ridge part way up South Mountain, and, architecturally, looks very much like a typical British dominion parliament building. Inside, long corridor lounges and spacious well-appointed dining rooms give Packer's basically functional layout a whiff of atmosphere not unlike that of a Parisian hotel built in the grand old manner.
The University Center also houses most of the undergraduate extra-curricular organizations, which are supported financially by the university. They sometimes find the going rough in an institution whose student body is so strongly oriented toward fraternity activity, and one person may hold positions in as many as six organizations.
A group like the Brown and White is in an understandably difficult position trying to recruit writers in a university where most undergraduates are studying engineering or business, even though course credit is given for work on the semi-weekly newspaper.
'Arcadia' on the Rise
Like papers at other colleges, the Brown and White heaps editorial column calumnies on other campus organizations and squabbles with the University administration about misquotations. Joe Varilla, the editor-in-chief, claims that he was once handed a written statement by a dean, published it, and then accused of misquoting him.
The student council--which for some reason is called "Arcadia"--is a laughing matter to some, but has increased its potency in recent years. A number of years ago, when Arcadia was at a low point in popularity, the council president became the first Lehigh student to have his head shaved by his classmates, a ceremony which is usually reserved for football weekend attacks on Lafayette freshmen. The next year, the council's prestige was restored somewhat by the election of athlete Joe Gratto as president. Gratto was a member of Lehigh's highly respected wrestling team.
Arcadia's mainstay, the Student Activities Committee, is hampered by a low budget, which has increased only $2,000 in 11 years, while tuition has almost doubled.
The Arcadia ship has occasionally sailed on stormy seas. On "Flagpole Day" (last May 16) a few students raised a German swastika over the campus. Three air force sergeants, two city electricians, and a hook and ladder crew were required to get it down.
'Greek Week'
Other precious incidents come up during the fraternity hazing period, known to locals as "Greek Week." Under the editorial title "Boycott the Barbarians," the Brown and White had this to say to freshmen about amusing fraternity activities:
"That suave, ivy league fraternity gentleman who pounds on your door Monday night may be pounding on your posterior before long.... Ask him if his is one of the large number of houses that are transformed into a prehistoric cave during that week. Let him tell you about the activities "which develop brotherhood." Let him tell you about the raw eggs that will be dropped into your mouth, about the pigly, nude races you will have, about the days you will be forced to remain awake."
Pranksters, frat brothers, and Brown and White editors seem to anticipate restrictive policy changes in the Dean's Office. Dean Leith, on the other hand, says this: "Lehigh is an educational institution dedicated to high quality performances. This proposition explains almost everything about the university, including the persistent intolerance of everything that is second-rate."
Two Social Blocks
No doubt, Max Shulman would have a fine time writing about Lehigh's two social blocks (dormers and Greeks), and the authors of "General Education in a Free Society" could sink their teeth into a study of its tri-college system.
On the one hand, fraternities are financially solvent, stepping more and more in time with the university administration, and moving out of the city and onto the campus. Bed and bread at the dormitories are steadily improving.
Academically, the engineering facilities and endowments are being maintained strongly, and the arts program is definitely on the upswing.
Now, when preparatory schools are sending more of their graduates to the smaller colleges, Lehigh can also increase selectivity in its admissions policy. And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?