[AlphaSigOU]

THE OLD GAL
by Alfred Dewey Follett

I almost hope that you will be shocked when I tell you that the first time I heard the expression "The Old Gal" was 41 years ago, in October of 1872. I like those words because they are feminine. I am a little weak on the women myself. Femininity is the symbol, the concrete expression of love and creation, and creation that is of any value comes only through love. The action of every man requiring energy and endurance comes from love of somebody or something, and the highest of all love is that of the mother because it is the most unselfish. The creation of the mother is what binds her to the child. It is undoubtedly that you love not those who do things for you, but those for whom you do things. Love is begotten of unselfish sacrifice, and you will never get into the proper attitude toward Alpha Sigma Phi until you learn the one great truth that it is not what you get out of it but what you put into it that makes it dear to you.

"The Old Gal" may at first blush seem to be a slang phrase. But slang is in a large degree the language of the heart. If I hear a man speak of his father as "father" I think he respects him, but when I hear him call his father "daddy", I know he loves him. Such terms are the spontaneous language of the heart, and as such "The Old Gal" expresses the affectionate attitude of every Sig to his fraternity. The most divine thing on this earth is unselfish love. It is the spark which connects us to the divine. This expression, "The Old Gal," means that the ideal of Alpha Sigma Phi is the unselfish love that a mother has for her offspring.

For a long time the Sigs of Marietta were orphans and without brothers or sisters. We were a little lonely, and we sincerely welcomed and took to our hearts the two men who came to us at Marietta and asked us to reconstruct and revivify Alpha Sigma Phi at Yale. I wish here to pay tribute to two brothers who are entitled to one. There are many good Sigs who have done good work, but Brother Musgrave and Brother Waterbury are the Peter and Paul of Alpha Sigma Phi. At Marietta from 1863 to 1907, Delta Chapter of Alpha Sigma Phi kept the faith for the fraternity. The flame having burned out at New Haven, the little torch way out there in Ohio burned brightly, and as a result this sturdy youngster had the miracle performed of re-entering the mother's womb and being re-born.

An old English bishop once said "Secrecy is the chastity of friendship." It is the white bridal veil, the veil that indicates maidenhood, virtue and purity. It is the wall of the home that shrouds the intimacies of the family. It is the same relation that the secrecy of the fraternity bears to its members. It is the emblem of chastity, and it therefore should be kept pure and unsullied.

From the time I entered Alpha Sigma Phi the Sig prayer meeting has existed. I believe there are young Sigs here present who have heard the old men tell how much they owed to the old Sig prayer meetings. These were not occasions for love fests nor for third degree sessions but they were occasions when a brother who had committed an offense, or was in danger of committing an error, was talked to and advised by his fraternity brothers. Any offense committed by a brother degrades him and degrades his fraternity. I think I have never heard such appeals to the better side of man as I have heard in those "prayer meetings." I trust we may have throughout the length and breadth of the land where Sig chapters are located, a "Sig prayer meeting" when it is necessary. They are honest attempts to guide the footsteps of a brother back into the path from which he has strayed.

If I were a sculptor I would take a block of the whitest marble and carve it into the from of a beautiful woman. Her brow should be high to denote her intellect, and wide to show her calm serenity of spirit. Her ears should be small to show her refinement, her eyes deep-set and clear to show her penetration; her nostrils should be widely expanding to show her alertness to every condition about her; her lips should be full to show her love; her well-founded breasts should show the power to sustain; her broad hips should show her power of reproduction; and her arms outstretched in an attitude of friendliness and welcome.

I would place that carved figure under a white canopy, the emblem of chastity and secrecy, and upon the pedestal of the temple thus created I would carve the letters Alpha Sigma Phi. Into this temple I would enter and raise my arms in token of praise and adoration, and before that statue I would bow my head in token of my willingness to receive her instruction, and I would bend my knee in token of my unswerving loyalty and undying fealty.

I trust that if not the marble statue, at least the letters Alpha Sigma Phi, standing for the fraternity, will be a constant inspiration to you after you are out of and away from college. And as you come to address younger Sigs, as I am doing tonight, you will be glad and proud to say that to "The Old Gal" you owe in a great measure the good that you have been able to do.

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Alfred Dewey Follett (Delta (Marietta College) 1872) was the first Grand Senior President of Alpha Sigma Phi after its revival in 1907. He served from 1907 to 1909. He was elected Grand Marshal at the 1913 Convention in New York City, where he delivered the above address. Brother Follett was a member of the United States Congress, as well as an outstanding lawyer, banker and executive in Marietta, Ohio. He has since entered Omega Chapter, but his words serve as inspiration to every member of Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity.