Wakefield High School - Oracle Yearbook (Wakefield, MA)

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weeks Joe cared for the great bird and even tried to tame hiaii, but witlioiit success. He did, however, learn to respect and admire the eagle ' s dignity, pride, and the flashing fire in his eyes. At times he felt pity for the poor eagle, es pecially when he saw the free bird circling in the sky, utteri,ng plaintive cries, ever searcii- ing, searching, searching, with those piercing eyes, for the body, dead or alive, of her lost mate. When the capti,ve heard these cries, he would lift his wings, run around excitedly, and seek to find an opening of a size to squeeze himself through. These attempts failing, however, he would shi.ft nervously from one foot to tfte other, darting his head rapidly from side to side, now and then angri- ly snapping his curved beak. He would the.i lapse into a sulk and sit with featliers ruffled ; but as mealtime approached, he would rcga! i his usual poise. The eagle possessed nn ex- traordinary intelligence. He never answered his mate ' s signal; probably because he thought she would rush to aid him . ' ind so be drawn to the foi,ls of captivity. Then one day the city sportsman arrived. .Toe at once began to dislike him, for he un- consciously compared the man ' s blusteriiit? manner with the eagle ' s quiet companionshi.p. He gave Joe five twenty-dollar bills and de- manded a receipt. Somehow Joe was down- hearted tha,t niglit and he vaguely wondeiel why. The would-l)e mayor proposed to stay a few- days and try his new angling outfit. Il. scoffed at Joe ' s advice about fishing and boast- ed about the fish he would catch the next day. In fact, he caught only a few, foolish, tiny panfisli, and his ill temper increased with his failures. At last he gave i|t up and lounged around the camp. He seemed to take pleasure in plaguing the kingly bird and this both- ered Joe a great deal. Tlie alderman ' s cruel- tj ' increased and to Joe ' s protests, the answi r was What is mine is mine and I ' ll treat it as sucli! Wlio are you to preach kindness to animals, you who make your liying l)y killing tliem? ' ' Of course, Joe was at a loss lo nn- swer this high-sounding retort. But events soon came to a crisis. The iildei- man was regarding the eagle with a complac- ent smile. Ah there, my fine fellow, ' lie said. What a fine speech I shall make when I present you to my townsmen! Then I shall announce my candidacy for the office ' f mayor. Then poking a stick under the eagle ' s wings to make liim spread tliem, he stretched his arm into the cage. Tlie eagle, striking with lightning rapidity, inflic+ed three pain- ful wounds in his tormentor ' s hand. The furious man, swearing savagely, began to dri- c the bird around the narrow cage. Suddenly lie felt a strong hand on the collar of his eoar. He looked back ijito the glaring eyes of Joe King, who almost choked vith wrath as h-; commanded, CJuit chasing my eagle! He ' s mine! retorted the alderman, and I allow no man or beast to injure me as they ])lease. Furthermore, take your hand off my collar or I ' ll have you sent to the ' jien ' for a year! ' ' I may go to jail, returned Joe, but I ' ll fix you first. The bird did nothing until you bothered him. Then, as his anger increased, he exclaimed, Here, take your filthy money! I don ' t want it! You ' re not fit to have a bird ; I ' ll keep him myself. The alderman cooly picked up the scattered bills, and then said with a sneer, Since you give ine the money, I will take it; but the bird is still mine, for you have failed to re member that I still hold the receipt. Then Joe liegan to see straight; he realize! that the alderman held the whip hand, aiiil according to law, was the rightful owner of the eagle. Having a mighty respect for the law, Joe decided to find .some other way o. ' getting even ' . He turned away resisting an impulse to idant his fist sc|u:irely in the other fellow ' s face. The alderman continued to strut pompousi.. ' .about the eanij), but lie no longer tormented the eagle. He began to make sarcastic com- ments to Joe, thinking the latter was thor- oughly cowed. Joe disregarded his taunts and kept his temper by going i.nto the cabin. The alilennan w.is soon startled to see his cot and bedclothes come sailing out of the door. Joe appeared on the threshold and said terselv, ' ou ' ll sleep in the woodshed tonight. Hut to Joe the sun seemed to have a frown on it:; face when it sank behind old Baldy that nigh:. •Just as tlie first grey streaks of dawn bega.i to lighten the eastern skies, Joe King rolletl out of his iilankets. Moving about quietly, he ])i)cked up the most of ii s food and dotii ing supplies, strapped them on his back and went out, locking the door of the cabin. Pans ing at the door of the woodshed, he assure himself that the alderman was still sleeping soundly. Then Joe went over to the cage, pulled our the bar, and threw the door wide open. The ea},le drew l)ack, fearing some new trap. No- ticing this, Joe walked awa.y from the cage and the gi-eat bird stepjied forth haltingly. ;l€

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As KING TO KING Joe King could easily satisfy the needs of his simple life. He had been a backwoods youth, and his education he had gleaned from the farm and the forest; so when he gained his nianliood, lie very naturally turned to the backwoods for a living. He lived in |a eabiii on tlie edge of a pond which formed part jf the s. ' ilt marsh flooded by Bald Eagle creek. This creek has its source on Bald Eagle iiioiintaiii, four miles from Joe King ' s cabin. Fniiii a l)ubbling spring, the water races with other rivulets, across the side of the mountain, over rocks and around boulders until it ends its wild flight by leaping from a ledge of gran- ite to a seething pool, some yards below. Leav- ing the pool it flows through forests and glades, harboring many a fine trout and pick- erel, MOW drifting peacefully through a wide liasiii, now tumbling through a narrow spa.-o between bouldeis, always increasing in size but becoming more lazy, until just before it joins forces witlt the sea, it spreads out in a broad swamp, dotted wi.th lagoons and clumps of trees, but in some places a veritable jungle. lint this story concerns the river only in part. On a sheltered drag far up on Bald Eagle mountain there lived a pair of eagles whoso equals had never graced au America. i museum. King had often admired them as they soared on ti,rcless wings high above Bald Eagle river. T ' liey often picked up hapless fish of the river and marsh, and on more tha i one occiision had even stolen from lii.s store of food. One day King hid four fine fish under a grass stump and returned to his little square-bowed punt. Startled by the rushing sound of swift wings, he looked back to see the smaller of the two eagles alight on the stump, seize the two largest fish, and rise i i the air, screaming harshly iu derision. For- tunately for the eagle, King was without his gun, and in spite of his anger, all he could 1I.1 was to shake his long arms and ilirect dii ' threats at the bold bird. His auger soon cooled, however, and he smiled when ho thought of tlie eagle ' s audacity. A group of men, whom King had guided one summer had offered him one hundred dol- lars if he would capture either of the eagles without injury. The leader of these men was an ambitious politician and he thought it would be a feather in his cap to present a magnificent eagle to the new zoological muse- um in his city. To this end, therefore, Joe studied their varied ventures until he de- cided upon a way to capture one of them. Carefully he framed his plans, and then one clear day, he rowed in his skiff nearly to the cascade. Tyiaig his boat, he set off towards the top of the mountain, which he reached after some difficulty. It did not take hioi long to spy out the nest, as that of the eagle is several feet in width, and he knew fairly well where to look for the eagles ' home. The nest was very unusual, being built of sticks so large and so well placed and fastened that the liuuter could rest his full weight upoii the edge. Taking from his sack a steel trap with padded jaws, he set i,t to spring at the slightest touch on the pan. He placed the trap under some of the moss in the center of the nest, and attached the chain to a heavy stick of wood which he balanced on one of the bottom supports of the nest. He then retircl I0 another ledge below. Joe King knew he had placed his snare well. His eyes gleamed when he saw iu the sky a black speck which steadily grew larger and plainer. It was the larger of the two eagles, and hope rose high for Joe as he watched him. Nearer and nearer came the eagle as he set his wings and sailed swiftly towards his home. With a few heavy strokes of his great wings, he settled on the outer rim of the nest. He rocked back and forth while he foldecl his wings, and then, with an awkward little hup, he disai)i)eared almost from sight iri the hollow. ImnuHliately following the sharj) idick of the sprung trap, Joe heard tlie eagle ' s shriil scream of fear a ' nd paiji, and he saw the eagle lea]) info the air, with the trap fast to three talons. Frantically beating his wings, the eagle dislodged the heavy clog at the end of the chain and it swung free underneath him. Hut Joe King liad misjudged the power of that eagle. Instead of seeing him pulled rai)idly to the lower ledge, he witnessed a wonderful but peculiar battle; a struggle be- tween the eagle ' s wings and the log ' s gravity. In the end gravity won. Cor tile eagle tii ' evl slowly. As the great bird, still valiantly fight- ing, came within reach, Joe leaped out, thre.v a sack over the eagle ' s head, and with great diiliculty subdued him. The lord of the forest resisted so bravely that there were two deep scratches on Joef s arm, one of which bled so freely that he was forced to bind it tightly. The eagle gave Joe considerable trouble but just as the sun was sinking behind old Baldy, Joe shut and barred the door where his prey was impi-isoned for safekeeping. Joe agreed to care for the eagle until the alder- man could come to get him which would be about two weeks later. During those two 15

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ITe spread his huge wings, and findi,ng them unhampered, he seemed to realize his oppor- tunity. With a miglity leap, he shot into flic air and went spiralling upwards in glorious sweeps and curves. As he strode to the edge of the clearing, Joe King, the true sportsman, waved his cap to the eagle, saying, So long, old friend, I ' ll be back soon, and you w ' 1l ne er be trapped again if I can help it! ' ' II may or may not have been a coincidence, but the eagle screamed harshly in farewell, once, twice, tlirice. And the rising sun, peejjing over the edge of the forest, beheld the scene; and the frow. ' i (in its rotund face was displaced by a satisfied smile. A. E. TEKKINS, ' 2;! pain. Perhaps these plants are not capable of the sensation in quite the way we under- stand it, but surely they can stand no rougii treatment. LOIS PARKS, 25. CAN A PLANT FEEL PAIN? Some very iiiteiest i-iu ' cxiieriitients have re- cently been carried out in coniieclioii wit ' i the well known sensitive plant. Its habits are so peculiai ' that no one evei ' witnesses its strange lieliavior without astonishment. Wh: n the phuit is healthy, it needs only the touch of a finger tip to bring about the closing of the little leaves and the dro()))ing of the stalk . Kven a lireath of cold air makes the jilant huddle together; while ii su(blen .j(d mak ' . ' s a lightning-quick drawing uj) of the leaves to the stalk. The shrinking is so sudden that one might really believe the plant to be frightened. It has been known for some time th.-it the sensitive-plant is easily effected by the fumes of chloroform, . ' inil these special experi.ments were performed to tind out if the jilant could still, when unconscious (if that word may be used) feel. First to show the effects of hot air on a nor- mally healthy plant, a piece of wadding s.it- urated with oil is liighted and passed (|uicklv back and forth under the leaves. Remember that the flame does not touch them, yet the little heat makes the plant droop imme li- ately. They then give this fascinating plant chlor- oform, and it is carried out in this manner. . second piece of wadding is soaked in chloro- form and placed beside the plant; both being covered quickly with a glass shade. In al)Out a half-hour the leaves begin to droop, in fact, i i a very short time the whole plant seems completely under the effects of the anaesthetic. Now, when the plant is tested in these various ways, none has any effect; the tip of the stalk is even touched l)y the flame with no result. One wonders if this curious plant feels THE LIGHTHOUSE Perched on a great, grey rock the little lighthouse stands, year in, year out, guarding the barren coast. In summer when the light- ning flashes and the thunder crashes, it sends its brave little beacon across the angry spra3 When the storm king of winter grips all in its sway, when shrieking winds tear through the su3-f, the lighthouse is steadfast. Its light forever guides the v.orn sailor on its way and welcomes the homeward schooner. Above the storm and thundering sjiray it s ;iuds . ' I monument of man ' s love and care for his brotluM ' . The lighthouse is a symbol of (ic-d ' s love. DORIS DUTJ V, 2 ' k THE FALLS The majesty, the power, the grandeur of the falls! One is held spelll)ound by its tei- rilde thunderings and its wild beauty. The Niagara, that river famous ' n legend, i-ushes on tO ' its doom. In vain the angry waters attempt to draw back. In vain thev leap into the air or tumble back over them- selves. They sweep along in their narrow con- fines uttering a mighty song, the awful song of death. The raging flood is (piieted for a moment just before reaching the brink. Per- hajis freedom awaits at the bottom of the un known! With a sudden eageiiiess and a roar wli ' ch increase ' s until the ei ' y heaxcns le- sound with its thunder, the waters sweep ovei- the !)rink and fall down — down — down to the rocks below, which for centuries have been resisting that terrible attack. Such is the force with which they fall that tons of the Ijluish- L;reen waters are thrown even higher than the top of the falls, an l lose themselves in mi.st, a white dazzling mist in which dwell a thou- sand rainbows. Hut what of the rest? Stunned by its tre- mendous fall, it slowly takes its way along its course. Gradually, however, it awakens and soon is tumbling and raging through wild rapids and thence to the sea. EMILY SMITH, ' 25. 17