Waterville, Maine - As you travel down Campus Drive toward the northeast corner of Colby's campus, near Bill Alfond Field, Seaverns Field, and The Baseball and Softball Complex, nestled in close to where the former Harold Alfond Athletics Center previously stood, you'll see a sculpture of a mule holding mighty the ground it stands on.  This is the story of how Colby became known as the Mules.  
 
The mule first assumed position as Colby's mascot in 1923, when Colby Echo editor Joseph Coburn Smith, Class of 1924, proposed in an editorial that the football team outgrow its accustomed "dark horse" label, so frequently upsetting predictions of local newspapers. Instead, Smith proposed Colby be symbolized a "white mule." Over the next few weeks, students connected with local farmers to borrow mules to bring to games, and the early signs of a mascot started to come to life. Over the years, live mules came and went, but the mule icon stubbornly stuck, doing what mules do best.
 
In the early 1940s, the College adopted a live mule named "Aristotle" from a local farm, and the students took to him fondly.  Later, in 1952, the father of student Maury Turney '56 gifted another live mule to the student body, this one coming to Colby after a brief stretch of stardom.   Louis the Mule was famous for playing a major role at New York City's Metropolitan Opera production of Verdi's Aida, a thrilling tale of love and heroics in ancient Egypt with hundreds of cast members—including Colby's new treasure. Upon arrival in Waterville, Louis kept true to form: the story goes that it took five men to get him off the car at the Waterville train station.
 
Louis' new family renamed him Ybloc, which is "Colby" spelled backwards and a reflection of the manner a mule might defend itself: backwards. Sandy Maisel, the Goldfarb Family Distinguished Professor of American Government, has been at Colby for more than 50 years and recalls seeing Ybloc at football games, where he was a huge hit. At his one and only Homecoming appearance, Ybloc bolted from the stadium at halftime. Later, it was discovered that Ybloc was a Sicilian donkey, not a mule! 

Maisel also recalls when his former student Mary Coe '82 created a mule costume for his children (ages 5 and 7 at the time) for their first Halloween on campus as a family in residence in Mary Low Hall. His son was fortunate enough to fill the tail end of the costume. Maisel said his son never recovered from his embarrassment of parading around at Halloween, games, and on sidelines as the butt-end of a mule.
 
Having a mule as the College's mascot was not readily accepted by the entire Colby community. In 1983, Echo co-editors Rick Manley '83 and Carla Thompson '85 proposed replacing the mule with a moose. They argued that the native moose was both "intelligent and self-procreating" and the mule was "stupid." However, a student-led "Save-the-Mule Federation" rose up to ward off the opposition. The debate continued for a decade, but was finally settled when the Class of 1943 gifted "Aristotle" (the mule statue) at their 50th^h Reunion in 1993. After a few last-ditch efforts to secure makeshift antlers onto the statue, most pro-moose-campaigners finally gave in and faded away.
 

While there are still some disbelievers in the significance of the mule as the College mascot, its underlying meaning speaks to many in the community. President David A. Greene said, "The mule to me is all about grit and determination and getting the job done. There might be more elegant or cuddly animals, but none will work as hard and fight through adversity like a mule. And mules show up every day ready to take on a challenge, no matter the weather or the mood of the moment. Our Colby teams, at their best, exhibit this spirit. No opponent should ever come to this campus without knowing they are going to be in the toughest fight they will face all season. When you take on a mule, you just might get kicked!"
 
In recent years, the live mule has been replaced with "Morty," a student in a mule costume. Morty attends Colby sporting events such as Homecoming, Colby-Bowdoin hockey games, and the Colby Carnival at Sugarloaf Mountain.
 
The next time you attend an athletic competition, keep an eye out for Morty the Mule stomping around the sidelines, or even in the middle of the field at half time running with the large Colby flag. Word is, Morty loves posing for pictures, cheering on Colby teams, and dancing in front of hundreds of spectators—all with the grit and determination that one might expect out of a mule.