UNIVERSITY OP NEB&
LI3RARY
Tuesday, June25rT958
Summer Nebraskan
No. 1
If
JUOOKlIli
Campus activists, looking for a
cause . . .
Horticulturists, botanists, and
foresters, looking out for their jobs
And squirrels, birds and dogs,
looking out for part of their en
vironments ...
... All can focus their attention
on a 63-year-old Russian White Oak
tree on the University of
Nebraska's East Campus that is
destined to be ripped out of the
ground to make way for a new
campus road unless of course,
the course of the road is changed.
It seems that the University has
a long tradition of insensitivity to
rare trees, unless some sort of a
clamor is raised in defense of the
tree.
"It is the age-old conflict of the
engineer whc looks at a tree as
a temporary thing," said Harvey
O. Werner, professor emeritus of
horticulture and forestry at the NU
College of Agriculture. Werner has
been at the university for fifty
years and knows the school's trees
like some know its football teams.
"This oak tree is very rare,"
Werner explained, "simply because
It has survived in Nebraska since
the turn of the century with little
damage from environmental con
ditions that were foreign to the
species."
Russian Acorns
The oak has grown from acorns
brought from Russia in 1905 by
former Horticulture Department
chairman Dr. Rollins A. Emerson.
Today the tree is valued at between
$4000 and $6000 but it lies neatly
in the path of a newly-proposed
entrance to the East Campus.
The situation is not new to the
University. Although both cam
puses are abundant with rare and
beautiful trees, many have been
lost in me fact of progress.
One of the most tragic, referred
to as "The Fiasco of the Center"
by horticultural circles in
Nebraska, occured during the con
struction of the Kellogg Center for
Continuing Education on East
Campus.
Werner related the story in this
manner:
Back in the early j'ears of the
1900's, Charles Bessey, the world
famous botanist at the University,
started an -ambitious collection of
plants which was made in tax
onomic progression (classification)
according to his recently devised
theories.
The collection was planted in an
area bounded by Holdrege and 33rd
Sts. the same area designated
over 40 years later to be the site
of the Kellogg Center.
Considerable discord arose
among various elements of plant
specialists on and off campus. And
after careful planning and many
painful decisions, a number of rare
Graduate Dormitory Opening
roadens Campus Experience
S3
A year's experimentation with
various aspects of graduate student
life has expanded with tbe
scheduled opening of dormitories
for exclusive occupation by
graduate students next fall.
Reservations are now being ac
cepted for living quarters in Benton
Hall for male students and
Fairfield Hall for women. Both
have a capacity of 68, and are
located in Selleck QuadrangeL
The formation of the graduate
student dorms was a culmination
of a highly successful year of living
on two floors of Schramm Hall,
one of the three dormitories in the
NUs newest housing complex on
the northern perifery of the City
Campus, which was comprised
mainly of grad students.
This success, plus the realization
that many NU grad students were,
in fact, dismayed with University
life, socially and academically,
resulted in positive action by a
student group and the University
administration.
"Our contention is simply
stated, explained Bing Chen, a
grad student in electrical
engineering from Jericho, N.Y.
"We feel that, in order for any
university to reach national pro
tninance, it should have a strong
graduate program, with emphasis
on faculty and graduate students."
Grumbling Sensed
Chen said that be sensed a suffi
cient amount of "departmental
grumbling" about graduate
students conditions to warrent
prompt action.
Thus, the student group, after
careful study of existing problems,
drew up a number of proposals
to help remedy the situation.
The result is the opening of the
Graduate-Foreign-lndependent"
dorm complex.
Foreign students (and others in
terested in the program) were ad
ded because of : their special in
terest problems, such as lack of
total communication with the bulk
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This sprawling Russian White Oak tree on East Campus faces an early death if a proposed
new entrance to the campus is built according to existing plans. The rare tree, valued at
$4000-$6000, has become the center of a "Save that Tree" campaign. It was grown from
acorns brought from Russia in 1905.
and valuable trees were marked
for salvation.
But the bulldozer inadvertently
destroyed the marked trees and
only some of the unmarked trees
remained.
"This was a bad slip-up. to say
the least." Werner said, continuing
that no one could really be blamed
for the mistake.
"Still, one of the finest collections
of its kind, anywhere, is gone
forever."
Dr. Elvin Frolik, dean of the
of the university complex and ex
tremely distant homs.
With the University closing down
a number of times during the year,
it is necessary for students who
live a great distance from the
school to find temporary housing
quarters.
A survey taken by Norm Snustad,
residence director at Harper Hall,
revealed a strong parallel between
the departure of foreign students
from NU and the lack of a place
to stay during vacation periods.
"I was in the center of dormitory
life," Snustad recalled, "and
watched many people leave. I was
Interested to know why."
Chen. Snustad and a number oof
other NU students began working
on the graduate student complex
after watching the Schramm ex
periment develop into a total suc
cess. Programmed Outlined
Larry Haise, a graduate student
in English from Ft. Collins, Colo.,
and president of third floor on
Schramm, outlined some of the
programs initiated for the benefit
of the grad student:
First, informal coffee-hours were
planned for each week, bringing
together "personnel and
personalities" of the University for
discussion groups, pertaining to
interests of the grad student.
Movies, social functions and
other recreational facilities were
also added to the program. A
snack shop operated for the con
venience of the graduate students,
but later expanded to cover all
residents of Schramm, proved to
be a financial success although
profit-making was not the motiva
tion, Haise said.
But the major accomplishment
of the program, its supporters feel,
is the involvement of the graduate
student in tbe university com
munity. The students in the dorm became
active in student government and
university affairs. This totally
Cell!
What a Way To
ft 'A
College of . Agriculture and Home
Economics, who is playing a pro
minent role in the temporary
salvation of the Russian oak. has
a reputation for saving trees on
East Campus.
A utility tunnel was to be con
structed in a colision course with
a giant spruce tree, given to the
University by a prominent
nurseryman to be used as an an
nual Christmas tree. When Frolik
heard about the plans h e
immediately met with campus
disclaims any notion that the ex
clusiveness of the dorm's popula
tion actually is a form of segrega
tion, the steering committee feels.
"Housing grad students in a
separate dorm is not isolation,"
Haise said. "We have found that,
on the whole, these students were
actually brought more into the
mainstream of campus life."
He said that the student actually
becomes more campus-orientated,
especially if he isn't living in some
remote area of Lincoln
Responsibility
"By focussing on the grad stu
dent with physical proximity, the
Musician
To Conduct
NU Clinic
Dr. Lloyd Pfautsch, nationally
recognized lecturer and clinic
director, will conduct a series of
choral workshops at the University
of Nebraska School of Music, July
13.
Pfautsch, director of choral ac
tivities at Southern Methodist
University in Dallas, Tex., will
speak on four subjects and wil
utilize demonstrations:
July 1 "Some Contemporary
Trends in Church Anthems." 3.30
p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
July 2 "Conductors Move in
Mysterious Ways. 9:00 a.m. to
11:00 a.m.
July 2 - "Are You Rehearsing
More and Enjoying It less" 1:00
p.m. to 2:35 p.m.
July 3 "Diction in Choral
Performances." 9:30 a.m. to 11:00
a.m.
The clinic is open to all students
and faculty and the general public.
There is no fee. The clinic will
be held in the choral room of the
Westbrook Music Building, Room
119.
pare
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.
planning officials' to alter the
course of the tunnel. It was. and
the tree still is growing
decorated at Yuletide and the
center of an old I'nivessity tradi
tion. "Therefore, we do have a
prescedent in adjusting' construc
tion for the sake of a valuable or
traditional object on campus."
Werner said.
Another current road project has
bit into a valuable collection of
campus trees.
older student can display a sense
of community responsibility and
the younger student will know he
exists," he continued.
Norm .idler, a graduate student
in mathematics who is also working
on the project, feels that this pro
gram will put more campus
resources into use.
"Most people on this campus do
not utilize the wealth of information
that can be found on a campus
the size of Nebraska's." Adler said,
pointing to individual faculty
members whose personal interests
and experiences could be made in
dispensible to the college student.
One of the current events topics
discussed ' this past year a t
Schramm was the Arab-Israeli con
flict, attended by a sizable group
from both sides.
"1 think we might have had a
minor war ourselves," Chen said,
"if it hadn't been for the
remarkable moderator we had for
the program."
Colbert C. Held, professor of
geography and an expert on Mid
Eastern affairs was the moderator
for that night.
There were other noticeable
developments during the year.
Adler noted a stronger student-to-student
relationship between the
graduate students in the dorm and
the under-graduate students.
"We may try to set up a sort
of tutorial system which would be
available to all students," Adler
said.
"Actually," Chen continued, "it
would be more of a consuling and
advising service which would
establish rapport between the two
groups."
Personalized
Both agreed that the consuling
and advising would be personalized .
since underclassmen could be more
intormal with the grad students.
But Haise added that the new
program is not totally an academic
endeavor.
Continued on Page 2
z '
Campus Trees
The road, which will connect the
new College of Dentistry with the
rest of the East Campus, has been
hewn out of an area planted by
Earl Maxwell, a former Nebraska
state fcresten
It was Maxwell's hobby to plant
as many unusual trees on campus.
Experts feel that the University is
greatly indebted to Maxwell.
"If it hadn't been for him," said
Gary G. Long, instructor o f
horticulture at NU, "there probably
wouldn't have been any unusual
trees here at all."
Long has embarked on a project
of his own: he is attempting to
"tag" most of the unusual trees
on East Campus with a small sign
giving its common and technical
names. The trees at J. Sterling
Morton's Arbor Lodge in Nebraska
City are so designated.
History and legend also grows
with NU trees.
On City Campus, a large spruce
was given to me University as a
memorial to a prominent professor.
The tree was planted in an area
that would now be south of the
Administration building. Plans
called for the spruce to become
a permanent Christmas tree in the
main campus.
"To put it bluntly, the tree
drowned." Dr. John F. Davidson
said. He is an NU professor of bot
any. Actually, the root system of
the tree grew straight down to an
underground reservoir and the tree
had too much water.
So. university planners studied the
problem and decided that a cyprus
tree could survive in that area
because of the abundant water
supply. The tree was planted with
the intention of providing an even
more unusual Christmas tree.
.U Student Visits
Resurrection City
A University of Nebraska student
who has visited Resurrection City,
headquarters of the Poor People's
Campaign in Washington. D.C.,
believes the most significant result
of the campaign would be "a
measure of support from the people
of Nebraska and especially the
people of Lincoln."
Bob Lucy, a junior from
Fullerton. Xeb.. majoring in social
work, visited the complex while on
a seminar sponsored by the
Methodist Church of Fullerton.
under the direction of the Rev.
Thomas Rehorn.
A group of 31 young Nebraskans
and adult sponsors attended a
number of programs sponsored by
various groups in the Washington
area under the title "Christianity
and Social Action." The visit to
Resurrection City was "a chance
to see what we were studying
about." Lucy said.
Lucy, and two members of the
group from Omaha, spent most of
one afternoon in the hastily-built
city-within-a-city. Still vivid in his
mind is the ankle-deep mud which
plagued the poor people throughout
most of their stay in the nation's
capital.
Lucy said that the important task
of a visitor to Resurrection City
is the correct interpretation of tbe
Poor People's Campaign to the rest
of the people of the United States.
"I don't think Americans are
getting a fair picture of what is
happening in Washington," he said.
Lucy and his group were at the
Supreme Court Building during the
much -publicized demonstration
which resulted in a number of poor
people's arrests.
"The demonstration w as actually
planned for dramatizing the plight
of the American Indian," he said,
"and it was led, in part, by a 102-year-old
woman.
"At one point someone lowered
the American flag 'in memory of
the late Martin Luther King. Im
mediately the police moved in. 1
saw them beat a number of people,
who were later taken off in am
bulances. I asked a policeman what
happened to them. He said that
they had gotten sick. I had seen
them beaten, but the press reported
the police version.
Lucy said that press reports in
dicated that the demonstration
numbered about "one hundred
persons and some fifty policemen."
Inside You Will Find:
MIND-BENDING MOVIE: Stanley Kubrick' "2001: A Space Odys
ey" challenges the intellect of tbe beholder Pge 2
SPLIT PERSON ALITY: NT's W-campus in Llncola has tU awa East
West division. An NU coed studies It is depth Page 3
ETV SCHEDULE: Normaa Mailer, one f the most andlble critics
oi the Viet Nam conflict, is featured od NET tonight. See sched
ule: ;.. '....-"' rage 4
The first winter arrived and th
tree lost its leaves. Everyone
thought it was dead, Davidson says,
until it was discovered that the tree
was a "bald" cyprus, one of the
few conifers which actually does
lose its leaves seasonally.
Werner said that at the turn of
the century Nebraska was a very
tree-conscious state and certainly
earned it's title of being "Th
Treeplanter's State."
J. Sterling Morton inaugurated
Arbor Day, still honored across the
state and the nation.
"Many other prominent persons
were involved in the planting of
trees," Werner said, "because they
wanted to improve the state's ap
pearance with healthy trees."
Tour .Revealing
A tour bf the East Campus
reveals a remarkable collection of
rare and beautiful trees.
A Chinese date tree is standing
in the middle of a small parking
lot in back of Fcdde Hall. There
were three but a chilling tunnel
disposed of the other two. The re
maining tree is the victim of bad
driving and is constantly being hit
Four iron posts protect the tree,
but now the posts are bent
Probably the rarest tree on
campus, "4nd possibly in the
state." according to Long, is in
the same vicinity. It is a Lace Bark
Pine, a native of China. It features
a multi-colored bark which peels
off in a delicately-laced pattern,
revealing colors of pink, light green
and silver grey.
"It is amazing how people walk
right by a tree like this and think
nothing of it," Long said, "But then
they discover that it is rare and
valuable and think it's just great."
Continued on Page 4
'I know there had to be at least
two hundred policemen at the
scene." he recalled. "Two buses
of policemen were not unloaded and
there were at least nine paddy
wagons."
Lucy said there was little
dissention within the population of
the city, but that there was a large
amount of boredom and apathy.
"There really isn't much for
anyone to do." he said, "so, much
of the day is spent in idleness."
He asked one young black resi
dent how long he planned to stay
in Washington. The answer was:
"Until the government does
something."
Lucy said that the campaign is
patterned after the social action
methods used in the South during
the voting rights campaign of a
few j'ears ago. Most of the con
fusion resulting in bad publicity of
the Washington campaign
personifies the tragic aftermath of
King's assassination, Lucy feels.
"Dr. King was one of the finest
leader in the country," he said.
"It win be hard enough to ever
replace him, especially in two
months."
Lucy said the individual resident
at Resurrection City bears witness
to the existence of widespread
poverty in the United States.
"One starving person in the
world's most affluent nation is
wrong," he said. "But thousands
make the situation deplorable. That
is why the people of Nebraska have
to become involved in this cam
paign." Lucy recommended writing to
Laison Office of the National
Council of Churches in Washington
on information concerning the
campaign. The address is Room
106. 100 Maryland Ave., N.E.
' Washington, D.C. 2002.
One of the Fullerton youth's
favorite momentoes of his visit to
Resurrection City is a copy of a
poem that was painted on the side
of one of the city's plywood shacks:
m Mat la arm wttfc at
' Thr rm t "" M l trtny.
r aarad w vail aaa fmm
la fewarrwttaa CHj.
led aaalai Iwaiih
Par aw war time el aase.
We Mk aaf ee elcaT
la KeeanarUea City.
Tae ale k eaat. he all la aaa)
M'kHe teat mm
a all Tear aW areleaeaa.
Tea meet par r year lellr:
()emr e wlta ear eamnUlee.
la VeearreeHea CUj.
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