THE HOUSES IN OPERATION: JOHN WINTHROP HOUSE

It is the misfortune of Winthrop House that Standish and Gore were built so close together. Under other circumstances an addition might have been built to either of them, but there was nothing for it but to ally the two and call it Winthrop House. There can be no question that externally it is the most drab and austere of all the Houses. The Students' Common Room is a rather bleak expanse which suppresses rather than fosters congeniality, the dining room with its undershot alcove has a bit of the steamship about it but is an interesting architectural device and serves its proper purpose. Confronted by the Statler-like dining room of Standish the designers strove mightily to transform it into a presentable library and, to the astonishment of all, succeeded admirably. The walls are done in two tones of green while the furnishings are in red. It is reputed to hold the third largest collection of books in the House Libraries, somewhere around 11,000 volumes in all.

Against these manifold physical blemishes, the Master has struggled with gratifying success. He has set himself the task of making Winthrop attractive through the pleasant influence of his own personality. More than any other Master he has tried to know the members of his House through other methods than a stereotyped note of greeting or admonition. Dr. Ferry is the only one of his colleagues who is reputed to call each House member by his first name. At Christmas every student who was unable to go home for the vacation was asked to have Christmas Dinner at his home. He has the habit of dropping into the dining room to join one or another of the undergraduate groups at table almost daily. His effort to establish friendly relationships with the House members is one of the most outstanding things about Winthrop, especially so since he is exceptionally successful in that effort.

The Tutors follow the example of the Master, aided by the fact that they are unable to seek the seclusion which a Tutors' Table grants. It is a well-rounded staff representing almost every department in an adequate fashion.

For some reason the various House Dinners and Long Tables, (the adjective is a concession to ebullient Americans), have received little attention or publicity from those not connected with Winthrop. It is with some surprise that one reads the list of speakers that have been the guests of the House during the year, Lowell, Frankfurter, Compton, Sir Herbert Ames, Williams, Flexner, Admiral Sims, Briggs, Edsall are some of the resounding names that form a garland for John Winthrop. It is quite the most imposing group that has been collected. Every Thursday there is a House Dinner at six after which there are occasional speakers, and twice a month the Long Table is set up for a mere formal meal with Associates, guests and Tutors at six-thirty. There are three tables at which earnest students converse glibly in Spanish, German and French to the bewilderment of the waitresses and themselves.

Winthrop House life has been made interesting in other ways for the members. When the political situation been thoroughly digested by a Club ably guided by the best government staff in the Houses, the undergraduate can drift in on an Economic or Science discussion sponsored by students interested in such matters. Throughout the year there have been informal musical recitals in the Common Room which have been well attended and appreciated. Unlike other Houses, Winthrop has been represented in every sport.

A House Committee which is spasmodically active has sponsored a large dance which was a social success and carried with it the additional gratification of financial advancement. Earlier in the year a tea dance was held after the Dartmouth game with Leverett House which enriched the high contracting parties by one dollar and thirty five cents.

Winthrop like the other Houses refashioned from the Freshmen Dormitories holds less inducement to the undergraduates when compared with the elegance of the entirely new units. Its personnel has suffered somewhat and, like the other Houses in similar straits, it has not cut a conspicuous figure at Harvard as a result.

The future of Winthrop will be interesting to watch. Burdened with great handicaps at the beginning it has worked hard to overcome them. Whether it has worked in the right direction is a matter which can only be determined by individual taste, but it has developed, more than any other House except Lowell, a definite personality of its own, due chiefly to the efforts of its Master and Tutors. In so doing it has refrained from any superficial attempts at atmosphere. The whole House has endeavored to create for itself the distinct individuality which it desires without the use of fragile tokens which are not of their own original devising.