FRESHMAN POLICIES LENIENT

The method of administration of the new Freshman Dormitories is a matter upon which much thought and attention have been bestowed by the committee of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences charged with making recommendations upon this subject. At a recent meeting President Lowell and Assistant Dean Yeomans discussed this subject with undergraduate representatives of several schools which send boys to Harvard. The opinions of these undergraduates appeared to be favorable to the plans of the committee.

The sole regulation thus far adopted for these dormitories is as follows: "All members of the Freshman class will reside and board in the Freshman Dormitories, except those who are permitted by the Assistant Dean of Harvard College to live elsewhere. Exceptions will ordinarily be made in the case of students who wish to live at home." These men, to the number of five hundred or more, will be accommodated in the three buildings now under construction, Smith, Standish, and Gore. Smith Halls, comprising Persis Smith Hall, George Smith Hall, and William Smith Hall, will house approximately 200 students; Gore, 165; and Standish, 135. Each hall will have a dining room and a Common Room large enough for all the occupants. The large fireplaces and the impressive wainscoting of these rooms will make them very different from any quarters familiar to previous generations of Harvard Freshmen. In a word, these buildings will constitute the unquestioned centre of the life and activities of the entering class.

Freshmen Their Own Dictators.

Most striking and significant is the intended absence of interference with the freedom of the Freshmen. It is hoped and confidently expected that "rules" will be unnecessary and that the matter of conduct may be left to the good sense and self-respect of the Freshmen. The Faculty is most sincere in its intention to encourage no "coddling" or "directing" of the occupants of these dormitories. Even if this were not the case, the experimental stage of the undertaking would not be the time to make "rules and regulations." Despite all rumors to the contrary, men will not "have to be in by nine o'clock," nor will their goings and comings be officially restricted in any way whatsoever,. At the same time, it is expected that the influence of the dormitories will make for wholesomeness and responsibility.

Comfort Combined With Low Rent.

It is hoped that the general excellence of the accommodations, combined with the comparatively low rent, will meet with universal approval. All the arrangements are of the very best and most modern type: each student will have a bed-room to himself, and part or all of a study; a bath-room with modern plumbing will be connected with every suite; substantial furniture will be supplied; and, all of the dormitories being constructed on the "separate-entry" system, there will be a wide variety in the ar- rangement of rooms. The division of rooms for one, two, three, or ever more, men is based on preferential statistics compiled from the answers of 635 members of the class of 1916 to questions put to them last year for this purpose. The rent will approximately $150, which is about $75 less than the average paid last year by the Freshmen. Rooms may be had for as little as $35, though this price is exceptional; but in all cases the plan of a bed-room and a share in a study and bat for each man is adhered to.

Besides rooming at the dormitories, the payment of board at one's own Hall is the only regulation which will be insisted on and even this may be suspended in exceptional cases. The result of this rule is expected to be that men will take most of their meals in the Hall, though it is the present intention to keep no record of their presence or absence. The board will be similar to that now furnished at Memorial Hall, and will cost approximately $5 a week. There will be no fixed places at table, and thus men will be unrestricted in their search for congenial companions.

Interdormitory Athletics Proposed.

A tentative plan has been formulated to encourage outdoor exercise by means of inter-dormitory athletics. Any such teams will, however, be merely supplementary to the regular Freshmen teams and will tend to stimulate competition rather than to detract from the resources of the regular teams.

Mention need not be made here of the benefits which will accrue through these dormitories. Suffice it to say that the keynote in their administration will be the formation of wholesome traditions by the Freshmen themselves, without interference or supervision on the part of the Faculty