Lawyers Cite Massachusetts Statutes, Define Harvard's Duties as Innkeeper

Harvard College has been accused of any things, but it doesn't intend to be labeled a bad lodging-house keeper. Particularly if the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is doing the labeling.

So the College has consulted its legal representatives, Ropes and Gray of Boston, to see how loosening current parietal restriction might affect Harvard's legal responsibilities under Massachusetts lodging-house laws.

Lodge Keeper

Harvard is a duly-registered lodging-house keeper in the state's eyes. It even pays about three dollars a year for a lodging-house license. But with its license some responsibilities. Under Massachusetts law, a lodging-house keeper is responsible for the actions of his lodgers, and liable to fine and/or imprisonment if found guilty of permitting certain specified actions to go on.

Ropes and Gray

That was basically what Ropes and Gray said in a letter received by Dean Watson early last week. The letter was duplicated, and copies sent to all members of the Committee on Houses (the Masters and assorted deans) and the House senior tutors, who are members of the Administrative Board.

"If we said 'we're not going to worry about parietal hours', then we'd have some questions about the law," Dean Glimp said of the legal opinion in an interview.

But Glimp said that some increases in current parietal hours would not seem to constitute a violation of Harvard's lodging-house keeper responsibilities, as the laws are interpreted by Ropes and Gray.

The law firm also enclosed with its opinion some copies of the appropriate statutes in Massachusetts law, falling under the "Innkeeper" and "Lewdness" sections.

$500 Fine

Under "Innkeepers," it says, "Whoever, being licensed as a lodging-house keeper ... or being in actual charge, management or control of such lodging-house keeper ... or being in actual charge, management or control of such lodging-house, inn or premises for which the license is issued, knowingly permits the property under his control to be used for the purpose of immoral solicitation, immoral bargaining or immoral conduct shall be punished by a fine of not less than five hundred nor more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not less than six months nor more than one year, or both."

The law goes on to say, "If it is required that registers be kept,... evidence that the person in actual charge has knowingly permitted the occupation of a private room...by the same man or different occasions within a period of thirty days with different women, shall be prima facie evidence of a violation of this section."