'Cliffe Alumnae Stirred by Merger

Radcliffe alumnae have reacted with mixed feelings to the proposed Harvard-Radcliffe merger.

Katherine Ward '07, of Arlington, Mass., said yesterday, "I've talked to a couple of people who say they won't give another cent." Mrs. Ward added that Radcliffe had struggled to gain its own identity over the years. "I just don't like the idea of its becoming the tail of a Harvard dog," she said.

Mrs. Charles Bolster '20, former executive secretary of the Alumnae Association, agreed that alumnae contributions might decline because women might feel less personal interest in giving to Harvard. Mrs. Bolster said she was uncertain about the wisdom of an immediate merger.

The most enthusiastic response to the merger came from the midwest. Josephine P. Kitch '34, a Radcliffe area representative in Wichita, Kansas, said the possibility of co-ed living "presents exciting possibilities. They've got it here in the heart of the midwest. However, if they think it's going to be risque, they've got it wrong." She added, "so many alumnae are married to Harvard men anyway, I don't think the merger will make that much difference in contributions."

Mary I. Bunting, president of Radcliffe, said yesterday that neither she nor the Alumnae office had received much response to the merger. She speculated that the alumnae had accepted the idea as the general, national tendency. "So that's that, I hope." she concluded