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Show Our QTg From Sod to Hod By Hal Zogg Not too far down the list from: "Whatever became of Cannon Can-non Parkinson?" is the burning question: "I wonder how that big block 'U' ever got dug into the mountain?" Well we have an Ail-American tackle from the University of Michigan to thank for that 'U Seems like Joe Maddock, the University of Utah's first exclusive athletic and physical education specialist, brought a little more than field moxie with him when he came west. He had the hard right arm of a getter-of-things-done. On Arbor Day of 1905, Mad-dock Mad-dock decided there were jobs other than digging holes and planting saplings around the then pretty small campus. How about some instant lawn on both sides of his cinder track? Pretty and easier on his not-so-thin-clad feet! Sc one week after the Hippodrome Hippo-drome opened in New York City, Joe Maddock had a work detail doing his own version of a musical musi-cal comedy in the big lot behind Mrs. Millers Bun Shop. Four husky sophomores were busily digging up sod for transplanting to needier zones. Two of these stalwarts are known only by (Continued on Page 12) Our U From Sod To Hod between the old Lime Kiln and the block U that had been laid out under the supervision of '07's Dick Hart. When work halted, a bright, if slightly less than perfect, per-fect, 'U' stood etched into the grey-green hillside! (Continued from page 9) their last names Miffin and Meyerhoffer. But the other two made more of an impression. They were Carl Scott and Richard Rich-ard Hart both destined to be the remembered names of the Class of 1907. While engaged in tearing up the sod, Scott stumbled upon a hitherto hidden' talent that of being able to spell out numerals in the sod. And being the adventuresome ad-venturesome type, he soon had written in the grass "07" later to be expanded in a broader broad-er commercial sense. The afternoon work detail became be-came a hotbed of discussion following fol-lowing Scott's sculpture. How to make the class designation more permanent? Surely the growing grass would soon fill the cavity denoting the class of 1907. Perhaps Per-haps if they were to fill the cutout cut-out numeral with lime from the nearby Jain, the grass would not grow! This sterling idea was offered of-fered by Dick Hart who immediately immedi-ately became second in command. com-mand. Then the whole idea caught fire! Carl Scott suggested that the back lot of Mrs. Miller's Bun Shop was perhaps not the most appropriate locale for the new numerals. Why not put them on the hill behind the campus where all could see. But then conjecture conjec-ture came to a close. Coach Bannock Ban-nock convinced the lads that the sod was sorely needed trackside and labor succeeded love of class for the balance of the April afternoon. The next day, fate and Dr. Merrill's tardiness to his own Physics II class took a hand in the scheme. When the alloted 15 minutes had passed and no doctor doc-tor the question of what to do came up. Again Scott jumped to his position of leadership with his "numerals-on-the-hill" idea. Now the entire Physics class responded and off they trooped to the mountain. Before that day was over, these hard-working sophomores had indeed carved a position on the hill. Forty-feet long, "07" stood out for all to see. The most obviously impressed group whose attention was captured cap-tured were those able freshmen at the U, The Class of 1908 and they responded! The very next day, the epic "07" was transformed into a just-as-epic "08". This calendar changing lasted for over a week until cooler heads and aching backs prevailed. It was wisely suggested that the two battling classes of diggers dig-gers join forces with the upper classmen, who had remained aloof, and do it up right. The gathering-together idea was that a giant U' be dug into the hillside hill-side to demonstrate loyalty to the whole school. So one bright spring morning found most of the student body long skirts, big hats and sore hands forming a bucket brigade |