SUNY at Fredonia - Fredonian Yearbook (Fredonia, NY)

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The dark-eyed, debonnair young man who t-ook the proffered leatlet from the priestess with an air acquired only by a season's experience in a Chautauqua cafe, read this inscription- Be undaunted, O youth, let sines be cosines, let artists only attempt to pass as artists, and you shall yet preside, the land- lord of a wayside inn. The sibyl, being very choice of the remaining leaves,allowed a. group of girls topass without agreet- ing. This oversight on her part may be remedied by refering to the historian, who says t-he principals of Glenmore Academy, Misses Conic and Maxson, are general favorites in both the educational and the social world. Miss Montague has achieved fa-me as being the first to introduce discipline into the Froebel sys- tem. J. R. Wheeler is the author of several standard works on Botany which would be more popular if they were couched in language more familiar to the common ear. It is said that the prophetess extended a leaf to the class president and then suddenly withdrew it, as if wishing to leave him in ignorance of his future fate. lt- was well, for he would hardly have survived the shock of learning that he was to be director of the Philalethean Saengerbund. A high-browed youth with poetic cast of countenance received this bit of sibylline advice- Every horse is not a- Pegasus. Bear this in mind and two dozen of your first edition may be sold. The sibyl was about to hand forth a prophecy to a fair-haired, blue-eyed young Diana, when .sud- denly a darkness obscured the sun, silence reigned within the cave, the sibyl vanished. Unavailing search for her was made by those members of the party who stillremained uneulightened as to their future. The since famous author, known by the pen name of Puritan Priscilla, Woodcock, editor of the New York En- terprise, Advertiser and Leader, and Ruttenbur, now starring with DeWolfe Hopper, were most disconso- late at this sight. The disappearance of the sihyl could only be accounted for by the fact that it was seven o'clock and she had not yet adopted the half-hour-later regulation. The return to Fredonia was made with most of the party in a contemplative frame of mind, pondering upon the revelations they had heard. In conclusion it might be well to say that the prophecies have not all been verified, owing to t-he en- tanglement of certain threads of fate. 27

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TI-IE GAMMA CHAPTER OF THE AGONIAN FRATERNITY. REVIOUS to the year 1890 there were no exclusively feminine literary societies connected with KE, the Fredonia Normal School. During the session of 1890-QI two young women's societies were 9 formed. These were known as the Neosophic and Alpha Mu societies. They thrived during the ' ' 'Al year of their organization and recommenced their activities in the following school year,-but they were destined to be short lived. In March, 1892, two delegates from the Agonian.Fraternity-one from Oneonta, the other from'Gene- seo-came to Fredonia for the purpose of forming a Chapter. After several days of work on the part of the delegates, and of consideration on the part of the existing societies, the idea of duality for the sake of compe- tition was, With some other early precepts, overruled for the time. The two societies were merged, afarewell banquet was given, and the Gamma Chapter of the Agonian Fraternity, with fifty-three charter members, was formed. The new organization was destined for a longer life and wider bounds of helpfulness. Its ac- tivity has been stimulated from the nrst by the co-operation of the sister Chapters, while latterly the element of competition has not been wholly lacking. Aside from these influences, the Chapter has enjoyed a vigorous and useful existence through its own strength and its energetic application to its chosen department-literary work-with business conducted according to parliamentary and healthful intersprinkling of social intercourse. The Chapter has outgrown two rooms and now occupies its third apartrnent.VVhile the roll varies in length from year to year, as the older members join the Alumni, and their places, as active members, are taken by new- corners-the spirit and power of the society waxes strong with increasing years. As 'time goes on the work done improves in many respects. As an illustration of this and of the co-operative spirit which aids -the com- petitive in the perfection of designs, by the different literary organizations now exisiting in the school, attention is directed to the improvement in the lecture courses presented. The first annual convention of the Agonian Fraternity, as such, was held at Oneonta in October of 1892. The Fraternity then consisted of' three Chapters. Since that time the yearly convention has met with the different Chapters in the month of October. The Chapters of the Fraternity are now seven in number: The 1. Alpha, at Genesog 2. Beta, at Oneonta, 3. Gamma, at Fredoniag 4. Delta, at Plattsburgg 5. Epsilon, at Mansfieldg 6. Zeta, at.Brockport, 7. Eta, at jamaica. , , 29