Page 2, The Carolina Journal, 1969
When Should the
Library Be Closed ?
At Union Grove
Hippies and Cops and Fiddlers
By W.I.T.
When Dwight David Eisenhower died, the entire
Western world mourned his death, for he may be the first
American since Washington to earn the title of “first in
war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his
countrymen.” Still, enough is enough. Had Mr.
Eisenhower still been a prominent figure in politics, the
shocked reaction of the United States Government might
have been understandable. Had his death called for a
readjustment of thought or action, the reaction might
have been understandable, as it was in the case of the
recent assassinations of prominent American political
figures. But Mr. Eisenhower was an old man who no
longer figured in the life of America in a direct manner.
His death had been expected for a long time and came as
a surprise to no one. Yet, the government calls for a day
of national mourning during which all government
agencies grind to a standstill. The closing of banks and
post offices affects everyone, but the closing of a
university effects only a few. Mr. Eisenhower had very
little connection with the University of North Carolina at
Charlotte, yet the entire school closed down in the
afternoon a week ago last Monday. This was regrettable.
It’s all very patriotic to chase students out of the J.
Murray Atkins Library in honor of Mr. Eisenhower, but
where he is now, he has no use for the library. We’re still
on earth and we do. The show must go on.
This brings us to some touchy ground. How long must
we keep our library closed in memory of the death of
Christ? Some day that the building is closed in order that
the employees might have a holiday, but Mr. Boykin,
acting head librarian, says that this is not the point at
issue. He is only sticking to tradition by keeping the
library closed. We were glad to see this tradition
superceded. Students attending the library over the
holidays were requested to sign in when they entered the
door. If this was in an effort to statistically justify the
opening or closing of the library over the holiday, then it
is a misguided effort. If only one student is deprived of
his right to use the facilities of the library during the
holiday, then an injustice has been done to the academic
world by one of its own functionaries. The questionof
number is not directed at the issue, but to the degree.
Any way, we will be anxious to see the results of this
count.
Next year there will be students on campus around the
clock. They may want to study in the library and utilize
its facilities on into the night. Will the University deny
them this request? It will be interesting to see.
Eariy Friday morning there
were only about three hundred
people in Union Grove, North
Carolina. By dark there were
over ten thousand men, women,
and children in tents and
markeshift shelters of very shape
and color imaginable. On the
school grounds there was a blue
and yellow tent that would
make the Ringling Brothers
jealous with about four
thousand chairs arranged in neat
rows. The gymnasium was also
arranged for a large audience.
Pickin’ is what it was all about.
Pickin’ an’ strummin’ an’
whoopin’ it up. But this was
only a very small part of what
made the 45th Annual Fiddlers’
Convention a memorable event
for about twenty UNC-C
students and their friends.
An Ironic Twist
In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries a certain court
existed in the Roman Catholic Church solely for the
purpose of trying heretics. It was housed in Granada and
conducted by members of the Dominican Order. All
persons under the rule of the Spanish Catholic kings were
subject to trial in this court if their views differed even
slightly from the accepted canon. Many people repressed
their differing views in silence in order to escape the
wrath of the notorious Star Chamber trials, but many
(Continued on Page 4)
When the first group from
UNC-C arrived, they headed for
an open field that seemed to be
the site of a rather unorthodox
soccer game. Neil Cheek, a
UNC-C admissions counselor,
was informed that he was
treading on the sacred ground
that had been consecrated for a
makeshift soccer game by the
hippies from Hampton Sydney
University. Neil politely told
them that the field was about
to become the temporary home
of fourteen thousand people and
that they had better move.
Shortly thereafter, fourteen
thousand people arrived and
chased the roundballers away. A
camp trailer was set up in order
that some of the more refined
members of the company might
not have to expose themselves
to the elements. But the
elements came anyway - hippies,
idiots, hill people, and dogs set
the atmosphere at a level of
anonymous incredulity as a
camp was set up and roped in
for those who were yet to
arrive. The clouds that watched
the entire event from above
were the only ones who were
not cramped for space, and by
noon Saturday even the clouds
were crowded.
About dark most of us were
settled down in what looked
like a tenement tent that was
made up of tarps, plasbc, rope,
and cars. The people begt;' to
think about food (some aid
more thinking than others,
because the people who were
bringing their food did not
arrive until nine o’clock). The
little country store-snack bar did
more business that weekend
than it did the rest of last year,
and the hippies didn’t steal
much, either. After supper the
pickin’ began, and the pickin’ at
the Grove is some of the best
in the world. The atmosphere
around the fog-covered
schoolyard was one of carnival
proportions, as vendors sold hot
dogs, popcorn, and chicken to
the long-haired campers.
Although the number one
attraction was people watching
and drinking, several groups
gathered around the musicians
as they captivated students,
drop-outs, bankers, farmers, and
state patrolnien alike. Hippies
eyed cops and cops eyed hippies
as the hill folk watched the
entire procedure with detached
amusement. The red necks were
there, too, and they were much
more trouble than the hippies
(and pseudos) ever thought of
being. Meanwhile, the spectators
tried to hide their beer, while
the policemen made no effort
to conceal their weapons.
This spectacular panorama of
humanity in mind, I returned to
my shelter, after gulping down
six hot dogs and assorted other
goodies. Tents stretched farther
than the eye could see as a fog
descended over the tents and
shelters. 1 explored a nearby
sawmill and determined that we
could always go there if it
rained. When 1 returned to the
tent, a crowd of hippies was
gathering around preparing to
do a little pickin’, much to the
consternation of those few
“straights” that we had with us.
The singing was fun and the ■
musicians were both entertaining '
and capable. About one in the
morning, sortie of us went to
bed, and the fun began. One '
member of the company, whom
I will call S., awoke. S. had |
been passed out since ten. He
complained, first about a
headache - “I think I’m going
to die.” - then about - “My
shoes! Who the hell stole my
shoes?” Soon another member
of the group (P.) tripped in and
talked about 12-gauge shotguns
for an hour. He was a little
upset and a lot drunk, i
Meanwhile, somebody (who was i
sharing a pup tent with three
other hardy individuals) decided
that she wanted some potato
chips - it was two o’clock. The
crunching of the potato chips
woke many students in the area,
who then proceeded to discuss
some thirteen-year-old speed
freaks. Off in the distance we
heard a group gathering to look
for beer - “Hey Tom, ya find
any. Nope, keep lool^.” The :
fog got thicker and somebody ;
decided that it was breakfast
time. One of the straights in the
tent threatened to “come out '
(Continued on Page 3)
Ranganathananda to
Speak Here Friday
Swami Ranganathananda of
the Ramakrishna Order and
formerly President of the |
Ramakrishna Math and Mission
at Karachi will deliver a lecture
entitled “Man’s Spiritual Life in
the Light of Twentieth Century
Science” to students and
non-students this Friday at
11:30 in C-220 before lunching
with Project Opportunity
members and guests. The swami
is a well-known lecturer and
author who has carried the
message of Vedantic Hinduism
to all corners of the earth. This
former lecturer at Delhi
University and affiliate of
UNESCO has recently written
THE MESSAGE OF THE
UPANISHADS, a six-hundred
page message on the traditional
Hindu texts. He has also
published a collection of his
lectures and essays.