PHILLIPS BROOKS HOUSE

It is fitting in times like these, toward the end of the first year of our war, to render praise, not only to the men who have gone, but to those institutions of the University which have made our record such a notable one. First and foremost of them all must stand Phillips Brooks House, our great pillar of social service, growing to meet new needs and constantly adding to the many activities of the past.

The University has taken new interest in Brooks House. More men and more money have been directed to its work than ever before. These men are engaged in teaching the future citizens of our land, they are leading boys to better lives and understanding; they are entertaining the blind; they are supporting the poor at law; they are supplying the needy; they are indeed the builders of a better society. College men seem to have taken a new hold on the real problems of life. In their added interest and increased support is found the success of the institution.

In the last year the work of Phillips Brooks House has taken on a new significance. Where before it was called upon only to meet local need, it has now entered a larger sphere. We need make no mention of the little nut which followed our regiment to Barre, nor of the canteen now maintained for the Cambridge sailors. We need not repeat the praise rendered this house of service for its aid in the Y. M. C. A. campaign, in the Halifax disaster, and in many other war concerns. Its record stands for itself, a memorial to Harvard men and the University.

Today, when all our efforts are being directed toward our great cause, we are wont to turn away from the ordinary problems of life, and to forget those things which must be done in times of war as well as of peace. The University, however, burdened as it is by a loss of many men and a diverted interest, has not failed in these duties. We owe a great debt which can only be paid in the earnest and sincere support of an institution which has served the College and community well, and which now contributes to the national life of our people.