The Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 3, No. 7, Ed. 1 Saturday, January 19, 1918 Page: 2 of 4
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Page Two
THE THRESHER, JANUARY M, 1918
THE THRESHER
A fortnightly periodical published by
the students of the Rice Institute
at Houston. Texas.
Entered as second-class matter October
17, 1916. at the postofflce at Hous
ton. Texas, under the Act of March
3. 1879.
Subscription Kates.
1'er copy 10c
Per Academic Year ..75c
Business Office, Room 104 Administra-
tion Building.
Hoy H. Lillard , ..Editor-in-Chiaf
J. T. ltather, Jr. . . . .Managing Editor
Camille Waggaman... Associate Editor
R. W. Patten. . . . . .Business Manager
Phone Hadley 4803
Albert Thomas. . . .Circulation Manager
Mary Clark Weir..Asst. Cir. Manager
T. 8. Simons Athletic Editor
J. Harlyn Carson. .Asst. Athletic Editor
StatY itcporters
J. F. Jungman Miss Sarah I.ane
Sven Heiland Miss Anna Ricketts
.!. it. Shannon L. A. Reiber
A \!W" \<A\ Y1AR.
you belong to a brave Division which
just covered itself with a glory at Cra-
onne. It is weli. but do you know my
land! J inhabit a smaii town near Phil-
adelphia and I just have received my
rnaii. Take these newspapers (it was
yours) you will read them and you will
see what is my hope. After reading you
will have the same hope and judge of
what we are able by the next spring."
Since I read your newspapers and I
found Indeed them very interesting. But
1 should like to know a correspondent
wishing to learn how we Hght and why
we do so, and also whom in return
should give me Information very trusty
from America and his hope, too. 1
should be very happy to be able to read
to my trench friends his good and true
letters which will give us a new courage
again to continue our struggle and our
hate, too, against "le Boche." I should
:ike to acquire from a American friend
a new hope for all my comrades, who
fight all German Army. I will send him
some photos of the Verdun's village,
where is reflected all work of the bar-
barous. Thank you in advance.
If I have been troublesome by my
tong letter, excuse me, please. During
the time 1 wrote it I have forgotten that
more hundred cannons shooted since
two hours over my head, that I was in
my deep shelter near "des Bosches" and
I was happy during this short time.
That is first result for me.
G. BERGUIGNAT, Private,
2!)9 Regiment d'lnfanterie,
Secteur Postal 195, France.
December 14, 1917.
—Philadelphia Public Ledger.
SOME SUGGESTIONS.
!ti its columns, the Thresher has not
heretofore intiuded much of current
or discussion, not directly eon-
<'"t-!it'<i with student affairs, but we feei
that it is not assuming too much of the
newspapers' rights to refer in some de-
gree to the affairs of the Nation at this j
time, it is out interest and our prob-
ietn also, which is involved in the fact
that in few of our memories is a recol-
lection of the advent of a new year over-
hanging which were the clouds of War, !
or. in another figure, with the Nation j
hr-)(l in the firm grasp of the war god, ;
Mars.' , '' ; ' . - ' ^
Why is it our concern? Because the
god of the young men, the god of the
< oih-,L..' men, is this year Mars, and it is
tht-M! he is calling, as in the language
of tue 'poet:
"Fresh and ambitious, unshackled by
offspring,
['awing the earth in the pride of their
might,
The-<e will I seize upon, herd them to-
gether,
Mouid them and arm them and fit.
them to tight."
it is a causa-which is becoming more
and more ours as college men each day.
ft is a cause in which some see a dreary
outlook, much to be iosf and much to
be endured, but we prefer to think of it
as a cause which promises honor and
glory to our Nation. and "democracy for
ail the world;" a cause to which we can
and are anxious to give our best, be-
cause the end is not futile.
The following excerpt article, which
we take the liberty to reprint, is an ex-
ample of what is expected of America,
and it is ours, as Americans, not, to fail:
now rut; pou t t i l ts Am i:
[HUME H .HtS' MAM.
He i.""ks t" Aontica As the Dearest Sun
On His Sad Horizon.
To the Rditpr of Public Ledger:
Sir - No doubt my tetter will appear
to you very ridicule, as it appear to my
mind. Hut the spot from which I write
is susceptible to make myself excused
for the great liberty 1 fake; awful spot,
indeed, as the Death is living there con-
stantly. She is overhead, under some-
times, and every night as to every day,
too, as the airplane's snore is very often
heard, in spite of more than three sor-
rowed years, nothing could make myseif
forgotten that I am Frenchman, but I
am afraid for the present winter we wiii
be in the trenches. A alone word shines
for the French soldier in the horizon,
and it is the name "Amerique." This
word is alone able to give a new cour-
age to the last fighting men of our su-
biitne France which give her children
for the iiberty of the world as generous-
ly as she did in the first days of the war.
If you wish to know why 1 write you,
1 wili sincerely say to you of my best
of might, but 1 beg you to excuse me
very much to not explain myself much
enough as I learned English alone and
by books.
One day of last month whose Division
1 belong, was engaged in 's lines,
and after battle we went to rest our-
selves near , in -. I was very
tired I meeted on the road an American
ambulance. I asked to the leader If
he permitted to get up near him, what
he did with pleasure. We spoked to-
gether for an hour, and he asked my
many details about our trenches life,,
about our last battle; I related them,
and ,In return asked a question If we
could rely on our American friends aid
and what he thought of that. Se shaked
hands with me and slowly to make him-
self better understood, he said, "French
soldier, I don't know you, but I know
As a student of the Rice Institute,
and desiring to speak only on the ques-
tion of the good of everyone concerned,
the author thinks that the following
things are worthy of notice:
In the lease for rooms in the Rice
Institute Residential Hail there is a
provision for the cleaning of the rooms
with vacuum apparatus at short inter-
vals, of presumabiy about two weeks.
In previous years this has been more or
iess regularly carried out, and during
other Christmas holidays a!) the rooms
have been somewhat thoroughly cleaned,
floors waxed, etc. This year, however,
no apparatus has been in evidence, and
neither during the lioiidays was the
blessing of cleanliness advanced. Im-
mediately preceding the holidays there
was an epidemic of sickness in the halls,
especially of measles. For correct
sanitation and precaution, the iaw of
health would say that not only should
aii dirt, etc.^ in evidence be removed,
but also that thorough fumigation be re-
sorted to, so as to eliminate all danger.
The time for this is past, however, so all
we can ask for now is a renovation by
the vacuum apparatus now and then.
Last, year there appeared in the
Thresher an appeai for better and more
constant service at the Residential Haii
office. Miraculously the appeal was
taken note of and relief granted. This
year, however, there is a reversion to
the old state of affairs in which the
watchman is out of the office making
his "clock-punching" tours neariy haif
the time, and the office is locked. Un-
der these conditions students are not
oniy locked from the only avaiiabie
phone, no matter how urgent their busi-
ness, but may be heid up from receiving
very important phone calls from rela-
tives, friends or business associates, who
may be abie to call oniy at some time
when the phone rings, but futileiy upon
an earless office. A case of life and
death is just as liable to come at one of
these periods. For this reason, the au-
thor believes that it is the student's
right to ask for this consideration.
WE GHiEt E.
supposed that soma would leave and
some would be forcibly dropped ftom
the roli, and we worried. But now the
resuits of the Conditions are the fapts
of the case, and we grieve. At the be-
ginning of this school year, slightly un-
der 650 students were enrolled in this,
our Rice Institute. The number is now
about 420, and we grieve. Exact sta-
tistics, it was found, were impossible to
obtain through the office, hut those
nearest available set the number of fail-
ures (1. e., those dropped from the roll
because of delinquencies In studies) at
about 62, and the number on that now
popular order of "Probationists" at
about 125. If this be correct, we have
aboutf 300 eligible for student activi-
ties out of 650 students who started the
year. A conservative estimate would
be that about half the original number
are now available for student affairs,
and we grieve.
Throughout the year there has been
an almost continual outflux, especially
of the men who have volunteered into
the service. For them we feel an hon-
or and a glory, but we have lost them,
and we grieve. At Christmas our num-
ber dropped appreciably by something
near 100, Including both the voluntary
and Involuntary departures, and we
grieve because the facts are impressed
upon us and we are left lonesome.
Let us recall our much repeated slo-
gan, "Rice Institute: 1st, Scholarship;
2nd, Scholarship; 3rd, Scholarship."
The question remains, "Are we observ-
ing our slogan?" The answer is evi-
dent. According to Dr. Lovett, the
scholarship of the plan is at least 25
per cent lower than last year. The con-
ditions under which to work this year
and last year are reverse. Those who
know the conditions can judge what
more of success couid be expected of
us. This year the morale has been
siowly ebbing away, and we grieve and
wonder if aii things are great which
come from great minds.
A STATEMENT.
It is with regret that The Thresher
management admits that there has
been noticeable delay in the appearance
of its issues just before the hoiidays and
now, but in explanation we wish to
point out the general confusion about
the place due to internal restlessness,
etc., and the loss of students. The
Thresher has suffered from this along
with the other organizations, and our
staff has been much depleted and dis-
organized. We wish specially to im-
prove the circuiation department in the
future, and feel sure the capable men
we are to add to all departments wiil
improve matters greatly.
Suppositions are one thing, facts are
another. We may worry about a sup-
position, but we grieve about the fact.
When conditions became known it was
The foilowing composition is from
the hand of First. Lieutenant Beecher
Teal, formeriy of Rice Institute, and
graduate of 1917. Wc think its merit
more than justifies its appearance here:
PIKE S PEAK PE\S!H.
Perilous Prolongue.
There on the edge of the desert sands,
On the high plateau of the Western
lands,
A soldier sits in his tent alone.
And sitting sighs, and sighing sits.
Alternately chews his cigar and spits,
And thinks of the girls he's known.
Pome Proper. Very Blank Verse.
Setting: Army camp on the plain,
Hocky Mountain range in distance, with
Pike's Peak rising prominently above
The lesser eminences. Time—assorted.
Sunrise.
(Fancy) Her crest illumined by the
rising sun is burnished goid, and down
her granite flanks streamers of gossa-
mer cloud faii gracefully. She is a
goddess, smiiing disdainfully upon the
degradation of the iowly plains.
(Fact) Arms to thrust. Raise!
MILITARY NOTES
° ^
HCMHOYOU H-HMOtSBOVS
Ltt(t OUH - HO you
XMow Qit-t-joNgs o* fumeo
rMtes
Moss cnts«t!'t(, 3"Ot.OOTS
Touas
Rice
Shirts
$3.95
YbKr
CAw&j
Rice
Hats
$2.50
MADE TO MEASURE
UNIFORMS
Heavy OD and heavy weight serges made to your
measure and the same ShotweH's guarantee
goes with every garment
Suits
$27.50
O'Coats
$32.50
Mackanaws
$24.50
SHOTWELL'S
REZ,L4B/ZJ7T
Thrust arms forward and back, in two
counts. Ready. Exercise! One two,
one two. Hey, there, you swarthy son
of a Spanish cavalier, hold your head
erect!
Noon.
(Fancy) Under the midday glare she
rests benign, a white haired mother,
watching over and sympathizing with
the work of her sons below. The heart-
iess god of day has torn away her filmy
garment, and substituted a habit of
modest brown.
(Fact) Squads right about, and be
sure to hold the pivot! Quit looking at
the ground, your feet are still there.
Velasquez, are you chewing tobacco in
ranks? Spit it out and report for kitch-
en police in the morning.
Right.
(Fancy) Out on the far horizon she
rears her disky head, and bids me come
to comfort and protect her against the
enveloping darkness. Mellow are her
lips in the moonlight, and ripe for kiss-
ing; and she "makes sweet moan, as did
La Belle Dame Sans Merci."
(Fact) And like that last named
lady, she hides under her blanket of
virgin snow a heart of coldest granite.
You fellows turn out that light, and let
a man get his alloted six hours of sieep.
(Lights are dimmed, snoring begins
softiy, crescendo to great volume.)
Curtain.
''-Sa^s/ac^on Musf Be Yours"
UNHFO
PERSONALS
T. M. Keiiler, first sergeant Medical
Corps, is visiting friends In the city.
Ask Gus Tips about his Theodocia;
ask him why he wants to go to Texas
when they play basketball.
Tom Colston spent a few days with
Rice friends whilg passing through
here on his way to join the navy.
The Seniors wish to announce the
marriage of Miss Ethel Morgan to Lieu-
tenant F. C. Ford. At home since Jan-
uary 3. Westbrook Hotel, Ft. Worth.
F. B. McAlester, bemoaning the con-
dition of her hands after a snow battle,
remarked sadly: "They didn't use to
do that way when I was YOUNG."
On her (?)nth birthday friends of
Miss McAllister surprised her with a
party. After dancing a while delicious
refreshments were served.
J. L. Barnett, D. K. Carson, Jr., J. P.
Markham, Jr., R. W. McKenney, A. L.
Thomas, G. W. Tips and J. A. Trigg
spending the holidays In Nacogdoches,
were hosts on New Year's eve at what
they admit was the swellest ball of the
holiday season. Rice colors and Owl
were given prominence In the decora-
tions.
The following young co-eds have or-
ganized a club for the purpose of hav-
ing a good time: Misses Wier, Man-
tooth, C. Wortham, B. Downs, A. B.
Lockett, A.' Shlrmer, R. Mickelborough,
M. L. Hogg, R. Francks, D. Wilson, O.
Erkel and K. Waugh. The Initial en-
tertainment will be a Majestic party
Saturday night, followed by a dance at
Miss Mantooth's.
The Leopold & Price mititary depart-
ment carries big stocks of Army Uni-
forms and dress accessories of the
better grade
Kuppenheimer O. D. Khaki
Uniforms at $16.50
Kuppenheimer O. D. Serges
at $35.00 and up
O. O. Reefer Coats (Wool lined) regu-
!ar $18 and $20 values reduced
to $14.40 and $16.00
Army Shirts at $4.00 and up
Stetson Army Hats at $5.00 and up
Other Army Hats at $2.50
Spiriat Puttees $2.50 and $4.50
Canvas Leggings $1.50
"The Kuppenheimer House"
of Houston
509 Main, Opposite Rice Hotel
Everything in )ine of Military
Equipment
JONES &H0FFMAM
Taitors, Ciothiera and Haberdashers
Pay antf -Save Money
PHONE PRESTON ]4M 4M MAtN STREET
Houston, Texas
Unc!e Sam Shoe Repairing Co.
M. D. M1STRETTA. M. J. FALCONE
] 004 ConwreM Avenue. Around Comer horn Main
WORX CLM/MATEED
Phone Proton 4118
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The Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 3, No. 7, Ed. 1 Saturday, January 19, 1918, newspaper, January 19, 1918; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth229809/m1/2/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.