It was published only once a year and was a supplement to the winter edition of The Scroll. The first issue was printed in 1894 and the last issue was released in the mid-1960s. Pledge manual The first three pledge manuals of the fraternity were written by Walter B. Palmer. The idea for the manual was conceived by J. Marshall Mayer (City College of New York, 1884), who at the time was the managing editor of the Scroll. The first pledge manual was printed in 1886 and contained only 56 pages. Since few copies were published and it is the first membership manual of any fraternity, it is regarded as one of the most rare and valuable books of its kind. The 4th–6th editions were authored by Arthur R. Priest. Much of the present-day material is derived from these editions. Role in the fraternity world Phi Delta Theta has played a major role in the fraternity movement. Chief among these was being a founding member of the North American Interfraternity Conference, which was established in 1910 (an organization that they subsequently left in 2002), and leading the initiative to ban alcohol from Phi Delt houses. Throughout their history, the fraternity became a pioneer in establishing traditions as well as having individual members shape the formation of similar women's organizations. The fraternity has also been the first fraternity to establish itself on over 25 campuses. Historical ties with fraternities Delta Kappa Epsilon, then Sigma Chi The Kappa chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon (DKE) was formed at Miami University after disagreement among Phi Delta Theta members over prohibiting alcohol. Several members left Phi Delta Theta and formed the Kappa chapter in 1852. In 1854, two years later, another disagreement in this group led to another break-away. A schism over who would become Poet for the Erodelphian Literary Society led to the founding of Sigma Chi in 1855. W. W. W. Fraternity, and Delta Tau Delta Two chapters of W. W. W. Fraternity (also known as Rainbow Fraternity) refused to join with other chapters of their fraternity in merging with Delta Tau Delta in 1885. Instead, the University of Texas chapter merged with the Phi Delt chapter there, and the Southwestern University chapter became a new chapter of Phi Delta Theta. Tau Kappa Epsilon Started as the Knights of Classic Lore, Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) attempted to become the re-activated Illinois Epsilon chapter