Swarthmore College Alumni Bulletin 1937-05-01

Published by the Alumni Association in the interests of

S W A R T H M O R E COLLEGE a n d h er ALUMNI
Volume I
S W A R T H M O R E , p a ., m a y , 1937
¿A(um ber 5

OLD HOME WEEK— JU N E 5-7, 1937.
P h il ip

M.

UTSTANDING feature of the plans made for
the 1937 Commencement week by President Aydelotte and Frank W . Fetter, President of the Alum­
ni Association, is the booking of distinguished members of
the Swarthmore family for the main forensic events of
the program. At the annual, open-air luncheon of the
Alumni Association, on Saturday, June 5th, the speaker
will be Alan C. Valentine, 1921, President of the Univer­
sity of Rochester. Former Dean Raymond Walters,
President of the University of Cincinnati, will deliver the
Baccalaureate Sermon. Joseph H. WilHts, 1911, Dean of
the Wharton School, of the University of Pennsylvania,
will give the Commencement Address. The Phi Beta
Kappa speaker will be Detlev W . Bronk, ’20, Director of
the Johnson Foundation for Medical Physics at the Uni­
versity of Pennsylvania.
This selection of speakers is designed to make clear the
fact that Swarthmore’s educational prophets are honored
in their own country and also to draw back to the college
for the Commencement of 1937 a large group of Alumni
in addition to those who will come with the regularly
scheduled class reunions.
The Commencement program must always be a blend
of the old and the new ; old, in its familiar routine, to keep
alive the sense of continuity and to enable the returning
graduates to feel at home; new in special features and in
the spectacle of a college expanding in equipment and
usefulness as the campus grows in beauty.
The old spirit is entrusted this year to the classes of ’77,
'82, ’87, ’90, ’92, ’97, ’02, ’07, ’12, ’17, ’22, ’27, ’32, and
’35. They will march, strut their stunts, dine, dance and
stroll the lighted campus as has been done so often before.
But let no one say ‘this is an old story, I have done it all
before.’ There is much that is new to be seen: the de­
velopment below the tracks, the magnificent Field Blouse,
the reconditioned Prep School buildings; the continuing
expansion of the Scott Arboretum, bringing new beauty
to the campus and the Crum Woods under the expert care
of H arry W ood; the new murals in Hicks Hall, the work
of James D. Egleson, ’29; the building of the Martin
Biological Foundation, now nearing completion on the
north campus. Alumni who have not been back very
recently indeed will need the whole week-end to appreci­
ate fully the growth of the college.

O

H ic k s,

’05.

Program For
Commencement W e e k -1937
— 1 0 :45 A. M.—Annual
Friends
1 2 :30 P. M.—Alumni
Address

Meeting of Alumni Ass’n.
Meeting House
Luncheon
by A lan C. V alentine, ’21,

President, University of Rochester
2
4
6
8

:30
:00
:30
:30

P.
P.
P.
P.

M.— Parade of Classes — Stunts
M.— Baseball— V arsity vs. Alumni
M.— Class Reunion Suppers
M.—Commencement Play

Beggar on Horseback
9 :80 P. M.— Dancing
Dining Room and Collection Hall
Sun. — 1 1 :00 A. M.— Baccalaureate Sermon
R aymond W altebs

President, University of Cincinnati
6 :3 0 P. M.— Last Collection
Address by E vekett L. H unt
Clothier Memorial
8 :0 0 P. M .— Phi Beta Kappa Address
D etlev W . B ronx, ’20,

University of Pennsylvania
Friends Meeting House
Mon. — 1 1 :00 A. M.—Commencement Exercises
Address by J oseph H. W illits , ’l l ,

Dean of Wharton School,
University of Pennsylvania

Chief novelty among the entertainment features will be
the production, on Saturday night only, of Kaufman and
Conolly’s brilliant satire “Beggar on Horseback,” with a
joint student and faculty cast. This play, produced re­
cently by The Little Theater Club under the skillful di­
rection of Beatrice Beach MacLeod, ’31, set a new high
level for Swarthmore dramatic productions. Its repetition
w'as requested as a special favor to returning Alumni.
Space does not permit the listing of the large cast. Let it
suffice to say that no student who has been nurtured on Dr.
Clair W ilcox’s economic theories will want to miss his
hilarious portrayal of Mr. Cady, the President of the In­
ternational Widget Corporation. Make reservations early
for the “Beggar” for almost everyone who saw the first
performance is planning to go again.
Special interest will attach to the business meeting of
the Alumni Association this year, to be held on Saturday,
at 10:45 A. M., as the members will be asked to pass on
{Continued on page three)

2

The G arnet Letter

THE C LA SS OF 19 12 , OUT 25 YEARS
T homas R. T aylor , T2.

PRELIM IN ARY FACTS
The Class of 1912, Swarthmore College, consisted
originally of 106 members, 61 girls and 45 boys. Of these
about 50% of the girls and 65% of the boys were gradu­
ated. There have been 11 deaths from the class member­
ship.
A questionnaire on marital relationship, employment,
religion, community service, hobbies, publications, rela­
tionship to college, class relationship, attitude on public
questions, and financial earning power was mailed to all
members of the class in February and one follow-up was
sent. 38 replies were received, 28 being from graduates.
The questionnaire returns therefore represent 50% of
the graduates, but only 25% of the non-graduates.
M ARITAL RELATIONSHIP
WOMEN—Almost exactly two-thirds of the girls mar­
ried and the fact of the graduation did not alter this per­
centage. For those replying to the questionnaire (24 out
of 61), 17 are married. The average time of marriage was
2.8 years after graduation. Offspring for this group total
32 boys and 17 girls, almost 3 per marriage, or 2 per girl.
In other words those who are married are reproducing
their parents and contributing one new parent but the total
number of girls replying to the questionnaire have barely
succeeded in reproducing parents. The Garnet co-ed is
not an increasing species.
Of the 17 who married, 4 married Swarthmoreans, 8
married men from other colleges, and 5 took non-college
husbands.
MEN—Fifteen men replied on this question, and of
these 13 were married,—six to Swarthmore girls, five to
girls from other colleges and two to non-college girls.
The average lapse of time from graduation to marriage
was 7 years.
•
Offspring totaled 21 boys and 11 girls or an average of
almost 2y2 per married man or 2.1% per man reporting.
This is a “bare subsistence” level.
Jointly—no divorces are reported.
OCCUPATION
All men reporting were actively employed, but only onefourth of the girls reporting had remunerative employ­
ment.
The men’s occupations were—teacher (3 ), fruit grower
or farmer (3 ), engineer (2 ), advertising, lawyer, news­
paper, Christian Science practitioner, and economist (1
each).
The women’s occupations were—teacher (3 ), nurse,
bookseller, library and sales (1 each).
Five of the 15 men reported no change in occupation
since beginning work after graduation. This may be a
small evidence of stability in an unstable world.
One-half of the men reported that their life work had
been determined by chance rather than by definite plan.

This is an evidence of instability.
The data on earning power was so fragmentary that it
was discarded. The general impression created, however,
is that no member of the class has done much more than
earn a comfortable living and that most of them find it a
struggle to meet the expense*of a 25th Reunion. The
highest annual earned income reported was $8,000. Is
this a sad commentary on their college training?
RELIGION
Slightly more than
of the reporting class members
are active in Meeting or the Church and
send, or have
sent, their children to Sunday School. Over 1/3 report a
deeper religious conviction than they had in college days
and almost
report no change, so there are very few
back sliders even in these unregenerate times.
HIGHER EDUCATION
Less than l/6th of the replies reported any degree
higher than that necessary for graduation, and it is prob­
able that for the class as a whole the percentage is very
much lower. Curiously enough no Ph. D. degree was
reported.
W A R SERVICE
As was to be expected from a Quaker college, only
2/5ths of the men and l/5th of the women reported war
service of any sort. Even the activities of the Society of
Friends or the Red Cross attracted but few.
OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE
Illustrations of outstanding public service are almost
non-existent. Many members of the class share in local
activities, but leadership on a national scale is sadly lack­
ing. One member is a leader of Jewish women’s organiza­
tions, another directed the expenditure of $11,000,000 for
Russian relief, a third is on the Board of Trustees of a
negro school, and a fourth has devoted most of his life to
productive work with the Federal government.
HOBBIES
Very few members of the class report special expertness
in fields outside their profession. Two exceptions are
amateur theatricals and linguistic accomplishments.
Hobbies are remarkable for their variety, showing in­
dividualistic character of the graduates. Among unusual
hobbies mentioned are collection of newspaper files, glass
paper weights, marketing research, American Dozen Sys­
tem of Mathematics, new designs of apple barrels, making
of farm tools, boat building, scrapbook on England and
the Coronation, Christian mystics, stamp collecting, and
cake making. Many report the theatre, golf, bridge, gar­
dening, pets, etc.
CHARACTER OF READING
The Reader’s Digest is far and away the most popular
periodical with ten exponents, as compared with three for

The G arnet Letter
the Atlantic Monthly and the National Geographic, two
for Time, and one each for a number of other types, in­
cluding scientific and technical periodicals.
In types of books preferred the novel ranked first with
13 votes, followed by biography (7 ), detective fiction (3),
and philosophy and religion (1 each).
WRITING
Only 8 out of 38 replies mentioned published material
and 7 of these were confined to magazine articles on
Jewish music, architecture, advertising, library administra­
tion, religion, engineering, and biographical book reviews.
Only two books were reported, both by the same author.
It would seem logical that more than 1/5th of a Swarthmore class should write something for publication.
COLLEGE RELATIONSHIP
The replies were 100% unanimous in the belief that
their college education was a good investment, and were
80% in favor of sending their children to Swarthmore,—
the few dissenters being mostly from those closely in
touch with the college.
Of 29 replies to the question as to the greatest gain
from their college education, “friendships formed” re­
ceived 13 votes, “broadening influence” 4 votes, “leader­
ship and self-confidence” 3 votes, “logical thinking” 2
votes, “ability to meet people” 2 votes, and the rest were
scattering, including one each for Dr. Goddard and Jesse
Holmes.
Greatest faults of college education w ere:
Lack of vocational guidance, or definite purpose—8
Waste of time, superficial teaching, too little work—6
Admittance at immature age—4
Poor teaching—3
Poor food—2
In view of recent discussion of fraternities, it is inter­
esting that one member of 1912 reported clannishness as
the greatest college curse.
The question as to the state of present relationship to
the college disclosed an unfortunate state of affairs in that
no member reported a close and satisfactory relationship
and almost all who replied mentioned “no contact,” “little
contact” or “lack of harmony.” It would seem that if any
graduates should be tied to their college apron strings,
Swarthmoreans would be the ones most fettered, and yet
we have here a whole class either estranged or non-interested. The class itself is doubtless partially responsible,
but there are other causes which should be ferreted out by
the Alumni Council.
No alumnus of the college is so well known or popular
as to receive more than one vote for the “Swarthmore
graduate of whom you are the most proud” and the Presi­
dent of the Class, William K. Hoyt is the only one re­
ceiving more than one vote as “the member of the Class
of 1912 of whom you are most proud.”

3

ATTITUDE ON PUBLIC QUESTIONS
Apparently the members of the class got more enjoy­
ment out of the questions on public affairs than those of
any other group, and the results, though meagre and not
as conclusive as those of the Institute of Public Opinion,
are interesting.
The class lines up against the Administration on the
following questions in order of votes:
Jobs for henchmen—25 unfavorable votes
Tacit support to sit down strikes—24 unfavorable votes
Reorganized Supreme Court—24 unfavorable votes
Managed agriculture—19 unfavorable votes
Prohibition—16 unfavorable votes
The class is for the Administration program on:
Neutrality—27 favorable votes
Social Security—21 favorable votes
Wealth-sharing through taxation—18 favorable votes
Excess profits tax—18 favorable votes
Control of hours and wages—15 favorable votes
Managed currency—15 favorable votes
Greatest enthusiasms for Administration efforts, as
listed separately, included, in order of voting:
Solicitation for the forgotten man
Willingness to tackle problems
Elimination of child labor
The greatest “peeve” against the Federal government,
as listed separately, included in order:
Patronage
Roosevelt and his family
Reckless spending
Methods of handling relief
Curiously enough only two persons mentioned “consti­
tutional overthrow” or “usurpation of power.” One man
objected most seriously to the “rumpus” of the New Deal;
another to “defense of the profit system.”
A clear majority are in favor of our present form of
government (16 votes) with 6 voting for the British par­
liamentary form, 3 for more centralized Federal control,
2 for Socialism, and none for Fascism or Communism.
Only 2 of 31 replying were optimistic enough to believe
that America is entering its greatest period of prosperity,
but only 5 are willing to withdraw from this world of
strife to some distant quiet corner.
OLD HOME WEEK
(Continued from, page one)

a new Constitution and By-Laws for the Association. A
large attendance at the business session is especially de­
sired by the officers.
June 5-6-7, 1937! Put a red line around them on the
calendar. Whether you come back to renew old asso­
ciations or to bring your knowledge of Swarthmore up to
date; to relive an old romance or to push a perambulator
in the class parade, the college portals will be open wide
to welcome the continuing interest of those who for four
years—or less, or more—were the college.

The G arnet L etter

4

Proposed Plan For Reorganization of The Alumni Association
SW A R T H M O R E COLLEGE A L U M N I A SSO CIA TIO N
CO N STITUTIO N
ARTICLE I

The name of this Association shall be “SW A RTH ­
MORE COLLEGE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION.”
ARTICEE II

The object of this Association shall be to promote
union and good feeling among the Alumni and to advance
the interests of Swarthmore College.
ARTICLE i n

The business of this Association shall be transacted at
Swarthmore, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and in such
other places within the State as the interests of the Asso­
ciation may from time to time require.
ARTICLE IV

Graduates, and ex-students of Swarthmore College
(provided that the class of which they were members has
graduated), shall automatically be members of this Asso­
ciation.
ARTICLE V

The business of this association shall be managed by an
Alumni Council consisting of fifteen men and fifteen
women, to be elected as prescribed by the By-Laws; ex­
cept that the directors of the Alumni Association of
Swarthmore College elected in 1936 and 1937 and the offi­
cers elected in 1937, shall also be members of the Council
until their terms of office expire. The By-Laws shall pro­
vide for the organization of the Alumni Council, the terms
of office of the members, and for the geographic zones
from which the members are to be chosen; and it shall
provide for the officers of the Association.
ARTICLE v i

The Constitution and By-Laws may be amended in
whole or in part at any annual meeting of the members of
the Association, by a vote in favor of such action of not
less than two-thirds of the members present, provided
such proposed amendment be presented at the previous
meeting of the Association, or that notice of the proposed
change shall have been given to the members at least
thirty days prior to the Annual Meeting.
BY L A W S
ARTICLE i

OFFICERS
The officers of this Association shall consist of a presi­
dent, one or more vice-presidents, a secretary, and a trea­
surer. They shall be chosen by the newly elected Council
each year during the month of June, take office July 1
and serve for one year and until their successors are
chosen. For the year following the adoption of these ByLaws, the officers elected by the qualified members of the
Alumni Association of Swarthmore College in the general

poll which shall have just been completed shall, by virtue
of such election become officers of this Association and
shall perform their duties subject to the terms of the Con­
stitution and By-Laws of this'' Association.
The office of secretary and treasurer may be combined.
Any of the above officers may be elected from the Coun­
cil body or from the general membership.
The officers shall have the usual powers and discharge
the usual duties pertaining to their respective offices.
The president shall preside at all meetings of the Asso­
ciation.
ARTICLE i i

MEETINGS
The regular meeting of the Association shall be held
annually on one of the days of Commencement Week, at
such time and place as the officers shall appoint. Thirty,
consisting of at least fifteen men and fifteen women, shall
constitute a quorum.
ARTICLE h i

ZONES
The members of the Council shall be selected from the
members of the Alumni Association, as specified in the
Constitution, and shall be apportioned among the five
zones, each particular zone being represented by the same
number of men and women as follows :
Zone 1—7 men members—7 women members
Delaware, New Jersey (excepting the counties
included in Zone 2), Pennsylvania
Zone 2—3 men members—3 women members
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New
Hampshire, New Jersey (Bergen, Essex,
Hudson, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Pas­
saic, Somerset, Sussex, and Union Counties),
New York, Rhode Island, Vermont
Zone 3—2 men members—2 women members
Alabama, Arkansas, District of Columbia,
Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, M ary­
land, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia,
West Virginia
Zone A—2 men members—2 women members
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan,
Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Da­
kota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin
Zone 5—1 man—1 woman
Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Mon­
tana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah,
Washington, W yoming; territories; depen­
dencies; and foreign countries.
(Continued on page five)

Notice To A ll Members of The
Alumni Association of Swarthmore College
Plan For Reorganisation o f The Alumni Association.

The annual meeting of the Alumni Association of Swarthmore College will
be held at the College on Saturday, June 5, at 10:45 A. M. daylight saving time.
In addition to the regular business, the meeting will constitute a Constitutional
Convention, to consider a recommendation of the Board of Directors for a new
Constitution and By-Laws of the Association. This Convention is called, and the
new Constitution and By-Laws are presented, in accordance with a resolution
adopted by the Association at its annual meeting on June 6, 1936. The pertinent
extracts from the minutes of that meeting are as follows :
“The Alumni members of the Joint Committee on College Alumni Relation­
ships presented a plan for the reorganization of the Alumni Association in
the shape of the new By-Laws and a new Charter.”
“After much discussion it was voted that the proposed plan be referred to
the Board of Directors for consideration.”
“It was voted that a constitutional convention be held at the next annual
meeting.”
At the meeting of the Board of Directors of the Alumni Association on April
15, 1937, the following resolution was adopted:
“The Board of Directors, in accordance with the minute adopted at the annual
meeting of the Alumni Association on June 6, 1936, have taken the plan of
reorganization presented at that meeting, have made a careful study of it,
and recommend the following Constitution and By-Laws based on that plan.”
The Constitution and By-Laws, as recommended by the Board of Directors,
are printed in the accompanying copy of The Garnet Letter.
All members of the Association are urged to attend the meeting on June 5.
To facilitate discussion, it is suggested that they read the article on “The Reor­
ganization of The Alumni Association” in the December, 1936, issue of The Gar­
net Letter, and that they bring to the meeting the text of the proposed Constitution
and By-Laws.
FRANK W . FETTER.
For the Board o f Directors of The Alumni Association of Szvarthmore College.

The Garnet L etter
ARTICLE IV

ELECTION OF COUNCIL
The names and addresses of those to serve upon the
Council for the first year following the adoption of these
By-Laws, apportioned among the five zones, and their
respective terms of office, are as follows:
/J t > - / f l f f
ZONE I

MEN
Raymond K. Denworth, T l, Lansdowne, Pa...........2 years
William W. Tomlinson, T 7, Wynnewood, Pa.......... 2 years
Joseph H. W illits, T l, Swarthmore, Pa....................2 years
H. L. Brown, T6, Drexel Hill, Pa........................ ...... 1 year
Francis W . D’Olier, ’07, Moorestown, N. J .............1 year
Thomas B. McCabe, ’15, Swarthmore, P a.................1 year
Charles C. Miller, ’86, Riverton, N. J. ...................... 1 year
ZONE II

Benjamin R. Burdsall, ’25, New York C ity .............2 years
Howard C. Johnson, Jr., ’30, New York C ity ........ 1 year
Amos J. Peaslee, ’07, New York C ity ........................1 year
ZONE HI

Samuel Dean Caldwell, 3rd, ’34, Washington ........1 year
Thomas B. Taylor, T2, Washington, D. C...............1 year
ZONE i v

Samuel D. Heed, ’07, Cincinnati, Ohio ................... 1 year
Spencer R. Keare, ’25, Chicago, 111.............................1 year
ZONE v

Earle R. Thoenen, ’23, San Francisco, Cal...............2 years
ZONE i

WOMEN
F. M. Atkinson, T7, Lansdowne, Pa.......................... 2 years
M. S. D’Olier, ’07, Moorestown, N. J ........................2 years
Ruth V. Poley, T l, Philadelphia, P a.......................... 2 years
Anna O. Eberle, ’13, Philadelphia, Pa...... ................. 1 year
Elizabeth M. Folwell, ’27, Ardmore, Pa....................1 year
Helen W . Gawthrop, T8, Wilmington, Del............... 1 year
Jane M. Spangler, ’31, Pittsburgh, Pa........................ 1 year
ZONE II

Gertrude B. Burdsall, ’28, Port Chester, N. Y .......1 year
Katharine M. Denworth, T4, Bradford, Mass.........1 year
Anna M. Smith, T5, E. Williston, L. I., N. Y ........ 1 year
ZONE h i

Elizabeth H. Bartlett, T2, Baltimore, Md................ 1 year
Margaret S. Mclnerney, ’28, Washington ..............1 year
ZONE i v

Jean F. Biddle, ’30, Chicago, 111....................................1 year
Ruth E. Kewley, ’34, E. Cleveland, O hio................. 1 year
ZONE V

5

shall meet in June of each year and choose from the Coun­
cil membership an Executive Committee of five men and
an Executive Committee of five women; in June 1938 and
each year thereafter it shall also choose the President and
other officers of the Alumni Association.
Each Executive Committee shall select its own chair­
man. Each Executive Committee shall have full power
to deal with all matters pertaining particularly to its own
membership and to its own constituents.
The Council shall meet at such times as shall be agreed
upon, or at the call of the President. Matters pertaining
to the College as a whole, or a general alumni policy as
distinguished from the particular interests of the men and
the particular interests of the women, shall be passed upon
by the Council as a whole or a committee thereof. Five
men and five women shall constitute a quorum of the
Council.
The Council shall have power to determine any question
of jurisdiction and any question affecting the alumni as a
whole, subject to being over-ruled by the vote of twothirds of the members of the Association present at the
annual meeting in Commencement Week.
The President shall fill for the unexpired term, all va­
cancies on the Council caused by death or resignation.
As the terms of the members of the Council, as ratified
in these By-Laws, expire, their places shall be filled by
election by the members of the Alumni Association in
their respective Zones. All members of the Association
are eligible to vote, but only men may vote for men candi­
dates and only women for women candidates.
The President of the Alumni' Association shall appoint
a nominating committee of four men and four women,
which shall make nominations for all zones. The ballots
for all zones shall be sent out by the Secretary of the
Association.
In those zones, where the terms of two or more men, or
of two or more women, expire in June 1938, one half of
the new men members and one half of the new women
members shall then be elected for two years, and one half
for three years. Thereafter, all members shall be elected
for three year terms.
ARTICLE v i

DUES
m W/
The dues of each member shall be one dollar a year for
a period of fifteen years, after which yearly dues shall
cease.
Any member who has paid ten dollars to the Association
within five years of the graduation of his class shall be
exempt from all yearly dues.

Marguerite D. Vedeler, ’20, Pocatello, Idaho ........ 2 years
a r t ic le v ii

ARTICLE V

COUNCIL MEETINGS
The Council, following the election of new members,

REPORT OF COUNCIL
The Council shall make a report each year at the annual
meeting of the Alumni Association.

The Garnet L etter

6

The Garnet Letter
PUBLISHED PERIODICALLY BY
THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION OF SWARTHMORE COLLEGE
SWARTHMORE, PENNSYLVANIA

F rank W . F etter, ‘20.................. ..................... ; . . . .Editor

THE NEW DORMITORIES FOR MEN
P eter O esper, ’38, a n d C harles W. L oeb, ’37.
The opening of the third of the old Swarthmore Pre­
paratory School buildings as a men’s dormitory last fall
marked the completion of a new group of men’s dormi­
tories at Swarthmore College. Nearly one hundred men
of the College, mostly juniors and seniors, now live in the
three recently renovated “Prep School” buildings, grouped
around the soccer fields at the southeast corner of the
campus.
The arrangements at the “Prep School” represent an
attempt to make dormitory life as much as possible like
home life. Provided with a large lounge, billiard and
table-tennis rooms and bowling alleys, and with ready
access to the new Field House and to athletic fields, the
new dormitories afford greatly improved recreational fa­
cilities. The lounge, located in the north building, is
furnished with easy chairs and couches, and with writ­
ing tables like those found in the finest hotels. Recrea­
tion is provided by a large supply of current periodicals,
and by a combination radio and phonograph set, donated
by Strawbridge & Clothier. An adjoining room with an
open fireplace is a favorite place for small gatherings
and bridge games. Thomas McCabe, T5 has presented
a billiard table, which, together with the ping-pong equip­
ment, is in constant use.
The living quarters of the new dormitories are much
lighter and roomier than those in Wharton Hall. The
fact that relatively few men live on a single hall in the
first and second building, while in the third building all
of the rooms are grouped into suites, is conducive to
quiet study. The suites in the third building are espe­
cially luxurious. Each has its own bathroom and pri­
vate entrance hall, and accommodates from two to four
men. The medicine chest in the bathrooms and the builtin bookshelves with which the rooms are provided, are
special features of this building. There is a lounge in
this building, also, but it is not yet completely furnished.
Mr. Pittenger, who conceived the plan for the new
dormitories and directed their construction and furnish­
ing, has taken such an interest in the project that he has
moved, with his family, into the house adjoining one of
the buildings. The presence of the Pittenger family,
always at home to the students, and always truly interested
in them, has tended to make the “Prep School” a real
home. Mrs. Pittenger (Cornelia Chapman ’26) and the

“little Pitts” in particular, have created a homelike atmo­
sphere which would otherwise be lacking.
Freeing the men from hampering restrictions and from
too-close supervision has been one of Mr. Pittenger’s.
chief policies with regard to the new dormitories. Visitors,
from other campuses have expressed astonishment at the
success of “proctor-less” dormitories, but Mr. Pittenger
believes that the past year shows the experiment to be
highly successful. He feels that if there were proctors,
the men might think they had to do something to entertain
them.
Although much has already been done toward “mak­
ing a home of the dormitories,” Mr. Pittenger has ambi­
tious plans for the future. One of the uncompleted pro­
jects is the installation of a kitchen and dining room,
which might be used for the entertainment of guests of
the college and for special occasions. Work on these
rooms has already been begun. The establishment of a
well-stocked library in the lounge is another of Mr. Pit­
tenger’s plans, and he hopes that rooms may eventually
be fitted up where the men may in their spare time pursue
such hobbies as painting, sketching, wood-working and
craftsmanship.

WOMEN’S W IN TER SPO RTS
A nne C ooper, ’38.

The Swarthmore women completed their winter varsity
athletics with a record of seven victories and two defeats
in swimming, and five wins and four losses in basketball.
The 1936 season ended with four victories, three defeats
in basketball, and two victories, two defeats in swimming.
The two defeats at the hands of the New York Univer­
sity and Penn Hall swimming teams in 1936 were re­
peated in the past season. Both these teams have been
undefeated for the last two years.
A system of class meets with Temple University was
inaugurated in the 1936 season and was repeated this
year. The freshman, sophomore, and junior classes at
Swarthmore sent a team to meet the teams of those classes
at Temple. The results of these meets were in favor of
the Swarthmore freshmen and juniors and the Temple
sophomores. These inter-college-class meets enable more
women to compete in inter-collegiate athletics since there
are not enough varsity members in each class to make up
a team. Such meets are scheduled with both Temple and
Beaver for the 1938 season.
Coach Parry’s basketball team were unable to avenge
the 1936 defeats by Ursinus, Rosemont, and Beaver, going
down before these teams and the New College team, a
new opponent on this year’s schedule. Both the swim­
ming and basketball teams were victorious over Swarthmore’s traditional rivals Bryn Mawr.

The G arnet L etter

7

TH E FINANCES OF OUR COLLEGE.
J. A rcher T urner, ’05, T reasurer.
E THINK of a business institution not only in
terms of the service it renders and the type of
goods it may manufacture, but also as to whether
it is a profitably operated concern. One thinks of an edu­
cational institution usually only from the point of view of
the educational advantages it offers. But even an educa­
tional institution cannot maintain its quality of service un­
less its income is sufficient to meet its needs, and fortu­
nate indeed is the institution with a substantial endow­
ment. It may be of interest to our Alumni and our
friends to learn briefly how much money it does require
annually to operate Swarthmore College, where this money
is obtained and how it is spent.

W

The answer is that roughly the annual expenditures of
the College are around $850,000, and the income to meet
these expenditures comes either from the charges made at
the; College to the students for tuition, fees, room and
board, or from income derived from our Endowment
Fund. The annual expenditures above referred to divide
themselves about as follows :
Salaries of the Administrative and Teaching
forces, including annuities ..................................... $390,000
Operation and maintenance of plant, Dormi­
tories, Dining Room and Miscellaneous
General Expenses ..................................................... 360,000
Departmental Supplies and Expenses ................... 100,000
$850,000
Obviously if each dollar of income is to perform the maxi­
mum amount of work, it is required that the College shall
maintain a good business administration and this the Col­
lege does. Besides being a great educator, President
Aydelotte is a good business man. He has surrounded
himself with capable business assistants and particularly
can this be said of N. O. Pittenger, the College Comp­
troller, and Andrew Simpson, Superintendent of Buildings
and Grounds/ “Pitt,” as he is familiarly known, is from
Indiana, and possesses the qualities of a typical Hoosier.
He is a good collector, a careful spender, and a sound ad­
viser. Andrew Simpson maintains the College property
in splendid condition and initiates many improvements in
our plant which constantly reduce the unit cost of opera­
tion.
Our total annual income is derived from two sources,—
first, that collected from the student body for tuition,
fees and charges for room and board (less deductions for
scholarship aid), which totals slightly over $500,000, and
second, the income derived from the investment of our
endowment funds, which for the present calendar year will
amount to about $350,000. The unit charge for tuition,
fees, board and room has been more or less stable for a

number of years, the income varying only according to
the number of students and the amount of scholarships
annually awarded. The big growth in our income over
recent years has come from our constantly enlarging en­
dowment fund.
During the first thirty-five years of the existence of the
College, practically all of the funds secured were used in
enlarging and improving the physical plant of the College.
When Joseph Swain assumed the Presidency in 1902 our
endowment barely exceeded a half million dollars. During
the twenty year period in which he occupied the Presi­
dency—in addition to the adding of many new and im­
portant buildings to the campus—the endowment of the
College was increased to a sum exceeding $3,000,000.
This growth represented in new buildings and equipment
and in endowment, has continued at a rapid pace under
the able and aggressive leadership of President Aydelotte.
As of December 1936, as a result of several campaigns
our endowment had reached a sum in excess of $7,500,000.
Based on the ratio of dollars of endowment per student,
Swarthmore now ranks eighth in the list of the top rank­
ing American colleges and universities, and we rank'
seventh in the ratio of the size of the faculty to the num­
ber of students. This latter factor is significant and im­
portant. The direct benefit in dollars which accrues to
the student body because of the substantial income re­
ceived from our endowment may be noted from the fol­
lowing statistics. During the college year 1935-36,
Swarthmore had a student roll of 652, eighty-five of whom
were day students. Exclusive of payments made for
room and board, the total payments for tuition and fees
by the student body to the College for the above college
year, represented about 52% of the actual cost of the
services rendered. The balance of the cost was covered
by endowment income. Thus, each Swarthmore student
by virtue of our income from endowment funds received
a subsidy1 of approximately 48% of the cost of his edu­
cation. If board and room charges were added, the stud­
ent body paid only 60% of the actual cost of operating
the College for the above College year.
We now come to a most interesting phase of our finan­
cial situation. How have our endowment funds been
invested, and what has been the return? Swarthmore
College has as the President of its Board of Managers a
most interesting and talented gentleman who is also the
Chairman of, the Trust Committee of the Board, having
charge of the investment of our Funds. Not the least of
his talents from which Swarthmore College has benefited
has been his uncanny judgment over a period of many
years in maintaining a sound investment policy and the
(Continued on page eight)

s

The Garnet Letter
THE FINANCES OF OUR COLLEGE
(Continued from page seven)

selection of sound securities. The results have been in­
credibly good. In this splendid work Charles Jenkins has
been ably assisted by other members of the Committee,
particularly Howard Cooper Johnson and T. Stockton
Matthews. Swarthmore Alumni and friends should be
most grateful for the immense amount of time and thought
and personal interest these men have devoted to this diffi­
cult task and the splendid results they have achieved as
appear from the following statistics. The December 1936
appraisal of our investment portfolio showed that the
market value of our investments was approximately 5%
in excess of the book value, and it is to be noted that our
book value is the actual cost of our investments and there
have been no write-offs. In other words, the December
1936 market value of our investments shows $1.05 for
each dollar originally given to the College.
The investment policy of the Trust Committee of the
Board has always been shaped with the thought that their
primary responsibility was to preserve the principal, and
in so doing, to secure as good an annual return as a sound
policy of investment would permit. Our annual return
reached a high of about 5.35% in the late twenties, before
the depression, and a low of slightly less than 4.5% in
1936. Returns this year indicate that this rate will not
decrease, and will probably increase somewhat for 193637. The Committee has generally favored high grade
bonds for investment and fortunately refrained from the
temptation to buy common stocks in the years immedi­
ately preceding the 1929 market slump. Experience has
proven that this policy was wise both from the standpoint
of the preservation of our principal and the maintenance
of income. Consequently the operation of our College
was not affected due to depreciated income during the
recent depression, nor did the market value of our invest­
ment portfolio ever fall seriously below the J>ook value.
During the past two years many of our high grade
bonds have been called. As respects certain issues which
have been held by the College for a great many years with
never a failure to pay interest when due, it has been a real
shock to our Chairman because of his intense pride in our
portfolio, to part with these issues. It was like breaking
the tie with an old friend. Such issues as have been called
for redemption and such other issues as have been sold
by the Committee due to the unprecedented high market
prices of same with correspondingly low yields, have now
been replaced by the purchase of small short term mort­
gages on well located city or suburban residences, and
also to increase our holdings in selected preferred and
common stocks. At the present time our investment
portfolio is made up in the following percentages, with
their respective income return.

Bonds
Preferred Stocks
Common Stocks'*
Mortgages
Real Estate
Notes
Uninvested

63.4%
8.0%
14.2%
8.6%
4.2%
.5%
1.1%

Yield
Yield
Yield
Yield
Yield
Yield
Yield

4.3%
5.2%
4.6%
5.5%
5.3%
4.3%
5.3%

The Trust Committee has recognized for several years
the dangers of inflation. It is also aware of the many as­
pects of the unsoundness in the present economic re­
covery. Drastic changes in our investment policy may be
necessary but the course to be pursued is not clear. The
Committee is maintaining a policy of watchful waiting.
If business improvement is to continue past experience is
a sound guide for action. If another period of serious
depression is ahead of us, we members of the Trust Com­
mittee can only hope that we may be given the necessary
foresight and the wisdom to act in ample time and in a
proper direction best to safeguard the financial interests
of our College.

BASKETBALL—A NEW REGIME
G ordon S traka , ’37.

There are several reasons for characterizing this year’s
basketball season by the phrase, a new regime. It was
the team’s first year under the coaching of Mr. M acin­
tosh, and it also marked the baptism of the new field
house, which provides athletic facilities far superior to any
that previously had existed.
The third factor in this new regime was the use of an
entirely different system of play. In the past the Swarth­
more teams had been noted for their use of the “weave”
in which the team slowly worked the ball down the floor
and weaved in and out under the basket until an opening
for a shot presented itself. However, this year the at­
tack was composed of the “fast-break” system which is
used extensively in the West and with which Mr. Mac­
intosh is very well acquainted. In this style of play the
ball is advanced by long passes the length of the floor
and the receiver of the pass usually shoots as soon as he
gets the ball. If the large size of the crowds at the games
is any criterion, the spectators like this rapid and spec­
tacular offense.
Out of the sixteen games played, ten of them were re­
corded as victories. The most enjoyable of these wins
was the rather easy conquest' of Haverford in which the
second team played much of the time. Other notable
victories were those registered against Williams, Lafayette
and Pennsylvania M ilitary College.