The Holly chieftain., 1922-07-20

Of the evils of the college fraternity without any
Of Its advantages. have seen a good deal Of the
high school fraternity and the product which 1t
turns out, and am free to say that If had a son
l should not want him to Join such an organiza-
ton.
The college fraternity first came into existence
almost one hundred years ago when college at
tendance and the conditions surrounding college
life were very different from what they now are.
In those days colleges were small and the under
graduates housed In college dormitories or
scattered about the town and fed at boarding
houses There was perhaps thought in the
minds Of the men who founded the first Greek let
ter fraternities Of developing a home and home
life for their members. The main purpose was to
strengthen character, to develop good scholarship
and to emphasize and encourage certain qualities
Of friendship. Often there was literary purpose
The men who founded the first fraternties were
mostly very religious men who believed sincerely
in the principles Of life and conduct as expounded
by the founder of the Christian church.
Fraternity rituals today still emphasize these
principles and hold up to fraternity members the
highest standards of daily life. The teachings of
fraternties are distinctly religious in their infiu-
ence, and the secret work to which some of the
enemies of fraternities object has nothing sinister
or vicious in It, but is really of the most harmless
and innocent character.
1t was not until within very recent years. when
the attendance upon colleges began to increase
and the conditions of undergraduate living began
to change materially, that fraternities began to
expand and to emphasize as they had never done
before the function of the fraternity In developing
for the undergraduate In college a normal and
healthy home life.
In fact, fraternities not only increasing their
own membership but they doing everything
they can to encourage the organization of new fra
ternities, so that every man who wants to join
may have chance to do so. Colleges, also, whose
doors have hitherto been closed to the admission
of fraternites are relaxing their regulations and
are giving permission to fraternities to come in
and all this because those who know most about
fraternites think their influence good one
At the present time national Greek letter fra.
ternities, of which there perhaps fifty are the
organized force in college activities. They take
the place that was once occupied by the college
literary society which taught men to speak which
interested them in the politics of college. and
which in general controlled and directed what
went on In undergraduate affairs outside of tbe
classroom. But the fraternity does still more than
this. There are very few fraternties now which
do not have their own houses every Gamma
These houses form centers of home life (which
do much to take the place of the life which the
boy has known with his family before going
away to college.
1t often costs more to live in fraternity bouse
than 1t does outside. The food ut the fraternity
table is ordinarily better than that the student
gets Mt boarding house. and the general living
one has to pay for these. The social life of fra.
ternlty men Is more active and so requires the ex
penditure OF more money for clothing and social
pleasures. Sometimes the living conditions hnye
been made too luxurious for the doing of good
work. and at times the social life Is excessive and
the expenditure of money extravagant; but these
conditions do not frequently or generally exist.