Athens Area High School - Athenian Yearbook (Athens, PA)

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THE ATHENIAN 5 “He who knows not and knows that he knows not, He is a silly sophomore. Shun him.” There were forty-eight in the class during the second year. We organized the class with President Hugh Litzleman, Vice-President Donald Lurcock, Secretary Miss Ewing, Treasurer Kathryn McClarty. Miss Ewing was our class teacher. We had two Athenian editors, Leon Cooper and Kathryn McClarty. The High School Girls’ Auxiliary was organized this year and the girls did a great deal in helping the Red Cross and other war organizations. This year, for the first time we had Field Day on the Fair grounds. A number of the contestants were from the second year class and we won our share of the laurels. Elizabeth Allis ’20 Third and Fourth Years “He who knows and knows not that he knows. He is a jolly Junior. Wake him.’’ After a pleasant summer vacation we felt like going to work again and came back to school the September of 1918. 1 he class was organized with Leon Cooper as President, Donald Lurcock as Vice-President, Secretary, Mrytle Havens; Treasurer, Miss Hartshorn; and Athenian editors, Raymond Casper and Dorotha Dettra. There were thirty-one students enrolled at the beginning of the year. We were allowed to have two dances that year as the building was about finished and school was no longer held in the gymnasium. We spent a very happy and profitable year with Miss Hartshorn as our class teacher and when school closed in the spring we were looking forward eagerly to our fourth and last year. “He who knows and knows that he knows, He is a wise Senior. Follow him.” When school opened the following fall with an enrollment of thirty-two members, it seemed strange to be called Seniors for it was such a short time ago that we were First Year students, looking eagerly forward to the time when we should be Seniors, that being our greatest ambition. We started the year by electing as President, Raymond Casper; Vice-President, Leon Cooper; Treasurer, Miss Hartshorn; Secretary, Dorothy Stevens, and Athenian editors, Dorothy Stevens and Charles Hunt. We were earning money this year for a trip to Washington in the spring as quite a large number expected to go. Instead of giving a play as had been the custom we served luncheons every Wednesday to the Rotary Club. The class was divided in three groups, each group giving the luncheon one week. We were allowed one dance in the gymnasium from which we earned quite a sum. We also had a supper in the Domestic Science rooms and a benefit at the Morley. Altogether we had a successful year financially as well as in other ways. When the end of the year comes, we will be sorry to leave our school and in our future life we shall often remember and talk about the place where many of our happiest days were spent. Dorothy Stevens ’20. SENIOR CLASS PLANS Everyone is interested in knowing what the Senior Class is planning to do next year. We are glad to say that there are six girls who are going into training for nurses; two girls to Mansfield to take up a Domentic Science course; one to Pennsylvania State College to take up Domestic Science; five girls to Business colleges in Binghamton and Elmira; one girl will teach; one will study music at the Ithaca Conservatory; one enters an office at Sayre; one will take up music at Chicago, and two girls are undecided. Of the boys, five are expecting to enter Mansfield; one, Allegheny College; one goes into automobile business at Detroit, and there are two boys that are undecided.

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4 THE ATHENIAN A PERFECT DAY As our childhood days were carefree and full of frolic, we little thought or heard of high school days. But as we neared the grade where so many make the change, some obtained work, while others prepared for the beginning of a Perfect Day, a day of which they had no vision in their first day of school. The four fleeting years which we have passed together, striving toward one goal (the goal that looked to some so far away, and to others so near) have ended and now comes the end of the Perfect Day. But as we worked together and worked alone, we shared the troubles of one another. Raymond Casper '20. Our Class President was unable to finish this tribute to our school days because of serious illness, but we feel that in these few lines he has expressed our feeling that our close associations in school have been happy and we feel with him that our graduation day is indeed the end of a Perfect Day. “Life is before you!—and as now you stand Eager to spring upon the promised land, Fair smiles the way where yet your feet have trod But few light steps, upon a flowery sod: Round you are youth’s green bowers—and to your eyes, Tho’ horizon’s line but joins the earth and skies, Daring and triumph, pleasure, fame and joy: Friendship unwavering, love without alloy, Brave thoughts of noble deeds, and glory won Like angels, beckon you to venture on.” CLASS MOTTO Our motto is, Our First Concern is Our Country’s Welfare. We have taken advantage of the opportunities that our country offers to us to get an education in high school, and some of us will, undoubtedly, go on to higher institutions of learning in order to be of the greatest aid to our country. With this same principle in view our forefathers founded this wonderful country of ours and made laws for justice to all mankind. Devotion to one’s country is the foundation of all happiness. In every legitimate activity the country stands behind us as a guard to protect us against the evils that may threaten us and to help crush all obstacles in the path of prosperity. In return for all these great privilege she only asks that we play fair and promote everything on the square. Let us all be ready to fulfill, as best we can, whatever duty we are called upon to perform, whether it be to defend our flag in times of oppression, or to promote our country’s welfare in times of peace and prosperity. James Miller ’20. CLASS HISTORY First and Second Years “He who knows not and knows not that he knows not, He is a foolish Freshman. Teach him.” Sixty-three of us landed in high school one bright and sunny morning (for every one but us) and the brighter the sun shone the greener we seemed. We stumbled around the halls, literally fell into the classrooms, only to find we were the laughing stock of some of the students of higher classes who were amused by our mistakes. Our class was not organized but Miss Jenkins was our class teacher and we had two Athenian editors, Elizabeth Allis, and Hugh Winters. The High School building burned February 15, 1915, and we found it necessary to hare school in the church and even with this great loss we did not lose a day of school.

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6 THE ATHENIAN Also, we wish to mention how well the class of 1919 is doing and also the previous classes. There has been a rumor that has been prevalent for several years that graduates of A. H. S. are not allowed to enter any college or normal school. This is a wrong impression as one young man who graduated in the class of 1916 went to Cincinnati University and was transferred to Cornell. The students from last year’s class have gone to different Normal schools and universities. There are three young men in State College: two girls in West Chester; three in Syracuse University; three girls in Columbia; one boy in Temple University. Nearly all the rest of the class of 1919 is doing office work. This is certainly a very good showing, and we hope that the rest of the classes of A. H. S. will do as well as the previous classes, and we are sure they will. Kathryn Birney ’20. SOME PHASES OF HUMOR The humor found the most frequently and commonly in life comes from foibles. We may be curious, vain, and absent minded, or even have a larger share of sentimentality that we can wisely use. All these traits are humorous to others, although we may not be able to see it that way ourselves. We find everywhere a great deal of vanity, of which Mr. Leo Hunter in Pickwick Papers is a striking example. While discussing poetry with several of his acquaintances he was surprised to find that they were not familiar with the fact that his wife was a poet. In order to show them how great his wife’s poetry really was and how she “doted” on poetry, he recites the poem. It commences: “Can I view thee panting, lying On thy stomach, without sighing. Can I unmoved see thee dying On a log, Expiring frog ?” Miss Vanity goes tripping down the street all decked out, looking out of the corner of her eye to see if you are watching. The longer you watch the more humorous it will seem, and I’ll wager before long you’ll laugh. Why ? Because vanity is humorous. What child does not smile, when Grandpa, after searching a long time for his glasses, impatiently exclaims, “Goodness sakes, child, I wish you would find my glasses. I have hunted high and low.” 1 hen the smile grows broader and the eyes wander directly to the shiny head of Grandpa, who seeing the gaze, quickly lifts an investigating hand. Of course he finds his glasses and then he says, “Ch dear, I am so absent-minded.” But neither our vanity or our absentmindedness get us into as much trouble as curiosity sometimes does. “Curiosity killed a cat.” Well it didn’t kill our cat but she had a real sore paw for her inquisitiveness. She was curious to know what a certain basket contained. So quietly approaching it, she thrust her paw in to investigate. Eut when she withdrew it something was attached to her toes. She jumped and scrambled around the room trying to shake the obstacle off, but it would not let go. So I came to her rescue and removed the creature, which proved to be a crab. It amused me to see what the cat’s curiosity led her into. The humor due to foibles is very closely connected with daily life because we are always on the alert to find out other people’s failings and laugh at them. The smiles that they bring to our faces help to make life more cheerful and to drive away the blues. Myrtle Jones ’20. Though satire is usually thought to be bitter, still we have come to associate with it a more human and kindlier meaning. It may be used to bring about reform through kindly ridicule. Bret Harte in his Condensed Novels satirizes authors for their exaggeration in a very humorous manner. Ke shows Cooper’s tendency toward melodrama; for instance.—“The well aimed bullet had done its work. Entering the open throat of the grizzly it had traversed its body only to enter the throat of the California lion, and in like manner the catamount, until it passed through into the respective forehead of the bull and the buffalo, and finally fell flattened from the rocky hillside.”