We asked alumni to help us determine whether or not Seal, the current Cavalier canine mascot, was a truly worthy successor to the beloved Beta of the thirties. Aware that fools rush in, etc. Nor were we disappointed. Pilloried by stares of cold contempt and outright accusations of treason, we moved about the Grounds furtively and by night until the postman rang twice, heralding the arrival of alumni reinforcements.
Beta can have no peer.
It is my recollection that Beta was also known as Aristotle. Well, I remember one morning in Monroe Hall listening to Dr. Balz discourse on the History of Philosophy. At that precise moment, Aristotle, alias Beta, nudged open the door, walked solemnly across the front of the lecture hall, up the middle aisle about halfway, and sat down. After a round of applause, Dr. Balz carried on, facing his subject and proud of the accurate timing of his 'prop'. Back in the early thirties there was a feminine character widely known to fame.