Plainfield High School - Milestone Yearbook (Plainfield, NJ)

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Class Porm i j HERE’S a song that sometimes calls, That calls for you and me; The call of friendship, call of love, The call of constancy. II Four years ago we heard that song, Its melody we found; Inspiring notes re-echoed long, ‘Hight well, and hold your ground!’’ Mal Young Freshmen irresponsible, We started in our course; As Sophomores irrepressible, High standing showed our force. IV As Juniors irresistible, We learned the joy of fame; Now, Seniors, irreproachable We’ve finished out the game. Vv Through these four years that song we’ ve heard, It’s stirred through many a mind; It’s whispered but a single word: Duty! to all mankind.

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Ou the Seniors (XN, RADUATION from the High School marks a distinct change in life. It may well be an occasion for you to Panee and have an interview with your real self. You are in search of happiness. Of course you want true happiness. How do you plan to win it? What is your outlook on life ? There are some men who seem to think that the world centers in them. Their only thought is to draw in as much of the world as possible for their own gratification and profit; and these men are not found solely in the class of those who hold wealth and power; there is many a man working for four dollars .a day who does not think once, from morning till night, of any one’s interests but his own. The question, ‘‘What can I get out of the world ?’’ is one that every man ought to ask himself, and the character ‘of the man will be shown by the nature of his answer to the question. If that answer can be measured in dollars and cents, in houses and lands, in power or wealth, —in terms of personal grati- fication, then that man has failed to ap- prehend the very essentials of true living. Indeed, the only way to answer the question wisely is to turnit around and ask, ‘‘What can I give the world? for it is not the man who is continually drawing things in to himself, but the man who is continually drawing him- self out for the benefit of others, that finds the truest happiness the world can give. Be not over-troubled by the evilof the world. There are always bad men, but there are more good men. You will find whichever class you seek for. Two children in a country home went into the garden to play. Soon they came running back, and the first one cried, ‘‘O, mother, the rosebush is all full of thorns;’’ but the second cried, ‘O, mother, the thornbush is all full of roses.’’ Witha world full of roses, why should any man con- centrate his attention on the thorns ? What part do you assign, in your scheme of life, to the inner man, the spiritual and mental being, of which your body is simply the habitation ? Any scheme of life which leaves out the inner man, any line of conduct which dwarfs your spiritual growth, any pur- suit which is not consistent with mental development and spiritual purity,—any of these things will prevent your getting the greatest happiness out of life. You may not attain wealth, you may never have power, you may fail to win what the world calls success; sorrow and trouble may camp down with you night and day; but if you keep your inner life bright, if you pre- serve integrity of conduct and purity of soul, if you look at life asan opportunity to express all that is best and purest within you, by your acts of helpfulness and thoughtfulness, by your devotion to the interests of others, — then, in spite of all these other things, you will attain true happiness. As I passed down the street one evening, a delightful fragrance was wafted to me on the evening air from some unseen flower. I paused to enjoy it. I knew not whence it came, but when I passed on, my face was brighter and my step lighter because of its ministration. So, as we pass along the walks of life, we experience helping, inspiring, uplifting influences whose source we may not recog- nize. The life that produces them may be humble and simple, but it sheds spiritual fragrance all around, giving tone and vigor, sweetness and helpfulness to the circle within its influence. The man who creates it may never receive recognition from his fellows, but he knows no sense of loss. He lives not to win the plaudits of the crowd. He works for the joy of accomplishment, for the satis- faction of getting worthy things done. He smiles on the world and the world smiles back. May you each one make your life so full of the happiness that comes from true accom- plishment and humble faithfulness to ideals, that it will overflow and, like the flower, fill with fragrance all the air around. HENRY M. MAXSON

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HELEN McENIRY Winner of the Wellesley Cup GERTRUDE AYER LEONA PALUSO Valedictorian Salutatorian