PENNING THE SHEEP

With but two weeks to the deadline on Freshmen signing up for the Houses, it is extremely improbably that the University authorities would be able to put into efficient running any central bureau system, such as that suggested by the CRIMSON a week ago, for admitting Freshmen into the Houses. But the College officials must certainly realize the immediate need for action of some kind in order to prevent repetition of the sad results of last year's system for admitting Freshmen to the House Plan.

The logical from of such action would consist in a definite agreement between the House Masters as to the number and character of Freshmen to be admitted into each House. As a result of this agreement, a rough but proportionate cross section would for the first time be admitted to each Houses and those Houses particularly overdosed with private school or club men would receive a smaller number of them than the other Houses. This is of course, precisely the sort of action which should have taken place last year, and it is a sad commentary on the weak relations between the seven House Masters that they have to be forced into obviously desirable action by a desperate situation.

If the above move is taken, a larger number of Freshmen than usual will be disappointed in regard to first choices, since it is an unfortunate fact that most of the first-year men are making a herd rush for the larger and newer Houses. It is to be hoped that all those men who fail to obtain the desired House will cooperate as much as possible in the present difficult situation by not complaining. The authorities will in fact, be wise if they do the greater part of the adjusting with those groups of friends entering together, since the men in these groups, missing the desired House, will at least have the expected company in whatever unit they are allotted to.

By the use of some such emergency plan as that sketched here, the differences between the several Houses, if not greatly improved, will at least be ameliorated. In any case, the present situation has made it desirable and practically inevitable that some sort of central bureau system be brought into operation next year.