AN AMERICAN FAMILY, The Dr. Elmer LeppikS, pose
in their new-found home after fleeing the Russians in Europe.
Besides the new Augie biology professor stand (left to right)
daughter Virvee, son Ulo, his wife, and daughter Marya. All
three children are attending Sioux Falls schools.
Wte 4afialana
MIRROR February 20, 1950 Augustana College, SIOUX FALLS, S. D. VOL. XXXI NO. 18
Boddie Molds Inter-Racial Concepts
Artist Program Presents
Baritone Recital, Lecture
Majority Group
"You are looking at a member
of a majority group . . . in a
world sense. You are a member
of the minority group. Three-fifths
of the world's population
are men of color," the speaker
offered for the audience's specu-lation.
"In American culture all values
are considered quantitatively so I
give you this figure not because
I believe in this head-counting
method (of reasoning) but to im-press
you and make you think,"
he continued.
Using an informal method which
projected his personality to the
listener, Mr. Boddie divided his
lectures into two integral units,
first that racial relationships are
not only possible but logical, and
secondly, that the future welfare
of the world depends upon the
adoption of this principal.
Christianity is Redemption
"Man," he commented, "is a
physical animal, a social animal,
a worshipping animal, but we do
have four dimensions and that
fourth dimension is relationship
. . . Christianity abounding in
the happy hunting grounds of the
fourth dimension is our only re-demption."
"Our relationships are formed
with feelings today, not brains,"
this speaker emphasized.
Finishing his statements, Mr.
Boddie explained, "Returning GI's
believe and know that the world
is only a neighborhood; all the
romanticism is gone. Now the
world is a little playground, a
small neighborhood.
Import of Christianity
"Interest today is survival.
Christianity is ultimately impor-tant,
our welfare and future de-pends
upon it. People are not
aware of the alternatives of ac-cepting
this fact."
As part of his lecture, Mr. Bod-die
also expressed the need for
improved teaching but also how
inadequately teaching solves the
problem. He is an advocate of so-cial
methods as opposed to teach-ing
methods of inter-racial rela-tionships
development.
Snook Announces
Shaw Play Dates
George Bernard Shaw's brilliant
comedy Arms and the Man, has
been announced as the next pro-duction
of the Augustana College
Theatre. Production dates have
been set as March 27 through
April 1.
Tryouts for roles in the produc-tion
will be held in the Little
Theatre on Wednesday evening,
Feb. 22, at 7:30. Director Bob
,Snook emphasizes that roles are
open to the entire student body.
All students interested are asked
to be present at that time or to
make other arrangements with
Mr. Snook.
Dr. L. Field To Speak
At ELC Student Feast
As an added feature of the ELC
student conference, a banquet has
been planned at the First Luth-eran
church, Saturday, March 5,
at 6:00 p. m. stated Bob Nervig,
conference chairman.
Principle speaker for the eve-ning
will be Dr. Lawrence Field,
from the Rocky Mountain district
area of the ELC and tentative
plans are being made for. an ex-hibition
basketball game.
By Ramona Ode
"Augustana college looks like
an academy of liberty where you
can meet numerous nations and
speak several languages without
any kind of political suppression.
That is the first impression of a
professor who comes from de-stroyed
and suppressed Germany,"
says Dr. Elmer Leppik, biology
professor who arrived on the Au-gustana
campus only a couple of
weeks ago from Europe.
Before the war, Dr. Leppik
taught applied biology at Tartu
university. In 1937 he became con-nected
with the League of Na-tions
as a scientific expert. He
also worked with the Internation-al
Agriculture Institute in Rome
and the Rockefeller Foundation
expedition in North Africa and
Spain.
Develops Holgeny
During the war, Dr. Leppik was
allowed to continue his work at
Tartu doing research work on
chemicals. When the Russians oc-cupied
Estonia in 1944, Dr. Leppik
and his family fled to the GI untie-versity
at Munich. There he did
work on a "new direction of biol-ogy
called Hologeny which was
developed in Europe only after
several remarkable new discover-ies
made during the war and es-pecially
after the war. It will
bring an important change to both
heretical and applied biology."
Dr. Leppik and his family left
Bremershaven, Germany, Jan. 20
aboard the army transport, USS
General Grady. While aboard ship,
he got some journalistic experi-ence
editing a small ship paper
which was the immigrants' only
contact with the outside world
while they were waiting to dis-embark
at New York.
One of the Leppik
Mission Emphasis Days
Close With Challenge
Highlighting the first three
days Of last week was the Mission
Emphasis program held on camp-us.
Five foreign missionaries who
came as speakers were Virginia
Antonson, representing Columbia;
Gertrude Sovik, Rev. and Mrs.
Loddigs, and Rev. Otterness,
from the Chinese mission field.
After Study and Action Sunday
morning, informal coffee parties
at two faculty homes in the after-noon
and LSA in the evening,
many of the students and faculty
members had 'become personally
acquainted with these people.
Not only were the needs of the
Columbians and Chinese present-ed
at the Monday and Tuesday
chapel periods, but many of the
customs, conditions and habits of
the people were described.
A challenge was given to all
who attended, to pray for these
mission fields, to give for their
support and to go to work that the
gospel might be preached.
As a very fitting close to the
Mission Days is the Mission of-fering
drive which was officially
opened at the chapel program last
Wednesday.
daughter Virvee is attending Au-gustana.
"She likes it very much
because she has found exactly
what she has needed and wants
right at first—language, Ameri-can
history and Christianity," Dr.
Leppik said. Virvee is a dark
blonde, shy girl of medium height.
The other • two Leppik chil-dren
are also attending slihool
in Sioux Falls. Ma.rya, is in
high school and Ulo, who is
eight, is in grade sebool and
very much excited over sports,
especially basketball.
Asked about the difference he
noted in the two educational sys-tems
Dr. Leppik said, "There are
so many differences you can't
At a meeting of the student
council last Thursday evening,
final approval was given by the
council on the proposal that so-ciety
accounts be removed from
the student body treasurer's
books upon administrative ap-proval.
A plan has been set up by
which each society treasurer will
make a complete financial report
at the end of each month which
will be presented to the Inter-So-ceity
board and in turn presented
to the student council.
Early last week Lee Lillehaug,
student body prexy, called a meet-ing
of the society treasurers, at
which the treasurers agreed to
cooperate with the requirements
of this proposal. Plans are being
made by the council to remove sev-eral
other small campus organi-zation's
funds from the student
body treasurer's books.
Action on the suggestion of the
"A" club that the school colors be
used only on sweaters and jackets
presented by the choir and the
athletic teams, was suspended
during the absence of the men's
athletic board representative, Al
Paulson, who was out of town on
a basketball trip.
Lillehaug asked the coopera-tion
of the council at a student
council meeting to be held as a
part of the ELC conference on
March 3. Council members from
all of the ELC school represented
will meet to discuss problems of
student government.
say too much about them. In Eu-rope
once you start a certain
course you cannot change. Here
students take subjects they like.
There the programs are the same
all over. And sports are much
more highly developed here."
In his slow and careful English,
which is quite excellent consid-ering
the short time he has been
studying it, Dr. Leppik said this
about Sioux Falls, "My deepest
impression about Sioux Falls was
the hearty reception by faculty
members and Pres. and Mrs. Sta-vig
and the hospitality of my
neighbors on Summit avenue.
Please express my heartiest
thanks for all kindness."
• Paul Matten, bass-baritone,
will be on campus today and
tomorrow to present the sixth
program of the current Artist
and Lecture Series and to
conduct master classes in
voice.
He 'is scheduled to speak in
chapel this morning explaining
what he hopes to accomplish
through his visit to Augustana.
This afternoon at 2:30, Mr. Mat-then
will meet with the history
of music class and at 3:30, he will
hold a music clinic for voice stu-dents.
On Tuesday morning, the artist
will be available for work with
students. His formal recital will
be presented Tuesday, Feb. 21, at
Paul Matthen
8:15 p. m. in the gym-auditorium.
Students will be admitted by ac-tivity
books.
Nationally Famous
Now teaching at the Longy
School of Music in Cambridge,
Mass., Mr. Matthen recorded with
Robert Shaw and the Collegiate
Chorale the B Minor Mass, the
Magnificat and Cantata No. 140
of Bach for the RCA Victor com-pany.
He also records for Har-gail
Records and is heard fre-quently
over national radio chains.
Mr. Matthen is a graduate of
Bard college in New York where
his work included organ, conduct-ing
and voice study. Early experi-ence
as a soloist in church -Choirs
increased his interest in singing
and he continued his vocal train-ing
under Frederich Schorr, bari-tone
of the Metropolitan Opera
company, while carrying graduate
courses at Columbia university.
Sings With Symphonies
In addition to his choir' work,
Mr. Matthen was soloist at Radio
City Music Hall from 1939 to 1941,
and was for several years music
consultant, conductor and lectur-er
for the International Business
Machines school. He appeared with
the Boston Symphony orchestra
in the Faure Festival 'at Harvard
university and has sung with the
Philadelphia orchestra, the Balti-more
Symphony orchestra and
the National Orchestral associa-tion,
the Dessoff Choirs, the Mo-tet
Singers and the Cantata Sing-
. ers of New York. He was also a
trnember of the music faculty of
Bennington college.
Press Club Hears
Dr. Ernst Kuhn
Dr. Ernest Kuhn was guest
speaker at a Press club meeting
held at the home of journalism ad-visor
Ralph 0. Hillgren's home
Friday evening. Dr. Kuhn spoke on
differences between Swiss and
American newspapers. Mrs. Hill-gren
served a lunch.
In a business meeting Bill Til-lottson
was elected as publications
board representative to the stu-dent
council and plans were
formulated for discussion groups
to be held as part of the forth-coming
ELC school conference
here March 3, 4 and 5.
One man did more to crys-•
tallize the concept of inter-racial
relationships in the
minds of Augustana students
than could be expected from
one source in an hour's time
last Friday morning at the
Artist and Lecture series pro-gram.
Charles Emerson Boddie, lec-turing.
on Christianity and Free-dom,
through sheer strength of
character proved his point that
the job of the world toddy is to
figure out a way to work together
in one social neighborhood.
Mr. Boddie is the Negro min-ister
of the St. Olivet church,
Rochester, New York, and this
marks his second visit to Sioux
Falls in two years, the last time
while following a preaching mis-sion.
NOTICE
There will be another meet-ing
of the Young Republicans
club in the Fireside lounge at
7:45 p. m. Thursday, Feb. 23.
Officers will be elected and
other plans made.
Read the
Open Letter
on Page Four
Leppik Family Likes American Life
Council Removes
Society Accounts