12
U niversity op O regon M onthly
T h e Influence of Fraternities in . the American
College
The presence of fraternities in the American, college is thought
by some to be beneficial, by others their presence, is regretted. But
good, bad or indifferent, they are here, nearly Ì700 chapters strong,
and any further active opposition seems useless.
Sketching briefly the history òf the .'fraternity movement, we
find that secret societies have passed two ^periods of growth and
are now in their third. The first was that of ¿active antagonism,
and wherever possible, prohibition.
At the College of William and M^ry December 5, *1776, five
students, organized the first Greek-letter fraternity in America.
Non-collegians were occasionally admitted to membership; the aim
of the society was social and, incidentally, literary. The Chi Delta
Theta, a senior society, founded at Yale in 1821, was a select literary
society. These must be considered preparatory to the. pipdern fra
ternity movement. In 1832 the Phi Beta Kappa was forced by
Harvard’s president to resign its secret features, but other secret
societies were formed^ constitutions adopted and also their traditions
which have both governed and hampered. Many of the fraternities
were founded during the stormy period when anti-MaSonic feeling
was at its height and any secret society was regarded with aversion.
Colleges, therefore, strictly forbade’,^secret organizations and all
Jcnown members were expelled or lost their college honors,
Some years later the faculties began to look /upon them as
something that must be endured, although with sòme opposition,
as they were believed to be the cause of destruction of the debating
societies, During this period fraternities, which had formerly held
secret meetings in the rooms of individual members, now occupied
rented rooms and organizations were gradually growing stronger.
\ About twenty-five years agó the fraternities entered upon their
third and present period of growth—in which they have beccane
thoroughly rooted in University life. They have won, recognition,
are influential in college, while relations between thè undergraduates
and the alumni have grown so close as to make the fraternity an
important bond between college and its graduates,
Greek-letter fraternities are now found in all important colleges