Omaha daily bee., 1896-05-31
GREEK LETTER FRATERNITIES
Origin and Development of the Various
College Secret Societies.
PARENT SOCIETY FOUNDED IN 1875
Organizations Based on the AristOc-
racy of Social Advantages and
Educational Opportunities
The Total Membership.
Copyright, 1896, by the Author.l

Copyright. 1896. by the Author.)
The Greek letter college fraternity is
unique In that 1t is the only secret ogan-
izaton founded on an acristocracy of social
advantages and educational opportunities.
Members Of these fraternities become so
only after being invited to join; the college
student who should prove so unfamiliar with
what may be called college custom as to
ask TO be allowed to join one of these organ
izatons would probably never be permitted
to do so. SO secret" are the Greek letter
fraternities, or most Of them. that members,
although wearing jeweled badges, generally
refuse to mention the organizations in the
presence of "profanes." Instances have been
known where member of one college fra
ternity resigned and joined another, or
was expelled and taken in by rival society,
but they are like hens teeth. Originally,
membership in the Greek letter fraternities
was confined to college students, pursuing
the classical course. students from the
scientific and even the engineering depart
mens now receive bids" These fraterni-
ties take their names from initial letters
OF some motto rendered In Greek, which,
as monogram, or otherwise, designed in
gold or enamel and ornamented with jewels,
go to make up the handsome fraternity
badges or pins which members wear.
THE PARENT FRATERNITY.
The practical parent OF college fraternities
is Phi Beta Kappa, now merely an honorary
society. II Was started at the college of
William and Mary, Virginia. in 1776, and is
therefore as old as the republic. 1t was a
secret organizat on until early in the thirties.
The story that Thomas jefferson was in
btrumental In its founding cannot be verified.
The badge is square gold watch key, worn
as charm or pendant. Ii conta MS six stars
and hand pointing to the Greek letters Phi
Beta Kappa
Phi Beta Kappa was taken to Yale in $780,
by Yale to Harvard in 1881, ard by Yale and
Harvard to Dartmouth in 1887, and by Yale
and Harvard and Dartmouth to Union In
1877. Here, of course, there is a long jump
OF thirty years during which period leading
colleges of the country and others ran to the
formation OF strictly literary organizations
some secret and some not. These took h gh-
sounding Latin titles, of which the only
prominent illustration today is at Princeton
THE UNION TRIAD.
In 1921, four years after Phi Beta Kappa
was taken to Union, Chi Delta Theta was
founded at Yale, where II has remained
local society, OF late years practically an hon
orary fraternity for the benefit of the edi-
torial stan of Yale Lit. Two years later, in
1928, according TO tradition, there was a
Kappa Alpha club formed at Union college
At first II was merely club and, as admit
ted by its founder, had no intention OF be-
coming a secret society. Whether the ex-
ample Of Chi Delta Theta at Yale in 1921 or
the thought OF riyalling the then generally
widespread Greek letter fraternity, Phi Beta
Kappa was the Inspiration, is not known;
neither can II now be determined whether
the Qumored) creation Of Chi Phi at Prince
ton In 1924 had any bearing on the matter.
But certain II Is that in 1926 was born anew
Kappa Alpha, Greek letter secret society,
and two years later, also at Union college,
stimulated by rivalry and the spirits OF
smulation. arose Sigma Phi. and later in