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VOL. XXXVI
MERCER UNIVERSITY, MACON, GA., SEPTEMBER 23,1955- £
No. 1
Fire Sweeps ADPi Suite
New Frosh Reach
High Total of 425
By Tine Moore
Mercer Univereity we* stormed lest week by approximately 426
new studente, an overwhelming crowd, exceeding even the high number
anticipated.
A six-day program of orientation, starting Friday, September 16,
and running through Wednesday, September 21, kept the new students
on their toes during their first week at Mercer.
The first day of orientation began
with a general meeting, later meet
ings being held for men and women
students separately. The day was
climaxed by an evening “Treasure
Hunt”.
The high point of Saturday’s acti
vities was the President’s reception
for new students.
Sunday began appropriately with
church services. Later the Baptist
Student Union entertained the
Freshmen and transfers with a
tea and informal receptions were
held at the churches.
Monday gave the new Mercer
Frosh their first taste of the con
fusing process of registration. The
lust two days were spent in group
meetings.
The large amount of new Mer-
cerians is felt particularly in regard
to housing. Bartlett and Findlay
Houses and a third house, the
Dowell House, have been opened to
provide rooms for the overflow
from Porter Hall and many boys
have been forced by shortage of
spare to find off-campus quarters.
Though the Sophomores have not
made definite plans for Rat Week
yet, they expect to get together
soon to decide upon an appropriate
fate for the “Rats”. Activities dur
ing “Ratting” will feature, among
other events, the traditional Fresh
man beauty contest and cake race.
Rat Court will be held on Tuesday,
October 11.
Ten Mercerians
Pass Bar Exam
Ten students and graduates of
the Walter F. George School of
Law passed the Georgia bar exam
ination which was given recently.
This number composed two-thirds
of the Mercerians taking the test.
Those who passed are Charles M.
Cork Jr., S. M. Culpepper, Bruce
D. Dubberly Jr., Gresham H. Har
rison, Eugene L. Heinrich, Charles
W. Hill, Earl Jones, R. Lawton Le-
Sueur Jr., Thomas D. Maurice, and
Joe R. Young Jr.
CLUSTER STAFF
MEETS MONDAY
The first meeting of the Clust
er staff will be held Monday,
September 26, at 3:45 P.M. in
the Cluster office in the Co-op.
Everyone interested in work
ing on the Cluster staff should
be present at this meeting. There
are still a number of staff posi
tions open.
THE EDITOR
FROSH COME FIRST
Yates Announces Annual
Class Picture Schedule
Bill Meriwether, 1956 Cauldron photographer, will begin shooting
individual class pictures for this year’s annual next Wednesday.
Mr. Meriwether will set up his studio—as usual—in the Co-op.
On Wednesday, Thursday, and
Friday of next week freshmen will
have their pictures made.
The announcement came this
week from Nancy Yates, editor of
the 1966 Cauldron. She emphasized
that students must appear in the
co-op during the days designated.
Mr. Meriwether will not make re
turn trips for make-up shots this
y® ar -
Deadline for clas pictures is earl
ier this year than in years past,
she said. This necessitates a more
rigid schedule.
Sophomore and junior class pic
tures will be made October 8-6.
Join Church Day
Set This Sunday
August M has been designated
M the asnatl “Join the Church
Sunday” by the Mercer Baptist
Stndent Union. Tha observation of
this Sunday is put at an endeavor
by the BA.U. to urge all atadanta
to move their chureh maad»erahlpe
to tho chorehee at Mason.
Seniors at fiercer will go to
Meriwether’s downtown studio on
Cotton Avenue to have their pic
tures made. Mr. Meriwether said
they must come on Oct. 6, 7, or 8th.
Proofs will be returned on Oct.
1.3. Students may select their proofs
in the co-op on Oct. 14 and Oct 16.
Notification of what to wear will
be given students by way of mimeo
graphed announcements in the mail
and oral announcements in chapel.
Mr. Meriwether will begin each
day at 8 a.m.
The Cauldron editor also an
nounced that the major staff mem
bers held their first fall quarter
staff meeting Wednesday.
Freshmen and other new students
who desire to work on the annual
may contact the editor of the sec
tion which most interests them.
Section editors are Elisabeth
Doss, classes; France# Wiatt, ad
ministration; C. C. Lynch Jr., acti
vities; Maxine Hunt and Mary Lou
Wood, sports; Alice Tate, fraterni
ties and military.
Janit McLaughlin is a co-editor,
and Beterly Irvin is copy editor.
AT CONVOCATION
GSCW Dean
Is Speaker
Dr. Donald Hutcnins Mac.Mahon,
dean of instruction and professor if
English at Georgia State College
for Women, will be principal speak
er at Mercer’s 123rd convocation to
be held in Willingham Chapel Wed
nesday, September 28. This event,
held annually, officially opens
chapel activities for the year.
Dean MacMahon graduated from
the University of Michigan and
holds degrees from Harvard and
Cornell Universities. His profes
sional experience includes positions
at the University of Michigan,
Temple University, University of
Wichita, Carleton College, and
State College of Washington. He
has been at G.S.C.W. since 1946.
A singspiration has been plan
ned for the first student chapel
program on September 27. Accord
ing to Tolly Williamson, vice-presi
dent of S.G.A., this is the first
program of this type to be present
ed at Mercer in the past three
years.
Elections Set
For October 11
Buddy Moore, freshman adviser,
has announced that freshman elec
tions have been set for October
11. At this time a president, vice-
president, and secretary will be
chosen. Nominations will be made
two weeks prior to the election on
September 27. In case of the need
for a run-off, it will take place on
October 18.
A general student election to fill
the necessary offices vacated by
students not returning will take
place at the same time, according
tc S.G.A. President, Sid Johnson.
Gerald Palmer Rescues
6 Girls in Phi Mu Suite
By Elliott Brack and Zelma Yarbrough
Fire from an undetermined source swept through the
second floor of the main building of Mary Erin Porter Hall
yesterday afternoon at 2 p.m. and did considerable damage
to the Alpha Delta Pi Sorority suite. No one could be reached
to give an official estimate of the extent of the damage.
Besides the ADPi suite proper.
rooms 209, 210, 212, and 213 were
severly damaged by fire, smoke and
water. Other rooms in the suite
were gutted with smoke, but the
fire did not touch them. The Phi
Mu suite, located on the third
floor, was riddled by smoke, but
the fire was Confined to the second
floor und did not reach this level.
Six girls were trapped on the
third floor and a courageous Mer-
ccrian led them to safety. Gerald
Palmer, junior from Habersnam,
Georgia, rescued Frances Wiatt,
Jan Harvey, Paula Smith, Nancy
Bruner, Barbara Fisher and Shirley
Whelchel. The exploring junior had
to get past the flaming second
floor before he cooly and calmly
evacuated the hysterical girls.
Ann Kinnett, president of the
Women’s Student Government, was
in the building when the fire start
ed and summoned the Macon Fire
Department. As soon as the fire
trucks arrived, students from most,
if not all, of the classrooms on the
campus, flocked to College Street
to watch the blaze.
Mercer President George B. Con
nell was unable to be reached but
unofficial reports were that all the
furniture in the building was cover
ed by insurance.
Especially upset by the fire the
members were of Alpha Delta Pi.
The girls had only recently com
pleted the rennovation of their
suite, Upon inspection of the suite,
most of the furniture was either
destroyed or charred beyond repair.
Also ruined were the walls and
From The Editors
Students Praised
On Fire Conduct
During all the excitement and fear of the fire that ram-
shackled the Alpha Delta Pi suite, the conduct of the students
was beyond reproach. All the boys and girls stayed on the
Administration Building side of College Street and did not
mill around the fire trucks, hoses and other equipment that
are essential to putting out a fire.
Had pandemonium broken out while the fire fighters
were battling the blaze, the damage would have certainly
been much more. But this was not the case.
Also to be commended was the rescue of the girls on the
third floor by junior Gerald Palmer. Palmer raced to the
third floor through flames and smoke and guided six upset
co-eds to safety. And after the fire was under control, the
girls that had been rescued, as well as all other girls involved,
were taking the happenings as calmly as could be expected.
The Cluster insists that if any organization on campus
has any valuable property, the group should insure it against
any possible fire, as well as theft. It has been reported un
officially that some of the damage was covered, and certainly
everyone hopes that all of the property was insured. But,
everyone else take heed. If not insured, do it today.
rugs. The ceiling of the suite’s lob
by was charred and jagged by the
belching flames. On-lookers spotted
flames leaping from the second
floor only once. After that, the fire
department subdued the blaze
swiftly and calmly.
Water was running in the main
lobby of MEP and dripping down
from both the second and third
floors after the blaze. The hallway
on the second floor was a maze of
broken glass, water-logged plaster
and more water. It seemed impos
sible that anything from the sever
ely damaged rooms could have been
saved. They were all in complete
disorder by the catastrophe. How
ever, other rooms on the floor had
very little damage done to them,
and that was only the water that
stood on the floor. None of the
remaining rooms had any fire loss
es.
But through all the disorder dur
ing and after the fire, one thing
stood out to this reporter. Firemen
hacked their way through the suite
windows of ADPi, but after the
fire, one could clearly see the im
maculate Alpha Delta Pi sign,
which symbolized the spirit of
girls that already have started
plans to repair the damage.
Hasty, Murphy
Head Law Day
Earl Murphy and Fred Hasty
have been named as co-chairmen in
charge of Law Day preparations.
The naming of these two is in
keeping with the tradition of giv
ing students the responsibility of
planning and carrying out the acti
vities for the day.
This year the group will have
Senator Walter F. George as their
honor guest. Speakers will include
SENATOR GEORGE
Allen Dulles, chief of the Central
Intellegence Agency, and brother of
John Foster Dulles, and E. Smythe
Gambrell, president of the Ameri
can Bar Association, and prominen’
Atlanta lawyer.
Co-chairman Hasty stated that
Law Day will be October 28 this
year. Among the activities for hun
dreds of returning alumni and visi
tors are a barbecue and a dance. He
stated also that committee chair
men will be named later.
Xu
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