The Megaphone (Georgetown, Tex.), Vol. 33, No. 6, Ed. 1 Saturday, October 19, 1940 Page: 2 of 4
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Page 2
THE MEGAPHONE
Saturday, October 19, 1940
.
“WE BELIEVE'
★ ★★★★★★
Swing vs Classics
There’s quite a question brewing over
Southwestern University’s campus that
might cause a cascade of friction.
The question goes something like this
SWING MUSIC VS. CLASSICAL MUSIC.
A majority of the students favor swing,
while Tom Johnson, band director, has his
group playing classical music and doing
military marches.
During the past week we have had sev-
eral letters and conversations urging us to
voice our opinion for swing and throw out
the present kind of music.
This is a case that should be weighed
with careful consideration from both sides
of the fence. We talked with Johnson on
behalf of the student body which favors
swing music; and first, we will present his
side of the much-talked about question.
Johnson says, “The ultimate obpectives
of the Southwestern Band are two-fold:
hirst, we are attempting to develop a pro-
per appreciation of the best in music in our
musicians; second, we are attempting to
train band directors properly.
“Of course we want to please the public,
and nobody knows better than I do how
popular swing music is. However, we in-
tend to continue on development of a good
concert band. We will maintain our stand-
ards, offer no apologies, and limit our ren-
ditions of popular music to the ‘Pigskin
Revue’.”
It is interesting to note, however, that
Johnson was the first to bring swing to
the Southwest dqring his stay at Southern
Methodist University. His S. M. U. swing
band got nation-wide publicity during the
1936 Rose Bowl Classic. Then everybody
switched to swing as music critics praised
the tiny Mustang bandmaster. A notice in
an Austin newspaper stated that Colonel
George Hurt, Texas University bandmaster
is also getting away from swing music.
Whether you believe it or not, Johnson
is getting plenty of fan mail congratulating
his new type of band. This is undoubtedly
a versatile world.
Now we will go to the other side of the
question that is very much favored by a
majority of the Southwestern University
student body.
After all, this is the place we call home
for three-fourths of every year, and since a
majority of us prefer swing music, we feel
that Johnson should play swing, at least
during the football season. This is suppos-
ed to be a democratic school, and if a ma-
jority prefer it, we feel that Johnson should
give us the kind of music that we and the
public crave. Other colleges play swing
and the public goes for it in a big way,
therefore, we feel that it would not hurt
the school or band majoring students to
play swing. After all Johnson should be
trying to please a majority of the students
and public.
The above paragraph contains the sen-
timents that are pouring in from a major-
ity of the students.
At present, we know of no solution that
would bring an immediate change; how-
ever, the most logical solution that we
know of would be for the swing backers to
get a list of their supporters and present
them to Johnson. After Johnson sees just
how many students prefer swing, he may
be inclined to make some alterations in his
present style of music.
SWING AND CLASSICAL MUSIC FOR-
GES ON!!!
We, the Students
Speak scfik
Sizzlin’
Scribblin’
CLIPPINGS
FROM A. C. F.
America’s collegians are enthusiastic
sponsors of the rise of Pan-Americanism.
The trend toward solidifying relationships
between the United States and her sister
nations of the New World is evident in de-
velopments on hundreds of campuses.
Importance of education’s role in this field
is noted by the New York Times, which
points out that in recent months the repub-
lics to the south have been subjected to a
quiet but nevertheless intense “penetra-
tion,” the invasion of American school
teachers. “Even more significant,” says
the Times, “were the^visits of whole groups
of teachers and undergraduates who went
south on serious study tours. The invasion
undoubtedly will have beneficial reper-
cussions on both continents.”
On the other side of the picture, the
University of Iowa Daily Iowan notes that
student enrollments in Spanish language
classes at American colleges and universi-
ties are showing substantial increases over
1939. “This trend,” the Iowan observes,
“holds one of the strongest hopes for real
improvement in understanding between
the United States and its neighbor nations
to the south
A practical application to the subject
is given by the Louisiana State university
Daily Reveille, which cautions that “more
than 200 students on this campus are not
getting the co-operation that they Bhoiild.
These are Latin-Americans.” Charging
that “the student body reneges in doing its
part by mildly ‘snubbing’ our Latin-Ameri-
can friends,” The LSU publication com-
ments that “the welfare of the United
States in protecting its democracy and its
people depends as much upon solidarity
with its neighboring countries to the south
as it does on its army and navy.”
a
of *4
e
[Student Prexyj
I *■••••••••••••••!
BY OT RODGERS
Could I, this week, Just put an
assortment of things In my column?
You know it grows monotonously
hard to think sometimes of some-
thing Interesting to say—bo this
time I’ll give you a few other def-
initions of words—the definitions
being different somewhat to those
Mr. Webster has handed down. Al-
so, I have a few paradoxles on fam-
ous quotations that you’d probably
understand better in these words.
For Instance, Mr. Shakespeare
once said: “Men have died from
time to time and worms have eat-
en them—but not from love.” And
to express the same idea: The in-
sides of no man has even been cut
by the broken pieces of his heart.
Then Kipling, in a fit of melan-
cholia, evidently, once described a
woman in these words: ”A rag, a
bone, antra huh* or hair.” Then
some quick-witted person, evident-
ly a great admirer of the weaker
sex cams back with the stinging
words referring to man: “A Jag,
a drove and tank of air.”
Now we have Mr. Webster’s
somewhat undecorated definition of
a woman—“The female of the hu-
man race.” Would you not rather
Saturday, October 19, 1940
“Bulldog” is givihg Lurline Bart-
ley tho rush these days!
• * *
Why was Sarah Frank so Inter-
ested in Evelyn breaking her date
Saturday night?
*
Fannin has been having some
conferences this week. Could it
have been about Friday night?
• • •
Lad Roark has been visiting the
infirmary lately. Is it Bette
Schram ?
* * *
Four of the Sig pledges seem to
find Alice Jean Raymond very in-
teresting company.
• * •
Ray Davidson says Kathleen
Horn has him going in circles.
* * *
Lloyd Carter and Mary Louise
Kennedy seen together frequently.
* • *
Abbie, we thing Betty Wilson is
cute, too. Congratulations!
• • •
Did Patsy ever get her quarrel
straightened out?
• • •
What’s the matter with the Phi’s?
Are they allergic to women?
* * •
Henry Meyers and Eugenia Pal-
mer still holding hands.
» • •
What goes on, John Rice and
Sara Jean Hell?
• * •
Joe Sneed’s friend from A. &
M. who visited him Sunday cer-
tainly made a hit with Jane Nixon!
• * •
Cummings acts as if he’s lost
something. Couldn’t be that girl
lrfend he talked himself out of,
could it?
• • •
Mary Ruth and Elrod—looks
pretty serious.
• * •
A. & M. visited Jerry Stone this
week-end.
• • •
Why doesn’t Bd Hodges give the
girls a break? Several girls wish
he would.
• • •
Cab is giving Rebecca the rush.
What’s happened to Patsy?
• • *
Looks like half the Zetas are go-
ing to Palestine this week-end, and
half the Tri-Delts to San Antonio.
0'"""
Everybody Yell
Pirate Locomotive No. 1
P-P-Pir
R-R-Rat
T-T-Tes
Pirates-Pirates-Pirates
Pirate Locomotive No. 2
Is Everybody Happy?
(Response) Well, Yes!
Is anybody down-hearted?
(Response) Well, No!
Then give that locomotive
And Give It Slow—
(ALL)
P-I-R-A-T-E-S
P-I-R-A-T-E-S
P-I-R-A-T-E-S
Ye-e-e-e-a Pirates! Fight!
Yo! Heave! Ho!
Yo! Heave! Ho!
Yo! Heave! Ho!
Pirates! Let’s Go !
* * *
Pirates Fight!
Pirates! Fight!
Yea! Pirates Fight
Fight ’em, Pirates, Fight
’em
Fight ’em, Pirates, Fight
’em!
Y-e-e-e-e-e-a, Pirates Fight
’em.
* * *
Heave! Ho! Pirates!
Heave! Ho! Pirates!
Heave! Ho! Pirates!
Yo! Heave! Ho!
¥
THE
BOOK MART
By Roy Bland
Memory Room
By Don Blanding
Fifty Poets
By William Rose Benet
Reviewed by Kirkland Edwards
Don Blanding, “poet by nature, actor by instinct, ar-
tist by accident, and vagabond by choice,” gives to the
world in his “Memory Rqpip,” a volume of poetry that
is strikingly and intensely interesting. The volume is
made up of the poet’s experiences gleaned from travel to
all parts of the glbbe. His subject matter comes from the
Orient, from Europe, from Canada
and Nova Scotia, and from the
prairies of the Southwest. Each
poem, an invitation in itself to en-
ter his room of “Worthless treas-
ures and prlcelesr trash” Is a vivid
example of the keen vitality, the
insight, and the philosophy of this
unusual personality.
Blanding himself is six feet tall,
weighs 190 pounds, and can speak
many languages. He has publish-
ed six volumes of poetry and gives
lectures all over the country. He
is an artist, as well as a poet, and
exotically illustrates his volumes
with drawings which are expres-
sive of his poems.
Critically speaking, "Memory
Room” is the best poem in the
book, but the others, “Memories
in Red,” “Leis from a Lyric Land,”
“A Thousand Lives,” and many
short lyrics are well worth the
time of reading. The work, oi*
the whole, has great strength and
feeling and is well written. We
liked the poet’s love of color and
the unusual, the ability to give
himself, while writing with a res-
traint seldom found In a younger
poet.
FIFTY POETS, edited by William
Rose Benet, is a well-arranged
anthology of collected poems by
well-known living poets. The book
is unusual because Benet has tried
the experiment of having the poets
select their favorite single poem,
giving reasons for the selections.
These reasons are printed as a pre-
face to each poem, and they give
the work a value that can seldom
be attached to other volumes In
the same field. The anthology is
extensive, covering all the writers
of the best poetry from Markham
fo George Dillon. It Is represen-
tative and bears the earmarks of
lasting qualities. William Rose
Benet is to be complimented on
the volume, and those who love
good poetry will enjoy reading and
studying it.
apply the words—That strange
creature whose curiosity is exceed-
ed only by her subtle Intuition and
whose “no’s” mean “yes’’ and vice
versa. They are found practically
everywhere except in the home and
ip the air service. They are known
(but never understood) to be long
drawn out conversationalists along
matters of no matter and vice
versa.
Wouldn’t you rather describe
night in these words:
Night is the time to weep
To wet with unseen tears
The graves of memory where
sleep
t-: The joys of other years—
than to use Webster’s “the dally
period of darkness.”
All of these various definitions
Just go to show that maybe all of
us do not see everything the same
way all of the time—which makes
us have a distinct feeling of orig-
inality—or something.
THE MEGAPHONE
Member
Phsociated Golleftiate Press
Distributor of
Gollefticde Digest
MW MHMUL tDVIimtlM WV
National Advertising Service, Inc.
GtiUg* PmUhktrt
4X0 Madison Av*. Naw Yomt N. V.
Published by the Students’ Association of. Southwestern Un-
iversity, Georgetown, Texas, issued weekly during the school year,
except during vacation periods, and holidaypi. Entered at the post-
office, at Georgetown, Texas, as second class mall matter, September
il, 1907, under provisions of the Act of March I, 1879, and acceptor
for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1108, Act
of October 8. 1917, authorised August 80. 1911.-------
Subscription Pricei $1.00 per year
THE STAFF
Feature and Editorial staff
Editor-In-Chief ........................... Derrlll Lee Catee
Associate Editor ................................. Loreice Daniels
Business Manager................................John L. Morelle
Society Editor ................................... Jonlsue Cogdell
.......T. K. Sanford. Rosalee Godbey
____«... Charlie Powell, Byron Record
8ponsor ........................j...........Mies Annabel Murray
Reporters: Ray Lawler, Billie Doris Hays, Walter Traylor, Gerry Stoss,
Edwins Jarrard, Wayne Dunoon. Patricia Quinn.
$0US?ERN
Crowd roaring derisively .
FRED ROQUEMORE worrying
about his "women” . . . RODNEY
MEYER smoking a pipe . . -. Mc-
KAY thrilled about her Lieut, from
West Point . . . JEANNE FURRH
looking forward to biology lab,
possibly because of GARBY . . t
ZETAS having pledge criticism of
initiates . . . HOTCHKISS learning
to talk like an idealistic dead-end
kid . . . JACKIE trying to explain
a dislocated rib . . . FANNIN con-
cerned about ex-student dues, al-
most . . . PHIKEIA’S giving a pic-
nic ... 55 STUDENTS registering
lor draft . . . Approximately same
number of girls worrying about
them . . . ROSALEE GODBEY
scouting for news . . . ROY ERWIN
Bneaking under fences . . . PATSY
BAKER working in the morgue
. . . journalistically speaking, don’t
get orrled .
MUSIC
REVIEW
BY BYRON WALTERS
We, as typical college students,
are increasingly, proud of our grow-
ing intelligence with each succes-
sive day. For this reason alone,
if not for others, we are able and
willing to understand that every
question which arises has two sides.
“Swing versus Legit.”
To begin with, we acknowledge
the merits of each. We also con-
tend that each has its pla< j in our
everyday life. What we do fail to
become cognizant of, is the fact
that our school is a musical con-
servatory, one intent on turning
out experienced and competent
musicians of whom we may be
proud. In the past this was, and
in the future this shall be our rep-
utation.
Of what are we concerned—the
selfish attitude of the individual or
the good of our school as a whole?
During football season, it is “chic”
to display our school spirit, but we
seem to forget the meaning of the
word the minute the final gun
sounds in the final game. We need
the sort of school spirit which
stays with us throughout the year.
Tom Johnson Is training musi-
cians to send out through all th^
state and some to other states.
When we leave Southwestern to en-
ter our varied professions, we will
be living In communities which
have high school bands. Now mind
you, the directors of these bands
make or break them. Do we wish
to place our school in a position of
ridicule because of our own selfish
desires while here? We would not
attempt to approach Miss Hago-
pian and ask that we have a
“Swing Choir.” it sounds ridicu-
lous, yes, but not any more so than
running up to Tom Johnson and
demanding that he play swing.
Tom looks at it In this way: a
band may be for two purposes, to
entertain or to produce competent
musicians who In their turn will
produce other competent music-
ians. Fine Arts In the State of Tex-
as is, with each successive <}ay,
playing a more Important part.
When we send our band out to
represent our School, do we want
the audience "trucking down the
aisle” tonight and forgetting us by
tomorrow afternoon, or will we
have conscientious st idents to show
for It the following year? Which
Is more lasting, Swing or Legit?
The answer may be found In such
examples as Hit Parade and Other
pqpular radio programs. Stirring
— * —■ — At.-. lilrn * ‘Prhliwift in , Jhn Wl
-fMOCWJ 11RV '» HJIIIUW wO HW 1XI
Act of Lohengrin” by Wagner,
(which, by the way will be on Sun-
day’s concert program) live in the
Imagination forever.
We have attempted to present
the question in an Intelligent man-
ner. The answer for your own
satisfaction rests on your own in-
telligence.
EXES’ CORNER
Rolland
Reports
Some days ago the writer was quite im-
pressed by a statement uttered by on of _
pressed by a statement uttered by one of ^
my time to three causes aside from my reg-
ular work,” he declared. “One of these
is my Church, the other a Boy Scout Troop,
and the other is Southwestern University.”
Southwestern is proud of this man. Not
proud because he has acquired wealth, be-
cause he hasn’t; not proud because he is a
famous world figure, because he isn’t,
though we do know that he is greatly loved
by hundreds of Southwestern exes and
others. Southwestern is proud of him be-
cause of the way he chooses to use his spare
time.
If you want to find one of the secrets to
Southwestern’s success in creating great
men and women of leadership, we believe
you can do it by observing again the way
this man plans to spend his spare time.
Whether this man ever becomes rich or
famous only time will tell, but there is one '
thing certain. When his time comes, he
will have made a greater contribution to
this world than anyone can possibly eval-
uate.
What better sort of education is there
than that which sends its recipients out into
the world eager to make a worthwhile con-
tribution to mankind? Old Southwestern
still nods her head in approval when she
sees her sons and daughters devoting time
and energy in the work of the Church, and
her time-worn face always wears a smile
when she finds her own offspring anxious
to express appreciation by spending some
time, money, and energy to perpetuate her
spirit arfd fit her for even greater service.
So this good graduate of the grandest ♦
old school in Texas has decided to devote
some of his spare time to his Alma Mater!
Fine! We commend him for it and lose
no time in recommending that hundreds of
other ex-students to likewise. Doubtless,
many of you would not hesitate on such a
proposition for a minute, but yo i don’t
know exactly how to start or what to'do
about it. Well, that’s our job, at least to
a certain extent, so we are going to help
you out.
First of all, let it be known that wheth-
er you are rich or poor, far away or near,
fat or thin, married or unmarried, good
looking or ugly, you can serve Southwes-
tern in the best way by working through
your Ex-students’ Association.
If your Ex-Students’ Association were
nothing but a “good time” organization it
would not be worthy of connection with —
such an institution as Southwestern. To *
be sure, our get-togethers, banquets, etc.
are very essential. However, behind all
the promotion of this fellowship of kindred
souls, we have a purpose: a purpose worthy
enough to challenge every Southwestern
Ex, a purpose important enough and deep
enough to cause every Southwestern man
and woman to want to become a contribu-
tor.
Suppose one thousand exes were to con-
tribute a few hours each week to further-
ing our cause. Mind you, we didn’t say
give a million dollars or even fifty dollars.
We said a few hours each week.
*■)
To begin with, such action on the part '
of that number of people would intensify
even more the spirit of our people. Then -
some rare books could be added to our *
beautiful library; a splendid collection of
musical records could soon be accumulated
and thus a new section added to our Mni“‘
library; Ex-student clubs could^be organiz-
ed in a score of Texas cities; our student
body could be tripled within a year (which
would be far more students than we want) $
professorships could be endowed; great
progress could be made in research. In
fact, the entire country could be made
Southwestern conscious.
All this and infinitely more «•»" be ac-
complished for Southwestern by her Ex-
students. Within Southwestern's great Ex- ^
student body lies the power to ™Im> our a
fondest dreams for Southwestern living J ■
realities.
Pefhaps we, like a great river, need only
a means of concentrating this power in or-
der to produce. A local club in your com-
munity is comparable to a dam in a river.
will serve to concentrate the power to
accomplish any desired mid.
No greater opportunity or reeponiubility
has ever been afforded any grOnp of peo-
ple than that afforded the Ex-students of
Southwestern as the old school looks out
- of hm
Mmm jei>
the
second century of service.
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The Megaphone (Georgetown, Tex.), Vol. 33, No. 6, Ed. 1 Saturday, October 19, 1940, newspaper, October 19, 1940; Georgetown, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth620681/m1/2/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Southwestern University.