THE
HISTORY OF THE
PSI
PHI CHAPTER
From
The Deke Quarterly, most likely an edition published in
1911.
Through
an acquaintance with John A. Nutter, Kappa '66, Thomas B. Downs first
conceived the idea of bringing a chapter of DKE to DePauw, then Asbury
University, an idea which once originated became the guiding principle
of his college life and to which we owe our present existence as members
of DKE.
The
movement was inaugurated during the fall of 1865, Downs at that time
being a senior. He soon allied himself with Brothers Ing '68,
Hopewell '69, Elliott '68, Rector '68 and Robbins '68, and this small
group set forth to obtain a Deke charter. These men were not in
any sense derelicts or left-overs from the elections of other
fraternities, but were strong men in college life and men who could have
allied themselves to other fraternities had they so wished. In the
words of a previous chronicler (see story below), "They were all
men of sterling worth and force of character, men, too--bearded veterans
of the Civil War, some of them--who stood in the highest rank of
scholarship and who seemed to have been gifted with an unusual amount of
pluck and determination."
Correspondence
with the parent chapter was opened through Kappa, and by spring it was
known that a charter could not be granted until the next convention,
which was to be held at Ann Arbor, June 28, 1866. Meanwhile a
committee had been sent from Miami to investigate the petitioning body
and had recommended the granting of a charter. As graduation came
before this convention met, Downs was forced to leave school without his
aim having been fulfilled. This was a disappointment to the group
of petitioners and they left school in low spirits.
During
the summer, Downs received a letter stating that the petition had been
granted and next fall the petitioners returned in high spirits.
November 9 was set for the installation of the chapter and all seemed
well. Downs returned, but the delegation failed to appear from
Miami. Downs was resolved not to let the matter rest until all was
completed, so he waited a few days. When no one ever appeared,
Downs went to Miami to find out what was the matter. On November
16, 1866, he returned, proudly wearing a Deke pin on the reverse lapel
of his coat and accompanied by J.N. Wyman, Kappa '67. The delay
had been occasioned by the non-arrival of the charter which had been
sent on by Yale. Through the persuasion of Downs, the chapter at
Miami had discussed the matter and had initiated Downs Thursday night
and sent him and Wyman with a temporary charter to install the
chapter. The memorable meeting took place on that same evening,
November 16, at the dead of night in the mayor's office, which had been
borrowed for the occasion. Those initiated at this eventful
evening were Brothers Ing, Elliott, Stevens, and Hopewell; Brothers
Allen and Robbins being out of school at that time but re-entering
later.
The
first Deke pin seen in the chapel of Indiana Asbury was worn by Wyman
the next morning, and according to a history of the installation in our
archives, "There was twisting and gaping and staring among the
terrified Greeks that morning and they are still at it," to which a
later historian has appended, "And let us hope that they will keep
it up until man is a forgotten creature and the walls of our college are
dust." The names on our charter are: Brothers Rector, Allen,
Hopewell, Ing, Robbins, and Stevens, and the date of the charter is
October 9, 1866.
That
the men who laid the foundations of our chapter were men of remarkable
character is shown by the fact that they won propositions from the best
fraternities then here, even before there was any assurance that a
charter would be granted and that when they had the charter they
immediately began lifting men. A member of '72 writes: "When
I entered school in the fall of '68, the DKE's were the leading fraternity,
excelling especially in scholarship, oratory and closely knit relationship.
The chapter was then somewhat heterogeneous in that it compassed the
extremes, viz., some of the wealthiest and some of the poorest boys in
college; some of the most pious and an equal contingent of the erratic
(though very brilliant); some of the oldest in college and some of the
youngest. But through all and in all there was perfect
fraternity." Although this statement was written in the
earliest days of the chapter, it would be hard to write a better description
of the present chapter.
The
meetings were held in a room "which was not
ornamented in any way save by the color of the brick and mortar used in
laying up the walls, and by the charter, which, after some time, was
framed and hung up "only on state occasions, for fear of the
intrusion of the non-elect." This room was located on the
east side of the [courthouse] square. Later we moved to more
commodious quarters and gradually acquired some furniture only to have
all destroyed in the conflagration of 1874. For a time, DKE was a
"wanderer on the face of the town, now holding her mysterious
gatherings in the closely curtained den of some of her illustrious
devotees, afterward in the loft approached by an outside stairway,
occupied during respectable hours by 'his honor' the mayor and perfumed
by the incense which arose from the altars of Bacchus and at last with
gigantic efforts settled in the commodious and well-furnished hall on
the west side which we at present (1882) occupy." This was
the meeting place of the fraternity until we purchased our own
fraternity house, which was first occupied by us in the fall of 1906.
In
1884, a very complete history of the chapter was published from which
the quotations in this article are drawn. In this history, the
interests of the chapter at present are admirably expressed.
"We have endeavored to follow to the letter the policy marked out
and example set by our founders and early members. How well we
have succeeded in scholarship the prize and honor list to which we point
with pride will show; our list of alumni, who though young, are almost
universally successful, will show. In politics we have been
subject to the varied fortunes of combinations but we have certainly no
reason to complain. In progressive movements and
enterprises--college and class--DKE has ever been the acknowledged head
and leader. The jolly good fellowship characteristic of the fraternity
at large has no less been a special characteristic of our chapter, as
evinced by the enthusiasm of the alumni; and the strong union of stout
hearts, which though making no pretentious outward show, is plainly
perceptible in our meetings and relations with each other."
That
this quotation of 1884 was not mere assertion is shown by the fact that
when we turn to the active membership of that time, we find the names of
U.S. Senator A.J. Beveridge, Author David Graham Phillips, and President
Thomas Kane of Washington University. That Psi Phi has ever stood
for such principles is shown by the names of Ex-Lieutenant Governor
Hopewell '69 of Nebraska; C.G. Cloud '70, founder of the Cloud prize and
generous benefactor of the university; Professor P.S. Baker '74,
professor of chemistry at DePauw; Dr. J.B. DeMotte '74, member of the
Philosophical Society of Great Britain and well-known lecturer on
psychology; Judge J.F. McClure '79, chairman of the Indiana Railroad
Commission; S.W. Cantwell '81, speaker of the Indiana House; Sutemi
Chinda '81, Japanese Ambassador to Germany; Professor H.B. Longden '81,
professor of German at DePauw; C.F. Coffin '81, winner of the Interstate
Oratorical Contest and Manager of Indiana State Life; S.L. Brengle '83,
Brigadier General of the Salvation Army; F.T. McWhirter '84, president
of People's State Bank and Prohibition candidate for Governor in 1904;
R.G. Johnson '88, third Deke from DePauw to win Interstate Oratorical
contest, and Henry McCabe Dowling '93, second Deke on the Indiana State
Railroad Commission.
We
cannot at present append such titles to our own names, but if high
scholarship, Phi Beta Kappa, active participation in college affairs,
the lion's share of political offices, good fellowship, congenial
hearts, true ideals, and high ambitions, if these things are worth
anything, then the active chapter is still pursuing the path laid out by
her founders and will in the future add her quota of names to the above
list.
_____
A
Psi Phi Chapter History, written in 1884:
To
no one brother was the founding of our chapter perhaps due more than to
our deceased brother Thomas Benton Downs. With him the idea
originated, and soon became the supreme ambition of his college life, for the realization of which he worked with tireless energy and
unflagging zeal. He took hold of it with an iron grip that never
relaxed till he had gathered round him men of like ability and
resolution, enlisted in the same cause, and until they together had
taken the solemn vows of DKE.
His
disgust with the fraternities then existing here, expressed by his
characterization of them as "weak, pretentious concerns, with a
blank past and a cloudy future," was soon found to be reflected in
the minds of Brothers Ing, Hopewell, Elliot, Rector, and Robbins, and these
set themselves to establish something which "had some bedrock to
it--some history and prospect." They were all men of sterling
worth and force of character--men, too--bearded veterans of the Civil
War, some of them--who stood in the highest rank of scholarship, and who
seem to have been gifted with an unusual amount of pluck and
determination.
Correspondence
was opened with the Kappa chapter at Miami University, in Oxford, Ohio,
and with Omicron at the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, Michigan;
but it was uphill business and at first seemed utterly hopeless as the
policy of the fraternity seemed to be against further extension
westward, but the applicants never faltered. Several of them
received most tempting offers from the other fraternities as soon as it
was known that there was a possibility even of DKE coming to Indiana
Asbury College, but they stood by the enterprise, doubtful as it seemed.
Brother
Downs made at least on trip to Ann Arbor and did a vast amount of work
in the matter, and finally a committee was appointed by the parent
chapter to visit us. Its report was evidently favorable, as a
charter was granted October 9, 1866, and placed in the hands of the
Kappa chapter, a brother from which came over and established the
chapter, and partially led the founders into the workings of the
brotherhood.
The
chapter did not come out for some time, but when the pin did appear at
the chapel one morning near the beginning of the winter term, there was
consternation in the camp of the Greeks. Composed as it was, not
of the leavings of other fraternities, but of some of the best men in
college, it was respected and feared from the first, not only on account
of its individual membership, but because it had something solid under
and behind it, as all knew.
It
was not long till we had accessions of men such as Iglehart, Brownfield,
Lantz, Lacey, and others of the same cast--good men and students--some
of whom were "lifted" from the other fraternities.
From
the first it erected its standard high, and took in none who did not
bear the marks of genuine manhood, making no difference whether they
were rich or poor. A member of 1872 writes, "When I entered
Asbury in the fall of '68, the Dekes were the leading fraternity,
excelling especially in scholarship, oratory and closely knit personal
relationship. The chapter was then somewhat heterogeneous, in that
it compassed the extremes, viz some of the wealthiest and some of the
poorest boys in college; some of the most pious and an equal contingent
of the erratic (though very brilliant); some of the oldest men in
college and some of the youngest. But through all and in all,
there was perfect fraternity."
Our
own estimate of ourselves soon came to be received by the college
generally, and we had an excellent following from the very first, though
we had neither alumni or representation on the faculty.
The
meetings were held in a small room in the third story of a business
block on the east side of the courthouse square, which was not
ornamented in any way save by the color of the brick and mortar used in
laying up the walls, and by the charter, which, after some time, was
framed and hung up "only on state occasions, for fear of the
intrusion of the non-elect." They were, perforce, generally
"standing sessions," but 'twas not long till we moved to a
more commodious room, divided it by a partition or two, and began to
accumulate some furniture. Here we remained till the "great confab"
of '74 deprived us of a home and destroyed the costly and rare chapter
library which had been collected. After that, DKE was a wanderer
on the face of the town, now holding her mysterious gatherings in the
closely curtained den of some of her illustrious devotees, afterward in
the loft, approached by an outside stairway, occupied, during
respectable hours, by "his honor," the mayor, and perfumed by
the incense which arose from the alters of Bacchus, and at last, with
gigantic efforts, settled in the commodious and now well furnished hall
on the "west side," which we at present occupy.
Brother
Lantz '70, writing of our early life, says, "For some time the
chapter, then the youngest but one, and the furthest West, was rather
timid in its relations with the fraternity, of which we knew little more
than could be learned from a catalogue. Still we felt the
protection of the Yale chapter, which, we learned from casual visitors,
was much impressed in our favor. Occasionally a DKE from another
chapter would come to see us--Spann of the Upsilon chapter at Brown
University, one of the Fletchers of Indianapolis, and a number from the
Lambda chapter at Kenyon College. These all appeared to be well
pleased with what we were doing, and as we were able to give favorable
reports, we gradually began to feel at home. At first we did not
send delegates to the convention, as we could not afford the
expense. The first time we were represented was, I think, at
Providence, where I an under the impression that Brownfield and J.O.
Henderson were together. The noted names of the colleges in the
East, the flaming annuals, the many organizations and various customs
made us ashamed of little Asbury, where the college world appeared to be
in a state of primitive nature; but we were all loyal to the chapter,
and did our best to introduce eastern customs.
"The
college affairs were administered very much on old-fashioned,
circuit-rider principles. The catalogue was about the only publication
issued, and an effort seemed to be made to maintain this in the
meagerest possible condition. This system appeared perfectly
natural to the others, but caused much irritation to us.
"It
was the custom to have an oration and poem one evening at
commencement. From time immemorial, these position had been filled
by old graduates and others. Betas and Deltas, the same person
reappearing time and again. For the course of 1868, after our
party had beaten the combination formed against us, we chose the part of
poet and decided to nominate C.C. Puffer, a Beta Phi DKE from the class
of 1863, whom we knew through his DKE songs.
"The
election was held in the chapel, with Dr. Bowman presiding and the whole
college participating. The nomination, made in a brief speech by
Ing, was received by the opposite party with disgust, and even the good
Doctor felt called upon to enter a mild protest and express the hope
that there would be a fitter selection. But the will of DKE was
law, and Puffer got the place. He came on as our guest and
delivered a lively poem which brought down the house. The complete
success of our movement disarmed all criticism and let in the first ray
of eastern light that ever penetrated the shell of Asbury. The
policy of which this incident was one of the first results, was never
lost sight of by the chapter, and was pertinaciously pressed on all occasions
by our liveliest spirits.
"There
were no prizes of any kind. About the first established were those
offered in 1875 by Brother Cloud '70. The only honors of any kinds
were the parts of valedictorian and salutatorian at commencement, which
were assigned by the faculty to the first and second highest in general
standing in the class. When DKE swung, these parts hand been
distributed on the slates of Beta Theta Pi and Phi Gamma Delta with
great accuracy for some years to come. It had been understood from
earliest prep terms that a Phi Gam of '68 and a Beta of '70 were to be
valedictorians. In the first term of '68's senior year, Ing began
to be a formidable opponent of the Phi Gams' by the middle of the year
he was evidently gaining in position, and later Phi Gamma Delta went to
pieces and DKE came in an easy victor of the first honor she ever
contended for in Asbury.
"Of
the class of '69, I can not speak, further than to say that all our men
had good rank, none of them being in the lists of honors. In the
class of '70, DKE took both honors with the greatest ease--without even
serious effort. Our position in this class was exceptionally fine,
for it was understood that Brownfield was fourth man, besides a leader
in all college movements, and Norton delivered by far the best of all
the graduating speeches and was the best manipulator of college politics
I ever knew. While Brother Lantz was regarded by President Bowman
as the most brilliant man ever here, by far the best scholar of his
class, and the best thinker and purest writer of the college.
"About
the middle of the year '68 and '69, we found the college and the town
taking a lively interest in our secret work. Some of our movements
led to rumors which raised the highest kind of excitement. I think
we were credited with everything but an open league with the
devil. Raw heads and bloody bones, grisly cadavers, coffins, and
fire and brimstone were said to be our principal furniture.
"The
climax was reached when we got a coffin in fact, as we did 'begin to
have bloody thoughts.' The undertaker got frightened, our
movements were watched, and 'twas only by main strength that we got it
knocked together by a round-about way into our hall. Luckily we
escaped observation, but the wildest stories were in circulation.
The general impression was that the coffin--whether or not containing a
dead body was uncertain--had been secreted somewhere until an
opportunity came to dispose of it finally. One night half the
college and many of the town were out on the streets and we feared an
attack. We had every man in the hall, and all of us were armed and
assigned to posts. We had the advantage of position, as the
stairway was dark as pitch.
"Occasionally
some of the older men, who had been soldiers under Grant and Sherman,
went out to reconnoiter, and when the crowd became bold, Durham, who was
a giant, paraded about the door with good effect. The only assault
committed upon us was the flashing of a dark lantern up the steps.
'Browny' promptly fired a stone at it and the experiment was
abandoned. During the troubles, which lasted some time, a janitor
who lodged somewhere near the roof, was so frightened that he slept out
doors a night or two rather than risk his life.
"When
we felt that we were masters of the situation, we considered how we
could divert suspicion, and at the same time play a trick on the
crowd. For this purpose several of the wildest students, intimate
friends of some of us, were let into the conspiracy. An old
pig-trough was taken and put into a wagon in a prominent livery stable.
"Rumors
were started and strange movements made, all of which fanned the
excitement. In the evening we were moving actively about the
hall. As the night advanced, everything became unusually
still--not even the ordinary passers-by were on the streets. We
were puzzled, until I was lucky enough to find that an office about a
block away was packed with men. Another room nearby was afterward found
to be filled in the same way. Being sure now of the success of our
plans, we completed our arrangements, and at a pretty late hour, the
doors of the stable flew open and the wagon, containing half a dozen
students and the trough, lumbered noisily into the street.
Instantly there was a shrill whistle, and in five seconds the street was
swarming with men. The wagon was driven rapidly toward the
country, hotly followed by the hooting crowd, some of whom got sight of
it. The roads were as bad as they ever got, even at
Greencastle--mud and water a foot deep.
"The
procession, headed by the wagon, which as driven at such a pace as to
encourage the efforts of the crowd, splashed on. Gradually the
accidents produced by the darkness, the hurry and the mud thinned out
the pursuers so that the crew of the wagon thought they might venture to
trifle with their enthusiasm. A stop was made, and the casual inspection
of the object of so much curiosity and pans took place. The shout
of laughter, the muttered oaths, and the long march back to town may be
imagined. Next morning, the chapel contained the most solemn crowd
that had gathered there for many a day. The incident served every
purpose for which it was planned, and we were most carefully left alone
ever afterward. The most profound sensation was produced both in
the college and the town, and the laugh and the applause were all on the
side of DKE.
"The
two honorary members of the chapter were initiated during my first year
in college. I conducted the correspondence with both of
them. As there were very few DKEs in the state, so far as we knew,
we asked for their election in order to strengthen our position, and the
convention yielded to our request. We had both of them at
Greencastle several times."
Since
then, little worthy of narration has occurred to disturb the placidity
of our course. The institution has grown and developed so as to
render our chapter life much the same, I presume, as that of our
sisters. Our university long since reached a point where we ceased
to be ashamed of it, and has recently taken such strides of advancement
as to make us justly proud of it.
We
have had repeated, year after year, the usual exciting times and
adventures of "spiking" or "rushing;" have put
victim after victim through the trying ordeal of initiation, and shouted
with demoniacal glee as he writhed under the tortures; have contested
long and hotly on the political fields of the societies; have had the
usual number of banquets, picnics and "times;" have watched
from year to year with interest the struggles of our leaders for
commencement honors, and have rejoiced with them in usual victory, or
have borne our occasional defeats as philosophically as DKE can.
We
have ever endeavored to follow to the letter the policy marked out and example
set by our founders and early members. How well we have succeeded
in scholarship the prize and honor list to which we point with pride
will show--our list of alumni, who, though young, are almost universally
successful, will show. In politics, we have been subject to the
varied fortunes of combinations, but we have certainly no reason to
complain. In progressive movements and enterprises--college and
class--DKE has ever been the acknowledged head and leader. The
jolly good fellowship characteristic of the fraternity at large has no
less been a special characteristic of our chapter, as evinced by the
enthusiasm of the alumni and the "strong union of stout
hearts," which, though making no pretentious outward display, is
plainly perceptible in our meetings and relations with each other.
Such
has been the past. Of our hopes for the future we may not here
speak further than to say that we have hopes--bring ones,
too--that our "link in the gold chain" may ever be found honoring
its existence in the noble bond of our brotherhood. Our song shall
continue as it has ever been--
Let
Psi Phi forever be
True
to DKE,
Let
her armor keep its lustre
While
her gallant hearts shall cluster
Round
our DKE.
Photos
of the Chapter House at
620
Anderson Street prior to its 1925 dedication.
