Trinity College Bulletin, March 1948

e TRINITY COLLEGE MARCHALUMNI NEWS 1948 ISSUE Bu lletz·n HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT r 25th Anniversary Trinity will divide its celebration of the 125th Anniversary between a weekend noting the founding of the College, May 15~ 16, and Commencement weekend, June 18~21, according to plans announced by President Funston. Major alumni events are scheduled for the Commencement weekend, details of which will be announced in the May issue of the Alumni News. President Charles Seymour of Yale will be the principal speaker at an academic convocation at 2:30p.m. on May 16, marking the 125th Anniversary of the chartering of the College by the State Legislature. In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in the Chapel and restricted to invited guests, but if possible the exercises will be held in front of Northam Towers. Other participants will represent sister colleges, the State of Connecticut, the City of Hartford, the Episcopal Church, and alumni, students, and faculty of the College. By a coincidence in the calendar, the College's anniversary this year falls on Whitsunday, offering an unusual opportunity to note Trinity's contribution to Christian education. Three religious services have been scheduled in the Chap~! for the Anniversary Day: at 8:15 a.m., at 11 a.m., and at 5:30 p.m. The College will give a luncheon for delegates from other colleges and guests at 1 p.m. and President Funston will entertain at a reception in his house at 4 p.m. Saturday, May 15, will be Hartford Day with open house for area residents from 1 to 5 p.m. Visitors will be escorted on a tour of the campus by faculty and students. Special hospitality exhibits and events are being prepared for the open house by departments of study and student activity groups. The student body has scheduled its own observation of the 125th Anniver~ sary for Saturday evening at 7 p.m. Details of this program are not yet complete. T THE COVER PRESIDENT FuNSTON RECEIVING DocTOR OF LAws DEGREE FROM PRESIDENT McCLELLAND OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA Issued six times a year by Trinity College- January, March, May, July, October and Novem ber. Entered January 12, 1904, at Hartford, Connecticut, as second-class matter, under the Act of Congress of July 16, 1894. Accepted for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized March 3, 1919. ED I T E D B y J 0 H N A . M A s 0 N, ' 3 4 VoLUME XLV NEW SERIES NUMBER 2 Freedom and Restraint By President G. Keith Funston EDITOR's NoTE: Following is <ln abstract of the Convo cation Address delivered by President Funston at th e University of Pennsylvania on February 7. THE CITATION I SHOULD like to discuss briefly a basic "Son of Trinity College and Har problem of balancing our American ideals vard University, your distinguished against reality in the hope that the discussion work in industry, as a member of the may provide you with a beach-head in your research staff of the Harvard Grad forthcoming effort to take a position with uate School of Business Administra respect to each of the important issues of tion and as special consultant to our time. I will point my remarks to our the chairman of the War Production domestic situation for I believe the United Board, resulted in your election at States must remain strong internally if it is age thirty-three to the presidency of to exercise its proper influence in the world Trinity College. outside. " Granted leave of absence to I have termed this basic problem, "Freedom serve as an officer in the United and Restraint." It is nothing new; rather it States Navy, all your endeavours has been a perennial dilemma of thinkers reveal a capacity for leadership com since men first created forms of government. bined with an ability to inspire Throughout history when no restraint has confidence in your associates. We been placed on an individual's freedom of welcome you as the head of a sister choice by governmental authority, unprin institution." cipled men have deprived their fellow beings of security. And at the other extreme, the totalitarian and Communist States have deprived the individual of freedom as the a faith, not repeatedly expressed, is apt to price for providing him with hypothetical be crowded out from the mind by the jingles security. The extreme in either direction is and soap-operas which engulf us. It is vitally equally obnoxious having always led to important for our citizenry to place the fascism and communism at the one pole and retention of our freedom along with the anarchy at the other. attainment of security as a goal to be sought actively. Since the beginning of man's effort to create democracy, the central problem has With the progress of the nation our concept been to establish a proper equilibrium between of freedom has expanded. Today we are personal freedom of choice on the one hand striving to provide equality of opportunity and restraint by group authority on the as well as equality before the law. New other. In my opinion it still is the central freedoms, or extensions of old ones are problem before our people today. My present sought - freedom from want, from fear, anxiety is that the nation may permit the and from discrimination. For all of our gauge of equilibrium to move too closely citizens the nation is endeavoring to provide towards the pole of security, sought by opportunities of useful employment, of ade governmental restraint. quate education, of decent housing, of good health, and of rewarding leisure. Human nature is such that we want what we do not have. Having freedom we take it It is not difficult to view these freedoms for granted as we do the air we breathe. being sought in more abundance as freedoms Not having complete security, we seek it as for groups of people rather than for in Midas sought gold. There can be little doubt dividuals. For example, one-third of our that the emergence of the United States as people are said to be ill-housed. It may seem incomparably the most powerful nation in easier, therefore, to try to solve this as a the world stems from the individual, political, group problem by trying to improve the economic, religious, and cultural freedom status of the ill-housed as a group, rather which our Constitution and its Bill of Rights than as a large number of individuals. has given to all Americans. But the ex For this reason, the misconception has periences of the Greeks, Romans, and others arisen in many places that only the federal show how easy it is for a people to lose their government, representing the group, can freedom if they relax their vigilance. In this secure a larger measure of these freedoms day of high-powered advertising an idea or (continued on page 15) 3 The Classics at Trinity Today: A New Approach By James A. Notopoulos Hobart Professor of Classics A FRIEND, who recently visited Dr. Einstein These three instances reveal the fountain at Princeton, reported the following conver of wisdom in the Classics which refreshes the sation with the great scientist. "The more I minds of those who face the complex prob read the Greeks," said Einstein, "the more lems of today. They show that the classics I realize that nothing like them has ever are not a. n:ere veneer of exclusive urbanity appeared in the world since." "You read the for the pnvileged few. Rather they bring out Greeks?" said his visitor. "But of course" on_ce more the truth of what an Egyptian he replied, "I have never gone away fro:n pnest remarked to Plato: "You Greeks them. How can an educated person stay have the gift of eternal youth." The reason away from the Greeks? I have always been for this ~s that there is a wisdom unique in far more interested in them than in science." th~ classtcs. The Greek and Latin poets and Secretary Marshall, who is rising more thm~ers were pr!marily interested in distilling and more to the stature of a Pericles, showed the mner meanmg from the events of their in his speech, delivered at the Princeton age; they were interested in what a man's Bicentennial Celebration last year, how a action does to his soul. Like the chorus of a knowledge of Thucydides is valuable in Greek drama the classical mind explained understanding the present world crisis. The and clarified experience in uni versa! terms so Secretary said, "One usually emerges from that we see in the characters of its literature representative actions and lasting tendencies ~n intimate understanding of the past, with Its lessons and its wisdom, with convictions of men which enable us to recognize mani that put fire in the soul. I doubt seriously festations which recur in our own lives. whether a man can think with full wisdom That is why the characters of classical and deep convictions regarding certain of the literature express with freshness all the basic international issues today who has not characteristic attitudes of Western man: that at least reviewed in his mind the period of is why in ancient history we find an X-ray the Peloponnesian War and the fall of of human nature under the impact of good Athens." and evil, peace and war. Sir Alfred Zimmern, Professor Emeritus of It is a tribute to Trinity College that it International Relations at Oxford and now has always included a knowledge of our visiting professor at Trinity, gave this past classical heritage in its education.

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