An 11-year-old mystery was solved at Princeton University this month when a reporter for the student newspaper discovered the identity of "Henry Fairfax," a Valentine's Day phantom writer known for the provocative cards he has delivered to freshman women.

Every Valentine's Day for more than a decade, every female freshman has found a card, sometimes sexually explicit, slipped under her door signed by the mysterious Fairfax, who, according to Princeton legend, was once a senior rejected by a freshman woman at a school party.

No one knew which student or organization saw fit to deliver the cards, described as thin and inexpensive, until this year, when a reporter for The Daily Princetonian set out to solve the long-standing mystery.

Linda Ferguson, a Princeton junior and a photography chairman for the student daily, waited in a dormitory hallway for three hours on the eve of Valentine's Day before she photographed an unsuspecting Robert Dreyer, a senior, stuffing notes under students' doors at 5:30 a.m.

The photographer, who would later write a Princetonian story about the solved mystery, said that Dreyer, an acqaintance of hers, forced her to abandon her possessions after she took photos of him with the cards. She escaped with her camera, however, and went to a friend's room while Dreyer waited outside her own suite, she said.

Ferguson said she knew Dreyer was a member of the Charter Club, one of Princeton's 13 eating clubs. She said she was able to confirm with other club members that certain members of the club had sustained the long Fairfax tradition since its inception.

"A majority of the ones I saw were quite obscene," Ferguson said of the cards.

Expletives

"I know you ride horseback. You provide the spurs and whips, I'll provide the rest," read one card a freshman woman received, said Natasha Steptoe, the woman's roommate.

"Spread your legs and let me lick your [expletive deleted]. I'm hungry for love," read another card, the student paper reported.

The sexually explicit language offended many students, including Steptoe. "Mine wasn't as bad as some of the others, but most of the ones I saw were really pretty gross," she said.

But most of the club members interviewed said they thought that only a small fraction of the thousand cards sent this year were so descriptive.

"I like to think of this as a caring thing to do rather than a nasty, malicious act. Who would want to go around offending freshmen?" said club member James Henderson, a senior.

The Charter Club, comprised of 270 men and women, has declined to make an official comment, but club members have said they are unhappy that their club's long-standing prank has been exposed.

Club member Jeff Feinwill, a junior, said it was "very disappointing and unfortunate" that students now know Fairfax's identity.

Freshman Jennifer A. Shaw said she thought the cards were "mostly clean and humorous. Many of us feel that it was a shame the tradition was exposed."

According to the legend, Henry Fairfax forgot the name of the woman who rejected him, but remembered that she was a freshman. Hoping to find the right woman, the story runs, he sent Valentine's cards to every female freshman at Princeton professing his true love.

Only a Few Fairfaxes

Only a small number of Charter Club members were involved in the Fairfax ploy, members said.

Club member Henderson said he had no knowledge of the club's involvement until after the prank was exposed. "It was only a small group within the club, maybe 5 or 6 members, that were involved," he said.

The club's presidents pass down the tradition from year to year, and they personally select the group of members who write and deliver the Fairfax notes, Ferguson said. But Henderson said that "there was not necessarily any executive involvement."

In a relatively new addition to the annual prank, the Charter Club in recent years has sent cards not only to female freshmen, but also to males.

The Charter Club was one of the first of Princeton's eating clubs to admit women, in the early 1970s. It is a few of the club's female members who in recent years have sent cards to men, members said.

Sometimes the cards addressed to men are signed "Henrietta Fairfax." Others are signed with the names of various models and movie stars, Shaw said.

"Who'd complain if they got a card describing what Elle MacPherson wanted to do to their body," said one male freshman who requested anonymity, referring to the model made famous by the swimsuit issues of Sports Illustrated.

The fate of the Fairfax tradition is uncertain now that the secret is out, but it seems that many people, both inside and outside the Charter Club, would like the legendary Fairfax to continue to deliver cards.

No students have complained to the dean's office, according to Dean of Discipline Kathleen Degnan, and official disciplinary action seems unlikely.

"Although some of the cards were obviously in very bad taste, it still seems to be a sweet tradition," said freshman Michelle Ciaccio.