Prologue. Princeton: The Quantum Leap – from Bugaboo to Bonsal.

Senior year, my advisor, Mr. Mehan suggested that with some tutoring for my college SAT’s, I could go to the school of my choice. I visited both Princeton and Harvard. Much preferred Princeton. It proved to be one of my best choices. First day at Princeton, white suit and blue suede shoes. I did not know one student. Four years later, tweed coat and dozens of my life’s best friends. Great courses, great teachers, great experiences. It was a Quantum Leap from the North End.

The academic environment at Princeton was very different then. Awful things happened: they posted our grades, humiliating. (1, being the best, 7, the worst. 5 failures first semester,4 failures second semester) for all to see on the doors of Alexander Hall. Sociology and Economic courses were not politicized; not courses like “Indonesian Studies of Oppression” or Destruction of White Supremacy 104, or Economics 804. Castro Economics at Work. Art department was the best. Great history courses! Students could say pretty much anything without being corrected. No speech codes. No rewriting history. However, I did hear Alger Hiss, communist spy Second World War, speak freshman year, and Fidel Castro speak senior year. I wonder how many professors from the Hoover Institute would be allowed to speak today. Those were the best of times. Now freedom of speech? Woodrow Wilson?
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I). Freshman Year – Henry Hall. I was assigned a room on the second floor of Entrance 2, Henry Hall. Geeks for roommates. Half of my class had graduated from private schools and half from public schools. The high school students, especially the smaller ones like Greenville, had a rough time of it freshman year. Those who had attended prep schools and top public high schools had no problems. I quit the football team after my first physics test. The first year were basic courses, English, History, Physics, German etc. Academics were hard, social adjustment, no problem! Many new friends. Much like Greenville friends.

A). New Friends. My three year roommates and lifelong friends, Bill Oelman, Eric Strom, Bannister Harbin, and Lewis Holmes also resided in Henry Hall. At least a dozen more residents became long-term friends. I had no idea of how much success these 18-year-old characters would experience in later life (footnote 1)

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B). Academia the Big Sweat. Physics interested me the most, but no major. Wonderful professor, Sir Eric Rogers had worked on the atomic bomb project with Oppenheimer. Lab mates became best friends, Bill Oelman and Howard Hudson. Other courses were less exciting but interesting. German was the most difficult.

(1 footnote). Successes. There were probably 40 students on the top two floors of Henry Hall. Individuals no different than any other freshman dormitories. I had no idea at the time, the number of future successes. Just interesting characters and good guys. George Theron roomed next door. Lifetime friend, a DuPont, not a snob! His roommate, Maurice Chesterton, Ivy Club, Harvard Law, Managing Partner Philadelphia firm. Lifelong friend, Dick Ford, roomed next door on other side, Ivy Club, CEO of large St. Louis Bank. Also, Peter Lowe, Professor at University of Virginia Law School. Al Turnbull, Prof. Dean at University of Virginia Law School. Tom Thach, Prof. of Medicine, University of St. Louis Medical School. Fuller Torrey, PhD, MD, one of country's leading experts on schizophrenia. (He helped diagnose Donald Teagarden, another story). Ray Empson ,Ivy Club, CEO major company. He has written many articles in the Wall Street Journal. Raymond Clevenger, good friend for life, left Princeton after freshman year to go to Yale. Number one in class at Yale Law School. Top DC lawyer. US Court of Appeals Lifetime Judge. (We played tennis for 20 years at Chevy Chase Club.) Ray Empson, Harvard Law, lifetime friend. Adlai Stephenson Hardin (His Uncle Adlai Stevenson), life long friend, Ivy Club, attended Columbia Law School. US District Court Judge. Roommate, Lewis Holmes, Prof. Harvard Medical School, renowned for research on birth defects. Roommate, Banister graduated Emory Medical School and became head of the Harbin Clinic, 120 doctors in Rome, Georgia. Bob Schanzer, Columbia Law Review. Charlie Klopp, Prof. of English at Ohio State University. Best friend, Bill Oelman, head of large Chicago-based IT company. So many more success stories.

1) Einstein's Couch. In the fall of my freshman year while in a small food market on Nassau Street across from Nassau Hall, I introduced myself to the most beautiful young lady. Her name was Ulla Peterson. She was from Sweden. An au pair. I asked her out for dinner. We went to the movies etc., maybe six dates in all. I took her home after each date. We would sit on the couch and maybe kiss. The old lady of the house would say good night and go upstairs. She was Albert Einstein’s widow. Einstein had died the prior March. (A senior stole her from me!) The preppies did not know how to pickup girls on Nassau Street!

II) Sophomore Year in 1901 dormitory. Roommates, Lewis, Bill, Joe (Eric) Banister. It was academically better than freshman year, but a year of adjustment. I played in the scrum on the rugby team. We were undefeated because we had English grad students in our backfield. I discovered the art department, my favorite.The art department was ranked first in the country, great courses. The toughest moment; you had to pass either a math course or language course. I chose German with Bill. Our final exam was four hours, not the customary three and we had to translate Tristan und Isolde. I passed. All courses were great and grades up after the first semester. The big event of the year, socially, was Bicker. This was the process by which the club would send their senior members to interview sophomores. It would then offer membership. I received bids from some good clubs. I chose the Ivy Club, another great, but lucky choice.

1) Prof. Carlos Baker. Having successfully passed the most difficult freshman year, I returned feeling academically more competent. At Princeton, most courses (nonscientific) are taught with precepts. Two lectures by the professor a week. Two or three precepts. (The professor or a graduate student meets with 6 to 10 undergraduate students. You would discuss the topics for the week in a small open format). Prof. Carlos Baker was the top of the English Department, world-famous expert on Faulkner and Hemingway. He also just happened to be my preceptor. My first assignment the first week was to write a critique of the poem, The West Running Brook. Worked all weekend; five handwritten pages. Turned in my critique to Prof. Baker on Tuesday. On Thursday paper returned. (Highest score at Princeton a 1, failing average a 5, worst grade possible a 7.) Handwritten note at top of essay, 10! Mr. Brumbaugh please come to my office! In our meeting he inquired, “Mr. Brumbaugh who taught you English?” I replied, “ Miss McGreevy”. He inquired “Who taught Miss McGreevy?” He then said that he would provide a graduate student to tutor me how to write English! I would have to write a paper a week for the rest of the semester. If I did so, he would give me a gentleman’s 3. I got a 3+. The kindest and best thing that happened to me at Princeton. I later learned that Prof. Baker had never graduated from college, no graduate degrees, had literally come from nowhere to be the top in his field. He took pity; I was so lucky.

2). The Ivy Club. I was one of 32 members to join. Only one other high school grad in my class. The club had very wealthy members, Steve Rockefeller, Charlie Mellon, Tom Kellogg, etc. But no snobs! During my three years, some great successes. We had the captain of the football team all three years, lacrosse team captain with three all American players and captain of the rowing crew team. The captain of the hockey team for two years. One made the Olympics. In the class year behind me, we had three Rhodes Scholars out of only 25 students. We ate by candlelight. Great place to entertain the girls. Dances, parties. Made lifelong best friends, Frank Bonsal, Don Teagarden, Ted Furlong, George Beall, Buzzy Kronguard, and many more...

3). Hitchhiking. In those days we hitchhiked in and out of New York to many places like Vassar etc. At Christmas, Bill Oelman and I decided to hitchhike back to Ohio. We went on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and were dropped by a trucker in Scranton. Black limousine pulled over and an old lady opened the window. She asked "Are you boys from Princeton?" We said, yes. Must look pretty tweedy. She says I'll drop you at the next exit. She said "My son went to Princeton, he is Governor Scranton”.).

III). Junior Year. Nothing unusual. Learned to go to all of the girl’s prep schools, Vassar, Sarah Lawrence, etc. So many friends and visits from and to New York and Philadelphia. Played rugby again, but it was the second year that I cracked my ankle. I didn't play senior year. Great fun at the Ivy Club. More new friends everywhere! JD Helms, Michael Gross and Peter Lareau joined us as roommates in 1903 dormitory. (One mistake, I had my Greenville girlfriend, the one that got away, Susie Vietor, to house parties. One year younger, my church, Homecoming Queen University of Colorado, smart, later Master's from Duke University. Wonder if I had not been gone to Florida that summer but back to Greenville? Many other dates. Senior year, Penny Osborne etc. Princeton was isolated when it came to the girls!

IV Senior Year. The best year socially and academically. Grades greatly improved. Social life in New York and Philadelphia etc.

A) Senior Thesis. This was the big event of the year. You were supposed to start working in November and finish by May. 60% of your departmental grade. Since Dad had always interested me in China, (remember the Wellington Koo event in Greenville). I wrote my thesis on the potential of trade and better relations between Japan and Communist China. The Dictaphone! I discovered later in life that I am ADH. I always read my roommates notes and seldom a book while at Princeton. I procrastinated starting research on my thesis. Along came November and I was four or five weeks behind the curve. My great friend, Bonsal had the same problem. As usual he had the bright idea. We went to our good friend and club president David Callard. We requested use of the girl’s dormitory in the Ivy Club to write our thesis. He agreed we had it from January all the way through to the Spring. (Had to move our stuff out on a few weekends when the girls came). The winner was Frank's idea, the Dictaphone. Everybody else made notes on cards and then wrote longhand and then had their thesis typed. We had a Dictaphone and Frank got us a very good stenographer and revision after revision, presto! Modestly! My thesis advisor gave me a 1. He called and said that I must attend a seminar that afternoon. Thanks to cum laude.

B) Graduation. Dad, Mother, Hilda and Martha came. Canadian Prime Minister Diefenbaker gave a wonderful speech. Said “So long” to so many friends, and to the best of experiences. Best of Times!