Project Editor: Anastasia Smallcomb, UCARE, 2007

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The Adelphian Society.

As the close of the second term of the 1873
drew near, the spirit of faction in the
Palladian Society ran high. The issues
were mainly personal, but the contest
was bitter. Mr. Cassius M. Cropsey was
a leading candidate for the presidency,
and enlisted in his favor a majority of
the older and more advanced students,
but found little favor among the young-
er class, and those who were there for
the first term. The movement in his be-
half had many of the features of an aris-
tocracy of rank, giving to the older
members of the society a superiority of
influence and privilege that was galling
to the democratic spirits of later arrivals
at the University, and there was no lack
of leaders to shape the revolt against he-
reditary privilege in society management.

During the previous term some of the
members had grown indifferent, and al-
lowed fines and dues to remain unpaid
until they had been suspended from
membership. Now these were carefully
sought out, their views consulted and
their interests allied with one or the other
party, in many cases by the payment of
their arrearages on the books so as to en-
title them to vote, and reinstate them as
members. When the meeting for the
election of officers was called to order, the
Cropsey party resorted at once to the
only tactics that could save them from
complete overthrow, by an attempt to de-
clare the restoration of suspended mem-
bers by the mere payment of fines and
dues standing against them, and without
any action of the society, an illegal and
void proceedings; seeking thus to throw
out the recently reinstated members, of
whom they had secured few, or none,
and so reduce the ranks of the opposi-
tion to a minority. This action was not
wholly unexpected by the oppostion lead-
ers, and they stood firmly by the position
they had taken. About two hours were
spent in heated controversy, the confus-
ion increasing as the war of words went
on, until the president, unable to decide
who was entitled to the floor, and hope-
less of bringing order out of the pande-
monium that was reigning, declared the
meeting adjourned and left the room,
followed by the entire Cropsey party.

Thereupon the vice president took the
chair and called for order, entirely ignor-
ing the action of the president in adjourn-
ing the meeting, as there was no consti-
tutional authority for such action, [sic] The
withdrawal of the Cropsey party left the
meeting without a constitutional quorum,
and business could not proceed until two
or three lukewarm adherents to the op-
position, who cared less for the success
of their friends now than for future per-
sonal considerations, could be found and
brought in.

The bolting party assembled in an
office down town and took the prelimi-
nary steps for the organization of a new
society, which, upon its regular institu-
tion, was christened the "Adelphian"
with the motto "," a
good motto; and none who are convers-
ant with the circumstances which led to

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the organization of the society will doubt
the truth and applicability of the first
part; but whether the last part has found
its fulfillment in the somewhat slangy
but very significant saying that the so-
ciety has "gone up," history saith not.