THE HARVARD SQUARE BOOK MARKET

The present process by which assigned books become available to the undergraduate is open to criticism from merchants and undergraduates alike, and growing murmurs of discontent from the town as well as the gown point to the need for immediate reform.

The system, or the lack of system, now in force permits the professor to make up his own reading list, take as long as he wants in doing so, and finally, to report his selections, verbally or in writing to such book stores as he sees fit. This is not all. Constant pressure on the members of the Faculty over a period of years has resulted in a large number of them either giving their lists exclusively to the Harvard Cooperative Society or sending that firm advance notice of the books to be used in their courses. By this means the Coop has been given a monopoly position in the new and secondhand book market in Harvard Square, and the undergraduate is paying the price.

The practice of advance releases robs the student of a market for many of his used books at the end of the year. Obviously, when the Coop is acquainted with the books to be used the following fall, they will not buy books they cannot hope to sell again, and they also offer, for books that are to be used again, more than they are worth. This necessitates an even higher price for such books the following September.

In the other case, when the Coop gets exclusive tips straight from the stable, the student and the forgotten merchant are again on the short end of the stick in September. The latter does no business at all, while the student buys his books second-hand from the Coop for a fraction less than their original price, provided the Coop does not decide to suppress their used copies in favor of new ones. Thus, the unfortunate undergraduate finds his pennies dwindling away while he manages to salvage but a few from his dividend.