Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-26
Alpha Phi Sorority House, Wisconsin
University.

greatest value they can derive rrom a college educa
ton will come from association with their fellows,
learning meet men, setting their own personal
tiles in relation to others What they actually hnd Is
that some other freshman John, for instance, has i'm
measuraby better opportunities for such social train
ing than they John is member of the social trust;
they are barbs" If it is coeducational school they
learn another lesson. The sororties give dances and
the fraternities give dances But only sorority girls
and fraternity boys attend these privileged aHa1rs
Tom and Arthur are free TO make acquaintance
among the barb" girls. But no sorority girl would
think of knowing them or accepting an invitation
from them.
the students parents is not the only consideration in
fixing his or her frat availability though it counts
for much Sons and daughters of families known to
be wealthy seldom left as barbs, but those VINO
come from obscure homes are frequently included
among the select The college community has stan
dards of its own which almost incapable of deli
milton. The dividing line is expressed IN the remark
that 'he or she, is frat MATERIAL 1t means, so
far it anything tangible that the person III
question fails TO dress or act or looh IN way tat
recommends him her as one worthy of moving III
the college upper stratum
The fraternities a moot point among educators,
older members and outsiders. Legislatures in sew
era States have been asked to oust them They have
been vigorously attacked and heartily defended.
Probably i'll every college and university throughout
the country the weight of faculty opinion is against
them though in few does th opposition go SO far as
demand their withdrawal. for the good they do
strong case has been made. Ghe effect of the frat
upon the individual membe' depends largely it is adj
mtted, upon his her own character and the char
acter of the group he or SIZE joins.
Take John and his Tau Sigma Tau. His. studies
worry him. He finds the college requirements stiff.
He has trouble keeping abreast of his classes Being
member of a frat" there older men on hand who
can help him nights take the trouble to go over his
lessons with him, encourage and assist him. Tau
Sigma Tau does not want to one of its freshmen
forced to drop from school, its upper class be-
come tutors for its backward members. This is the
theory and extent, the practice. In Western
college recently a freshman who was taking his first
semester examinations seized with panic at their
severity He went back to the frat house. packed a
valise and left for parts unknown His brothers
traced him. found that he had not dared to return
home and kept the matter quiet while they followed
him over two States They got him, talked to him,
braced him up smuggled him back before he was
missed and coached him through successfully. The
boy was saved from disgrace despair and hardship.
This Is good. This is admirable. The only answer
made by the opponents of the frat is that Tom and
Arthur are equally entitled to such assistance; that
in college, where everything should be arranged TO
help young and young women to face life, there
should be artificial advantages for individual