Belmont High School - Blueprint Yearbook (Belmont, MA)

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1923 THE CHAMELEON 1923 In the first place, Latin forms the background for modern European languages. A person who knows the language of Caesar can make rapid progress in the study of Roumanian, French, Spanish and Italian. This is true because these languages are derived from Latin. But these inflections are considerably easier than those of Latin. Therefore, a Latin student may master the grammar of any of these languages readily. In the cases of French, Spanish and Italian, especially in the latter, the vocabulary is astoundingly easy to one who has used the words of the Romans. Conse- quently, the student of Latin is invaluably reinforced when he turns his elforts to the study of the simpler and more comprehensible languages of today. Latin aids one in any study. Particularly valuable is it in the study of science. There have been occasions in mathematics and history where my knowledge of Latin has proved a distinct benefit. The terms : “vinculum,” “bisect” and “intercept,” familiar to a student of geometry and algebra, are Latin in origin. Equally familiar are these terms which are met in history, civics or law: “referenda,” “data,” “expost facto,” “aborigines” and others. In all higher branches of learning, Latin proves its immense worth. The college student, the musician, the clergyman, the doctor, the lawyer and all those who are accustomed to much mental activity, profit immeas- urably by it. Indeed, the regularity and precision of the language accus- toms one’s mind to arrange difficult facts in logical order. More than this, however, presence of mind is another blessing bestowed upon the Latin student. In studying this language, he must be prepared at all times to meet any one of a great variety of constructions. As a re- sult of this, he acquires a knack of meeting unflinchingly unprecedented situations. What many people consider most beneficial in Latin is the aid it gives us in speaking our own tongue. The Latin student who sees, for the first time, such varying words as introduce, postpone, access, surge, delude, equestrian, timid, suspect, insane, or sacred does not require a dictionary to discover their meaning or, in many cases, their spelling. In the litera- ture of our language (as well as of other languages), we are constantly encountering phrases and classical allusions which a knowledge of Latin renders less obscure. This is particularly true in regard to Shakespeare. Thus, is not Latin invaluable even if one looks at it only from the stand- point of better English? But now, lest the reader accuse me of writing wholly in behalf of the merits of Latin, I must stop and seek for arguments against this language. The majority are too thin to require answer. However, there are three which are repeated constantly : the first persists that Latin is a “dead” language ; the second states that the Latin language along with other classical knowledge has no practical value, being merely “stuff” ; the third is that it is too difficult. To the first I reply that Latin is not a dead language. It lives on in the English of today. If all the Latin words in English should be taken away, one would be unable to carry on a two-minute conversation. He would have to stop for lack of words. Latin and classical knowledge are more than “stuff” for they prepare one’s brain for the coveted “practical” knowledge. Neither is its difficulty of any consequence, for who was ever harmed by an arduous task? Men do their best when it is necessary for them to use their utmost effort. Latin, therefore, far from being a luxury, is a priceless necessity. It assists one in speaking English; it makes all other subjects not only seem [29]

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1923 THE CHAMELEON 1923 (DUl-iFaaljiuncb (Bariietis Don’t you think old-fashioned gardens are charming? The unassum- ing little flower friends are so much more lovable than their aristocratic companions, the hot-house flowers. The little people in the old-fashioned garden have such charming personalities that you wish to become ac- (luainted with them at once. If you have never seen an old-fashioned gar- den you are unfortunate. The best time to visit the garden is very early in the morning when the bright sun shines through the little drops of dew, making one wonder if some good fairy has not visited there in the wee small hours scattering diamonds among all the flowers. The little Morning Glory girls are always up almost as early as Old Sol himself, ready to begin their duties, one of which is to climb the rustic fence on which they make their home. Next we meet the Sweet Pea sis- ters, who live at the top of a trellis, nodding a sweet good morning to all who pass. Then we see the Pansy family always drssed in soft velvet gowns, looking so dainty one wonders if they ever do any work. Betty Marigold and Jane Poppy are found with their heads close together carry- ing on a whispered conversation. A tiny girl, always dressed in white, is Carrie Candytuft. Molly Mignonette in a gown of soft green; Nancy Nasturtium in her usual frock of orange trimmed with pale yellow, and Flora Four O’Clock are found in a sociable group. Flora is a sleepy little girl, who gets up at four o’clock, and is usually asleep by the time her neighbors are awake. Not so v.’ith Sweet-William who is a veritable Beau Brummel. He arises early and stays up late so that everyone may see his various colored costumes. In a bed of moss in one corner of the garden under a huge pine tree may be found Alice Arbutus and Jack-in-the-Pulpit, who have stolen in that they may admire their cousins. Jack looks like a bandit with his hood pulled over his face so that no one may recognize him. Then there is Polly Primrose who always brightens the atmosphere with her golden hues and although the sunflower looks down on her, little Polly quite outshines him with her daintiness. She is a friend of all the garden folk and I am sure she would be glad to introduce you to her play- mates. It is getting late so we must leave the old-fashioned garden. What does it mean to you? To me it is a secluded nook in which to think, a meeting place of whispering lovers, a mother to whom all our joys and sorrows may be intrusted. What is an old-fashioned garden? The sweet- est place of all. Edythe Lufkin. ICatin — A iCuxurii ur a ??rcc5siti|? Three classes of students endeavor to answer the question, “Why should Latin be studied by a high school student?” Of these the first have never studied the language; the second have pursued it the full four years; the third have taken a part-time course, having dropped it, perhaps, at the end of the second year. The first and second classes are prejudiced : the latter is ever pitying the unfortunate person who has not realized the value of four years’ hard study; the former does not realize its benefits. Indeed, he believes that high school is a place for intensive training along vocational lines, not a I)lace for developing mental power and individuality. However, the student who has had some Latin and who has also tried his hand at specializing is able to present the matter in the most unbiased fashion. I will endeavor to make allowance for my own prejudice and pre- sent the matter, at least in part, as a person of this class would. [28]

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1923 THE CHAMELEON 1923 easier, but it actually makes them less difficult by the background which it provides ; it is a firm foundation for the intellectual life of any man or woman. Indeed, it not only leads to a better understanding of life but it prepares one for a happier and more serviceable existence among men. Richard Loud. iSaoiug ©tie’s Photngraph eaken Having one’s photograph taken — what an ominous sound! Instinct- ively we couple it with having teeth pulled and similar ordeals. Are not the incidents attendant upon the last time you went still fresh in your mind with all the poignant freshness of a something that has seared the soul? The setting — a studio lined with faces : funny faces, serious faces, faces of all types and nationalities united by a common purpose and looking curiously alike. Alike, not in feature and in shape, but in the grim and determined expression peculiar to them all. The same light at the same angle has illuminated all those faces. Done in black and white or in the warmer sepia, with all wrinkles and traces of individuality removed, they gaze down upon one, faces all, with two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, but with expression? No. The same tree stands sturdily behind them all, lending moral support, or perhaps it is only for artistic effect. Who can delve into the wherefores of a photographer’s doings? The young coquette in all the glory of her vanity and youth, hangs be- side her grandame, whose placid face is not one whit more guilty of wrinkles, frowns or blemishes than the granddaughter of twenty. Is not that cruel and unkind? Somehow the grandmother has lost all that we love in her by the ruthlessness of the artist’s “touching up.” But even as I sit and philosophize, time in her flight has overtaken me and I too must go even as others have gone from that same waiting-room. The chair awaits me, the light is lit and set, and ah! joy to my soul, the tree is there. Now that I see that, I can summon courage to advance. I sit, the photographer takes my chin in one hand and the back of my care- fully coiffured head in the other. Cautiously he tilts my head forward, then gingerly upward and to the right while I long to tell him that my neck is not brittle and that it really will not come off in his hand. Presently as I sit there, eyes at an angle of sixty degrees, face at an angle of thirty degrees, he disappears behind a big black cloth ; he murmurs “ah !” snap ! The deed is done. “Wonderful expression,” he murmurs, ushering me out. Ere long I, too, shall join the throng on the wall in the waiting-room, I, with my two eyes, a nose, and mouth will look just like the others. What a pity the thought never struck me before. Why did I not order a dozen of any one of the samples I liked best? It would have saved me so much trouble. Priscilla Henshaw. I0hg America i?linulh JJarticipatc in IBnrlii Affairn (One Member Supports a World Policy for the United States) In the year 1919 a Great Peace Conference met at Versailles, to effect an amicable decision concerning the indemnities to be imposed upon the vanquished power, against whom we had but recently been in arms. This Conference gave birth to one of the most skilfully prepared conciliatory documents that has ever been composed. President Wilson used all his influence to have the work presented to the Allies in conjunction with the Peace Treaty. It made allowance for Germany’s participation at a later date when she would have cleared herself in the eyes of the world. [30]