L I B RAFIY OF THE U N I VERSITY or ILLINOIS 8I0.5 v.2.5-2fe "«0£fiefi4a_tj8_ HE Green Caldron A MAGAZINE OF FRESHMAN WRITING • CONTENTS Nancy L. MuUenix: College Freshman 1 Edward Stephanick: Rain and Silhouettes 2 C.heBter B. Nunn: Rhetoricized 3 (Saruy L. MuUenix: Jazz Man 4 Richard Abbuhl: The Coral SnakcH f»f the Unitehanutp Richard AbbuM — West Phoenix, Arizona Douglas Henrker — Chanute A. S. Parent — Chanute Nancy Tyner — Champaign WUliam Frank — St. Edwards, El|rfn Martlia Ringness — Metamora George Gerhold — Meadville, Pa. Ttrnd Johnson — Kin^Hlon. Ontario Charle* O. yVag/e— -Canton David B, LeUinger — Glenbroolc Rf*ht>rt Wnrth n»ifW#»m#»iVr— |Inlver»»itv High School, f Trhann George A, MorrM— Tennessee Military Institute I Fhe Green Caldron A MAGAZINE OF FRESHMAN WRITING ic CONTENTS Robert H. Crispin: How to he a Monday -Morning Quarterback . 1 Richard White: The Mountain anri the Ego 2 Chester B, ISunn: Communist Rivals 3 Roger Sheahen: Black Welcome Mat 5 Sue Leichtman: Hayseed 7 Nancy L. Mullenix: The Wonderful Quarter 15 Dan A. Godeke: How to Hunt Squirrels 17 George C. Baumgartner: T. V. A. and Creeping Socialism ... 19 Richard Abbuhl: Kill the Coyotes 20 Dorothy Turner: My Theory of Religion 21 Rhet as Writ 24 Vol. 25, No. 2 December, 1955 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS T JL HE Green Caldron is published four times a year by the Rhetoric Staff at the University of Illinois. Material is chosen from themes and examinations written by freshmen in tiie Uni- versity. Permission to publish is obtained for all full themes, including those published anonymously. Parts of themes, how- ever, are published at the discretion of the committee in charge. The themes selected by the committee are judged on their merit as good freshmen writing. The views expressed are those of the authors, and are not to be construed as a reflection of the Rhetoric Staff's opinions. The committee in charge of The Green Caldron includes Glenn Sandstrom, Carl Moon, George Estev, James Mac- Intyre, and Stewart Dodge, Editor. How^ to be a Monday-Morning Quarterback Robert H. Crispin Rhetoric 101 EVERY COLLEGE CAMPUS IN THE NATION HAS ITS SHARE of people who know more about football than do the players and the coaches who are paid to build a football team. The task of these Monday- morning quarterbacks is two-fold: (1) to destroy any morale a losing team's fans may possess and (2) to promote the general misery which results from the unsuccessful efforts of the team. In order to accomplish this end, the modern MMQB must be a sharp, biting, and relentless critic, and, as you will see, something of a coward. Let us assume that your school's team takes a terrible beating some autumn Saturday. You remain calm and collected that evening, coldly planning your attack. Monday morning you saunter forth . . . ready. Approaching some friend who looks responsive and whose friendship you do not highly value, you begin to sing the school's loyalty song or Alma Mater, modifying the words for the purpose at hand. For instance, let us butcher a couple of hypothetical verses : "Fling out our banner, let it wave free on high; Our motto 'Honor^ echoes hack from the sky . . . " may be changed to "Bring out the stretchers for our brave, noble men Who must be carried from the field once again . . . " or you may twist : "We pledge to thee our loyalty for nozv and evermore, Though tvc may see great royalty on many a distant shore ..." into "We seiui to thee our sympathy for every coming game; The line looks rather 'limpa-thy,' the backfield kinda lame . . ." You will find such modifications easy to accomplish because most loyalty songs are slushy, if not idiotic, and ideally suited to mutilation. Now that your listener is softened up, and possibly even chuckling, you turn, with vigor, upon the coach. NEVER CREDIT THE COACH ! If your team's coach uses a single-wingback ofifense, you demand he switch to the "modern" (use that word ; it carries a lot of weight these days) "T" formation ; and if he favors the "T," you must maintain that his material is more suited to the single-wing. Use such terms as "man-in-motion." "unbalanced line to the [1] 2 The Green Caldron right," and "fake pitcliout and a naked reverse after the handofT" in such a manner that your hstener will think you know what you are talking about. You may be forced to grant that the team made one good play, but you must never admit complete defeat at any point. Rather, you land a haymaker while backing olT, such as, "Sure, Washwashky made a nice tackle on Ingle- brott ; it was the only tackle he made all afternoon, of course, but ..." Chastened, your listener will hold his peace, and you are free to take shots at the team's star back. You declare that he does not follow his blockers, few as they may be (a backhanded slap at the line), and when he is hit he just falls down without a fight. You explain these inadequacies on the part of the best player the school has ever had by mentioning the fact that he has probably been "reading his clippings," and though you would not say he was conceited, you must admit that he certainly is "stuck on himself." These few examples should get you started on the road to repulsiveness. Remember, however, to discontinue your discourse should the coach or a player appear within earshot. Either of these nincompoops would probably laugh aloud at you. At a time like this, rather than risk the possibility of your bluflf being called, you collapse into respectful silence, and quietly steal away. Tlie Mountain and tne E^o Richard White Rhetoric 100, Theme No. 1 TO MANY OF THE PEOPLE IN THE MIDWEST, THE WORD "mountain" is synonymous with bleak or imposing. In most cases these opinions were derived from having read about the subject. Mountains are generally depicted as natural barriers against an enemy or as an obstacle which diversifies the weather. To me, however, they are the castle walls behind which is hidden much of our natural beauty. Like most truly lovely things in life, the beauty remains well hidden from the distant viewer. From a distant perspective the upper ranges of the Rocky Mountains appear only as a long, blue ridge. This impression is one which is so lasting that we are often taken aback when the base is reached. Here, though. Nature seems to show at last her respect for our persistence, unfolding the delicacies of her high garden of Eden. The gentle beauty of a common wildflower is uniquely set off by the harsh rock formation. The air seems to be refreshed, carrying on it the pure smell of the forests above. The streams rush to some unknown destination and the stillness is almost tangible. All the foregoing seems to be only an introduction once the summit is reached. The world appears to be canopied by clouds which are supported by December, 1955 3 the higher peaks. The green valleys far below have become tinged with blue in the shadow of the mountains. All about, the bright sunlight is reflected a hundred times by the snow on the adjacent pinnacles. Here on this lofty plateau the ego seems to expand to the proportions that the eye can see. Now at last we seem to become big enough spiritually to embrace the world and so be at peace with it. It is the descent which gives full meaning to the sjx'ctacle before us. Once returned to the lower plains those crags now symbolize the stronghold of peace of mind. It would seem now that the mind goes back frequently for reassur- ance to those staunch buttresses where peace and beauty are side by side, each in each. Communist Rivals Chester B. Nunn Rhetoric 102, Theme No. 4 THE TRUE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RED CHINA AND RED Russia is probably the biggest diplomatic puzzle in the world today. Whether these two countries are allies or rivals is not immediately evident. Communist propaganda reiterates the China-Russia solidarity — but cause for distrust and discontent lies behind the Red fagade in the simple yet basic truth that governments will overlook ideologies and social systems in favor of na- tional interests. In recent history capitalist countries have fought one another, and dictatorships have fought one another. In each case conflicting national interests have proved more compelling than any governmental similarities. Outwardly, Russia and China are on intimate terms ; they profess "undying friendship." However, Russia can hardly appreciate the fact that she is now hemmed in between the capitalist West and the communist East. This twist of fate prevents Russia from further advances along any of her long land or sea frontiers without inviting either Western retaliation or Chinese hostility. Soviet Russia faces a united China that must be courted, not ordered. China is no longer the Russian satellite she was in June, 1950 when she invaded Korea at Moscow's instigation. Qiina has gained dominance of North Korea through physical control, and she has purged the North Korean Communist Party of pro-Russian factions. This complete control of North Korea by Red China has also reduced Russia's previously unquestioned influence over Manchuria. The old Russo-Chinese tug of war for Manchuria appears to be com- mencing again. Early in the twentieth century Russia gained rule of Man- churia by building the Chinese Eastern Railway across that province despite Chinese displeasure. In 1929 Red troops were sent to Manchuria to prevent Chinese seizure of the railroad. Russia lost Manchuria to Japan in 1935, but 4 The Green Caldron she regained it at the end of World War II. Russia had agreed to relinquish its controlling influence in Manchuria to Red China not later than 1952. This has not happened, and Russia still controls the Chinese Eastern Railroad, the harbor cities of Darien and Port Arthur, and much of the communications and natural resources of Manchuria. In addititon, Russia has not returned the industrial equipment and machinery she removed from Manchuria at the end of World War II. This situation cannot be compatible with Communist China's ambitious industrialization program that must begin in and depend upon the vast natural resources of Manchuria. Red China's administrators have already gained considerable authority over the Kremlin's Manchurian agents as a result of the presence of Red Chinese troops in Manchuria since their intervention in the Korean War. Outer Mongolia is another source of friction between Red Qiina and Red Russia. Mongolia is a province of China that was taken as a possession by Russia, and this separation of Outer Mongolia from China today remains an ugly reminder of Russia's anti-Chinese imperialism. Another area of Chinese-Russian rivalry is Sinkiang, or Chinese Turkestan, which is in effect a Russian province. Sinkiang is an enormous domain in Northwest China, reportedly rich in minerals, including uranium. Joint Chinese-Russian firms have been established there to develop these economic possibilities but Red China is not surrendering this province to Russia. Thus in Korea, Manchuria, Sinkiang, and possibly Mongolia a united and powerful Red China is a serious obstacle to Red Russian expansion. The Chinese Communists have already usurped much of the authority and influence in Asia that was formerly enjoyed by Russia. Soviet troops do not occupy China, and Russia therefore cannot completely control that country. China is a giant, not a puppet, and surely must resent being regarded as a vassal obeying Moscow's orders. The Russians are at a great disadvantage in that they are not Asians ; they are thought of as white Europeans by the Asians. Russian prestige in Asia has been lost to Peking, which is regarded throughout Asia as at least the equal of Moscow as the capital of world communism. For the present. Red China and Red Russia are allies and rivals. The alliance is necessary at present but it is potentially harmful to the Chinese. However, Mao cannot aflFord to weaken his ties with Russia as long as he is faced with a major war. The rivalry is historic, geographic, economic, and psychological. The fate of Asia and perhaps of the world may be determined by whether the rivalry or the alliance predominates. The idea for this paper came from a map of Asia showing the territories of Sinkiang, Mongolia, and Manchuria that both Russia and China need for their industrial develop- ment. An old Reader's Digest, picked up by chance, supplied the dates pertaining to Manchuria and the Giinese Eastern Railway. Remembered fragments of articles read in the past were included in an effort to support my iiiterpretation of the Chinese-Russian relationship. Liberal use of the dictionary enhanced the vocabulary, I hope. December, 1955 S' Black Welcome Mat Roger Sheaiien Rhetoric 101, Theme No. 1 IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE, WELL BUILT AND SITUATED in a lovely suburban community. The real estate broker didn't see how he could miss on a quick sale. But prospect after prospect had the same comment: "It's a wonderful house, but it just doesn't seem like a home." Brokers all over the country are having the same problem. But many have found the solution : a blacktop driveway. For those of you who don't know, blacktop is a mixture of tar, sand, and gravel. A blacktop drive does something for a house wliich no other type of paving can do. It lends a "homey" feeling to the house. Its soft blackness seems to reach out and give the passer- by an invitation to come in and visit. Other paving substances which are hard and glaring are little more than a continuation of the street in front of the house. Blacktop is a sort of "black welcome mat" into the home. To me, the making of a blacktop driveway has been one of the most satisfying experiences I have had. When our crew comes up to the house, we see it just as the broker's prospects saw it, but we visualize the roadway which will enhance the charm of the house, the blacktop drive which we are about to build. Then we start to work. Into the stubborn earth we put the stubborn energy of our backs. Digging out a rock here, filling in a hole there, we form the path- way of the drive. Sometimes it seems monotonous, even useless, but we know that if the drive is to be free of ugly and annoying pot-holes during its years of service it must be level from the start, even to the bare earth. When the pathway has been leveled, we straighten our aching backs and "look her over." But there is more shovel work ahead. A ten-ton dump truck pulls up with a full load of number four stone. These are large stones which will provide a good solid base for our drive. But they are extremely difficult to spread and they, too, must be level. After there is a layer of about seven inches of this stone, we roll it down. Rolling packs the stone and makes it more solid. It also gives us a chance to fill in any "low spots" which might have been overlooked. By this time, more trucks have pulled up carrying number fourteen stone, which is a mixture of very small screenings and quarter-inch limestone chips. This stone is spread by the trucks, but it must be raked out and leveled by hand. Then the roller comes onto the rapidly materializing driveway again. Its purpose this time is to push the "fourteens" down into the spaces between the big stones to serve as a sort of bond and to make the base or foundation of the drive even more solid. 5 TIw Green Caldron Then we all sit back and relax because the "gravy job" is coming. A truck pulls up towing a smoking-hot tar kettle of MCO, which is a light tar. One man stands at the pump while another sprays the black MCO lightly over our nice, white stone base. The MCO serves a dual purpose : it holds together any loose screenings on the top of the drive, and it also serves as a bond between the base and the blacktop so that the blacktop will not "shift" once it is put down. All at once the gravy job is over. The blacktop is here. Putting blacktop down is hard, fast, and hot work because it comes to us at a temperature of about three hundred and fifty degrees and it must be put down before it cools or it will be too hard to work and the finished drive will be coarse and lumpy. Three men again put their backs to the shovels, facing the searing heat of the truckload of blacktop. They put the load, shovelful by shovelful, into neat piles so that two other men armed with wide blades can rake it out until it is two inches deep and as level as they can possibly make it. This raking, or "luting" as it is sometimes called, is what "makes" the appearance of the finished drive. The roller follows the rakers as closely as possible so that the blacktop will be packed while it is still hot. This insures the solid packing which gives the smooth, glossy surface characteristic of good blacktop drives. When the blacktop is all down we relax, a little worn after the furious pace we have been keeping. But we watch diligently as the roller finishes packing down "our baby." The least little mar on our drive would be like running that four-tun roller over a right arm. The driveway is a part of us ; it is some- thing which we have made, something of which we are proud. We finish the rolling, give our drive its final once-over inspection, throw the equipment on the trucks and head for the yard. As we drive away, we momentarily glance back at the newly transformed "home." Our work is done and the broker will soon find a new owner for the house and its "black welcome mat." MY FAVORITE HUNTING Being a woman, I'm most interested in the sport of hunting — men. To me, there is nothing more thrilling, more exciting, more adventurous, or that requires more cunning and skill than the stalking of men. There are several physical characteristics which a girl must possess. These must be either supplied by nature or, for the less fortunate, by artificial means. A pair of long eyelashes suitable for batting, legs that do more than take a person where she wants to go, a silhouette that is accentuated in the right places, a walk that has both a forward and a lateral movement — these are examples of the most necessary characteristics. Then there are the requirements a woman must acquire and perfect through diligent practice or varied experience: the toothy smile; the adjustable personality; the sugary, sweet Southern accent; and the helpless, "You big, strong man, you," attitude. Judy Berkelhamer, 102 December, 1955 Hayseed Sue Leichtman Rhetoic 102, Them^ No. 10 Ktr^PEAKER JOSEPH GURNEY CANNON WAS A HARD- ^^ boiled hayseed who made himself the autocrat of the House. . . . He won the nickname of 'Foul-mouthed Joe' for his barnyard talk." ^ While reading about his life, I found an autobiography that Cannon once dictated. It said, "Mr. Cannon was born of God-fearing and man-loving parents. He made himself and did a darn poor job of it." ^ However, by comparing this latter statement to his actual biography, one can see that this is an extremely inaccurate picture of his life. Joseph Gurney Cannon was born May 7, 1836, in New Garden, North Carolina.^ Wlien he was young, his family, who were devout Quakers, moved west because slavery wasn't in accordance with their faith. They traveled by wagon over the National Turnpike, and settled in Annapolis, Indiana. While they were there, Joseph's father, who was a doctor, tried to ride across a rain-swollen stream to help a patient and was drowned. Cannon quit school and went to work so his brother could continue with his education. He got a job in a grocery store, and was paid $150.00 a year. After working for five years. Cannon saved enough money to go to law school for six months. He completed this schooling and moved to Shelbyville, Illinois, where he tried rather unsuccessfully to practice law. While there, a man paid his way to hear a Lincoln-Douglas debate in Charleston. Mr. Cannon was so impressed with Lincoln that he campaigned for him. Cannon later said, "It rooted and grounded me in the principles for which Abraham Lincoln stood and upon which the Republican party was established. I became saturated with those principles and they have always remained in my system." * Cannon left Shelbyville and moved to Tuscola, Illinois. After living there a year, his mother and his brother Will joined him. In 1861, he became District Attorney and held this job until 1868, the year he married. In 1872 he was elected to the House of Representatives. During the time that Mr. Cannon was serving in the House, his brother moved to Danville, Illinois, and founded 1 Roger Bulterfield, The American Past (New York, 1947), p. 337. 2 Otto Charmichael, "Uncle Joe as Speaker," The World's Work, VII (December, 1903), p. 4196. 3 Carrie Partlow Carter, Joseph Cannon and the Struggle Over the Foivers of the Speaker in the Sixty-First Congress (Thesis, University of Illinois, 1934), pp. 1-8. Un- less otherwise stated, all biographical material is from this source. * Joseph Gurney Cannon, "Party Discipline," The Saturday Evening Post. CIIIC (September 27, 1924). p. 4. S Tlu: Green Caldron a bank there. In 1876, Joseph Cannon and his family joined Will, and made Danville their permanent home. Mr. Cannon served in the House of Representatives for 46 years. Except for his defeats in 1890 and 1913, he served continuously from 1872 until 1923, when he retired. He was Speaker of the House for eight years, during which time he became known as the "Czar of the House." It would be a mistake, however, to believe that Cannon became well known only when he was elected Speaker of the House. Due to an incident that occurred while he was giving his "maiden speech" in the House, he was introduced to the public. Cannon said, "I was loaded for a speech to enlighten the House and the country." However, he had only started when he was interrupted by a heckler : "The gentleman from Illinois seems to have oats in his pockets." "Yes," retorted Cannon, "and hayseed in my hair, and that's the style of most of my constituents. I hope that both are good seed and will grow good crops in the East." The press was delighted, and Mr. Cannon becarrie known as the "Hayseed Member from Illinois." ® Because of replies like this. Uncle Joe became friendly with the press, although he definitely was not one to crave publicity. But, since to Easterners he personified the wild and woolly West, he made good copy. W^ith his old wide-brimmed hat, his ruddy features, and his cigar stuck rakishly out of the comer of his mouth, he was a perfect subject for cartoons. * He made a picture just standing, but in action he looked like a character out of a silent movie. Representative Clark, who succeeded Cannon as Speaker of the House, said, I confess that seeing Mr. Speaker Cannon in action has always interested me quite as much as what he said. He always appeared to me to be made up chiefly of spiral springs. In the heat of debate, ... I once saw him make a complete circle on his heel.'^ Representative Gillett of Massachusetts agreed : You should have seen him ... in the thick of the fray, without manuscript or notes, but all ablaze with energy, entertaining the House with his powerful and ingenious arguments ... In debate his directness, his shrewdness, his brightness of illustration, and his gymnastics always attracted universal at- tention . . . Once while he was making a speech with his customary vigor, rising on his toes and prancing up and down the aisle, Mr. Reed called out to him, sot to voce: 'Joe are you making this speech on mileage?' " Cannon's style of speaking also accounted for the first notoriety that he acquired in the House. The incident involved "Sunset" Cox, a Representative from Oiiio, and Cannon. One day Cox was "running amuck," as Uncle Joe 5 White Busbey, Uncle Joe Caution (New York, 1927), pp. 132-3. •' Ibid., p. xxxvi. T "Forty Years of Uncle Joe," The Literary Digest, LII (May 20, 1916), p. 1494. " Ibid., pp. 1493-1494. December, 1955 , I 9 said, "attacking the Republican party as only he could." Finally Uncle Joe could stand it no longer. "I jumped up and said, 'Will the gentleman yield?' " At first Cox refused, but then a smile came over his face and he yielded the floor. " 'For what time ?' inquired the Speaker. 'As long as the gentleman will keep his left hand in his pocket,' answered Cox. I accepted and began vigorously to defend my views, but I had not talked sixty seconds until I forgot all about the left hand, and out it came. 'Time's up,' said Cox. And it was up." * The public became well acquainted with Uncle Joe, because he displayed many of his characteristics very candidly while speaking. As was shown in the "hayseed incident," he was a quick thinker. His early life might have accounted for this. The Cannon family often gathered in the living room, and Dr. Cannon would bring up some question. Cannon and his brother would debate it, while their father acted as umpire. Uncle Joe later said, "We learned to think on our feet, to think and talk at the same time." ^° In 1874, when Cannon was running for re-election, his opponent was James H. Pickerel. Pickerel was a farmer and a stock-raiser, and a very clever politician. When a crowd gathered to see the fine bull that he took to county fairs, he would make a political speech. While Uncle Joe was making a speech at a county fair in Champaign, Pickerel trotted out his bull a little distance away, and began distracting the crowd. Finally Cannon realized that he couldn't hold the audience much longer, so he said, "I would like to know whether you are going to vote to send Pickerel or the bull to Congress in my place." The crowd returned, and the day was Uncle Joe's.^^ When I talked to anyone who knew Mr. Cannon, there was always some joking about his profanity. I talked to one of Uncle Joe's closest friends, Mr. Joseph Barnhart, who lives in Danville. He admitted that Cannon was prone to swear a little. Mrs. Barnhart, who was sitting in the room, said, "Now, Joe, you know he couldn't talk unless he swore." Then she turned to me and said, "I remember when we were at a convention with him in Chicago, and the photographers w^ere taking his picture. Uncle Joe turned to me and said, 'I don't know whether to say God damn 'em or God bless 'em.' This was typical of him." Jokes attributed to Uncle Joe are still told around Danville. The best of these are ribald, or at least a little coarse. One joke that is perhaps milder than most concerns Cannon and a fellow Representative. The Representative had just finished raking Uncle Joe over the coals, and had done a fine job of it. After he had finished his tirade. Cannon turned away and remarked, "I won't go into his canine ancestry." One mustn't assume, however, that Uncle Joe was only vulgar. As his secretary, Mr. L. W. Busbey, said : 9 Ibid., p. 1498. 10 Busbey, pp. 39-40. "/fcic/., pp. 129-130. 10 The Green Caldron The truth is, these men from the West, who belonged to that era, who had been brought up on the prairie and experienced the rugged life of the pioneer, brought with them to Washington the flavor of the soil and the tang of the farm, and their speech was racy of the land.^^ Cannon himself said : If I've been accused in later years of using language of emphasis that is not considered appropriate for Sunday School, I hope it may be put down to force of habit of speaking out where none were to hear me save myself and the horse that pulled the plow . . .^^ Between God and me we got a sound understandin'. He knows my swearin' don't mean a thing, and I know it.^* Perhaps because Uncle Joe did use so much profanity, or because he had a ruddy complexion, it was often thought that he drank excessively. Actually, he did not. Mr. Barnhart said that he had never seen him drunk, and had never heard of anyone's seeing Cannon drunk. However, he did take an occasional drink. In fact, tea was served in his home with a shot of rum. Mr. Barnhart said that he had often heard Uncle Joe remark, "A man is a fool if he drinks before he is seventy, and he's a damn fool if he doesn't drink after seventy." It was remarks like this one that the press loved. After they had printed several of them, people began to look on Uncle Joe as quite a humorist. However, his secretary, Mr. Busbey, said that this wasn't a true picture of Cannon. "What men called humor was really a native philosophy and the power to put in a sentence the essence of life or a complex problem in the words of an epigram." ^^ For example, interviewers asked Uncle Joe whether men in public life could be impartial. Cannon answered, "The only thoroughly impartial man is a dead man." ^^ When the Panama Canal was in the throes of construction, a reporter asked Uncle Joe what he thought of it. Cannon replied, "My boy, it's a simple matter of diggin' and dammin'." ^^ Cannon always gave the public something to laugh about, although it often wasn't intentional. He was notoriously a tightwad when it came to spending money on himself. Perhaps that was why his dress was rather careless. He wore an old-fashioned low collar "so big for his neck it seemed he could slip it over his head without unbuttoning." His impressed and overlong trousers and sagging vest and coat were "large enough for a man half again as heavy." ^® ^- Ibid., pp. xxiv-xxv. 13 Ibid., p. 28. 1* Walter Davenport, "Uncle Joe Got Tired," Collier's. LXXVIII (November 13, 1926), p. 28. ^^ Busbey, p. xxix. 1° Ibid., p. xxix. 1^ Joseph Hamilton Moore, With Speaker Cannon through the Tropics (Philadelphia, 1907), p. 280. 18 Davenport, p. 28. December, 1955 11 Once his daughter, Helen, convinced him that he should have a new coat, because the one he was wearing was green with age. Helen knew that he would never pay more than fifteen dollars for a new one, so she went downtown and made an arrangement with the owner of the clothing store to sell her father a sixty-dollar coat for fifteen dollars. Helen paid the diflference. Uncle Joe went downtown, bought the coat, and, well pleased with the purchase, sauntered across the street to the bank. When several of the men there admired the coat, Uncle Joe shrugged, "It really didn't cost much." One of the men said, "I'll give you twenty-five dollars for it." Cannon cried "Sold !" and handed the man the coat. It was only when he went back to buy another one that he found out what had happened. There is story after story about Uncle Joe, each one seeming to reveal a different side of him. The people loved these stories, and the press catered to the public. A Washington, D. C. paper. The Star, tells us that "Uncle Joe Cannon ran a close second to the late Colonel Roosevelt as the most photo- graphed and most written about man on this continent." ^^ Since there was so much written about him, there were bound to be misprints. The Star recalls one such mistake : A much read newspaper . . . once printed a picture of an attractive young woman in lingerie and boudoir robe, under which the amazed reader found this caption : 'Still wears 'em — Uncle Joe Cannon, the grand old man of the Republican party, and one of Illinois' Representatives in the House, rising to speak at a dinner in Chicago.' The mystery was explained when a picture of Air. Cannon was found elsewhere in the paper with the comment : 'Boudoir robe with Oriental touch — from the East comes the imagination for this won- derful boudoir robe of panne velvet and silver metal cloth.' Someone had switched captions. ^° The press treated Uncle Joe jocularly, intentionally or unintentionally, and the stories told about him emphasize his humorous side. We should consider whether this was a true picture of Cannon. Uncle Joe felt that he should have been treated more seriously by the press. ^^ He said : I have come to look upon my name as simply a convenient vehicle to carry anything that may be found in an encyclopedia of eccentricities attributed to men in the last hundred years.-- I have been represented as saying and doing so many fantastic things that I often wonder what sort of a man I really am.^s Anyone reading about Uncle Joe might wonder himself what Cannon was actually like. The press didn't seem to bring out characteristics which would 1^ "Taps for Uncle Joe," p. 40. 20 Ibid., p. 40. 21 Busbey, p. xxvii. 22 Ibid., p. 30. 23/t,Vf., p. 298. 12 The Green Caldron account for his phenomenal political success. A man is not elected to the House of Representatives for fourteen terms, or chosen to be Speaker of the House for four terms simply because people are amused by him. What does explain his success? Altiiough he was "... never in any sense a statesman, Joseph Gurney Cannon was a master of the game of politics and of the equally engrossing game of managing legislators." '* For "... combined with courage, honesty, and a fixed principle, he had political sense and a deep understanding of human nature." ^^ "In the ordinary sense of the word he was not a politician. . . . He could not be a politician because he had in him that Quaker characteristic which the world calls obstinacy, but is really conscience." ^® Cannon said, "No man is a proper person to represent the people unless he has the honesty and the back- bone to stand and do the best he can, and do what is right and what is for the interests of his people, without reference to what anybody may say of him. . . " It was because of this belief that Cannon was often severely criticized. While he was the Speaker of the House, it was the Speaker's duty to appoint the chairmen of all committees, and he could practically decide what bills he wanted brought before the House. During this time Cannon was accused of being the Czar of the House,^^ "... but no one, even when passion ran the highest ever accused him of being governed by an unworthy motive." ^° He did what he thought was best for his party. Throughout his career, he was always a strong party man — a Republican through and through.^'' Many criticized his devotion to his party, saying that it "retarded the country." Current Opinion said, "In his personal life Uncle Joe is lovable. In his creed of party he is not to be followed." ^^ Whether he was right or wrong. Cannon believed that parties are necessary in our government. "The rule of the majority was his cardinal article of political faith." ^^ Uncle Joe once said, "It's a damned good thing to remember in politics to stick to your party and never attempt to buy favor of your enemies at the expense of your friends." ^^ What was it about Cannon that enabled him to gain the admiration and aflfection of so many people who knew him? His fellow Representatives and 2* '"Uncle Joe' Cannon," The Outlook, CVIC (November 24, 1926), p. 393. 25 Busbey, p. xxiv. ^^ Ibid., p. xxxvi. 2T Moore, p. 78. 28 The Otlook, p. 393. 2' Busbey, p. xiii. ^^ Charmichael, p. 4197. 31 Dr. Frank Crane, "Uncle Joe," Current Opitiioii. LXXII (April 23, 1922). pp. 597- 598. 32 Busbey, p. xviii. 38 Ibid., p. 269. December, 1955 13 his personal friends each seem to answer this question a little differently. For example, men praised him for his absolute integrity, his earnestness in con- viction, his fearlessness, and his frankness. Speaker Champ Clark said that Uncle Joe was one of the "... most thoroughly common-sense men that ever came down the Congressional pike." •''* Representative Gillett of Massachusetts said, "He was by nature a floor leader. He had the courage . . . and that quickness of mind and tongue acceler- ating under fire which makes a man effective on this floor." ^^ Although he wasn't always considerate of the feelings of his opponent, "He always fought fair ; he never hit below the belt ; and that is the reason that he won out." *® No matter how heartily Uncle Joe disliked his opponents, "... there was seldom, if ever, anything personal about his dislikes, and never any malice." ^^ With all of these admirable traits, it is only natural to find some flaws in Uncle Joe's character. However, the characteristic that men most criticized was his lack of imagination. Outlook said, "He was quite incapable of exer- cising imagination in the understanding of other points of view. . . " This "... was shown in his riding around among the sensitive and polite people of Porto Rico with his feet resting higher than his head, and with his cigar tilted at an angle from the corner of his mouth." ^® Literary Digest felt that "his lack of imagination left him cold to the esthetic side of life." ^^ Yet, "There was something of the soil of j\merica about him," ■*" that made people forget his lack of imagination. "There was a homely simplicity, a lov- able nobility of spirit, which bound to him in affection those whom he enthralled." *^ "He captured and dominated the imagination of his country- men ..,,*- and by doing so, acquired his nickname. Yes, as Mr. Busbey said, "The men who knew him were a legion, but," he goes on, "few knew the real man . . . There was in him a vein of emotion, an exquisite sentiment, a softness that seldom revealed itself to the public." *' Perhaps this was because Uncle Joe "... was always a fighter, and a fighter does not exhibit his softer side to the public." ^* A reporter for the New York World, Kate Carew, wrote in 1904, "Uncle Joe was gallant, gay, with graceful social gifts and a store of old-fashioned ^* A Record of the Testimonial Dinner to Honorable Joseph G. Cannoii (Washington, D. C, 1913), p. 29. 35 "Forty Years of Uncle Joe," p. 1494. s« A Record of the Testimonial Dinner .... p. 76. 37 Busbey, p. xvi. 38 The Outlook, p. 393. 39 "Taps for Uncle Joe," p. 42. eople contend that the Tennessee Valley Authority is an example of "creeping socialism." These critics of T. V. A. cite many reasons for their opposition. Perhaps the primary objection is to the generation of power by steam generating plants. Power was to be a by-product of the dams. It is now a primary function of the authority. Despite the fact that there are many private power companies in adjoining states that could supply all the necessary power, the federal government continues to generate the power for the area. The opponents of T. V. A. hold that this invasion of the federal government into the field of private power is an example of "creeping socialism." Most of 20 The Green Caldron the inhabitants of Tennessee have shown their complete support of the au- thority by the election of proponents of T. V. A., however. Another major point of opposition is the cost of T. V. A. to the rest of the nation. The original investment for T. V. A. had to come from the rest of the country because the Tennessee Valley was too poor to support the project itself. Now that the T. V. A. is self-supporting the rest of the country continues to lose markets which the Tennessee Valley has acquired. The Tennessee Valley Authority is, perhaps, "creeping socialism." The proponents of T. V. A. contend, however, that because the Tennessee Val- ley Authority has accomplished such miracles, other areas of the country need such "socialism." Kill tne Coyotes Richard Abbuhl Rhetoric 102, Theme No. 6 HT/^ILL THE COYOTES!" THAT WAS THE CRY THAT CAME r\ from the Arizona sheep raisers not many years ago. The coyotes had been killing the ranchers' sheep, and the sheep owners wanted it stopped. Pressure was brought to bear on government officials, and they finally responded by declaring open season on coyotes and by offering a bounty for the hides. After all, coyotes weren't good for anything. A few zoologists tried unsuccessfully to explain that there exists among the animal kingdom a condition of dynamic equilibrium commonly referred to as the "balance of nature." The balance of nature concept maintains that all animals are interdependent upon one another and that the populations are kept in check by such factors as predators, disease, and available food supply. In view of this fact, the zoologists maintained that the direct extermination of coyotes would cause other indirect changes in the rest of the animal populations. The coyotes never had a chance. A campaign worthy of a five-star general was put into action. Coyotes were hunted on foot, from horseback, from jeeps and trucks, and even from airplanes. Automatic rifle-traps, poison, and even clubs were used to kill the unlucky animal whose only defense was run- ning — but everywhere he ran there were coyote hunters with dogs. In a short while the battle was over. The sheep raiser had won. The coyote population was reduced almost to the point of extinction. Everyone — or almost everyone — was happy, and peace reigned over the flocks of sheep once more. There were very few people who mourned the passing of the coyote or who missed his mournful cry on moonlight nights. Fewer yet ex- pected the results of the battle to cause the sheep raisers more trouble than they had had before. December, 1955 21 Coyotes had fed chiefly on jack rabbits, kilHng an occasional sheep in times when rabbits were scarce. The jack rabbits, their major population control removed, increased unchecked. It became common to see twenty to thirty rabbits together at one time. Although jack rabbits don't kill and eat sheep as coyotes do, they do eat the grass that sheep need to survive. In no time at all the increased numbers of jack rabbits had stripped the range of grass. The available supply of grass could not support both rabbits and sheep, and both starved. The sheep ranchers have not been as successful in killing the rabbit popu- lation as they were in killing the coyotes. Their flocks are greatly reduced and often fed from the barn, but the number of rabbits is gradually diminishing due to the insufificient food supply. The ranchers listen eagerly for the yapping of the coyote packs and remember longingly when the coyote was king, for only the return of the coyote can bring complete relief to the struggling rancher. My Tneory or Religion Dorothy Turner Placement Theme FROM THE DAWN OF RECORDED HISTORY, MAN HAS sought solace from the insecurities of a frightening world in some form of worship. The stages of development in man's religious history, from the worship of thunder and other physical phenomena of the earth to the Stoics to present- day liberal interpretation of religious doctrines, have been turbulent, and ofttimes disastrous. It would be difficult, indeed, to decide whether or not the churnings of religious sentiment have been the real reason for fomenting many — if not all — of the chaotic wars of our world. A man's religion, however, necessarily colors his whole thinking and thus becomes a basis for his actions. It seems to me that the vast majority of the religions which man has contrived for himself have been, for the most part, a hindrance to his freedom. Also, this hindrance far outweighs in value the security he may receive from it. Here, I am speaking mainly of the au- thoritarian religions — those which bind the minds of their members with unreasonable dogma and presuppose themselves to have access to all knowl- edge of God and deem themselves God's "favored" emissaries. To me, knowledge of God is impossible and I hold that no church, no religious organization of any kind nor any leaders of such organizations can possibly know, any more than I know, what the true nature of God is or how God functions. This is an agnostic's belief. An agnostic, how- 22 The Green Caldron ever, does not say that the idea of God, or a God, cannot or does not exist. To have a faith in something, it seems to me, is quite different from arriving at a conclusion through the scientific or intellectual process. Would that all religions could define the difference. Religion has been, for too long, totally immersed in emotionalism and the result has been the fabrication of preposterous "fairy stories." Emotion plays its part in one's religious development, and I have been no less affected in this respect than the orthodox religionist, but I cannot sanction nor respect that religion which colors the cloth of historical and scientific truth and weaves into it a pattern of self-sustaining lies. Because a man, supposedly, does not "stand still'' in his growth to emo- tional and intellectual maturity, it does not seem possible to me that he could remain unmoved or unchanged where his religious ideas are concerned, unless of course some wise thaumaturge has swooped down from an allegorical heaven and injected a "truth serum" — or, if you please, wisdom — to enable the dogmatists to digest ideas with far greater circumspection than most of us have at the age when we are struck with curiosity about God. To question my religion intellectually and systematically with as little emotional tie as possible is my basic method. Unless a man believes something with his whole mind, how can we expect his emotional ties to be strong enough to withstand the onslaughts of a critical society? If a man can believe some- thing with his whole mind as well as with his intuitive heart, he has gained my respect regardless of how much or how strongly I may disagree. Such a man must necessarily be strong in character and honest in point of view. My religion needs no stone edifice to glorify its beauty. I feel no need for enmeshing myself in a religious organization for the sake of "security," nor do I feel the need to conform to the group — to follow the popular path. My church is my own body ; its temple, my mind ; and the dwelling place of my God is my heart. Because it is good to mingle with those of like as- pirations, I have aligned myself with a fellowship of seekers who call them- selves Unitarians. My God is one God — a triune God is not only unreasonable to me, but highly unpalatable emotionally. To me God represents the gigantic wonder, the cohesiveness of the universe. I see God every day, in all places, yet I do not understand God in the least. After having exhausted all plausible, scien- tific reckoning concerning the universe and being still confronted with the all- baffling mysteries of birth, sex, growth, death and creation, I suppose most agnostics pour that which is not known into one huge vessel of the heart and call it "God." My faith is in freedom and I demand freedom in my religion as well as in my political and economic government. Freedom, it seems to me, implies that a man know truth, or at least be able to search for truths, without hin- drance to his conscience. Why should a man be chastised because he deviates from popular conceptions of government or religion? It seems that fear of December, 1955 23 change has us all "hog-tied," which is a pity, for we cannot hope for that nebulous thing called "progress" unless we experiment boldly and question courageously. An idea, whether it be of religion, of government — either political or economic — or of the relativity of time and matter, must be grounded, pounded, sifted and strained through the mill of the analytical mind before it can be judged "good" for mankind. Faith that a belief is good for mankind should warrant no fear of being crushed or defiled in this process of evaluation. Ulti- mately, mankind will accept it. I believe in the brotherhood of man, the idea of a federated world, the principle of evolving truth, freedom in the quest for the high values which mold my life, the divinity of the universe and, hence, of man, and the right — no, the obligation — of every man who would really be free to search for his God (or lack of one) with all the questioning apparatus available to him, without fear of reprisal or chastisement — and the freedom to make mistakes in judgment, as we all will do. TAPS Taps return memories of the strained faces during aerial combat runs, eyes peering out from behind oxygen masks, eyes that were scared, eyes set in blanched faces, con- trasting with the black rubber of the oxygen masks. I remember the incoming mortar rounds shaking the roof of the bunker, causing the sand to slip down between the logs of the roof, cascading over me, filling my eyes and covering my clothes with the Korean soil. I can smell the pungent odor of cordite. I recall the moments of rest when it stopped, the exhausted men trying to relax, trying to ease the pressure, the cigarettes, the grinning smoke-exhaling mouths, and the silence. I remember seeing men's emotions laid bare in the great adventure we call war. Charles DesEnfants, 101 24 The Green Caldron Rket as Writ Outwardly, an active feels neither superior nor inferior to any other lower form of life. My sister always provides a good show when her date brings her home, and she is a source of income. Although an excellent craftsman he was never an exceptional business man and succeeded only in earning a good living for himself and the widow he had merried. Twenty eight years later he [Abraham Lincoln] was shot at a political gathering, but one of his important documents is living today, it is the Gettusburg address. Did he [General 'MacArthur] not give the best years of his life for the interests of his country ? Did he not upon leaving the PhiHppine Islands in the care of the warring Japanese make this famous statement? "I shall be back." Cannery Row is the title of the second book I have read by John Steinbeck, A Farewell to Arms being the first book. When a man inters the service, his wisest choice is the infantry. Composers such as Sigmond Rombert and Rodgers and Hammerstine will always be remembered for the music of the Dessert Song and South Pacific Television ha.*; a more of a variety of stag shows and you can always get the news in the morning, afternoon or night. We sat there at the edge of the lake in the moonlight ; she in her loveliness, J I in my curiosity. ' Watching the girls in the stands out of the corner of my eye, I threw a long pass. I know I have put my head in the lion's mouth with the receding paragraphs. The danger of tornadoes is very great, as the hundreds of people killed by them every year will testify. Sororiety women on this campus are spoiled. This may sound amusing to some but let us look at the situation before we draw any conclusions in our mind. The Contributors Robert H. Crispin — Proviso, Maywood Richard White — South Shore, Chicago Chester B. ISunn — Chanute Roger Sheahen — Highland Park Sue Leichtman — Danville Nancy L. MuUenix — Hannibal, Mo. Dan A. Godeke — East Richland, Olney George C. Baumgartner — Proviso, Maywood Richard Abbnhl — West Phoenix, Arizona Dorothy Turner — Decatur Fhe Green Caldron A MAGAZINE OF FRESHMAN WRITING • CONTENTS Elizabeth Cioban: Five-Cent Heroine: 1923 1 Jack Cooper: It Ain't Either 2 Roger Sheahen: How to Fight Liberalism 3 Joseph Swinarski: My Favorite "Badge of Courage" 5 Lynden Harbaugh: Point Counter Point 6 Jack H. Cutler: Analysis As Well As Alka-Seltzer 7 Harry W. Richardson: History of Radar's Development Through World War II 9 James Rent fro: A Girlfriend 17 Max Flandorfer: Portrait 18 Carol Crosby: Ways to Combat Teachers 19 Patrick Sheehan: Mink Raising 20 Robert Camy: Three Worlds 21 Elmer E. Anderson: Happiness Versus Unhappiness : A Review of Brave New World 23 Carole Brandt: Sugar and Spice 26 Quendred Wutzke: Maturity Has Its Drawbacks 27 Michael Haynes: Pride and Prejudice 28 Mary Ann Hood: Memories 29 Judith Sensibar: On "What Every Freshman Should Know" . . 31 Rhet as Writ 32 Vol. 25, No. 3 March, 1956 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS T -L HE Green Caldron is published four times a year by the Rhetoric Staff at the University of Illinois. Material is chosen from themes and examinations written by freshmen in the Uni- versity. Permission to publish is obtained for all full themes, including those published anonymously. Parts of themes, how- ever, are published at the discretion of the committee in charge. The themes selected by the committee are judged on their merit as good freshmen writing. The views expressed are those of the authors, and are not to be construed as a reflection of the Rhetoric Staff's opinions. The committee in charge of The Green Caldron includes William Vogt, Carl Moon, George Estey, James Mac- Intyre, and Stewart Dodge, Editor. Five-Cent Heroine: 1923 Elizabeth Cioban Rhetoric 102, Assignment 21 PIERRE SAT WITH THE WOODEN CHAIR TILTED ON TWO legs, its back leaning against the plastered chimney which projected into the kitchen. Directly before him stood his sisters, Yvonne, seven, and Bette, five, their grey eyes watching the high school textbook he held thrust forward. "Between the pages of this book," the youth announced pontifically, "I have placed a valuable object. I will present it as a reward to the one of you who can stand a beating without yelling. Now don't push," he protested, as the girls edged closer. "I will permit you to see this object in the book only. You cannot handle the book and I won't open it." Yvonne and Bette tried, alternately, to peer down into the dark fissure between the pages of the blue textbook. "It's a nickel, I think," Yvonne de- clared. "It's shiny and it's too big for a dime and you wouldn't give away a quarter. Is it a nickel, Pierre?" "It may be a nickel, indeed. I freely admit it is a round and a shiny thing. Yes, it may well be a coin ; it is entirely possible that it is a nickel." He brought the tilted chair down hard on the rough wooden floor and stood up. Pushing the chair aside, he ceremoniously laid the book upon it and began removing the thick leather belt from his Lone Scout Uniform. "You first, Bette," he bade the chubby redhead. "Stand with your face against the chimney." The first tentative flick of the belt set Bette to screaming energetically. "I knew you'd cry right away, bawl baby," jeered Yvonne as she took her place against the chimney. "You always cry over nothing. But I won't cry." Yvonne stood erect, her slender body taut and unyielding beneath the limp folds of her dark woolen dress. She set her feet, in calf length black-and- brown laced shoes, precisely parallel and held her black-stockinged legs firm- ly together. Her arms were stiff and straight at her sides, and her hands were firmly clenched into fists. Pierre delivered the first three lashes gently but added strength to the next three. "Give up?" he asked. Yvonne shook her head. Stirring her straight dark hair and beating dust motes from her clothing, the stinging belt travelled from Yvonne's shoulders to her ankles in a suc- cession of quick, sharp blows. "Will you surrender now, you juvenile Joan of Arc?" Pierre asked. "Do you want to give up?" Yvonne shook her head vehemently. "I won't ever give up, not even if you beat me to pieces. I want that nickel." [1] 2 The Green Caldron Pierre hesitated ; he wanted to stop but he did not know how. Thinking that Yvonne must surely cry out soon, he decided to continue. "Yvonne," he threatened, "give up now because if you don't I'm going to hit you as hard as I can." "I don't care. I want that nickel." The boy applied himself seriously to the task of beating his sister. Strik- ing her thin back and bony shoulders, the forceful blows rocked her body. Yvonne righted herself, clenched her hands tighter, and stood straight again, quivering, but prepared for more. "There's the book, Yvonne," said Pierre, indicating the volume on the chair. "You are very brave. You have certainly and undoubtedly earned your reward." He walked quickly out of the house, slamming the door. Yvonne's face, still grim and determined, began to relax ; a triumphant smile hovered on the edges of her mouth as she picked up the book. Its open pages revealed a silvery button. The outraged child shrieked. It Ain't Eitker Jack Cooper Rhetoric 101, Th^mc 3 EXCEPT FOR A FOUR-YEAR'S RUNNING BATTLE WITH THE Air Force, all my life has been spent in Champaign County. It was in- evitable that I come in contact with many people, customs and tradi- tions associated with the University of Illinois. One of these "traditions" was the Green Caldron, a freshman publication that I had often heard of but had never seen. I was quite elated when its con- tent was assigned for the next class meeting. Here at last was my opportun- ity to own this exclusive collection of literature. With this happy thought in mind, I entered a campus book store. A large and noisy group of students was gathered about a large table in the center of the store where four salesgirls were busy selling red pamphlets. I started to look around for the Green Caldron. On the third trip around the store I got the uneasy feeling that something was amiss. Somewhat self-con- sciously I approached a smiling salesgirl at the center table and asked for a Green Caldron. She smiled disarmingly and said, "That will be twenty-five cents, please." I dutifully handed her the quarter I had clutched in my hand. She smiled again, and deposited my "two-bits" in the cash register. Somehow, I felt cheated ; I still hadn't received my magazine. As I stood there open- mouthed, she turned to me and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, did you want a bag?" I March, 1956 3 "Bag?" I whispered, "Bag for what?" "Why, for your Green Caldron," she said. ControlHng myself, I informed her that I had not yet received my Green Caldron. With a disgusted sigh she indicated the stack of red pamphlets in front of her. Seeing that I still didn't comprehend, she thrust one into my hand, saying, "This is it." I stared at her in disbelief, then glanced at the pamphlet. ITie words on it seemed to leap out at me — GREEN CALDRON. I was a broken man. My whole naive little world had collapsed around me. As I walked dejectedly from the store I barely heard the titters and re- marks from the other customers who had witnessed my embarrassment. My only wish for the moment was that whoever was responsible for the Green Caldron's having a red cover would spill red ink all over his tvhite bucks. How to Fi^nt LiDeralism Roger Sheahen Rhetoric 101, Final Examination IT HAS BEEN BUT A FEW SHORT YEARS SINCE THE DAYS of the cover-all swim suits, but with the birth of the no-chaperone dates and Freud's theories on the relationship between sex drives and the behavior of man, the concepts of sex and morality in American have grown and "liberaHzed" to the point of being insidious. The writer of this paper does not intend to advocate a return to the horse-and-buggy days, but merely to illustrate a current trend in thinking called "liberalism," and to advance his theories and arguments on this subject. First of all, let us define "liberalism." Liberalism is a broad term, carry- ing with it many unseen connotations. However, liberalism with respect to sex and immorality is, at the present time, generally accepted to have this definition. It is an "open-minded" viewpoint on sexual behavior and im- moral conduct. Each man has free will ; therefore, let him decide for himself what is right. Sex exists ; therefore, why try to hide it behind the censorship of a handful of "narrow-minded" people? Rape, adultery, and prostitution occur; therefore, why outlaw them? Rather, make prostitution legal and, thereby, safe. In this way, the tendency towards rape will be reduced and society will not be harmed by "social diseases." Pre-marital intercourse occurs, usually without any physical violence; therefore, do not punish it. This is an all-inclusive definition of liberalism — a conglomeration of the basic phil- osophies of all liberalists with whom the writer has come in contact. The phil- 4 The Green Caldron osophy of any individual liberalist does not necessarily contain all concepts mentioned. Some advocates of liberalism do not include rape in the above definition, but, on the other hand, some do. Therefore, the word rape is in- cluded in the definition. The reader may very well be shocked by the tact that this liberalism is being advocated today by a great number of people. However, the concept docs exist and it must be coped with, not disregarded as liberalists are wont to do with existing problems of immorality. The reader surely recognizes the consequences in a culture based upon this concept, simply by imagining the social chaos inherent in the definition. The two basic principles of American society, monogamy and the family unit, would become meaningless. Society would crumble. The problem now arises: how do we who want a moral society combat the liberalist? The answer to the problem lies in the original definition of liberalism, the basic philosophy of the liberalist. If one can show the liberalist the fallacies upon which the philosophy of liberalism is based, half the battle is won. In the first place, the liberalist leaves himself wide open to the argument when he includes the word "immoral" in his philosophy. By the use of this word, he admits that there is behavior which is not good. Then he immediately contradicts himself by stating that that which is immoral — not good — should be looked upon with an "open mind." In other words, "It's not so bad." By pointing out this fact, one can immediately confuse the liberalist and make him start thinking of arguments to back up the rest of his philosophy. Next, the liberalist mentions "free-will." But, by delegating to man (who he readily admits is imperfect) the power to decide what is right and what is wrong, he shows his willingness to attribute the quality of perfection to an imperfect being — a fallacy in itself. In addition, because man is likely to change his concept of right or wrong, depending entirely upon circumstance or convenience, what is right one minute may be wrong the next. Thus, right becomes wrong and vice-versa — another fallacy. The liberalist has ignored permanence, the determining quality of morality. He has ignored God. Then he (the liberalist) proceeds to speak of censorship as a power belonging to a "handful" of people and, therefore, an infringement upon our basic right of freedom. If one casually mentions that this "handful" is a body established by a free people for a special purpose, the original argument has already collapsed. Also one could argue that sex is not being "hidden" simply because it is censored on movie screens and in magazines. There are available to the general public many medical books which are quite adequately in- formative. The last three concepts of the liberalist could all be combined under the one heading, "free love." The main object of this, of course, is to save the liberalist from punishment if he should violate one of the now existing laws of society. However, one of the best arguments to present in this case is the March, 1956 5 counter proposition : bank robberies occur, usually without physical violence ; therefore, do not punish the felons ; or murder exists ; therefore, why outlaw it? and so on. By this time the liberalist is completely ensnared in the meshes of his own fallacies and is struggling to extricate himself gracefully without backing down on the concepts of his philosophy. But it cannot be done. The liberalist has denied the existence of God and his laws. Both are basic factors in our society. All liberalists with their illogical concepts will one day have to entan- gle themselves and admit that : "The two billion intricate laws of society are merely explanations of ten simple Commandments." My Favorite ^Bad^e of Courage'' Joseph Sv/inarski Rhetoric 101, Theme 5 AS LONG AS THE ENGLISH TONGUE SURVIVES, THE WORD Dunkerque will be spoken with reverence. For on that beach and in that harbor hell blazed on earth as never before at the end of a lost battle ; the rags and blemishes that had hidden the soul of democracy fell away. It was a small battlefield which was sculptured by the lunatic hewing of cannon and mortars. Shells painted it with the whites and yellows and reds of shredded men. The sands were wet as blood and blackened like wounds, and only the smoke and deafening echoes of fury were left. Now the whole battle- field seemed like a painting that moved slowly and silently across its canvas, and then slowly and silently into the mind, where it painted the mind. Men died so others could escape. It was not so simple a thing as the cour- age which can be hammered into men on a drill field. It was not the result of careful planning, for there could have been very little. It was merely the com- mon man of free countries rising in all his glory out of the office, factory, mine, farm and ship ; applying to war the lesson he learned when he hurled the lifeboat into the surf, when he want down the mine shaft to bring out trap- ped comrades, when he endured poverty and hard work for his children's sake. How bitterly small an inch of sandy beach seems. How bitterly small it seems to some of us who never saw men die for it. Was it too much to ex- pect? On this cemetery-beach there is a silence all around, a body of silence, like something living there. There is no voice of life in the cemetery of civil- ians; whereas, in a soldier's cemetery the voice is very loud. How bitterly small Dunkerque is, but how colossal the price was. ^ Tlie Green Caldron Point Counter Point Lynden Harbaugh Rhetoric 101. Theme 10 IN POINT COUNTER POINT, ALDOUS HUXLEY PRESENTS A penetrating study of people — people of many types and temperaments, people who have principles, and people who have none. In the novel, Huxley states : "Everything that happens is intrinsically like the man it hap- pens to." Huxley then proceeds to develop, in the life of each character, events which correspond to his individual personality. Marjorie Carling, coolly refined, cultured, and virtuous, is in love with love — the pure love about which the poets sing. To her, "love was talk, love was spiritual communion and companionship. That was real love." It is then not surprising that in the last picture which we are given of Marjorie, she is looking at the world as if through an inverted telescope. Walter and the world are no longer significant. She has at last found, in her love for God, the unadulterated love for which she had been searching. She is last shown, sitting, staring out of the window into complete darkness, and "through the vacant lifelessness of trance her spirit sank slowly down once more into God, into the perfect absolute, into limitless and everlasting nothing." Walter Bidlake, who admires Marjorie's goodness and purity from a distance, is bored and exasperated by her coldness close at hand, for "under the shy, diffident, sensitive skin of him, he is ardently alive." But, unfortun- ately for him, Walter is the type of person who fairly invites maltreatment. He is by nature gentle and conscientious. His anger at Marjorie could not put down the feeling of shame, and his savage and obstinate desire for Lucy was tempered by adoring and passionate tenderness. "It was as though a protection had been stripped from him and he were left here, in the quiver- ing, vulnerable nakedness of adoring love." Of the vulnerability, Lucy seems to take every advantage. "She would let herself go a little way toward surrender, would sufTer herself to be charged by his caresses with some of his tenderness only to suddenly draw herself back from him into a teasing, pre- vocative detachment. And Walter would be awakened from his dream of love into a reality of what Lucy called "fun," into the cold daylight of sharply conscious, laughingly deliberate sensuality. She left him unjustified, his guiltiness unpalliated." Walter — sensitive and vulnerable Walter, who was born to be treated badly — is eventually deserted by Lucy. It seems necessary that Walter should last be seen in complete anguish, an anguish which is pain, anger, disappoint- ment, shame, and misery all in one. "Upstairs in his room, Walter was lying on the bed, his face buried in the pillows." Lucy Tantamount, the reason behind Walter's desire and misery, is a wealthy and willful girl, and is thoroughly convinced that the world revolves March, 1956 7 only to make her happy, "She's one of those women who have the tempera- ment of a man. Men can get pleasure out of casual encounters. Most women can't ; they've got to be in love, more or less. They've got to be emotionally involved. All but a few of them. Lucy's one of the few. She has the masculine detachment. She can separate her appetite from the rest of her soul." She became Walter's mistress merely because he amused her, and she was bored ; but, even when she gave him her body, she refused to give him her love. Because Lucy never allowed her heart to become involved in her affairs, they were as easily dropped as they were taken up. Is it not intrinsically like Lucy to be last mentioned having another fling? This time it takes place in Paris, and with a beautiful brown savage, but she is still emotionally detached and free — still beautiful, but still bored. Analysis As Well As Allea-Seltzer Jack H. Cutler Rhetoric 101, Theme 5 TWENTY-THREE CENTURIES AGO, DURING THE THIRD Century B. C, Aristotle penned the first critical analysis — a treatise on poetry. Since this highly respectable origin, the value of such analysis has been a subject of great controversy. The claims and counter-claims for the relative usefulness of this process have flown thick and fast. The pro- ponents of critical analysis contend that to read and not to analyze is not to read at all and its opponents stoutly declare that this process of "tearing apart and scrutinizing" lessens the reader's appreciation of literature. These biased evaluations, which are usually stated as self-evident truths requiring no supporting material, furnish little or nothing for the intelligent person to base a just decision upon. The logical mind is still unconvinced of the essen- tiality or superfluity of critical analysis. The main fallacy in the appraisals of the literary radicals is their approach to the subject matter. They attempt to determine the worth of critical analy- sis as if it were a horse, whereas the true critic does not evaluate the process as a whole but appraises its component parts individually or in small groups. And only with this fact in mind is an accurate evaluation possible. In a consideration of prose only, the first steps of a critical analysis — cate- gorizing the writing as fiction or non-fiction and identifying the class to which it belongs (novel, essay, short story, exposition, etc.) — may appear to be mere mental calisthenics. But, in reality, this phase of the analysis pos- sesses an extremely important function. Through distinguishing fact from fantasy and restricting the prose in question to a certain type, these basic steps greatly aid the reader in the execution of the next two (and principal) 8 The Green Caldron procedures : defining the purpose and determining the meaning of a Hterary prose work. These interpretative measures, unHke the categorical and classification steps, often require deep concentration and strenuous mental effort on the part of the reader. Admittedly, in some prose selections such as Dean Prosser's essay "English As She Is Wrote," the purpose and meaning of the writing are as obvious as the color of Santa Claus's suit. But in the majority of such literature reason and reflection are necessary for a true interpretation of the author's ideas. One simply does not unearth the profound meaning of a story such as Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil" without some mental ex- ertion. However, the effort spent returns big dividends. These steps in crit- ical analysis enable a person not merely to read, but to read with understand- ing ; and through "reading with understanding" any literate man, woman, or child has access to an ocean-like reservoir of ideas, ideals, opinions, theories, meditations, reflections, speculations, observations, and sentiments of the past and present. Critical analysis, through this stage, is as essential for the digestion of food for our minds as our salivary glands are for the digestion of our body- food. And, whereas large servings of body-food tend to make us broader, large servings of mind-food tend to make us broader-minded. Unfortunately, however, nothing is so useful that it cannot be overworked. And critical analysis is no exception. Many thoroughly "rhetoricized" indi- viduals are not content with extracting merely the meaning and purpose from a novel or essay. They also analyze the diction, tone, literary devices, and many other aspects too numerous to mention. But this thirsting-for-knowledge caste oftentimes misses the author's meaning by studying only the author's style. And these pseudo-intellectuals, confirmed believers in the old political slogan, "What's good for me is good for you," declare that everyone should study the stylistic qualities of all reading material. This assertion, eloquently stated, is typical of the radical evaluations of critical analysis. Undoubtedly, the critical analysis of the various writing styles and methods of development would prove invaluable to the future author or authoress. But these are ex- ceptions rather than the rule. Such analysis would be practically worthless to the average American or, for that matter, the average citizen of any coun- try. What possible benefit could a farmer or even a doctor reap from the knowledge that O'Henry specialized in surprise endings or that Wilbur Daniel Steele used "back-country" diction in "How Beautiful With Shoes" to gain special effects? Such knowledge would certainly not enrich one financially, could seldom be utilized as a conversational bit, and, contrary to the conten- tion of the champions of style-analysis, it does not enhance everyone's ap- preciation of literature. "For best results, avoid excessive use." This medicine chest maxim can be appropriately applied to critical analysis as well as to Alka-Seltzer. March, 1956 9 History ox Radar's Development Tkrou^k World War II Harry W. Richardson Rhetoric 102, Theme 13 ALTHOUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF RADAR AS A WEAPON of war goes back a little more than a decade, the general principles have been known and used for many years. As early as 1887, Heinrich Hertz, a German radio physicist, proved that radio waves could be reflected like light rays, and could be formed into beams by metallic mirrors similar in shape to the mirrors used to form beams of light. To Hertz goes the credit for discovery of two of radar's essentials. History, however, doesn't indicate that these principles were investigated to any length until 1922 when Dr. A. H. Taylor and Mr, L. C. Young of the Naval Research Laboratory de- tected interference patterns while working with high frequency radio waves near Washington, D. C. These two men, whose position in the development of nftdar is outstanding, noted that 60 megacycle radio transmissions across the Anacostia River were disturbed by the passage of boats on the river. These results were embodied in a suggestion to the Navy Department that destroyers located on line a number of miles apart could be immediately aware of the passage of any enemy vessels between any two destroyers of the line irrespective of fog, darkness or smoke screen. This observation ante- dates other radar work by a number of years. ^ Meanwhile the Army experimented along other lines in an attempt to improve its antiaircraft activities. The Ordnance Department had been work- ing intermittently since 1918 on various sorts of heat and infrared detectors of aircraft until the Army transferred responsibilities for aircraft detection to the Signal Corps laboratories. Up to this time (1930) both the Navy and Signal Corps had been trying a method of continous wave radio transmission to obtain useful detection data from ships and aircraft, but this method de- manded the generation of sufficient power to obtain any echoes.^ The Carnegie Institution of Washington began a series of successful ex- periments in 1925 which led the way to more efficient use of radio waves for ionosphere investigation. The pulse range method was tried for the first time and the results indicated that this new technique would become the standard method for ionosphere measurements. The technique consisted of send- 1 Donald G. Fink, Radar Engineering (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1947), pp. 5-6. 2 U. S. Joint Board on Scientific Information Policy, Radar, A Report on Science at War (Washington, 1945\ p. 5. 10 The Green Caldron ing skyward a series of very short pulses, a small fraction of a second in length, and measuring the time it took the reflected pulse to return to earth. Dr. Taylor and Mr. Young of the Naval Research Laboratory had set up this experiment for the Carnegie Institute and so brought back this new idea to the Navy in 1930. Experiments using this new idea for ship and air- craft detection began again with new vigor.^ Curiously, nature has provided bats with this same pulse ranging system to aid these mammals in their nocturnal flights. The Cruft Laboratory of Harvard University showed that bats emit sharp pulses of supersonic acoustic energy at a rate of fifty pulses per second. The bat is thus able to detect and time these returned echoes so that it can soar through darkened caverns with- out touching overhanging stalactites and low ceilings.* Until the new idea of pulse ranging was perfected, the Army and Navy were actually using a World War I method of detecting aircraft by sound locators. This method consisted of an elaborate array of listening horns mounted to revolve in any direction and pointed upwards to pick up the sound of an aircraft's exhaust or propeller pitch. During World War I tliis method might have sufficed for defense, but aircraft's speed was increasing steadily. With this outmoded method, the sound from a plane at a distance of thirteen miles would take a whole minute to reach the horn of the detecting set. If this plane were traveling at a slow speed of 120 miles per hour, or two miles a minute, it would be two miles away from the original spot when it was picked up by the sound locator.^ It was realized that any increase in speed of aircraft would only make the situation worse. Something more rapid was necessary to give the antiaircraft units needed warning. Radar was the answer, for it solved the problem in one stroke. Radio waves traveling at a speed of 186,000 miles per second were roughly 892,800 times faster than the speed of sound and several million times faster than the speed of aircraft. Radar would indicate the plane's position immediately and yet radar would not be appreci- ably obstructed by any fog, clouds or precipitation. ^ Radar was born when it occurred to different persons independently and in different parts of the world that the pulse technique could be used to detect objects like aircraft and ships just as well as it had detected the ionosphere. This idea seems to have occurred almost simultaneously in France, America, England, Germany and probably Japan. Scientists in these countries worked secretly on the problems of increased power output, better directional antenna beams and shorter pulses. '^ "The struggle for technical ascendancy between our scientific brains and those of the enemv became intensified as the un- 3 Ibid. * "Study of Bats," Scientific Monthly, LVI (February 1943), pp. 158-9. 5 John F. Rider, Radar, What Is It? (New York: John F. Rider Publisher, Inc., 1946). p. 35. * Fink, p. 4. ^ U. S. Joint Board, p. 5. March, 1956 11 dreamed-of-possibilities of centimeter wavelength radar were gradually un- folded. It had indeed the character of a secret battle fought out in the labor- atories of the Allies and Germany." * During the years of 1936 and 1937 both the Army and Navy had designed and developed their own radar sets. Due to the foresight of the Secretary of War and because of his suggestion, the Army and Navy freely exchanged information on their independent researches and thus expedited the final products. The Navy's set had been installed on the U. S. S. New York and was given exhaustive tests during sea maneuvers in early 1939. The set's performance was gratifying and contracts for six sets were awarded to a commercial company in November, 1939. The Army's set also proved suc- cessful during exhaustive tests at the Coast Artillery post, Fort Monroe, Vir- ginia, in November, 1938. During these tests, in addition to locating planes for the antiaircraft crews, radar showed new possibilities. The set detected anti-aircraft shells in flight, and also guided back to a safe landing an army bomber which had been blown out to sea on its test mission as a radar target. Eighteen sets were built in 1940 by the Signal Corps laboratories in order to get equipment into the hands of troops for training purposes, while quantity production by commercial contractors was getting under w^ay.® Meanwhile British radar was developed at about the same time but at a much faster pace under the immediate threat to Britain's security. The British had investigated the same method as used in the ionosphere measure- ments by Dr. Taylor and Mr. Young for the Carnegie Institute and were able to complete their first set in the spring of 1955. During 1936 five more sets were built and installed twenty-five miles apart to protect the entrances to the Thames estuary. When Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain went to Munich in September, 1938, these five stations were put on a twenty-four hour watch for the first time. When the Germans occupied Prague in Novem- ber, 1938, round-the-clock operations began for these stations and continued until the end of World War II. These five stations became the nucleus of the great chain which finally encircled the British Isles. The British developn ment of radar during this period was well in advance of other countries, in- cluding the United States, and remained so until the pooling of American and British interests in 1940.^° An important step took place in the United States in unifying research and development activities on radar and in breaking ground for entirely new techniques w^hen President Roosevelt issued the executive order establishing the National Defense Research Committee on June 27, 1940. The Army and Navy were thus able to turn over to scientists mobilized by this committee a large number of problems which would involve considerable research and 8 George S. Godwin, Marconi, 1939-1945, A War Record (London: Chatto & Windus, 1946), p. 100. 9 U. S. Joint Board, p. 6. 10 Fink, p. 8. 12 The Green Caldron time. One of the first steps taken by this committee was a preliminary breakdown of the fields of activity into four categories dealing with ordnance, chemistry, communications, and physics. The physics group, headed by the eminent Dr. Karl T. Compton, eventually was responsible for the develop- ment of more than 100 different models of radar equipment used by all serv- ices of the Allies during World War 11.^^ During November, 1940, an initial meeting of fifteen physicists from var- ious universities and headed by Dr. Compton took place in a laboratory of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This group was the nucleus of the Microwave Committee of the National Defense Research Committee. The growth of this group and its accomplishments from the initial meeting until its dissolution at the end of the war with Japan were phenomenal. At the close of World War II the Radiation Laboratory, as the Microwave Group called itself, had a total of 3900 employees and covered an area of two-thirds of a million square feet of floor space in one permanent and two temporary buildings located on the campus of M. I. T. In addition, approximately 150 civilian employees in uniform were constantly in the field instructing Army and Navy personnel in the operation and maintenance of new equipment de- veloped at Radiation Laboratory. Over a billion and a half dollars' worth of equipment, which had its inception at the Radiation Laboratory, had been produced, and another billion dollars' worth was on order when the war ended.^^ One of the most important lifts to the new Microwave Group of NDRC and to the developments in the microwave field was provided by the visit of a technical mission from England in the fall of 1940. This mission, headed by Sir Henry Tizard, brought over a model of the new "cavity magnetron" which had been perfected by a research group at the University of Birming- ham. This tube oscillated at a frequency of 3000 megacycles (10 centimeters) at a peak power of 10 kilowatts. The U. S. Army had attempted experiments as early as 1934 in this same frequency range but was unable to produce power of only one watt. The power capability of this new tube was unbe- lievable. "Small as the magnetron was in size, it has been called 'the most important piece of cargo ever to cross the Atlantic ocean.' " ^' Until 1941 the U. S. Army had been calling its locating equipment by the name "radio position finding." The British used the term "radiolocation." The Navy had coined the word "radar" as an abbreviation for RAdio Detection And Ranging ; and this convenient term was soon adopted in the United States and subsequently, in 1943, was officially adopted by the British.^* ^^ Keith Henney, Itidrx: Radiation Laboratory Scries (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1953), p. viii. ^2 Lee A. DuBridpe, "History and Activities of the Radiation Laboratory of MIT," Reviexv of Scientific Instruments, XVII (January, 1946) p. 2. 13 Henney, p. x. " U. S. Joint Board, p. 9. March, 1956 13 The assaults on England by the German Lujtzi'affc began in August, 1940, as had been long expected, and rapidly increased in intensity. Despite a crit- ical shortage of both aircraft and pilots, the British were able to spot each raid as it came across the Channel in time to send up their fighters against the raiders. This was possible because of British radar, and thus constant patrol by airborne fighter planes was eliminated.^^ "In the fall of 1940, a hand- ful of British fighters broke the back of the German aerial invasion because they had an innovation called radar." ^"^ By the end of 1941, the United States had enough long-range radar search sets to insure installations at various strategic points such as Alaska, the Hawaiian Islands and the Philippines. Unfortunately, on December 7, 1941, human performance may have been wanting, but radar did its job by showing the presence of Japanese planes forty-five minutes before they struck Pearl Harbor, when they were still 135 miles away. Had this warning been heeded, the war might have taken quite a different turn.^' With the United States finally in the war against the Axis countries, the radar program expanded explosively, with practically all ceilings removed on the allotments for production and training. The Radiation Laboratory was perfecting a 3 centimeter magnetron designed after the British 10 centimeter model and this new wavelength indicated that previous problems of resolu- tion, range and equipment portability would soon be solved.^* Personnel of the 8th Air Force worked alongside the British and prepared for their part in the eventual invasion of the continent. Anti-aircraft batteries kept in practice by shooting down the German V-1 Buzz Bombs with Amer- ican-built radar while the radar long-range trackers tried to ferret out the location of the V-Vs launching platforms from the line of flight which appeared on the radar scopes.^® Radar which had been used as a weapon of defense in the Battle of Britain quickly forged on to become a weapon of offense in the war against Germany and Japan. -° The 8th Air Force found out that the weather over Europe during the winter months can be pretty bad. Despite a shortage of the new 3 centimeter wavelength radar, the 8th Air Force devised a scheme which enabled planes containing this radar equipment to lead a complete wing of 540 bombers over Germany on its first practice run on November 3, 1943. The radar equipped planes, called Pathfinders, were each able to lead sixty or more bombers to the target and all could then drop their bomb load 15 U. S. Joint Board, p. 12. 161. B. Holley, Jr., Ideas and Weapons (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1953), p. 5. 17 James Stokley, Electrons in Action (New \ ork : Whittlesey House, 1946), p. 195. 18 Henney, p. xx. 19 U. S. Joint Board, p. 19. 20 Louis N. Ridenour, "Radar in War and Peace," Electrical Engineering. LXV (May, 1946), p. 204. 14 The Green Caldron on signal from the Pathfinder bombardier. Until the necessary spare radar sets could be manufactured, these same few Pathfinder planes led the whole 8th Air Force over Germany through the winter of 1943-44. Radar had be- come an important part of strategic air force operations. ^^ The bombers were better supplied with radar equipment by the time the invasion of France began. This time the target was the shoreline of Normandy and its installations just beyond. The job to be done was important and diffi- cult ; for twenty-five minutes beginning at H-hour-minus-thirty-minutes a rolling barrage of bombs was to be planted just ahead of the landing craft of the assault forces. The 8th Air Force hoped that the weather would be perfect to insure good visibility for this ticklish task on D-day, but the Channel was blanketed by thick clouds on the morning of June 6, 1944. Bombing by radar was the only answer, and not one Allied man was killed or hurt by the bombs dropped on that memorable day by the 8th Air Force.^^ Radar played just as important a part for the Navy. The resolution of the new microwave radar allowed our largest battleships to come closer to strange shores in the dead of night than they ever have dared to do before. In the same way transports and cargo ships were permitted to unload closer to the beach, lessening the danger to their small craft and saving immensely on unloading time. In the black of night or thickest of fog, our warships could pinpoint a target. The versatility of size of the different models developed by the Radiation Laboratory also allowed complete systems to be installed on the Navy's small PT boats. Radar played its first important role for the Navy during the early days of convoy service. Because of strict radio silence and blackout regulations, the convoy commander with his radar search indicators on the bridge could tell immediately if any of the ships strayed out of line or were in danger of collision with their nearest convoy member. Es- cort destroyers to the rear and in front of each convoy were also radar equipped and could sf)eed to the rescue of any such ship in trouble. In the closing months of the war U-boats were being sunk at the rate of five or six a week by means of radar ferreting and it is conceded that the collapse of Germany was due in large part to the continuous flow of supplies across the Atlantic. That this flow was continuous was largely due to the part that radar played.-^ The superiority of the Allied radar proved itself when the Gennan pocket battleship Scharnhorst was sunk in the North Sea in December, 1943. The German battleship had been detected by several British destroyers on their search radar at the distance of eighteen miles. These British destroyers con- tinued to watch the German ship while carefully keeping behind the horizon until the arrival of reinforcements. The British battleship H. M. S. Duke of 21 U. S. Joint Board, p. 32. 22 Stoklcy, p. 307. 23 Rider, p. 49. March, 1956 15 York was in the vicinity and approaching at full speed. The Duke of York detected the Scharnhorst at twenty-three miles but closed in to 12,000 yards before firing her first salvo. It is said that the Germans were completely un- aware of the presence of the Duke of York until the first salvo poured in on them. Similar incidents were repeated in engagements between the U. S. and Japanese Navies all during the war in the Pacific, Radar had removed the phrase, "the enemy retreated under cover of darkness," from the naval com- muniques, for day or night makes no difiference to the searching beams of radar pulses. -* One major setback occurred during the war when the Radiation Labor- atory attempted to produce radar wavelengths smaller than the commonly used 3 centimeter wavelengths. Because the development of the 3 centimeter radar had produced such vast improvements over the original 10 centimeter radar, it was logical to believe that even smaller wavelengths would produce even further improvements. The new wavelength was more or less arbitrar- ily picked to be 1.25 centimeters. After two years of efifort on the part of engineers and physicists, as well as the expenditure of millions of dollars, such a radar system was produced, installed and tested. The new radar produced a very narrow searchlight beam as expected, but the range of visibility was disappointingly small. It could not reach farther than fifteen miles, whereas the 3 centimeter radar had been reaching seventy-five to one hundred miles. A flurry of research disclosed that the water vapor in the air was strongly absorbing the 1.25 centimeter microwaves. At this time, the United States was primarily engaged in the Pacific war and water vapor in this area is high. Because the water vapor could not be eliminated, the radar equipment was useless and had to be discarded. This accidental choice of wavelength was at the time a major military setback, but fortunately we were able to go back to the 3 centimeter radar which was still very successful. ^^ After the war, the Signal Corps continued to investigate new uses for radar and produced an interesting experiment during January of 1946. One of the first pre-war radar sets was carefully modified to generate an extra wide pulse with high power output. In addition, its large antenna was fixed to point directly at the moon during the period of moonrise or moonset. With the set's indicators also modified to show distances up to 300,000 miles, the special moon radar set was triggered on January 22, 1946, while the moon was rising over the horizen. The echo pulse returned and was detected right on schedule — a little over two and a half seconds later. Comparison of the strength of this returned echo from a distance of 238,000 miles with accompanying noise strength indicated that this particular set would be able to receive lunar 24 Ibid., p. 50. 25 George A. Baitsell, Science in Progress (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1953), p. 216. 16 The Green Caldron echoes up to one million miles away. There is no practical limit (except tar- get size) to the distance at which radar can be effective, providing there is a straight line between the antenna and the object at which the beam is di- rected. ^^ During the war the Radiation Laboratory perfected many items of radar equipment which are more in use today than they were during the war. One of its greatest accomplishments was the perfection of a long-range naviga- tion system called Loran. This navigation system now covers every part of the globe and allows exact locations to be obtained by either aircraft or ships in any kind of weather. The accuracy of these Loran fixes is just as good as a celestial fix and yet they are much easier to take and to interpret. During the war this system was used to guide long range bombers to their targets over Japan and Germany. ^^ Another useful item, which had been designed at Radiation Laboratory, is the Ground Control Approach radar system. This equipment consists of a com- plete combination of 10 and 3 centimeter radar sets mounted in a large trailer and usually situated near airfield runways. With a few highly trained tech- nicians operating the equipment, the set is used to guide lost aircarft to a safe landing in extremely low-visibility weather. Although this type of set was not produced sufficiently to be common before the end of the war, many Allied pilots were found floundering in the "soup" and guided back safely to the emergency fields which had GCA. This type of set is advantageous because no radar equipment is needed in the plane. Any aircraft with the normal communications equipment that is used to talk to the control tower can be vectored safely to the runway by GCA, because the technicians interpret the radar picture and then "talk the plane down" to the right spot. The Civil Aeronautics Authority operates many of these sets at principal airfields across the United States.^^ Without question, radar did a remarkable job during the w^ar and was a very important contribution to Allied success. Today high powered radar still serves the same purpose in protecting the United States, Canada and most of the NATO countries from a surprise enemy air attack. Radar is used more on ships today than on any other mode of transportation for faster, safer travel in strange waters or during poor visibility. Radar is needed on the American highways today and perhaps more and better ways of utilizing the radar si>eed indicators will be found. The radar altimeter is used on nearly all aircraft for height determination. It is evident that radar has a future, in addition to GCA and Loran, in purely peacetime applications. 28 J. Mofcnson, "Radar Echoes from the Moon," Electronics, XIX (April, 1946), pp. 94-96. 27 Rider, p. 65. 28/6,-(f., pp. 60-61. March, 1956 17 LIST OF REFERENCES CONSULTED I. Books Baitsell, George A. Science in Progress. New Haven : Yale University Press, 1953. Fink, Donald G. Radar Engineering. New York : McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1947. Godwin, George S. Marconi, 1939-1945, A War Record. London : Chatto & Windus, 1946. Henney, Keith. Inde.v: Radiation Laboratory Series. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1955. Holley, I. B., Jr. Ideas and Weapons. New Haven : Yale University Press, 1953. Rider, John F. Radar, What Is It? New York: John F. Rider Publisher, Inc.. 1946. Stockley, James. Electronics in Action. New York : Whittlesey House, 1946. n. Articles DuBridge, Lee A. "History and Activities of the Radiation Laboratory of MIT." Review of Scientific Instruments, XVII (January, 1946) 1-8. Mofenson, J. "Radar Echoes from the Moon." Electronics, XIX (April, 1946) 92-98. Ridenour, Louis N. "Radar in War and Peace." Electrical Engineering, LXV (May, 1946) 202-207. "Study of Bats." Scientific Monthly. LVI (February, 1943) 155-162. U. S. Joint Board on Scientific Information Policy, Radar, A Report on Science at War. Washington, 1945. A Girlfriend James Rentfro Rhetoric 101, Theme 8 A GIRLFRIEND IS A STRANGE CREATURE. SHE IS SOME- times hard to find, but, when found, is harder to get rid of. She is either in your hair or on your mind. When you are the farthest apart, you are the closest. She is expensive, sweet, jealous, witty, and right. She knows how to shift gears, write themes, kiss, kick, cuddle, and console. A girlfriend has a sense of humor, tremendous appetite, lovely smile, large al- lowance, and an ability to understand. She likes to dance, dress up, eat pizza, neck, and go to drive-in movies. She hates your teasing, drinking, other girl- friends, bachelor friends, and lack of etiquette. She is never wrong, satisfied, on time, unfaithful, or forgotten. A girlfriend means laughter and tears, heartbreak and joy. A girlfriend is a song, a full moon, a hamburger at a drive-in. She is wisdom with a pretty face, and virginity with a shapely body. A girlfriend, a real girlfriend, is a wonderful thing. 18 The Green Caldron Portrait Max Flandorfer Rhetoric 100, Theme 1 IT'S BIG. THE FIRST THING ANYONE NOTICES IS ITS SIZE. It's huge — huge and sprawHng — tangled over the landscape like a broken cobweb. It is a mass of steel, stone and asphalt mountains made by man, eroded by canyons of streets and sidewalks, and undermined by subways. It stands a being so complicated and confused it doesn't know its own self, New York is a city sufficient unto itself, asking for and giving nothing. It is as cold as the ice in the streets, and as dirty. Fighting the good and the bad alike, it sits waiting to pounce on an unwary person like a vulture — savage and cruel as any bird of prey ever was — asking and giving no quarter. The people are the same — the rich, the poor, and the dreamer — all alike. There is Park Avenue with its ultra-smart shops and people living an unreal, circus-like life with big cars, French poodles, tuxedos, and painted suites, trying to find something which somehow seems to elude them. They are running madly in a chrome-plated dream of frustration. There is the bowery with its stinking, filthy gutters, tenements, flop-houses, and cheap bars. Here are the winos sitting under the thunder of the "el" — glassy-eyed, drunk — lost in their dreams. The only thing the city lets them have is a dream — a dream rising from the cheap juke-box music, of the cigar- ette butt in the gutter and the prostitute on the corner. The lifeless, plodding existence of the people here is supported by the dreams and promises of their enemy and only friend — the city. It is a big, beautiful woman, beautiful and cheap, garishly painted in neon lights with a dress of paint and billboards. Her heart is as big as her people and as hard as her pavement. She lures the farm boys and country girls with promises of love and money, promising, seldom fulfilling. She shocks and terrifies the stranger with her callous indifference to death — and life — and her total unconcern for the misfortune of others. New York is a personality as full of hate as she is of love, sharing and doling each out equally and indifferently. It is seen in the couple trying to escape for a moment from her grip to the park or Coney Island, escaping in the dreamland of the movies or the bright lights of Broadway ; or the people at the Copa Cabana, the Latin Quarter, or Carnegie Hall. They all live, love, and hate in the same futile way. On the surface she is gay, carefree, and full of music — trying — trying hard to be happy. But the brassy, blaring gaiet)' is strained with an undertone of heartbreak and tears. You must listen hard and know what you are listening for. The deep, sad cello-tone of weariness in the factory whistles, the high, desperate violin shriek of the ambulance siren — it's there — listen ! She is rotten, rotten to the core. She'll kick you and, when you fall, spit on you. She waits for the stumbler, hoping he will fall, waiting with a cavern- March. 1956 19 ous mouth and a stomach with no bottom. She is bad ; she is cheap ; and she won't give anyone an even break. She hates everyone of her crawHng, squirming parasites, and they know it. Give her your heart — she will take it, twist it, bend it, break it, throw it in your face, laugh at you, and never ask forgiveness. She is everything God ever made wrong in this world, but she is my city. New York, big, bright, savage, and beautiful — I love her — every stinking, dirty little street. Ways to Combat Teacners Carol Crosby Rhetoric 101, Theme 5 TEACHERS ARE UNUSUAL CREATURES, AND EACH ONE must be handled individually. Attempting to classify them under one heading is futile, but the student cannot obtain the best results in frus- trating them without recognizing the different types and the best means of combatting each. A type of teacher that is very well known on campus is the "Jolly Good Fellow" who tries to win the class's attention and good will with a hearty laugh or a slap on the back. One wonders at the crafty gleam in his eye ; his words do not ring quite true. In thwarting this type of teacher, the student should maintain an attitude of aloofness. Refusing to join in class discussion and staring at him coldly are excellent methods of halting his obvious insin- cerity. All of the students on campus know the austere instructor, the man of distinction. Sleeping through this instructor's classes, the students find that they will not be interrupted, for this mighty man cannot be bothered unless the offender begins to snore. The teacher that gestures and shouts is a member of a third class on campus. The student finds nothing so annoying as a teacher who states with great passion and feeling, "There are three ways to solve a quadratic equation." Again, the cold stare and a glance filled with contempt are the best courses to follow. The opposite of the instructor mentioned above is the nervous, soft-spoken, mixed-up kind. With insignificant words and phrases and in scrambled sen- tences he explains a problem and then asks if everything is clear. He has developed the habit of dropping chalk, and, easily confused, he goes off on tangents and falls oflf the platform at least once each period. The class can catch up on the latest gossip, because the teacher's voice becomes lower and lower as the voice of the class gains in volume. After the college student classifies his teachers he can decide upon the best ways of frustrating them. Using various methods, he can become one of the great crowd of students engaged in subversive, anti-teacher activities. 20 The Green Caldron Mink Raising Patrick Sheehan Rhetoric 101, The we 3 MINK RAISING, AS AN OCCUPATION, HAS FINALLY COME into its own in the United States. Each year thousands of pelts are used by American furriers to make mink coats. Each pelt used in a coat represents one year of preparation. This preparation includes breeding and separating of the mink, and also skinning, fleshing, and pelting. Breeding is done during the months of January and February. The established mink rancher usually saves a number of females and males from the previous year to use as breeders. Each male is bred to ten females. Mink of different colors are often mixed in order to produce a kit which con- tains the colors of both parents. By the middle of February the breeding pro- cess has been completed, leaving the mink rancher with nothing to do for the rest of the month but feed, water, and clean the mink. Late in March the kits begin to arrive. Litters range from one to as many as ten kits. There may be any number of males or females in a litter. After birth the kits are left with their mother for about two months. They grow rapidly during this time, often becoming as large as their mother. May and June are the months of separation. Each kit is put into a separate pen. If this were not done, the pens would be so crowded that the mink would smother one another. The m^le mink grows steadily larger during the months of July, August, September, and October, reaching maturity early in November. It takes about nine months for the male to develop fully. The female has reached maturity by the end of five months, usually maturing at only half the size of the male. For this reason the male pelt is worth twice as much money on the market as the female pelt. To the mink rancher November is the most profitable month of the year, and also the busiest. During this month the mink must be killed, skinned, fleshed, and pelted. A gas chamber is used to kill them. After being gassed, the mink are cut open and the flesh is scraped out of them, leaving only the skinned pelt. After the pelts have dried, they become quite hard. The pelting process is then used to soften the furs. Now they are ready to be sold. A sample of the furs is sent to New York, where a large auction is held, and the furs are sold to the highest bidder. If it has been a good year and fur prices are high, the pelts will bring a good price, and the mink rancher will show a sizable profit, but this is not always the case. Disease may strike the mink, or prices may drop, leaving the rancher with hardly enough money to cover the cost of raising the mink. March, 1956 21 Raising mink is not the easiest way to make a living, but, if a man enjoys working outside and likes to gamble a little on the future, it has its compen- sations. Tnree Worlds Robert Camy Rhetoric 102, Assignment 21 AT NOON THE SUN WAS VERY HOT, AND IN THE WATCH- tower on the top of the high cement wall a fat guard was sitting in a tilted chair, holding a rifle across his lap and staring somnolently off into space. From under the stiff cap of his uniform streams of sweat were coursing slowly down his red face and dripping on his sun-tan shirt, which had turned dark all over with wetness. Now and then his eyes closed and his head fell forward, and then he would start, spasmodically clutch the heavy rifle, and snap his head up, forcing his eyes to open again in the same glazed stare. Below him in the street outside the wall, an unbroken stream of noontime traffic was passing. On the sidewalk next to the wall two girls who wore brief shorts and thin sweaters were talking along rapidly, talking and laughing, their teeth gleaming in their tanned faces. The taller of the two, who was holding her companion's arm, and whose legs were very white in the sun, walked rather stififly. The other girl's legs were a deep brown, and she walked with such natural grace that she might have been dancing along the street beside the blank, gray wall. The girls turned their heads to look intently into each other's faces as an automobile containing two young men swerved in to the curb ; they remained totally absorbed in their conversation while it rolled slowly along beside them. Shortly, the car turned back into the traffic. The girls did not look at it as it moved on down the street. A moment later an open red convertible with flashing bits of chromium on it swooped in to the curb beside them. The driver had a deeply tanned face and gray temples, and on the ledge above the seat beside him were two tennis racquets and a woman's hat. He spoke briefly to the girls, and they turned and went out and paused on the curb. He leaned across the seat and threw open the door, and the girls hesitated for a moment and got in beside him, laughing merrily at something he had said. The convertible swung smoothly back into the traffic lane and sped away, its twin exhaust pipes emitting three or four faintly blue puft's. Up in the tower the guard started, opened his eyes, and grabbed his rifle as it was sliding ofif his lap. He shook his head violently several times. Tak- ing a handkerchief from his hip pocket, he swabbed his wet face and the roll 22 The Green Caldron of fat on the back of his neck, lie paused to balance the rifle across his thighs, then he lifted his cap, swiped the handkerchief across his completely bald head, and returned the soggy cloth to his pocket. Squirming in his chair, he pushed his cap to the back of his head, renewed his grip on the rifle, and settled back. His eyes began to grow dull again as he stared out over the small prison-yard. Before his blank gaze, on the other side of the yard, there was only the side of a long building, with shades drawn over its windows to keep out the sun. This building and the three cement walls enclosed the tiny yard in an oven-like rectangle where the heat of the sun was trapped as it reflected upn ward from the bare ground. In all of the yard there was no shade except a few square inches in one corner, where three sparrows were pecking listlessly in the unpromising dust. They fluttered lazily upward and clung to the top of the wall, chattering momentarily, as a man in a blue striped denim uniform, who was carrying a bucket which seemed to be very heavy, came out slowly and awkwardly through the door of the long building into the yard. He set the bucket down on the ground near the door and began a close examination of the palm of the hand in which he had been carrying it. With the fingers of the other hand, he gently massaged the palm, wagging his head in a some- what comical display of concern and glancing around the yard and up at the tower as though he were in search of a sympathetic onlooker. He turned completely around, looking in the four corners of the yard and up and down the building and the walls, all the while shaking the fingers of his right hand as if they were painful. Finally, he proceeded rather ceremoniously to empty the bucket, stooping over it and tipping it gently, and slowly trickling the contents on the ground, as though it were important that the bucket should not be carelessly dumped. When it was empty he stood up. He picked up the bucket and kicked at the ground a couple of times. Then he turned, swinging the bucket, and returned briskly into the building. As soon as the door had closed behind him the three sparrows darted swiftly down from the top of the wall across the yard and began to investigate the edges of the wet spot where the bucket had been emptied. They were beginning to peck tentatively at the damp earth when a clattering noise alarmed them, and they rose in desperate haste and with two or three flirts of their wings disappeared over the w^all. High up in the tower the guard started and heaved himself to his feet so suddenly that his cap fell off and rolled into a corner. He was panting, and he had to extend one leg stififly behind him in order to bend over far enough to pick up his rifle. That done, he retrieved his cap and set it squarely and firmly on his bald head. He shook himself and plucked at his wet shirt to pull it away from his body. Then, with his rifle tucked under one arm, he started to turn around and around, a step or two in each direction, in his small square space. March, 1956 23 Happiness Versus Unhappiness: A Review of Brave New World Elmer E. Anderson Rhetoric 101, Theme 10 BRAVE NEW WORLD BY ALDOUS HUXLEY IS A SATIRICAL criticism of any Utopia created on purely scientifiic premises. Moreover, it is a criticism of Western society in 1932, as 1984 by George Orwell is a criticism of the same society in the closing months of World War II ; but it is quite applicable to society today. Brave New World deals with the "right to be unhappy" and with the revolt of the Individual against the Mass which attempts to force on him a mechanical well-being. Brave New World opens with a description of a eugenic, eupeptic, euryth- mic, and euthanasic world that functions perfectly, and it gives many references to the work of modern scientists (particularly to Pavlov's work on dogs). The ideal of this world is the absolute happiness of all and the absolute stability of society; the ideal has been attained after much regrettable violence and many painful experiments. With ingenuity Aldous Huxley, mixing entensive knowledge of the scientific trends of the 1930's with a witty lightness of touch, conducts the reader over this well-run world-establishment. The mem- bers of this society, from the maturing of their embryos in bottles to their ex- tinction in a state of pleasurable stupor, are never — well, hardly ever — discon- tented with themselves or envious of others. The Utopia which Aldous Huxley envisages is a world state with the motto, "Community, Identity, Stability." It dates from the introduction of the first T-model of Henry Ford, who has become the symbol of this standard- ized mechanical civilization. Complete sexual freedom is the rule, and any tendency to prefer one person to another is viewed with mistrust as subver- sive of the central idea of the World State : "Everyone belongs to everyone else." In this "brave new world" youth and vigor are sustained by drugs. Old age has been abolished, and death is sudden and painless. The pleasures of life, apart from the main one of sex, are elaborately mechanized games and synthetic music, which includes harmonies of scent, color, and touch, as well as sound. The taste for reading and nature is obliterated by suggestion ("con- ditioning" it is called) in early childhood. "The secret of happiness and virtue," says one of the characters, "is liking what you've got to do. All conditioning aims at that, making people like their inescapable social destiny." 24 The Green Caldron There are still, here and there in the world, reservations where savages not worth converting into civilized beings live in the old way. Qeverly Hux- ley introduces his main character, a noble savage named John, who, by a misadventure, was born of a Utopian mother on an American Indian reserv- ation in New Mexico. John had become self-educated on an ancient volume of Shakespeare, whose picturesque language and whose Elizabethan descrip- tion of men and women had colored all his thinking. John goes to London — into the "brave new world." His first enthusiasm quickly gives way to bewilderment and to disgust. He wants God, but he is told that God is not compatible with machinery and medicine and universal happiness. He wants instincts, but he is told that instincts are passe : one believes now only what one has been conditioned to believe. He wants soli- tude, but he is told that people are never alone. He wants the right to practice self-control, but there is only self-indulgence up to the limits allowed by hy- giene and economics. He wants the noble, the fine, and the heroic ; but he is told that these are the symptoms of political inefficiency. He wants to live dangerously, and he is told to try a V. P. S. — a violent passion surrogate by which he can experience all "the tonic effects of murdering Desdemona and being murdered by Othello, without any of the inconveniences." John sums up the whole situation when he says, "I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin." And Mustapha Mond, the Controller of Western Europe, remarks, "In fact, you're claiming the right to be unhappy." John defiantly admits the charge. Besides the main character of John the Savage, there are other dominant characters. Lenina, the pretty and attractive heroine of the story, cannot imderstand the ways of the Savage ; an amusing incident ensues when she undresses in front of him. Bernard, who has alcohol in his surrogate, and Helmholtz are two characters with whom, despite all scientific precaution, something had gone wrong; they were individuals and they met their inevit- able fate — banishment to a remote island. Two other noteworthy characters are the Director of Hatcheries, who resigns his position in humiliation after learning that he is the father of the Savage, and Linda, the Utopian mother of the Savage. Brilliance and wit animate Brave New World. The use of Huxley's knowledge of scientific trends has already been mentioned. (As a matter of fact, if an attack of keratitis when he was a youth had not resulted in al- most complete blindness, Aldous Huxley would have pursued a course of study leading to a degree in medicine. As it was, he had to give up scientific studies, which required keen eyesight, and turn to literature and history. All his life he has struggled against blindness, and only since a few years ago has he enjoyed anything approaching normal vision. He has, nevertheless, attained in the world of letters a rei^utation equal to that in science held by his grand- March, 1956 25 father, Thomas H. Huxley). His wit is quite noticeable in the phrases where he replaces the word God with the word Ford, as for example : "A. F." means in the year of Our Ford. "Ford's in his flivver. All's well with the world." "Cleanliness is next to Fordliness." "Ford helps those who help themselves." There is also his subtle humor, as for example : "Going to the FeeHes this evening, Henry?" inquires the Assistant Predestinator, "I hear the new one at the Alhambra is first-rate. There's a love scene on a bearskin rug; they says it's marvellous. Every hair of the bear reproduced. The most amazing tactual effects." Compare : Orgy-porgy, Ford and fun, Kiss the girls and make them One. Boys at one with girls at peace ; Orgy-porgy gives release. with: Georgie-Porgy, pudding and pie, Kiss the girls and made them cry ; When the girls come out to play, Georgie-Porgy runs away. (A Nursery Rhyme) Brave New World may be summed up by stating that it stages a funda- mental debate between scientific utopianism and humanistic imperfection, of which latter there are many concrete form.s from the lowest idolatry to the most transcendental religions and philosophies. Aldous Huxley sees that a scientific "best" might be reached from which all change might be scientific- ally worse. The scientific "best" would become a dogma as unscrupulously maintained, as craftily protected, and as unflinchingly upheld by punishment of heretics as any belief of an organized religion in the past. As long as the "brave new world" is not an achieved fact, it is easy to envisage all human virtues — love, devotion, heroism, chastity, self-denial — engaged in its achieve- ment; but it is not easy to look further and ask what is to become of those virtues when there are no oppositions for them to overcome, no crises that call for their exercise, and no will to exercise them. It is curious indeed, in these days that call themselves enlightened, to observe the old controversies over original sin and justification by works be- coming, in new phraseology, a tense modern issue. What is man ? What is the soul? For what purpose are we here? What is the highest good? These historic questions — let there be no mistake — are fundamental questions still. If they cannot be answered, the debate cannot be concluded. Aldous Huxley gives them up in despair. Read Brave Neiu World and try to conclude the debate, if you can. 26 Th^ Green Caldron d Spi< Ougar ana opice Carole Brandt Rhetoric 101, Th-eme 4 SPARKLING BROWN EYES, SHORT BLOND HAIR, AND clieeks that have been kissed by an angel — that's my seven-year-old sis- ter, Linda. Linda takes full advantage of the fact that she lives on the corner of one of the busiest streets in town. She rides her tricycle up and down the side- walk, looking for people to talk to. One can hear her friendly "Hi" for a block away. She walks with the mailman, plays football with the little boys on their way to school, and shouts out the family secrets to anyone who hap- pens to be passing by. Linda loves animals. She carries Sam, a mongrel cat, around by the tail and plays nursemaid to a raccoon, Honey. She also delights in sweeping bird feathers — the feathers belonging to the birds Sam devours — off the porch. Linda's first trip to the dentist was an experience that none of the family will ever forget. She and I had joint appointments, so on the assigned day we ventured into the sterile hands of the dentist. Linda was planning to go to the Saturday afternoon Roy Roger movie, so she climbed into the dental chair first. I went into the waiting room because I had some conception of the ordeal the unsuspecting dentist was about to experience. Forty-five minutes later a whipped and beaten man staggered from his office. He had been unable to pry open the jaws of this thirty-five pound menace. Not only was he unsuccessful at getting her to open her mouth, but she had also offered him the quarter that she was to spend for the movies if he would forget the whole thing. Linda didn't open her mouth ; Linda didn't attend the movie. Then there was the day she started to school. She came home well-edu- cated after four hours of experience in the academic world. When she was questioned as to how she was going to like school, her comment was, "It seemed quite juvenile. I hope the teacher realizes that I was bored stiff today." Until Linda was old enough to go to church my father would always baby- sit with her on Sunday mornings while the rest of the family went to church. On one particular Sunday morning my father told Linda that he would give her a quarter if she would go upstairs and clean up her playroom. She con- sidered his offer for a minute or so, then looked up at him and said, 'T be- lieve cleaning is Mother's job, so why don't you give her the quarter when she comes home, and maybe she will straighten it up." Last summer Linda won a stuffed dog at the fair. This animal was about the most wonderful thing that she had ever possessed. She carried it around with her night and day and would never let it out of her sight. On the day March, 1956 27 I left to come to school she came downstairs with her dog behind her back and then thrust it into my hands. Her brown eyes were filled with tears, but she said she wanted me to have the stuffed animal. Sparkling brown eyes, short blonde hair, and cheeks that have been kissed by an angel — that's my seven year old sister, Linda. Maturity Has Its Drawbacks QUENTRED WUTZKE Rhetoric 101, Theme 10 THEY WERE LONG SUMMERS. THE CREEK MOVED SLUG- gishly past my feet when, as a child, I sat on its bank in the tall weeds and cast leaves upon it to watch them make their way slowly down to the bend, where finally they would reach the rapids and be swept under by the current, or left high and dry on a stone. They were long winters. The old study hall clock in our grade school had an eternity between every tick- tock. There were so many years — so many years to pass until I could myself be wearing ladies' dresses ordered from the Sears Roebuck catalog, and high heels and nylons and lipstick — until I could cut off my braids — until I could be an adult. Adults don't have to go to school, you know. They don't have to go to bed at bedtime, either, and they do such glamorous things as falling in love and getting married and having careers. Adults have all the advantages, it's easy to see. Kids can't vote or attend any of those mysterious club meetings, and movies that are labeled "for adults only." They have all the excitement while kids have all the drab preliminaries — oh, to be grown up ! Last summer was an extremely short one. One week of it was spent at the Illinois 4-H State Junior Leadership Conference, where we discussed maturity and its absolute necessity for leadership. One of the outstanding points made at the conference was this : "A leader is one who wants to do what he knows he ought to do, whether he wants to do it or not." We began to realize that leadership is a product of maturity — sociological maturity — and that this maturity has more drawbacks than physical maturity (when men hate their razors and women their foundations). This maturity brings with it not only the privileges of an adult, but the duties of an adult, and, with a mature state of mind, the obligation to carry out these duties willingly. I now see myself as one of my cast leaves suddenly arriving at the bend of the creek and being taken up in the rapids from which there is no turning back. The rapids are tiring. The never-ending routine of lipstick, pincurls and pressing date dresses is itself as nothing compared to the never-ending routine of work — of becoming in everv wav a useful adult. 28 The Green Caldron Pride and Prejudice Michael Haynes Rhetoric 102, Theme 6 IN THESE DAYS OF ANTI-SEGREGATION LAWS AND THE United Nations, much to-do has been made about prejudice. It seems that everyone has much to say on the subject ; consequently, certain mis- conceptions and misconstructions and confusions have arisen concerning it. Let us, therefore, return once again to the lair of our hometown philosopher, whose oracular utterings have been settling the world's problems to the sat- isfaction of the local populace for many decades. Ah, there he sits, on the ancient, rickety rocking chair in front of his general store. Come, let's go up and listen. ". . free country, Harv, and by gum we got a right to be prejudiced if we want to. These birds alius screamin' about prejudice — how wrong it is and how we ought to stomp it out. 'The greatest blight of our civilization,' they call it. Pfah ! Why, son, they're a bunch of danged fools. They go around crusadin' against prejudice of all kinds without realizin' that everybody that's got opinion of any kind about anything is prejudiced to an extent. Look. Just suppose I hate broccoli — can't stand the stuff and won't allow it on my table. Now, to my way of thinking, that is prejudice just as unreasonable as if I hated Jews. So, y'see, these anti-prejudice nuts are makin' war on the entire human race. Why, they're prejudiced themselves worse than anybody — they're prejudiced against prejudice. "Some of 'em — a very few of 'em — have got sense enough to say that it's racial or some other particular prejudice that they're against. Now, I say that's a decided improvement, but I think they're going at the thing all wrong. 1 personally feel some racial prejudice, but I'm certain it ain't as strong in me as it was in my father — nor will it be as strong in my children as it is in me. Y'see, this elimination of unreasonable prejudice (and now I'm talkin' racial prejudice) has got to be a kind of gradual thing. Can't be done at one fell swoop (whatever the heck that means), as these nuts want to do. If they had enough sense to leave things be, they'd find that folks would just for- get prejudice in a couple of generations. "But the thing that gets me, Harv, is these scatter-brains hollerin' about prejudice being un-American — and then trying to shove down our throats an ideal we don't believe in. Makes me kind of mad when somebody tries to tell me what to think. They can't do that in the good old U. S. of A. This is the best danged country on the face of the earth, and when some bunch of goofs tries to pull off something that the old boys who started us up wouldn't have considered quite cricket, it's up to us to .stop 'em. Now, basically, I agree that it's silly to dislike a man because he's got a little deeper suntan than the rest of us, but, by gum, Harv, I won't . , ." March, 1956 29 Once more our hometown oracle has succeeded in throwing his light on a hitherto shadowed subject. Let us be thankful for his existence. Were he not present as a stabilizing influence of sorts, our civilization long ago might have followed some fanatic down the road to destruction. M emories Mary Ann Hood Rhetoric 101, Theme 3 IT WAS AN ORDINARY DAY IN DECEMBER OF 1944 IN THE wilderness of central Arkansas. The weather was typical of most Decem- bers in this part of the South. The air was cold and penetrating, and the slow steady drizzle of the rain seemed never to stop. I got out of bed at the usual time, five o'clock, and dressed quickly. The reason for my hurry wasn't that I was in any particular rush, but the only place where we had heat was in the kitchen by the cook stove, and I'm not very fond of the cold. I took off my pajamas, jumped into my long under- wear, put on a flannel long-sleeved shirt and stepped into a pair of overalls. 1 sat on the edge of my bed and pulled on my woolen knee socks, folding in my underwear legs neatly. I wrapped boot rags around my feet and ankles and slipped my boots on. In the kitchen I got a couple of dippers of hot water from the stove reserv- oir and a dipper of cold water from the bucket on the bench. I washed my face and combed my hair. It seems almost Hke a dream now when I visualize the bench under the window near the door with its two buckets of water — one with well water for drinking and cooking, and the other with soft water for washing. At the end nearer the door sat the wash pan. There was a mir- ror on the wall between the window jambs. We kept a slop bucket under the bench for dirty water which was carried out at least twice a day. I put on my jacket and woolen stocking cap and went out into the dreary weather. The cold mist hit my face and made me shiver. I got an armload of wood from the woodpile, took it in the house, and dropped it into the wood- box behind the stove. I took the milk bucket from its hook behind the stove and went out to the barn to milk the goats. We had five goats — two nanny goats, two kids, and one billy goat. On days like this I hated to make them get up from the warm straw bed. They gave me an almost human look that seemed to say, "Oh, misery! It's you again?" They pulled themselves up and stood patiently while I milked. I got about a quart and a half from both of them. After milking I fed the goats and horses, and scattered feed inside the barn door for the chickens. Most animals stay in when the weather is bad. The goats are especially particular. They don't like to get their feet wet. They 30 The Green Caldron are very careful about their food also. Unlike cows, who sometimes pull up a whole plant and eat it, goats nibble only the clean tips of the grass, and they eat only the choice leaves from the bushes and trees. Mom had breakfast ready when I came in from my morning chores. I ate a big breakfast every day. On this particular day I had a large dish of oatmeal topped with sugar and butter and swimming in warm goat's milk. Then I had two eggs, bacon, and a couple of pieces of homemade bread. With this I drank a cup of coffee. After breakfast, I was ready to run my traps. I put on my jacket and cap, took a handful of bullets from a drawer in the kitchen cabinet, and picked up my twenty-two rifle. The walk across the pasture to the woods was short but the ground was very soft from the frequent rains. I was always glad to get into the woods where the ground was hard from the packed leaves and sticks. I loved the woods. Even on a day like this, when the trees, stripped of their leaves, stood forlorn and desolate against the gray sky, I felt good as I walked along. I had ten steel traps spaced out in almost every section of the woods. They were in logs, under leaves, in hollow trees, or near holes in the ground. My average catch was about three skunks and one or two opossums. On this particular day I made a very good haul. I had five skunks in my traps. I shot the animals, took them home, skinned them, and stretched the skins on boards that I had cut out and shaped especially for that purpose. The skins stayed on the boards for a few days until they were dry. I took the furs to town about once a week. It was noon before I finished with the skunks. I ate a hearty dinner of beef roast, potato dumplings, sauerkraut, and fresh homemade bread with a thick rosy crust. Mom baked three loaves of bread every other day. I'll never forget the smell of that freshly baked bread. After dinner I went back to the woods, but this time I took my dad's twelve gauge shotgun because I w-as going duck hunting and a rifle would have been useless. A large portion of the woods was under water. The government had built a dam across a creek and backed the water up for irri- gation and duck refuge purposes. Consequently there was an abundant supply of ducks. I walked along the water's edge as quietly as possible so that if there were any ducks feeding they wouldn't fly away until I was near enough to shoot. I spotted a few here and there but they saw me too soon and flew away. The rain had stopped, but the clouds hung on and it seemed to be get- ting colder. I was almost ready to go home when I heard a lot of noise. There were ducks feeding somewhere nearby. I walked slowly on and soon came to a cove where there were about fifty ducks. I bent over and sneaked cautiously forward through the brush, and, when I was about ten feet from where the ducks were, I pulled back the cock on the gun and jumped out with the gun in firing position. The ducks flew up in a noisy cloud; I fired, and two ducks March, 1956 31 fell to the other side of the cove. I took my kill home proudly and cleaned them. That night, after the evening chores and a good supper, I went to bed early. In the few minutes before falling asleep I thought of my gains of the day. Five skunk skins at sixty-five cents each made three dollars and twenty- five cents. The two nice fat ducks would taste good for dinner tomorrow and Sunday. This was real profit to me. On ''Wnat Every Fresnmaii Snould K now Judith Sensibar Rhetoric 101, Theme 1 IN HIS ESSAY "WHAT EVERY FRESHMAN SHOULD KNOW" Holmes states, in effect, that the student should feel free to criticize and to question the things he is told. He feels that college is the place where a person learns of new^ ideals, and that the student should seriously attempt to understand these diverse new viewpoints. "Entertain them the more seri- ously the more they differ from your own," he says. "You may return to your own, but if you do, it wall be with greater tolerance and broader under- standing." Holmes, however, neglects one very important thing: in today's society one dare not do this. Perhaps when he wrote this, back in 1940, things were different, but what would happen if a person followed this pattern today ? He would be branded a "communist" or a "communist sympathiser." This word "communism" has come to have a very different meaning from its original one. A communist was once a person who belived in communal living and communal ownership of all property and goods. Now it seems to be anyone who holds opinions different from one's own. A perfect, if extreme, example of this took place one day in 1952 during the Republican convention. I saw, sitting a few seats down from me in the Hilton Hotel's Coffee Shop, a man wearing a Taft button. (I was working in the Eisenhower quarters to help keep myself busy — my heart was with Stev- enson !) I walked up to him and said that as a young and as yet unknowledge- able girl, I would greatly appreciate it if he could explain to me why he sup- ported Taft. He said he liked Taft's policies. Because I could not argue in such a wide field, I narrowed it down to, "What do you think of his support- ing McCarthy?" He said someone had to clear the communists out of the Government. Looking puzzled, I pointed out that to the best of my knowledge, Senator McCarthy had managed to find hardly anyone who was even remotely 32 The Green Caldron connected with a "communist cause." He then looked at me with a mixture of pity and horror and said, "Young lady, if you like communism so much, why don't you get out of here and go to Russia! That's where you belong. Why, if you were my daughter I'd ... I don't know what I'd do. Commun- ists like you should be put in jail!" And he walked out. If I was considered a communist because I was seeking the reasons why people supported Taft and McCarthy, think of the poor student's plight when it gets out that he has read the Communist Manifesto, let alone seriously con- sidered the theories it contains. And if a man loses his job because he once, twenty-five years ago, seriously considered communism, or even because a relative or friend of his once did, imagine what the chances are for today's inquisitive student. If he questions our ideology or contrasts it with more liberal idealogies, or if he tries to find out more about other economic systems, he is considered to have been somehow disloyal to the United States. And not only must he avoid all contact with communists or communist writings, but he must also survey carefully any cause before backing it. The strangest organizations get mud slung at them today. I have frequently read letters to the editor in various newspapers and even a few editorials in the Chicago Tribune to the effect that the National Association for the Advance- ment of Colored People is a "communist front" organization. Why? Because it is against segregation and discrimination and so is the Communist Party. Even more farfetched was the statement issued by the Illinois chapter of the American Legion which said that the Girl Scouts of America was a com- munist "infiltrated" organization, a fact easily seen if one looked at some of the ideas in the manual : international understanding is necessary to world peace ; the United Nations is promoting such understanding ; therefore, we supix)rt the United Nations. In the face of all this name-calling, the student is intimidated into not considering any ideas that have an aura of difference. In fact, he has gone to the other extreme : he is afraid to think, or, more particularly, to say anything for fear it will be considered radical and/or different. Perhaps if we all got together and revolted (peacefully, of course) against having our minds thus chained, it would do some good. I doubt it, however. It has long been an American tradition to distrust education, and the McCarthys and the Jen- ners could easily capitalize on this tradition and bind us in even heavier chains. Rket as Writ My sister was two years younger than me and three rooms down the hall. England wanted more land, so she sent Columbus out with three ships to see if he could find west by sailing east. The Contributors Elisabeth Cioban — Virden Jack Cooper — St. Joseph Roger Sheahen — Highland Park Joseph Stvinarski — Harrison Technical Lyrulen Harbaugh — Lawrenceville Jack H. Cutler — Bethany Harry W. Richardson — Stuyvesant, New York City James Rentfro — East Peoria Max Flandorfer—V. S. Navy G. E. D. Carol Crosby — ^Kankakee Patrick Sheehan — Warren, Gurnee Robert Canty — Joliet Elmer H. Anderson — Barringer, Newark, N. J. Carole Brandt — Lincoln Quendred W'utzke — Sandwich Michael Haynes — Mount Clemens, Michigan Mary Ann Hood — Edwardsville Judith Sensibar — Lahoratory School, U. of Chicago Fhe Green Caldron A MAGAZINE OF FRESHMAN WRITING CONTENTS Sylvia Wineland: Babhiit, A Story of Conformity 1 Wilbur L. French: Group Dynamics in the Oceanic Society . . 3 Charlotte VonBehren: "The Heart of Darkness^' 6 Robert Canty: The Glass Menagerie 10 Ruf/iF. ITeiner: My Theory of Religion 11 /luiil A 5en«i6ar: The World I Left Behind Me 12 Francis Spooner: The Research Paper 13 David F, Pagenkopf: The Presidential Campaign of 1952 ... 15 Howard Mindell: The Inefficiency of Rhetoric 21 Michael N. Soltys: Automation 22 Dianne Baumann: Non>Segregation in Residential Areas ... 23 Jack H, Cutler: A Course in Physiology 26 Frank K. Lor ens: The American Aristocracy 27 Dole O. DiUardf The Black Buzzard 29 Rhet as Writ 32 Vol. 25, No. 4 April, 1956 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS T HE Green Caldron is published four times a year by the Rhetoric Staff at the University of Illinois. Material is chosen from themes and examinations written by freshmen in the Uni- versity. Permission to publish is obtained for all full themes, including those published anonymously. Parts of themes, how- ever, are published at the discretion of the committee in charge. The themes selected by the committee are judged on their merit as good freshmen writing. The views expressed are those of the authors, and are not to be construed as a reflection of the Rhetoric Staff's opinions. The committee in charge of The Green Caldron includes William Vogt, Carl Moon, George Estey, James Mac- Intyre, and Stewart Dodge, Editor. April, 1956 3 which appear to us to be so absurd in Babbitt might also appear in the lives of many of us who aren't businessmen. It is for these two reasons, seeing businessmen in their environment and seeing ourselves in our environment, that this book has a permanent value to its readers. Group Dynamics in tne Oceanic Society Wilbur L. French Rhetoric 102, Theme 7 THE NAME OF THE THEORY USED TO ANALYZE THE action in this paper is the Levinian Theory of Social Psychology. This Levinian theory is often referred to as the theory of group dynamics. In this paper the first object will be to explain and to illustrate, with selections from the text, the basic principles of group dynamics. After the presentation of the theory, some of the action of the novel will be analyzed as it is related to the theory of group dynamics. The first principle of Levinian psychology is that there is a definite rela- tionship between self-acceptance (self-esteem) of an individual and the acceptance by him of his role in a social group. Self and role acceptance are also equated to the individual's acceptance of the attitudes of a group. In other words, if an individual is content with the part that he plays in a social group and is in harmony with its ideals and beliefs, then this individual will have self-acceptance. To illustrate this concept, the self-acceptance of Parsons as related to his role and attitude acceptance is obvious in the following quotation : Squads of volunteers, organized by Parsons, were preparing the street for Hate Week, stitching banners, painting posters, erecting flagstaffs on the roofs, and perilously slinging wires across the street for the reception of streamers. Parsons boasted that Victory Man- sions alone would display four hundred meters of bunting. He was in his native element and as happy as a lark. He was everywhere at once, pushing, pulling, sawing, hammering, improvising, jollying everyone along with comradely exhortations and giving out from every fold of his body what seemed an inexhaustible supply of acrid- smelling sweat. The second principle in the Levinian theory is that one's self-acceptance is related to the acceptance of others and that one's self-dislike is related to the dislike of others. If one feels that he is important and is contented, he ^ The Green Caldron will be tolerant of other people, but, on the other hand, if he is discontented and unsatisfied, he will be critical and antagonistic toward others. The follow- ing quotation concerning Winston shows clearly how self-esteem, in the form of feelings of self-importance and contentment, is related to one's tolerance of other people : The process of life had ceased to be intolerable, he had no longer any impulse to make faces at the telescreen or shout curses at the top of his voice. Now that they had a secure hiding place, almost a home, it did not even seem a hardship that they could only meet infrequently and for a couple of hours at a time. The third principle of the Levinian theory is that there are good and bad aspects in every social group. The evaluation can vary from individual to individual, and within each individual, from time to time. The most promi- nent illustration of the third Levinian principle, of course, is Winston's evaluation of the Oceanic Society, exempHfied by Big Brother, at the begin- ning and end of the novel. ■ The interrelationship of the three aforementioned principles is the fourth and final major element of the Levinian theory. The social group (a society) is represented symbolically as a series of concentric circles with the innermost representing the center of the group and the outermost circle representing the periphery. If an individual evaluates a particular group as being privi- leged (good), his movement in the group will be toward the center, but if an individual evaluates a group as being underprivileged (bad), his movement will be toward the periphery, or out of the group entirely. As an individual moves toward the center of the group he will accept more completely the attitudes of the group, and his role within the group. With an increase in the degree of role and attitude acceptance, the individual will experience an increasing amount of self-acceptance (self-esteem). However, when an individual moves toward the periphery of a group, the decrease in the degree of his role and attitude acceptance will bring about a corresponding decrease in his self-acceptance. As stated in the second principle of group dynamics, any change in the degree of one's self-acceptance will bring about a corresponding change in the degree of acceptance of others, and, conversely, any change in the degree of acceptance of others is manifested in a corresponding change in the degree of one's self-acceptance. The illustration of the information in this paragraph will be the following analysis of some of the action in the novel. In the beginning of the novel, Winston was a member of the party, but his lack of acceptanc of the party ideals and policies kept him near the periphery of the group. However, Winston did enjoy some of the intellectually challenging aspects of his role (part of his work) in the party. The acceptability of part of his role in the party failed to compensate for the unacceptability of the ideals and policies of the group. As a result of role and attitude rejection, Winston felt inadequate as an individual, and suffered from a lack of self-esteem. Under April, 1956 5 the conditions of self-rejection, Winston's movement was to the periphery of the party. With the purchase of the diary, Winston completely rejected the attitudes of the party and entered the periphery of another group, "the dead." As one of "the dead" Winston had no problem in attitude acceptance but because his role in the fulfillment of these attitudes was non-existent, he had very little self-acceptance. Winston's role among "the dead" was proved when he met with Julia to perform the "Sexcrime," but the inadequacy of his role was even then shown by his emotion in the following quotation : If he could have infected the whole lot of them with leprosy or syph- ilis, how gladly he would have done so ! Anything to rot, to weaken, to undermine ! He pulled her down so that they were kneeling face to face. Winston's self-acceptance was greatly improved after he and Julia met with O'Brien and sw'ore their allegiance to the "Brotherhood." Winston had established an active and satisfactory role and had thereby moved toward the center of "the dead." The following quotation illustrates his feelings at that time : Winston had dropped his habit of drinking gin at all hours. He seemed to have lost the need for it. He had grown fatter, his varicose ulcer had subsided, leaving only a brown stain on the skin above his ankle, his fits of coughing in the early morning had stopped. The process of life had ceased to be intolerable, he had no longer any impulse to make faces at the telescreen or shout curses at the top of his voice. The one unalterable principle (basic attitude) of "the dead" was estab- lished in Winston's conversation with Julia : T don't mean confessing. Confession is not betrayal. What you say or do doesn't matter ; only feelings matter. If they could make me stop loving you — that would be the real betrayal.' She thought it over. 'They can't do that,' she said finally. 'It's the one thing they can't do. They can't get inside you.' 'No,' he said a little more hopefully, 'no; that's quite true. They can't get inside you. If you can jeel that staying human is worth while, even when it can't have any result whatever, you've beaten them.' After Winston and Julia were captured and were subjected to the torture, they no longer had the attitudes of "the dead" because they had violated even the most basic principle in Room 101. The role that they had played in "the dead" was given up even to the extent of abandoning "Thoughtcrime." There was no self-acceptance to be had from the dead group, so their movement was away from the center of "the dead" and toward the periphery of the party. At the time of his release from the Ministry of Love, Winston had been deprived of all of his human dignity, and had no self-acceptance whatsoever. 6 The Green Caldron The following excerpt from the novel illustrates the depths of his degradation : He took up his glass and sniffed at it. The stuff grew not less but more horrible with every mouthful he drank. But it had become the element he swam in. It was his life, his death, and his resurrection. It was gin that sank him into stupor every night, and gin that revived him every morning. When he woke, seldom before eleven hundred, with gummed-up eyelids and fiery mouth and a back that seemed to be broken, it would have been impossible even to rise from the hori- zontal if it had not been for the bottle and teacup placed beside the bed overnight. Through the midday hours he sat with glazed face, the bottle handy, listening to the telescreen. From fifteen to closing time he was a fixture in the Chestnut Tree. In order for Winston to derive any degree of self-acceptance, he must accept his role in, and the attitudes of, the party. After his release Winston was forced to accept his role in the party, because he had rejected and betraved any other role. The only obstruction to his achieving some self-esteem lay in his lack of acceptance of the attitudes of the party. It was inevitable — he would love Big Brother. i ne Heart or Darkness^ Charlotte VonBehren Rhetoric 101, Theme 7 XX\ JEART OF DARKNESS" BY JOSEPH CONRAD IS THE FAS- i I cinating study of the change in a man's character. The theme of the story is summed up by the narrator, Marlow, when he introduces his tale to the listening sailors. He says, *Tt [referring to the place where he met Kurtz] was the farthest point of navigation and the culminating point of my experience. It seemed somehow to throw a kind of light on everything about me and into my thoughts. It was somber enough too — and pitiful — not extraordinary in any w^ay — not very clear either. No, not very clear. And yet it seemed to throw a kind of light." Here Marlow states that his journey up the river and his meeting with Kurtz seemed to enlighten Marlow about himself. He learned to know himself and his capabilities as he had never known them before. Marlow partly explains his lack of knowing his inner self when he leaves his aunt's house. He says, 'Tn the street — I don't know why — a queer feeling came to me that I was an imposter. Odd thing that I, who used to clear out for any part of the world at twenty-four hours' notice, with less thought than most men give to the crossing of a street, had a moment — I w^on't say of hesitation, but of startled pause, before this commonplace affair. The best way I can explain it to you is by saying that, for a second or two, I felt as April, 1956 7 though, instead of going to the center of a continent, I were about to set off for the center of the earth." In the beginning, Marlow is quite apart from everything going on around him. When he sees a French man-of-war shelHng the coast, he calls it "a touch of insanity." When he reaches his company's station, he is struck by the "objectless" blasting. He tries to detour around a chain gang of criminals and comes upon a clearing where some of these criminals have crawled to die. He is horrified at the sight. Then he meets the agent and learns about Kurtz. The agent tells Marlow that Kurtz is a "very remarkable person" who will go far. With this information, Marlow's curiosity about the mysterious Kurtz is aroused. The next that Marlow hears of Kurtz is at the station where he is to find his boat. The agent is very concerned about Mr. Kurtz. Mr. Kurtz seems to be the one to whom everyone goes. Everyone looks up to him. To Marlow, he appears as a sort of god. Marlow doesn't know who Kurtz is. He hasn't identified Kurtz with the senseless blasting, the treatment of the natives, or any of the strange things which went on at the Central Station. Marlow has heard of Kurtz, but that is all. He says, "I would not have gone so far as to fight for Kurtz, but I went for him near enough to tell a lie." Then he explains how he hates lying. It appalls him, and goes against his very nature. Yet he says, "I went near enough to it by letting the young fool there believe any- thing he liked to imagine as to my influence in Europe." The next sentence shows that he is beginning to change within himself, "I became in an instant as much of a pretense as the rest of the bewitched pilgrims. This simply because I had a notion it somehow would be of help to that Kurtz whom at the time I did not see — you understand. He was just a word for me. I did not see the man in the name any more than you do." At this point Marlow is beginning to be drawn to the evil Kurtz. Kurtz holds a fascination for him, even though Marlow knows he is evil. This desire, or rather obsession, becomes stronger the closer Marlow gets to the Inner Station. On the river he says that the steamer is like a beetle crawling. For the pilgrims, it crawled someplace where they could get something. For him, it "crawled towards Kurtz — exclusively." During the long journey up the river Marlow begins to look into himself. He thinks of the primitive country as a monstrous free being as contrasted with the shackled being he usually thought of. The natives, with their wild dances, preyed upon him. He says, "No, they were not inhuman. Well, you know, that was the worst of it — this suspicion of their not being inhuman. It would come slowly to one. They howled and leaped, and spun, and made horrid faces; but what thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity — like yours — the thought of your remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar. Ugly. Yes, it was ugly enough, but if you were man enough you would admit to yourself that there was in you just the faintest trace of a 8 The Green Caldron response to the terrible frankness of that noise, a dim suspicion of there being a meaning in it which you — you so remote from the night of first ages — could comprehend. And why not?" Here is the significant part which shows how Marlow is beginning to think of himself and his motives in relation to the effect of the country. "The mind of man is capable of anything — because everything is in it, all the past as well as all the future. What was there after all ? Joy, fear, sorrow, devotion, valor, rage — who can tell ? but truth with his own true stuff — with his own inborn strength. Principles won't do. Acquisi- tions, clothes, pretty rags — rags that would fly off at the first good shake. No ; you want a deliberate belief. An appeal to me in this fiendish row — is there? Very well ; I hear ; I admit, but I have a voice, too, and for good or evil mine is the speech that cannot be silenced." From this point on, Marlow becomes increasingly anxious to meet Kurtz. The steamer now moves too slowly to suit him. When the steamer is eight miles from Kurtz's station, Marlow wants to push on at night but is persuaded to wait. This anxiety shows that Marlow is identifying himself more and more with Kurtz. Marlow is beginning to realize what living away from civilization in such a wild and primitive country can do to a man. He is anxious to meet Kurtz and talk, as it were, to his own inner image which is reflected in Kurtz. When the steamer is attacked and the helmsman killed, Marlow is sud- denly appalled at the thought that perhaps Kurtz, too, is dead. He says, "I couldn't have been more disgusted if I had traveled all this way for the sole purpose of talking with Mr. Kurtz. Talking with ... I flung one shoe overboard, and became aware that that was exactly what I had been looking forward to — a talk with Kurtz." Here Marlow at last admits to himself that Kurtz holds a strange fascination for him. He is very disappointed at the thought of Kurtz's being dead. Marlow, in talking about the report which Kurtz wrote for the Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs, reveals that he is now identifying himself closely with Kurtz. He says, "From that point," referring to a place in the report, "he soared and took me with him. The peroration was magnifi- cent, though difficult to remember, you know. It gave me the notion of an exotic Immensity ruled by an august Benevolence. It made me tingle with enthusiasm. This was the unbounded power of eloquence — of words — of burning words." Marlow now approves fully of Kurtz. When the Russian prepares to confess one of Kurtz's secrets to Marlow, Marlow allies himself finally with Kurtz and what he stands for. In doing this, Marlow is confessing that he has the same qualities and tendencies in him which made Kurtz write, "Exterminate the brutes !" at the end of the report. Marlow says, "All right, Mr. Kurtz's reputation is safe with me." When Marlow discovers that Kurtz is missing from the hut. he sets out to find him. In persuading Kurtz to return with him, Marlow analvzes the man's character. He admits that Kurtz is April, 1956 9 sane but that his soul is mad. He says, "Being alone in the wilderness it had looked within itself and, by heavens ! I tell you, it had gone mad. I had — for my sins, I suppose — to go through the ordeal of looking into myself." Here, at last, Marlow is beginning to know and to understand himself and his inner motives. After Kurtz's death, Marlow completely identifies himself with Kurtz. He says, "I remained to dream the nightmare out to the end, and to show my loyalty to Kurtz once more." About Kurtz's final words, Marlow says, "Better his cry — much better. It was an affirmation, a moral victory paid for by innumerable defeats, by abominable terrors, by abominable satisfactions. But it was a victory ! That is why I have remained loyal to Kurtz to the last, and even beyond, when a long time after I heard once more, not his own voice, but the echo of his magnificent eloquence thrown to me from a soul as translucently pure as a cliff of crystal." Marlow is at last able to look at Kurtz, seeing himself, and know why Kurtz acted the way he did. He under- stands him fully. After his return to Europe, Marlow is beset by several people who want Kurtz's papers. Still he remains loyal, a fact which he cannot understand. These people irritate him because Marlow feels that they cannot know what he knows. They cannot have had the opportunity to see themselves, their primitive motives, as he has. He, Marlow, is above them. Finally, he decides to see Kurtz's fiancee and return the packet of letters. He also wishes to give up the last remaining memory of Kurtz. It is some six years since Kurtz died, but for the girl he died only yesterday. She speaks of all the good she saw in Kurtz, but Marlow remembers what he found ; the mad, in-turned soul. How^ever, when she asks what Kurtz's final words were, the changed Marlow remains loyal to the end ; whereas before he met Kurtz he detested lying, he now^ tells her that Kurtz spoke her name last. The entire book is the gripping story of the development of a man's insight into himself. Before he goes into the continent and up to Kurtz's station, Marlow is shallow and outward like the majority of people. However, the closer to Kurtz he comes, the more he hears that name, and the farther he goes into the primitive continent, the more clearly he sees himself and why he acts as he does. When he finally meets Kurtz, Marlow has completely identified himself with Kurtz. He then understands his own inner motives and feelings. His statement after Kurtz's death sums these feelings up very well. He says, "Destiny, my destiny ! Droll thing life is — that mysterious arrangement of merciless logic for a futile purpose. The most you can hope from it is some knowledge of yourself — that comes too late — a crop of unextinguishable regrets. I have wrestled with death. It is the most unexcit- ing contest you can imagine. It takes place in an impalpable grayness with nothing underfoot, with nothing around, without spectators, without clamor, without glory, without the great desire of victory, without the great fear of 10 The Green Caldron defeat, in a sickly atmosphere of tepid skepticism, without much belief in your own right, and still less in that of your adversary. If such is the form cf ultimate wisdom, then life is a greater riddle than some of us think it to be. I was within a hair's breadth of the last opportunity for pronouncement, and I found with humiliation that probably I would have nothing to say, this is the reason why I affirm that Kurtz was a remarkable man. He had something to say. He said it. Since I had peeped over the edge myself, I understand better the meaning of his stare, that could not see the flame of the candle, but was wide enough to embrace the whole universe, piercing enough to penetrate all the hearts that beat in the darkness. He had summed up — he had judged. The horror. He was a remarkable man. After all, this was the expression of some sort of belief ; it had candor, it had conviction, it had a vibrating note of revolt in its whisper, it had the appalling face of a glimpsed truth — the strange commingling of desire and hate. And it is not my own extremity I remember best — a vision of grayness without form filled with physical pain, and a careless contempt for the evanescence of all things — even of this pain itself. No ! It is his extremity that I seem to have slipped through. True, he had made that last stride, he had slipped over the edge while I had been permitted to draw back my hesitating foot. And perhaps in this is the whole difference ; perhaps all the wisdom, and all truth, and all sincerity, are just compressed into that inappreciable moment of time in which we step over the threshold of the invisible." Because of these feelings he remains loyal to Kurtz even though he knows the man has become obsessed with his own importance. To Marlow, it would have been like betraying himself. Marlow had the unique experience of being able to understand and know himself. It changed him and altered his entire character. He will feel forever apart and above the majority of humanity. The Glass Menagerie Robert Camy Rhetoric 102, Assignment No. 15 THE REVIEWING OF THE PUBLISHED SCRIPTS OF PLAYS is an art which is practiced only infrequently by contemporary litterateurs. A search of eight copies of The Saturday Reviezv oj Literature, three of Harper's, and one Atlantic Monthly — all recent issues, taken at random from the shelf — not only failed to locate even one review of the play-script but also failed to reveal any advertisement announcing the publication of a book of plays. The reviewer's inactivity, then, is not to be attributed to any lack of zest but to a conspicuous lack of opportunity. Plays are thin material for publishers of books, probably because of the inescapable fact that a book is one thing and a play is another and that a good play is written to be played. Without interpretation by actors the play is like a musical score which has April, 1956 11 never been performed. The symbols are there, arranged according to the mechanical requirements of known instruments, but this is only technical excellence in the matter of form, and it hardly enables one to experience the gamut of musical potential. So it is with The Glass Menagerie: reading the published play, one is aware of implications which a competent cast might develop to considerable sociological and psychological significance, but when the play is considered as a book it is thin stuff, as thin as the glass trinkets which account for the title. This is as it should be, for the play was written that way by Tennessee Williams. He divided it into two parts, ''Preparation for a Gentleman Caller" and "The Gentleman Calls," and he confined the entire action of the play to the alley apartment of the Wingfield family, with a few glimpses of the alley itself. He created only four characters : the mother, her son and daughter, and the gentleman caller. The action of the play develops from certain rather tense efforts of these four : the efforts of the mother to escape from failure by re-living her past — and probably apocryphal — glory as a southern belle ; the efforts of the son to escape from the emotion-crammed apartment to a world which he imagines will be large and free and breezy ; the efforts of the daughter to escape from her damaged self into what probably would be schizophrenia ; and the efforts of the gentleman caller to escape, first, from his warehouse employment into a peanut salesman's success and, finally, to escape from the Wingfields. To express all these efforts less metaphorically, the play is simply the unpretentious chronicle of Amanda's behavior as she employs whatever wiles and ruses she can muster to make something of the life of her crippled and withdrawn daughter, Laura, who has never learned what to do about pain. When Laura proves to be incapable of facing anything as realistic as a job, Amanda turns her own desperate energy toward finding a suitor for her daughter. Her failure to entice the gentleman caller into the suitor's role constitutes the climax of the play. These may seem to be puny tempests which have suffered in the re-telling, and it is safe to assume that there was no great stir in the literary world when the book itself was published ; nevertheless, this is no play to be dis- missed lightly. It is a particularly excellent example of mastery of one of the more difficult literary techniques, the art of avoiding at least some of the limitations of relativity of meaning by selecting stimuli which stem from the common bases of experience and presenting these stimuli with so little authorial bias as to preserve invariance, thereby persuading readers or audiences to project their inner experiences into the play. This art has few mysteries for Tennessee Williams. As he wrote the play, it has no villain except the deadly pettiness which often is inextricably bound up with living, and he hints that even this need not be unconquerable. Each of the characters has a brief moment in which he demonstrates untapped ability to rise to spiritual heights, and each inspires some sympathy. Amanda, after all, is attempting a constructive manipulation of her daughter's life, the suitor does 12 The Green Caldron mean well, the son's frustration is no strange thing, and the daughter is pure pathos. The over-all effect of the book is to suggest that the play must present a remarkably efTective stimulus for a theater audience. That, perhaps, is the raison d'etre of the book. It has been many a day since it was published and since The Glass Menagerie was first presented to the public as a play, but a mere reading of it suggests that any revival of the play should not be omitted from the playgoer's schedule. Thin stuflf it is, but its artful thinness constitutes a technique which succeeds as eflfectively as any in contemporary literature in re-emphasizing and re-stating the familiar observation that the average person leads a life of "quiet desperation." My Tneory or Religion Ruth F. Weiner Rhetoric 102, Placement Theme RELIGION, BOTH IN THE ORGANIZED SENSE AND IN THE sense of personal philosophy, fulfills two functions for man. It is pri- marily an embodiment of and an organized expression for the sense of a universal moral law, a sense which is almost universally deeply ingrained. However, religion, especially in its various organized forms, also acts as a comforting influence, a buffer against the awful immensity of time and space. I would say that religion has been created by man to fulfill these two functions. This, I suppose, is my theory of religion. The conception of a deity directing the course of events seems to me essentially selfish and quite extraneous. Perhaps this is because I am human, rational, and a product of an educational system which had its roots in the eighteenth century, the so-called Age of Reason. I exist, and for me as for Descartes, the laws governing the universe can be deduced from this premise. I cannot conceive that, if there were no god, the universe would fall apart in chaos ; this, in essence, separates me from pre-eighteenth century man. The comforting function of religion represents, for me, rather selfish wishful thinking. By "comforting function" I mean the concepts of expiation from sin by means of various penances, and of immortality. The doctrine of doing good for a reward in the after life seems particularly selfish. There is, indeed, a sort of immortality which a truly good man achieves : this is his imprint on human history. Genuine worthiness includes the utmost creative effort of which a man is capable. The best living example of genuine good- ness is, perhaps, Albert Schweitzer, who has exercised his faculties to the utmost in both intellectual creativity and humanitarian kindness. There should be no thought of a reward for a good or kind deed other than the deed itself. Man should live for man, both for individuals and for the collective community of the race, and not for his personal glorification in the hereafter. April, 1956 13 The first man to feel a necessity for religion probably felt a need for a moral authority. Certainly the most useful products of organized religion are its ethical teaching and its humanitarian activities. But here much modern organized religion has failed because of its de-emphasis of purely generous motives. It is understandably difficult to grasp the Sermon on the Mount, and the adjunct of personal reward has made it easy enough for a child to grasp. But religion is not for children or idiots; it is for mature and highly rational adults. Religion without the concept of immortality is totally com- fortless for so many people, especially people of the calibre of T. S. Eliot. Perhaps when I am closer to death I, too, shall feel the need of personal immortality. The comforting function of religion gives a man courage. Those who are very young, and relatively distant from personal tragedy, have a couragfe bordering: on bravado. Tke World I Left BeLinJ Me Judith Sensibar Rhetoric 101, Theme 4 THE sky was a deep blue, and the flowers were intense in their colors. The grass was green, all shades of green, and here and there a browned old leaf lay decaying quickly in the lost dry air. The roses lent a heavy odor which mingled with the light scent of the violets beneath. The dogs lay sleeping in a patch of shade while the kitten on the porch licked its paw thoughtfully. Outside the fence, out in the serene and sleepy world, a little boy drove a few chickens ahead of him into the market place. A few minutes behind, leading a little burro loaded down with firewood, was an old man who stopped at the gate and rang the bell. Out of the house walked a white-coated man, but he slouched when he saw who was ringing. The rhythm and song of his voice droned on the air, and got lost in the sound of the bee-hum. The wind quietly rustled the leaves of the trees, and a leaf came drifting down on the kitten, who sleepily pushed it aside. On the swing sat a little girl, dressed in a starched and neatly-pressed white dress, sv/inging back and forth in the loud silence with a slow, steady motion. She looked on the scene with sleepy eyes, and thought of home. Ever since she could remember, this had been her home, but she knew that she was an American from the United States, not Mexico. And soon she would be going back there, and she would go to school. What would it be like? she wondered. Would it be all like unboiled milk, nice and smooth and fresh tasting, or would it be boiled and make her mouth dry and sour? But this afternoon was too lovely to spoil with such unanswerable questions. How about gathering some pansies for Mother? She was not feeling very well this morning. Oh, but it would be too much trouble, and anyhow Mother was asleep now, and the pansies would die before she woke up. Now I'm only making excuses, she thought, but I don't care. The sun moved on, high overhead in the cloudless sky. The wind drifted a leaf off another tree, and a ripe apricot fell to the ground. A car went slowly by, as it maneuvered around the flock of cows and sheep now being herded down the street. Somewhere a bird chirped, and next door the sprinkler started, giving another soft sound upward to the air. 14 The Green Caldron Tne Researcn Paper Francis Spoon er Rhetoric 102, Theme 8 DURING THE PAST FEW WEEKS I HAVE BEEN CON- fronted with a rather perplexing problem. I have been trying to select a suitable topic for a research paper. Compared to the complexities of the modern world, this problem undoubtedly seems a very trivial matter, but those with their college days behind them probably will well remember the anxiety this ver}- problem caused them. I have, fortunately, at least selected a topic for the research paper: "Socrates The Philosopher." At the present time I am trying (with no little difficulty) to justify to myself the selection of this particular topic. My major criterion for considering any topic for research was that it be of particular interest to me. Prior to the final selection of the research topic, I made a list of ten questions to which I would very much like to know the answers. In an effort to decrease the number of questions to five, I weighed each of the ten questions individually with respect to personal interest, and retained the five questions which are listed below in the order of original preference : 1 . Does man have free will ? 2. What is progressive jazz ? 3. Who wrote the literar}- works presently attributed to William Shakespeare ? 4. What were the factors in Socrates' childhood and youth that caused him to become a philosopher ? 5. What is the histon,' of hypnosis? After arranging the five remaining questions in the order of preference, I examined each one to determine whether it could be adequately answered in only two thousand words. As stated, question number one it entirely too broad to be treated in my research paper. From what information I already have about free will in man, I concluded that my only course would be to refer exclusively to the theories of the outstanding philosophers of the past, but, unfortunately, this did not greatly appeal to me. Because the first question proved inadequate, I considered the second question. I must admit that there was an ulterior motive in considering this question, inasmuch as I am a musician (and I use the term very loosely), and I felt that this would be the easiest question to write about. I later discovered, however, that there is very little material available on progressive jazz, and decided that this question was inadequate. The third question has always posed a problem of great interest to me, April, 1956 15 but I decided that all I could do was to restate the theories of the Bacon, Marlowe and Shakespeare supporters, and, therefore, I felt that it was also inadequate. I shall momentarily skip question number four and refer to question number five. I was taught the "art" of hypnosis while in the navy and I have a great interest in the subject. I'm afraid that my interest has been too great, and I have read numerous books on the subject. Quite frankly, I know a good deal about the history of hypnosis, and if I wrote my research paper on the subject it would simply be a re-hashing of old news. Because question number five would not do, I turned my attention to question number four. In considering this question I felt that it would be excellent for my research paper. Although I have long admired Socrates, I realized that I actually knew very little about him. I did not know his first name. Or rather, I did not know his last name. Well, at least I knew that either his first or last name was Socrates. Or was it his nickname ? I became completely bogged down in these mental calisthenics, and resolved that I would find the answer to this question. In the Apology, Plato tells us that Socrates had two sons, but I have never read a word about his wife. Apparently Socrates spent a great deal of his time stimulating the populace to reflective thinking. This obviously did not leave him much time for his wife and family. I think it would be verj' interest- ing to learn what role she played in the life of Socrates. The most important question, of course, is what factors caused this extremely intelligent man — possibly the greatest philosopher of all time — to turn to the materially empty life of the true philosopher. I am sure that finding the answers to these questions about the life of Socrates will prove a very satisfying task. Tne Presidential Campaign of 1952 David F. Pagexkopf Rhetoric 102, Theme 9 THE OPENING ACT OF THE 1952 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN somewhat resembled the first night performance of a poorly directed high school play. Mistakes were made and last minute alterations in plans had to be effected by the participants and their directors. The leading characters, Dwight David Eisenhower, the Republican nominee, and Gover- nor Adlai Ewing Stevenson, the choice of the Democrats, were confronted with unexpected emergencies that were magnified by the fact that they were unaccustomed to their starring roles in the world of politics. 16 TIte Green Caldron The immediate problem facing Mr. Eisenhower and his campaign leaders was the enlistment of the Taft supporters. This promised to be a difficult task, particularly in view of the fact that the path of rebellion had already been blazed by Colonel Robert R. McCormick, editor of the Chicago Daily Tribune.^ The gravity of the situation was apparent to the Republicans, who were cognizant of the political influence belonging to Colonel McCormick and his position. On the other hand, Governor Stevenson's election aspirations were dealt a serious blow at the outset of his campaign. In one of his first speeches Stevenson upheld the Supreme Court's decision that the federal government should control and fairly administer the Texas Tidelands and the division of their proceeds.^ Because Governor Shivers of Texas was already opposed to the Democratic candidate's stand on civil rights,^ Governor Stevenson virtually lost all hope of carrying Texas by this inept handling of the Tidelands issue. Eisenhower later increased his great Texas popularity by advocating state control of the submerged oil fields.* As the campaign began to gather steam during the summer months, the strategy to be employed by the two parties became quite clear. Mr. Eisen- hower proposed, and his campaign strategists agreed, that he should be cast as a "middle-of-the-road" candidate.'^ (It may have been the desire to influence the vote of the disappointed Taft followers : Senator Taft had been characterized as a "middle-of-the-road" Republican throughout his brilliant political career.) How^ever, it was decided that this conservative approach was not to detract from the Republican candidate's strong charges that a change was sorely needed in Washington. Mr. Eisenhower later endorsed U. S. participation in the Korean "police action," but placed the blame for the war on the administration's foreign policy prior to 1950.® In line with this middle-of-the-road procedure, Mr. Eisenhower decided against making extravagant promises to the voters. '^ Indeed, clear-cut solutions to the vital issues were absent from his campaign speeches.® As is the case with all presidential campaigns, 1952 party strategists found it necessary to gear their campaign toward certain geographical and economic segments of the electorate. It was felt by Republicans that the South, as a whole, would cast their votes for the Democratic nominee. Consequently, the G.O.P. board of strategy reasoned that their ultimate success would be greater since the majority of the five hundred and thirty-one electoral votes were held by only five states — New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois and California, 1 "Both Nominees Start Swinging," Nc^vstvcch, 40 (September 1. 1952), 13. 2 Ibid., 19. 8 Ibid. ♦"Summing Up the Major Issues," Netv Republic, 127 (October 27, 1952), 12-13. ^ "Both Nominees Start Swinging," 13-14. « Ibid. •• Ibid.. 14-15. 8 "Behind Eisenhower's Victory," Nation, 175 (November 15, 1952), 437. April, 1956 17 if they concentrated on the northern Negro votes.® Also, the Republicans recognized the weak points in the administration's policy of strong govern- ment control of farm prices and planned their attack accordingly.^" Finally, the decision was made to conduct the greater part of the campaign in these five key states. The Republican platform, as established by the Republican National Committee, was merely a detailed list of promises and pledges to the public. In essence, it promised to the voters the best of everything from a prompt cessation of hostilities in Korea to a better system of mail delivery .^^ A full examination of all fields of foreign and domestic significance is not pertinent to this study. Suffice it to say that the areas of prime importance covered by the G. O. P. platform pertained to foreign policy, Communism, taxes, small business and agriculture. The G. O. P. platform committee promised to restore the peace that they charged had been lost by the Democratic administration at Teheran, Yalta and Potsdam.^^ It promised to banish Communists from government, par- ticularly in the tax-collecting agencies. ^^ Its platform pledged a provision for anti-monopoly laws to aid the small businessmen.^* The committee stated that its goal was "a. balanced budget, a reduced national debt, an economical administration and a cut in taxes." ^^ It promised "to combat inflation by encouraging full production of goods and food and not through a program of restrictions." ^® To the farmers the committee promised full parity prices for their products.^' (For a long time farmers had been the victims of a price discrimination. As the prices of industrial goods were rising, the farmers' prices remained the same. This required some sort of government interven- tion, which took the form of a guarantee to the farmers that they would receive a percentage of the prices that they received during the 1910-1914 period when the farmers' income was at its peak. This percentage guarantee has been termed "parity." " The Democratic Committee on Platform and Resolutions formally stated its pledges in its report to the Democratic National Convention.^® It closely resembled the Republican platform with regard to the abundance of promises. Foremost in importance of its pledges was a promise to provide "peace with honor." ^° This was in line with President Truman's poHcy of keeping the » "Both Nominees Start Swinging," p. 15. 10 Ibid. 11 James C. Charlesworth, "The Republican Platform," American Academy of Politi- cal and Social Science, 283 (1952), 161, 170. 12 Ibid., 161. 13 Ibid., 164 " Ibid., 165. 15 Ibid. 16 Ibid. " Ibid., 166. 18 Paul A. Samuelson, Economics (New York, 1955), 401-402. 19 Charlesworth, 172. 20 Ibid. 18 The Green Caldron armed forces in Korea until an honorable peace had been secured. The manner in which the Democrats catered to the numerically larger working class is evidenced by their promise to provide a tax system that would make allowance for the taxpayers' ability to pay.-^ They promised a repeal of the Taft-Hartley Act which they claimed "tipped the scales in favor of management." ^^ Also they promised an enactment of an excess profits tax system to prevent profiteering by big business. ^^ As was the case with the Republican platform, the Democrats went on and on pledging improvements in other areas such as education, administration of veterans" affairs, slum clearance, civil rights and advocation of statehood for Alaska and Hawaii. The informal strategy of the Democratic Party, as expressed in the cam- paign speeches of Governor Stevenson, featured the slogan "You never had it so good." ■^* The implication here was that the American people would be unwise to vote out an administration that had provided so much prosperity for all. The Democrats realized that they were at a distinct disadvantage regarding Korea as a foreign policy issue. It was necessary to follow Presi- dent Truman's Korean policies, which were meeting with very little success. This left the road clear for the Republican candidate to initiate proposals for settlement of the Korean War. With this clear realization in mind, the Democrats decided to concentrate on issues of domestic importance rather than foreign policy.-^ The reasons for Mr. Eisenhower's victory and Governor Stevenson's defeat can be evidenced from a close analysis of how the two candidates treated the vital issues. As it happened, the manner in which they dealt with these issues, together with other influential factors, had very opposite efifects on the voting public. While considering the factors contributing to the failure of the Democratic nominee, we may be able, in part, to recognize some of the causes of Mr. Eisenhower's success. The general mistake made by Governor Stevenson and his colleagues was to dwell too much on their slogan "You never had it so good." The excessive degree to which they labored this point had a negative eliect on the public.^' Americans realized that their prosperity was due primarily to the boom in business caused by the war. Eisenhower summed it up in two words : "war prosperity." ^'^ The public realized that there was, in truth, no real pros- perity, because of inflated prices and high taxes.^® If the governor from Illinois had not tried to force this point on the public, he might have been more successful. 2i/ti(/., 177. 22 Ibid., 179. 23 Ibid., 175. 24 "Both Nominees Start Swinging," 14. 25 //„•(/., 13. 26 Dcrk Boddc. "Why the Democrats Lost," (Letter to the Editors) Nation, 175 (December 27, 1952), 615. 27 "Summing Up the Major Issues," 12. 28 Bodde. 615. April, 1956 19 Errors of this nature were prevalent in other areas of the Democrats' approach. Stevenson spent too much time in eulogizing the administrations of the previous twenty years as compared with past Republican administra- tion failures.-'' He repeatedly made reference to the depression days under the Hoover administration,^" not realizing that times had changed and that the American people were concerned with solutions to the problems of 1952. To summarize: the Democratic candidate failed to take the initiative in ofifering solutions to current problems or, at least, alternative proposals to those made by Mr. Eisenhower. However, in all fairness to Governor Steven- son, it should be noted again that his hands were tied, so to speak, concerning the Korean issue, inasmuch as President Truman had committed the Demo- cratic Party to a prevention of a cease-fire until an American victory could be honorably attained. Stevenson's defeat might also be traced to another combination of factors. Conditions affecting the voting public had changed considerably in the four- year span from 1948 to 1952. President Truman knew where he was going in 1948 and had almost four years of White House experience to rely upon. In 1952, with the Korean War at a grim stalemate, the American people were filled with anxiety and fear. This, combined with the fact that Adlai Steven- son was a comparative unknown on the national political scene, seriously detracted from the voters' confidence in the Democratic Party.^^ As mentioned above, Stevenson's jaux pas in handling the Tidelands issue was a factor contributing to his defeat. Also, as opposed to the all-out effort on the part of Democratic supporters in 1948, their attitude in the '52 cam- paign was marred by complacency and a false reliance on the general pros- perity of the nation.^- Perhaps this can be traced to the uncoordinated machine effort at the local voting levels. It was felt that local party leaders failed to acquire the complete labor vote that was needed so badly.^^ It should be pointed out that Stevenson's campaign speeches were not completely ineffective. At times he made very good sense. This can be illustrated by his sound reasoning that the U.S.S.R. was responsible for the prevailing high taxes. He pointed out that 85 per cent of the budget went toward national defense. He argued that we must ''first become strong, then reduce the armaments race." ^* Indeed, an unbiased observer of the 1952 presidential campaign and its outcome might conclude that it was not so much a Stevenson defeat as it was an Eisenhower victory. The slogan adopted by the Republican Party seemed to express quite well the sentiments of the American public. "Time for a change," although used 29 Fred Zimmerman, "Where the Democrats Erred," (Letter to the Editors) Nation, 176 (January 31, 1953), 107. 30 Ibid. 31 Ibid., 108. 32 Bodde, 615. 33 "Behind Eisenhower's Victory," 438. 3* "Summing Up the Major Issues," 12. 20 The Green Caldron by the G.O.P. in four previous canipaigns,^^ finally took hold. The implica- tion here, that twenty consecutive years was too long for one party to occupy the White Ilouse,^^ had a strong effect upon the electorate. Mr. Eisenhower realized that he must provide solutions to eliminate the fears of the American people. Three of these fears w'ere by-products of the Truman administration : (1) fear of future extension of the Korean War; (2) fear of Communism; and (3) fear of an economic collapse that could result from high taxes and inflation.^^ Actually, Ike proposed no definite solution for ending the fighting in Korea, but his insistence that, if elected, he would go to Korea in an attempt to find a solution was enough to gain the confidence of the people.^* It should be stressed that this was not merely a promise, but rather a stubborn insistence that he would effect a prompt cease-fire. No doubt, Mr. Eisenhower's military career and vast experience in this field added much to the voters' confidence in him. Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin had been waging a much- publicized war against the infiltration of Communists into government posi- tions. Although his methods were generally considered to be crude, his activities disclosed to the public the serious proportions that this situation had reached. This, together with the fact that it was the Communists that we were fighting in Korea and on the Cold War front, aroused a great anxiety among the people.^® The Republican candidate detected this anxiety and relieved it by promising an administration free of Communists.*" Ike's stand on high taxes and inflation was just as determined as his stand on the Korean and Communism issues. Moreover, his proposals were very specific regarding the high cost of living. He acknowledged Governor Stevenson's argument that Russia was the cause of our high taxes, but claimed that he would cut taxes from $81,000,000,000 to $60,000,000,000 within four years by a more economic allocation of the tax income.*^ Another very deciding factor in the Republicans' favor was that they were very well-fixed financially as opposed to the Democrats' somewhat limited funds.'** The Republican strategists knew that their candidate was very popular among the American people and capitalized on this by spending millions of dollars to secure a monopoly of television and radio time for Ike's campaign speeches.*^ These media were valuable to the G. O. P. because they permitted the voters to perceive the warmth and sincerity of the future *•* "The Campaign Issues." U. S. Nezrs ami World Report, 2>Z (Julv 11. 1952), 18. 38 Ibid., 19. " Ibid., 18. 38 Zimmerman, 108. 39 "Behind Eisenhower's Victory," 437. *° Zimmerman, 107. •*! "Summing Up the Major Issues," 12. ^2 "Behind Eisenhower's Victory," 438. « Ibid. I April, 1956 21 president. The ample funds that the Repubhcans had at their disposal were helpful, too, in organizing a tightly knit campaign effort.** Senator Taft listed this as a factor of prime importance in an interview after the Republican victory was definitely assured. *■'' Let us attend to the post-election comments of two veteran Republican politicians. Senator Taft ascribed Stevenson's defeat to the fact that the public was tired of the New Deal. Also, he mentioned that Democratic efforts to alienate Taft's followers had failed.*" Governor Thomas E. Dewey, a two- time loser in presidential elections, thought that the administration blundered by failing to train the South Koreans to defend themselves. Also, he pointed out that Truman's "mud-slinging" tactics only hurt the cause of the Democrats.*^ Thus, the 1952 presidential campaign ended in a landslide victory for Dwight David Eisenhower. It was acknowledged as a great personal triumph for the former general, but many post-election observations also conceded that it was a victory for the Republican party as a whole,*® brought about by a well-integrated, well-organized campaign machine. BIBLIOGRAPHY "Behind Eisenhower's Victory." Nation. 175 (November 15, 1952), 437-439. Bodde, Derk. "Why the Democrats Lost." (Letter to the Editors) Nation. 175 (Decem- ber 27, 1952), 615-616. "Both Nominees Start Swinging." Newszvcek. 40 (September 1, 1952), 13-16. "The Campaign Issues." U. S. Ncivs and World Report. 2>Z (July 11, 1952), 18-19. Charlesworth, James C. "The Republican Platform for 1952" and "The Democratic Plat- form for 1952." American Academy of Political and Social Science. 283 (September, 1952), 161-186. Samuelson, Paul A. Economics. New York : McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc., 1955. "Summing Up the Major Issues." Ne%v Republic. 127 (October 27, 1952), 12-13. "Why We Won; Whv We Lost." U. S. News and World Report. 33 (November 14, 1952), 66-74. Zimmerman, Fred. "Where the Democrats Erred." (Letter to the Editors) Nation. \76 (January 31, 1953), 107-109. 4* Ibid. 45 "Why We Won; Why We Lost," U. S. News and World Report, 33 (November 14, 1952), 66. 46 Ibid. 47 Ibid., 67. 48 "Behind Eisenhower's Victory." 439. Tne Inerticiency or Rnetoric Howard Mindell Rlietoric 102, Theme 6 ALL COURSES HAVE GOOD AND BAD POINTS. IT IS THE purpose of this theme to discuss several of the objectionable features of '~ rhetoric as I have observed them during my limited exposure to the course. 22, The Green Caldron It is fairly evident that grades are many times unjust. Themes cannot be graded objectively, as can a multiple-choice hour examination in a science course. Instructors are apt to grade according to their personal sets of values and ideas. If a student's style is not appealing to the instructor and his previously developed standards, a low grade may be given ; but the same theme may receive a much higher grade from another instructor who is equally against doling out high grades, but is influenced favorably by the theme because of his particular set of values. This does not say, of course, that the rhetoric instructor cannot distinguish "A" themes from "E" themes. Very bad and very good themes can be distinguished, but often themes in the middle grade bracket are unjustly marked. You might ask, "What, then, is a fair mark ?" A fair mark could be determined only by at least two or three competent instructors. One also might ask, "What's in a grade?" It seems to me that many instructors have forgotten how much decent or better-than-average grades meant to them while they were in school. Pre-dental, pre-medical, and various other pre-professional students need the advantage of every possible justifiably high grade they deserve. If a low grade in rhetoric is given at any time due to misjudgment, then a horrible mistake is being made. Rhetoric teachers as a whole are more than capable of grading themes, but it must be admitted that a course like rhetoric offers more chances for a grading error than any other. Is rhetoric a practical course ? Does one learn theme writing from practice only? Themes are based on inspiration. Inspiration depends on personality. Can personality be changed in two hours and forty-five minutes for thirty-two weeks enough so that inspired themes will be produced? In psychology we learn that personality is formed in the first seven years of life. Grammar and punctuation are certainly important factors which can be improved through practice in rhetoric, but a grammatically perfect theme is not necessarily a good one. It seems that rhetoric tests thinking and writing ability more than it teaches it. I was under the impression that university courses taught rather than tested. Improvement in theme writing certainly can occur if the student has had no rhetoric, but after eight or nine years of writing his thoughts on paper in a particular style or manner, the student tends to be immune to further instruction. This, of course, presents a challenge to the rhetoric instructors, and, to infuse greater spirit into the student, low marks are given at the beginning of the course. Gradually, of course, the marks become higher, due to the rapid "improvement" of the student. It is more likely that high marks are given unconsciously by the instructor towards the end of the course, as he searches frantically for some form of improvement in his students. It has been proved, however, at the University of Illinois' Education Depart- ment that low marks definitely breed discouragement and apathy in 80 per- cent of the students tested. Rhetoric is of some value. It stimulates thoughts, among other things, and will improve grammar and such thinj.'s, though the student may protest April, 1956 23 violently. In conclusion, I admit, after reading the material I have just hastily scribbled down for a new record in wordage for an impromptu, that theme writing may be improved in one way. That way involves the careful and thorough examination of all mistakes, and a conscious effort while writing anything to try to include some of the things which make up good writing. Automation Michael N. Soltys Rhetoric 102, Placement Theme A WORD THAT HAS BEEN APPEARING IN NEWSPAPER and magazine articles often of late is "cybernetics." This is a recently coined word referring to the technique of employing computing machinery in place of the human mind to operate devices which demand a higher order of precision than human reflexes and coordination can supply. One of the first computers in use was built by the Ford Instrument Com- pany (later a division of the Sperry-Rand Corporation) to train naval guns rapidly and effectively on targets when the guns were supported by a rolling, pitching, turning platform that was making its way through the sea at twenty-five knots, with the target in motion as well. Today there are systems that will automatically track, interrogate, and destroy incoming targets at speeds exceeding sound, and — without further orders from the human operator, or rather, observer — shift to a new target and begin the process over again. The concept of cybernetics has led to that of "automation." With the maturation of the computer from the relative "moron" that aims guns to the veritable "genius" that solves problems in celestial mechanics has come ma- chinery capable of following the most intricate set of orders dealing with the production of myriads of articles more alike than any two peas. One question that seems to trouble quite a few people is, "What will we do with the people that ran the machines when automation takes over?" This may be answered by recalling to these people what the last industrial revolu- tion did for the workman. Instead of making products, workers tended I machines that made the products, and were better fed, better housed, better ! clothed, happier, and healthier than their parents ever were. j The replacement of the human mind in its routine tasks will enhance the I opportunity for creative thought, of which no machine is capable. If we are to capitalize on this boon, we will have to train creative thinkers faster than ever before, and in unprecedented quality. Where men were mechanics, they must now be engineers ; where there were engineers, they must now be scien- tists. The curve of human progress has shown itself rapidly steepening, and where it will climb is a matter for serious conjecture. Perhaps the stars are next. 24 The Green Caldron Non-Segregation in Resiclential Areas DiANNE BaUMANN Rhetoric 102, Theme 6 EVER SINCE THE LATTER PART OF 1954 WHEN THE Supreme Court handed down its decision banning segregation in the schools, the topic of segregation has gained national prominence. One of the most heated arguments, aside from the school controversy, arises over the question of segregated housing. This question is primarily an emotional one, and amid the flurry of pros and cons the public sometimes loses sight of the real facts involved. Yet segregated housing, like any other question, must be considered in the light of the facts if any valid conclusion is to be reached. These facts do point definitely to a clear-cut, valid conclusion: that the cstablisJimcnt of non-segregated residential areas in the United States is practicable. Perhaps the foregoing statement would be more clear if it were defined. The word "establishment" may be interpreted as "settlement on a firm or permanent basis." The word "segregated" means, in a literal sense, "sepa- rated from others" ; it is used here in the sense of Negroes separated from Caucasians. Therefore "non-segregated" refers to a situation in which Negroes and Caucasians are not separated from each other. "Non-segregated residential areas" denotes communities in which both Negroes and Caucasians have their homes. The meaning of the word "practicable" may be taken as, "capable of being developed or worked out and likely to prove successful in operation." Thus the proposition could be restated as : the settlement, on a firm and permanent basis, of coniniunities in the United States in which hath Negroes and Caucasians have their homes, is capable of being ivorked out and likely to prove successful in operation. In proving the practicability of non-segregated residential areas, only one source of evidence can conceivably be used. This is clear from the state- ment of the proposition : not "can be" or "should be" practicable, but "is" practicable. Thus evidence must be garnered from communities which are non-segregated at the present time. The experience of the people of these communities will tell whether or not non-segregation is successfully being put into practice. 'i'hose communities which can be most successfully investigated consist of the federal housing projects. This is the case for two reasons: first, the federal government keeps track of the success of these projects and makes the information public in special reports and pamphlets ; and secondly, one of the purposes of these projects is to experiment with the integration of Negroes and whites. April, 1956 25 In 1934 the Federal Public Housing Program was put into effect on an experimental basis. It was the first program to establish by actual practice that Negroes and whites could be integrated. It is still in existence today, and still practicing integration, facts which testify to its success. There were problems to be solved, of course, and the program did solve them. In many cases the hangdog fear of the minority had to be integrated with the stubborn prejudice of the majority. Housing officials found that they were best able to cope with this problem by seeking to regulate the percentage of integration. They learned that a community containing from 6 to 30 percent of the minority group was the most satisfactory. In this situation the Negroes felt secure, yet the whites did not feel they are being dominated by the Negroes. They also found that integration works better on a community level, so they substituted whole neighborhoods for small dvelopments. These neighborhoods offered a practical means for the mingling of the races in schools, playgrounds, and other public facilities. It is true that in many areas there was opposition to the establishment of non-segregated housing projects. There have been riots and other forms of violence. However, it is significant to note that most of these demonstrations took place when the project was first set up in an area, when it was still something strange and new. The record of violence against projects which have been in existence for some time is remarkably low compared with the violence record when they were first initiated. This proves that most opposi- tion to non-segregated housing springs from a fear of the unknown ; once this type of housing has been established, neighbors find no cause for complaint. In summarizing the over-all success of integrated housing, Charles Abrams (who was requested by the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and the American Council on Race Relations, to write a pamphlet on integrated housing) has reported that it has been completely successful. He further states that it proves that, given a decent environment, Negroes will pay their rent, improve their health and living conditions, and be good neighbors. In 1953 the Public Housing Administration put out a pamphlet entitled "Open Occupancy in Public Housing" which reported on the success of government housing projects. It noted that the integrated projects have demonstrated that if Negroes and ^\•hites live together in communities, make daily contact with each other in communal facilities, and enjoy the same privileges while sharing the same responsibilities, internal tensions tend to relax, dift'erences subside, and unrestrained cooperation ensues. These conclusions were not drawn on the spur of the moment. Integrated housing projects have now been in existence for over twenty years, and the Federal Housing Authority has had a long period of experience on which to base its judgment. It is also significant to note that a broad cross-section of the people of the United States have their experiences represented in the findings of the Federal Housing Authority. The following chart put out by the F. H. A. in 26 The Green Caldron June, 1953, shows the racial pattern in public housing projects tenanted partially or wholly by Negroes. Projects Occupied by Negroes 1,101 Occupied by Negroes only 683 Occupied by Negroes and whites 418 Dwelling Units Occupied by Negroes 136,043 Occupied by Negroes only 102,988 Occupied by Negroes and whites 33,055 These figures show that one-fourth of all the Negroes living in housing projects are living in non-segregated units. They and all the whites living with them are getting first-hand experience in integrated living, experience which is being passed on to the Federal Housing Authority, and which the F. H. A. is passing on to the public. Another important factor to be considered is that successful integrated living is being reported all across the nation. In the West, the Los Angeles Housing Authority reports complete harmony in Aliso Village, an 802-unit slum-clearance development containing various races, religions, and nationali- ties. From the Middlewest comes the Chicago Housing Authority's report of satisfactory adjustment in large housing projects consisting of 25 percent Negroes. In the East, the New York Flousing Authority gives the most favorable report of all. It notes that in communities where non-segregated projects have arisen there has been no tendency for people to move out of these communities ; and, moreover, business in the communities has increased. It also states that friendly relations between the two races have been firmly cemented by working together on community projects, caring for each other's children, and lending a helping hand in times of emergency. In fact, the New York Housing Authority describes the integration of races there as a success of epochal proportions. The only section of the United States which has not reported successful integrated living is the South ; and here it must be remembered that inte- grated living has not failed — it has simply never been tried. With the new Supreme Court ruling against segregation in schools, the Southern children of today, the Southern citizens of tomorrow, will become accustomed to integration. In a previous instance it has been noted that familarity with a reasonable situation tends to produce acceptance of that situation. It has been shown that integrated housing is certainly a reasonable situation. There- fore, we can conclude that integrated housing will be accepted as Southern citizens become familiar with it, and that integrated housing in the South is capable of being worked out and likely to prove successful in operation. Thus, because it has been proved that non-segregated residential areas are existing successfully in most parts of the United States, and can exist April, 1956 27 successfully in all parts of the United States, it is logical to conclude that the establishment of non-segregated residential areas in the United States is practicable. A Course In Pliysiolo^y Jack H. Cutler Rhetoric 101, Theme 1 PHYSIOLOGY, THE STUDY OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE human body, bestows upon those who study it an invaluable understand- ing of that marvelous and highly complex machine, one's own body. To familiarize the student with all phases of this science, the course is divided into three types of classes. The first type is the physiology lecture. In this class a learned doctor describes, discusses, and diagrams the various organs and functions of the body. He also clarifies the meanings of the longer and more complex scienti- fic terms such as antivwisectionist. According to the learned doctor, a full comprehension of the term antivwisectionist is absolutely essential as a foun- dation before one can build a strong structure of physiological knowledge. The definition of an antivivisectionist is "a sentimental fool who believes that the larger animals, especially dogs and cats, should not be sliced up for exper- imentation." All the students are taught that the greatest threat to humanity today is not the communist, the anarchist, the Fascist, or the atheist, but the antivivisectionist. Thus, the lectures give the students a solid basis of in- formation upon which they can proceed with their work. The second type of class is the physiology demonstration period. This class, as its name would indicate, is devoted to demonstrating the principles learned in the lecture class. Many of these periods are utilized for the pur- pose of finding out exactly how much heat, cold, and other stresses different animals can take before they expire. But the demonstrations do not always turn out precisely as planned and sometimes the subject of the demonstration does not die as expected. On these occasions a very heart-rending scene un- folds. The disheartened, dejected look on the instructor's face as he looks down at the villianous animal who, contrary to the rules, is going to live nearly brings tears to one's eyes. This second type of class builds further upon the basic learning received in the lectures and prepares the student for the third and final type. The all-important third type of class is the physiology lab. The laboratory period greatly resembles the previously mentioned demonstration period ex- cept for one major difference. The student is now sufficiently advanced to have a dissection kit of his own, to do his own cutting, to make his own observ- ations, and to draw his own conclusions. Thus, following the "learn-and-cut" method, the student gains beneficial knowledge of his personal machine, his body. 28 The Green Caldron Tne American Aristocracy Frank K. Lorenz Rhetoric 102, Final Examination IT HAS OFTEN BEEN SAID THAT OUR NATION POSSESSES a relatively classless society. It is true that we do not have such old-world institutions as titles of monarchy and the nobility with their rank and hereditary land tenure. Our government officials are not chosen from an hereditary landed aristocracy, as many prime ministers, cabinet members and members of Parliament in England are, for instance. If we think of our society as a class system at all, we generally think of class differences based upon economic wealth, which is not necessarily hereditary. An American family's social position is usually based upon its economic position. Frequently a family's social position continues for a time after the family wealth is ex- hausted, but this situation lasts for only a couple of generations at most. We think of the great commercial and industrial dynasties, such as the Vander- bilt, Astor, duPont, and Rockefeller, as the only type of hereditary aristoc- racy we possess. Except in this economic sense, most of us are convinced that there is no such thing as an American hereditary aristocracy. An ex- amination of the history of our country and of the personalities involved in its making lead me to take a differing point of view, however. From the pages of our history, particularly in the fields of poHtics, literature, and the military, the existence of an hereditary aristocracy of a sort can be readily detected. Certain families are interwoven like a thread throughout our political and, to a lesser extent, throughout our military history. Some of these eminent fam- ilies have taken part in more than a century of our nation's history. The Adams family of Massachusetts is just such a group. John Adams and his cousin Samuel, of Boston, can be considered the co- founders of the Adams political dynasty. They were both extremely active in fomenting and carrying on the Re\olutionary War. While Samuel, the more militant of the two, took a direct part in the War, instigating the Boston I Tea Party and supervising the m.aintenance of a colonial arsenal in his native city, John espoused the American cause as a member of the various Conti- nental Congresses and as a diplomat for the newly proclaimed nation. After independence was won, John Adams became our nation's first Vice President and, in 1797, our second President. The political dynasty was continued by John's son, John Quincy Adams, who became our sixth president. Descend- ants of John Adams served as cabinet members and diplomats throughout much of the nineteenth century. Preeminent among these was Henry Adams, who became a substantial literary figure with his now famous autobiography. The Education of Henry Adams. The members of the Adams family have served this country in high governmental positions up to the present day. Charles Francis Adams, who passed away only a few years ago, was a former Secretary of Navy. The State of Ohio has possessed at least two great political families. April, 1956 29 William Henry Harrison, the hero of Tippecanoe in the War of 1812, became our seventh President. Prior to his elevation to the presidency he had been governor of the Indiana Territory. Harrison's grandson, Benjamin, became president in 1889. Members of the family have also filled a host of lesser governmental positions. Perhaps the outstanding example of an hereditary political aristocracy still present today is the Taft family of Ohio. Alfonso Taft was one of the founding fathers of the city of Cincinnati, Secretary of War under President Grant and Minister to Russia. His son, William Howard, became President of the United States in 1909, and later Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. He had also been Secretary of War under President Theodore Roosevelt. His eldest son, Robert Alfonso, became an outstanding U. S. Senator and one of the leading political figures of his time, often a leading contender for his party's nomination for the presidency. Sen- ator Taft's brother, Charles, is an eminent lay churchman, Cincinnati city official, and former candidate for Governor of Ohio. Senator Taft's sister, Helen Taft Manning, is Dean of Women and former acting president of a leading eastern college. Senator Taft's son, William Howard, is presently .•\mbassador to Ireland. The Lees and the Byrds of Virginia are also examples of the American aris- tocracy. Light-Horse Harry Lee, of Revolutionary W^ar fame, was the grand- father of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. General Lee's wife, by the way, was a descendant of Martha Washington. A member of the Lee family was a United States Army general as recently as World War II. The Byrd fam- ily has provided our nation with statesmen from colonial times to the present. A Byrd was one of the first governors of colonial Virginia, and Harry Flood Byrd, his descendant, is presently an outstanding L'nited States Senator and former Virginia Governor. Senator Byrd's brother is Admiral Richard E. Byrd, famed arctic explorer. These few examples of eminent American families support my belief that there is such a thing as an hereditary American aristocracy not necessarily based upon economic position. It is the type of aristocracy which is based upon accomplishments and services to their country, rather than upon titles and land holdings — a type of aristocracy which any nation on earth should be rightfully proud to possess. Tne Black Bu:z;2;arcl Dale O. Dillard Rhetoric 101, Theme 11 THE "BLACK BUZZARD" WAS A 1941 MODEL PONTIAC FOUR- door sedan. It belonged to Dad by title and to myself by reason of usage until slightly over two years ago, when we sold the car to a man who wanted "something to drive on fishing trips." I could have told him that the Black Buzzard was "something to drive" anywhere. 30 The Green Caldron The Buzzard's chief physical features, as I remember them, were a cover- ing of chipped and faded black paint, a quiet-running, six-cylinder engine which could, and frequently did, propel the body along at eighty-five miles per hour, and a low gear which, when engaged, sounded like a cement mixer grinding out concrete to the tune of the Warsaw Concerto. This particular gear caused me much embarrassment as a result of the startled look on a strange passenger's face when I started forward. The effect of the gear's grinding noise on the state police was noteworthy as well as highly amusing. There was an intersection in my home town where a pair of troopers almost invariably parked their car, and themselves, in the evenings. I made it a practice to jar these gentlemen from their complacency as often as possible simply by utilizing my Pontiac's lowest gear when I resumed forward motion after stopping at the intersection. They generally responded by flashing their spotlight on my car as I pulled away. I never decided whether the light was meant as a warning or as an absolute verification of my identity. I believe it was the latter because one of the troopers was a member of my church and, if he happened to be standing outside the church on Sunday morning, he al- ways smiled and waved as I pulled away from the curb. The first night I took the Buzzard out on my own was March 10, 1953, the day I received my driver's license. I started out for town, which was about five miles from home, with butterflies in my stomach, high hopes for an ad- venturesome night in my head, and a horse harness in the back seat. You see, my Dad also used the car as a truck sometimes, hauling hay, straw, and sacked corn on the fenders and a wide assortment of tools, containers and other articles in the trunk and back seat. On that first night I figured the harness would be all right where it was, but when I picked up my best friend he hastened to assure me that the horse harness "had to go," lest our social progress for the night be impeded. So, I parked the Pontiac on a back street and the two of us shifted the leather, brass, and rope contraption to the trunk. Our social progress for the night amounted to nothing anyway. During the spring months the Buzzard and I did a considerable amount of social climbing, reaching the point where we were racing my contempor- aries in their fathers' new cars. Of course, we didn't race on a straightaway track or anything like that. We would set a destination ten-or-so miles away over the regular highway and "take off." There were always "near accidents," but never anything serious. I remember one incident in which three of us were racing back to town following a frigid, and illegal, dip in the city lake. I was driving at my car's maximum speed, eighty-five miles per hour, and the other two cars were stationary, relative to mine, one just ahead of me and one on my left. After three or four minutes of this, the inevitable happened and we met a car. The boy on my left, instead of dropping back, cut towards me so that I had to swerve to the right, far off the pavement. Luckily, there were no ruts or abutments at the side of the road and the Black Buzzard and I escaped unscathed. April, 1956 31 Later in the summer my car became the key figure in a succession of hil- arious evenings. Every night during July and August the Buzzard and I loaded up vt^ith a bunch of high school juniors-to-be of both sexes and set out. Since my income at the time consisted of that amount of money which I could mooch from my parents, each member of the gang chipped in a quarter or so for gasoline and other expenses each night. We found that a couple of dollars could take us a long way — to the drive-in theater, to any of a dozen nearby community teen-towns, or out on an infamous escapade known as a "bush- whack." Bushwhacking consists principally of shattering the darkness and solitude of a lover's lane or lone parking spot among some railroad track or slag heap. Our gang worked bushwhacking into a "science," ever inventing fresh strategy and tactics. By late August we knew the favorite parking spot of nearly every couple in town as well as a few other facts that can hardly be discussed here. One of our favorite tricks consisted of pulling up beside a parked car, holding a lighted red lantern out the window, and yelling, "Need a light ?" Then we would leave the area in something of a hurrry for we were forever being surprised by the Romeos who carried concealed weapons. A pistol shot behind us in the night was not an uncommon experience. The Black Buzzard served me nobly throughout the summer of 1953. Never once did I have a flat tire and very seldom was I troubled by any mechanical breakdown in the car. Once, though, my buddy the Buzzard and I were entertaining five girls by driving on a remote country road late at night, when the fan belt broke and the water in the radiator boiled away before I noticed the rising temperature gauge. Finding the fan belt in ribbons and the engine steaming hot with not a filling station in sight, I decided to back to a house we had passed shortly before. There at the house I obtained a bucket of water, filled the radiator, and set out for our home town which was seven miles away. To keep the engine temperature down as far as possible, I shut off the engine at the top of each hill we encountered and coasted until I was forced to gain some momentum for the next ridge. To avoid running down the battery, I turned off the headlights at each opportunity also. Coasting silently along at forty miles per hour in a drafty '41 Pontiac in total darkness and on a state highway is high adventure, believe me — es- pecially if you are a male and five females are giggling nervously in your ear. Tlie Buzzard brought us home without further mishap though and, once fitted with a new fan belt, she was as good as you can expect any twelve year old car to be. In the fall of 1953 I conducted my first love affair. My girl friend and I enjoyed many happy evenings in the Pontiac and just before Thanksgiving we were rather sorry to see the car go. My Dad had decided that the Buzzard had outlived its usefulness and subsequently sold it. My girl friend and I were never quite the same in my Dad's DeSoto. In fact, when we broke up more than two months later, she blamed our separation partially on the change in automobiles. She said I had gone "high-hat," or something like that, when 32 The Green Caldron the Buzzard left. I'm all for progress, though, and now I realize that getting rid of both the girl friend and the Black Buzzard was necessary for the con- tinuation of my progress in life. There will always be a tender spot near my heart for each of them, however. Rket as Writ Although her skin and general outward appearance seem old, one can see a twinkle in her eves. It is mv landlady. While R. O. T. C. is compulsory- at the University- down here because it is a land grant school, male students at Xa^'\• Pier have their choice because the school isn't built on land. A practical joke is enjoyed by all if the joke is really practical. Irregardless of what course she takes, she will, of course, leave college a much broader person than when she entered, which, in the case of the sincere coed, is her objective. When I am sixt}-, I want to be able to say that I have experienced a won- derful life full of happiness, sadness, excitement, and ever}- other adjective. to coin an already ver}- widely used phrase. During the day there are cattle shows, contests in the grandstands, and entertainment for e\-er}one. At night the midway is in full swing and there is horse racing in the grandstands. After he fa student preparing to ask a girl to wear his fraternity pin) has taken all precautions necessan.-, he will, literally speaking, throw caution to the wind and make his fatal step with one foot in a hole and the other on a banana peel. Since power was his main goal, and his people were against him, it was to Caesar's advantage to be killed. Beck)' Sharp and her husband managed to live through her craftiness. The council has declared that on alternate nights parked cars will vacillate between north and south and east and west. I Honorable Mention Charles H. DennU: \^ omen: How to Lnderetand Them Alice C, Berger: Rhetoric 100: To Be or Not To Be fTUliam C. WiUoughhy: Cayucas I Have Kno^-n John J. McCauley : My Erstwhile Hobby Robert Sauer: "Consider These, for We Have Condemned Them' A. Mogeni*: Tribute to George Orwell Max Flandorfer: Gone By Robert R. Allison: Automatic Gunsmoke Judith Morse: Road to ? William Babcock: Listen to the Night Edtcard /. Terry: The Need for Funerals Sally Joy: A Day at the Race« Claudia L. Lippert: Railroad Jargon R. KeUey: The Best Teacher I Have Ever Known Michael Hoffman: The Outlook Is Bleak for the Shoal Phillip Hardy: Peoria. The Reformed City ISornian Mysliicies: Tlie Old Familiar Faces Anne Ehret: It Takes Time Robert Sauer: My Favorite Philosopher Mary Ann Hood: \('hy I Came to College The Contributors Sylvia Wineland — Pleasant Hill Wilbur L, French — ^Veedersbnrg, Ind. Charlotte VonBehren — Girard Robert Canty — ^Joliet Ruth F, Weiner — ^Western H. S., Baltimore, Md. Judith Sensibar — ^Laboratory School, U. of Chicago Francis Spooner — Grant Comm., Fox Lake David F. Pagenkopf — ^Lake Forest Academy Uoioard Mindell — ^Highland Park Michael iV. Soltys — Lowell Dianne Baumann — Carl Schurz, Chi. Jack H, Cutler — Bethany Frank K, Lorenz — GED Entrance Examinations Dale O. DiUard — ^Frankfort Comm., W. Frankfort Fhe Green Caldron A MAGAZINE OF FRESHMAN WRITING CONTENTS Frank K. Lorenz: Should College Enrollments Be Limited? . . 1 Gerald M. Peterson: Who Wants To? 3 Michael P. Hoffman: The Outlook Is Bleak for the Shoal ... 4 Robert R. Allison^ Jr.: Automatic Gunsmoke 5 j antes Archer: The Privilege of Setting Him Free 7 John A. Finley: The Vertical Take-off and Landing Piano ... 8 Thomas B. Thew: The Values of an Honor System 14 Wilbur L. French: Genetic Variahility and the Conditioning of an Emhryo 17 John J. McCanley: My Erstwhile Hohhy 18 /o/in L. Ern/w, /r.; Delinquency — A Dialogue 21 Rhet as Writ 24 Vol. 26, No. 1 October, 1956 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS T HE Green CArnrnx i<; published four time=; -i v^nr by the Rhetoric Staff at the University of Illinois. Material is chosen from themes and examinations written by freshmen in the Uni- versity. Permission to pubHsh is obtained for all full themes, including those published anonymously. Parts of themes, how- ever, are published at the discretion of the committee in charge. Members of the committee in charge of The Green Caldron are Phyllis Rice, Edward Levy, James Maclntyre, George Estey, and Carl Moon, Editor. Snould College Enrollments Be Limitea? Frank K. Lorenz Rhetoric 102, Theme 6 IN SEPTEMBER OF THIS YEAR AMERICAN COLLEGES AND universities opened their doors to approximately two and a half million students. This current enrollment in our schools of higher education probably would have been even greater if many institutions had not been forced to limit the number of entry permits granted because of the lack of housing, teachers, or classroom facilities. The constantly increasing number of young people seeking higher education is posing a serious prob- lem for our educational institutions. It will not be long before the ever- mounting influx of new students will overtax present college facilities to the point where educational standards must be lowered in order to accommo- date them. In many schools this unfortunate situation has already occurred. The situation has become so grave that many people, both in and out of education, have publicly voiced their alarm. Predictions of dire consequences for American education are being made in the event this trend is allowed to continue unremedied. Our colleges are faced with the necessity of providing a solution to this problem of a rapidly increasing enrollment. The most obvious solution would be to expand educational facilities to meet the demands placed upon them. Unfortunately, however, this solution is impractical because of the colleges' financial limitations. State legislatures are notorious penny-pinchers where state-supported institutions are concerned. Increased appropriations designed to remedy overcrowding would be forthcoming only with the greatest reluctance and delay. Private universities and liberal arts colleges must depend primarily upon endowments, alumni contributions and tuition fees for support. Currently, private institutions are experiencing budgetary difficulties because of an inadequate income. E.xpansion to meet the demands of an increased enrollment is practically out of the question. Endowments and alumni contributions, although substantial, cannot be relied upon to provide the entire additional financial support needed. Increasing the tuition would only serve to make it financially impossible for many young people to enter college. The increasing number of scholarships available to students helps somewhat to alleviate the financial burden. However, these scholar- ships are not as yet available to the vast majority of students in need of them. Another solution to the urgent problems caused by increasing college enrollment would be the subsidizing of all colleges bv the state or federal government. This method of solving the problem is quite impractical also. Besides the politicallv controversial nature of such a solution ultimately f 1] 2 The Green Caldron leading to vehement opposition to it by a large segment of our people, there is also the constitutional aspect to be considered. It can be argued that federal aid to higher education impinges upon state's rights, one of the basic tenets of our Constitution. A good case could also be made against government subsidy of private institutions on the grounds that subsidy would lead to political interference. Government aid to private colleges is quite impractical because of the opposition to it engendered by its contro- versial nature. It is quite conceivable that a majority of Americans are opposed to government subsidizing of private educational institutions. A third solution would be the placement of limitations on college enroll- ment. This seems to be the most logical answer to the problem, and possibly the most practical of the three. In theory, at least, it is an ideal solution. By limiting enrollment, colleges no longer will find it necessary to hazard the financial burdens entailed in further expansion of facilities. At the same time, the colleges would maintain and perhaps even strengthen their educa- tional standards by raising entrance requirements. However, practical application of this "ideal" solution leads to difficulties. First of all, what standards should be used to diflFerentiate the acceptable student from the unacceptable? It is generally agreed that differentiation on the basis of intelligence and scholarship is the most satisfactory method. The next question which naturally arises is, should the differentiation be based on high school grades, entrance exams, 10 tests, or on all three? Since no one of these methods of measuring intelligence is completely reliable, all three must be utilized. Even then, the method would be quite unjust, inasmuch as the possibility exists that a few individuals rejected by this method would develop into better students scholastically than some of those found "acceptable." This method of discriminating on the basis of measured intelligence or ability would deny the individual an opportunity to jirove himself one way or the other. I submit that a better solution to the prevalent problem created by increased college enrollment would be to limit the number of students by raising the scholastic requirements imposed upon students during their college enrollment. For example, the University of Illinois, which presently requires maintenance of a 3.0 average, could increase this minimum average to 3.5, or possibly even 4.0. Every student would be given a fair opportunity to meet the requirements, and if he did not meet them he would be placed on probation, and if he failed to bring up his average during this proba- tionary period he would be dismissed. This solution, although by no means perfect, comes as close as any thus far proposed to solving the problem. It does so by raising educational standards, inasmuch as the general intelligence level required for college graduation would be raised. It would also tend to decrease the number of students who are not sincere in their desire for an education. These students only waste their parents' and the taxpayers' money, as well as wasting the valuable time and effort i)ut forth by the faculty members. October, 1956 3 A limitation placed on college enrollment would be fair and proper only if applied indirectly — that is, by raising the scholastic standards to be met by college students during their enrollment. On this basis, I believe that limitations on college enrollment arc justified and even desirable. \S(^lio Wants To? Gerald M. Peterson Rhetoric 102, Thnue 4 I'M A PGUer. THOSE ARE GOOD, OLD-FASHIONED ENGLISH letters, and they have nothing to do with anyone else's alphabet. They stand for Parade Ground Units, and that's where I've been living for the past semester or so here at the University of Illinois. During that time I have come in contact with twenty-two other men. Four of them are Negroes, three are Jews ; they range in geographical origin from the New- Yorker in the next room to my roommate from Alaska, from a Mexican who served in the U. S. Air Force to the exchange student from Greece. To ask for a group with more esprit de corps, even if it were hand-picked, would be ridiculous. Ours is not what is termed an organized house, but many are the women on campus to whom the street number 1320 means more than any Greek letters you might throw together. I've learned how to clean a rifle from the fellows who have served in the Army, of which we have eight at present. My vocabulary has increased tremendously. Now I can swear in Spanish, Russian, German, French, and Greek, not to mention a few new words I've picked up in English. Our house has no hours. Nobody has to mow the law-n, wash windows, or rake leaves on Saturday. We all take our own laundry to where we want it washed, and everyone carries his own matches. We can date Greek girls, and we can date Indees. Two fellows can date the same girl, and they often do. We get drunk when we want to, and we haven't dropped anyone from our roster because he doesn't wear the right clothes. We all talk to the fellows who work at the chow hall, and we moan about the food. There has yet to be one of us who had to wash the sidewalk with a toothbrush or sit underneath the table and babble on about liking his chicken. Five of us have not been herded into a phone booth and forced to smoke cigars until we were up to our ankles in vomit. None of us has ever gone five days without sleep, nor shined someone else's shoes. Our membership ranges from grad students in math and physiology to undergrads in LAS, commerce, journalism, and engineering. Our ideals range from Republican to Democratic and from Christian to agnostic. A good part of the week is spent in bull sessions where topics range from women to the Bible and from poetry to life in the Army. Although none of us is a financial giant, most of us have the background anrl the backing necessary to get into a fraternity. Rut who wants tor 4 The Green Caldron Tne Outlook Is Bleak ror tne Snoal Michael Hoffman Rhetoric 101, Theme S SHOAL CREEK, IN MONTGOMERY COUNTY, HAS LONG been a haven for wildlife. Besides the fish, turtles, crawdads, and other aquatic inhabitants, it also supports, to a large extent, many fish-eating animals and birds. But lately many species of fish and animals have become almost extinct around the creek. The game fish, such as bluegill, bass, and channel cat. are now rarely encountered. When, on occasion, they are taken, the fish are usually sick and stunted. However, there has been no decrease in the over-all fish popu- lation. The rough fish, such as carp, gar, sucker, and buffalo are becoming more numerous. They grow fat and multiply quickly in the Shoal. Why? In the summer, egrets, kingfishers, and herons once frequented the Shoal. Instead of these fish-feeding birds the town sparrow and the crow are now found along its banks. Why? In winter, muskrats built their dens along its banks, coons pawed mussels out of the creek's cold waters, and mink slithered along the grass lining its banks and looked for unwary field mice. Now the most numerous mammal found around the Shoal is the rat. Why? The answers to these questions are not hard to figure out. In the last decade, Hillsboro, a town on the Shoal's banks, has not increased in popu- lation. With no population increase, the city's government has had no incentive to improve or even repair its sewage disposal plant. The plant needs repair badly. Because of old and faulty machinery, raw sewage runs directly into Shoal Creek. Half the sewage sinks to the bottom and forms a stinking sludge, while the remainder rises to the surface and becomes an equally odorous greenish scum. The sludge kills the water plants and mussels which the fish and animals feed on. The sludge and scum oxidize continually to rob the \\ater of the oxygen that game fish need in order to survive. Because the rough, rooting fish such as the mud cat, carp, sucker, and gar need little oxygen and devour sewage gluttonously, they thrive and multiply in the stream. In a few years, the rough fish will completely dominate the creek. Since there are fewer game fish and min- nows, the number of birds that used to feed on them — the herons, egrets, and ducks — has diminished. Now only crows and sparrows are seen along the Shoal's banks, foraging for the numerous solid bits of sewage washed up by high water. In place of the muskrats, coons, and mink, now, huge water rats, whose dull, dingy fur teems with vermin, frequent the Shoal. October, 1956 5 Unless something is done in the near future, Shoal Creek will be nothing but a stinking, pest-infested sewer. The tragic thing is that probably nothing will be done. Most of the people of the community are either too ignorant or too lazy to realize that Shoal Creek with its wildlife population could be preserved. The people are resigned to the fact that the clear, clean Shoal is a thing of yesterday. Already they are telling their open-mouthed children and grandchildren about the Shoal in the "good old days," about the old swimming hole, about the long strings of bluegill they used to bring home, and about how they used to make money in the winter trapping muskrats in the marshes around the creek. To them the Shoal is already dead; it is a sacrifice made to the modern world. They say pollution comes naturally with more industry and with the modern household, or, in other words, with progress. But they are wrong. Hillsboro has had no new factories to increase waste. It is true that more sewage comes directly from houses via indoor toilets, but surely the little additional sewage from houses can not over- burden the sewage disposal plant. The plant simply isn't in a decent state of repair. The machinery in it has not been changed or repaired for twenty years. The city will not spend money on a thing that is not demanded by the people. The party in power uses public money, which should be spent for improvements, for political purposes. This party has been in power for twenty years and probably will remain in power for another twenty, since the majority of the people don't have sense enough to go beyond personal likes and dislikes to see the real policies of their governing body. The outlook is bleak for the Shoal. Automatic Gunsmoke Robert R. Allison, Jr. Rhetoric 101, Theme 2 THERE IS A BLAZE OF GUNFIRE. A DETECTIVE IS "shooting it out" with a gangster. The kids on the front row are sitting on the edges of their seats, each weighing the odds in favor of the detective. Then, an observant lad points out one fact: Our hero has an automatic pistol, which is firing a veritable hail of lead. Discretion being the better part of valor, the crook chucks out his antiquated revolver and promptly surrenders. This scene of battle is portrayed daily on movie screens, and in real life. It is common knowledge that the man who slings the most lead, fastest, will be the one who walks away from a gun-fight. The automatic pistol holds more rounds, and fires them faster, than any other type of hand-held firearm. 6 The Green Caldron Let us imagine that I am holding a loaded, cocked automatic pistol. We will see just what makes it unique, and how it operates. As I pull the trigger, it pushes a horizontal bar back against the sear. This bar is called the trigger bar. It slides in a groove, and is notched at its rear end to accommodate the sear. The sear is merely a small lever which pivots on a centrally located axis pin. The sear's lower end rests in the trigger bar's notch, and its upper end holds the hammer in a cocked position. As the trigger bar pushes against the lower end of the sear, the sear pivots on its pin and releases the hammer. The hammer has its own axis pin, on which it pivots. The hammer is under constant pressure from a strong spring which normally holds the hammer against the firing pin. The hammer is drawn back against its spring, and the sear holds the hammer back in its cocked position. When the sear releases the hammer, the hammer slaps against the firing pin. The firing pin shoots forward in its groove and strikes the waiting cartridge. Up to this point, I have described all the force needed to fire the pistol. After the firing pin hits the cartridge, the pistol takes over to complete the firing cycle automatically. When the powder in the cartridge explodes, it not only projects the bullet forward, but the explosion also gives a powerful backward thrust. This thrust to the rear is transmitted to the slide. The slide rides atop the pistol in grooves, and it is normally held in a forward position by the recoil spring. The slide performs four functions: it holds the cartridge in the firing chamber, ejects the spent shell, cocks the hammer, and reloads the firing chamber. The backward thrust of the exploding cartridge pushes the slide rear- ward and a number of things happen. First of all, the slide pulls the spent cartridge from the firing chamber and ejects it from the pistol. Secondly, the slide re-cocks the hammer against the sear. This completes the slide's rearward motion, and it then moves forward under pressure from the recoil spring. As it moves forward it strips another cartridge from the magazine and pushes the bullet into the firing chamber. This completes the firing cycle, and the pistol is ready to fire again. In the foregoing paragraphs, I have described the operation of a French "Unique" twenty-two caliber automatic pistol. This operation is basically the same for all automatic pistols. The "Unique" contains fifty-six component parts, holds ten cartridges, and weighs twenty-four ounces. This pistol, or any automatic pistol, will fire as fast as one can pull the trigger. This means that a relatively poor shot can fire ten rounds in five seconds, which increases the odds in favor of his scoring a hit. The automatic pistol is, therefore, an excellent firearm for the city home-owner. It is unequalled as a small-game hunting weapon. And it has already proved its usefulness in three major wars. October, 1956 Tne Privilege or Setting Him Free James Archer Rhetoric 102, Theme IS That's what we are really defending: the privilege of setting him free ourselves: which we will have to do for the reason that nobody else can since going on a century ago now the North tried it and have been admitting for seventy-five years noiv that they failed. William Faulkner, himself Mississippi-born in the very middle of it all, speaks for his people as only one of them can and perhaps as only one of them can understand. Intruder in the Dust makes no attempt to cover the truth in allegory, politely protecting it from the heavy-lidded eyes of those who would prefer that it not shine at them so blindingly brilliant. Not a very involved story, it could never have happened if some pretty plain white folks hadn't sought justice for their lost kin, obviously (and yet really not) murdered by Lucas Beauchamp, a Negro who not only endured his color but was proud of it. Nor would there have been a story if an old lady and a couple of young boys hadn't been so senseless as to risk their own lives just to save Beau- champ. The truth is there, uncovered and strong and pungent, for all who want to see. Faulkner tries desperately hard to tell the North ; to tell them that brotherhood isn't expressed in laws or codes; to tell those who "believe it can be compelled ... by simple ratification by votes on a printed para- graph," to ask their patience for something which can't be gained tomorrow or even the next day but will be if they'll only wait a while longer. Some- thing which, if solved by the South, herself, will be remembered with "less of pain and bitterness since justice was relinquished to him by us rather than torn from us and forced on him both with bayonets." There's encouragement for the South too. Encouragement that it will be the old ladies and children who have faith enough in truth and are for- getful enough of those harsh facts called reality to surmount the insurmount- able, to brave the darkness to hold the lantern while the rest find the way. Perhaps Miss Habersham's seemingly endless struggle against the torrent of autos which flooded from the town, inundating the highways until there seemed to be no direction but that of the mass, has some significance. Per- haps we spend most of our lives running against them, trying in vain to beat the torrent. But Miss Habersham did find her way out. It took a long time — much longer than she expected (seventy years of her life, in fact). It was not a straight, easy path but a long detouring circle, with its end often concealed, which finally led her out of the plunging forces to her goal. For all of us this efifort must hold truth. To fight blindly upstream all our lives can lead only to failure. By coasting along with it, ever ready for the chance to escape, enduring ends can be accomplished. With these thoughts in mind, we, not as Southerners or Northerners but as Americans, can look ahead hopefully and patiently, confident of Lucas' freedom. 8 The Green Caldron Tne Vertical-Takeorr and Landing Plane John A. Finley Rhetoric 102, Kefcroice Paper THE HISTORY OF THE VERTICAL TAKE-OFF AND LAND- ing plane is about as long as the history of powerful engines. Clarence Johnson, Chief Engineer of Lockheed Aircraft's California Division, said, "Every aeronautical engineer has played with the idea of vertical take-off planes. In Leonardo da Vinci's sketchbook, there is a drawing of such a plane — but it's taken from da X'inci's time until now to get an engine that would do the job." ^ The first real attempt to build a working vertical take-ofif and landing plane, hereafter to be referred to as a VTOL plane, was made by the Germans during World War II.- Reports concerning this particular plane vary considerably, but all sources seem to agree that it was made by Focke- Wulf.^ There are, however, a wide variety of theories as to the actual con- struction and powering of the plane. The most substantial theory seems to be that the plane was to stand on its tail and was to have a large rotor connected to the plane itself about waist high on the fuselage. The rotor was to swing around the body of the ship just aft of the cockpit. Each blade of the rotor was to be driven by a ramjet at its tip to develop a total horse- power of 10,200, potentially one of the most powerful units in current use, short of rocket engines. The Nazi ship was to take off from its five-wheeled undercarriage and was to be flown similarly to the way that our present-day VTOL's are flown, but its top speed and its rate of climb would have exceeded those of our VTOL's by a considerable margin.* Another theory is that the German VTOL plane was to be rocket-launched and that in the process of testing the plane, many test pilots were killed. The report further states that the tests never were successful.^ A third report says that the plane was more or less a reworked helicopter with rotor-propeller combi- nations. "^ While the Focke-Wulf VTOL plane was being developed in Germany, the General Electric Company, in our country, was working on 1 Cornelius Ryan, "These Fighters Take Off Straight Up." Colliers. CXXXIII (April 1954), 45. '^Science Nezvs Letter, LXVI (March 27, 1954), 195. 3 "New Details on VTO Projects." Aviation Week, LX (February IS. 1954). 17. * Robert Casari, "Fighter Revolution." Flying, LV (August, 1954), 64. 5 Science News Letter, March 27, 1954, p. 195. '^Aviation Week, February 15, 1954, p. 17. October, 1956 9 a VTOL ship which used turbo-jet engines, but it also was more or less a reworked helicopter/ Theoretical studies on the \'TOL as we know it today began about twelve years ago ® when the Navy began to think that such a plane was feasible." In 1947, the Navy, in cooperation with the National ^Vdvisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), started wind-tunnel tests with models of VTOL planes. In 1949, with the knowledge that turbo-prop engines powerful enough for a VTOL plane would be available by the time experimental prototypes were ready, the Navy invited nine aircraft builders to submit their designs for a VTOL plane. From the five designs that were submitted, the Navy picked two — that of Lockheed x\ircraft Company and that of Consoli- dated Vultee (Convair).^° The Navy was very much more interested in a VTOL than the Air Force because it had a more pressing need for one. The main reason that the Navy needed the VTOL was that it wanted a plane that could take off from a small space on a freighter or transport, fly escort for a convoy of ships, and return to a landing on its original take-off position.'^^ Using a plane like this would help immensely in case the Navy could not afford to send an aircraft carrier as escort.^^ During the week of February, 1954, the public got its first glimpse of a VTOL plane. A news photographer happened to pass the plant where Convair's VTOL (the XFY-1), half-covered with canvas and scaffolding, was being worked on outside of its hangar. He saw the odd-looking con- traption and, using a telephoto lens, took a picture of it.^^ Soon, the picture was in nearly every magazine and newspaper in the country. The press demanded more information about the strange, new aircraft. Before too long, pictures and data were released, and the VTOL story became known to the public. It was found that the Navy had completed not just the XFY-1, but also the XFV-1, Lockheed's VTOL. The two VTOL's were obviously not like conventional fighters — not in appearance, anyway. They both stood on their tails and stuck up into the air as high as a three-story building.^* They both had about the same gross weight, fuselage length, and wing span. Their characteristics, compared with those of conventional fighters, were as follows: Their gross weight was about half that of an F-86, their fuselage length was considerably shorter, 16. ' Ibid., p. 17. 8 Ryan, p. 42. 9 "Navy Studies New VTO Fighter Tactics," Aviation ]\'cck, LXI (March 29, 1954), 10 Ryan, p. 45. ""The Pogo Stick," Nczvszvcck, XLIII (February 17, 1954), 29. 12 Aviation Week, March 29, 1954, p. 16. 12 Ryan, p. 45. 1* Ryan, p. 42. 10 The Green Caldron and their wing span was shorter. ^° Both of the VTOL's were powered by Allison turbo-prop engines.^''' The XFV-1 had a bomb-style tail with four fins replacing the usual rudder-elevator assembly.^^ Convair's VTOL had a delta wing, while the XFV-l's wings were straight and heavily tapered.^® The wings of both ships were rather stubby because the lift needed for the take-off of conventional planes was not required for the VTOL.^" The wings were also very thin, which seemed to indicate that a goal of high subsonic performance was being aimed for.-° The XFY-1, billed as the Navy's first vertical take-off planer^ made its first flights tethered to the floor and to the ceiling of the inside of a hangar.-^ The Lockheed VTOL, not as completely finished as the XFY-1, awaited the development of a new engine for its first flight tests. -^ Both planes had been fitted with special undeixarriages so that they could be landed and tested like conventional planes.-* Finally, on August 1, 1954, the XFY-1 made its first free take-off." Then, on September third of the same year, the final step was taken — The XFY-1 took off, maneuvered in the air above its testing field, and landed a few feet from where it had taken off, thereby becoming the first VTOL ever to complete a flight cycle.^® The flying of the VTOL was different from the flying of a conventional fighter only in its taking-off and its landing. To accomplish the take-off of the XFY-1, the pilot, sitting in a seat that could be adjusted as the plane moved from vertical to horizontal position,^'^ opened the throttle until the plane's powerful engines were developing a thrust almost equivalent to that of four Sabre- jets.-^ By this time, the plane would be lifting itself from the ground by its two propellers at an ever-increasing speed. When the plane reached an altitude of approximately two hundred feet,-® it would have gathered enough speed for its wings to give it sufficient lift to stay 1^ "Navy Takes Wrap off Convair and Lockheed Vertical Take-off Fighters," Aviation Week, LX (March 22, 1954), 16. ""Air Force Orders Vertical Take-off Jet," Science Dlqcsf. XXXVII (April, 1955), 94. 17 "Straight Up, Supersonic," Nezvsweck, XLIII (March 22. 1954), 57. ^^ Aviation Week, March 22, 1954, p. 16. 19 Casari, p. 32. 20 Aviation Week, March 22, 1954, p. 16. 21 "Up & Over," Time, LXIV (November 5, 1954). 67. ^'^ Aviation Week, March 29, 1954, p. 17. 23 "Navy VTO Fighters Make First Free Flights," Aviation Week. LXI (August 16. 1954), 387. 2* Aviation Week, March 22, 1954, p. 16. 25 Aviation Week, August 16, 1954, p. 17. 2*' J. F. Coleman, "How I Fly the Pogo Plane," Popular Science, CLXVI (February, 1955), 123 27 Ibid., p. 123. 28 Ryan, p. 45. 29 Coleman, p. 123. October, 1956 11 aloft.^° At this height, the plane would be "pushed over" from its vertical or cHmbing position to its horizontal or flying position,^^ and the "transition" would be complete.^^ The landing of the VTOL was accomplished in the following manner : The pilot, flying the plane in a normal horizontal position, swooped it into a vertical position and began a slow descent, while "hanging the plane from its propellers," ^^ until the plane again rested on its tail, cushioned from the landing shock by hydraulic shock absorbers in the tail.^* The 150-foot mark is the critical altitude level for the pilot of the VTOL.^' If an accident were to happen below that level, there would be no assurance that his parachute would open in time to save him.^*' If the pilot should find it necessary to make a crash landing, he could release the bottom tail surface of the XFY-1." Soon after the release of news about the Navy's VTOL's, the Air Force announced that it had awarded contracts to Bell Aircraft Company and Ryan Aeronautical Company for the building of two turbo-jet VTOL's.^* An Air Force VTOL needed a turbo-jet engine instead of a turbo-prop engine because it had to be faster than the Navy VTOL's. The Navy VTOL was needed for slow escorting of ships, but the Air Force VTOL was needed for quick intercepting of invading enemy planes. ^^ The Air Force was expected to want their VTOL to go 600 miles per hour or better, w^hile the Navy VTOL's only go about 500 miles per hour.*" In August of 1955, Ryan moved their VTOL, the XF-109, from San Diego to Edwards Air Force Base for flight testing. Although the plane was wrapped in canvas, many of its characteristics were clearly discernible. It had a high delta wing with a rounded center section, a deep, short fuselage, and a high, triangular tail which, like the two Navy VTOL's, served as a support pad for take-off. The unusual concentric exhaust nozzle of the XF-109's Rolls-Royce Avon turbo-jet engine hinted at the "possibility of thrust augmentation or control during the vertical take-off operation." *^ The Bell VTOL was purely an experimental plane. In fact, its fuselage was from a glider, its landing gear was from a Bell helicopter, and its throttle was from a motor boat. The Bell VTOL differed from the previous VTOL's in that it took off and landed from the normal and level position 30 Casari, p. 32. 31 Ibid., p. 32. 32 Coleman, p. 123. 33 Aviation Week, March 22, 1954, p. 16. 34 "New U. S. Aim In The Air," Life, XXXVI (March 22, 1954), 71. 35 Coleman, p. 123. 36 Ibid., p. 123. 37 Aviation Week, March 22, 1954, p. 18. 38 Ibid., p. 16. 39 Aviation Week, February 15, 1954, p. 16. 40 Science Digest, April, 1955, p. 94. ""Ryan's XF-109," Aviation Week, LXIII (August 29, 1955), 17. 12 The Green Caldron of a conventional plane. The force to lift the plane straight up from this position was developed by two turbo-jet engines which could be tilted from a horizontal to a vertical position. When the engines were pointed down, their jxjwerful thrust lifted the plane skyward. After the plane was high enough to assume normal horizontal flight, the turbo-jets were tilted back into horizontal position, and the plane was pushed ahead. *^ Because the tail and rudder were useless while the Bell VTOL was hovering, compressed air jets in the tail assembly and at the tips of the wings were used to keep the plane in balance and under control.*^ Interest at this time began to turn towards developing a VTOL transport or passenger plane. Weber Aircraft Company announced that it had successfully flown a model VTOL that worked on an entirely different principle than had any other VTOL. During the take-off of this model, the wings, engines, and propellers of the model remained in conventional position. The flap arrangement in the wings of this model was such that the slipstream created by the engines was directed downwards. The resulting force lifted the plane into the air.^* Several months later, the NACA announced that it had flown a VTOL transport model that worked on the same principle as Weber's VTOL model.'*^ Because of reports such as those which Weber and the NACA made, aircraft companies were incited to start more research on the VTOL prob- lem. In July of 1953, Douglas Aircraft Company said that they were going to concentrate the efforts of their research department on a VTOL transport with a fixed-wing design. Such a plane could rise vertically with a minimum load and take off in a short distance with a maximum load. But Douglas also said that they would not be able to build such a plane in the near future because of their contracts for military aircraft and long-range transports.*" After the initial effect of the introduction of a radically new plane like the VTOL had worn off, there was little news of importance concerning the VTOL's. Recently, however, an article was issued which showed that the VTOL's have definitely not faded out of the picture. The article states that the Air Branch, Office of Naval Research, has been using fund alloca- tions "to encourage and coordinate the development of the various pioneering VTOL projects in this country and abroad." *'' The article goes on to say *2"Bell Jet VTO Takes off and Lands Level," Aviation Week, LXII (February 7, 1955), 16. ♦3 "Vertical Take Off," Time, LCIV (October 4, 1954), 92. ** William J. CouRhlin, "New Vertiplane has Conventional Look," Aviation Week, LXIII (October 24, 1954), 41. «"NACA Flies VTOL Transport Model." Aviation Jl'eek. LXII (June 13. 1955), 30. ""Douglas Planning lo Build VTOL Transport," Aviation ireek. LXIII (July 11, 1953), 25. *T "VTOL Studies." Aviation IVeek. LXIV (April 16, 1956), 30. I October, 1956 13 that there are about nine VTOL projects going on now and that the wait for operational VTOL's will be cut from 10 to 20 years down to 5 to 10 years.** In regard to the future of the VTOL, Mr. Hall L. Hubbard, Vice President in charge of engineering at Lockheed Aircraft Company, predicted the following: "Within ten years, every fighter will take oflF vertically and land the same way." *® Only time can tell whether or not Mr. Hubbard's prediction will come true, but certainly the VTOL does have a bright future. 48 Ibid., p. 30. 49 Ryan, p. 96. BIBLIOGRAPHY "Air Force Orders Vertical Take-Off Jet." Science Digest, XXXVII (April, 1955), 9-1. "Bell Jet VTO Takes off and Lands Level." Aviation Week, LXII (February 7, 1955), 16. Casari, Robert. "Fighter Revolution." Flying, LV (August. 1954), 32-33, 64. Coleman, J. F. "How I Flv the Pogo Plane." Popular Science, CLXVI (February. 1955), 122-125. Coughlin, William J. "New Vertiplane has Conventional Look." Aviation Week, LXIII (October 24, 1954), 38-43. "Douglas Planning to Build VTOL Transport." Aviation Week, LXIII (Julv 11, 1953), 25. "For Miss Farrell's Class." Newsweek, XLIII (April 26, 1954), 22. "NACA Flies VTOL Transport Model." Aviation Week, LXII (June 13, 1955), 30-32. "Navy Studies New VTO Fighter Tactics." Aviation Week, LX (March 29, 1954), 16-17. "Navy Takes Wrap off Convair and Lockheed Vertical Take-off Fighters." Aviation Week, LX (March 22, 1954), 14-18. "Navy VTO Fighters Make First Free Flights." Aviation Week, LXI (August 16, 1954), 387. "New Details on VTO Projects." Agnation Week, LX (February 15, 1954). 15-17. "New U. S. Aim In The Air." Life, XXXVI (March 22, 1954), 71. Ryan, Cornelius. "These Fighters Take Off Straight Up." Colliers. CXXXIII (April 2, 1954), 42-47. "Ryan's XF-109." Aviation Week, LXIII (August 29, 1955), 17. Science News Letter, LXVI (March 27, 1954), 195. "Straight Up, Supersonic." Newsweek, XLIII (March 22, 1954), 57. "The Pogo Stick." Newsweek, XLIII (February 17, 1954), 29. "Up & Over." Time, LXIV (November 5. 1954), 67. "Vertical Take Off." Time, LXIV (October 4, 1954), 92. "VTOL Studies." Aviation Week, LXIV (April 16, 1956), 30. 14 The Green Caldron Tne Values or an Honor System Thomas B. Thew Rhetoric 102, Theme 11 IN THE LAND OF THE STILL AND SILENT, THE TREES are tall and stately, the ground is covered with flowers, and the breeze is fresh and cool. All is calm and peaceful, except for the occasional call of a bird or scurry of a squirrel. When the sun begins to set, the whole world seems to come to life. There is a flap of wings and a rustle beneath the bushes. All of the animals of the Land seem to be converging upon an open, grassy area. And there, upon a dead branch of an oak tree, sits the wise old owl. He gives forth a melancholy "Whoo" to those whom he especially respects; but other than that, not a sound is heard except the patter of paws and the flutter of wings. Finally, all are assembled to partake of tea — afternoon tea to some, morning tea to others. Immediately, the younger members begin to boil the sassafras leaves in a big iron pot. The respected Owl looks one way, then the other, each time blinking his eyes, and then commences the topic of conversation which will be pursued that day. "I understand," he whooted, "that the Fox has stolen another of Farmer Brown's chickens." Immediately, the twittering and chattering stopped. "Alas, I am afraid that that is correct," said the Muskrat, who served as policeman, Magistrate, and Prosecutor in the Land of the Still and Silent. "I caught him red- handed. Quite a neat job, even if I do say so myself!" "Debatable," said the old Owl, as he blinked his eyes. "And what was done with him?" "Why," continued the Muskrat, "he is supposed to come here today to talk with us." "Interesting," said the Owl. "Mr. Owl," said the honorable Beaver, as he slowly rose to speak. "I wish to make a few salient points before the Fox arrives. This type of thing has been going on long enough. Stealing — in any form — gives this Land a bad reputation. And remember, this isn't the first time Fox has stolen Farmer Brown's chickens. If we don't stop him, he'll just continue to do so. Therefore, I believe that we should banish him from the Land !" The Beaver finished with a hard flap of his tail. A hush fell over the group. Banish him ! That was the worst thing that could happen to an honorable animal ! The snake curled up, apparently ready to speak. "Friends," he hissed, "as lowly as I am, I agree with the honorable Beaver." October, 1956 15 "Me, too." sighed the shy Opossum. "Croak," went the Bullfrog. "Well, then," said the Owl, "we shall vote upon the matter. All in favor signify by raising their right wing or paw." With a quick jerk of his head, he counted the votes. "Against?" Another quick jerk. "Twenty- one for, three against. Motion carried, Mr. Fox will be . . ." At that point the Fox came leaping in. "Sorry I am late folks, but you know how it is — here and there and everywhere. Hear you wanted to see me, Owlie, old boy !" "Yes," replied the Owl, "I hear you have been stealing Farmer Brown's chickens again. Is that right?" "Well, they were there and I was hungry. After all, he has plenty to spare. No harm intended, you know. Have to make a living somehow." "Yes, well! You seem to be making a poor reputation for yourself and for the Land, as well as a 'living,' as you put it. Therefore, we have just voted and decided that you are to be banished from the Land." The Fox was obviously startled. " Oh, Owlie, you're just kiddin' again, aren't ya!" The Owl was silent. "Just trying to give me a little scare?" No response. "Oh, come on now, it wasn't that bad. If I hadn't been in a tough spot, I wouldn't have done it. all of you know that! Don't ya?" The old Owl finally spoke. "Your action was stealing. There is no recourse. I hereby order you to pack and leave before sundown." The Fox crept away, sorry, and discouraged. "Mr. Owl," chirped the plump Mrs. Robin, "as long as we are on this subject of stealing, I have a complaint to make. Mrs. Cowbird has laid one of her eggs in my nest! Now I'll have to rear her young and neglect my own!'" "Go on." "Well," continued Mrs. Robin, "I feel that this is stealing, in a way. They are stealing my time and my energy to do their work. It would only be appropriate that Mr. and Mrs. Cowbird be also banned from the Land." "Hold on a minute," screeched Mr. Cowbird. "These two incidents are entirely different. Fox actually stole the chicken. My wife doesn't have time to care for the egg. She is just too tired." "You mean she is almost too fat to fly!" shrieked Mr. Robin. 'Whoot! Now," said the Owl, "let us ask Mr. Bullfrog's opinion." "Well," croaked Mr. Bullfrog in his deep bass voice, "both are wrong, in a sense. Mrs. Cowbird is wrong, for she should not expect others to do her work. Yet, Mrs. Robin is wrong in calling it stealing from her. Mrs. Cowbird is stealing only from herself, for she will never know the joy of rearing a fledgling. The two — stealing from others and stealing from oneself — are similar in ethical and moral principle, but are different in the punishment each should entail." 16 The Green Caldron "In that case/' said the Owl, "Mr. and Mrs. Cowbird will brew the tea for the next nine hundred years. Mr. Beaver, do you have something to say again?'' "Just a word before refreshments are served. As you can see, this thing is bigger than we sometimes think. It is not going to stop, no matter how severe our punishments become. Therefore, why not place everyone on his honor to do only what is right. If everyone did so, we would not have these problems." The Owl closed his eyes for a moment of contemplation. Then he began. "Philosophically, this is an excellent idea. In practice, it is unworkable. An honor system needs honorable animals ; but there are no honorable animals." "But certainly I am, Mr. Owl," said the Beaver, angrily banging his tail upon the log. "Well . . ." "Mr. Owl." It was the voice of the shy Turtle. "Yes, Mr. Turtle." "Mr, Owl, I think I know what you mean. There is some bad and some good in all cf us. The amount of each varies from time to time. Mr. Beaver today is very pious and philosophical. Perhaps he has forgotten about an incident that happened a couple of years ago. I was living a way down the stream. Then Mr. Beaver came along and built a large dam up above my home. Of course, the water downstream was almost entirely cut off and I had to move far upstream. I didn't say anything, but I do believe that this was unfair !" "Exactly," said the Owl. "It is actions like these in all animals that rule out the possibility of anyone never doing wrong. And then, there are animals like the Turtle, who do not say anything, thus making themselves as wTong as the accused. It is for these reasons that the honor system would not work in the Land of the Still and Silent. Instead, we must all continue to do only what is right, and we must continue to punish vigorously all who do wrong deeds. And now. anyone for tea?" October, 1936 17 Genetic VariaDility and tlie Conaitionin^ or an Emnryo Wilbur L. French Rhetoric 102, Theme 10 IN THIS PAPER SOME OF THE CONDITIONING PROCESSES used in the Embryo Store * \\\\\ be analyzed with regard to current genetic theory. The purpose of this paper is to show that some of the fantastic things which happened to the embryos in the Embryo Store could indeed be possible under the conditions which prevailed in the Store. The Director explained why conditioning could occur by saying : Hasn't it occurred to you that an Epsilon embryo must have an Epsilon environment as well as an Epsilon heredity? In current theory, the phenotype (characteristics which can be observed) of an individual is not a mosaic of a multitude of individually expressed genes. The phenotype of an organism is the result of many interactions between the genes of an individual and the modifications of the genie expressions caused by the environment in which the organism develops. Can intra-uterine conditions during the embryonic development of a mammal change the expression of the organism's hereditary material? Mr. Foster indicated that it was possible to modify the phenotype of the embryo by altering the environment in which it develops: "Reducing the number of revolutions per minute," Mr. Foster explained, "The surrogate goes round slower ; therefore passes through the lung at longer intervals ; therefore gives the embryo less oxygen. Nothing like oxygen-shortage for keeping an embryo below par." Intra-uterine conditions during pregnancy can be shown to influence the expression of the genotype in mammals. Consistent differences in degree or frequency of manifestation of certain genetic characters are found when the progeny of old mothers are compared to the progeny of young mothers. Scientific proof of the influence of the intra-uterine environ- ment in the phenotype includes experiments with white spotting in guinea pigs, and harelip in mice. Many congenital malformations in man also appear to exhibit the tendency to be expressed more often or in a more pronounced way as the intra-uterine conditions change (generally by aging). Can the human embryo learn before the trauma of birth (or decantation) ? Mr. Foster believed that the human embrvo could learn to fear cold : Aldous Huxley, Brave New World (ed.) 18 The Green Caldron Hot tunnels alternated with cool tunnels. Coldness was wedded to discomfort in the form of hard X-rays. By the time they were decanted the embryos had a horror of cold. Conditioned response in the human fetus has been accomplished. A human embryo was conditioned to contract its body in response to a mild electric shock which was applied to the abdomen of its mother. There was no original response by the embryo to the shock stimuli. The response to the shock was learned by the embryo as a result of a conditioned response experiment. Is it possible that the introduction of male sex hormone into the environ- ment in which the female embryo is developing could cause the female embryo to become a freemartin? Mr. Foster indicated that the above procedure was possible : So we allow as many as thirty per cent of the female embryos to develop normally. The others get a dose of male sex-hormone every twenty-four metres for the rest of the course. Result: they're decanted as freemartins. When a female calf is twin-born with a male calf, the female is always a freemartin. The female becomes a freemartin because of the presence of the male sex-hormone produced by the male calf during the time when their blood circulatory systems were connected. My Erstwliile HoLLy John J. McCauley Rhetoric 102, Theme 2 BECAUSE OF THE ENLIGHTENED STATE OF MEN'S MINDS and the efficient methods of modern business and industry, we now have more leisure time on our hands than ever before. Also, as a result of the increasing complexity of our times, we worry a great deal, and our psyches are plagued by frustration and other inner conflicts. Therefore, two problems, like specters, loom up before us. What shall we do with our newly found spare time, and how can we relieve our minds from the stress and strain of the routine of our lives? Suddenly, the mental hygiene wizard bounds onto the scene. "I know!" he shouts joyously. "Why doesn't everyone get a hobby? Wouldn't that be just peachy?" The mental health lad is exceedingly pleased with himself, and we watch him skip off into the distance, crying, "That's it ! ! A hobby ! — A hobby, hobby, hobby, hobby, hobby ! Hobbies, everyone !" Maybe we haven't time for a hobby, but we are jolly well going to have one, mutters the sporting goods salesman as he grimly tries to pry our front door open with a nine-iron. "Everyone needs a hobby," insists the October, 1956 19 T.V. set. "Gregory Peck has one. He drives a motor boat powered by an 'Evinrude' engine. Why don't you see your nearest 'Evinrude' dealer TODAY . . ." We turn the T.V. set off. On the way to work we are unmercifully besieged by signs. Signs in every shade of color in the spectrum scream at us, "DO IT YOURSELF ! Make it your hobby and save money ! Everyone needs a hobby !" We flee into the sanctuary of our office, only to be greeted : "You look a little run down, John. You need something to take your mind off your work . . . don't you think that you should have a hobby?" We retire to the janitor's closet, lock the door from the inside, and gnaw on a broom handle for two hours. Later, when we see a doctor for a checkup, that learned soul removes his heavy-rimmed spectacles and says in the deep bass voice of impending doom : "My boy, you need a hobby." "Gee, Doc, I have several hobbies. I read the funny papers, I bet on the horses now and then ; I occasionally play a little poker with the boys, I . . , ." Our voice trails oft' weakly and cracks, for we are being trans- fixed by an icy stare. "A hobby should be uplifting and educational," reproves the doctor. "Like golf," he adds, remembering that he has an engagement to play a few holes at three o'clock. The interview ends, and we go home determined to "get a hobby." Many people have a great deal of difficulty in choosing a hobby. I, in m}^ own personal experience, had no difficulty. I chose gourmanderie, or the art of cooking strange and exotic dishes, simply because it was the first reasonable suggestion given to me. I loathe active sports and games, I hate any form of recreation in which intense mental concentration of any degree is required, and I have an intense aversion for building model cars and air- planes. Consequently, when someone said, "Why don't you learn to cook?" I decided that I would like to be a gourmand. The very next day I came home carrying armloads of cookbooks. When I went to work on my new hobby, sister protested. "What are you doing in the kitchen?" said she. "Hobbying," said I, as I slammed a mixing bowl onto the table, smashed an egg into it, and started to make a batch of watermelon upside-down cake. She stared, still unbelieving. "Well, just be sure to clean up when you're done," she ventured. "\Vliat did you say you were making?" "Nothing," I growled, and stirred faster. "Oh . . ." She turned and staggered, shocked, from the room. For three months, I gained immeasurable enjoyment and twenty-five pounds from my hobby. I cooked everything from rib of roast elephant au gratin to the delicious cream of pulverized barnacle sauce. I was happy, for I had at last found a way to express myself. Then, one day, deep in the dark, damp cellar of the library, I found a big black book. Because it was so tattered and dusty, it looked as if it were centuries old. The lettering on the cover was obliterated except for the author's name. Upon closer exami- 20 The Green Caldron nation with a magnifying glass, the author's name proved to be Weenin Mather, and the date of the volume's publication 1592. I noted that the binding had evidently crumbled, so I took great care and opened the book very cautiously. The title page read: Witchcrajte and How Ye May Worke Yttes Wondres. I turned to the first page. The very first line said : "Tayke ye one sparrowe egge . . ." That was enough for me. I had found, or so I believed, a medieval cookbook ! I supposed that the title was simply a clever implication that the eaters of the food therein described would be "bewitched" by its savory taste. I decided to try the first recipe. I took one sparrow egg, half a mouldy loaf of bread, a fistful of rusty nails, a scoopful of corn mush, a quart of oil of vitriol, and stirred them all together in a cement cauldron as directed. I heated the mixture for two hours, then added two bed springs, and one mouse which had died of a violent and unexpected heart attack caused by a crash in the stock market. After the mixture had cooled somewhat, I realized that I had no Snft powder, which was the next and most important ingredient. In fact, I didn't even know what Snft powder was. I phoned all over town without success before I finally located an obscure little curiosity shop which had some Snft powder. The aged voice quavered over the phone that yes, he'd send some Snft powder over with his delivery boy right aw^ay. In approximately ten minutes my doorbell rang. When I opened the door, a little old man, strangely attired in a ragged black robe and a brown hood, handed me an envelope marked ''Snft" and slithered away. "Wait!" I said. "What do I owe you?" He stopped, turned, and peered up at me from within his cowl for a second. Suddenly he emitted a mocking shriek of laughter, pivoted on his bare feet, and cavorted down the sidewalk. I watched him, puzzled, till he was out of sight. Very strange. I returned to the kitchen clutching the Snft powder. \Vhile I was at the door, the steam had cleared away from the pot, making visible an ominous-looking green ooze. As I gingerly sprinkled the Snft pow^der onto the surface, my sister came into the room. She said, "What are you . . ." Suddenly there was a flash of blinding red and orange light, accompanied by a fierce, wall-shaking explosion. I could hear the glass in the kitchen windows shatter. The plaster fell from the ceiling, and my sister screamed. There were a number of successive screeches, and when the smoke cleared away, my sister was gone. I combed the house for her, but to no avail. I had the police and the F.B.I, search for her, but still to no avail. Naturally, 1 felt quite bad about the whole incident. It cost a considerable amount of money to have the plaster replaced, and when I last heard from my sister, j-hc was in Pi-Tang China, steadily working her way homeward with absolutely no idea of how she had been spirited away to the Orient. When she gets home, I am certainly not going to tell her. My cooking hobby is now a thing of the past. I have burned all my cookbooks and warned all my friends that I want to hear no more of hobbies. In the future, when someone inquires if I have a hobby. I will reply in October, 1956 21 an unpleasant tone of vioce, "Yes, I do. I have a very intriguing hobby. I shoot inquisitive strangers." With that, I will draw a water pistol and further horrify the fellow by deluging him with indelible red ink. Have a hobby yourself, if you will, my friend. I will settle for a nervous breakdown. Delinquency — A Dialogue John L. Evans, Jr. Rhetoric xlOl, Assignment 2 SEN EX : juvenile delinquency is rampant. It increases with the passing of each minute. juvENis : One moment, Mr. Speaker ; just what is your definition of juvenile delinquency ? s: My dear young fellow, juvenile delinquency is merely the disgraceful, flagrant disregard for law and order shown by our youth today. J : By law and order, then, you mean established custom ? s : Very definitely ; and legislated acts also. And I say that the situation is becoming increasingly worse. J : May I interpose a thought ? s: Yes. J : Could not we re-phrase your original statement to exclude the word "juvenile" and substitute the word "parent?" s : Just what do you infer ? J : I infer, sir, that it is not juvenile delinquency that is rampant. It is not juveniles who are initially or originally disregarding law or custom. It is parents. I accuse parents, individually and collectively, of violating their moral obligation and responsibility to the state, to society, and to God. I charge any parent to refute by his or her example my accusation and prove his righteousness. s : Sir, you have a biased concept. I demand the immediate retraction of your charge, and your apology to the mothers and fathers of America for this insult to them. J : Mr. Speaker — if you can refute but one of the arguments I intend to propose in support of my charge, I shall humble myself and beg the forgiveness of every parent alive. But, first, let us consider a sapling tree. If an owner desires that his growing tree shall be espaliered, does he encourage its progress toward that goal with admonitions, pleadings, cajolings, and threats? I answer no. He takes positive action. Doing so, does he then wait until the tree is grown and beyond gaining a hortkultural complex to begin its training? Again I answer no. He begins the training of the branches of that tree in its infancy. Now, Mr. Speaker, modernists will answer that a tree is an inanimate object, to which I wholeheartedly 22 Th^ Green Caldron agree. But, I reiterate, the pattern for that tree's future behavior is set from its infancy. s: I fail to see that you have proven your point. J : The point I have proven is that the progress, not the object, is the same for the training of any living, growing, progressing form. Secondly, let us ascend the ladder of biographical classification, and approach the realm of humanity more closely. Consider the trainer of animals. Does he not pursue the same course as the trainer of trees? His progress may not be as constant as the former, because he is dealing with animate forms, and must contend with an intellect. Howbeit inferior to man's, it is still an intellect, therefore a personality — or animality — if you w-ish to be specific. s : We are not raising trees or animals. We have no problem with trees or animals or their behavior or their delinquency. We are discussing juvenile delinquency. You are evading the subject and attempting to confuse the issue. J : I am afraid, Mr. Speaker, that you are evading the issue — the issue of responsibility for behavior. To whom is a child initially responsible? To his parents, God willing. With whom is his initial contact after birth? With his parents. WHio is legally, therefore morally, responsible for his later conduct w-ith society? There can be but one answer — his parents. We cry that juvenile delinquency is on the increase. Is not adult misbe- havior and misconduct on the increase? A child follows example. If it is good, he will be good ; if it is bad, the odds are against his being raised and trained in a proper manner. Let us consider the juvenile behavior in other cultures. Is juvenile delinquency on the increase in those cultures and in those tribes or homes where there are close and abiding family ties? Consider the Asiatics. We look askance and with disdain upon their mode of living. Yet, I have seen no great juvenile problem there. There is no hue and cry that the world is going to pot because of their adolescents. Come closer to home. How many American Indians become a police problem? They have no juvenile difficulties. Do you know why? It is because these peoples look upon their children as desirable, and an integral part of their life. They have the perseverance and determination — and intestinal fortitude — to stand behind their con- victions in the face of adversity as well as during periods of prosperity. s : But we are neither Asiatics nor Indians. We are Americans and we have American children. j: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, you have just proven my final point. We are Americans — true — but we are biologically the same as the Indians, the Asiatics, or even the ancient Greeks or Egyptians. Even though we are Americans, we are only human beings subject to the same problems of life which confronted Confucius, Plato, Saint Augustine, or Immanuel Kant. We have progressed, yes. That is, if you care to describe our present civilization by our own definition of progress. But such a description is fatal to the premise. Have we progressed in our concept of duty, responsi- October, 1956 23 bility, consideration for others, justice, or truth? I must answer in the negative. The American culture reached its zenith during its sociological progress of the eighteenth century. And ever since then we have been attempting to live on our historic laurels. And, we are in the same cir- cumstances — we are living under the same illusionary dreams — as the Romans prior to their downfall. Today's children who see the light of day beyond their mother's womb — and for many this is prevented — come into a world and among parents, who, if they are not indifferent to their product, are hounded and vexed by modern pseudo-psychology into believing that they have been sentenced to be confined with a bundle of inhibited, dormant, razor-edge complexes which at the least-expected turn will project themselves upon and into the child's personality, and by some mysterious mutation change their little Doctor Jekyll into a monstrous Mister Hyde, Mr. Speaker, look around you. How many children do you see neglected by indolent parents? How many children are rotted to the core by unsuccessfully purchased afifection? Count the children who say "NO" to a parent's demands and are free to say "NO" again. See for yourself how many parents know where their children are at any given hour, and have a reasonable assurance as to what they are doing. Did you have the freedom of action during your boyhood that you give your children? Did you, as a boy, or your parents decide what was best for your welfare and well-being? Child psychology is a necessary but complex science. It is not a plaything for the amateur or unenlightened. Used properly by well-founded psychologists it is a necessary adjunct to all other sciences, but it cannot be interpreted by the average person. In closing, I should like to quote a passage from Proverbs. "Train a child in the way he should go; and zi'heii he is old he tcHI not depart from it." That statement is almost a command. And it presupposes that parents should know best. When they use their God-given sense, analyze their problem, and execute their demands, regardless of sympathy, apathy, or pseudo-afifection, they will fulfill their mission in life, and juvenile delinquency will cease to exist. IN THE NIGHT He studied his wife with compassion. How old and tired she seemed ! Her hair, once lustrous and rich, was faded, matted, greying. He wanted to touch it, remembering, but she sighed and stirred, so instead he rose quietly from the bed and walked to the window, where he stood absently picking the peeling paint from the sill. He could smell the urine of the child's diapers. He could smell the room, the life that was in it. He could smell the old. flowered wallpaper stretched over cracked plaster. He could smell tonight's dinner, and last night's dinner ; all the meals of the past seemed to have left some lingering odor behind. — William Babcock. 102. 24 The Green Caldron Rket as Writ To make it more difficult we had a child the November before I started school which was February. Motorcycles are almost unlimited as to the places they are capable of going: bridal-paths, fields and streams . . . Many people nowadays do not know much about the digestion system except that food is placed in the mouth and leaves by route of the rectum. This must be changed for a healthy and happy life. ... I would take her to a very beautiful spot overlooking the lake, where we could talk about the many people we would probably have in common. One of the most important things that a liberal education provides is a cavity to think clearly. Dulles took the bull by the horns and flew to England. In these different Service Schools they can be helpful for your outside life if you don't plan to make a career out of it. Lost in thought among this taunting call of nature, we wander over the earth as birds on the wing. The city of Chicago is located at the bottom of Lake Michigan. By comparison to the general run of sea stories Billy Budd is a very unusual tail. We do not sha^•e with lormules but we shave with the shaving cream. she heard a soundless noise. There is no doubt in my mind but what authors write books for people to read. These machines were all purchased from used-car lots, with the exception of my 1929 Ford which was purchased from a dead farmer. The Contributors Frank K. Lorenz — Thornton Fractional Gerald M. Peterson — Oak Park and River Forest Michael P. Hodman — Hillsboro Community Robert R. Allison. Jr. — Proviso Twp. James Archer — Benjamin Franklin, RoelieBler, N. Y, John A. Finley — Red Bud Community Thomas B. Thexc — Moline Wilbur L. French — Veedersburg, Ind. John J. McCauley — Champaign Senior John L. Evans, Jr. — Fortin, New Orleans, La. HE Green Caldron A MAGAZINE OF FRESHMAN WRITING ^ CONTENTS Alice W, Thurow: The Suez Canal, a UN Test 1 Avah Louise Phillips: Desegregation in the Schools 2 Dennis Jay Zeitlin: My Theory of Religion 3 Sayre D, Andersen: Conversation Shows the Man 4 Quendred Wutske Carpenter: What's Wrong — Too Much Diversion? 5 James M, Holden: Nothing to Do But Work 8 Stephen Paul Thomas: National Political Conventions .... 9 Anonymous: Abecedarians 10 William Field: And Not Mr. Mather's Concept 11 Barbara English: Characters and Characterizations 11 Robert H, Thornberry: The Masterpiece 13 James E. Moore: The Dog Has His Day 15 Gerald I, Silverman: An Afternoon During Fencing Practice . . 16 Valdmar Heitur: MacArthur Was Caesar, But Truman Was Rome 18 Rhet as Writ Vol. 26, No. 2 December, 1956 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS \;.m^iMMwm T iff at tht mblished ir by the of Illinois. Material is chosen li\- frcslinicTi in tlu^ T'tii- vcisity. rennission to publish is obtained for all tul; including those published anonymously. Parts of themes, how- ihf ,-i;. ■ (It,- rMn-mlttee In charge. Members of the committee in charge of The Green Caldron are I'hylHs Rice, Edward ames Maclntyre, George Tne Suez; Canal, a UN Test Alice W. Thurow Rhetoric 102, Theme 1 THE CURRENT CRISIS OVER THE POSSESSION AND USE of the Suez Canal has been of great interest to me. The Canal itself is certainly a very important waterway, of vital concern to every country shipping goods extensively by water. The aspect of the situation which interests me, however, is not the use of the Canal, but the part played in this controversy by the United Nations. Nasser of Egypt has directly challenged the authority of the English and French. Of much greater importance to the world is the challenge he has made to the authority and ability of the United Nations to settle disputes. Both England and France have labored hard and long to come up with an accep- table solution. The United States has assisted in these labors to a great extent. Dulles has endeavored to maintain a check on France and Great Britain, since the United States does not want an international war started over this issue. Apart from the efforts of several great nations, what part has the United Nations taken in the controversy? The United Nations was set up at the close of the last World War to maintain peace and arbitrate international disputes. Most of the nations of the world are members of this organization and take an active role in its functions. The Charter of the United Nations outlines the police force it shall maintain and how troops for this police force shall be obtained. This police force has never been organized. Nations can arbitrate at great length through the United Nations, but unless the United Nations has some means of en- forcing its decisions, what weight do its dicta carry? The United Nations is a most necessary and vital agent in international affairs today. It could prove to be the means for maintaining world peace. So far, it has followed too closely the path of the League of Nations. If the United Nations is to be our means of maintaining world peace, then it must have the power to enforce its decisions. The Suez Canal crisis is much more a test of the strength and determina- tion of the United Nations than it is of the power of Egypt, England, or France. For the sake of the future of the world, I hope the United Nations takes its proper place in the debates upon this crisis. After an acceptable solution is reached, I also hope it is carried out by the United Nations and not by the individual nations concerned. [1] 2 The Green Caldron Desegregation in tne Scnools AvAH Louise Phillips Placement Test Theme SINCE THE SUPREME COURT DECISION IN 1955, MUCH HAS been written, said, and done about the integration of the Negro pupil into the white school. Much of the uproar has been political, some has been spiritual, but most has been prejudicial. Man is a creature of prejudice. Much of this prejudice is a manifestation of his inborn egotism. His religion is the right one, his color is the superior one, his politics are the soundest. This prejudice is right and good to a certain extent. Man should be proud of his beliefs ; he should be proud of his race ; he should be proud of his political affiliations. However, when this pride mushrooms into such proportions as to exclude respect for another man of different beliefs, it is no longer righteous pride, but selfish, simple prejudice. It is this same prejudice which has created the furor about integration. This prejudice has no place in the modern, democratic United States. In Clinton, Tennessee, and in Maytield, Texas, Negroes were forcibly excluded from white schools. Is this true democracy? Is this a portrayal of our belief that all men are created equal? The Negro has always been in disfavor in all the United States, although particularly so in the South, where the first slaves were brought in the seven- teenth centur}'. In touring the South, one may see this disfavor exemplified in the tiny, filthy, dilapidated shacks which many Negroes call home. This disfavor may be seen exemplified in the North by the exclusion of the Negro from certain residential districts, or from expensive theaters and restaurants. One characteristic of this prejudice-flavored discrimination, however, can- not be ignored. That is, children are not naturally prejudiced toward other children. All youngsters have the same innate pride in themselves and their accomplishments as do adults, but they do not create barriers of color, religion, or race, as do adults. It is this ingenuous acceptance of others which children have that may determine the future of the integration principle. Adults would do well to be led by their children in the problem of segregation. In his exposition. The Human Mind, Karl Menninger states : "Only in the minds of idiots and small children can there be found an artless, true conscience." Although American adults are neither idiots nor small children, they should also have artless, true consciences. If this inner spirit can be invoked, the problem of integration in schools will be solved, and the American nation can again lift its head in libert}-. December, 1956 3 My Tneory or Religion Dennis Jay Zeitlin Placement Test Theme PROLOGUE: The moon gazed down upon the forest, partially illuminating the clearing, the sacrificial altar, and the huddled men gazing hack in a totality of fear and reverence . . . BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO LAUNCH INTO "MY THEORY OF Religion" I would like to make a few explanations. First of all, I am aware that my ideas do not represent the general sentiment of the American people, and I hope that the reader will not take ofifense at any of the opinions expressed here. Perhaps a brief look at my past will indicate the origin of these opinions. I come from a family of Jewish background, although neither my mother nor my father feel strongly about any religion. They have never forced me to go to synagogue, but also they were perfectly willing to let me attend services during a period of extreme social pressure by my friends. My father is a doctor ; my mother is a speech pathologist. Basically, then, our house is one of science. But enough of my history — let us go back further into the past, not my past, but back to the early days of the human species. When man first appeared on this earth thousands of years ago, he was not, if what most scientists say is true, greatly in advance culturally of his fellow animals. In the early stages of his existence he was possessed of little or no technology. And yet he was confronted with all the geological upheavals and cosmic phenomena that we are confronted with today. Because of his cultural and technological immaturity, his environment must have necessarily seemed far more awe-inspiring than does ours today. However, man cannot be happy when he does not know, and he worries about this lack of knowledge. He becomes insecure, a condition which would seem to be in exact opposition to the homeostasis that scientists say all men strive for. It appears then that man's happiness depended upon facing and "solving" the unknown. Ancient men did this in the only way that they could. They affixed the mantles of gods upon the great bodies and events which they observed in nature: the sun, moon, trees, rain, and all the others which they could not explain. Life, death and sickness were also probably conceived as deities. This was how they "explained" their milieu and "faced" the unknown: through reverence and fear of gods. But since that time, man has most certainly progressed culturally and technologically. We have discovered fire, steel, coal. We can build huge buildings and cities, and now even contemplate a structure one mile high. We have virtually conquered smallpox, malaria, bubonic ])lague, and possibly in the near future, polio. We can swim faster than any fish, we can fly faster 4 The Green Caldron than any bird, we can run faster than any animal, all with the aid of our environment-conquering devices. Man has certainly progressed in his battle against his milieu. Has his method of facing the unknown also progressed? Many of the so-called modern religions, which ostensibly have derived from the past, still preach the fear and reverence of a god, a god that controls or oversees the actions of humans, predestines them, designates them to a heaven or a hell after death, but an entity that will certainly have pity and kindness for those who prostrate themselves before him, A few of these "modern" religions persist in denying the use of the tremendous advances in medicine, preferring to leave their members malformed or, in some cases, to die. I do not pretend to have the authority to condemn these people, nor do I feel that anyone has this right. There are definitely advantages to a complete faith in a religion. People possessing such faith can face the unknown and their problems with an amazing degree of fatalism and serenity, employing the admittedly comforting crutch of God. However, I do not believe that this is the logical way to behave in a supposedly scientific society. I would classify myself as an agnostic — I do not claim or disclaim the existence of a god. But since no one has been able to teach me to perceive "God" with any of the senses, which are the bases of the scientific method, I prefer to live my life assuming that such things as life after death, predestination, and reincarnation do not exist. I believe that the logical way to face the unknown is with the scientific method — employing all the senses, reason, and experimentation. I believe that in this never-ending quest for knowledge, gleaned in a realistic, logical way, man can come and actually has come farther along the road toward his goal of a security based on a true and firm foundation. EPILOGUE: The moon gazed down upon the earth, illuminating a section of the huge, 200-inch telescope staring silently back at if . . . Conversation Sno^vs tne Man Savre D. Andersen Rhetoric 102, Theme 2 THERE ARE MANY METHODS THAT MEN EMPLOY TO judge their fellow men; some people use the criterion of dress, others go by physical appearances, and others form opinions just from first im- pressions. But the most valid standard is that of an individual's conversation — what he says and how he says it. The two aspects must be carefully con- sidered if a person wishes to evaluate another by his speech. Conversation is the table of contents of a man's intelligence. What an individual talks about is directly related to the amount of knowledge he December, 1956 5 possesses. It is apparent that a person who ends his education with high school cannot speak as intelHgently and on as wide a variety of subjects as can a college graduate. For example, a person who continually talks about himself and his own experiences is considered conceited ; in many cases, how- ever, it is a lack of education, not conceit, that has limited his sphere of interest and understanding. Conversely, the man who has a profundity of knowledge in only one field is easily identified by the want of scope in his conversation. But the evaluation of a man's learning is not the sole information to be gained from his speech ; examination of the opinions, the prejudices, and the desires expressed in his conversation can be resolved into a reasonably just estimate of the quality of his moral character. But manner is as important as matter. The ability or inability of a person to express himself clearly, concisely, and forcefully determines the impression he will make upon others. The man who is adept at conveying his thoughts to others with simplicity gains respect, confidence, and admiration. Very true is the assertion that those who have nothing to say usually say the most. Instead of creating an impression of great intelligence, verbosity shows a lack of thinking and reveals an obviously falsified erudition. In the same manner, vagueness and obscurity in speech point out a person's ignorance. Thus the keys to manner are conciseness, force, and sincerity. Conversational ability — what is said and how it is said — is one of the most accurate means by which a man can be evaluated. Quite wisely did the Greek orator Demosthenes say : "A vessel is known by the sound, whether it be cracked or not; so men are proved, by their speech, whether they be wise or foolish," Wkat's Wron^ -Too Muck Diversion? QUEXDRED WUTZKE CaRTEXTER Rhetoric 102, Theme 11 ONE DAY LAST SUMMER I HAPPENED UPON A FORMER classmate of mine who had left high school to get married. After the usual animated greeting between long-separated friends, I noticed that her face had an anonymous, mask-like appearance. Her momentary bright- ness had been quickly replaced by a rather dull, vacant look — one that I had seen many times before on the faces of married women. I asked her how she was getting along. "Oh fine — fine," she said, as though by reflex. I went ahead to tell her some local news, and, pausing for a reply, I received an empty-sounding, "Oh?" I said a few more words to her, but I lost interest 5 The Green Caldron in continuing when it suddenly occurred to me that, though she was looking at me and smiling, she wasn't listening to me at all. As she walked away, I couldn't help thinking that in a world that must be, in hundreds of ways, more interesting than it ever has been before, among a people who have more free time than has ever been known, with so many interesting things to do, she was somehow missing out. I could imagine her rapidly becoming a typical "housewife."' Although something seems to be wrong with her and others like her, it is certainly not in the fact that they have gotten married. Married women hold positions of enviable importance. One of the most influential members — perhaps the most influential member of our society is the homemaker. Her job is to make complete the lives of all other people, young and old, in every other sort of occupation. Not only does she fulfil the physical needs of her charges by seeing to it that they are well fed and clothed and can relax in clean, pleasant surroundings, but she is the catalytic agent in uniting each family member, with his own separate environment and concerns, into one loyal unit, and she serves as intermediary to interpret to her family the affairs of the community. She sets the standard for her family ; thus collectively the standard for the neighborhood is set. Her babies copy the vocabulary she uses and the way she talks. They summarily adopt her basic outlook on life ; her opinions expressed become immediately their own. Her living habits, her ethics, her tastes, and her mental awareness are the patterns that inevitably shape the characters of everyone in her family. When it comes to developing people who can set the pace in our society, the homemaker has a direct control. How many "pace setters" are there, though, in this world — in our neigh- borhoods? Most of the public are content to follow. They're satisfied to remain common, even uninteresting (and often uninterested) , and to somehow just manage to keep pace — however, if keeping pace means knowing who one's alderman is and voting in every election, a tremendous number of citi- zens are not even keeping pace with their world. But then, how many home- makers are setting a good pace for their families? The fault doesn't lie in the role they play, but in the fact that something prevents many of them from doing justice to the part. Their influence is just as great as that of any homemaker, but they are not really worthy of the name "homemaker" at all. It is these women I prefer to label as "housewives." A multitude of young women have as their primary goal in life, marriage, and, having attained it, everything that follows belongs in the "happily-ever- after" category, the real acting out of which creates an anticlimax. Unaware of the possibilities for excitement in their lives, they seek instead some arti- ficial stimulation. This is easy — all too easy for their own good. Modem communication, one of the marks of our great progress, steps in to make "housewives" out of them. Absorbing this constant flow of communication leaves a woman little time — or need — to think on her own. The creative ideas of other people are at her fingertips in countless magazines. Manufacturers of household goods taunt her into feeling obligated to lose herself in house- December, 1956 7 work, vying with the woman next door through the "magic" of commercial products. She glances hurriedly through the newspaper to read of local scandal — and if there is time, the Hollywood column. Her only conversational ability lies in the realm of gossip. Day long, her radio (if not her television) suspends her in the fantasy-world of the soap opera — the tear- jerking serial story to which countless women become addicted. From every side, the commercial world, through a vast, varied system of communication, seeks to outdo itself in providing material that will awaken her interests, but only enough to make her go shopping. It isn't possible for her to take it all in. Such an unceasing harangue is sufficient cause to make a woman, in self defense, habitually heed only a fraction of the noise and print that comes her way. She notices little — becomes a poor listener. The only things which will succeed in catching her attention are the extraordinary, the exaggerated, the odious and the glamorous, or threats to her feeling of security. She, whose influence is so great, is thus herself influenced by such harmful means. Actually, what holds true for the "housewife" holds true for anyone constantly exposed to the all-powerful influence of commercial communica- tion. Let's consider ourselves. For many years we have been pupils in school. Our days have been spent in exposure to the wonders of the world through the lectures and class discussions in which our teachers talk themselves hoarse, the increasingly popular visual-aid movies, and the textbooks in which we do regularly assigned reading. We must assimilate as much as possible of the torrent of ideas that surrounds us, not merely to keep from becoming dull, passive social bores, but in order that we may develop into competent, useful citizens of our communities, contributing our best to the society in which we live. Yet our elders are becoming uncomfortably aware of the fact that we, too, have allowed our senses to become dulled by the devices used by our mass media of communication. They sigh to admit that students would grasp more information from their science textbooks were they written in the sensational, brightly illustrated form of the comic books children clamor to buy. They realize that more pupils would at least be able to remember having seen their classroom movies were the diagrams narrated by lively cartoon characters, and a touch of Hollywood-type romance slipped into each geography class travelog. In the spirit of "if you can't fight 'em — join 'em," our teachers find themselves tempted to ape radio and television commercials ; they consume class hours in repeating the same material over and over far more than should be necessary, in hopes that, at some fleeting moment during this time, each youngster might condescend to listen. Like the "housewife" who slips into a boring rut, we are forgetting what it's like to approach life with awareness and curiosity — we have all been pampered into requiring information to beat its way into our consciousness, so that we may respond with an expression- less "Oh?" Learning is changing one's mind. — Ronald Richards 8 T/u? Green Caldron Notking to Do Lut Work James M. Holden Rhetoric 102, Theme 3 THE POOR, UNSUSPECTING STUDENT WHO CHOOSES TO study electrical engineering at the University of Illinois will find that his school work will occupy all his time. He will not have a free or leisure minute to call his own. While I speak from personal experience for the communication option students, I know of students who are taking the other options, power or illumination, and their predicament is the same. The average student will find that this is the case. Naturally, the brilliant man will have some leisure time ; but the slower one will be fortunate to find time to sleep and eat. There is no argument against the fact that any person, regardless of his occupation, requires a certain amount of diversion and recreation. This is especially true for a student, because his school w^ork demands intense mental concentration. The scholar needs leisure time to release these tensions built up in the class rooms and study halls. This is a recognized fact. Unfortunately, here at the University of Illinois the student does not have the time to relax. Why? This situation is the result of two main causes. First, the semester-hour credit granted for most electrical engineering courses is unrealistic. Second, the Electrical Engineering School is overcrowded with students and under- staffed with instructors. Both of these conditions result in the student spend- ing more time with his books than he normally would have to. Most electrical engineering courses are under-rated, in that they require more time by the student than he is reimbursed for in semester hours. EE 322, Circuit Analysis, is an excellent example of this inequality. This course meets five days a week for one hour of instruction each time, and it also requires ten to fifteen hours of home-work a week. All this time and work is rewarded with four semester hours. Laboratory courses are either given as a one-hour course or attached to a four-hour course without any extra credit. EE 323, Circuit Analysis Laboratory, is a one-hour course. It takes, however, three hours of class work and four to six hours of homework each w^eek. This whole problem may be boiled down to a simple summary. The electrical engineering curriculum is a five-year course squeezed into four years. This, coupled with reason number two, requires that the student work harder and longer than those in other colleges. In order to take care of the increased enrollment, the electrical engineering department has streamlined its instruction. Individual teaching has given way to mass lecture, and evaluation has been reduced to tabulating the results of hour exams and homew-ork assignments. Even the laboratory has December, 1956 9 lost its individual touch. Four, live or more students are crowded around one small table. The laboratory report determines the grade. In order to pass these courses, a great number of hours must be spent on preparing the written reports and problem solutions. These papers are the primary factor in the final grade. Because of the mass-production methods of teaching, the student must also spend more time studying on his own. It is impossible to estimate how much this second situation increases the student's work load, but it does require considerably more work than normally should be required. Because of the above two reasons, an electrical engineering student will be working almost twenty-hour hours a day. The simple solution to this problem is to expand the electrical engineering curriculum to five years, double the size of the electrical engineering build- ing, and hire one hundred more instructors. Naturally, this is impossible. Just the same, however, the student needs a little time to relax and rest. What can be done? Both the student and instructor must recognize the problem. The instructor must be reasonable and understanding. A close coordination be- tween instructors must be maintained to eliminate duplication and to syn- chronize test and homework assignments. Finally, the Electrical Engineering Department must continually work on the problem and remember that each student is, after all, a human being and needs time to eat, sleep, and have a little diversion. National Political Conventions Stephen Paul Thomas Placement Test Theme ALEXIS DE TOCQUEVILLE, FRENCH POLITICAL SCIENTIST of the nineteenth century, demonstrated that the element of confusion was a necessary part of democratic government. However, w^hen con- fusion approaches chaotic proportions, the time for remedial and reconstruc- tive measures is at hand. It would appear that now is the time for some changes in our methods of selecting nominees for the offices of President and Vice-President of the United States. The practice of holding national political conventions was begun in the 1800's by a small, now no longer extant political party. Practically every governmental practice and policy has, since that era, been revised. Yet in one hundred years we have not altered our methods of selecting nominees for the two most important jobs in America. If this practice had always proven itself efficient, there would be no need for change. But out of national political conventions have come nominees who were not qualified, not particularly desirous of being elected, and not physically able to handle the highest gov- ernmental positions. 10 The Green Caldron Recently some one hundred million Americans watched all or a large part of two national political conventions. The viewing multitudes did not hear officially from any of the prospective candidates until after the nominations were complete. It seems to me that a much more efficient system would be for the prospective candidates to present their cases to the American people, via the vast communication systems we have. After the American people had heard from and seen all the candidates, a national primary election could be held. In this manner the people would choose their candidates directly. It seems to me that this system would be, not a dangerous change, but a necessary modification. The ultimate worth of any democratic process, I am told, is proportional to the worth of the individuals taking part in it. Ar)ecedarians Anonymous Rhetoric 101, Theme 2 THE FACT THAT A TEACHER IS A HUMAN BEING IS POS- sibly the one and only declaration about him that remains truthful and steadfast under the duresses of time and among many leagues of dis- heartened scholars. An instructor is also that individual who is faced with the momentous task of fashioning, casting, and influencing the lives of his most worthy but unwittingly thick-headed pupils. To the scholar, the instructor is that unnecessary, undefined, inhumanly shaped, unimaginably cruel monster who is the root of all a pupil's worries. An instructor is that shouting and disheveled personage whose only purpose in life is to produce a cringing, frustrated, and thoroughly cowed individual. The mentor is that mass of humanity who springs unannounced quizzes on the totally unprepared student. The mentor's sole distorted reason for these unannounced quizzes is the solitary pleasure of seeing his pupils squirm, perspire, and go through the various acrobatic contortions usually associated with examinations. An instructor also spends all of his waking hours, and almost all of the hours of the night, in contriving the most hideously impossible- to-complete-in-the-time-allotted homework assignments and examinations. To the more learned and unbiased, a mentor is an amateur psychiatrist, philanthropist, philosophizer, and fortune-teller. An instructor also has the quick wit and humor of a professional comedian, the literary and journalistic talents of an author, the corrective and disciplinary attributes of a prison warden, the understanding and patience of a parent, the didactic temperament of a clergyman, and the sense of fairness and honesty of a judge. Beneath all the outwardly atrocious traits of a mentor, there lies a most subtle, serene, patient, intelligent, and persuasive personality. This complex personality is trying to accomplish one of the most difficult undertakings of this or any other age. The abecedarian is laboring to educate the uneducated. December, 1956 11 An