1955

Cover: Natatorium at M iami University

When Phi Kappa T au comes to Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, to celebrate the fraternity's Golden Jubilee, one of the sights will be the John Shaw Billings Natatorium. One of the finest of America ·s swim· ming pools, the project was completed in 1951 at a cost of more than three-quarter million dollars.

This famous pool was the site of the I 95 5 National College Athletic Association swimming meet. More records were broken at the NCAA this year than in any single previous meet.

The overall dimensions of the pool arc 102' b}' 148'. The large pool of Olympic classification, is 42' by 75'. The instruction pool is 29' by 50'. The seven east windows which light the pool are 30' in height, as are those which form the bay behind the diving boards.

The building is named for a member of the M iami class of 1857, a surgeon in the Union Army in the War Between the States, developer of the Army Medical Library, planner of Johns Hopkins Hospital and the medical school of that university, "father" of public health teaching and writing, author and lecturer on medical subjects. John Shaw Billings, after retirement from the Army in 1895, made a second notable career as consolidator of the several libraries in New York City which became the New York Public Library. As one of the greatest figures in American medicine, he wa honored by eight great universities with their degree-.

This Natatorium will be available for recreation by Plti T aus, their wives and children at the Golden Jubilee during the days of June 27·30, 1956.

THE LAUREL of Phi Kapp a Tau

RICHARD ]. YOUNG, Editor

VOLUME XLIII SPRING, 1955

THE PHI KAPPA TAU FRATERNITY

CENTRAL OFFICE

OXFORD, OHIO

THE PHI KAPPA TAU FRATERNITY CENTRAL OFFICE, OXFORD, OHIO

TELEPHONE 3-5419

NUMBER 3

NATIONAL PRESIDENT ----------- --- - ------------ROLAND MA.X.'WELL 410 Secutity Bldg., Pasadena 1, Calif.

NATIONAL COMPTROLLER --- ---------- ----------D R. W. H. SHIDELER 110 S. Campus Ave., Oxford, Ohio

NATIONAL SECRETARY --- --- ------·--------------RICHARD J. YOUNG 15 N. Campus Ave., Oxford, Ohio

ASSISTANT SECRETARY --- - - --- - ------- ------------ J ACK L . ANSON

FJELD SECRETARY - - - ------------------------ --BERNARD L . SCOTT

SCHOLARSHIP COMMISSIONER ----------- - --- ------------ LOU LIEBL 550 S. Broadway, Lindenhurst, L . I., N . Y .

ALUMNI COMliUSSION ---------- - ----------------- SAM B. TrowELL Box 165, Station A, Hattiesburg, Miss.

NATIONAL CHAPLAI N ----------------------R EV. CHARLES D. SPOTTS Smoketown, Pa.

NATIONAL COUNCIL:

Lou Gerding 60$ Ridgecrest Drive, S.E. Albuquerque, N. M.

F1·ancis P. Kci11<!r 1202 liills Bldg,. Syracuse. N. Y.

Hugh C. Nichols Batavia. Ohio

H. Adam Durham 201 S. Loomis. Ft. Collins, Colo.

Chru·les D. Spotts Smoketown. Pa.

Harold E. Angelo 2332 f>arkwood Rd., Ann Arbor, Mich.

'l'he exolea·ic publication of the Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity. Published prior to 1917 as "Sidelights." Sched­uled to appe>lr quarterly in the mont hs of February, May, September. and December under direction a nd a uthori ty of the National Council. Acceptance Ioa· mailing at specia l rates of J)()Stage provided for in Section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917. Published qu:u-terly by The Lawhead Pa·ess, Inc .. 17 West ·wash­ington Street, Athens, Ohio. official printers for The Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity. Entered as second class matter at the Post Office at Athens, Ohio. Additional entry at the Post Office at Oxford, Ohio. L ife s ubscrintion $35.00.

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THE LAUREL OF PHI K APPA TAU

~-NIL'· -.. ..,) ... VUDNOSTOK 201t MI.

AUCKWD 14f1 ML TOKYO l.S63 MI. NAHA · 1.200 MI.

BRISBAIE : 2.659 MI. ~iOUiA--::2.528

W illiam R. Milner, Purdue, builds naval bases in Marianas

John R. Bogert, Muhlenberg , is on ekplorotion geologist in South America

THE LAUREL

Stories of Great Interest Come From

Phi Taus W ho Are Located in Foreign

Many

Lands By Jock l. Anson, Assista nt Secretory

Bahr.un, Istanbul. Maui, Sao Paulo, Li· be ria, Calcutta?

Yes, you will find Phi T aus there. It matters little where you may travel outside the continental limits of the United States. quite likely there will be a friend and a Phi Tau in the country and possibly in the very city which you may be visiting.

Engaged in many professions and busi· nesses, members of the fraternity are located on every continent, the major islands and in a vast majority of the principal cities of the world.

Foreign service officials, import-export personnel, engineers, petroleum experts, transportation officers, geologists, a rubber plantation manager, are a few of the occu­pations you will encounter among our J 12 members who maintain permanent foreign residences.

During the last few months we have re• ceived many interesting ~tters from Phi Taus living abroad. T hese letters, which de­scribe the country and conditions there, indicate that many of the men and their families lead unusual and sometimes dan­gerous lives.

John R. Bogert, Muhlenberg, who gradu­ated in 1947, is an exploration geologist with the Kennecott Copper Corporation looking for new mines and exploitable mineral wealth in South and Central America.

Upon graduation he went to Chile to work in the Atacama Desert area. Trans· ferred to Venezuela in 1949, he worked throughout the southern jungle into British Guiana and Braz.il before returning to take his Master of Science degree in 1950. Cur· rently in Peru, he spends half of his time examining prospects and evaluating promis­ing mines.

Having been in every country in South and Central America, John's experiences include one minor airplane crash, several

frightening encounters with snak~ and crocodiles, being caught in a Bolivian revo­lution and spending some time with the Jivaro Indians (head shrinking) in Ecuador.

Wayne B. Gentry, Oregon State, class of 1949, joined the United States Foreign Service and is now on assignment at the American Embassy, J idda, Saudi Arabia, as private secretary to the American ambas­sador.

In a letter of several months ago, W ayne describes two of his trips with the am• bassador.

''I accompanied the ambassador to that little known kingdom of Yemen, on the southwest coast of Arabia ... the mythical home of the Queen of Sheba. Yemen is still as primitive now as it was centuries ago and few westerners have ever been per­mitted to enter the country. W e took a jeep from the British colony of Aden to Ta'iz, capital of Yemen; the 120 miles took 12 hours. The four American members of the party lost about tO pounds each during the two weeks trip.

"I also accompanied the ambassador to Riyadh, actual capital of Saudi Arabia (there arc three: Riyadh, home of the royal family; Jidda, westerners are per­mitted to reside here, and Mecca, the reli­gious capital) . I was presented twice to His Majesty, King Ibn Saud; attended dinner and horse races as the guest of H is High­ness, Crown Prince Saud. Upon our depar­ture from Riyadh, each member of the party was presented a complete Arab dress and a special made gold Mido wristwatch engraved with the King's name and the emblem of Saudi Arabia, which is crossed swords and a palm tree.

"Jidda is a port with very few facilities. It is generally regarded by foreign service personnel as the worst post out of approxi­mately 300. The heat is continually in the hundreds with humidity hovering between

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THE LAUREL OF PHI K A PP A T AU

85 and 95 percent. T here are no tele­phones, occasional electricity, daily water shortage, no movies, restaurants, etc."

Michael ]. Komaromi, A~ron, a charter member of Alpha Phi chapter, has been in the Philippines since February 1949 and is the resident manager of the Philippine Rub­ber Project Company, Inc., a rubber plantation and subsidiary of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company.

The rubber estate is on the island of Mindanao which is the southernmost island of the Philippine archipelago and in the province of Zamboanga Del Sur about 100 miles north of Zamboanga City, the nearest point of civilization. There are no roads connecting the plantation with the outside world and traveling is done on a 50-foot converted army }boat.

There are 2,5'00 acres in the plantation and about 400 laborers are employed. Al­most all of these people and their families live on the estate which is a community in itself with a hospital, a processing plant and electrical generating equipment. Mike says he spends most of his time "at home," going to the big city only about once every two months.

His two sons, David and Dennis, are getting their education from their mother by means of a correspondence course from the Calvert School of Baltimore, Md.

Roy L. W orley, University of Washing­ton, class of 1930, has led a diversified life abroad and has returned to the United States only seven times since his first over­seas assignment as a foreign service officer in December, 1930. After serving at num­erous posts with the State Department, Roy returned to Brazil in 1940 and has since that time been the manager of the office of the Moore-McCormack steamship lines in Bahia.

"My first post was near home in Van­couver, Canada, where I remained for nine months before going to W ashington, D . C. , for three months.

"At the end of the three months I was sent to Guayaquil, Ecuador, where as a young vice consul I had to learn to speak Spanish and the ways of a foreign people. This work was most interesting and during my two years I witnessed two revolutions and three earthquakes which appeared to be the normal procedure for young officers of the State Department.

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"'From there I was transferred to Bahia, Brazil, where I arrived in June, 1933. While at this post I did a great deal of trade work which was a help to me when I finally left the foreign service to join the Moore-McCormack Lines. While in Bahia I was also fortunate in being in charge of the consulate for some two years.

"From here I was transferred to London in June, 1937, but while in the Department of State I was informed by Cordell Hull, then secretary of state, that I was being transferred to Valencia, Spain.

"I remained in Spain at V alencia and Barcelona until the end of the Civil War before returning to the States. T his period of my life is a complete story by itself; however, I might add it was interesting to see world politics being enacted which brought us to W orld W ar II.

"At this point I had better return a little and report that while in Bahia, Brazil, I met the girl I later married and due to the fact she was a foreigner I had to resign from the foreign service, which I did in April, 1939. In June, 1939, I joined the Moore-McCormack Lines and was sent to Rio de Janeiro where I began to learn the steamship business. After two months in Rio de Janeiro I went to Santos, the biggest coffee exporting port in the world, and then on January 1 5', 1940, I opened the Bahia office of the "Mooremack" Lines where I have been ever since.

"My continued living abroad is due pri· marily to an idea which came to me during my undergraduate days at the university. I wanted, and still want to help in cement­ing better relations between our people and the people in whatever country I may be located. It is my conclusion that there are few such differences as certain politicians or governmental people try to create for their own selfish ends.

"The City of Bahia, or "Salvador" as it is officially called, was founded in 1 5' 49 by the Portuguese under Thome Le Souza. It is built alongside the spacious Bay of All Saints, and is the capital of the state of Bahia. Until 1763 the city was the capital of the Portuguese government of Brazil.

"The state covers an area of 55"0,000 square kilometers and contains an estimated population of 4,000,000 people. The city itself has a population of nearly 400,000. Average yearly temperature in the city is

THE LAUREL O F P HI K A PPA TA U

Ivan E. Miles, Mississippi Stole, is on agriculture a dvisor in the Philippines

77 degrees with very little range or vari­ation recorded during the year. T he main exports are cocoa, cocoa by-products, castor seed, sisal;, piassava, hides and skins, tobacco and wax.

Robert E. Young, M iami, Alpha chapter president in 1936-37, has only recently ar­rived in Ca lcutta, India, after a short time in the United States following months in Switzerland.

In a letter to his brother, Richard ]. Young. secretary of Phi Kappa T au, Bob tells about the problems of establ ishing a household and a brief picture of a mid­February riot.

" we were shocked at seeing Cal-cutta- it really is a dreadful place, un­doubtedly one of the most unsightl}', one of the dirtiest cities of the world. H owever, it seems to grow on people and we have heard and arc find ing out that people do become attached to the place. T his of cour~c explains why everyone belongs to at lca.:;t

two clubs- the Swimming Club and the Saturday Club. T here is nothing else to do - we either stay at home, visit at friends or go to the club. No ''pleasure" drives here as in Switzerland.

" W e have our servants now- people all over the place all day long. W hile I can't say much for Calcutta, the servant deal is really something providing they are good (and that means good by Indian standards) . W e have an A nglo-Indian nanny for the children- this is necessary as the children never go out unaccompanied- and she is the highest paid of all at about $16 a month. T he brea rer or number one boy is from South India n and seems to be pretty good but nothing fancy. W e also have a cook (which the bearer rounded-up-prob­ably a relative) nnd a sweeper (another relative, we're sure) . In addition there is a doly who does the laundry by bashing it on a board and Peg has a durzi (dressmaker) . T his dressmaker can copy anything and the

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THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

workmanship is something magnificent. He'll take material which you provide and make a beautiful gown for four or five dol­lars that would be truly a Fifth Avenue sort of thing. I'm sure this sounds wonder­ful (and in many respects is) but you must remember that behind it is the fact that there are millions of people here who have nothing and so the reason for getting skilled people for a song. .

Ivan E. Miles, Mississippi State, recetved his B.S. degree in 1930 and his M.S.A. degree at the University of Florida in 1931. He has a Ph.D. from Maryland. Ivan has served on numerous foreign assignments for the United States Department of Agricul­ture as an expert in soils and fertilizers. At present he is working with the Philippine government as an advisor in the study of increased food production through the use of fertilizers.

Ivan describes his work in the Philippines as follows:

" Most of the farms are under five acres in size. There is next to no mechanization, and the caribou (or water BuffaJo) is the beast of burden used in the rice paddies. Late in 195 I , Mississippi loaned me to the United States Department ot State and they in turn loaned me to the Philippines as a specialist in the use of fertilizers. There is a severe food shortage and the proper purchase and use of fertilizers is the quickest and most effective way to increase food production. W e have established a large fertilization program and it is giving very good results."

George Frank, Michigan, class of 1937, wrote the following letter from Awali, Bah­rain, on the Persian Gulf, to Edward L. Warner, Michigan.

"Should you wonder why I am in this garden spot of Allah where Mohammed continually makes two grains of sand blow where only one blew before, let me hasten to inform you that it is not from choice. I am unfortunate in being a senior member of a firm of consultants who range far afield. For the past two years I've had the job of reorganizing the management and administrative practices of the Bahrain Petroleum Company, Ltd. I t is the biggest refinery and producing unit of the Califor­nia Texas Company. Since Abadan folded up, this has been the biggest refinery in the Persi<~n Gulf area- 225',000 barrels

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of crude processed every day- making it about fourth largest in the world. T here are 7,000 employees (6,000 natives, 975 British, 25' Americans.)

"Outside of its petroleum, this part of the world has only one other claim to fame, its similarity of weather to that described as prevailing in H ades. From April to Novem­ber the thermometer never, night or day, drops below 100 degrees. In the the sun the daily temperatures reach a maximum of 170. Touching exposed metal in that heat is a bit dangerous and around the fi rst of September an imagined slight from your best friend will lead to mayhem. On the plus side of the weather, however, if we didn't have it to talk and write about, ennui wou!d prevail even more intensely than it does.

"T hings, though, aren't too bad when we can buy the be."'t Scotch for Rs9 a bottle ($1 .75' ) . In addttion, the winter is coming now and the weather is lovely. W e can even go swimming in the gulf again-dur· ing the summer it is too hot. Can you imagine an ocean, and that's what the Persian Gulf approximates, with water tem­peratures about 100 degrees?

Wimam R . Milner, Pt~rdue, and presi­dent of Lambda chapter in 1922, is con­nected in a civilian capacity with the Base Development Section of the Commander of Naval Forces in the Marianas. With head· quarters on Guam, Bill has been closely linked with the construction program mak­ing Guam a modern advanced naval base and an all-important outpost in the defenses of our country.

In Bill's own words are his descriptions of his work and our vital islands in the Pacific.

" D uring the last wa r, I was in the Civil Engineer Corps of the Navy and had duty in the States except for a short tour in the Pacific. Liking the type of work done by the construction forces of the N avy, I stayed on in a civilian capacity and since 1945' have been on Guam. My depart· ment is primarily concerned with all plann­ing, engineering and construction done by the Navy on Guam and also has been con· cerned in the past with installations in the Trust T erritory Islands in the Pacific. These islands between W orld W ar I and II were the Japa nese mandates.

T HE LAUREL OF PH I KAPPA TA U

From the Chapters • • •

Akron By DAVE DICKSON

Tragedy has struck Al pha Phi in the form of death. John Richard Moore, better know nas " Dick," a junior majoring in ew gincering, was electrocuted while out on a job as part of Akron's co-op program.

The incident has opened our eyes to the true meaning of brotherhood and has made us more thoughtful concerning fraternal re­lationships.

On the lighter side of events many of the brothers have received honors around cam­pus. George Kriska is president of ODK, an honorary for men active in extra-cur­ricular activities. He is also president of Scabbard and Blade, a military honorary and was chosen the fourth ranking cadet at summer camp.

John Reece is president of the debate team and treasurer of Student Council.

Charlie Johnson is assistant Student Building manager and basketball manager, while Bruce Averill is Inter-Mural commis­sioner.

The chapter as a whole won second place honors in last year's May Day. Our theme was " Bumble Boogie" and we con­structed a giant bumble bee beating out boogie on a cool white piano.

Scholarship hasn't suffered from our gaiety however. Alpha Phi captured the second place trophy on campus.

Auburn By PHIL HYATT

Alpha Lambda chapter 's homecoming decorations featured a giant Plainsman fir­ing at a shooting gallery. The display was entitled "Shooting to W in." During H ome­coming weekend, we had several informal house dances and a meeting of our gradu ­ate council.

Phi T au·s candidate, Augusta York of Birmingham, was successful in a campus-

Augusta York, Alpha Lambda's successful candi­date for "Miss Auburn." She ruled at the Gator Bowl.

wide election for " Miss Auburn ." Augusta was elected from an original field of forty Auburn co-eds. As Miss Auburn, Augusta represented our school in parades prior to the Alabama football game in Birmingham and at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. This is the greatest honor an Auburn co-ed can receive.

Our annual Christmas Party highlighted December. Mrs. S. F. Teague, our wonder ­ful housemother, signed her contract for another year with Alpha Lambda.

On the last day of the fall quarter, we gave the traditional graduation party for our two graduating seniors, Bob Patterson and Pat Kelly .

W e had a three day organized rush at the beginning of the winter quarter. This was one of the largest rushes Alpha Lambda has ever attempted during an off-quarter.

Founder's Day celebration was February 19.

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Baldwin, Wallace By NORMAN L. BRUNELLE

The fellas here at Alpha Omega have been the foster fathers of nine young pups. Our mascot, Smokey, had nine pups on November the 14th. There were seven males and two females. All of the pups are either claimed by one of the fellas or some­one here on campus.

Several improvements have been made on the house in the past weeks. We painted the front porch. The fellas financed a new rug in the front room. This was a big step towards the improving of the appearances of the house. New carpeting has been laid in the upstairs hallway. The upstairs hall­way was also painted.

The final standings in the Intramural Football arc now available. We finished in third place in both the "A" and "B" leagues. Wrestling was completed in No­vember. W e finished in fourth place. T he winter sports are underway as we won our first bowling match with the Faculty. T he Intramural Basketball will get underway at the beginning of the next quarter. T he aggregate scoring for the Intramural trophy, finds Alpha Omega in third place.

Bethany By FRED KOPF

Everyone at the Phi Chapter is talking about the wonderful dance that the Inter­Fraternity Council put on in the early part

The new Phi Taus at Alpha Omega

Poge e ight

of December. The dance, which featured Ralph M arterie, was the brain child of President John Palafoutas, this was com­monly thought of as the best this campus had ever seen. The work of Bill Ramsey, Gerry Frederickson and Palafoutas should be commended for the many long and tire­some hours which they gave towards the success of the dance.

On Bethany's basketball team this year the Phi T aus are well represented with freshman Auggie Lasso, John Roytos, Buth Lenz, Rudy "Serb" Yaksich and Jack Shuetz giving the weakened Bethany bench a long awaited strengthening, which will be a definite advantage. The regulars back from last year are Jack Prater, John Pala­~outas, and Dick Lash. Our championship mtra-mural team has four of the starting five returning and coach Bob Boyer had been working hard to round the boys into shape.

Congratulations arc in order for Gerry Fredericksen who was voted to the first team of the Tri-State area by a board of district coaches. Fullback Bob Boyer made third team. Congratulations are also in or­der for our new active Fred Gilgen and our new pledges Butch Lenz, Mel Moss, Chuck Spillers, Ed Frcshnock, and Leroy Trouten.

Congratulations are also in order for the following Phi Taus who graduated and were married in the past year. They are Ed Kakuk, Jack Wheatley, and Art Gheen.

Bowling Green By RUSSELL A. HALL

Beta T au held its annual dream girl ban­quet at which all the dream girl candidates were guests on November 15. The week was climaxed by a formal dance on Novem­ber 20. Miss Florence Lafferty, Alpha Xi Delta, was chosen as our 1954-19)) Dream Girl. After the dance, open house was ob­served at the Chapter house.

Our football team finished in 7th place in the inter-fraternity league. The volley ball season is just over and Beta Tau ·s ~earn placed second in the league, beaten JUSt once by the Sigma Chi's. The prospects for a good basketball year arc excellent. All of last year's men arc returning except one.

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

Lowell Roge n, President Mark Barnhill, Dream Girl Florence Lafferty, Retiring Dneam Girl Jo Ree, and Vice-President Ernest Hahn.

Last year we were first in the inter-fra­ternity league. and this year with spirits high we might win the inter-domain basket· ball troph)'.

The schol<trShip at this Chapter is high again this year. W e rank second on campus and fifth throughout the Phi T au Nation on an unofficiil l tilbulation. Russell H all was recently initiated into Book and Motor So­ciety, the local scholarship honorary and also into Kappa Delta Pi, the education honorary. Jack Scheriloh was recently a­warded a $300 scholarship to fu rther his s tudies in the field of insurance by an in· surancc company. John Peterson was elected President of Sigma, which is the honorary of the College of Business A dministration. John was al~o g1ven a scholarship by the T o­ledo Chapter of the Ohio Society of Certi· fied Public Accountants to help him con· tinue his studies in accounting.

The Fri'ltcrnity held its annual Christmas party on W ednesday, December 15. The members exchanged gifts \vith the cook, houo;cmothcr, and alumni.

California By NORMA PARSONS

T o go back a few weeks, we opened the year with a housewarming of the new chap• ter house for the alums and parents. A week later we had one for the whole campus, and, after taking inventory of our trophies and cigarette burns in the rug, we settled down to the job of being students.

Our first traditional party in the new house was the pledge formal in honor of the new 18, and was a success, as was our rous· ing exchanges with the Pi Phis, ADPis, Thetas, T ri Delts, and Alpha Phis.

For this year's Homecoming float parade we and the ADPis are going for that sweep· stakes trophy for the parade's best float. Al H aight, our float chairman, who pro· duced a sweepstakes winner in '52, is again in charge of the planning and building of our entry.

Both interscholastic and intramural ath· letics claim a large portion of the Phi T au House. Dick Righter, three year varsity letterman, has a best of 213 ft . in the javelin. W alt Briant, another three year letterman, is Cal's top highjumper and high hltrdler. Glenn Miller, two year varsity letterman, and Norm Parsons, are our con• tributions to the Cal crew. Our two foot• bailers are Nick Poppin, soph guard and D on Phillips, tackle, junior, Big C winner.

Intramural is in full swing with football, basketball, and volleyball. W e're out to im· prove on our 5th place among 52 fra· tcrnities last year and win that top spot W e're off to a good start, winning our first volleyball and basketball games.

Centre By ROBERT WHEELER

After a very successful rushing p rogram, Delta added six new pledges to her ranks. The six most fortunate men in the Fresh· man Class included five Kentuckians and one Yankee. The five from the "Land of Honeysuckle" were Ernie Holbrook, Paints· ville; Don Nail, Okolona; Bill Begley, Ha:!:· ard; W ade Morgan, H yden; Glen Spauld· ing, Lebanon ; the lone Yankee was Pete

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The Pledge C lass at University of Califo rnia

Janicki from Springfield, Massachusetts. With the addition of the six pledges the membership of the Chapter is now twenty· five.

At the polls we were honored by the elec· tion of John Rutledge McClure as president of the Men's Student Council. Rut is also treasurer of the Centre Christian Associ· ation, a member of Sharit, and pledgemaster of Delta. Rut, a senior, was president of his Junior Class and president of the chap· ter when he was a sophomore. Mal Keiller is associate editor of the Centre College Cento. Barry Bacon is president of Junior Pitkin. Selected as members of Senior Pit· kin were J R. Postlethweight, Charles Ow· ens, Bob Fields, Dave Hines, and Rut Me· Clure. James Bland and Dick Soehner are lab assistants in the Biology Department at Centre. Both are members of Phi Beta Chi, the science fraternity. Bob Fitch was also elected to Phi Beta Chi.

Something new at Centre this year in the Centre College Singers, a mixed choral group that sings popular tunes. This group was organized along the lines of Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians by Mr. Kelso, our faculty adviser. Men from Delta who be· long to it are Dave Widmer Dave Hines Rut McClure, Bob Fields, 'J. R. POStle: thweight, and Charles Owens. From all in·

Page ten

dications this group should grow into one of the bright spots of campus life.

The house has been painted on the in· side, thanks to the efforts of everyone in the chapter. T he men living in each room were allowed to choose the color they wanted to put on. This resulted in some bright color combinations of reels, blues, and yellows. All in all the house looks much better.

Coe By BRUCE F. MULLEN

Great enthusiasm marked the 1954·55 school year here at the IOTA chapter. Under the leadership of President Keith Lowrey, we had a goal of making this the best year in IOTA's history. T he ideas that Lowrey, Carol Griggs, Jack Doherty, and Dan De Young brought back from the Do· main Conference last year are a great help in achieving our goal.

Through the hard work of Lavern Knock, the rushing chairman, and Denny Hanson, his assistant, we had a very successful rush week, pledging fifteen excellent men. This brings our chapter strength to 56 men.

T he men of lOT A were mighty proud

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and happy when we found that we had won and also retired the traveling Scholar· sh1p trophy. It had to be won three times in succession to retire it.

Involved in college sports this year are: Keith Lowrey, Don Toppel, Dick Bristol , Dud Switzer, and Bob Herculson on Var­sity Football; Bob Strohmaier, Jim Leger, Sid Batten, and Ellis Wiigens on the fresh· man team. Scott Smith and Art Neilander .1re leaders on the varsity track team and Jerry Lyons and Bruce Glass were on the frosh. Carol Griggs was a mainstay on the wrestling team and Jim Hellmandollar helped to coach it. Brad Kasuls and Toppel were outstanding candidates on the basket· ball team.

ln other campus activities are Bob Lager· stom, AFROTC cadet colonel; Max Daeh· lcr, editor of the ACORN, our yearbook; and Stewart Shaw, President of the Y.M.C.A. council.

Colorado By RICHARD SCHUMANN

Psi started off L954·55 with a bang. Indi· cative of this were the results of rush week, during which we pledged 37 men who show grca t promise.

W e were cheered on by the news that Phi T au had placed second out of 25 fraternities in last year's scholastic stand· mg with a 2.55 average. H ere's hoping for a first place this year.

Of course studies take up the greater parl of a Phi Tau's time; however, social functions are a necessary part of college life. We here at Psi have nothing to com· plain about in this respect. Edward Alt· man, the social chai rman, has clone an ex· ccllent job, as shown by functions with the Alpha Chi Omegas, Gamma Phi Betas, and AI pha Omega Pis.

W e were recently privileged to honor our Mothers Club with a luncheon. We arc certainly proud of the part they have played in keeping our house attractive.

Psi acquired a mascot recently in the form of a black animal with a white stripe down his back, commonly called a skunk.

Of course he has been the center of attrac• tion at all functions this year.

One of the main events of the year was the burning of the house mortgage. A newly organized double quartet here in the house provided fine entertainment for the Alums present.

Colorado A & M By ROBERT STEBBINS

This year's activities started with a pre· rushweek painting and remodeling of the house. With a successful rush week and follow/up program we pledged a fine class of fifteen men. Later initiation was held for five pledges who were able to go active. T o celebrate homecoming we built a huge decoration covering the whole front of our chapter house. D uring the fall quarter we held numerous exchange-dessert parties and exchange dinners with the sororities on campus.

Cigars were passed when Don MeAn· drew announced his pinning to Janice Bowers and when Bob Wilson announced his pinning to Tri Delta pledge Helen An· drews we serenaded.

Jack Mondt was named Cadet Major in the Army Ordnance R.O.T.C. Bob Stebbin was elected Horticulture Club President and Bob Wilson and Jack Mondt attended the Sigma T au conclave in Lincoln, Nebraska. Sigma T au is an honorarr cngi· neering fraternity.

Mother West fall, our new house mother whom we like very much, is supporting Boy Scout Troop 82 of which her son was a charter member. Harry T aylor, our secrc· tary•treasurer, is the business manager for the Colorado Conservation Council.

Cornell By RALPH KIEFER

Surveying the events of the past months, two occasions remain most memorable in our minds. The first was the initiation into the brotherhood of two of last year's

Page eleven

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

The Future Members at Color.ado A & M

pledges, Thomas C<>undit of Bordentown, N ew Jersey, and Thomas Schilling of Clark's Summit, Pennsylvania. They were initiated on Saturday, December 4, after the holding of the traditional supper Friday night.

This year we have been fortunate in locating a very fine chapter advisor to fill the position that has been vacant since Mr. Eugene Montillon left the University. He is Professor T aylor D. Lewis, of the Trans­portation Engineering Department of the School of Civil Engineering here at Cornell University. Mr. Lewis graduated from the University of Michigan in 1934 where he is a member of Phi Kappa T au

Many brothers are again active in sports tlus year. Our president , William Genne, is serving as varsity wrestling manager and Donald Badgley is manager of the 150 pound crew team. Members of the house rowing 150 pound crew are Brothers John Lobo and Jack Schuerger and Pledge John Pax.

Freshman Bob Hendricks has been chosen as Bass Clarinet player for the Cornell

Poge twelve

Concert Band. This summer Bob toured Europe with the Montreal Junior Sym­phony Orchestra.

Delaware By THOMAS A. LENNOX

During the summer and especially the two weeks before the start of the '54-'55' session, there was much scurrying about a­cross from the Library on the University of Delaware Campus. T he brothers of the Al­pha Gamma chapter were working to recon­dition their new house for the start of the fall term. The house has been painted in­side and out, a new fire escape has been constructed, and a macaddam parking lot has been put down.

David Ewing has been elected president of our Delaware chapter. Donald H ornberg, as secretary, and Robert H orne, as treas­urer, will assist Dave in the guidance of the fraternity.

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

Although a great Delaware football team is overshadowing the other spor ts, it is not the only winning team on campus. The soccer team is having its first winning sea­son in many a year. John McLaughlin is in the front of the pack in both scoring and team play. T he cross-country team is strong and W allace Cook is running up with the be~l.

Florida By CALEB CUSHING ADAMS, III

We have through the tremendous cooper­ation of both brothers and alumni begun work on a new activities patio in our back }'ard. Financial assistance is being donated from funds of the Alumni Association plus miscellaneous chapter funds and alumni construction . The pa.tio includes a dance floor of yellow and blue concrete and is about 1500 square feet. In the center of the dance floor is a Phi Tau crest. The other part of the patio can be used for playing basketball, volleyball and shuffleboard. There will eventually be a small fish pond included in the patio. W e have also painted parts of the house and have planted new grass in the front lawn.

W e won for the second year in succes­sion the trophy for first place in the Inter­fraternity Christmas Sing. W e are very grateful to Brother Russell Danburg, who is a teacher of music at the University, f01· arranging two very fine musical numbers for our group to sing. Rodney G. Anderson was d1rcctor of the group.

W e are very proud of the fact that this year we inaugurated an annual Christmas party for underprivileged children of this area. The party consisted of playing games with the "kiddies," giving out presents to each child with Santa. Claus acting as host. After the presents were distributed, refresh· ments were served. Every child present seemed to show a radiance possibly due to the fact that we have brought a little sun­shine into their lives.

W e have a large well -rounded pledge class this year due to aggressive rushing. They have installed fluorescent lighting in the game room and are planning to put a. mirror over the fireplace in the living room.

W e arc very proud of the records and honors that some of our men have won during the past few months. William Daniel was elected president of the Uni· vcrsity of Florida Student Body. Bill is a veteran and is majoring in Law at the Uni· versity of Florida Law School. \Villiam Booth was appointed under--ecretary of Student Organizations. William Breiden­bach was elected chairman of Region Four of the National Association of College Unions for the next year. This is the Sou thea tern Division. W c are stressing scholarship as we have never done before. Thomas Urquhart, our scholarship chair­man, has invited many school officials to spea k to the pledges as well as the brothers at dinner about the utmost importance of scholarship and of applying oneself to mak­ing the best record in college academic work as possible.

Florida State By DER WYN McELROY

Homecoming was a big weekend at Florida State University, and the big news from Beta Iota is that we won the home-

Bill W atson, past president at Florida Stale

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TH E L A U R E L OF PH I KAPPA TA U

coming house decorations contest with our huge flag bedecked showboat, "The Semi­nole Queen." T he decoration, which was achieved by the entire efforts of members and pledges, covered the entire facade of the fraternity house. The "Queen" was fea­tured in the major newspapers throughout the state, and also on a state-wide television show. Our homecoming skit placed among the top three fraternities on campus for the second straight year. During the week­end we were proud to have as our guests many alumni and friends.

W e were honored when our candidate, Miss Bobbie Craig of Ocala, Florida, was selected queen of the Charity Bowl foot­ball game.

One of our most recent projects is the establishment of a Phi T au blood bank here in Tallahassee. lo co-operation with the local bank, we are building a sur plus which will be available for members, pledges, alumni, and people in need.

At mid-year graduation four of our brothers - Norman Smith, Ray Jones, Charles Van Middlesworth, and Bill W at­son - received their degrees. T hese men have been very active in Phi Kappa T au. Van Middlesworth and Jones are past presidents of the chapter.

Georgia T ech By WILLIAM T. TEAGUE

Alpha Rho has had one of the best quar­ters in its entire history. Our greatest suc­cess was in our pledging of twenty-four men during our fall rush season. Since that time, we have pledged several more.

Our sports program in intramurals, led by Dale T hornborough, was one of our finest in many years. Football was our main sport, with our chapter getting second place in our league.

In our most leisure moments, we had several parties. All went off great. At Hal­loween, we had our annual "Witch Party." Later in the fall with a cool snap, we took to the woods for a "possum" hunt. The biggest and most successful was our Christ­mas party, where we had several under­privileged children for Santa Claus to visit.

Page fourteen

Our men still show leadership on the campus. Peter Curtis was elected to the Bulldog Club-sponsors of the intramural sports program. W endell Williams was elected to President, and Donal Nordal, Secretary, of the Briaerean Society. Peter Keenan was voted into the Society, too. T he Briaerean Society is an honorary co-op club.

W e are glad to have in our brotherhood Regina! Haselden, Jack Stover, and Thomas Kenady, who were initiated this quarter.

Hobart By E DWIN KRIEGSMAN, JR.

T he Beta Upsilon chapter began the 195 4-5 5 year with great strides towards further improving its house which was ac­quired only three years ago. This fall six of the bedrooms were completely redecor­ated by the brothers themselves and over the summer much of our main floor furniture was cleaned.

Our ranks were bolstered this year by a returning veteran, John "Scottie" Selch, from Lancaster, N . Y. who was initiated on November first with one of our pledges from last year, Bennet Ray Kat~ from Long Beach, N. Y. These two plus one additional man, Elliot Livingston from Albany, N . Y., who was pledged this fall brings our total membership to twenty - just about this year's average for the Hobart campus. Rushing this year was for two weeks only. At the time of writing this, pledging had not occurred, but of the 200-plus freshmen many looked like good material.

Last term Beta Upsilon ranked first scholastically among the fraternities here at Hobart recogni~d by the National I.F.C. Our average of 27 men, two of whom were members of Phi Beta Kappa, was 2.326 where A is 4.0, B is 3.0, etcetera. Although our two Phi Betas have gone on to graduate school, our average, according to Scholar­ship Chairman Jim Raskin, ought to remain in first position.

The week-end of October 22-24 was Ho­bart's annual Homecoming week-end, and we trounced Union 3 2 to 21. For the occa­sion, we had an amazingly large return of our alumni. T o honor these returning men,

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

the chapter erected one of the finest home· coming displays on campus, for which we received second place in competition with the other fraternities and the dorms. While the alumni were here they established a new organization composed of graduate members only. This organization will levy a tax upon itself for the purpose of donating to the re5idcnt council each year a gift towards improving the house. With this support, we have redoubled our efforts to finish success· fully what <;t:lrted as an excellent year.

Idaho By BOB KINDSCHY and DEAl\: jUDD

The (i rst weekend of November proved to b~ a very busy and memorable one for the memb.:r" of Beta Gamma. It began on Frida>' night with the eleven new pledges of the chapter being honored at the annual house pledge dance. T he dance was a big succc~s and was enjoyed by all.

Early Saturdlly morning the pledges left

Ed Hudson, president, and Miss Harrel Regan; Housemother and Mr. W illiam Logan; Mr. ond

Mrs. Tee O'Neil

for Spokane. W ashington on their sneak, and of course, left the house in a mess for the members. That afternoon the members lost the annual football game with Alpha Kappa by a score of 12·0; but were still very able to put the pledges to work clean· ing the house when they arrived home late Sunday. It was a great weekend.

House President, Ed Hudson, was re· eently initiated into Phi Delta Kappa, Men's national education honorary. and Larry Summers and Dick Spraker are menv bers of the University's outstanding Air Force ROTC choir.

Idaho State By MARLYN BROOKBANK

Beta Sigma Chapter has had one of its biggest years since it has been on Idaho State campus. Among out·tanding students, we have Burt Brookbank, student body president; Jim Carey, president of Associ· a ted M en's Students; Jerry Reidel, presi· dent of the Junior Class, and several other ·chool positions too numerous to mention.

T he biggest feature of the year was when Beta Sigma was able to move into their own house which was possible onl}' through the great efforts of Jim Carey and others among the fraternity. W e rented a large house at 241 N orth H ayes and we know now that it is going to be a big suc· cess. The pledges do their work very dili· gently every morning and at night. W e have set up our own standard of rules for the hou e and they have become a part of each one of us.

Now that we have our own house, we be­lieve that we ca n make ;my goal a success. The mothers of the chapter have formed a women's auxiliary and have given us a large Jeer, which will cut the board bill down considert'lbly. As the most well organized organization on the campus, we have no trouble in getting help with any work or problem which may face us. With these standards, we know that the Phi Kappa T au Fraternit}' will be a great uccess this year.

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THE LA U R E L O F PHI KAPPA TAU

Lorry Thompson, Illinois cheerleader

Illinois

By JAMES R. KENNEDY

Good news followed good news this year when, after we took second place in the University's Stunt Show, homecoming weekend, we found we were entered in Co-Ree bowling with Chi Omega. At the last notification we stood 9th out of 57 fraternities in intra-mural sports on cam· pus and should move close to first next semester, which is our strong semester as far as I.M. is concerned. Go, Go, I.M.

News of all news, flash, Zeta is going pin happy or Cupid strikes again. Quite a few of our men have decided to take that fatal step of pinning some insignificant females. Ugh! Oh well, to each his own.

I wish to take this chance to sincerely thank, on behalf of the chapter, our retir· ing president, James V oorhees. T hrough his leadership and his and the Chapter's com· bined efforts, Phi T au stands where it docs on the U. of I. campus today. Jim, may the success you have known as our presi· dent follow you through the years.

Even the house looks newer as the inside was almost entirely repainted during work

Page sixteen

week this yea r. Also a new plaque with the greek letters of Phi Kappa T au has re· placed the old smaller plaque on the front of our house.

The only sad thought this year is the loss of a great guy from the halls of old Phi T au. Sherm Lawrence was ki lled this fall in an auto accident in his home town of Evanston, Ill. He will be sorely missed at Zeta.

W e wish good luck to the chapter of Phi T au all over the nation in the year to come. Go, Go, Phi Tau.

Indiana By DYKE EGNATZ

With the initiation of eight new brothers and another excellent pledge class, Beta Lambda has risen greatly in campus recog· nition. Of 30 fraternities on campus, Phi T au came from 28th to 12th in scholarship last year. Our pledge class ranked fourth.

In the annual Fall Carnival for ca mpus charities, Phi T au, in collaboration with Alpha Omicron Pi Sororit>' · took first place with its skit. "The Perils of Pocahontas,' ' boasting an eye-catching 4 5 ·foot totem pole.

On Homecoming week-end, alumni rc· turned to find the chapter house turned into a three-story showboat. with the slogan

Phi Tou-AOPi booth at Indiana ca rniva l

THE LAURE L O F PHI KAP PA TA U

"Paddle Iowa .. , (The pledge class took turns turning the wheel ) . A buffet dinner and open house for the Phi Taus and their dates and a house dance rounded out the week-end's activities.

Along the lines of inter-chapter relation­ships, the Beta Lambda pledge class was host to 1 5' Purdue pledges on a week-end walkout. W e visited Lambda when Indiana moved up to Lafayette in its attempt to re­capture "The Oaken Bucket" from our rival, Purdue. Dyke Egnatz; enjoyed a brief visit with the brothers at Iota Chapter at Iowa State this summer.

Our living room was given a new look with the purchase of drapes, lamps, and ash trays by our neophyte class. As soon as the sale of our present house is complete, Beta Lambda hopes to begin construction of its new chapter house on the New Fraternity Row at Indiana University, with possible completion in September, 195'5' .

Kansas By ALAN LYNN

Beta Theta really went to town during work week this year. All but a few of the actives who couldn't get away from summer jobs helped to redecorate the chapter house.

W orking from top to bottom we started first on the third deck, where we sanded and waxed the floor. T hen we moved down to the second floor. There we repainted all the rooms and furniture. Besides this we retiled all the rooms and the hall way. When I say painted the rooms I mean just that. W e didn't stop with the woodwork, we painted the walls and ceiling too. Conse­quently, when we talk about a room we say the "blue room," or the "red room" etc., etc., etc. After this we moved down to the first floor and painted the house­mother's room. T his was done after we had scraped the wallpaper off. A ll of you who have taken six or seven layers of paper off a wall that have been laid one on top of the other during the last fifteen or twenty years know what kind of a job that is. My right hand is still molded into the shape of a holder for the handle of a putty knife. W e didn't do any more work on the first floor, for we redecorated the living

and dining rooms last spring. W e finished up "work week" by painting the rec-room floor in the basement.

This "work week" really fused the actives into a close-knit, cooperative group. With this organiz,ation already fused we were able to work together in the pledging of twenty good men during "rush week."

Nor has this cooperation died down any, for we have already had several good par­ties, and have entered into other school activities with real zest and energy.

Kansas State By KENNETH MILLER

Looking back over the events that have passed since the last Laurel report, we find that we have two new pledges. They are Donald Humphrey and Charles Baker. W e expect to multiply this number many times over in the near future through our new and more intensified rushing program that we have put into effect as a result of a visit from Warren Parker, our domain chief. Bernie Scott also paid us a visit. W e received many ideas from these men and we're trying to better our chapter by putting the ideas into use.

W e reupholstered our living room fur­niture this fal l. T he new look that the pieces give to the room is real!}' something.

The Klondi ke Klomp, our annual winter party, was a big success this year. Some of the costumes that were worn were very original and in many cases very funny. W e decorated the house as a saloon of the 18S'O's in the Klondike gold regions. Along with the Klomp, we had some house parties and a couple of picnics.

T o celebrate Christmas with a true spirit of giving, we gave some toys to needy children. W e did this by a different method than most, I believe. Each man bought a toy of some sort to give to someone in the house whose name he had drawn from a hat. Each gift was accompanied by a suit­able poem. W e all had a wonderfu l time reading and listening to the poems, some of which were quite cute. After everyone had a big laugh over his toy, they were col­lected and taken to the needy children.

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THE LAUREL OF PHI K AP P A TAU

Our housemother, Mrs. Stephens, gave us an informal eggnog party to help out with the spirit of this joyous season. She has been very good to us in many other ways as well, but they are too numerous to mention. W e are indeed fortunate to have Mrs. Stephens for a housemother this year.

W e asked our alums, and their wives, that live in Manhattan to join us at our Christmas dinner. W e were happy to have as our guests that evening, Dr. and Mrs. Randall C. Hm, Mr. and Mrs. Guy Lemon, Dr. and Mrs. George Montgomery, and Dr. and Mrs. Roger C. Smith.

Alpha Epsilon is moving forward. We hope to move faster, in the new year, than we have ever moved in the past. Here's to another successfu l year for Phi Kappa Tau as well.

Kentucky By RAY HORNBACK

1955 was ushered in at Kappa chapter with the election of new officers. Heading the chapter is Bob Monarch. Vice president is Henry Jaggers; secretary, Jerry Falley; and treasurer, Bill Blount.

Men who have found a place of distinc­tion on campus include: Bill Simpson, SGA member ; Henry Jaggers, SGA candidate; Roy Boorman, freshman swimming team; Bill Bubenzer, band; Jack Young, twirler with the band; and W es Johnson, IFC.

Other campus leaders are: Ron Butler, Kentucky Kernel editor; Ray Hornback, Kentucky Kernel columnist; Tom Preston, Kentucky Kernel feature editor; and Dorsey King, president of ICIDC.

Intramurals again are playing a big part in the daily activities of Kappa men. Our football team remained undefeated, to win its league crown. Don Sullivan won the newly initiated croquet tourney, while Bill Blount placed second.

Roy Boorman set a new University record in winning the annual turkey run, Howard Stone was elected captain of the soccer team, and the basketball team, fra· ternity champion in 1954, began its season with two wins and a loss. Roy Boorman placed second in the 200 yard freestyle and

Page eighteen

the 100 yard back stroke in the intramural swimming meet.

The 5 4·5 5 social season started off with a bang with the Kappa men going on a hay· ride. House parties and the annual Christ· mas Dance proved great successes.

A Christmas party for crippled children at the Shriners Hospital was a most re· warding activity for Kappa chapter.

Lafayette By PETER 0. REES

Taking advantage of our large member• ship and large bank account, we all came back to school a week early last fall in order to really improve our house. In addi· tion to new front porch steps of brick and a new patio in the back yard, both of which were constructed during the summer, we completely redecorated the cellar, the music room, the ladies' room, and four of the bed­rooms. Improvements were also made in the kitchen, a new rug was bought for the living room, and a new hot water heater was purchased and installed, giving us an unlimited quantity of hot water for the first time ever.

Things started off fine on the first day of school when Pete Rees, a recent convert from the physics to the English department, received the prize "awarded to that stu­dent who attains the highest standing in the course in the study of the English language." Over half of our seniors are on Dean's list this semester, as well as some from the other classes. W e hold the Inter· Fraternity trophy for greatest scholastic improvement.

Once in a while, when we crawl out of our cubicles, we go other places, such as the athletic field, where we are proud to be represented by Bill Parr, W alt Frey, Marty Siegel, Doug Young, Hans Oehring and Gene Preston, who are on the golf, track, basketball, tennis, soccer, and swim­ming teams, respectively. In fact, we get all around, for we have brothers in sixty-two out of sixty-three extra-curricular activities on campus. In our house are the presidents of the Yachting, Spanish, Fine Arts, and Flying clubs, the president of Alpha Phi

THE LAUREL OF PHI K A PP A TAU

Omega, the edttor of the campus humor maga~1ne, a member of Tau Beta Pi, the manager of the college radio station, and a Deacon in the college church.

Lawrence By JIM PETRI E

Several noteworthy cwn ts have taken place a t Lawrence College during the re­cent months and a few of these arc worthy of mention here. Our Homecoming house decorations took a second place in the all· campus dormitory competition and the pledges earned an honorahlc mention with their homecoming float.

O ur fall Sweetheart Formal was held on October ninth and was preceded and succeeded by a wave of smaller-scale enter­tainments such as hayrides, record and Pizz;a parties.

In one of the closest inter-fra ternity grid­iron title clashes in recent years we lost by a single game the coveted title. Some con· solation was provided by our " anhiliation •· of the winning Beta team in the final game of the season, 19 to 0.

More football rivalry sprang up when the pledges took the field against the actives late in October. It wa a do or die battle, with a party for winners and dates as the stake in the contest. Active prestige and supremacy was maintained and somewhat enlarged u pon by virtue of the 28 to 0 win which evolved.

Louisville By EARL O'BA NON

Beta Beta returned to school with 54 actives and 8 pledges. Following an early initiation there were 64 actives.

Rush ended with us having a pledge class of 19. They are Bud Ackerman , Charlie Atcher, Bill Darragh, Charlie Fla· herty, Joe H agan, John H albleib, J im H eins, Tom Klutz, Denny Kurtz, George La C hance, Paul Parker, Ron Pitts. Randal Robinson, Bob Shackelton, Rex Slechter,

M arshall Sprigg, Charlie T yra, Bob V etter , and Leon Wilson.

T he campus newspaper, T he Ca.rdma l, is well represented with Phi T aus on the staff. Bert Edwards is business mgr., Frank Au­warter, news editor, Ken Anderson, sports editor , Earl O 'Bannon, columnist, Bill Green, advertising mgr., Dave Baird, asst . circulation mgr., and Martin Pedigo, re• porter.

N eville Caudill is now the president of the Arts & Sciences Student Council. One of our new pledges, Jim H eins, was a­warded the W oodcock Society Award as top f reshman. Besides being a straight A student , Jim plays varsity basketball.

Dave Higgins was a cheerleader for the University.

T he University of Louisville football squad was well stocked with Phi T aus. W e had John Becker who plays end, guards Jack Meade and Gene Jaggers, center Miles Koz.ubik, and fullback Rex Slechter.

T hree of our pledges saw a lot of play on the Cardinal basketball team this year. Bill Darragh and J im H eins were at for· ward posts, and Charl ie T yra was at center· forwa rd.

Jim Boswell was our representative on the track team.

Ken Anderson and Bob T ripp have both lettered several times in tennis and Tripp has also lettered in track.

Kenny Daniels, last year 's high point man, and Bert Edwards, Jerry Phelps, and Chet Purcell were outstanding on the swim· ming team.

Jerry H arrell and Ed Hollow:ty are the fra ternity baseball men, and J im Green and Bill Gibson are the Phi T aus represented on the golf tea rn.

Maryland By BOB NI CODEMUS

After a poor start, our intramural foot· ball team started to click. W e were able to win our last five games ;md end up in fourth place. with Bob Plante being runner· up for the outstanding lineman award.

On D ecember 2 we held our fift h annual H armony H all before an audience of 2,000.

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TH E L A U R EL O F P H I K AP PA T A U

Previously this barber shop quartet con­test had been for fraternities only, but this year sororities also competed. Don Hoover, chairman of the event, presented the large, permanent possession cups to the winning groups. Incidentally, Don is also the com­manding officer of both the Pershing Rifles and the Arnold Air Society. In the latter, he is ably assisted by Don Everett and Don Delauter, adjutant and executive officer re­spectively.

Perhaps we shouldn't mention this, but here goes. Burr Grim, the University of Maryland's sensational cross country run­ner, challenged our chapter to a race. Twenty of us formed a relay team and were stationed at equal distances over the eight mile and eighty yard course that wound around the mall. W e were beaten by about twenty yards, but we believe that our loss can be attributed to the odor of the peperoni relay stick.

Miami (Florida) By GEORGE HARRISON

Beta Delta chapter is very pleased about their winning of the second place honors in the homecoming float parade this year. After many hours of hard work by pledges and actives alike the presentation of a beau­tiful trophy at the annual homecoming dance was a welcome reward. The trophy, standing about twenty inches high, now ts placed proudly among the other chapter trophies as a symbol of hard work and chapter co-ordination.

In the intramural department Phi Kappa Tau has placed rather well. In basketball Beta Delta worked its way up to the finals and in boxing placed second in the over-all tournament. The boxing team consisting of Ed Oliver, John Bookman, Tony DiPadova and Whitey Rouviere held their own up to the finals, when DiPadova had to drop out for medical reasons and Rouviere emerged as the only cJ>KT finalist.

Beta Delta chapter is also proud to have as a pledge, Whitey Rouviere who has been named as an honorable mention on the Associated Press All-American team and was also voted the most valuable player in

Poge twenty

Whitey Rouviere, Miami star

the homecoming game against Alabama. Whitey, a 175 lb. junior from Buckner, Ill., is considered one of the most outstand­ing halfbacks in college football. H e was also voted "Player of the Year" of the Hurricanes.

At the present time the chapter is in the difficult process of moving into a new house. Of course in something of this sort there is quite a bit of confusion and disorder with all the moving of furniture, papers and such, but fortunately the new house is situ­ated near the old one and therefore moving is being made less difficult.

The news from the alumni is that Roy Anderson is recovering nicely from a severe attack of polio at his home in Fort Pierce, F lorida . Also that Warren A. Bishop is now a city judge at Miami Springs.

Miami (Ohio) By DOUG McDOW ALL

Forty-five actives returned to Alpha last fall from the group of men who made last year so succe; ful. T o this number were

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

added 28 new initiates shortly after the beginning of school.

Two new stainless steel sinks and a new stove were installed in the kitchen this summer. During their work week the pledges sanded and revarnished the entire first floor.

In varsity athletics, Bill Mallory, Jerry Smith, and Glen Swigart played very well for Miami's fine football team. Out for swimming this year were Lee Hidy, Guy Helgeson, Bert Robins, and Bill Spaur.

Alpha is well represented in campus activities again this year. Jim Leopold, Bob Lcmkuhl, and Joe Vorndran are among the founders of a new local business honorary fraternity, Kappa Psi, which has petitioned to become active in national Alpha Kappa Psi. AI Glicker, Jerry Jackson, and Rog Schulz are writing for the M iami Student, the school new·papcr. Jim Leopold is vice­president and AI Glickcr treasurer of the Young Republican Club.

Homecoming was <L big success again this year. Tom Nichols was chairman of the campus Homecoming Committee. A house committee headed by Tom Swepston worked hard to build a fine house decor­ation. Although it didn't win a prize, it received much worthy comment. The com· mittee must be congratulated for a fine job.

Michigan State

By RICHARD H. BUCHANAN

On returning to Michigan State this fall the brothers found an appreciated and much needed addition, that being a vacant lot next door and a house beyond to be used as an annex which houses fifteen men. A great deal of credit for the reconditioning of the annex, clearing of the vacant lot for parking space, and added improvements to the house should go to Carl Lehr, om able house-manager.

Outstanding was the Delta Street Shuffle which was co-sponsored by Beta Theta Pi, our neighbor. Jim Leigh and Denny Rosen­brook headed the Shuffle and did a great job in planning and preparing for it.

Alpha Alpha chapter is very fortunate to have as its new housemother Mrs. Donna Cooper.

Chapter members in various activities are Steve Foreman, Bill Lucy, Jim Bigelow, and Dick Spitler on varsity football team. Bill Greenway, Bob Jernilo, and Bob Mul­lins on varsity boxing team, and Gene Par• ker is on State's cross-country squad. Bob Dean and Ed Knappe are members of the Michigan State Marching Band.

From an all-over outlook and the active spirit of all the brothers we are anticipating a very successful year in all phases of fra· ternity life.

Middlebury By PETE ASKEW

Since our last news letter Beta Pi of Phi Kappa T au has supervised a successful pledge work program, which aided, for the most part, in the reconstruction of a locaJ historical museum. This program was car­ried out on a co-operation basis with the other campus fraternities, during a special help-week designed to improve the com­munity.

T hree of the six Beta Pi chapter repre­sentatives on the Middlebury football team of 1954 were recently awarded letters for their participation on a team that gained its best record since 1949. With Cobb, President of the house, and sophomores Roger Tirone and Zing Rausa received the letters. Bob Dean, Joe Lee and George Corey also saw action during a season that saw the Panthers win 4, lose 2 and tie 1.

Phi Kappa Tau was well represented on the Middlebury hockey team with two lettermen and regulars, Dave Kunzmann and Bernie Bouvier. Joe Lee, a sophomore, saw limited action as a freshman last year.

Jocelyn Glidden was the lone member to make the varsity ski team and is a cross­country prospect.

Zing Rausa was a member of the varsity basketball team.

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THE LAUREL OF PHI K A PPA TA U

Joan Courtney, Homecoming Oueen, post Sweet­heart of Beta Epsilon

Mississippi Southern By PAT PIERCE

Late in the fall final plans were com­pleted for the new Beta Epsilon chapter house, to be brought under construction on our campus this fall. Under the leadership of Mr. Sam B. T idwell the House Corpor­ation was duly incorporated and made re­sponsible for planning the new house, which they have accomplished. The new house will cost approximately $40.000 and will house about 40 men.

Aubrey W eil, a senior from New Or­leans, Louisiana, was elected the new chap­ter president, succeeding Norman Holiday who left school to take a position as band director at an Alabama high school.

James W aits, a past president of the chapter, has been elected president of the Mississippi Southern College chapter of Omicron Delta Kappa, a national men's leadership fraternity. He will attend the University of Mississippi medical school.

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Robert Marlett has also been honored by membership in this leadership fraternity. Robert is our sergeant at arms and associate editor of the college paper.

Pat Pierce, editor, has been elected presi­dent of Phi Eta Sigma. In October he at­tended the national convention at Still­water, Oklahoma and, while there, visited the Beta Kappa chapter.

Our rushing program brought 22 new men into the chapter as pledges. All of the members are understandably proud of this pledge class, and feel sure that it will be the most oustanding one we have ever had.

As a final honor for the chapter Miss Joan Courtney, our sweetheart of last year, was chosen to be this year's homecoming queen.

INFORMATION CONCERNING PICTURE OF JOAN COURTNEY Miss Joan Courtney, 1953-54 sweetheart

of Beta Epsilon of Phi Kappa Tau, has been chosen Homecoming Queen for the Miss. Southern College's homecoming ceremonies - Saturday, October 30. Miss Courtney is a junior and a member of the Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority. Last year Miss Courtney was honored as a homecoming maid and was named sweetheart of the College's ROTC unit.

Note: Miss Courtney has just been elected president of her sorority chapter.

Mount Union By ROGER LUTZ

Mount Union has had another increase in enrollment. This is due to another large freshman class and the return of men from the Armed Services. Epsilon had two actives return in the person of Ray Diehl and Sid Bloor. The chapter was able to obtain a good pledge class this year.

The members of Epsilon have been busy on the campus this year as well as in the chapter. Many of the men took active part in help with the inauguration of Mount Union's new president Dr. Carl C. Bracy, which took place on October 15th. It is only the sixth president in Mount's 108 years. The Homecoming Day was dampened by rain, but still a good size group of Phi

THE LA U RE L O F PHI K A PP A TAU

T aus alumni enjoyed a buffet dinner at the chapter house.

Other activities have also taken up the time of Epsilon men. Tony Bianco has a leading role in the college play, My Three Angels. Jack Jones and Frank Sapienza are working back stage during the play.

W ayne Amos is the vice-president for the American Chemical Society, and Roger Lutz is vice-president of the W esley Fellow­ship.

Muhlenberg By ROBERT J. FRITSCH

The past few weeks were hectic but also rewarding ones for Eta of Muhlenberg. T he Rushing Season came to an end with Eta awaiting the acceptance of the bids handed out to the Freshmen. These were part of the days that the brotherhood labored through.

The Senior Ball and houseparty filled in the gap that the rushing left wide open. That was certainly an invigorating week­end! The dance, it was believed by many of the brothers, was one of the best that the college has seen for a long time. Saturday evening, the brothers, together with their dates, enjoyed a fabulous houseparty. Social Chairman Joe Capozzi and the Eta com­edian, Virgil Scott, saw to it that everyone has a great time which lasted into the early morning hours.

On the Sunday after the houseparty, the brotherhood gave its annual Christmas party for the children of the Good Shep­herd Home of Allentown. All of the young­sters had a good time, including all of the hrothers.

Four brothers were recently initiated into Omicron Delta Kappa, the highest honor so­ciety in which a Muhlenberg man can at­tain membership. Donald deQuevedo, Wil­liam Quay, Richard Miller and Fred Grosse received this award for their work in college activities as well as high scholastic averages.

Eta also had an initiation by which eight new men received the sought-after member­ship into the Brotherhood. They arc Rich­ard Wagner, James Strobel, W ally Reinct, John Swartz, James Patterson, Bruce Fran­cois, Richard Smith and John Sinek. This gives Eta one of the largest brotherhoods it has ever had.

Nebraska Wesleyan By CLYDE SACHTLEBEN

The beginning of a new school year found the men of Upsilon chapter getting the house ready for the coming year. Thirty-five actives returned to help with the work. Extensive painting was done a­round the house and tile was laid on the stairways and entrances.

An extensive rushing program resulted in 23 pledges which show great possibilities. On September 26, five men were initiated. They were Don Haddix, Don Shanks, Rol­land Barron, John Osborne, and Darold Priesner .

Last fall Dick Odgers lost his right hand and forearm while working at a near­by grocery store. W e are all happy to sec him back attending school with us again .

Many Phi Taus have made a noteworthy achievements on ca mpus this year. Bruce Ashpaugh, senior physic major has been awarded a $700.00 grant for the Research Institute to study in the field of cosmic rays. Helping Wesleyan win its share of football games were four Phi Taus on the starting lineup. They were backs, Cliff Kahl, Bill Buck, and linemen Gordon Metz­ger and Ron Bachman.

New Mexico A & M By MIKE MOHRHA USER

Since our last report Beta Z.:ta Chapter here at New Mexico A tY M has been working very hard to complete its new

Beto Zeto's Lodge under construction

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THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

Lodge. At present the lodge is completely closed in from the elements. We hope to occupy it in the near future. To us here at A & M the construction of the lodge is a dream finally come true. The plans have been made since 1951, and through the great work of our alums, the construe• tion is almost complete.

In sports we placed second in the intra­mural football league. W e were undefeated and untied until the final game.

On December 12, the chapter held its annual Christmas party for under-privileged children. Santa Claus appeared and dis• tributed his presents, after which every­one enjoyed ice cream and cake.

The more serious business of the chapter consisted of an initiation and an election. Gilbert Ferran, a pre-dental major from Santa Fe. was initiated into the Active chapter before we left for Thanksgiving holidays. Then the pledge class elected its officers. They are as follows : President, Wray Shieldneck; Vice-president, T erry Stewart; Secretary, T om Hughes; Treas­urer, Fred Gregor; Sgt.-at·Arms, Bob Myers; and Chaplain, Joe Hand. The pledges have worked hard on all the tasks given them, and we feel that they have the makings of good fraternity brothers.

North Carolina State By E. EDWJ ROSE

The year 1954·5'5 should go down in the history of Chi chapter as very eventful and successful. Following the de­cision to purchase our new twelve ( 12) room house came the undesirable job of carting our belongings to the new location. At present we can accommodate twenty (20) men, but in the near future we hope to increase this to thirty by minor renova­tions. Our gravest problem was the interior decorating, but brother George Snow's aunts came to our rescue. Our sincere thanks to both the Miss W allers.

Last Spring the student body voted on a new constitution which was approved by the administration and marked the biggest move toward self-government since the col-

Page twenty.four

lege was founded. Chi chapter is proud of the fact that two of its members were elected to hold key positions in the govern­ment. Bobby Joe Stephenson, senior, Indus­trial Arts, was elected as Vice-President. Ed Rose, sophomore, civil engineering, was elected as Secretary.

Among our pledges is the vice president of the North Carolina section of Future Farmers of America. He is Fletcher Pearson of Clinton, N. C. H e also won a $1400. scholarship awarded by the Smith-Douglas Fertilizer Company.

Ohio State By GENE DAVIS

Armchair quarterbacking . cutting study sessions to watch TV movies of the game you saw last Saturday ... cheering till you couldn't say a word ... limp after a goal line stand against California and Michigan ... sniffing the roses after the Wisconsin game ... then it was all over ... except the talk, the planning, the penny pinching ... for a trip to Pasadena ...

The undefeated, Rose Bowl bound Buck­eye football team certainly deserved all the credit it has received. T he fine support given the team by the students will be cli­maxed by a mass migration of 1500 students traveling to Los Angeles via special student trains. We certainly appreciate the interest other chapters have taken in the interior decorating of our new house ... four skins which had been wagered on the outcome of football games.

Although receiving less publicity nation­ally, the greeks here at Ohio State have received an honor comparable to that of the football team ... the award for being the nation's number one fraternity system. This award was giv.en at the recent National Interfraternity Conference held in Phila­delphia.

During D ecember we were visited by both Jack Anson, and President Roland Maxwell who was returning from the Inter­fraternity Conference. Mr. Maxwell stated that our new house ... "is a symbol of the

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

Alumni turn out to greet President Maxwell

loyalty and devotion which men have for their fraternity."

Phi Tau alumni greeting Mr. Maxwell were: Frank Musrush, Ewing Boles, Pete Lynch, Harold Wilson, Charles Donner, Ernest Emswiler, V. 0. RobertSOn, AI Philby, Charles Copenhaver, and Richard Townsend.

The spirit of Phi T au brotherhood shown brightly on the faces of six new initiates tllis quarter ... Dave Huff, Dale Pflaumer, Jerry Wish, Mike Cervanik, Bill P ritchard, and Sam Clarke.

After a quarter jammed with both parties and hard study ... the troops arc looking forward to next quarter's tall stories from the 12 men who return from the holiday jaunt to Pasadena.

Ohio By JACK MOYER

1954-1955 saw the return of 62 active men of Beta chapter. H ouse improvement was the first step on this year's agenda.

By painting the walls of the main floor and purchasing new drapes for the dining room and recreation room, we gave the house a fresher, more sparkling appearance.

T he semester had hardly gotten into full swing before Phi Tau gridmen began prac­ticing for the intramural football season. Through fine team effort we still remain in top contention for league honors.

A large gathering of alumni returned Homecoming W eekend to witness the in· vasion of the Miami Rcdskins. A special slate of activities, including parties both nights was presented. Richard Wagner was canlpus chairman of Homecoming.

A new intcrdorm court system has beea c-tablished at Ohio U. for violations of campus regulations. This system allows the violators to be judged by their fellow stu­dents. Members of the various courts in­clude Raymond Heitland and Mel Kibler.

In addition to the men on the interdorm courts, we have other personalities in cam­pus activities. Jerry Kindsvatter is a drum­major for the Bobcat marching banJ. Rich· ard W agner is a member of Men's Discip­linary Board. Thomas Williams is Sales

Poge tweniJI-five

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

Beta's Dream Girl, Carol Jurenek, Zeta Tau Alpha

Manager for the new campus humor maga­zine. the "Ohio Green Goat." Chapter president T homas Hauenstein is a captain in Army R . 0. T. C., and Fred Peters holds a captain';; rank in Air R. 0. T. C. James Cox had a major part in "The Green Adventure," a vlay depicting the founding of Ohio University in 1804. T his drama was one of the most outstanding events of our school's sc quiccntcnnial year.

Last June we again crowned our Dream Girl at the 38th annual Dream Girl Formal. She is Carol Jurenck, Zeta T au Alpha.

Oklahoma A & M By JACK MELAUGH

The social scene on the campus is well filled with Phi Taus. Our own Riverboat Rendezvous and Christmas House Party were great successes; thanks to Gene Col­clasure and his social committee. Beta Kappa is represented at most all of the other campus social functions.

Sports, both intramural and college, finds Phi Taus well represented though not evenly distributed. T he chapter bowling

Page twenty-six

team is now tied for first place in our league with rifle competition coming up soon. T his will be the first year for intra­mural rifle teams. It was inaugurated, through the I.F.C., by Dean Claxton, cap­tain of the college rifle team. With four of the Brothers, Dean Claxton, Jack Me­laugh, Tom Graves, and Jim Cartwright, on the nationally ranked college team, it looks like another trophy for Beta Kappa. Bob Patrick, a pledge will play on the A. & M . football team next fall.

Beta Kappa is taking its share of honors this year. The chapter publication, "The Rambler," won first place nationally, a­mong all other Phi T au chapters. Rick Kugler was initiated recently into Sigma T au, national honorary engineering fra­ternity, while Dale Jones was being initi­ated into Scabbard and Blade, military leadership fraternity. A. L. Rose, our chap­ter president, was recently initiated into Phi Kappa Phi, top national honorary fra­ternity. Only seniors and graduate students in the top 10% arc selected for this honor. A. L. is in the top four per cent. H e is also a new initiate of Blue Key. Bob H arris is the new vice-president of thl! Cadet Offi­cers Club and D. L. Kennedy was selected as a Distinguished M ilitary Student in the A.F.R.O.T.C. H e is past president of the Cadet Officers Club. Lee Schomer has been selected for Yale seminary upon his gradu­ation here. H e was just recently elected as president of the district DSF.

Oregon State By DICK WUOPIO

Final week is here, and the men of Alpha Zeta are closing out an enjoyable and active term with what we sincerely hope will be a rash of "cooled" finals.

One man, Gary Brown, was initiated. Our most recent pledge is Gene Gorton, a freshman from Redmond.

T he A-Z volleyball team had another successful season. Although we didn't win the all-school championship as we had hoped to, we did go to the fraternity finals before losing out in a hard-fought game.

Alpha Zeta has never been noted for having powerful football teams. However,

THE LAUREL OF PHI K A PPA TAU

this year we took our league championship and went as far as the semifinals. W c hope that this comparative success will lead to greater things next year.

We were honored by a visit from Colonel George S. Howard, the director of the U. S. Air Force Band, on October 27. The bam! was in Corvallis for a concert, and we were very glad to have Colonel H oward over for dinner.

We held our fall term dance in an old farmhouse on October 29. The theme was "Halloween H oedown," and the dance was a hard, times costume affair. A great time was had by all who attended.

Our annual Christmas party was held on December 12 at the chapter house. Prcsi, dent Peter Marvin played Santa Claus, passing out gifts ranging from chewing gum to friction tape.

Ohio Wesleyan By JOHN VIDOVICH

W e have seen a very successfu l year again at old Alpha Mu. Coming back with only 17 brothers this fall, we attained the second highest rushing percentage on campus by pinning the star on 13 freshmen.

Fulfilling the rushing theme of "small but powerful," the brothers have gone on to win both of the possible trophies thus far: the dramatic skit award, our second in a row, and the scholarship improvement cup.

Dominating the dramatic aspect of cam· pus with AI Foster and H oward Lederer getting lead parts in all the plays, especially Androcles and the Lion, and Tom Beckett rapidly becoming the best known stage and lights-effect manager "in the business," we arc keeping Phi Kappa Tau in the spot· light.

We are also supplementing our campus life by having all the pledges and actives in at least one activity each semester. Thornton Lynam broadcast all of Ohio W esleyan's football games and John Vido· vich has been active on campus as Fresh· man reader for book reports in the English Department. Carl Kandel and Dave Snave, ly are active in Band and Orchestra. A good part of our pledge class is engaged in

musical organizations and the radio station. Our president, John Vidovich, has also

enacted a social program with our Social Chairman Fork Noble, whereby every Tues' day is Sorority night. W e bring a different pledge class up to the house and serve our hospitality, refreshments, and charm.

Penn State By LEE VARETTONI

The beginning of a new year found Omicron welcoming nnother large pledge class of 19 men, along with three transfer students, William Heath, Louis Jacoby, and Fred W cscott, from Phi T au chapters at W estminster, Delaware, and Maryland respectively. Recently initiated were: James Griffiths, Clarence Hassler, Warren H aus, man, Joseph Hudak, John Levkulic, and William Mertz.

Something new has been added this year. W e now have a part, time housemother, Mrs. Stuart Mahuran. This arrangement is working out very well,· as the chapter has

First prize Homecoming disploy ot Penn Stole

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THE LAU REL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

found Mrs. Mahuran a wonderful friend and a great help with our social affairs.

Homecoming Weekend proved to be a big success, as it always has. The only thing to mar the weekend was the fact that our Penn State football team dropped a close game to W est Virginia by the score of 20-14.

Our Homecoming display, engineered by William Shelly and Donald Rieco, captured first place among the 50 fraternities in the lawn display contest. Our masterpiece con­sisted of a huge 25 foot stork, complete with blinking eyes, signifying the birth of the University. In spite of the destructive efforts of Hurricane Hazel, our odd-shaped creature remained intact to net us a hand­some trophy.

A military air in the house tlus year might be caused by our five members, Jo­seph Bors, William Collier, W arren Haus­man, Gerald Schumann, and Philip Stevens, who are on the Pershing Rifles drill team. William Shelly, in the selective Engineering Science curriculum, attained Dean's List honors last semester. George Saire is a mem­ber of Scarab, architectural engineering honorary. John Hale, our hot pianist with his own combo, has been making quite a name for himself and the chapter on campus this year.

Purdue By GLENN WEIST and WALT IBBOTSON

If you visit Lambda this year, you will find that you can hardly fit your foot in the door. To say the least, we have a full house. Due to the fine work of our rush committee, the house was filled to capacity.

The following men were elected to office: Prcs~dent, William B. Cottingham; vice prcstdent, Gerald L. Lied!; secretary, Fred­erick H. Gahimer ; treasurer, Donald R. Lo~gwith; steward, Donald L. Rich; pledge tramer, Howard A. W ood; athletic man ­ager, Keith L. Gilbert; rush chairman, W aldo D. Martin; social chairman Robert 0. Martin; sergeant-at-arms, Ro~ald F. Borel; .hous~ manager, Chester Ebling; and chaplam, Rtchard Phillips.

Page twenty-eight

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute By CARL CREWS

The school year began with Rho chapter in possession of the First Domain Phi Kappa Tau scholarship trophy. In the spring term Phi Kappa T au led the 28 fraternities with a 2.81 average and was second for the year with an average of 2.65.

Three other welcomed additions to our new trophy case were the Interfraternity Council's bowling trophy, softball trophy, and the school softball trophy. When the points were totaled, Rho chapter ranked third in the Barker Trophy sports compe­tition.

Many changes have taken place at the chapter house. A new, asphalt-paved drive­way was constructed. Furniture was pur­chased for the newly decorated livingroom. The heating system received quite a bit of attention too. The old coa~ furnace was re­placed by a bright and shining gas furnace, complete with new ducts. Needless to say aU these improvements made our house manager, Ralph Cerreta, a rather happy individual.

The weekend of the Interfraternity Council Ball featured a Dixieland Cruise at Rho, complete with Dixie boat and yachting caps.

The members of Phi T au Sigma, the honorary society, were elected recently. Among them were three Phi T aus, T ony Hendrick, George Kunz and John Mc­Cullough.

Southern Illinois By JERE MILEUR

Eleven new men were initiated into the Beta Chi Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau just a week before we left school for the Christ­mas vacation. T he new members are : John Skeels, John Merry, Darwin Manuel, Joe Henry, Jack Thatcher, Richard Keating, Wayne Zimmar, John Stobart, Jerry Lucas, Jack Barban, and Ron Dusenbary. The fol­lowing day, eight men were formally pledged to Beta Chi for the winter term.

For the past seven years (the first five as Chi Delta Chi, and the last two as Phi

THE LAUREL OF PHI KAPPA TAU

Kappa Tau) , the fratcrnit}' has held a Christmas party at the chapter house for underprivileged boys of the community. This year fourteen needy youngsters were guests at a "turkey·and•all-the-trimmings" dinner. Following the meal, the youngsters were entertained with movies, given gifts, and treated with candy and nuts.

The Beta Chi's did very well in IM sports-our football team placed second in the fraternity league after a thrilling play­off loss to the Sigma Tau Gamma's for the championship. Gib Kurt:; brought home a first to the house when he won the all­school badminton champion hip. IM basket· ball is now under W<Ly and the Beta Chi's have two teams entered in the fraternity league. Norm Bowers and Jere Mileur arc coaching the tea ms.

Gene Tabacchi, Southern's only three sport letterman, was forced to give up bas· ketball this year on his doctor's orders. The Beta Chi's arc still well represented on the basketball squad though having Gib Kurtz, this year's captain, Ron Dusenbary, and Wayne Zimmar.

Syracuse By RICHARD LO RENZ

At the outset of this first semester 195 4· 55, all looked bleak for Sigma. Brothers were few, pledges fewer, and not too much was anticipated. H owever, the brothers were determined to put every effort behind one master push. I'm proud, as a brother of this chapter, to say th:'lt we not only have succeeded in keeping our heads above water, but have secured for us a prominent name on campus. Our fine pledge class ex· cceds our fondest dreams many times over, and have already, as a direct result of their unique and varied talents, secured for the house and themselves upwards of 50 tro­phies. Some of these were for superiority in the field of physical prowess, while others were for debating. writing. editing and other forms of scholastic genius. Naturally a few were for oustanding posters, slogans and assorted contests. Our pledges are cer· tainly fast displaying their prize-winning talents!

While we arc most enthusiastic about our pledges we are not unaware of the con· tinued fine work of our brothers. First is Everett Murch outstanding in the field of journaHsm, who is fast proving himself as Junior Editor of the Campus Daily. Then there's Howard Lamcl, who, as champion orator is yet to be beaten in intra-mural de· bating; while Jim LaCase, for the third year in a row, run away with wood-chopping honors at the Forestry School's Annual Picnic.

T exas By LEON A. WHITNEY

Beta Alpha has been having a very busy year.

Due to the hard work on the part of the active chapter we started the semester with fifteen pledges.

Greek W eek was held October II th through the 15th. National fraternity offi ­cers gave talks on rush, finance, pledge training, and scholarship. The week was ended by a very successful all fraternity formal dance with H al McTntyrc and his orchestra.

When the T exas versus Oklahoma game was played in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on the opening day of the State Fair of T exas, Beta Alpha was well represented. After the game Beta Alpha was entertained with a party at the Gay Ninctic ' Club.

Beta Alpha won a sheepskin from our brothers of Alpha Kappa at W ashington State College due to the Texas versus Washington State game. The final score was 40 to 14.

Dad's Day held October 30th this year was very successful. Parents were invited to visit and dine at the house before and after the game. T exas played Southern Methodist University that afternoon here in Austin.

Beta Alpha is watching its scholastic standing very closely. W e have adopted a system whereby the little brother· must spend an average of six hours a week study­ing with their big brothers before they can be initiated. W e hope that this STtem will raise both the active chapter and pledge class scholastic standing here at T cxa .

Page twenty-nine

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leaving chapter room or-e Joe Moffet, Bill Schip­horsl, Henry Hanna, ond Stanley Smith.

Transylvania By BILL ENDICOTT

" Journalistic dynamos" might be a good phrase for Theta chapter at Transylvania College in Lexington, Ky., with editors of two publications, chairman of the Board of Publications, and business manager for all publications being members of Phi T au on campus.

The Crimson Rambler, bi-weekly stu­dent newspaper, is edited by Bill Endicott, a political science major from Lawrence­burg, Ky., who hopes to enter the world of journalism upon his graduation in two years.

Co-editor of The Crimson, Transyl­vania yearbook, is Eddie Ball , a sophomore economics major from California, Ky. Eddie is also president of the sophomore class.

Heading the Board of Publications is James Sparks, senior from Dayton, Ohio, who is a pre-ministerial student. Jim was editor of the newspaper his sophomore year and has been chairman of the Board for two years.

'rhc money man for all the c journalistic endeavors is Dick Thomas, a junior from Pittsburgh, Pa., who is a psychology major. He heads the business and advertising de­partment for student publications.

Besides these men there arc three other Phi T au's on the newspaper sta ff and two on the yearbook staff. Publications on the campus are said to be better this year than they have been in severa l decades, and this could stem from the fact that they are

Page thirty

lead by men of ability from the Phi Kappa T au fratern ity.

Theta chapter garnered its usual number of fine pledges this fall, seven young men coming into the fold of Phi Kappa T au on the Transylvania campus. Dick H oney was elected president of the group. H e is a veteran of nine yea rs military service and is enrolled as a freshman student.

The Crimson Rambler runs a "Who's Who on the Transylvania Campus" each issue, and one senior to be so honored thus far is Norman Parks, a Theta member from P ikeville. Parks, who attended the W ash­ington Semester Program at the American University last year, is majoring in political science.

A group of students on the campus has organized a quartet to be known as the Transylvania Quartet, and the men arc fast becoming famous around the state. T hree of this group are Theta members. Ted Faluconer from Ashland, Dinsmore Nesbit from Madisonville, and Dick Payne from Winchester.

U.C.L.A. By BARRY HEATH

Beta Rho with Bob Jelley at the helm was confident that the year would prove fuLl of progress for the brotherhood with its new house on the row. And promising it was for Pledges Roger Bell and Barry Heath shone at frosh crew and in the var­sity show, respectively, while graduating Senior George Casey amazed us all by turn­ing up Phi Beta Kappa.

In basketball Dick Johnson, Roger Bell, George Casey, Chuck Bond, and Dale Aroy led the spirited attack of Phi T au across the hardwood court.

During the summer came our chance to

prove our affection for old Phi T au by demonstrating our skills at remodeling. And by the end of the summer you would have hardly recognized the living room with its broad archway into the dining room and its new hand-carved, gold-leaf Phi T au Crest in a handsome paneled setting. There was new paint and new colors too, here and throughout the rest of the house.

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It more than paid off, for when rushing was over we fO'l~nd we had pledged eight of the finest men. These men, Jon Cady, Mike Clarke, Frank Gaily, Boh Campagna, Harry Larrabee, Ron Robert on Fred Cripe, and Jerry M cH alq•, ·oon 'fcl t at home in the house. The first thing we knew Pledge Clarke was admitted to the Rally Committee and Frosh Foothallcr Cripe had won his right to fight Cal.

The glaring red hue o f the huge, con ­crete, UCLA ''C" located high on a W est ­wood hill was clearly visible to all Bruins as they went from class to class. The alien color was particularly obnoxious because Homecoming was drawing ncar. so Beta Rho took the situation into hand . Armed with gallons of paint, broom brushes, and an ardent spirit we mounted the hill and proceeded to return the giant letter to its original blue color. This spirited action was given wholehearted campus approval and praise.

Washington

By JIM KILIA I

W e of Alpha Pi arc settled in our new house and enjoy its many advantages. The new furniture for the living areas is quite good looking. The living room furnishings are formal in the contemporary manner. The dining room is Early American style. The study rooms arc furnished with ma­hogany built-in chests and desks topped with formica. The Open H ouse which we held October 17 was quite successful. Parents, alumni, and sororities turned out en masse.

Our social calenda r i · full to the brim. House dances, firesides, and coffee hours fill in until the big event of the fall- the Pledge Dance in December. Our next door neighbors, Alpha Gamma Delta. Delta Gamma, and Delta Delta Delta, are also quite sociable. According to Delta Zeta and Chi Omega, our serenades a rc first class. Song practice after dinner pays off!

The summer rush r arrics were good and helped greatly in formal rush last fall. W e now have ten pledges: R ichard Allen, Rob

Beeman, Alvin Cripe, AI DenBc~tc, Boh Berg, Roy Knack, Leland Nicol.11, T orn Nordstrom, Don Rocning, and Maine T onkin.

The Alumni A ssociation ~~ gaming strength as they meet each month under the leadership of John Cavcrs. T hey have had several parties a t the Chapter Hou~e and more arc coming soon. T he Mother" Club is working hard to help us with our new house and our social functions.

Washington State

By BRUNO PERIN I

The past months have been busy ones for Npha Kappa Chapter.

The Fall pledge Dance was the first big function of the year. Using the theme ''Stairway to the Stars. " The pledges did an excellent job in decorating the house.

This year 's pledge class which number· 20, are proving them elves an out· tanding group. Not only arc they active in many campus and house activities, but their scholastic average for their fi r ·t semester ranks among top of the pledge cla~ses on campus.

The month of November saw the .tnnual football battle between Alpha K;tppa and Beta Gamma Chapter of Idaho. Alpha Kappa completely swamped the hapless ldahonians to win easily 18-0.

T his year the house is enjoying the added convenience of a new stove and ovens, that were insta lled during the summer.

The house has been active in all intra­mural sports. Although not winning any championships our team-; have placed high in the standings, we were runncrs-\tp in golf, volleyball, and tennis.

In a contest with another fr.ttcrnity, Alpha Kappa won a schola r-hip trophy for the fall semc·ter . The lo~er rccctwd an obnoxious piece of sewer ptpc wtth the word '"Dumbo'" inscribed on it. Thts must be prominently displayed in that house for a semester.

Poqe thi rty -one

THE LAUREL OF PH I KA PPA T A U

These g entlemen are the members and pledges of Alpha Kappa chapter

Westminster By RICHARD BARN HART

Probably the most important event of this year 's activities was the pledging of 23 new members.

Activities-wise- the Phi T aus on campus have been prominent in almost every phase of extra-curricular activities. Our intra­mural football team , headed by Jack Stewart, p laced second among the four fra· ternit ies. Also in the realm of sports, Ro­bert Pierson was runner-up in the fa ll tennis tournament, under the supervision of Dr. George Bleasby, one of our chapter advisors. Robert Veon, Roger Kelsey, Da­vid Abram, Jack Stewart, and John Reed served on various committees f ot' Spiritual Emphasis W eek which was held in November.

A new language honorary, Epsilon P hi, was recently formed by French and Spanish language students on campus with T homas Patterson serving as president and Richard

Poge thirty·two

Barnhart serving as treasurer of this organ· ization. John Reed was initiated into Scroll, English honorary, a short time ago. Campus publications have a very good representa­tion of Phi T aus serving on their various staffs. The Holcad, newspaper, has just named Raymond H eid as its managing edi­tor. Barry Kirby was the artist for Scrawl, campus literary magazine, which published articles by John Reed and Richard Barn­hart. Jack Stewart was chairman of the committee which chose Richard Barnhart as one of nine members of the Senior Class to be named to "Who's Who among Students in American Universities and Colleges."

T wo of our pledges, John Loeffler, Jr. and H. Kennedy Bush, were members of the cast of "W interset," while Frank W il­gocki and William Kness served on the stage crew for this play.

Several house improvements have been made along with a complete refurn ishing of the chapter and commons rooms of the house. And an active alumni organization has been established.

El:HO BADGES--The Finest You [an Buy! Select Your Badge from the iollowing

price list

PLAIN Official, plain border -------------$ 5.00 Official, chased border ----------- 6.00

JEWELED Diamond in S tar

Official , Official,

Whole Pend --------- -----$23.00 Whole Pearl, white gold __ 26.00

Zircon in S tar Official, Whole Pear l --------------$16.75

SISTER PINS Diamond in Star

Whole P earl ---------------------$ 16.00 Whole Pend. white gold --------- !9.00

Zircon in S tar 13.00

ALUMNI CHAH!\IS No. l Charm, without key ends ----$ 6.00 No. 2 Cl:arm . with key ends ------- 8.00 Pledge Buttons ------------------- .75

RECOGNlTION BUTTONS Official, Cold Plate --------------S .75 Coat of Arms, Gold P litte ---------- 1.00 Cd-out Monogram, Polished l~inish. l.f>O

GUARD PI N PRICE LIST One

Letter P lain --------------------S 2.25 Chased ---------------- 2. 75 Half Pear l, Close set ------ 4 .~0 Whole Pea1·l. crown set --- 6.50 18 Kt. White Gold Plain

Guard, additiona l ------ 1.00 18 Kt. White Gold J eweled

Cu:u·d, additional --- ----

T wo Letter $ 3.50

4.25 7 .25

11.50

2.00

NOTE - When ordering Badges, Sister Pins or· Alumni Charms, mention your chapter as >.n officia l release is required. We wil l obtain this .for you.

THE SPARTAN No. 640 Illustration twice a ct ual s ize.

Send for Your Free Copy of Our

1955 B OO K OF TRE A S U R E S A select showing of F ine Fraternity Rin gs in a variet,y of s tyles.

Other Coat of Arms J ewelry and N ovelties for Gifts o f Personal Use.

THE S PARTAN One or our· many fine fraternity J'ing:;. Highly poli shed

gold setting with black onyx stone.

5·t3n- IOK Yellow Cold, onyx -------------------------S23.50

&•139-1- S:une, in Sterling Silver -------------------- 12.25

A L L PRICES AR E SUBJECT TO l'HE FEDERAL J EWELRY TAX OP 20'"'.

SEND F'OR ILLUSTRATED BADGE P RICE LI ST

EDWARDS, HALDEMAN AND COMPANY OFF I C I AL JEWELERS T O PHI K A PP A T AU

P.O. BOX 123 DETROI T 32, MICHIGAN

YOUR OFFICIAL

Is A Lifetime

Symbol of

Your Membership

The pin you select now will be o life­

time symbol o f your fraternity associa­

tion. If lost, replace now from the illus­

trations here o r write lor complete price

list.

PRICE LIST

Official plain badge . . .. •...... ..•..... $ 5.00

Official chased badge . . . . . . . . 6.00 Official crown pearl badge. zircon star . . . . t 6.75 Official crown pearl badge, diamond star .. 23.00 Sister pin, c rown pearl, diamond star . . . . . t6.00 Sister pin, crown pearl, zircon star . . . . . . . . 13.00

Pledge button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75 Pledge pin . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.00

10% Fed eral Tax and any Sto le Tax in Add ition.

How to Order:

O ffic ial badge orders must be sent on Offic ial o rder blanks.

Stationery- Programs- Invitations Samples on Request

Official Jewele r to PHI KAPPA TAU

MAIL COUPON FOR FREE CATALOG

L. G. Balfour Co. Attleboro, Mass. Please send: 0 Blue Boo~ 0 Badge Price List 0 Ceramic: Flyers

Nome

_______ date

Samples: 0 Stationery 0 Invitations 0 Programs 0 Christmas Cords

---<i>I{T

FRATERNITY PIN

BALFOUR BLUE BOOK

FEATURES CRESTED GIFTS

Make your selections of fine fraterni ty

jewelry now and plan your Christmas

list early-order from this complete

cata log.

"Only the fraternity member may enjoy

the privilege of presen ting o treasured

crested gi lt".

L. G. BALFOUR CoDlpany

ATTLEBORO, MASSACHUSETTS

In Canada contact your nearest BIRKS' STORE

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