'CHARACTER
IS HIGHER
THE TWIG
Newspaper oj the Students of Meredith College
THAK INTELLECr'
—EMERSON
Volume XXVI
MEREDITH COLLEGE, RALEIGH, N. C., FRIDAY, MARCH 7, 1952
Number 8
A. A. Sponsors Palio and Stnnt Festivities
"I
Celebration is Unique Custom
Among American Colleges
By ALLEN HART
Through the years Palio has played an important part in the life of Meredith
the celebration is full of surprises. Even a little elephant takes part in the campus-wide festivities which
are sponsored by the Athletic Association.
CUSSES FINISH COMMITTEE PLANS
TO COMPETE FOR STUNT HONORS
Committees for Stunt Night to
be held March 8 have been
chosen by the four classes. Fresh
men committee chairmen are:
Betty Ball, properties; “Cookie”
Cook, costumes; Ruby Wiggins,
make-up; Gretchen Gutherlein,
lighting and staging; and Sally
Drake, programs.
Lorette Oglesby heads the
script committee for the Sopho
mores; “Potsy” Averre, lighting;
Fay Walker, set; Shirley West,
staging and properties; Doris
McMillan, costumes; Mary Ann
Chandler, programs; Jean Bat
ten, music; Dot Briggs, make-up;
and Melissa Matthew and Bobbie
Addy, co-directors.
Junior class chairmen are: Dot
Stell and Kitty Barbehenn, pro
grams; Celia Wood and Jean
nette Leopard, costumes; Shirley
Cliatt, properties; Betsy Can-
nady, lighting; and Ann Mc-
Gugan, set.
Barbara Harper is directing the
Senior stunt with the following
committee chairmen working:
Julia Presson and Sally Massey,
scrip; Francene Barber, light
ing; Lynette Adcock, programs;
Barbara Ballenger, properties;
and Dot Hart, music.
Mrs. Elizabeth Shelton Smith
has been invited to be the chief
judge. The other judges are:
Mrs. Walter B. Willard of Ra
leigh for the freshmen, Mrs. Vir
ginia B. Pope of Enfield for the
sophomores, Mrs. L. B. Hopkins
of Raleigh for the juniors, and
Mr. James Thiem, Jr., of Raleigh
for the seniors.
AUDUBON LECTURE
Saturday, March 15, is the
date scheduled for the next
Audubon lecture to be held at
Meredith College. This nature
study, sponsored by the Ra
leigh Bird Clubj will be pre
sented by Bert Harwell who
will speak on “Canada North.”
The lecture will begin at 8:00
p.m. The public is invited.
The day of March 8 is rapidly
approaching, when the Meredith
campus will once again show its
annual touch of Sienna, Italy.
This day, is the day Palio cele
bration is held every year. It is a
unique custom among American
colleges.
In 1835 the idea was intro
duced ‘to the students by Miss
Ida Poteat of the art department
and Miss Marian Warner of the
physical education department,
who had seen the original festi
val in Italy. Under the sponsor
ship of the Athletic Association,
the proposal was tried and soon
became a tradition. Every year
the event was presided over by
Miss Meredith until last year,
when the president of the A. A.
replaced her. A member of the
junior class serves as her only
attendant.
The Italian festival was ac
companied by much color and
spirit. It celebrated the feast of
the Visitation of the Blessed
Virgin and was held on July 2.
The religious feast was associ
ated with the founding of the
city. It took on its spectacular
form because, in the davs of its
beginning, plays were connected
with religious festivals.
The city of Sienna was divided
into cantons, each of which had
I its own flag and customs. Each
group wore in the parade its
own dress and carried its banner.
The important event was the
horse race. A horse was chosen
from each canton and was
blessed in a chapel before the
competition. The canton whose
horse won the race was awarded
banner. This giving of the
banner caused the name Palio
to be given to the festival, be
cause in Italian, Palio means
banner.
Next to horse racing, the most
interesting feature of the two-
‘day celebration was the flag
tossing in the procession. This
feat was difficult and spectacular,
because the Middle Ages abound
ed with colorful banners, and
the spirit involved in them ran
high.
The Meredith Palio is a modi
fied version of the Sienna festi
val, but, neverthelessj is ' a
striking parallel. The classes rep
resent the cantons and are the
competitors. Their “horse rjtce”
is composed of a runner from
each class. The race takes' place
around the oval before Johnson
Hall. The flag tossing is retained
in the form of a dance.
The classes each choose a
theme, and dressed in costumes,
march up the drive to form their
(Continued on page three)
Smathers, Stallings, and Francis
Will Hold Major Campus Offices
RALEIGH DISTRICT MUSIC CONTEST
WILL BE HELD MARCH 12 AND 13
CAMPAIGN OPENS
FOR W.S.S.F.
On March 12 and 13 Meredith
College will again play the role
of host for the 1952 Raleigh Dis
trict Music Contest. At that time
many students from schools in
this district will be here to par
ticipate and be rated.
Miss Forestine Whitaker, head
of the public school music de
partment, is in charge Of the con
test. Student music majors will
also help and serve as guides,
pages, a.djudicator’s assistants
and event chairmen.
Students from both junior and
Senior high schools will partici
pate. Included in the program
will be solos, small ensembles,
junior and senior high choral
groups, girls’ and boys’ glee
clubs, instrumental solos and
bands. The contests will begin at
The World StudOht Service
Fund campaign, whieh started
on our campus February 27, and
runs through March 7, is being
sponsored by the three major
organisations, the B.S.U., A.A.,
and h.G. Three representatives
from each organization, includ
ing the presi&nt, are acting as
the steering committee. They are
(Continued on page four)
COMMENCEMENT
SPEAKERS
Margaret Mead, anthropol
ogist and author of “From the
South Seas,” will deliver the
Baccalaureate address here
June 2, announced Dr, Camp
bell this week.
Dr. Sydnor L. Stealey, pres
ident of the Southeastern
Theological Seminary will de
liver the baccalaureate ser
mon on June 1.
8:30 a.m. and run until about
8:30 p.m.
Judges for the vocal and
choral work will be Donald
Alott from Davidson College, Dr.
Alpha Mayfield of Greensboro
College, and Paul Peterson of
Salem College.
Judging the instrumental
groups will be Paul Bryan from
! 3uke, Kenneth Moore from
Davidson, and Dr. Joseph Wilson
of High Point College. Robert
Carter of Greenville will serve
as judge for the piano work.
Ratings which range from su
perior to poor vt^ill be given iSiose
participating.
There are seventeen counties
included in the Raleigh District.
The scliools which will represent
these counties in the congest are:
Hugh'Morsbn, Needham Brough
ton, Oxford, Carr Junior High.
Jonesboro, Oxford Orphanage,
Seventy-First, Roxboro, Golds
boro, Csry, Green^oro, Nash
ville, Burlington, Chapel Hill,
I^yette*/ille, Pinehurst, Frank-
linton, Spring Hope, Coopers,
'Smithfield, Erwin, and Whita
kers- T'he deadline for entering
the contest was February 27 anc
many schools had to be turned
down because they did not file
their applications before that
date.
The ’52-’53 elections for the
top campus offices were held
February 28. Pat Smathers, Jan
et Stallings, and Bess Francis will
hold the three major offices of
Student Government president,
Baptist Student Union president,
and president of the Athletic As
sociation, respectively. Betty Jo
Jane Slate Presents
Senior Voice Recital
Welch will act as Chief Counsel
lor, and the day students will
have Charlotte Taylor as their
president.
The “Oak Leaves” will be
headed by Kitty Barbehenn, the
TWIG by Doris Perry, and the
“Acorn” by PhyUis Nottingham.
Melrose Canaday and Emma
Jean Maddrey will be the new
presidents of Vann and String-
field dormitories.
Miss Betty Jane Skate, daugh
ter of Mt. and Mrs. B. F. Slate
of Burlington, will present her
senior voice recital in the main
auditorium, Saturday, March 22,
at 8:00 p-m> Accompanying her
is Mffss Tferjorte Barnes. Fol-
owing the recital, a reception
wiU be held in the blue parlor.
Miss Patsy Spiers will head the
receiving line. Marshals for Miss
Silate wall be Miss Barbara Bone,
Miss Betty Jo Smith, Miss Mur-
jphy Alexander, and Miss Char
leen Swansey.
HcfTseback riding, swimming,
and nil painting are Miss Slate’s
main hobbies. While at Meredith
College, Miss Slate has been a
member of the Monogram Club,
treasurer of Sigma Alpha Iota
National Professional Music Fra-
tternity, a member of Alpha Psi
Omega National Dramatics Fra
ternity, and editor of the “Oak
Leaves.” She is a member of the
Silver Shield honorary leader
ship society and, this year, was
honored in “Who’s Who in Amer-
DEAN'S LIST INCLUDES
FIFTY-THREE NAMES
(Continued on page three)
Meredith Collage Libraf\’
N. C.
Mrs. Vera Tart Marsh, Reg
istrar, has released the names of
fifty-five girls who have attained
Dean’s List standing for the ’52
spring semester. These students
registered for at least twelve
hours and completed and passed
all courses with a numher of
quality points equal to twice the
number of semester hours taken
plus three.
Those honored are: Ruth
Jeanne Allen, Betty Joan Ball,
Katherine Anna Barbenhenn,
Nellie Ruth Barnes, Patricia
Setzer Bland, Jettie Rea Brad
shaw, Nancy Franklin Brown,
Elizabeth Ann Cannady, Ruth
Jeannette Cole, Jane Luther
Compton, Ruth Ernestine Cot
trell, Jean Bradley Dula, Mary
Rebecca Edge, Marie Louise Ed
wards, Dolly Florence Getzen,
Mary Jocile Griffin, Lou Griffin
Hale, Elizabeth Ann Hamrick,
Allen Wilkinson Hart, Betty Ann
Highsmith, Martha Jean Hol-
(Continued on page three)