Merry
Christmas
MAROON AND GOLD
Happy
New Year
VOLUME 31
ELON COLLEGE, N. C.,
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1951
NUMI3KR 6
Large Crowd Hears Elon Singers
In Annual Rendition Of ‘^Messiah^
The Christmas season was for
mally us'hered in on the Elon
campus on Sunday evening, De-
comber 2nd, witn the uineieentli
annual presentation of ilandel's
■“Messiah” by the Elon Festiv^i
Chorus, a presentation wMcli was
hailed , by the criucs as "Lue oesi
in the history of tlie local Yule-
lide program.
The presentation of tho beauti-
iful oratorio, given under tlie di-
tection of Prof. John Westmore
land, featured an outstanding
.group of soloists, three of them
appearing as guest artists on tlie
Elon campus and the fourth a
member of the Elon College.music
faculty.
' The soloists included Miss Vir
ginia Groomes, soprano, of the
Elon music faculty; Miss Beatrice
Donley, contralto of the Meredith
College music faculty, Kaleigh;
Harold Haugh, tenor, of the Uni
versity ot Michigan; and Walter
Vassar, bass, an outstanding con-1
cert artist of Greensboro. Prof.
Fletcher Moore was at the organ.
The Festival Chorus itself num-
•bered more tlian seventy-five
voices, including members of the
Elun College Choir and a goodly
group of Elon alumni and friends
of the college. Several of the
alumni returned from distant
points to participate once more
in the singing of Handel's master
piece.
One of the largest crowds in
the history of the Elon rendition
vt "The Messiah” sat spellbound
at time by the sweeping grandeur
of the recitatives, arias and stir
ring ciioruses, all mi'ngled in an
enchanting pattern with the organ
music.
The former Elon students and
musicians of tliis area wlio were
invited back to- take part in the
fe51 program included Mrs. Belva
Hanford, Miss Laurie Rocl;ell,
Miss Elizabeth Russell, Mass
Jeanne Rader, and Mrs. Dolly loo
ter Shaw, all of Burlington; Dr.
and Mrs. D. J. Bowden, Mr. and
JVlrs. Tliomas Boland, Miss Edith
Brannock, Miss Shirley Cox, Mrs.
Sharon Gero, Mrs. Pearl McDon
ald, Miss Kathleen McDonald,
Miss Virginia Pla, Mrs. J. L.
Pierce, Mrs. W. W. Sloan, Mr.
and Mrs. Baxter Twiddy, Miss
Lois Scott, Miss Karen Martin,
William H. Struhs and James
White, all of Elon College; Miss
Norma Jean Edwards and Wallace
ELON IS REPRESENTED
IN STATE LEGISLATURE
The fifteenth North Carolina Student Assembly convened in
Raleigh on November 29th, with junior solons from most of the
colleges and universities in the stats gathering at the state capital
■for the session, which lasted through Sa4:urday, December 1st.
Representing Elon College in the mock legislative proceedings
were Roger Gibbs, Matt Currin, Ray Euliss, Ronnie Black, Rosa
mond Bromley and Lynn Cashion. Gibbs, Currin and Euliss were
in the Senate, while Black, Brom-
HOLIDAYS START
NEXT WEDNESDAY
The Christmas holidays for
Elon College, students wjll get
underway promptly at noon
next Wednesday, December
19th, according to an announce
ment from the office of Dean
D. J. Bowden. The vacation
will continue until Thursday,
January 3rd, when all classes
will be resumed upon regular
schedule. There will be no
chapel period next Wednesday
morning, and the two final per
iods will be moved up liaJf an
hour so as to start the Ynle
holidays exactly at 12 o’clock.
Elon Students To Elay Santa Claus
For Children Of Local Orphanage
FUND RAISING EFFORT
LAUNCHED AT BANQUET
ley and Cashion were in the
House of Representatives.
Spirited debate was the key
note of the assembly, which had
approximately thirty bills on the
agenda for consideration. The
most heated discussion was oc
casioned by' a bill for the better
ment of general Vv'cliare in the
state of North Carolina, a bill sub-
,, mitted to the calendar committee
by the delegation from Carolina.
This bill, which was divided
into four parts for consideration
in both houses, proposed to leg
alise gambling in the state, to
legalize prostitution in the state,
to provide for a commission to co
ordinate activities of the birth
control program in the state by
encouraging research in the field,
and, finally, to recommend inter
national distribution of informa
tion and material in regard to
birth control. The bill also called
for repeal of any existing laws
that miglit hinder such a program.
The first two sections were de
feated overwhelmingly in both
houses, but the sections in birth
control were passed by the col
lege lawmakers.
The Elon delegation, which was
active in debate in both houses,
submitJted a bill to provide a
statewide student loan fund,
available to all qualified students
at both public and private institu
tions. This bill was passed after
considerable debate.
Drama Group
Admits Five
New Members
The Lambda Omicron cast or
chapter of the Alpha Psi Omega
dranratic fraternity announced
and last week the addition of five new
Owen, of Gibsonville; Mr.
Mrs. James Heffinger and Jacli. | members. The formal initiation
Castle, all of Danville, Va.; Miss ceremonies for the five new mem
Jeanne Meredith, of Waynesboro,
Va.; Mr». Dorothy Jones Parker,
of Sunbury; and Miss Jane
Dougherty, of Winston-Salem.
Among the Elon students who
sang as members of the Festival
Chorus were Annie Laurie Al
bright, Betty Boyce, Laverne
Erady, Grace Bozarth, Ronnie
Black, Richard Brady, Barbara
Chapman, Mary Sue Colclough,
(Continued On Page Four)
Fire Drill Held
For West Dorn)
The girls in West Dorm were
aroused from their slumbers in
the wee hours of last Friday
morning fof ■ a fire drill, which
hustled all of them out in the
night, some with muttered impre
cations and others with tlie thank
ful thought that it was not rainy
.and cold.
, Everything has its amusing side,
csnd it may strike some as amus
ing that one of the girls, once
safely outside, dropped down and
fell asleep on a convenient bench.
She roused a short time later to
find that everyone else was safe'y
Ijack inside and she was locked
out in the ifciilly night.
hers were held on Tuesday after
noon, December 5th.
Alpha Psi Omega is a national
honorary organization, which has
for its purpose, the development
of dramatic talent and the ai't of
acting, the cultivation of a taste
for the best in drama and the fos
tering of the cultural values wiiich
are developed through dramatics.!
The new members taken into |
Alpha Psi Omega in a candlelight i
ceremony la.rt week included Joe
Brankley, of Skipwith, Va.; Roger
Wilson, of Providence, R. 1.; Rich
ard Newman, of Mebane; Ilappie
Wilson, of Dunn; and Lynn Cash
ion, of Sanford.
Old members now active in the
fraternity include Robert W^alker,
of Kernersville; Billie Greene, of
Durham; Rosamond Bromley, of
fluntington, West Va.; and Dick
Levine, of Brooklyn,,N. Y.
Officers chosen for this year
immediately after the initiation
included Robei't Walker, cast di
rector; Lynn Ca.shion, cast stage
manager; and Happin Wilson, cast
ijusiness manager. These offices
correspond to president, vice-
president and secretary in other
groups. Mrs. Elizabeth R. Smith,
director of dramatics on the
'jampus, is faculty advisor for the
nganizalion.
y
-si WfoSf.
. - Vi®.;,-'44.
A campaign to raise $1,200,000 for the support and exp.^nsion
of Elon College was launched on Tuesday, November 20th, at a din
ner meeting at the Alamance Country Club, which was attended
by more than 100 business, civic and religious leaders of this area.
Principal speaker for the occasion was Hon. J. Spencer Love,
chairman of the board of Burlington Mills, who pledged the sup
port of himself and his organization to the Elon College campaign
and at the same time urged others tiie occasion has proved so much
to back the college in its pro- fun each year that many of the
The Elon College students will
join once more in playing Santa
Claus to the children now living
at the Elon College Christian Or
phanage, with plans calling for a
gigantic Christmas party for the
boys and girls in the Student
Union at 7:30 o’clock next Mon
day evening, December 17th.
This is not a new idea, for the
19ai party marks the fifth succes
sive year that the college stu
dents have played Saint Nicholas
to tlte orphanage children, and
gram.
"The people of Burlington, Ala
mance County and the surround
ing area owe a great obligation
to Elon College,” he declared,
and he expressed the opinion that
"the people of this section have
been too prone to take Elon Col
lege for granted, not taking into
consideration the great, problems
that confront such an institution.'’
Dr. Leon E. Smith, Eton's pres
ident, presided over the banquet
gathering, and after the invoca
tion ho recognized a number oit
guests from Eastern Virginia and
other distant points. He intro
duced several of those guests,
college students looR forward to
the party with almost as much an
ticipation as Hie youthful guests.
The plan was originated in 1947
under the sponsorship of the
Alpha Pi Delta fraternity, with
individual credit for the idea go
ing to Ralph Edwards, who was a
member of the fraternity at that
time and also president of the
Elon student body for that year.
The Alpha Pi Delta boys have
continued to sponsor the Christ
mas party each year, although a
big percentage of the student body
participates in the plan by “adopt
ing one of the Orphanage chil
dren and providing the gifts.
who spoke briefly in support of'Douglass Roane, of Norfolk, Va.,
the financial campaign that was president of Alpha Pi Delta, is in
launched that night.
In disclosing this campaign
and the needs of the college. Pres
ident Smitii pointed out that
of the 619 students registered at
Elon for the fall quarter, there
were 307 from Alamance County.
He also cited the fact that all
53 persons taking adult classes
were from Alamance County and
that a special cour.se is in prog
ress for 152 sui>ervisors from the
Western Electric Company, and
he pointed to the fact that the
college itself and the faculty and
(Continued on Page Four)
Shakespearean Show By
Barter Players Here Wednesday...
One of the highlights of thei Such a contingency arises, and
year's entertainment program onjShylock in greedy haired prepares
the Elon campus is scheduled for I to claim his pound of flesh, plan-
W'ednesday night of this weekjning to take it from a fatal spot,
when the w'idely known Barter j It is then that Portia, clever
Players of Virginia will offer "The[woman lawyer, comes to the res-
Merchant of Venice,” one of I cue, and her defense furnishes
Shakespeare's better known pro
ductions, on the stage of Whitley
•Vuditorium. Curtain time is set
for 8:15 o’clock.
The plot of “The Merchant of
Venice” is an intriguing one, re
volving as it does about the dilem-
na of the Venetian who borrows
a sum of money from Shylock, a
rich money-lender, promising
that he will grant the lender a
pound of flesh in case of failure
to repay the loan at the specified
time.
ed in successful Broadway pro
ductions, and others have made
names for themeslves in radio and
television. Included in the cast
are Patricia O'Connell, as Portia;
Dina Farr, as Narissa; Woodrow
Romoff, as Shylock; Hugji Mosher,
as Antonio; John Holland, as Gra-
tiano; and Clayton Corzatte, as
Bassanio. Also in the cast is Mi
chael Lewis, son of Novelist Sin
clair Lewis.
This marks the third time that
the Barter Players have presented
a Shakesp(Carean production at
ization in America, is bringing a | Elon. They offered "Comedy ol
fine cast here for the annual Elon j Errors” last winter, and three
visit, and he has promised the | years since they presented
most extravagant stage setting | Hamlet,” a production that was
ever shown here. later played as a command per-
Several of the cast which ap- formance for the King of Den-
pears here this week have appear- mark.
!he high light of the entire pro
duction.
Robert Porterfield, founder and
president of the Barter Theatre,
a group which was organized in
the depths of the depression and
has since grown into the only
state-subsidised theatrical organ-
charge of arrangements for the
1951 gathering.
There are 79 children now liv
ing at the Orphanage, including
forty girls and thirty-nine boys,
with tlieir ages varying from four
to eighteen years. A list of their
names, with ages given, is avail
able at the College Book Store,
and members of the student body
are urged to “adopt” a child by
sighing beside that child's name
on the list. Gifts to the value of
from $2 to $5 may be left at the
College Book Store, from which
place they will be collected by
the Alpha Pi Delta members for
distribution at that party. Those
providing gifts are asked to be
sure that the gift is marked with
the name of the child.
The Pan - Hellenic Council,
which includes each pf the four
fraternities and etach of the four
sororities has already made
plans to provide once more two
new bicycles, one for a boy and
one for a girl, with these shiny
.gifts to go to the boy and girl
with the best record for the year.
Members of the Pan-Hellenic
Council, which is thus cooperating
with Alpha Pi Delta in the Christ
mas party plans, include Sonny
Addison, of Kappa Psi Nu, presi
dent; Ted Webh, of Alpha Pi Del
ta; Joe Spivey, of Sigma Phi
Beta; Jack Christy, of lota Tau
Choir Makes
Virginia Trip
On Weekend
The Elon College Choir spent last
weekend in Virginia and north
eastern North Carolina, singing
Handel's “Messiali” four times
during the weekend trip that saw
the musical group leave here on
Friday afternoon and return to
I he campus Sunday night.
The first stop and first program
was in Danville, Va., where “The
Messiah” w'as given in the First
Presbyterian church on Friday
night. This was followed by an
appearance in Sunbury high school jKappa; Edna Burke, of Beta Omi-
on Saturday night under the joint j cron Beta; Joan Summers, of Pi
Kappa Tau; Evelyn Booth, of Tau
Zeta Phi; and Lacala Wilkins, of
Delta Upsilon Kappa.
sponsorshiii of several churches.
There were two appearances on
Sunday, the first at the First
CongregrfUonal Christian church
in Franklin, Virginia, at 2:30
o'clock Sunday afternoon and tiie
other at the Christian Temple in
Norfolk on Sunday evening.
, Given under the direction of
■'Prof. John Westmoreland and
with Prof. Fletcher Moore" as ac
companist, the programs featured
a number of students and alumni
in the solar'roles, with four so
pranos, two contraltos, two lenor:.
and jfour baritones singing the
special parts.
The ten solos featured Annie
Laura Albright, Judy Ingram and
Shirley Swank, all students, and
Miss Virginia Groomes, of the
lilon faculty; the contraltos were
Patsy Melton and Dorothy Jones
Parker, one a student and the
other a graduate; the tenors were
James Heffinger and Jack Castle,
both alumni; and the barit'jnes
were Jimmy Rhodes, Ronnie
Rlack and Charles Lynam.
Eurollment Down
For Winter Term
With the winter quarter well
underway at Elon College, the
enrollment of regular students
^hows a slight drop from the num
ber for the fall quarter. The
registrar's office reports about
350 regular students, as compared
with the 619 enrolled for the fall
erm. It is pointed out that there
is normally a decrease at this time
of year.
The above figures do not in
clude the adult students enrolled
in night classes, the veterans en
rolled for night classes nor the
more than 150 persons attending
the special couses now being con
ducted for the supervisors from
■ihe Western Electric Company.
These groups swell the" Elon at
tendance to nearly 800 students.