12 Pages, Today
o
Second Section
volums. XXXIV
CHAPEL HILL, SATURDAY, MARCH 13, 1926
NUMBER 64
THE INDIVIDUAL AT CAROLINA
IS GIVEN EVERY ATTENTION
JSIEV MEN AKE NOW INTRODUCED TO UNIVERSITY THROUGH
' SYSTEMATIC ATTENTION STUDENTS EARLY ORIENTED "
. ' , , JO CAMPUS-FACULTY AND UPPERCLASSMEN ASSIST
- NEW. MEN IN GETTING ACQUAINTED
; , By H. W. Chase
. , .'. President of The University of North Carolina
In a recent publication by the Univer
sity of 'Minnesota there occurs this state
mftiti "An outstanding accomplishment
of the past 20 years has been the redis
covery of the Indlyklual In the mass,
lne was when nearly any group was
relatively small jahcl, tach person, how
ever slender his' accomplishments, stood
nut s something, of, an entity.. He drew
Department of Psychology
Then there is the work of the De
partment of Psychology, which conducts
tests of mental alertness for all enter
ing students, and maintains, an examina
tion service for all who desire a more
thorough form of mental examination.
There Is the Y. M. C. A., in charge of
Mention by the ' mew fact of his being ' individual opportunities for self-help and
- . " 1 ' wuusc vuuinuuuuu iu me ueveiopmeiu
"As men massed in greater and greater
masses to accomplish the things which
the world..-, required,? the individual be
came less and less conspicuous. And as
so often happens, this situation brought
it own cure, for society dcided that it
must pay purposeful and intentional
hd to sits indlyldualifi it was to fit
him into the niche that would best serve
public ends, At 'result .of this awak
ening the individual, in the mass seems
destined soon 16 1 better off than the
individual "in'ilier'isinaUM '.'group, for in
the larger group 4iis case will be taken
up and given individual attention, where
as in, the smaller, group he may be as
sumed to N jk-ell enough off by virture
of his position and may receive little per
sonal consideration or none."
',. Develops the Individual
The University of North Carolina- is
committed to- a program of seeking to
develop and assist the individual ; stu
dent An "institution of the size of the
University naturally offers many stimu
lating contacts. . Men of many types of
mind and interest gather on its campus
from this and Other states. There is a
variety and broadening influence about
its life , that, arises naturally out of the
many things ,that go son, tbt many lines
of activity on the part of its faculty
' and student jbody" -..i'.-y.-'. 'r -.
. It lsLtbei.Xatth. ,.of the- University that
to. such advantage there can be added,
through proper organiiation and fore
thought provision, for tlie . individual
which is of distinctive Quality;-that far
from being tost in the mass, the indi
vidual student can. secure attention
which is systematic and intelligent pre
cisely because it does bring to bear the
resources of a large, and complex insti
tution on the task. Of the "form which
that work is assuming it is my purpose
to say something here.
Each College Has Dean
In the first place, the student who
registers In the .University enrolls in a
particular college or schooU It may. be
the College of XiberafArts, the School
of Commerce, or Engineering, or Applied
Science, or Education, or -Pharmacy, or,
later in his course, Law or Medicine or
the School of Public Welfare or the
Graduate School. Now he will find that
ia whatever school he registers, he comes
a once under the supervision of its dean,
those business a Is to keep in contact
with him and hias vork. Thus at once
his immediate group - is reduced from
twenty-five hundred to one of a few hun
dred students with which a responsible
University official is constantly in touch.
- Dean of Students
Again, the University maintains an of
fice, headed by a full-time Dean of Stu
dents,, whose concern it is to deal with
the Individual and "his problems, and the
student life on the campus. The Dean
of Students is, not an official concerned
with discipline. lie i Is rather a counsel
lor with vhom individuals can, and do,
Niter into tits, frankest and most confi
dential relationships. Just because this
office does such a great variety f things
for individuals," It is difficult' to describe
its works jn a" systematic 'way. Here
nters the administration of, student
loan funds, and So discussion of individ
ual financial problems. ' Under this of
fice, for example, have been organised
this Spring Quarter groups totalling
hout 800 Freshmen,'' for discussion of
opportunities and the training re
Wired for different professions and oc
cupations. From this' office is a(?mlnls
frred the work In intramural athjetlcs
"t centers about thfci purpose of giv.
ing every ; individual who is interested
opportunityto compete in healthful ath
letic sports, with regular schedules of
games between the 'dormitory and fra
ternity house: units. -Tne basketball sea
Son, for example, ; has seen forty-two
teams taking regular part In this' year's
Program.--These are simple illustrations.
Very much of the work cannot be dassi
M here, it will suffice to say that any
"tudent can find In this office at any time
sympathetic counsel n any problem, no
ftatter bow personal, that may be In his
mind. - --,'-v-f.. :
of student leadership hi the moral and
religious life of the University is very
great. There is the deep personal in
terest in students, their life and problems,
manifest in the pastors of the various
churches, some of which have added stu
dent pastors especially for personal work
with students.
Reception of New Students
The attitude of the University is well
Illustrated by its procedure in the re
ception of new students.' These men
are now asked to come to the Univer
sity two days before the other students.
They meet together for a general intro
ductory talk or two, and then they are
divided into sections of some thirty men,
each with its faculty; advisor and some
upper classman who has volunteered for
the purpose. This makes it possible for
every man to get individual attention
from the start; the advisors are numer
ous enough to look after individual dif
ficulties. : Then these same small . sec
tions are taken by the student officials
bpens here in less than three weeks from
for talks about self-government, the men
are given individual physical examina
tions, mental tests, shown how to use the
library, and in general introduced to
the University.
Teaches Self-Reliance
, In justhe same way, the University's
theory of discipline is personal. "It is
that, instead of attempting to hedge stu
dents around with voluminous rules and
regulations as to their conduct, every in
dividual is expected to feel a sense of
responsibility for his own conduct, and
his share of the responsibility for what
goes on in the campus community.
Very different is all this from the idea
that some men may have, that the in
dividual student at Carolina is simply a
cog in a machine. Just how much room
for the individual there is here no one
can appreciate until he becomes a part
of the University life. To develop and
strengthen this fine tradition of Caro
lina Is one of the purposes that the
University tries to keep constantly in
view. ' '
Forever something between us and
what we deem our happiness.
- Byron.
LARGE INCREASE
IN COUNTY CLUBS
First Groups Were Organized
v in 1901.
HQLD REGULAR MEETINGS
Purpose Is to Promote Spirit of
Friendship and Cooperation.
: By 3. N. Robbins
It has now been nearly a quarter of a
century since the "great era of county
clubs," as some one has aptly called it,
began at Carolina. In 1904, groups of
students from Buncombe, Wake, Meck
lenburg, and Forsyth . organized them
selves into compact groups with more or
less regular meeting dates' rules and by
laws and recognizing the county as the
unit of membership. There was some at
tempt made to prepare regular programs
for the meetings and the county club
idea received instant favor from the stu
dents. The fad swept over the campus like
a whirlwind. The clubs that had already
been installed met with gratifying suc
cess, and many others were formed. Soon
the students from larger towns and from
other states began forming town and
state clubs outside the county club, and
the report stated that they "were still
corning." . ,
When the Raleigh Club made its ap
pearance on the campus known by the
flaring streamers worn by its members,
the Tar Heel seemed to think that the
limit had about been reached and was
led to deliver itself of the following sar
castic remark: "The formation of this
society has suggested other similar or
ganizations, and it is 'said that ribbons
will soon appear for clubs representing
University, Station and other large cor
porations." The clubs have continued to increase
in numbers and in membership. Prac
tically every county in the state is now
represented by a club at the University.
Many of the larger towns are still rep
resented and most of the other states
that send students here. It has been es
timated that there are now at least 150
organizations of the county club type on
the campus" and that nearly every stu
dent is a member of one of these clubs.
The early clubs were very different
from those of today. In spite of the best
efforts of the officers, the organization
was loose and the meetings sporadic, to
say the least. No regular program was
carried out after the first few meetings,
and these gatherings which were usual
ly held in some dormitory room often
turned into regular matador sessions.
These clubs today are run on a busi
ness like basis. Regular weekly, bi-weekly
or monthly meetings are held. Their
purpose is to promote a better, spirit
of friendship and cooperation among stu
dents from the same counties. Graduate
students and, prominent men from out.
in the state and often from other states
are invited to lecture at the meetings.
When there is no regular speaker for
the meeting, many of the clubs require
the members to prepare speeches tiiem
( Continued on page four) , :
UNIVERSITY BUILT
IN A WILDERNESS
Uuilt Here Because GMtizens
! Willingly Donated Land.
NORTH STATE WAS POOR
Chapel Hill Was At Juncture of Two
I ' Heavily Travelled Highways.
The Carolina Playmakers Of
University Of North Carolina
i Until the establishment of the oldest
state university, the University of
North Carolina, in 1798, Chapel Hill,
situated at the junction of the heavily
travelled north and south and east and
west pike roads, could boast of only a
tavern and a small church of England,
from which the town derives its name.
The latest census figures place the pop
ulation of the town at 2,146,' exclusive
of the student body.
The two pike roads ran from Pittsboro
to Petersburg, and from Newburn to
Hillsboro. The most important one was
that from plttsboro. From this town the
highway extended to Fsyetteville, the
social center of the state and the market
town of the commonwealth. The crops
and slaves were bartered to buyers in
the Cumberland capital and the town of
Fsyetteville ranked with Philadelphia
and Charleston as the most important
centers of trade and Industry In the
nation.
Many reasons have been assigned for
selecting such a wilderness as Chapel
Ilill- then was, for the site of the State's
University. The most popular assump
tion has been that its location woulld be
very conducive to scholarly study. Like
most popular ideas, the isolation theory
is fallacious. The State of North Caro
lina was very poor and the landowners
of this section, possessing great tracts of
virgin forests, willingly donated the -land
upon which this institution is built. Mrs.
Cornelia P. Spenser says, "Chapel Hill
was chosen for the site of the University
because the farmers who owned the land
all round gave more liberally of their
lands to endow the institution than the
men in other sections. They had nothing
but land to give and they gave that free
ly." The surrounding land is made up
of hundreds of low hills and mandocks
most of which are glacial, submarine, or
volcanic in origin. Much of the terri
tory was once covered by the Triassic
Sea. With an. average annual tempera
ture of SflVi degrees, the climate is a
bracing one. Chapel Hill has the cli
matic features of Florence, Italy, ac
cording to Collier Cobb.
There has for a long time been a per
sistent impression afloat that when the
University was established, there was a
clause included in the charter prohibit
ing railways from running their lines to
Chapel Hill. Stevenson did not invent
his locomotive until twenty-seven years
after the University arose in the prime
val forest. After much agitation and
litigation, the work was begun on the
University railway in 1881. It was fin
ished in the following year. Due to its
limited schedule, students have .now en
( Continued on page four)
The University of North Carolina, at
Chapel Hill, the home of the Carolina
Playmakers, is the oldest of all the stute
universities. It was founded in 1789 and
has well been called "The Mother of
State Universities."
Ths Carolina Playmakers were organ
ized in 1918 by Frederick H. Koch, who
had come to the University as professor
of dramatic literature. Before this, Pro
fessor Koch had been doing pioneer work
in North Dakota since 1905, long be
fore the beginnings of the Little The'
atre movement. There he founded the
Dakota Playmakers at the University of
North Dakota. Believmg that "the lo
cality if it be truly interpreted, is the
only universal," Professor Koch has de
veloped the writing of native plays in
America as the Abbey Theatre group
has done in Ireland. Of the two vol
umes of Carolina Folk-Plays published
by Henry Holt and Company, Augustus
Thomas writes: "I have read them and
I consider them fully equal to any of the
Irish folk-lore plays produced by the
Abbey Company under Lady Gregory's
direction." And the folk-dramas of Da-
kota and of Carolina have made a defi
nite impress on the professional theatre.
"No one can doubt," writes Arthur Hob
son Quinn, "that the success of the Caro
lina Playmakers has turned the atten
tion of the playwrights (of Broadway)
to this field."
Anyone who is interested in writing,
producing or acting in plays may be
come a Ploymaker. The group Includes
students and members of the faculty
from all departments of the University,
Professor Koch is interested not only in
the creation of a North Carolina drama
but welcomes students from other sec
tions of the country to write plays of
their own locality, based upon their own
observation and experience. (Last sum
mer, at Columbia University, he gave a
course in play-writing for a group rep
resenting widely different localities,
ranging from Minesota to Louisiana.)
One of the most remarkable plays writ
ten and produced by the Playmakers at
Chapel Hill was a Chinese folk-play,
The Thrice-Promised Bride , written by
Mr. fcheng-Chin Hsiung, of Nan Chang,
China, who came to North Carolina for
graduate work in the drama. The play
has a naivete of humor and imagination.
Its literary quality is evidenced by is
publication in the Theatre Arts Monthly
and The Golden Book and its inclusion
in Frank Shay's volume of International
Plays. - So the Carolina Playmakers in
vite to their fellowship of playwrights
and craftsmen, students from beyond the
borders of their own state who are seri
ously interested in the making of an
American folk-theatre.'
The stated aims of the I'luymukcrs
are: (1) To promote and encourage dra
matic art, especially by the publication
and production of j)lays; (2) to serve as
an experimental theatre for the develop
ment of plays representing the tradi-
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA GLEE CLUB
V"j nAiSr s A
rj u V! If &v Pi
Qy'7
3 U'-v itf
nr. si .-II U k'0c,
- l
Members of the Club, reading "from left to right: Seated Ludwig Lauerlmuss, president; Paul John Weaver, uirectorj truest V. Young, business
manager. First row-J. L. Cantwell, R. W. Wilkins, G. Y. Harris, R. Foltz, S. P. Vance, C. Cone, E. M. Hedgepeth, A. Laney, W. M. K. Bender,
M C Berry, K. R. Jones, J. D. Mc-Connell. Second row P. N. Olive, C. C. Branch, D. M. Holshouser, C. T. Hawkins, E. II. Erwin, C. L. Breard,
C a! Lee, R. B, Gladstone, 3. N. Neal, O. M. Smathers, C. U. Lawrence, P. S. Foster, R. II. Harris. Third rowU. E. Woodall, J. W. McClum
rock T M Whitener, C. Nance, W. J. Cocke, Jr., R. M. Haidec, J. C Adams, R. M. Cain, F. X. Myers, K. F. Seldon, C. F. McRae. Fourth row
J R, DeJouroatte, C W. Robinson, D. I). Carroll, T. B. Smith, O. Toms, G. M. Stephens, M. S. Pond, J. S. Trotter, E. L. Curlee, J. Crowson,
X W Lttt Fifth row-T. H. Mackie, L. Watson, H. W. White, C H. Elmore, T. B, Ogburn, II. Kemp, L. Moore, J R. Baker, J. F. Cleminger.
Sixth r(Wj, r. Dobbitt, H. S. Hall, W. F. Shaffncr, H. Weil, II. II. Briggs, J Starr, J. M. Parsley, II. K. McDowell, B W.'Williams.
tions and various phases of present-day
life of the people; (3) to extend its In
fluences in the establishment of a native
theatre in other communities.
Their chief activities fulfilling these
aims are threefold: (1) the production
of original plays in the Playmakers The
atre at Chapel Hill; (2) the state tours
which carry the plays back to the people
they interpret; (3) the Bureau of Com
munity Drama throughout the state.
! Although formally listed in the Uni
versity catalog as English 31, Dramatic
Composition, there is a delightful infor
mality about the play-writing group in
which the Carolina folk-plays originate.
Under Professor Koch's sympathetic
guidance the rough Ideas of the student
playwright gradually create their own
forms. For this reason the plays and
productions of the Carolina Playmakers
have a fresjiness and vigor not often
found in the non-professional theatre.
The best plays written In the course
are read each quarter at an author's
reading. From these the play commit
tee makes the selection for the new pro
duction in the Playmakers Theatre. The
Playmakers Theatre building on the
campus is the first state theatre dedi
cated to native drama. ' It Is a building
of classic dignity and beauty. Going
back to the days before the Civil .War,
this vine-clad home of the Playmakers
is a place of historic memories.
; The inside of the building has been
entirely remodeled. The auditorium
contains 345 seats on a single Inclined
floor. Each seat affords a perfect view
of the stage. The stage equipment and
the, lighting system designed and in
stalled by Mr. Monroe Pevear, of Bos
tonare flexible und well-adapted for
experimental purposes. Here directors
of outside groups may come for aid In
working , out their problems of stage
craft. In this way, the Playmakers The
atre is the radial center for dramatic
art in North Carolina and beyond. .
Since their initiul bill of original folk
plays on March 14, 1919, on a makeshift
jtoge they built themselves In the Chapel
Hill high school there being no audi
torium available on the campus the
Carolina Pluymakers have produced 42
o ftheir own native plays, in addition to
a series of studio productions of stand
ard and clussic pluys and a number of
Shakespearean productions on the lovely
out-of-door stage of their Forest The
atre. In these various productions over
475 players have participated and 91
North Carolina towns have been visited.
Many of these had had no real dramatic
production In years. Altogether, the
Playmakers have played before more
than 100,000 people.
Besides their hume performances in
Chapel Hill, they have taken their plays
out over the state from coastal towns
to mountain villages, for their stage
equipment Is portable and may easily be
adapted to any pvn hall or school audi
torium. They travel In a big white auto
mobile bus, the "Playmakers Special,"
with their scenery and lighting equip
ment in a Ford truck behind. Professor
Koch believes that the touring of the
players Is an essential part of their
training In bringing them into closer
contact with the folk-life of their peo
ple. They have made ten tours of North
Carolina and last season a most success
ful tour farther south. In such cities as
Charleston, Atlanta, and Savannah, they
were received with vast enthusiasm and
the invitation to come back.
The touring of the Playmakers hat
aroused a new interest In the drama
throughout the state. To meet this need
the Bureau of Community Drama was
organized in 1918 by Professor Koch.
The work is efficiently carried out by
Miss Ethel Rockwell, who serves as state
representative of the Bureau. Miss Rock
well has hud wide experience In page
antry and community drama and has
done a remarkable work in organizing
and directing dramatic groups all over
North Carolina.
The Bureau has over 1,000 volumes of
plays and books about the theatre, which
are sent without charge beyond the post
age to any person In the state. Besides
this, pamphlets on play-production and
suggested programs are published for
distribution. Any one may write for
suggestions and receive personal atten
tion. Miss Rockwell and her assistants
go to any community in the state to as
sist In organizing dramatic groups, to
conduct rehearsals, and to give instruc
tion in make-up, and in the designing
and making of scenery and costumes.
An Important outgrowth of this de
partment is the Carolina Dramatic Asso
ciation, organized to cultivate dramatic
art in the schools and communities. The
Association arranges a series of state
wide contests of one-act plays. The win
(CoMcmutf on page four) '