The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-06-12
STUDENT DUFLING.

A Recognized Part Of the Course OF
Instruction at a German University.
From the INDIANAPOLIS Netog.
During the time between the examina-
ton and characterization IN German uni
versitY,' said Prof. Schilenen, "the young
student is called a mule, because he is
neither an ass nor horse. but something
between both. But when be is smart
enough to enter one OF the students Socie-
ties-or Interchangeable Is called fox
you would call it freshmen-becomes later
on burned fox, which indicates that he
has been in the fire; then fellow. and grad
paly rises to the different honOrs in his
corps or club, as fox major, who educates
the young freshman in the art of drinking !;
fencing major, who drills the foxes in the
use Of the rapier and sword and senior, or
moss-head, after he has been in the corps
for half q century.
Each fox chooses O fellow or moss
head, to whom he attaches himself with
body and soul, for whom he goes on errands,
whose boots he blacks, whose debts he pays,
whose correspondence he writes, for whom
ne learns and puts down the lectures; for
whom, in short, he does everything short of
stealing or numbering. The fellow, in his
turn, protects his fox-or, as he is called,
his body-fox-in quarrels of all sorts accepts
duels for him, makes his cause his own
whenever the fox 10 too inexperienced to
stand his own ground, and is like an elder
brother to him. Friendships like that are
to last a lifetime.
"At my times the clubs. or verbindungen,
were all the rage. A student who did not
belong to one Of them was much dispised.
Gt"Those 'verbindungen' were divided into
two different classes, such whose members
accepted duel when offered, and such who
did not. The first class were called honor
able verbindungen' or honorable clubs;'
the second 'blaSen' or bubbles and th cir
members 'camels.' The honorable clubs are
again divided In corps and landsrnaanschaf-
ten, the names Of which were derived from
the name of old German countries, for in
stance, Suevla, Franconia, Saxonia. Boras-
sio and 80 forth. The bubbles are divided
into Observation-Disclosures fellowships' and
simple vereine or clubs. which may be very
nice, but don't amount to very much in the
eyes of an honorable student A student
who gives you his left cheek when you have
slapped him on the right one may make a
good preacher in after life; as a student he
hardly deserves any recognition, and you
have right TO slap him right and left
Tho finest verbindungen are the corps.
The princes Of our royal house have all been
corps students in Rome and Berlin. There
are corps which receive as members only
the highest ariStocracy, princes, counts.
barons, etc. My corps, Franconia, was a
corps more on account OF its principles Of
students honor than onnncceunt Of the
nobility of its members. Although we
were most of us sons Of high state officials,
army officers, etc, there we're, nevertheless,
some Of the most noble and valiant and
highly esteemed fellows in the corps-sons
of simple citizens, bakers, shoemakers-and
so on. Bravery was the first paragraph in
our codes of honor. A duel was offered aud
accepted on the slightest pretense. A word,
q look, a gesture, was sometimes sufficient
TO open hostilities which ended in duel
"Those duels are fought with three differ
emit weapous-the rapier, straight sword
which infliots only slight wounds, mostly Ia
the face and on the head, which are not pro-
tected; then the saber, a regular cavalry
sword, with broad blade, IA very danger
Gus weapon, which under circumstances
causes deadly result, and the pistol.
Pistol duels are very scarce and occur
seldom between students, but only between
army officers and students, but mostly on
account of otfenses given during the one
| years military service. 1 had six rapier
| duels and one with the saber; being a very
| good swordsman. escaped with few light
scars on my head, over which the moss has
| grown since.n