The University police offers the following advice to students and others leaving Harvard over the Christmas recess:

(1) Lock doors and windows.

(2) Report defective locks immediately to Buildings and Grounds for repairs.

(3) Lock up credit cards and check books.

(4) Store expensive or valued items in a secured place.

(5) Record for Make, Model and serial number of valuable equipment to increase the chances of recovery if stolen.

(6) Avoid leavings valuables in the room when possible.

(7) Report thefts to the University Police immediately. The number is 495-1212 (5-1212 from telephones on the University switchboard). From the Medical school the number is 82-5-1212.

Do not give thieves the chance to make Harvard people their victims. Always be suspicious of strangers. Report loiterers to the University Police immediately. They may be plain-clothes officers of the University Police, who will be asking persons they encounter to show proof of University affiliation. Over the past two Christmas vacation, thieves took property worth $8186 from Harvard buildings-- and in more than half the thefts, a door had been left unlocked.