Director Ben
Ben Jorgensen '92, who took the temporary assignment this year as director of student activities, has been given the job on a continuing basis. Credited with bringing Colby's COOT program up to snuff, Ben has tackled the job this year vigorously, bringing high praise from both students and peers.

World View
Colby this year received 474 applications from international students representing 87 countries, of whom 104 were offered admission. Of that number, as many as 37 are expected to enroll. They will arrive under the flags of Argentina, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Ecuador, England, France, Hungary, India, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia, Spain, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, Ukraine and Zimbabwe.

Colby Pride
Holistic Belief and Aristotelian Akrasia (sic), a paper by Senior Scholar Caleb Mason (Bethesda, Md.), was one of two sharing the first prize at the recent New England Undergraduate Philosophy Conference held at Tufts University. . . . Michael Doogue '97 (Braintree, Mass.), a physics major, has been selected as a New England Colleges Fund (NECF) Scholar. . . . President Bill Cotter received an honorary doctor of laws degree at Westbrook College during the commencement season.

Patriot Names
While it is well known that Samuel Francis Smith, professor of modern languages at Colby from 1834 to 1841, was the author of the anthem "America," few have known of Colby's tie to the "Pledge of Allegiance," inspired by James Upham of the Class of 1860. As 1892 approached, Upham, who had become an editor of Youth's Companion, was determined to rekindle national pride for the Columbian Exposition that would commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus' voyage to the Americas. Upham and fellow editor Francis Bellamy lobbied President Benjamin Harrison and the Congress for the national Columbus Day holiday and were put in charge of developing a special program for schoolchildren. At Upham's behest, Bellamy wrote the "Pledge of Allegiance" for the children to read on the first Columbus Day, October 12, 1892.

Moosecellaneous
Lest we invite future capers, we probably shouldn't mention that the mule statue was given zebra stripes one night during Senior Week. Moose antlers would have been easier to remove. . . . This year's Commencement class marshal was James Porter of Waterville. Jim is the ninth valedictorian from the state of Maine in the past 11 years. . . . Stu-A President Bryan Raffetto '95 (Hingham, Mass.) and Devin Colman '98 (North Oaks, Minn.) won a special prize offered by trustee Alida Camp by giving a new name to Colby's student non-alcoholic programs--MOOSE CAFE (More Opportunities of Superior Entertainment with Colby Alcohol Free Environment). Never mind that the "of" should be "for". Alida did not like the non-alcoholic label; it was too negative, she said, and altogether boring. . . . Colby's dining service, Sodexho, has made a $175,000 contribution to the College for kitchen improvements and the purchase of new dining hall furnishings. . . . Trustees have set a goal of having all of the residence halls hard wired for computers by September '96. . . . H.P. Cum-mings Construction Company was the low bidder and is the contractor for the new Olin Science Building, already on the rise and slated for completion by the fall of '96.