Central High School - Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

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We also took up the study of elocution with Prof. Ernest Lacy. He is the only member of the faculty who allows speaking in the class-room. Berman made a fearful slip when he spoke 'f Bingem on a Rinej' and f ,- .Wf Q -f XXg ii, l l fi , ' mi' ,v 1,5 M , 'w . 1 H Bmyrn on a. MN-9 Sharp's piece entitled, Let us have a pause, was so ine that he, neg- lecting the warning of the title, spoke it iive times during the year. The stirring words of Curfew shall not ring to-night, as pronounced by the boy orator, Biggerstai, still ring in our ears. We had the pleasure of being initiated into Prof. Snyderis lectures on Mechanics, and watching him roll marbles down an incline plane. afz-lpl1lllQiWw- -, ,v,!J'., L5Rb NW 'WU ,-,Whit-'lilbli .Q ly, 'i-Ilxlilffkll S., 1 1-'fw.,.'r :ll,,!E.Tr ., ww' ,HM 1 'f'3,-ii. will -llf ffQr He also experimented with an instrument which looked like a stock- broker's ticker elevated on a bean-pole. The applause he received was enormous, and caused the other professors to turn green with envy, for it fairly' raised the dust from the iioor. Prof. Smyth taught us American literature. He is a wonderful man, and surprised us greatly with his knowledge of the lives of authors and the names of their relations. When an authoris name was mentioned he would tell all his aunts, uncles, and cousins to the iifty- second, and whom they married and their relations, and would trace his . 2 4

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maldng an excellent swimming-pool, in which we could cool off before entering upon our daily struggle for knowledge. .,,mZZ.,jw1r 7 'M '. 11 I ' A 7 .5 f 3.:1:g-:- - '55, ,.-f- - gg.. a ' - 4 L - 1 ,,. 5' -:- :I ,-3 -as v 3 Ei,-'Q An excellent swimming poolf' 'Before we could realize it the spring sports were over, and examina- tions were upon us. We managed to scrape through them, and to enjoy our vacation in the thought that we would be Sophomores next year, and could tyrannize over those little Freshmen. We could hardly wait for the vacation to end, but the first day of school slowly approached, and the eighth of September found us Qwise assesj back at Broad and Green. There were some important changes both in the roster and in the rules. That hour, called on the roster study hour was abolished. Why it was designated by that name I know not, as study was the only thing we were not guilty of doing. We debated, played games, and often the monotony of the hour was relieved by a short talk on Marble Steps, by Dr. Oscar Carter. The benent we derived from this hour was great, and its loss was felt throughout the school. Throwing, a favorite pastime indulged in by the Whole school, even by the professors, who threw us out of the room occasionally, was strictly prohibited. The famous historian Prescott had his eye put out by a crust of bread thrown by one of his friends, so any boy caught throwing one of Mamma Huttenlock's cinnamon buns, or even a feather pillow, was dealt with severelyif Our class was divided into two branches, one was introduced to Greek and Samuel Berger, the other to German and Max Straube. We met Prof. Hopper professionally for the iirst time, and learnt how to clean the boards with a sponge and pitcher of water. I remember Albert Miller took great pleasure in lettering his figures M-A-T-T-I-E. ' Copyrighted by R. E. Thompson. 2 3

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descent down to Adam from each one of his works. He also knows the tone of voice of every character in Shakespeare's plays, and reproduces them remarkably well, especially the fools. There is one thing We pride ourselves on. We broke Prof. Shock of a very bad habit. Whenever we made too much noise, he would yell in a volcanic voice, You boys hear, but you do not heed. N ow this was a beautiful thought, but when repeated 6255115 times it became a source of amusement. We decided that something would have to be done to stop it, so every time he uttered it we applauded. The reverend gentleman saw that at last we appreciated the remark, and as this was all he wanted, we have not heard it since. I must leave the old building for a moment, and turn to the new to describe the importantevent of the laying of the corner-stone. We were arranged in military order outside of the school, and with colors fiying marched across the street. There we stood around the stone, and passed the time before the ceremony by singing songs, fighting, and christening the stone with our wet ingers. A tinbox was first put into a receptacle cut in the stone. In this box was placed a Puck, Judge, I tem, Canadian ten-cent piece, and a Huttenlock mincepie. Another stone was then put on this one to prevent the pie from walking oi. Then Governor Pattison and Dr. Thompson delivered addresses, which were too low to be heard, and becoming tired of deaf and dumb movements, we left for our respective homes, that is the few who didnit go to Wanamaker's to- shop. The Mirror run by the Senior Class was raised from 5 cents to 10 cents a copy, which was quite beyond our means, so several of our en- terprising boys, among whom was Wetherill, of course-for what scheme could get along without 'his aid? it--started a rival paper with the patriotic title of the Crimson and Gold. It was a great success, and was considered the finest paper ever edited by the school. The Mirror staff were compelled to walk to school, and deprive themselves of the luxury of lunch through the lack of funds. But suddenly this '97 paper disappeared as mysteriously as it sprang up, and it has never been heard from since. The loss of these manuscripts is parallel with the loss of the Shakespearean ones, and I am sure will be felt equally as much by posterity. Military training was proposed for the school, and we had visions of blue suits and brass buttons. It even went so far that a company was formed. But the project fell through, and we had to give up the idea of escorting the girls to school in full-dress uniform. ' From My Diary. 25