By Joe Bobbitt Jr.
A class so lacking in leadership and outstanding characters as the present rising senior class furnishes little material for the senior honorary order of the Golden Fleece and makes the task of picking the men who really deserve the order very difficult. The class presents a list of men, mediocre though they may be in comparison with selection of previous classes, who have so nearly the same qualities that the order is faced with the peculiar difficulty of picking either a very few outstanding men or a greater number of men below previous Fleece standards.
The 24th annual tapping is scheduled for Tuesday night at 8:30 o’clock in Memorial Hall with Dr. Howard E. Rondthaler, president of Salem College, as the principal speaker. It was erroneously stated in Thursday’s issue of the Tar Heel that the tapping would precede the address, but officials of the order have stated that the usual program will be followed and that Dr. Rondthaler’s address will come first.
The reporter has been asked to prophecy the possible Fleece pickings and he has ventured in the field with the many misgivings that such a task incurs. He has tried to look at the possible candidates in an impersonal light through the eyes of the active members of the Golden Fleece rather than through his own or those of the campus. Such a prophecy, to be anywhere near correct, must be considered from the viewpoint of the order itself.
The Leading Four
There are four really outstanding men in the junior class whom the Fleece will find it difficult to overlook.
S.G. Chappell, as president of the student body and a prominent debater, holding clearly the highest honor which it is possible for the Carolina student body to bestow upon any man, will in all likelihood be among the first tapped.
Bunn Hackney, president-elect of the athletic association, varsity football, and basketball player, and basketball captain for the next year, president of his class in his sophomore year, and representative on the student council this year from last year’s council, can be ventured as a very safe wager.
Frazier Glenn, holding a major campus office which in the past has been considered a Golden Fleece position, that of presidency of the Y.M.C.A., is the third whom we believe will be tapped. Besides the presidency of the “Y”, Frazier has been a member of the cabinet and treasurer of the same organization, is next year’s treasurer of the Grail, the future secretary and treasurer of the German Club, commencement marshall, manager of freshman track assistant-manager of varsity track.
Beverly Raney has accomplished a feat possibly without precedent in the University. He is graduating in three years and so far has made a clean record of “A” on every course. His is clearly outstanding scholastic achievement of many years and with his other connections as reporter on the Tar Heel and a member of the “Y” cabinet should assure him a place in the Fleece.
Possibilities
So far so good, but the remaining positions present the real trouble. There are perhaps 10 to 15 more men who display very nearly the same abilities and have the same likelihood of being tapped though out of this number only three or four will come, for it is our prediction that only about eight or nine men will be taken in the coveted order this year.
Walter Crissman, a senior, is being strongly considered as a Golden Fleece man in the field of religious activities. He has been vice-president of the Y.M.C.A. this year, was active on its cabinet previously, and is to be assistant secretary of the “Y” next term, is president elect of the Grail, manager of the Carolina Magazine, one of the best business men in the senior class, and speaker of the Di Assembly. Many think that the choice in the religious field will lie between him and Frazier Glenn, but there is the possibility of both being tapped.
Lud Lauerhaus, as president of the publications union last year and the present president of the Glee Club as well as Phi Beta Kappa man, is making a fair bid for the publications position, but he has vigorous opposition in this field in Guy Cardwell, J.T. Madry, and Julian Starr. Cardwell has been editor of the Buccaneer, connected with the publications in the publications union, and is Phi beta Kappa man. Julian Starr is editor-elect of the Carolina Magazine, secretary of the Glee Club, on the Buccaneer staff, and is one of the co-authors of the Wig and Masque play to be presented next year. Madry is editor of the Tar Heel the next year, and has been actively connected with it as a reporter and managing-editor before his present position. This editorship has been heretofore considered a Fleece position.
Ted Livingston stands out in the field of debating if a representative comes from that group this year. Other likely candidates here are John Cooper and Malcolm Young, but we favor Livingston who, as president of the debate council next year, a prominent debater and one of the team which debated Oxford University here last fall, and a playmaker, is the most likely candidate.
In the senior class, the fight will largely determine which is the most important office, presidency of the class or representative on the student council. “Red” Smith, its newly elected president, received the intramural athletic cup last year, has been a prominent member of the “Y” cabinet, and is also expected to make Phil Beta Kappa; but he is opposed by Ad Warren, the student council representative next year, who has been three years captain of the boxing team and a boxer of national reputation, captain of the wrestling team, member of the varsity football squad, and member of the Grail. In athletics, “Red” Whisnant and Bill Dodderer are being considered in addition to Bunn Hackney. “Red” is captain-elect of the varsity football team for next year and was a mainstay on the line during the past season. The captaincy of the football team is a strong bid for Golden Fleece, but a likely opponent is found in Bill Dodderer, one of the greatest all-round athletes Carolina has produced since Monk McDonald. Dodderer has been three time all-southern basketball player, captain of the basketball team, and a varsity football and baseball star.
Numerous considerations have entered into the choice of the above possibilities, Alan McGhee, the ruling Jason two years ago, stated that the golden Fleece man must be a “real leader,” distinguished in some phase of campus life and possessing the necessary characteristics of the ideal University man. He must be potential.” Only men of unimpeachable character are considered, and to make this the highest honor on campus, only distinguished members are allowed.
Regardless of who is tapped, the campus may rest assured that only men worthy of this honor will be selected. If the Fleece thinks there are only eight outstanding men on the campus, he then will pick only eight men. There is no certain number to be tapped, the records showing that anywhere from five to 13 men have teen taken in each spring during the 23 years of the Fleece’s existence.
The lists are often not made out by the order itself until the afternoon of the tapping, and its hardly fair to suppose that a list made out this early and a single person could be absolutely correct. Where 12 campus leaders puzzle over a difficult question, one person can’t step in as an authority, so this list is presented with the usual apologies.
From the front page of The Tar Heel college newspaper, Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, May 1, 1926
newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn92073227/1926-05-01/ed-1/seq-1/
Founded on April 11, 1904, the Order of the Golden Fleece is the oldest and highest honorary society at UNC. The Order selects members based upon service to the university as reflected in scholarship, motivation, creativity, loyalty, and leadership in academic and extracurricular pursuits. Seniors comprise the majority of the inductees, but juniors, graduate students, faculty, and alumni are also eligible for membership. Individuals are eligible for induction regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, ability, religion, or any other identity. The Order's officer positions are named after figures in the Greek story of Jason and the Golden Fleece, and general members of the Order are called Argonauts, after the heroes who accompanied Jason on his quest for the fleece. heellife.unc.edu/organization/order-of-the-golden-fleece
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