Ramsay High School - Rams Horn Yearbook (Birmingham, AL)

Page 29 text:

fights, hut Junior had disregarded the majesty of the law and sought to presume upon their old friendship, even attempting to inveigle the sheriff into the sport. Here the state rested its ease. I discovered that Mr. Hunter had retained the partners, Shaw and Johnston, as his attorneys. These two lawyers so ably conducted the defense against odds that the jury was unable to reach a decision. The court thus adjourned until the following Monday. The judge next assigned a hotel to the jury, and obeying instructions I trailed the jurors to their hotel, the clerk of which was Tom Thompson who informed me that the jurors were attending the game that afternoon played between the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs. Accordingly. I accompanied them to the ball park where I found the Yankee star. Bill Bruce, playing a noble game against the Cubs on whose team were Otto Mooney, Dunlap Macaulay, and Henry Holmes Hill. Seeing Louise Vance and Katherine Sims, now society's two most pojmlar matrons, I joined them for a short time. Naturally, Ye Goode Oldc Daves was the subject of our conversation; during the course of which I acquired information to the effect that Girdine Kay and Harry Strauss are raising poultry; the name of Gene McCoy, dancer, glitters on Broadway’s Great White Way; Roy Cohen earns his bread and butter by invocations to the muses; Mary Cobb is quite the most popular deb in town: Frances Durrette, famous soprano, is touring Europe with Jane Howell, her accompanist; Martha Chapman is a sob sister on the Xnv York Times: Ruth Gibson (believe it or not) is a prim school inarm in a little red school house; Sara Patton manages a menagerie. Before and after the game music was furnished by the Police Band, directed by Bert Best. I looked over the members of this organization I espied ! ehind the big bass drum the smiling face of John Black, and to his left Garrard Harris and Paul Liles playing on their saxophones. After our return to the hotel we were entertained in the new music room, the beautiful decorations of which, we learned, were designed by our own Sara Helen Hill and Carmelite Howell. There we listened to two radio addresses; the first was given by Caroline Gignilliat, recently returned from Peru. Miss Gignilliat's topic, The Woman’s Suffrage Movement in Peru, was a subject in which she greatly interested herself during l er sojourn in that country. Following this Albert Mills, a candidate for election to the House of Representatives, made a stirring campaign sjwcch. 1 was informed that Kathryn Ivy is running on the same ticket. There followed a musical interlude during which we heard the lovely contralto voice of Catherine Covington accompanied by Mary Wattic Wilson. During the dinner hour we were entertained by Frances Gladden and his orchestra and Mary Virginia Pounds, universally rated the most entertaining comedienne on the air. After dinner the jurors attending the premier of a musical comedy discovered with some surprise that Wilma Dickinson and Anita Tennenbaum were the leaders of the chorus girls. On Sunday the ladies ami gentlemen of the jury visited the church where Gayle Riley fills the ministry. Richard Sexton and Rolwrt Nelson took up the collection while Olive Davis, Dora Alice Henley, Katherine Winters, and Sara Williams, sang in the choir. I also noticed in the congregation Maurine Vaughan and May Montague. That afternoon the jurors cast their votes in favor of a visit to the cinema where the lovely star, Lolita Hodges, was playing. In the news-reel we were shown a number of smart people at a fashionable resort; among these were Alice Buchanan, Sara Hoffman, Weenona Heflin, Rufie Holloway, and Mary Lanier Munds. We also witnessed a demonstration of several labor-saving devices invented by Harold Knah who is indeed an indefatigable worker at that sort of thing.

Page 28 text:

CLASS PROPHECY As I am a seasoned newspaper reporter, few tilings have the power to arouse in me any emotions whatsoever. Nevertheless, it must be admitted that in June, 1938, when I was assigned to cover the “Hunter Trial, I felt quite an unusual interest as Lewis Hunter, a former classmate of mine, was the defendant. The remarkable features of the ease attracted my attention. It seems that Junior (as he was once familiarly designated) and some friends were happily engaged in cock fighting down on his country estate, when the advent of two officers of the law abruptly Interrupted these interesting proceedings and summoned Junior to court. I was informed that the person instigating this arrest was Miss Martha Matthews, president of the Humane Society. Wending my way to the court room that Saturday morning 1 came upon Elmer Thuston looking particularly downcast. He seemed to l c traveling in my own direction. “You don’t look exactly cheerful, I remarked to him. No, he admitted, 'Tin cue of the chief witnesses for the state in the Hunter Trial, and besides being forced to inform against my old friend, I am having to neglect my wholesale business.” Just then we encountered Jean Loyd and Jane French, co-owners of The Style Shoppe,” accompanied by Hugh Egerton, manager. Good gracious, are all of you witnesses, too? 1 exclaimed. No, just spectators, Jean explained. I suspect you'll see many Ranisavitcs of the Class of ’33 there, too. Jean's statement was verified when 1 entered the court room, tor I beheld what appeared to l»e a reunion of all mv old Ramsay classmates. Classmates to the right of me. classmates to the left of me chattered and gossiped! I saw Josephine Hale, Virginia Harris. Johnny Youngblood, and Sara Sloan. Having ample time to spend licfore the beginning of the trial I rushed over and joined a group. From force of a reporter's habit I inquired into everyone's affairs. Right here I wish to divulge some of the melange of facts garnered: Charlotte Daly, the famous woman mathematician is ! cginntng to force even Einstein to look to his laurels; Tucker Mackenzie, missionary, is doing his Ix’st for the heathen Chinee ; Joel Morris, a ship's doctor, played a noble part in the sinking of his liner; Martha Bray maintains her old role of heartbreaker; Alice Scott and Anne McKinley have settled down to a succession of house-wifely duties; Sara Joe Green and Page Haralson, designers, create clothes for Marion Johnson and Mary Crochran. mannequins: James Johnson is Parisian buyer for a large millinery concern. This interesting information was interrupted by the entrance of His Honor. Would wonders never cease! The judge was Jack Harper. 11 is Honor called the court to order and read the list of the jurors. Wonders did not cease, for six of the jurors were my former Ramsay classmates. They were: Virginia Oates, Richard Fell, Elizabeth Daniel. Holland Cox. Alice Nolan, and Tom Conway. Next the state's witnesses were introduced. By this time I was prepared for any shock; therefore. 1 felt not the slightest sensation of surprise at the appearance of Emanuel Greenberg, prosecuting attorney, who licgan his ease with the state witnesses: Elmer Thuston, Martha Matthews, a small colored boy, and Miles Copeland, the sheriff of the county in which lay the estate of Mr. Hunter. Mr. Greenlicrg skillfully drew out his witnesses to the very l»est effect. A telling point in the case was the fact that Copeland, the sheriff, had been to sec Mr. Hunter about the

Page 30 text:

Monday morning I reached the courtroom bright and early—so bright and early, in fact, that I found I had half an hour on niv hands. However. I filled the time in agreeably by chatting with Sally Scott. Sally told me that Betsy Bryant, Kmlvn Colmant, and Madelon Colby were very interested in welfare work; Dorothy Lull is already one of the most famous of Broadway actresses, and Cecelia Baird is an equally renowned authoress; Boh Carlson performs wonders in the banking line; Vennette Herron is a Vassar dean; Olive Moses ami Betty Greagan collaborate in writing song hits; Marion Mayer is wedded to a milionairc and lives in state on Fifth Avenue, New York; Dick Jemison is attempting to break into the movies in Hollywood; Billy Carruthers is a famed coast-lo-coast flier; Caroline Matthews and Mary Anna Barker are doing interesting art work in Paris. Gradually the courtroom filled, as on Saturday, with former Ramsay students. Upon the advent of Judge Harper all conversation ceased, and the trial of Lewis Hunter versus the State was resumed. We listened to a careful cross-examination of state's witnesses. Then came the climax. Mr. Shaw, in his examination of the sheriff brought to light the fact that he had remained upon the Hunter estate five hours supposedly remonstrating with Junior. Upon being asked to account for those hours. Copeland replied that he couldn’t, for he had licen so interested in the fights, that time had just slipped by. After the laughter subsided. Mr. Johnston wound up the case for the defense. He stated that in the first place his client had no intention of wrong-doing. The cock fights hail been tor his private amusement, and when an interested throng gathered, he had not the heart to spoil their pleasure by dismissing them. In the second place his client's action was justified because the sheriff was among the spectators, and by his mere presence and interest seemed to sanction the fights. After this most eloquent plea no question remained in my mind as to the outcome of the case. Surely enough the jury soon returned with the verdict of ’’not guilty” and Junior received the congratulations of the entire Ramsay Class of 33. Kathkkixk Lidk.