Easthampton High School - Echo Yearbook (Easthampton, MA)

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Among the large hand-painted pictures was one of General John Pershing mounted on a horse. The reception room, the ballroom, and tl1e state dining room were viewed. The short tour being over, the group left the building after shaking hands with the attache. This visit was very thrilling, educational, and interesting. A visit like this, to any embassy for that matter, is a very rare occurrence, especially when the visitors are a group of high school seniors on their Washington trip. The event brought an honor to the school, as well as the members of the group that made the visit. The following people were in the group: Principal Howell K. Thayer and Miss Lou Lyman, chaperones of the trip, Anthony Lis, through whose efforts the visit was made possible, Francis Hadro, president of the Senior class: Rita Anderson, Helen Wrobleski, Stanley Sucheckig Arthur Grabowski, and Victor Laprade. The people mentioned above want to take the opportunity to publicly thank His Excellency Stanislaus Patek for the wonderful reception given to his visitors. The event will remain long in the memories of all. ANTHONY Lis '35 NEGRO SUPERSTITION LEADS TO DESTRUCTION The wind moaned and bowled through the everglades of Florida turning them into a seething mass of vegetation and muddy water. Through this seem- ingly! impenetrable waste of death, a mushy path twisted and turned its way to a small stone hut. Over this path a stout negro woman slowly made her way exclaiming as she went along, f'Lawd almighty! lVhal for I ebber come to dis here place, I'se don know, but I'se got ter hab my fortune told, yah-suh I does, I does. Finally she reached her destination and knocked at the door. A voice said, 9'Who's dere? The visitor answered, It's onny me, Susabella Sassafras Simmons. Yah suhl It's onny me. The voice said, 'Come in. But bewar if yo ain't who yo says yo is, bewarf' The visitor went in and shut the door. She stared in wide-eyed amazement at what she saw, and cried, 'tLawd, but yo sure hab all de tings by wid to bc a fortune teller, yotse got de stars, de moon, a crystal, and eben a black cat. Lawd almighty. What does ya want? inquired an old negro hag who was dressed in a long, many-colored skirt, a bandanna which was around her head, and a large waist covered with many figures, symbolic of the fortune teller. 'Tse sure would lak to hab my fortune toldfl Wat ya done got for pay? asked the hag. 'Tse got dis here brass bracelet I hab, I habfl it Sit in dis here chair den and I'll tell ya whatls what wid you. Susabella sat down and awaited her fortune. A The hag began, Yo hab come on a dark journey to see me. twenty

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6 P ITEIRARY VISIT TO THE POLISH EMBASSY It was a few minutes before seven o'clock on the evening of Tuesday, April 30, and a group of Seniors, together with Principal Howell K. Thayer and Miss Lou Lyman, were boarding a taxi that transported them to the hhnbassy of the Republic of Poland. This visit was made in accordance with a special appointment secured by Anthony Lis. At seven o'clock sharp, the delegation entered the embassy, the attendant led it to a waiting-room to await the arrival of the attache. In a few minutes, the attache appeared, and after the proper introductions were finished, he led the group to the reception room on the second story. In a moment, the Easthamptonians were in the presence of His Ex- cellency Stanislaus Patek, Polish Ambassador to the United States-an almost unbelievable fact! The attache introduced each guest individually to the Am- bassador, who shook hands with each one, Before he even spoke a word, the Ambassador made a great impression on all. He was as glad to meet them as they were to meet him. His Excellency spoke to his visitors in both Polish and English. He told of his diplomatic life and mentioned the fact that he speaks ten languages, six fluently and four fairly well. He said he was glad to have the opportunity to perform his duty at an occasion like this. His Ex- cellency's very pleasing personality and friendliness made him a real friend of all. The reception was hearty and very sincere. From what the diplomat himself and his attachc said, it was learned that His Excellency Stanislaus Patek has been, and is, leading a very active diplomatic life. For many years after the establishment of the Republic of Poland, he was, until 1926, am- bassador to Japan. From 1926 to 1932, he was the ambassador to The l'nion of Socialist Soviet Republics. Since 1932, he has been not only the am- bassador to the United States, but also the minister to Cuba. His Excellency was one of the signers of the Versailles Treaty of 19203 and a few years ago, he signed with Maxem Litvinoff, one of his friends, the non-aggression pact between Poland and Soviet Russia. The late hlarshal Joseph Pilsudski was also a close friend of the ambassador. After talkng for a while, the ambassador shook hands with each one again in farewell and retired. His attache, in compliance with the ambassador's order, showed the embassy to the group. The attachc led the guests to the rooms and showed the ambassadorls collection of paint- ings as well as snapshots that depicted great events in His lCxcellency's life. nineteen

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The debil came wid ya. Hear him outside de door? The wind raged on, shak- ing the little hut. Susabella sat trembling with fear. Yo is going on another dark journey wid de debil on de way home, said the hag, and her voice droned on and on. Suddenly a savage burst of wind struck the hut, shaking it from beam to beam. The hag junped up shouting, ttlle debil, de debil. Susabella waited for no more, but with a shriek she sprang out of the door and into the stormy night. Lawd help me, don't let de debil follow me, she cried above the roar and tumult of the storm. HLawd help me to get home to de plantation. But she wandered from the path, to be sucked down into the oozing mass of mud, and the darkeys still say that on a stormy night they can hear her cries for help, mingling with those of the hag whose hut sank into unknown regions. Thus negro superstition leads many to destruction, for they will brave the greatest perils, and risk their very lives to gain knowledge of the t'Past, Present, or the Future. EDWIN KURTZ '36 ON GOING A ROAD AT HOME This is an especially good title, since it is about my Washington trip. I think it is appropriate, because, although the trip took place in the United States, for most of us it certainly was a trip to a new and wonderful place. The trip down the Hudson, on the ferry, thrilled many of us. The spray against our faces felt very cool since the day was quite warm. On our left was a border of the lofty buildings of New York City. We passed very closely by the 'tRex, a colorful Italian ocean liner, and on the opposite side the Levia- than, now out of use, was anchored at Hoboken. Lastly, we got a slight view of the Statue of Liberty, and this brought our boat ride to an end. As we traveled farther south, I noticed that the foliage and flowers were out more and more. When we arrived in VVasl1ington, the trees and shrubs were very fully in bloom and this, of course, added a great deal to its beauty. My friend and I left our group at Baltimore to experience one of the grandest affairs in the world. We went to Annapolis, where we attended a formal -jump, which took place in the armory, a perfectly magnificent building. There were four cannon in each corner, and guns lined the walls of the balcony. The dance was a lovely affair. The most wonderful sensation came over me at the close, when the band played the 'tStar Spangled Banner and the midshipmen were at attention. I have never experienced such an impressive sight. The next day, we joined our class, and immediately set out on our expedi- tion of viewing all the important sights that Washington has to offer. Of course, we did not see them all in one day, but in the three days that followed we took in most of them. There were many things of interest and delight, but only a few left a lasting impression on me. One was the tomb of the unknown soldier. As we entered the amphitheater, a magnificent structure of white marble, from twenty-one