Chapter XXXVI: Appendix: F

MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT FOR A TRIANGULAR DEBATING LEAGUE

Debating Agreement between Indiana University, Ohio State University,
and the University of Illinois

(Adopted by the representatives of the three institutions at Columbus, June 17, 1905)

ARTICLE 1.—This organization shall consist of the Indiana University, Ohio State University, and the University of Illinois, and shall be known as the State University Debating League.

ARTICLE 2.—Its affairs shall be conducted by an executive committee consisting of one member of the Faculty of each institution, to be selected by that institution.

(a) One of these shall act as President, one as Vice President, and one as Secretary and Treasurer, each holding office for one year.

(b) The three offices shall be filled by the representatives of the three institutions in rotation in the following order: 1905–1906 Presidency, Ohio State University, Vice Presidency, Indiana University, Secretary and Treasurership, University of Illinois; 1906–1907 Presidency, Indiana University, Vice Presidency, University of Illinois, Secretary and Treasurership, Ohio State University; 1907–1908 Presidency, University of Illinois, Vice Presidency, Ohio State University, Secretary and Treasurership, Indiana University; and thereafter in the same rotation.

ARTICLE 3.—The debates shall be held on the second Friday in March—one at Bloomington, Indiana, one at Columbus, Ohio, and one at Urbana, Illinois. In the year 1905–1906 the teams shall come together as follows: University of Illinois and Indiana University at Bloomington; Indiana University and Ohio State University at Columbus; Ohio State University and University of Illinois at Urbana. In the year 1906–1907 Ohio State University and Indiana University at Bloomington; University of Illinois and Ohio State University at Columbus; Indiana University and University of Illinois at Urbana; and thereafter in the same biennial rotation.

ARTICLE 4.—(a) A question shall be proposed by each institution not later than the 5th of October preceding the debates.

(b) The Secretary shall at once send the three questions to the three institutions, and they shall reply not later than the 25th of October, each institution indicating its ranking of the three questions as first choice, second choice, third choice.

(c) The Secretary shall report the result of this vote not later than the 30th of October, and the question ranked highest in the vote shall be debated by all teams. In case of a tie in the ranking the selection from the three questions shall be made by the President of the University of Minnesota.

(d) After the question has been chosen no modification shall be made in its wording and no definition permitted.

ARTICLE 5.—The home team shall support the affirmative of the question and the visiting team the negative.

ARTICLE 6.—Each speaker shall be allowed twelve minutes for a principal speech and five minutes for a rebuttal speech. No time may be transferred from one speaker to another, but the order of rebuttal speeches on either side may be changed at the wish of the speakers on that side. “The negative shall lead in rebuttal.”

ARTICLE 7.—(a) The visiting institution shall not later than the 15th of January nominate a list of twenty names of persons living within two hundred and fifty miles of the place of the debate, no one of whom shall be or shall have been connected with any of the three institutions concerned either as officer, teacher or student. The home institution shall have the right of veto for cause to be explicitly stated to the other institution within two weeks thereafter, and the visiting institution shall submit other names equal in number to those vetoed. The home institution shall choose three persons from this list to act as judges.

(b) Each judge shall be provided with written instructions in the following form:

Date..................

In rendering your decision, you are asked to consider the merits of
the _debate_ and not the merits of the question. You are the sole
judges of what constitutes effective debating, remembering that both
thought and delivery are to be considered.

In my opinion the ......... team has done the most effective
debating.

...................... Judge

(c) At the close of the debate each judge shall be permitted to withdraw, and within 15 minutes shall present to the chairman in a sealed envelope his individual decision, reached without conference with his colleagues.

ARTICLE 8.—Each institution shall pay the expenses of its debaters. All other expenses of each debate shall be paid by the entertaining institution.