At baccalaureate services that year, Lowell drew a distinction between the growth of knowledge and the growth of wisdom, urging the seniors to develop conscious patterns for their lives. The freshman year of the Class of '34 had drawn to a close.

Sophomore Year

The second year opened with a Student Council blast at the working of Lowell's tutorial system. Critical only of the system's application, the report praised it in theory and called for its extension into new areas. But football fever, not tutor-student relations filled the Fall air.

When eight major Eastern teams agreed to compete in benefit games for unemployment relief, Harvard, following its President's firm policy, refused to go along. Later, however, voluntary collections were allowed at some home games. After a tight 7-6 victory over Dartmouth, the unbeaten Crimson eleven, led by All-American Barry Wood, confidently faced their New Haven rivals in the season's traditional final game--and lost, by a heartbreaking 3-0 score at the hands of Albie Booth.

Outside the sports world, Dean Hanford called for course reduction and fewer hour exams, the College held its first transoceanic radio debate with Oxford, and President Lowell celebrated his seventy-fifth birthday. Soon to resign, Lowell could look back with pride on his record of educational innovation and reconstruction. Tutorials began to slowly increase contact of faculty member with student; the General Exams emphasized a carefully planned academic program of distribution and concentration; the House system helped to mold the "Old Harvard" into new patterns more suitable for the times; and the extensive building drive provided the room for growth.

The Presidential Year

Junior year was the most eventful and exciting year of all, both on the national and local scene. The fall started off with President Lowell's house under police protection after Judge Thayer's home was bombed (Lowell had headed a review commission for the Sacco-Vanzetti case.) The year was dominated by Lowell, first with his retirement, and later by the creation of the Society of Fellows from his anonymous gift.

The big news of the autumn was of course the Presidential election. The country did not go along with Harvard, whose mock election saw Hoover swamp Roosevelt 1,741-620 in the University and 1,211-395 in the College. Roosevelt narrowly missed being beaten in the College election by Norman Thomas, who received only nine fewer votes. The CRIMSON, torn by dissension within the ranks, took no stand on the election, but predicted that the outcome would make very little difference in the long run.

Football came in like a lion, with 200 Freshmen going out in a feverishly excited season. But the last few games saw humiliating, lop-sided upsets for a mediocre season, enlivened by a now-familiar discussion of the merits of collegiate football in general. Barry Wood's What Price Football? came out to answer, among other arguments, the suggestion of Henry Pritchett, President of the Carnegie Foundation that football be abandoned in favor of horseracing.

Lowell Retires

On the Monday after the Yale game, President Lowell tendered his resignation to the Corporation. One of the most influential and respected of Harvard's presidents, Lowell had revolutionized the College, introducing the House and Concentration systems that were still being debated during '34,s years at college. The appointment of President Conant was announced later in the year, and the following June, at the commencement of the Class of '34, Lowell was honored by Harvard for his years of service.

In the latter part of the year, Lowell's plan of the Society of Fellows was brought into being through his gift. Three of the first five Junior Fellows appointed that Spring are now distinguished members of the Harvard Faculty: Professors Birkhoff, Quine, and Skinner. President Church received its more recently position the next year, calling for more fellowships for distinguished scholars. The College-wide concern for scholarship could be seen in the long discussion of "snap" courses, the demand for longer library hours, and more attention to the tutorial system.

The spring of 1933 saw the completion of Memorial Church, and the near-demise of the Lampoon. In a ceremony led by Dean Sperry and Bishop William Lawrence, the Church received its more recently controversial consecration, while the plaque for the three Harvard sons who had fought on the other side was moved about from relative obscurity to prominence and back again throughout the year.

Elsewhere on the spiritual and cultural scene, T.S. Eliot delivered the Norton lectures, and plans were made for a new set of Russian bells for the Lowell House tower. The Lampoon, tottering on the financial brink, opened up a cafe, and the next year was reported (in the CRIMSON) to have been "bought out" by the more solvent, although nearly ad-less newspaper.

Effects of the Depression