Amana High School - Bugle Yearbook (Amana, IA)

Page 68 text:

As- We See It THE YEAR'S AT THE FALL The year's at the Fallg And day's at the eve. Evening's at nine. The full moon is high Over spooky trees tall. I walk along, rust'ling leaf on leaf, Knowing everything is fine- God's watching from his sky. -Florence Oehl BRIGHT EYES One night last summer we were out plowing. It was about nine o'clock and one of the other persons who had been plowing went home. I was. coming. to the end of the field when I saw something shining about two hundred yards away. . As I drew closer it looked like two shining eyes. I thought it might be a wolf or some other large ani- mal. I came closer but this :object didn't even move. I was imagining all sorts of things and got a little scared. I was ready to grab a wrench that was on the tractor when I tunned around and my lights shone directly on it. What do you think it was? It was just the plow that the other person had left there. The blades on it were shining and they looked like eyes. -Henry Allen Bendorf A VISIT TO FAIRYLAND Going to the woods during the wintertime and see- ing every bush and bough covered with fresh white snow is a sight indeed. The Dutch Lake is Just the place to see all this beauty. After a few minutes of driving along the narrow black strip of pavement you turn left onto a dirt road leading through the woods. You step out of the car onto the hard frozen ground, and the tiny white flakes covering it crunch every time you take a step forward. Appearing very faintly, the sun adds the spark which turns the w-oods into a fairyland. Everytime you come to a bend in the path you expect the Snow King and Queen in their flowing white ermine robes to greet you and in their sleigh, drawn by two fleet- ing deer, take you for a ride in their wonderland home. Approaching a depression in the ground which you suppose is the .north end of Dutch Lake, you see a trail of cloven hoofs, some large, others small. Prob- ably mother deer and her fawn have left these tracks in their search for food. Other smaller tracks cross the lake and lead further into the dense forest, a sign that the coon has also visited this spot. You wend your way across the depression and as- cent a steep, snow-covered slope, making little head- way. Once up, you are surrounded by tall, dark giants hovering above you up into the sky about 30 to 50 feet. Little breezes cause the heavily snow-laden tops of the giants to sway slowly back and forth, making you feel dizzy and light-headed. However, no one can stay forever in such a fairy- landg and since it's getting dark you decide to get on the main path and start for home. The Snow King and Queen again come towards you out of nowhere amd usher you -out, away from their sparkling, lively snow-palace home. -Helen Sontag SLIGHT MIXUTP Quite some time ago, my mother went to Cedar Rapids for a day. I was to take care of the house. M-other had already prepared some of our dinner be- fore she left, and I was supposed to heat it. However, I planned to have something special by baking a cake for dessert. Since there wasn't too much time left I hurried about to get the ingredients together. I put in sugar, flour, eggs, salt, and all the other things the recipe called for. When the cake came out of the oven it looked very delicious and I just had time to put some frosting on it. After the family was done eating, they said they were very full but would have room for a piece of cake. After their first bite I .noticed that they were all looking at each other and making rather queer faces. When I took my first bite I found out that I had put in one cup of salt and one teaspoon sugar. -Shirley Reihman ICY AFTERNOON Last winter when the lake was frozen and we still had the old car, several :of the fellows and I set out in search of adventure. We drove down to the lake. We had a good time but it got dull after a while, and we then decided to go to the gas station where we fooled around with some other kids. Then we were off again for the lake. We drove onto the ice, skidded around a bit and then drove out to our duck blind. As we drove back to the Middle side of the lake I saw a dead fish and told the others there was a great big fish back there. The driver took his eyes off of the lake for an instant and the next thing we knew we had crashed through the ice and were in the lake with the car. -Fred Ruedy - PRETZEL STICKS Here I sit a eating them, But never giving a thought Of where they come from or where they've been- But I do know where they're going. -Dick Foerstner . AND DOWN IT CAME My father told me this about his early, days in school when they used to take walks in spring and fall when it was warm out. My dad was in about the first or second grade when one day the class went for a walk north of Middle. Mr. Heinze, their teacher, had them all under control and they were walking along a creek north of Middle, through a green meadow, and to the pine grove. They were walking along under the pine trees, when down it came. A groundhog dropped out of a tree right von the head of one of the boys. He went down with the blow, but was not hurt. The boys kill- ed the animal before it had a chance to get away. At that time there was a ten-cent bounty on groundhogs. The class took the animal to the store anddthe storekeeper treated them each to a stick of can y. -George Ruedy

Page 67 text:

As be We See lt I GET SHOT A THOUSAND TIMES EACH YEAR I am a repeating rifle, model 61, and made by the Winchester Arms Corporation. I was bought about four years ago in the Amana Store and was given as a present at Christmas. I looked new and shiny then but that was a long time ago. You should see me now! My stock is scratched and my barrel is getting dull. During these years I was taken out in the rain, dropped in the mud, and even taken into a snow storm. One time I was left standing after it had rain- ed on me. I was just getting a fine coat of rust when I was quickly rubbed with oil. My stock was varnish- ed once and I was all sticky and didn't look any bet- ter than before. Most of the time my bore is full of powder and my whole outside is covered with dust. I have also had a lot of fun. Once I was on a squirrel hunt and shot three squirrels. Another time I was on a coon hunt and had to shoot twenty shots into one coon before it finally dropped dead. I have shot a lot of game already and have had a lot of use. I only hope that I will be cleaned soon because I am full of powder and dust. With. good care I should be able to go a few more years. , -Alan l Roemig ' TOUGH BREAK The score was ten to two in favor of my brother's team over mine. Orne player on my brother's team had the ball. He dribbled within seven feet of the basket and then took a shot. The shot was too high and the ball bounced off the back of the basket. It went over another player's head and I just barely managed to reach it. As I got the ball I lost my balance and fell down with a crash and broke my arm. -Charles Hoehnle MY EXPERIENCE WITH A FOX It was a sunny day with about half a foot of snow on the ground when I went fox hunting. The snow was thawing, and as I was walking along there was about a five to ten mile an hour wind facing me. I have heard of many different ways of hunting fox, but this is the one I found out to be true. I did exactly what a friend of mine had told me to do: When you hunt a fox you have to be able to fool him or he will outwit you. A fox on a warm day likes to sun itself, and the only place you will find him doing it is on the south side of a hill where the sun is especially warm. He will lie down and about every five minutes jump up and look around. When you want to get close to the animal you have to have the wind behind y-ou and take a step or so forward when- ever he is lying down. That means when the fox jumps up you will need to be standing motionless. He told me that a fox can't see very well but that he has a very keen sense of smell. He will never see you if you don't move. U I did what this friend had told me and on the south side of a hill I finally saw a fox. He jumped up, then he lay down again. I took a few steps for- ward, but the fox jumped up while I was still walk- ing. I didn't even get a shot at him before he was over the hill. ' THE LAST SNOWFALL There was a snowfall the other day, A most entrancing sight, I must say, Tuo see the flakes come drifting down, And light so gently on the ground. The flakes glittered like stars at night, Or diamonds under a colored light. They were shaped so rare, yet so nice, Even though they were mere crystals of ice. The ground is now covered with a blanket of white, Which glistens so brightly in the moonlight, And I think if you try, that you will see, What this last snowfall meant to me. --Judy Phillips THE BEE A Like the airplane flies the bee, It dives and spins alone. It flies around and gathers things, And then it takes it back home. -Dale Metz WATCH OUT' IT . BI .One day last fall my mother, sister, and I were picking beans to bring in to dry. Suddenly I noticed Mother was acting strange, but I didn't give it much thought. After a while she started shouting at us and telling us to get out of the bean patch, that there was something in it. It sounds like a rattlesnake, but it stays in the same place and keeps up a continuous rattle, she said. My sister and I hurried out of that patch so fast we knocked :over our beans. When my father came home at noon we told him about it, and so he went out to see what it was. ' After about five minutes he came back with a grin from one ear to the other. He told us that someone hadn't turmed the hose completely off and that it was squirting the side of a cabbage plant. -JoAnn Gideon TES! 7 A CHRISTMAS CANDLE A flame A flicker A light A sheen A gleam A halo Melting Smooth Glossy Majestic Slender Solemn Hope Joy Faith Strength Love Memories A -Harvey Jeck I -Florence Oehl, Gladys Shoup

Page 69 text:

Out Of The Past THE OLD ROW BOAT This story was related to me many timesuby the speaker, Josephine. It occurred 52 years ago, in 1002. We lived 'on a farm beside the Des Moines River in Webster County. I, Josephine, was only fourg my sister Sarah, eightg my brother Jess, twog and my cousin J-oe was twelve. It all happened one spring af- ter heavy rains that had filled the river to the banks. When we four children were down by the river, we saw an old row boat come floating along close to the bank. Joe, the oldest of the bunch managed to get the boat ashore. It was leaky, but he plugged most of the holes with rags and then got gallon buckets from the house and began to dip water out of the boat. Joe then made some paddles out of 'old tree limbs. ' After all was finished we decided we would' cross the river. However, while crossing water kept seeping into the boat, and we smaller kids were dipping it out as fast as we could. By the time we were nearly on the far side the boat became so full of water that it began to sink. Joe kept telling us to keep dipping, but we just couldn't keep up with the water and the boat con- tinued to sink. Joe could swim, so finally he jumped into the water and pulled us to shore. He then got the boat ashore and we dipped the water out and fixed it just enough so we could go back to the other side. The next day we walked down to the river to 'see if the boat was still where we had left it, but during the night it had broken loose and drifted away. We never t-old -our folks until years later of what we had done for fear of the punishment we would have received. -Judy Phillips. HICKORY NUTS AND SKUNKS My grandfather's good old days took place near the small town of Swisher in 1889. The dear old school days which he disliked very much were there to stay. About 60 or 70 years ago the schooling was very slim and the boys would go to school only in the cold- er season of the year. When it got warm they would help their fathers on the farm. Like most boys, Grandfather disliked school and would have rather helped his father. One morning he was running along to school with his dog follow- ing behind him. He neared the log cabin school when his dog started to bark at something close to the road on which he was walking. The dog had spotted a skunk and was fighting it. Grandfather said, I got so interested that I forgrot about school and helped my dog with the skunk. After about 30 minutes the skunk had lived its last hour of life, he continued. Just then I realized that the time must be about 9:30 or 10:00 oiclock so I decided to head for home. I took a bath and got clean duds on and started for school again. About 11:00 o'clock Grandfather arrived in school and the schoolmaster asked Johnnie, where have you been? Grandfather, not knowing what to say, answered, I forgot my lunch at home. As the schoolmaster didn't believe that story poor Grandfather had to kneel on hickory nuts in the af- ternoon and had to stay after school to do his work. From that day on Grandfather was determined to let skunks live and save his knees. -Irwin Votroubek ' MISHAP WITH A .SLEIGH When Dad was about six years old he accompanied his mother, aunt, and two -other ladies from Amana on a trip to Norway. Since it was during the winter time they took a two-seated box sled drawn by two horses. To keep the passengers' feet warm plenty of straw was piled in the bottom of the sled and everyone was bundled up in heavy buffalo rvobes. One of the pas- sengers knew how to drive a team of horses, and was put in charge of guiding the sleigh over the very icy and sometimes deep-snow-covered roads. When the driver crossed the bridge spanning Prairie Creek she made the mistake of coming tfoo close to the railing. The sleigh hit the railing, bounced over to the other side of the road, and scattered all the women and the little boy in the deep snow. The horses had become unharnessed in the upset and kept running till they finally came to the Northwestern railroad tracks. At first Dad cou1dn't be found anywhere, but they finally did see him, a large wriggling bundle of buf- falo robes buried deep in the snow. Dad didn't like this situation at all and one of the ladies gave him some paraffin candy hearts so he'd quiet down. A farmer from nearby recovered the horses and the party, shaken up and snow-covered, once more made its way to Norway. . -Helen Sontag OLD FAITHFUL It all happened in the horse and buggy days to my uncle and his horse. One might as he was driving home to Norway from courting his girl he accidently fell asleep. As was the custom in those days he had the reins tied around his wrist and the horse kept on going apparently with-out anyone guiding him. When my uncle finally awoke he found himself parked in front of a farm house he had never seen before. It was then that he started to investigate amd found out he was on a farm near Fairfax where the liofsre had originally come from. This was -one faith- u -orse. -Harlan Geiger HOP-ALONG If my Uncle Dave Evans were still alive I imagine he could have told me a better story than this. I can still remember the time he hold me about this inci- dent, and I thought it was pretty humorous so I will retell it. He began the story by saying, I was a young man in Wales at the time it happened. ' I thought to myself, 'By golly, I think I'll go over to the ne1ghbor's house and see the girls before it gets dark.' Sao I hurried and got my chores done and left. i It was late at night when I came home, so dark, in fact, you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. In order to find my way home I had to follow the fence. , I Came f-0 H sate and th-ought I would jump across it to save time. Not thinking what could be on the other side I jumped over and lit astride something. What was it? At first I couldn't figure out or imagine what it was and d1d.n't find out until the burro let loose with the,m'95'C SCHIIY s-ounding bray. Then I thought the devil had me for sure. 'fThat was the last. time I went out at night for guite awhile. Any visiting I wanted to do I did dur- ing the daytime. -Helen Smith