Once upon a time, T.S. Eliot '09 drunkenly composed verse after verse for his clubmates at the Fox, fondly dedicating his outpourings "to the boys."

But decades later, Harvard's fertile relationship with the final clubs has turned to a desolate wasteland.

The remaining eight all-male final clubs this year have encountered intense scrutiny not seen since the University severed its ties with the clubs in 1984.

The clubs have come under attack from administrators and students alike and facing competition from Harvard's first thriving fraternity in recent memory.

College administrators' growing concern over the clubs' increasingly dominant role in Harvard's social scene culminated in a report issued in February by Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III.

The report, addressed to the College at large but pre-released to graduate leaders of the clubs, enumerated several incidents of "inappropriate behavior occurring at various final clubs" to warn students considering joining or visiting one of the social organizations.

The laundry list of allegations in the report included several suspected drug deals at one club, a reported attack by a first-year who became drunk while visiting a club, repeated reports of sexual harassment, a complaint about lewd sexual acts performed by hired women and a complaint from a parent who said her son had been the victim of hazing by a club.

Epps' decision to publicly denounce the clubs stemmed from the unsatisfactory results of months of discussions between College administrators and the clubs' graduate leaders.

In a meeting last September, Epps presented his concerns to the Inter-Club Graduate Council, which consists of each club's graduate presidents.

But Epps said the issues discussed in the meeting "failed to get translated into actual policy."

The letter proposed two measures that Epps had recommended at the September meeting--adult supervision and "bonded bartenders" at the clubs--as solutions to the many cited disciplinary problems.

Epps said he and Douglas W. Sears '69, executive director of the Inter-Club Council, spoke "several times" last summer about "various safety issues which included the availability of alcohol to people who were underage."

As a result, the Inter-Club Council agreed in a July meeting to ban kegs in the clubs, to limit each club member to two guests at any time except parties, to require members to register visitors and to hold members responsible for the behavior and safety of their visitors.

But neither Epps nor the Inter-Club Council seemed willing to take responsibility for the behavior of students at club parties.

Although the Inter-Club Council has no authority to enforce rules it can only set guidelines, according to Sears.

Epps, too, said he is in many ways, powerless.

"I am not directly responsible for the conduct at those institutions," Epps said.

But he has also said, "Harvard students are liable to the rules of the College wherever they are" and wrote in the report that "the College will not hesitate to bring illegal activities in the final clubs to the attention of the police."

However, in the months since the report was issued, no disciplinary action has been taken.

Sears blamed Epps for the Administration's inaction, noting that the Inter-Club Council can only set "standards" and does not have any enforcement capacity.

"As Dean of Students, he's mandated to take disciplinary action," Sears said. "If Archie feels that action should be taken, he should go ahead and do it."

Incidents Continue

Speaking on the aftermath of his report in an interview last week, Epps conceded that "the letter has not been entirely effective."

He mentioned two recent incidents--a late-night disturbance outside the Fly Club on Mt. Auburn St. and University police's premature shutdown of the Owl Club's annual Luau Party.

Epps said he has had several conversations with club members since the release of the letter.

In the interview, Epps said his two main concerns currently are the supervision of club buildings and the open use of bonded bartenders when alcohol is served.

Epps acknowledged that clubs have begun to employ the bonded bartenders, and said College administrators are considering deploying Harvard police around the clubs for student protection.

Epps pointed out, however, that deploying University police is "not a final decision," but a "decision in principle."

"We don't want to respond to things after the horse has left the barn," Epps said.

Final Clubs Fire Back

Sears publicly voiced his outrage over Epps' actions after the February report, bitterly denouncing the dean's motives in writing the report.

Noting that he was speaking only for himself, and not as a representative of the clubs, Sears went so far as to call Epps' report "whiny, patently self-serving, smug and patronizing."

In a more recent interview, Sears took a more muted and reserved stance towards Epps.

"I bear no animosity towards Epps," he said. "We just share a management problem."

Sears and other final club graduates are concerned over the current role that the clubs play in the Harvard social scene.

"The clubs have become inappropriately the site for the campus social life," Sears said. "Harvard has not been able to come up with something else that takes the place of the clubs in the College's own social life. Loker Commons is an attempt--but this has not taken the heat off the clubs.

"The clubs have inherited the difficulties that come with the kids wanting to party. They were never intended to function that way," he added.

Sears said his major concern is Epps' continuing to withold bonded bartender and University police protection--services provided at College-sponsored activities--to abate the alcohol problem at the final clubs.

Epps said that if the University were to provide bonded-bartending services it "would assume a degree of liability that at this point is unacceptable." But he did maintain that providing the service is a future possibility.

The Graduate Council can only suggest clubs hire their own bonded bartenders and comply with Massachusetts alcohol laws, things Sears says the clubs do "all the time."

Sears said he wishes College administrators would stop targeting the final clubs and try other ways to solve social problems on campus.

"I can't see why Harvard spends this inordinate amount of time dealing with the final club issue," Sears said. "Trying to put the clubs out of existence is not going to solve the disenchantment that many undergraduates seem to have with social life at the College."

"We are trying to work with Harvard to solve a mutual problem." he added.

Ironically, Epps' son, Josiah T. Epps '98, is an active member of one of the clubs, a situation that has made Epps' work all the more difficult.

"There's an element of humor in this," Epps quipped. "He ushers students into one of the clubs and I usher them out."

Student Complaint

A campus women's group plastered the Yard with posters aimed at raising awareness on campus about final clubs after an article appeared in the January issue of Perspective, the campus liberal monthly, detailing alleged paid sexual acts at the A.D. final club.

The Radcliffe Women's Action Coalition (RADWAC), a task force under the auspices of the Radcliffe Union of Students, put up posters which parodied the clubs with such phrases as "Swat the Fly" and "Support Your Local Bastion of Classist Patriarchal Elitism."

RADWAC members said the posters were mainly aimed at first-year women and sophomore men who may not be aware of the "dangers" of the clubs.

Sigma Chi on the Rise

This year has also seen the Kappa Eta chapter of the Sigma Chi fraternity establish itself as a legitimate institution in the Harvard community, despite its underground status.

The College administration views Greek societies and final clubs in the same light. Epps called both types of organizations "a detriment to higher education."

The fraternity and other Greek societies are not officially recognized by the College.

The societies--which, as single-sex organizations, violate the University's non-discrimination policy--are also not permitted to reserve meeting space and poster on campus.

But Sigma Chi found a permanent space for its members last September, renting the former Pi Eta Speaker's Club house at 45 Mt. Auburn St.

Epps described the fraternity's decision to rent the house as an "unfortunate development."

"I'm not at all happy with the current plan to have these students live at the [Sigma Chi] house, so you can expect us to use persuasion and other means to keep students from living in such places," he said.

But members of final clubs and Greek organizations are quick to point out what they believe are fundamental differences between the two types of groups.

Sigma Chi members point in particular to their commitment to public service.

The chapter last year received the Mack I. Davis II Award for extraordinary service to the Cambridge Public Schools, which was awarded to only seven individuals and organizations.

The chapter has also privately sponsored the Miracle Jam charity a capella concert for the Children's Miracle Network for the last two years.

College administrators barred the chapter from officially sponsoring the Sanders Theatre concert, citing University restrictions against the fraternity.

Although the a capella groups were listed as the concerts' official sponsors, Sigma Chi members organized the event and sat as a group in the front row dressed in jacket and tie.

Harvard's Sigma Chi chapter has sought recognition from the College, but members say its reputation is hurt by the stereotype of rowdy fraternities.

"Trouble always follows those fraternities," Epps said last September. "I don't know why Harvard students would want to start up an organization that other universities are trying to get rid of."CrimsonMelissa K. CrockerDean of Students ARCHIE C. EPPS III holds his letter denouncing final clubs.