8/6/2019 The Merciad, January 1932

1/4

W i n t e r P r o mN u m b e r TH E MERCIAD IFW i n t e r P r o mf!N u m b e rMINUTE NEW S A BOUTTHE PROM \ IMid-Winter Prom isa reality. We are all ex

ol. Never before has a Mer-Dance caused so m u c hFirst, we heard about t he sub reduced* to a

it. Then, the uniq ue idea of% "Prom G ir l" to performand more efficiently th an

l|

to furnish the music! Th at

line, which nearly caused

Relihan, Miss Whalen an dHeil. And among the gues ts

them at our dance ?hearJthe deco-

oh! the gorgeous gowns tha tdisplayed! Fanc y, for inO'Brien|in egg-shell

and Carmelita in black chifBut I don't wan t to

the dates! We are a lwaysI hear th at " P i c " | S u m -has a cute one. And Peggytoo. And by the way, ifparticular iwaltz or

that night, just ask P eggyit. The Orchestr a will playM i c k e y M ccoming too. Will see youthenJanuary 29th. Watchulletin! hoard daily for im

V Madelyn Hall, '32.o

WHO SAID|IT?"I t matters not how a man| gj"I am not a Virginian, butf"Love is the fulfilling of the}J : I"If there were no God, itTalent is that which is in

"And when he is out of sight,"Nothing succeds Hike suc

"Not Angles, but Angels.""The die is cast."Francis McCarty, '34.

it

P u b l i s h e d a t M e r c y h u r s t C o l l e g e , E r i e , P e n n s y l v a n laJANUARY, 1932 NUMBER 4

| THEY SAY.titl^M H I" thG first ^ t i o n ofthe Merciad to be dated 1932 andYear" L ! ^ **> "***" Newrear everybody.

That the Sophomore Class willfZ a ~ ry Valued * * m b e rfor they say Francis McCarty willente r the Order of M ercy hereFebrua ry 11 ; we wish her all success and' happiness in her new life.That basket-ball now is in thesport spotlight and the squad is ontra ining rules again. "May I haveyour de sse r t , !Kay?"That the sweater epidemic seemsto have hit I the third f loor; musthave been a fire sale down towncause they're a ll quite similar .That the big night will very soonbe herewhat night ? Why, theProm of course (no, this is not anadve r ti sement , me rely a n e w sitem.)|* That f rom now until January 29,in between term papers and examswell be rushing madly to one ofthe parlors, all dressed up in ourhest "bib and tucker" to meet thebo y friendsso that "blind dates"will not be so "blind."

That re turning to basketball theSophs played the Freshmen at abenefit game, Wednesday night,Janu ary 13, and guess>;who won?Right, the f irst timethe Sophomores 35 -10 . Be t te r luck nex ttime, "Freshies." \That Peggy Blair is very muchinteres ted in the study of medicine JThat Mrs. Milla Schneider Hart,our Glee Club instructor entertained a very appreciative audiencethe evenin g of Jan uar y 12, with anappropriate selection of classical

and popular music. Thank you, somuch, Mrs. Hart for a very inter-esting eveningwe hope our ownrecital will be as good.That no one ever knows on thethird floor wh ether Alice Reederlives in- 61 or 57; and Peggy Blair,vice versa .That anyone looking out of afront window at most?any time ofda y wouldlwonder if the OlympicGames were being held a t Mercyhurst. Many small (? ) f igures ingreen rompers are seen runningaround a cinder path in the orchard. Our money's on Mullaney,who at the 55th lap was way inthe lead.That the squad weighed in a t thebeginning of the seasonwonderho w they'll weigh out?That Margie Bacon is up andaround again and we hope toi haveher with us soon.That the Merciad staff is sponsoring a Bridge Party Monday evening, February 1. Hope we seeyou all thereand bring your boyfr iends; i t ' s leap year , you know.Ruth Ann Martin, '34.

o-

CLOUDSIf I could paint with words theclouds |Of white and gray and gold and* pink iAnd shape them into island crowds,% I'df be too good for earth , I |think.If I could take the downy thingsInto the hollow of a hand,And try to fashion lovely things, gI fear too much I'd understand!

Kay Barrett , '83.

SPILLING THE PEN

WhewIM Exams are over!!!!What a relief . . . After thoseawful days of cramming, studying,writing term papers and all therest of the excitement prevalentaround examination time, it surelyseema grand to be able to breathefreely . . . Oh, I tell you it is agrand 'n glorious feelin' . . . andeverybody seems to be walking onairtOf course, the PROM has a lotto do with the wonderful dispositions, too . . . Ask Jane Connor.Ohj well, who has a b etter reason ?Promenading up and down the corridors in th e. new "form als" isloads of fun. At least from allappearances it seems to be . . .The dresses are so "different" thisyear . . . very stylish . . . and mostbecoming . . . and then the fun ofmaking out the dance programme.Everybody is arranging a scheduleib r the new semester, which isabout to begin. You* know>. thoseschedules with everything in themorning . . . but afte r all, one getsso drowsy in the afternoon andreally there are so "many -excitingthings to do. ^Mary Yriberry canvouch for this . Ha! Ha! Howabout it Mar y? However, I thinkthat?it is a very wise idea.The Annual Card Party is to beheld at* Mercyhurst on February 1.We are looking forward to a largercrowd than ever before . . . muchcard playing . . . and meeting manyof our ^friends . . . The recitalgiven by Mrs. Hart, our Glee ClubDirectress, was most enter ta iningand I'm sure that we all appreciateit . . . We are all practicing earnestly for the recital of the Mercyhurst Glee Club which will hepresented February^ 21.Here 's to the best o' luck in thenew semester . . . Have a goodtime at the prom . . . you can eyent r y a " f a in ting ac t" . . . i f youwish to cause a little excitement. . . there will be plenty who mayrevive you . . . "You bet" . . .says. . . Peggy and Jane * and . . .So long . . . I'll see you all atthe PROM. IElizabeth McDonald, "38.

o

THE GLEE CLUBI hear some strains of musicFrom me it can' t be far ,'Tis floating in the transomMy trend of thought to mar.The melody entrancingGoes tra-la-la-da-deIt makes one feel like dancingAnd counting o ne, two, thre e.I question and I wonderWhence comes this music sweet?Can it be from a recordOr vendor on the" s t r ee t ?Ah!, Now X know th e answer1The girls of MercyhurstAre practicing their vocalTheir girlish lips are pursedBut ah!1 there goes a discordA rumbly, jumbly sound,More jjpractice, then a ll effortsWith perfection will be crowned.Elizabeth Wilbert, '38.

This Month's gW H O ' S W H OIs tall and stately.Has keen grey eyes and a high,intelligent forehead.Commands respect and attentionfrom all with whom she comes incontact.Is a brilliant conversationalist andwhen she speaks, every one f elsestops and listens with wrapt attention.Is a born leader and can always bedepended upon to do the rightth ing .Although thoroughly educated isever seeking to increase her vaststore of knowledge.Possesses a fondness for candy andthings sweet.Is a true and interested friend toall at Mercyhurst and inspiresconfidence in all who confide inher. JPossesses those threes grea t characteristics charm, culture andrefinement.Is loved and admired by all wh oknow her.Can ! be summed up in W ords-worths quotation:"Perfect woman, nobly plannedTo warn, to comfort and command."Has done for our College morethan any other one person. Andthis is none other Hhan MotherBorgia, our beloved Dean.

oPOETRY CONTEST

It is time for our Annual PoetryContest.! Last year , this contestbrought to light many young andpromising poets among our Collegians. Perhaps, you too, are apoet. Can you write odes, sonnets,or any kind of poetry at all ? If so,write one and submit!It to Mr.Relihan before February 20th.Prizes will be awarded for thethree best poems submitted.? Perhaps yours will be among thewinners. Perhaps you have somepoems that you have already written. Now is your chance to havethem published. Everyone shouldtry her hand at this and submit a tleast one poem, but you can submit more if you want to. Watchfor the February issue of the Merciad the w i n n e r s will beannounced, together with the winning poems. Wilr" your poem bethe re ? vMadelyn Hall. '32.

COMING EVENTSFriday, January 29MercyhurstMid-Winter Prom, Mercyhurst BallRoom. Reception begins at 8:45 ,Dancing at 9:15.Monday, February 1 SecondSemes ter begins. Merciad CardParty a t 8 P. M.Friday, February 5Annual Re treat Reverend Albert) Murray,conducting.Monday, February 8 Retreatcloses with Mass and Benedictionin the chapel. ^Wednesday, February 10Ash-Wednesday Lent begins. Makeyour resolutions now.

ALUMNAE NOTES

I was! out visiting; last week-endand came in contact with no lesst h a n ! six Alumnae. First ofi all,let us. offer our?sincere sympathyand pr ayers | for Mary E llen Wilbert who is | suffering dreadfullyfrom a serious case of rheumatism.We do hope you will recover soon,Mary Ellen. |1Barbara Wilbert is teaching inMary Ellen's place in the Oil CityHigh School, where Maureen Brewster is a lso teaching.Mrs. Kenneth Carlson (IreneDolan) has a beautiful 'apartmentin Oil City and extends an invitation to all of you to visit her.Teresa A'Hearn is busy studyingfor Grove City finals.Casey Egan is waiting for a certa in University Prom ' and alsoMercyhurst 's .We are glad tolhear that Margaret Harr is is teaching' in Allen-town, New York. ?J3est of luck toyou, Margaret.Mary McCrady has joined thefaculty of the Wesleyville HighSchool.Jean Elliott was substituting forawhile. Get her to tell you allabout it .Helen Cummings is! winter ing inthe Flor ida sunshine. L u c k yHelen!Elizabeth Hamburger is a lso in

the South visiting. former classmates.Nell Guilfoyle was our guest theother week-end. Seemed jus t likeold times having Nell back again.Mrs. Ed Berry (Betty s Fasen-myer) is now residing in Franklin,Penna.Congratulations to Dede Hastings' Tozer. If s a gir l .Mother Hildegarde came all theway from Lancaster , Pennsylvania ,to spend a few days with u s. Las tyear, Mother Hildegarde won aplace in all our hearts, and so itwas with open arms that we received her. Her visit was far tooshort and we will await withpleasurable anticipation anothervisit frompier.Alumn ae I let us hea r from you.We are anxious to know what youare doing. | |1 Cleland Driscoll, '82.

-oIT WAS|NOT LOVE

It was the thrill of sailing,The tune that we sailed to;It was the fear of failing,Our love dreams ne 'er come trueThe blue-green of the water,The f ickle August weather ,The old love-song sung softer,We glor ied in together!'Twas the magic of the sea ,The blue of skies above;^'Twas this that fooled bothand me.'Twas only this, not love!

y ou

The mystery of the midnight sky,What were we dreaming of? MThe ship, the song, the sea, the sky,'Twas these alone, not love JKay Barrett, '33.

i

8/6/2019 The Merciad, January 1932

2/4

Page 2 TH E MERC1AD January , 1932

THE MERCIAD jPublished!monthly by the students of Mercyhurst College

Address all communications toMercyhurst College THE MERCIAD Erie, Pennsylvania

Subscription RatesONE DOLLAR THE YEARMERCIAD STA FF

EDITOR-IN-CHIEFMadelyn Hall, '32ASSOCIATE EDITORSfVerle McQuiston, '32leland Driscoll, '32| NEWS EDITORSKatherine Barrett, '33 RuthKatherine Gleason, '35 Ann Martin, '34

EXCHANGE EDITORMildred McCormick, !'33 BUSINESS MANAGEREthel Levick, '32

THE MERCIAD BENEFIT PARTYOn^Monday, February 1, at 8 P. M. the annual MerciadBenefit Card party will take place. Every year, this is oneof the outstanding) social affairs of the season at Mercyhurst.Pr ior to this year*, itfhas been given in the form of a BridgeTea, usually taking place on Saturday afternoon. However,this year , we have arranged to hold the Merciad BenefitsonMonday night, making it possible for not only women toattend,Ibut also the men.

This card party is given for the benefit of our collegepublication, The Merciad. We are all anxious to read theMerciad, when it comes out. We are interested in it. Weshould be j us t as interested and anxious about The MerciadBenefit Card Party for t h a t is what makes our publicationpossible. |We want this Par ty ta be the biggest we have everhad. We want to make it worthwhile. Therefore, everyonemust do her share in making it so.The tickets have been greatly reduced in price to meetthe pocket-books of all. This is the one t ime in the ent i reyear that the public is invitedfto a Mercyhurst social function,

and your friends will all be anxious to come. S tart makingyour reservations today J Tickets may be secured from thebusiness manager of The Merciad. See howl many youtcansell. Tell your friends about it advertise The MerciadBenefit Card Partymake them curious and interested.You want your friends to have the best entertainmentthey can have for their money, don't you ? Of course ,you do,i t 's only natural. Tha t 's why THE MERCIAD BENEFITCARD PARTY is always a topic of ^interest to those whoknow what is good and want the best of everything.All right, everybody, let 's all get together and make thisyear's^Merciad Benefit the biggest one we have ever had.We can, too, if everybody tries. Let 's make the people of ErieMERCIAD BENEFIT CARD] PARTY conscious.|* Get your tickets, now. Don't neglect anyone. Don't everlet it be said that it was your fault tha t So-and-so didn't atten dThe Merciad Benefit Card Pa rty. Don't forget we want to seeYOU and YOU and YOU, your mothers, fathers, grandfathers,grandmothers, brothers, sisters, girl friends, boy frjends, infact, everyone at fTHE|MERCIAD BENEFIT CARD PARTYI a| Monday, February 1 f ' | 8 P. M.1 I Madelyn Hall, '32.o

I I SECOND SEMESTER | |I The second semester is looked forward to with joy andsorrow because it signifies the completion of one year at College for some of us and the last for others of us.But it means the same for all of us infthe fact^that wecan^wipe the slate clean and begin all over |agaih. It is thewisest plan possible to have a change because we all feel tiredof the set routine of the past five months and are glad for achangev And I am sure that af ter a five day vacation in which

time we shall have attended one of the best dances ever? givenby Mercyhurst we shall all feel like doing our best and remedying the faults of last semester. As for the Seniors, I believeone and all will say t ha t we are looking forward to the saddestand, gladdest semester of all. f -f i {

1732-1932

Sponsored by the Federal Government the United Statesis beginning a nation-wide series of celebrations in s t a t es ,cities, andftowns commemorating the Washington Bi-Centen-nial. The Bi-Centennial will begin with Washington's Birthday, February 22, 1932, and extend over a period of eightmonths ending Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 1932.Although the celebration on February 22 will be especiallyelaborate as marking the 200th anniversary of G e o r g eWashington's birth, the special local and national celebrationson holidays and anniversaries and other days that can beconnected with the life of George Washington will be impressive.This celebration should not only commemorate the bir thda y of Washington; it should also have an educational value.Of course we have always known Parson Weems' improbablecherry kree story but! until recently little about the humanside of Washington has been known. In anticipation of theWashington Bi-Centennial, research into the life of GeorgeWashington has been] made. As * a| resul t there have beenmany articles concerning Washington's life in recent publications and no doubt|there will be a deluge of such before theeight months are over. But, as is t rue of all the recent biographies published, the a rt i cle s| c o n c e r n i n g the life ofWashington must be taken with a grain of sal t . The underlying facts in all these articles, however, |will|be that, whilehe was undoubtedly majestic, at the same time he was gentle,kindly, and lovable.The city of Washington and Mount Vernon willlbe aMecca for thousands of people of the United States but sucha pilgrimage isJnot necessary to enter into the spir i t of theBi-Centennial. Pa gean ts, plays,| |proc ession s, and musicalfestivals will be appropriate and we, as students|of Mercy

hurst , must not fall behind in the observation of this greatanniversary. | JJ I I Verle McQuiston, '32.

W V S& V Cleland Driscoll, '32.

THE VALUE OF/POETRY I N |I l EVERYDAY LIFEDo you ever get wha t you call tired of living, tired of life itself?I think| everyonef does, at sometime or other, and isn't it the mostdepressing!feeling? I'll tell youalmighty good remedy: get holdof some really good poetry, findyourself a quiet, cozy.f secludedcorner, and read to your heart 'scontent,! for I'm sure it will be"Heart 's Content!"Poetry will help you to escapefrom your cares and worries; itwill offer you a temporary get-a-way|from life itself. Poetry takesyo u out of the commonplace, andlifts you from the monotonous routine of everyday tasks.Poetry develops imagination, amost vital element to a happy life,for it awakens the*mind and thesoul to the real things that areconstantly around us. If we weredevoid of imagination we shouldnever be able to experience thehigher emotions. Without imagination, we can eat, sleep, and beslaves; but, without it, we cannever fall in love, with God, withMan, or with an Ideal. Loving isbeing. |And so, we canctake fromtha t you cannot be, unless youlove; you cannot love unless youcan imagine,; and poetry develops

imagination, {in short, then, afteryou have become a lover and Ianadvocate of poetry, your meaningof life will have been made morefull, more^beautiful, more useful,and more real. f f.Katherine Barrett , '33.

M EN WE M E E T AT DANCES

We always expect a surprise ata dance, but, surprise or not, weare bound to run into cer ta in types.Fi r s t , the re | i s the blind date, allth e more interesting if he happensto be our own. Usually, he is ordered according to type, andlwehave a pretty good idea of wha the will be l ike . But, s t r ange as itseems, these men sometimes develop qualities hither to unkown;that, oflcourae, depends upon ourluck. * "VP There is the man who continually apologizes for his dancing when,al l the i tme, he thinks he is pre t tygood, and wishes we would say so.Sometimes, of course, he merelymeans that he can' t dance with us,which may or may^not^be his fault .Next, is the wonderful dancer.He is sure to know this, and expects us to know and! appreciateit also. He just tolerates us, as arule, or, if he is feeling especiallycapricious, he may try to tr ip usup on some lit t le thing. We always tr ip, too! A good idea is totalk violently at this man in aneffort to distract his attention from

his dancing. If we can't, that'sour hard luck, (and, his, too!)Then, there is the "other girl'sm a n " who looks like Clark Gabledances divinely. We all want todance with him, and this poor manis positively swamped before theevening is over.Next , lis the man who hums inan off key all the * time. If heknows the piece, or,*-if;;he doesn't,he will burst into song. As a protection against him, wear yourhair down over your ears, and con

ceal an ear muff under it. Forthose of us who have an ear formusic , this is liable to be painfulexperience.There is always the painfullybashful boy whose ears take on apinkish hue at the beginning ofthe dance, and, t ry as we may topu t him at ease, his ears get dark--er and darker till, finally, they resemble lobsters at the side of hishead.Beware of the man who steps allover your white shoes. (You haveto wear white shoes to get the effect!) He has big feet, as a rule,an d the more crowded the ballroom, the less chance your shoeshave of remaining pure . We can'treally blame this man it's just

t h a t too much of his legs havebeen turned down to make feet. Hewill probably go round bumpingpeople, as this also goes with bigfeet, so shock absorbers, worn insome inconspicuous place are al-ways appropria te .Last, but not least, is the manwhose sales ta lk is not his dancing, but his "line". He is contentto walk around the floor or atmost do some simple step thatcannot draw any attention fromthe, line. He is easy to please, anddoes not expect any conversationon our pa r t . We must remember,though, to nod at the right places.Well, they say varie ty is thespice of life, and w h a t fun jwouldwe have at a dance, if it wasn'tspicy ?1 Mary Carlos, '33.

oATHLETICS

With Edinbbro invading ourdream castles and leaving nothingbut broken dreams and half-hearted spir its , the tide turned toanother port, namely, |basket-ball .With basket-ball came regulationand officers. The officers took formin, first, commander-in-chief,!MissGeraldine Heil, coach. Her workw as to t ake a handful of gir ls andinstill into them the rules whichlead them over the rocky path totha t goal success. Miss Heil hast aken her work "by the ea r s" andif the success of the team dependedupon her alone we could wagereverything we owned that Mercyhurst would be on the top. But,alas, a coach can only plan andexpound her plans to the t e am; itis up to them to put aside the ideas"ac ross" . Next in the line of officers came the manager . It wasno; surprise to find tha t Kay Ryanw as offered the position. and it wa spleasing beyond d o u b t to the'"basket-b ailers" when she accepted.Las t , but not least, came DotMooney who captured the ^capta incy without any difficulty. WithMiss Heil doing every thing in herpower to shape a winning team;with Kay Ryan arranging forgames, and with* Dot leader of thesquad, can we leave all their efforts unrewarded and not come upto expectation?^ It is possible hut

not probable. '.$A long and somewhat difficultschedule has been arranged, andthe first game will be played onthe evening of Februa ry 2, atMercyhurst.

Dorothy Cronauer, '34.

8/6/2019 The Merciad, January 1932

3/4

January, 1932THE MERCIAD Page 3

RECITAL

Mrs. Milla Schneider Hart, dramatic soprano. you! . .bu t I'm better than he is,*'cause Ihink I know what caused it!!! . . .e 'd like to sayphello" to Mid'sMother, who had a seriious operation a few weeks ago . . . she'shome now . . . and we do hopeshell make a very rapid recovery. . . Teddy, now you know whomto call on, when you need a push . . your classm ates are pre ttygood, aren't they? . . . Don't knowwhether everyone else has noticedit or not . . . but don't you thinkMary Carlos is a mighty cleverwriter? . . . Guess this is all theJunior Jots that are going to bejotted . . . have to save somethingfor the Kolum. iJ i Kay Barrett , '33.

SCIENCE CLUB NOTESThe regular December m eetingof the Mercyhurst Science Clubwas held on Dec. 18, 1931. Therewas no new business. The program ^follows:Life and Work of M i c h a e lFarraday Mary CroninHistory and Use of AnaestheticsLuElla HaafCur ren t Even ts i Grace RechicheThe meeting adjourned immediately* after Jan e Tu rgeon wasappointed Chairman of the nextmeeting.The first meeting of the newyear took place on Tuesday evening, Ja n. 19, 1931, and was a ttended by a record audience. In

terest in the Science Club is undoubtedly increasing day by day.Th e following? program was presented :The Romance of RubberJane TurgeonSynthetic RubberGrace RechicheCurr ent Events Alice KeefeThe Chairman of the next meeting will be announced|later. Th enext regular jmeeting of The Science Club will take place February16, 1932. R emember, the meetingsof this club are. open to all. Comeand be informed of the progress ofScience in this world of ours.LuElla Haaf, '33.

o

o-LOSS %I came to you .. . my heart flowedI o'er,With grief. It could not speak.'Twas you it sought, in that sad* hourFor streng th. It was so weak.

* South Parlor Friday andSaturday nights to help her entertain Clarence.When Ellen receives five lettersa day, we all shakei our heads andwonder.Tha t's all for this time. We'llbe back again next month.

?< Kay Egan, '35.Kay Gleason, '35 .o

I .HOME ECONOMICS JDEPARTMENT |ENTERTAINSThe Junior Class of the HomeEconomics department entertainedat dinner on Tuesday evening,Jan uary 19. This was one of aseries of luncheons and dinnersprescribed as par t of th e homeeconomics course. The guest ofhonor was our Right ReverendBishop. Accompanying him wereRights Reverend Monsignor R. T.Guilfoyle, Dr. E. P. McManaman,A s s i s t a n t S up er in te nd en t o fSchools of the Erie DioceseJRev.erend Father Mellitus, < O. S.v B. tReverend Fat her Daniel, 0. S. B.,and Dr. Wm. L. Sullivan,* professor of Sociology at Mercyhurst.

j

Since the Lady is ever an absorbing topic for discussion, wehave undertaken to review theLady through* ail the periods ofhistory. We Jare concerned withthe theories that various typicalsocieties have f enter ta ined of theLady; noting the changing idealsthat she has from time to time proposed to herself; to show in somemeasure what her daily life hasbeen like, what sort of educationshe has had, What sort of man shehas preferred to marry; in short,what manner of terms she hascontr ived to make with the veryspecial conditions of her existence.

We have already discussed theGreek Lady and the Roman Lady.We proceed now to a discussion ofthe Lady Abbess.No institution in Europe h asever won for the lady the freedomof development that she enjoyed inthe covent in the early days. Themodern college for women onlyfeebly reproduces it, since the college for women?has arisen at-:atime when colleges in general wereunder a cloud. The lady-abbess onthe other hand was part of the twogreat social forces of her j t ime,feudalism and the church.

Great spir itual rewards andgreat worldly prizes s Were alikewithin her grasp. She was treate das an equal by the men of herclass, as is witnessed by letters westill have from popes and emperors to abbesses. She had the stimulus of competition with men inexecutive capacity, ll n scholarshipand in artistic production, sinceher work was freely set before thegeneral public; but she was relieved by the circumstances of herenvironment of the ceaseless competition in common life of womanwith woman for the favor of theindividual man. In the cloister ofthe great days, as on a small scalein the college for women today,women were judged by one another, as men are everywhere judgedby each other, for sterling qualities of head and heart and character . In studying this fascinatingphenomenon we must divest ourminds of the conventional pictureof the nun. Her roo ts lie in a society that is pre-feudal, thoughfeudalism played into her hand,and in the psychology that is pre-Christian, though she ruled in thename of Christ. s|8j

We must realize then that thenun of ear ly northern Christianitywas by no means a type of self-effacement but was often a spirited and sometimes a lawless person, and that the abbess was moregenerally than not a woman of goodbirth, strong character, and independent ways. Sometimes she hadtr ied marr iage, sometimes she condemned it without a tr ia l. I t offered little scope for the free development of women, but there weremany women insisting on free development. To such the conventwas a godsend, and we may almostsay that the lady-abbess is the successor of the saga-heroine.I Gerberg, abbess of Gandersheimand daughter of Duke Lindolf, th eprogenitor of the jroyal house ofSaxony,'was an excellent scholarand encouraged among her nunsthe studies she herself followed under the guidance" of learned men.In the scholarly atmosphere of herabbey in the tenth ? century thenun, Hrotsvith produced the workswhich make her name memorablenot only among women but in thegeneral history of4! l i tera ture . Her

metr ical legends and history of herown time have merits of theirown, but they can be paralleledamong the writings of other authors of the period. Her unique value is as a writer of Latin urama.From the close of classic times tothe crude beginnings of the miracleplay, we know of no dramatic composition in Europe save the sevenplays of Hrotsvith. The first of thehumanists, she has lef t us a fullaccount of her admiration for classical l i tera ture and her determination to make its glor ies service-able to the pure in heart.

The many inf luences that workedtogether to change men's view oflife during the later middle ageswere all reflected in the career ofthe lady-abbess. Feudalism? ha dseen her become a baron, strongindividually with the strength ofher c lass. At times when inte llectual interests prevailed, her le isureand resources had enabled her totake a manful par t in the queerscientific investigation of her age.Her ar tistic achievements were ,within her range, of a high order .But in her breast as well as in thehard old-: social fram ework th atsupported her , solvents were a twork. Considering under 1 hree ofits aspects a force which hadmany more, we may say roughlythat these solvents were in re ligionthe rediscovery of Christianity,which resulted in the foundation ofthe mendicant orders, in * socialphilosophy the recognition of thesubmerged, and in li tera ture mystic ism and romance. All theseideas which were destined to givea wonderful new value to life werewelcomed and fur thered by thelady-abbess, who could not foreseethat her decadence was to be oneof their by-products. The decay ofthe ar istrocratic monastery wasdoubtless a step in advance in thehistory of men, but i t was a calamit y for?the lady, who was reducedto the old dilemma of the home oroutlawry.In conclusion, therefore, we mayadmit that the ideal of virginitywas not a lways a tta ined in thecloister; neither is justice a lwaysatta ined on the bench, nor valorin the army. Many a pr ioress besides Chaucer 's may have had forher motto "Amor vincit omnia".But the very persistence of the system would be strong evidence, ifwe had no other , that on the wholethe cloister had the esteem of itscontemporaries,t and that the women who gave it tone were in general true to their calling, and madewhole-heartedly the sacrifice in return for which they received freedom, t

LuBlla M . Haaf, *33.o

FRESHMANJCHRISTMASPARTYThe month of January is over ,exama( are over , the P rom is o ver!Is it really possible that the secondsemester is on its way? The f irstsemester was sol brief in passing,and, yet i t was so full of unforget-able memories, and not l e a s tamong themthe Freshman Christmas Pa r ty .The Freshmen proved t h e m -selves the "perfect hostesses" andthey have a permanent place in therealm of enter ta inment a t Mercyhurst. Everything was unique,from the snow storm which ava-lanched the dining room to thecandle salad, so significant of

Christmas lights, f JWe discovered much talent inthe Freshman class. This ta lentwasn't limited to one type of enter ta inment, for their repertoirehad a range which included dancing, singing, instrumental musicand dramatic reading.

RECIPE FOR A HAPPY 1NEW YEARTake twelve fine, full \ grownmonths, see that these are thoroughly free from all old memoriesof bitterness , rancor , hate , jealousycleanse them completely fromevery clinging spite; pick off allspecks of pettiness and littleness*in short, see that these months arefreed from all the pasthave themas fresh and clean as when theycame from the great Store-houseof Time. t.Gu t these?months into thirty orthir ty-one equal par ts. This batchwill keep jus t one year. Do notattempt to make up the wholebatch at one time (so many persons spoil the entire lot in thisway), but prepare one day at atime as follows:Into each day put twelve partsof faith , elev en of pat ience, ten ofcourag e, nine of work (some peopleomit this ingredient and so spoiljgthe flavor of the re st) , eight ofhope, seven of fidelity, six of liber-s a l i ty , five of kindness, four of rest(leaving this out is like leaving theoil out of the saladdon't do it),three of prayer, two of meditationand one well-selected resolution. Ifyou have no conscientious scruples,

put in about a teaspoonful of goodspir its, a dash of fun, a pinch offolly, a s prinkli ng of play, and aheaping cupful of good humor.Po ur into the whole love adlibitum and. mix with a vim. Cookthoroughly in a fervent heat; garnish with sweet smiles and a fewsprigs of joy; then serve withquietness, unselfishness and cheerfulness, and a Happy New Year isa cer ta inty.

So many people in our everyday world are neglecting to make"1932" a Happ y Year. Troublehas knocked a t every door and wehave been forced to allow him tostep over our thresholds. With awhole , br ight New Y ear facing us,let us put trouble and worry aside,and face "1932" cheerfully. Therecipe I have ju st giv en you is onethat insures contentment and happiness for each person who followsit. Let us all be among those whohave placed a Happy New Year inthe oven, and the world will appearbr igh te r . $ pCatherine Gleason, '32*

oThe Morning Prayer of RobertLouis StevensonThe day {[returns and brings usthe pe t ty round5of irritating concerns and duties. Help us to playthe man, help us to perform themwith laughter and kind face; M let

cheerfulness abound with industry.Give us to go blithely on our business a ll this day; br ing us to ourresting beds weary and contentand undishonored and grant us inthe end the gift of sleep.Heart Throbs.Aftfer the program, S a n t aGlaus came upon the scene, with abig sack upon his shoulder, and,wha t do you^thinkj the dear fellowhad in it ? A present for every onea t the pa r ty !After the delic ious refreshmentswhich our hostesses served to us,some of the guests entertainedthemselves a t br idge, and theothers [J enjoyed themselves "tripping the light fantastic" among the

snow f lakes.Well always remember tha tparty, Freshmen! The picturesque-ness of fit will linger for a long,long time, and,|as hostesses, why,we think our li t t le sisters are justg rea t !Kay Barrett, '33.