THE DAILY NEBRASKAN
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Wednesday, February 21, 1940
Topping NU's pep cornstalk
are Tassels, red-white type
During the celebration of Uni
versity Night in 1924, the curtain
rose upon a skit introducing a new
organization on the campus. It
was in this skit that the Tassels, a
new honorary pep club made its
debut.
Mortar Board, having felt the
need of an organization to pro
mote enthusiasm among the
women on the campus, gave its
sponsorship to this new group.
They chose the name Tassels be
cause it corresponded to the men's
pep club, the Corncobs.
One girl from each sorority and
an equal number of non-sorority
girls comprised the forty charter
members of the pep group. Due to
the fact that is was so late in the
year, they could do little more
than acquaint the campus with
their existence.
From a little acorn ...
From that group, back in '24,
the Tassels have grown to be one
of the biggest women's activities
on the campus. Today, you see
them at all athletic events adding
color to the proceedings. Their
thorough selling methods on year
books and organization tickets
leave them strong financially with
more than $300 in their treasury.
The purpose of Tassels now con
notes promotion of all school
projects as well as athletic events.
The moral support of their fa-
Llncoln Journal and Star.
VICE-PREXY HENN.
miliar red and white uniforms Is
made material through definite
activity. Any worthwhile activity
sponsored by the school receives
the full support of each member.
Case history
The fall of 1924 found the Tas
sels eager to carry out the purpose
of the club. Their aim, as stated
In the constitution, was to act in
a non-political way, for the promo
tion of school spirit and to give
the girls an active interest in the
presentation of athleic events.
Stunts, given in conjunction with
the Corncobs were given at the
games. During that year, they
also presented skits at the Corn
husker Women's party and Uni
versity Night.
The next school year was
marked with the inauguration of
a faculty sponsor. This year, no
stunts were presented at the
games, but the Tassels took an ac
tive interest in basketball games,
and ushered at each game in the
new Coliseum.
On their own
At this time the officers con
sisted of a Mortar Board chair
man, chairman, vice chairman, re
cording secretary, financial secre
tary and reporter. In 1926-27
came the realization that the Tas
sels were ready to function as an
independent organization. Mortar
Board, remaining ready to aid and
advise when necessary, withdrew
from active participation and al
lowed the Tassels to progress on
their own Initiative. The officers
then became president, vice presi
dent, secretary, treasurer and noti
fication chairman.
Officers of this year's organiza
tion are Selma Hill, president;
Mary Jo Henn, vice president;
Margaret Krause, secretary; Ma
rion Miller, treasurer; Ann Hu
Rtcad, notification chairman, and
Beth Howley.
Funds for the organization are
raised by selling subscriptions to
student publications and tickets to
school functions. First prize for
selling the most yearbooks gen
erally goes to the Tassels. They
also have been high saleswomen
for subscriptions to the Daily and
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Awgwan. Now the Tassels are
called upon to take complete
charge of many such sales cam
paigns including that of the Uni
versity Players.
Funds for migrations
These funds are used to help de
fray expenses on the annual foot
ball migration. The Tassels at
tended the 1927 Kansas State
game at Manhattan. Since then,
each year they have alternated be
tween the Kansas State game and
the Kansas University game at
Lawrence.
For some time It had been the
ambition of their organization to
become affiliated with a national
pep group. Investigation disclosed
that little could be accomplished
by joining existing national or
ganizations. The Tassels had al
ready incorporated many more ac
tivities than sponsored by these
groups. It was during the school
year 1931-32 that the Tassels con
ceived the idea of creating a new
national pep organization. Invita
tions were sent to the schools in
the Big Six, asking them to send
delegates, if interested, to a con
vention in Lincoln in order to form
ulate plans for a national club.
National organization
Kansas University and. Kansas
State responded by sending repre
sentatives to this first convention.
Since that time, other conventions
have been held, at Manhattan,
Lawrence and Lincoln. The result
of these conventions is Phi Sigma
Chi, a national pep organization,
started by the Tassels, which is of
vital interest to the pep groups
concerned.
The Tassels sales this year have
centered around the University
Players tickets and the yearbooks.
They have exclusive rights to the
sale of the players tickets and con
ducted a highly successful drive.
However, their most outstanding
sales success has been that of the
Cornhuskers. It is estimated that
they will have sold 800 annuals by
teh end of the sales drive.
Hove many services
The Tassels list among their
many services: 1. The making of
dinner speeches at the organized
houses before rallies; 2, Participat
ing with the Corncobs in the pre
sentations of the rallies; 3. Attend-
PRESIDENT HILL.
ance and cheering at all football
and basektball games en masse; 4.
Issuing service scrolls to the
senior football and basketball
team members; 5. Ushering at all
university convocations and pro
grams; 6. N balloon sales at the
Homecoming game; 7. Co-sponsorship
of the Homecoming party.
The Tassels are now considering
a change in uniform. For the last
few years they have been wearing
the familiar white skirts and red
sweaters. However, the skirts be
come dirty so easily and cause so
much extra work to keep them in
shape that the members feel it
would be easier to wear red cordu
roy skirts with red sweaters trim
med in white. The white hats with
the red tassels on top would re
main the same.
Complete representation
Now the 52 members of Tas
sels includes two members from
each sorority, seven representa
tives from the Ag campus, six
from Raymond and Love Halls,
one from each organized co-operative
house, three barbs at large
and three representatives from
barb AWS. Paralleling the increase
in number of members is the ex
pansion of the scope of their ac
tivities. As their field broadens, the keen
enjoyment and sincere feeling ex
perienced by each mcmbsr of the
Tassels is deepened.
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Yell king,
pep queen
reignsupreme
Cobs, Tassels, victory
bell, revealing of
'monarch' all play part
One of the most colorful cere
monies on the campus during the
year is that which crowns the
pep queen and yell king of the
University of Nebraska.
The reign of Betty O'Shea as
pep queen of the university be
gan at the Corn Cob-Tassel Home
coming party last fall when stu
dents of the university In the role
of the loyal subjects in the king
dom of pep elected her to succeed
Janet Harris, '38-'39 queen, and
to rule jointly with Roy Proffitt,
yell king.
The new queen is picked an
nually from the ranks of sopho
more and junior coeds at the
kingdom's official ball, the Corn
Cob-Tassel party, this year a vic
tory dance.
Presentation of the new queen
was made when members of Corn
Cobs wheeled a huge ear of corn
into the ballroom. Ralph Reed,
president of the Cobs, pulled back
the shucks on the ear and the
new queen stood revealed. She
stepped out of the ear and was
presented with a crown of flowers
and the royal cape of Miss Harris,
the outgoing queen.
Candidates for the positions are
nominated by members of the
Corn Cobs and Tassels. Students
attending the ball cast their votes
for the various candidates and the
girl receiving the majority of the
ballots become the new queen.
This fall, a few minutes before
the biggest home football game of
the year while teams are getting
last minute instructions, Chancel
lor Boucher and Governor Cochran
will present flowers to the new
pep queen and a megaphone to
the new yell king. The colorful
ceremony will mark the contin
uation of a tradition set before
the Minnesota game last year,
The presentation, planned and
presented by the Corn Cobs and
Tassels, features the first appear
ance of the Corn Cobs pride and
joy, the ancient victory bell which
used to be atop Nebraska hall,
This bell, mounted on a chassis,
is pulled onto the field by the
Cobs with the queen and king
on each side of it. All of the cere
mony centers around that bell with
the Corn Cobs and Tassels acting
as a guard of honor.
It is this same bell that each
night before a game is drug
up and down fraternity row call'
ing all students to the stadium for
a giant rally or to the mall for
a huge bonfire, rally. The next
day, if the Cornhusker team is
victorious, that same bell, hooked
behind a tractor is towed up and
down Lincoln'8 main streets ac
claiming and announcing the win
with its victory ling.
Envoys of the king and queen,
found in the Tassels and Corn
Cobs, act as crier the night be
fore the rally, touring the organ
ized houses and announcing the
place and time of the rally. They
distribute red "N" feathers and
encourage attendance at both the
rally and game.
At all football and basketball
cames. vou see them in attendance
en masse. They are the nucleus
of the yell group, introducing new
songs and yells and helping yell
leaders with those that have be-
cnmfl traditions on the campus
Their red and white uniforms add
color to the proceedings.
The yell king with his all white
uniform and squirrel tail nat, me
pep queen in her red and white
uniform, carta and crown of
flowers, the Corn Cobs and Tas
scls in their uniforms, all add to
the color and pagentry of um
versity life. There is truly a king
dom of pep.
Under one Colonel, 16 Cobs
all bear 'Nebraska' labels
By Chris Petersen Harris, Edwin Wittenberg, Rich-
The most familiar sweater on ar(1 Hiatt.
the campus is that of the Corn
Cob with its red background for
the pep emblem on the front and
the huge white letters on the back
spelling "Nebraska."
Behind that sweater is an or
ganization performing most of the
major services on the campus. Its
members are the ones who sell
you your Cornhusker, your DAILY
subscription, sponsor the big foot
ball rallies, publish the basketball
bulletin. In fact, name almost any
service on the campus and you
will find that the Corn Cobs have
a finger In it in some manner.
A major activity on the campus,
it has long been a political plum,
with members made up entirely
of activity men who needed the
name of the club to help them
make the "blessed thirteen" in the
spring.
Comes reorganization
However, recent organization
has made it a working organiza
tion, one which has finally out
distanced the long arm of politics.
Now its members are the work
ers, the 16 men out of anywhere
from 50 to 100 pledges who have
proven themselves most worthy
of membership in the club.
The club, established in 1921
by three chccerleaders for the pur
pose of forwarding pep at ath
letic games, has grown from that
nucleus to a powerful campus or
ganization and a national pen
group, Pi Epsilon Pi.
Under the old organization,
members were selected on a basis
similar to Tassels. Two men were
picked from each house and
barbs selected at the discretion
of the members for active partici
pation in the club. Under that
system, the members of the club
did little work for they did not
need work hours in order to be
eligible for the status of active
and initiation. Their political back
ing was strong enough to put
them in.
Comes new constitution
In 1937, with the adoption of a
new constitution, eligibility for
membership was put entirely on
the work basis. Now, the 10 men
who are chosen to carry on the
work of the club as actives each
year, gain that position by vir
tue of being the 16 pledges with
the largest number of working
hours charged to them.
Clubs purpose
The purpose of the club as set
forth in that constitution was "To
cooperate with the Student Coun
cil and the Innocents Society, in
fostering and engendering student
pep and enthusiasm. This organ
ization would cooperate with the
above mentioned bodies whenever
called upon by them, and that this
group shall assume the initiative in
creating student spirit, whenever
called upon by the needs of the
University.
The new constitution also stip
ulated that the officers of the club
should be hold-over members and
that any man, either officer or ac
tive or pledge must conform with
the rules of the men's point sys
tem. The officers of the club this year
are Ralph Reed, president; Ed
Rousck, vice president; Bob Miller,
treasurer; and George Cameron,
secretary. Other members serve as
committee heads to guide and help
the work of the pledges.
Adviser Frankforter
Adviser to the Corncobs is Colo
nel C. J. Frankfurter, who's chem
ical Ingenlousity is largely respon
sible for the big Cob fireworks dis
play at rallies. Colonel Frank
forter took the position of adviser
when the organization was first
formed. He serves purely in an ad
visory capacity and gives aid on
all question of correlation of the
Cobs with university needs and
regulations. He is consulted on all
Important business of the organ
ization. '39-'40 Membership
Members are elected into the or
ganization each spring by the ac
tives from the ranks of the
pledges. The members this year
arc: Wendell Bayse, Gerald Spahn,
Keith Gilmore, Marving Ross,
.Marving Kruse, Robert Hunt, Ken
neth Miller, Bob Simmons, Jules
Busker, Carl Hansburger, Robert
O'Connell, Leo Cooksley, Norman
Non-profit group
Corncobs is a non-profit organ
ization. All money made by the
club is used to further its services
and for the benefit of the univer
sity. Cob funds are handled by the
university student activities office.
The first big sen-ice of the year
that the Cobs perfonn is the plan
ning and conducting of rallies. It
is thru their efforts that bonfires
are built, arrangements are made
for speakers and programs are af
forded during the rally. In charge
of that committee this year was
Norman Harris. They plan the
rally times, provide fireworks, and
are in charge of the pre-rally pa
rades. Most important too, Is the print
ing distribution of bulletins at the
basketball games. The bulletins
which are distributed to those at
tending free, are paid for by ad
vertising from Lincoln merchants.
Corncobs sollcite this advertising
and pay for the printing out of
that money. Bulletins contain com
plete information for each game.
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Lincoln Journal md Star.
ADVISOR FRANKFORTER.
Dosek and Bayse headed that com
mittee. Has many services
Listed among the club's other
services are:
1. Sales of yearbooks. DAILY
subscriptions and Awgwan sub
scriptions. 2. Checking of identification
cards and maintaining of order at
matinee dances.
3. The conducting of novelty
sales at football games.
4. Mass attendance at football
and basketball games.
5. Yearly migration in support
of the team at either Lawrence or
Manhattan, Kansas.
6. Conducting of speaking tours
in conjunction with the Tassels be
fore rallies.
7. Ushering at university convo
cations and rallies.
8. Sponsorship of the annual
Homecoming banquet for universi
ty alumni.
9. Sponsorship of the Homecom-"
ing ball in conjunction with the
Tassels.
10. Conducting of special pro
grams such as presentation of the
pep queen and yell king at football
games.
12. Exclusive sales of tickets to
the Junior-Senior prom.
They also perform other minor
services as the occasion arises.
Lots of work
Work among the pledges takes
a good deal of time. A man who
has pledged Corncobs and wishes
to become an active has little
chance unless he ha3 at least 133
or 140 working hours. Each hour
given to a pledge means that he
has put in an hours work or the
equal of that time in quantity of
work.
The Cobs are proud of the fact
that they have established a na
tional pep organization. Pi Epsilon
Ti. It was through a great deal
of work and planning on their
part that the national pep club,
once a dream, became a reality.
Their organization parallels that
of the Tassels in importance for it
now contains a half a dozen chap
ters in uiuversitics over the coun
try. Corncobs Is now an organization
that the university can be proud
of.
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