Richmond High School - Shield Yearbook (Richmond, CA)

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THE FRESHMEN RECEPTION. N the evening of October 3rd, 1912, a gay crowd of upper classmen gathered in the Assembly Hall of the high school for the purpose of initiating the bashful ‘‘Freshies’’ into the society life of the school. When the Freshmen entered the Assembly Hall, they were sur- prised to see great numbers of toy balloons suspended from the celling—appropriate playthings for Freshmen. The lghts were cov- ered with red and blue crepe paper, further carrying out the color scheme of red and blue, at the same time casting a soft glowing ligitt over the entire room. The evening began with dancing; then during the short inter- vals between dances, a program was given to which the ‘‘Freshies’’ listened with breathless delight. Mr. Harlow’s mechanical dolls which remained in any position Mr. Harlow eared to place them, greatly amused the children, particularly, when the boys had to remain in the same rigid and usually awkward attitude for an un- comfortably long time. Various stunts consisting of pantomine songs and burlesque helped on the fun. But the hilarious good time came later in the evening when serpentine was given out and those not dancing amused themselves by throwing the paper streamers until the dancers became so hobbled in its meshes that they soon found it almost impossible to dance. After the store of serpentine had been exhausted, two boys appeared, dressed as chefs, bearing trays full of animal cookies and striped sticks of candy for the young guests who hurriedly left the big punch bowl in the library and came running to crowd around the two suddenly important and popular distributors. Nor were the more reserved upper classmen far behind the Freshmen in their eager scramble for this delicious ‘‘Freshman Food.”’ The reception was a happy initation into the social life of the school and the guests went home, tired it is true, for the hour was late, but expressing joyful anticipation of many more good times to come in the four years stretching out before them. 19

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Inu Memoriam WILLIAM F. BELDING 1913 1842 10) 531 8 og be I = AND PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD FROM ITS FIRST ORGANIZATION FRIEND COUNSELOR

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THE CIRCUS. Among the many affairs given by the high school, one stands out as particularly successful, ore which the students took great delight in putting before the people of Richmond. It was tice always popular amateur ¢ireus, given on the evening of October 25th, 1912. This was a community affair for every student in the school helped in some way towards putting on the ‘‘show.’’ While not everyone could appear in the main performanee itself, yet every: body, dressed in a ridiculous costume of some sort was in the greai parade which left the school at about four-thirty in the afternoon. In this the students did themselves proud, if one could judge from the applause and laughter of the throngs that fought for standing room along the curb to see the pageant pass. In the train were many strange objects (there is really no other definite name for some of the oddities), which greatly astonished and amused the people of Richmond, objects, such as the parades of Ringling Brothers and Sells-Floto in their palmiest days have never been able to show. The high school band Jel the parade with a lively near tune. Next came the clowns with their usual stock of extraordinary feet, clothes, pranks and jokes. The countless wild animals from the remotest jungles of Africa and South America, 20