Oldtime 'Gracious Living' Thrives at Adams, Within Varied, Active Intra-House Group

When Adams men established the now-famous Wine-Tasting Society, and this group gave birth last fall to the Adams House Cheese Tasting Society, the result was the formation of a gourmet stereotype for the Gold Coast. But these groups really reflect something else. The Adams man lives graciously, but he tends to do so in groups within the House. This, if anything is the outstanding feature of Adams.

It is a scholarly house, with a good percentage of men on Dean's List, but this scholarly bent manifests itself more in the organizations than in Phi Beta Kappa listings. Fully two-thirds of the House members belong to one or more of the House organizations, most of which are at least semi-intellectual.

Probably the best example is the Music Society. It has 60 members and is one of the most active groups in the House. In the fall, for example, it presented a program of two Boyce symphonies, a Vivaldi bassoon concerto, and a one-act Hindemith opera, for its most successful concert. It presents chamber music concerts every two or three weeks throughout the year, and, in an attempt to become self-supporting, (it now depends on funds from the House Committee) the society recently began publication of The Concert Guide, a schedule of concerts in and around Boston.

Talk, Poetry, Plays

A discussion group meets fortnightly, debating almost anything. Clyde Kluckhohn, for example spoke to the group about the female Kinsey report, and Astronomer Harlow Shapley and Economist Seymour Harris have also been recent guests. Two tutors recently formed a poetry group which plans to invite local poets to the House for informal meetings. There is a play-reading group, an art committee, which sponsors eight exhibits a year, and a house newspaper, the Oak Leaf, published occasionally.

Housemaster David M. Little and his staff maintain informal and friendly relationships with the members of the House. At lunch and dinner, and sometimes even at breakfast, students and staff linger over coffee cup discussions in the paneled dining hall. Weekly, Dr. and Mrs. Little serve tea at Apthorp House, the historic Master's residence, and frequently entertain students at dinner.

The House Committee and two members of the non-resident staff are now working to further integrate the non-resident tutors into House activities, although these faculty members are by no means out of contact. Non-resident tutor Edwin O. Reischauer, for example, led the staff to a softball victory over a student team last year, with a ninth-inning double.

There is little purpose in attempting to establish an Adams type. Figures show it to be a scholarly House, but there is a sizable athletic representation. Neither is there geographical predominance from Brooklyn, Boston, or Battle Creek, and there is a good distribution of clubmen, prep school alumni, and high school graduates.

Architecture Unique

Almost as varied is the Adams' architecture, for the House comprises its own building, and two renovated Gold Coast apartments. C-entry, in the newer structure, resembles the other Houses, with small, modern rooms, showers, double bunks, and thin fire doors.

A and B-entries, located in Westmorely, are considerably older; they were constructed about 1897, but Victorian diamond-paned windows and oak wainscotting compensate for any disadvantages resulting from age. Randolph, comprising D through I entries, is about the same age, but features spacious rooms, and a courtyard overlooking Apthorp.

The gourmet stereotype stems as much from the dining hall--an individual white pillared structure--as the tasting societies. House members claim that the food is the best in the University, but also claim that it is not what it once was. Sophomores like it better than juniors and juniors like it better than seniors, which may indicate something about waning memories of the Union.

The swimming pool is available all day and evening; then, of course, there is the advantage of proximity to the Yard. But the really distinctive feature of the House is its groups: there is a definitely centripetal character in Adams, which draws its members to activities, within the House.

Present size of House: 365

Vacancies for Freshmen: 126

Type of rooms available: 2 singles; 20 doubles; 20 triples; 6 quadruples

Price range of available rooms (per man per term): doubles $115-196: triples $100-205; quadruples $130-170.