University of Virginia Library

Boyish Behavior

This morning, while walking up
the East side of the Lawn, I witnessed
another event which makes
me wonder how many of us students
at the University are really
gentlemen. Three boys (not men)
were walking ahead of me, no
doubt in a hurry to get back to
their fraternity houses after classes.
They were walking three abreast
and managing quite nicely to occupy
the whole of the sidewalk.
The wife of Mr. Mayo, one of our
distinguished professors, a distinguished
lady in her own right, was
approaching from the opposite
direction, keeping well to the right-hand
side of the walkway. To my
surprise and shock, the boy to the
left of the other two not only did
not move over behind his fellows to
allow Mrs. Mayo to pass, but proceeded
to barrel into the unnerved
lady with the finesse of a steamroller,
mumble something to the
effect that he was sorry (I think, or
perhaps just hope), and proceed on
his way as before, joking with the
other two, and causing various
other perambulators moving in the
opposite direction either to step
aside or be mowed down. All
stepped aside. None should have
had to. Mrs. Mayo assumed that she
would not have to - and was
rewarded for her trust in Virginia
gentlemanliness by a collision.

We as students owe Mrs. Mayo
an apology on behalf of our
thoughtless and ungentlemanly
brother. But that is not enough.
The boy owes the lady (who lives in
Pavilion IV) an apology of his own.
I hope that he will have the desire
and courage to make it - and
because I cannot conceive of anyone,
let alone a Virginia student,
who would have struck the lady on
purpose, I trust that he will.