Throughout its history the University of Michigan has had a ban on drinking in fraternity houses and dormitories. But any group of Michigan students determined to throw a bottle party in their quarters could think of dozens of speakeasy tricks to foil the campus cops.
One fraternity house sometimes uses a double-doorbell system. Invited guests press the concealed one; the uninvited set off an alarm signal when they push the other. Another clubhouse is wired with trip cords; if an intruder steps on one, all the lights in the house go out. Still another keeps one brother bartending in the basement. In...