Barre High School - Barretone Yearbook (Barre, MA)

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THE BARRETONE 7 As she entered the store, a clerk came forward. “What can I do for yon, Madam?” he asked with a smile on his face. “I am looking for a present for my brother. I saw the disjday in the window and I thought a necktie would he the thing.” The clerk took several boxes from a shelf be- hind him. “Here is a nice bright, cheery one, suitable for a young man,” said the clerk, holding up a tie of red and silver stripes, a most gaudy affair. “That is rather pretty and he is a young man but I don’t want to take the first thing I see.” said Mrs. Brownell. ' Pile clerk showed her many other ties of gay. drab and medium shades. To most of them Mrs. Brownell shook her head. Gradually the smile wore off the clerk ' s face. A look of disgust ap- peared in its plaice as Mrs. Brownell suddenly exclaimed. “I guess I will take the first one you showed me.” Ruth Mann, ' , 2. A DAY AT BARRE FAIR I ' he first impression one gets as he enters Barre Fair is a confusing medley of sounds. He can hear the lowing of cattle, the buzz of the police- man ' s motorcycle, the cry of the balloon man and fruit vender, the whirr of machinery from the ex- hibition hall, and the excited voices of the throng which j)resses eagerly forward to see the sights. If he goes the first morning he will hear much noise from the direction of the grandstand. It is made by the loyal high school students, who have come to cheer their athletic teams on to victory and ])o.ssession of the athletic cu]). Incidentally they are com])eting for the cheering cup and their rival costumes make a bright splash of color on the fairgrounds. Most ])eo])le like to go to the e.xhibition hall first. There they see products of agriculture and machinery, wonders in sewing, cooking, and art. It is a most interesting sight and offers a s])lendid variety of entcrtiainment. After looking at the exhibits, one usualh ' trav- els through the midway or main thoroughfare. Here he finds “chance” booths, lunch tents, ex- ])erts ( .• ' ) in palmistry, novelty booths, amusement tents, a sideshow, merry-go-round, ferris-wheel. and chair-swing. It is really intensely exciting to watch them all ! Many people come to see the horse shows and races. There is much entertainment in this as well as ])rofit for the winners of the competitions. There is always a vaudeville at the fair, and one can enjoy the mischief of the clowns and the breath-taking stunts of the trapeze performers to his heart ' s content. .■ t night there is a grand dis])lay of fireworks. I ' hey make a noise as loud as a cannon’s and light up the sky with the hues of a rainbow. . s the visitor leaves the fair-grounds, tirei. sleej)} ' and sunburned from tbe day’s exertions, the last things he sees are the fairy-like lights of the ferris-wheel and merry-go-round. However, he is (juite willing to leave them all for the com- forts of a warm bed and joyful anticipation of the glorious time next year’s fair will bring. M. L. T.. ’.kb SPEAKING A PIECE Public si caking has started in your school and you are among the first to speak. You spend many hours memorizing } our piece. Your ]:)rinci- jial announces the order of the si)eakers for Fri- day and you find that you are last on the list. I ' riday morning comes and you try very hard to apjiear at ease, but your nervousness is over- powering. The auditorium is filled with nearly two hundred students and you begin to feel verv queer, as soon as you enter the hall. ' ou and your classmates, who are also to speak sit in the front row always reserved for the speakers and cheer leaders. During the opening exercises, you fumble with your pa])er and try very hard to regain your ease. It is all in vain, ’ou grow more and more ner- vous as the others declaim. Finally, after what seems months of waiting, you hear the principal call your name. ; s you mount the steps to the platform, you stumble, and a strange feeling comes over you. Everything is blurred and misty. You nod to the lirincijial and faculty, who are seated on the ])lat- form. I ' hen, with a feeling of dread in your heart, you face the student body. .A heavy mist gathers be- fore your eyes. ' Ani hesitate, trying to think of the first line. ' ou start to speak, but your voice seems small and faint. Finally, the mist clears and you sjieak the rest of your jiiece with the vi or of a small boy catching his first large fish. Then, the last words are .s])oken and you leave the platform, amid a burst of applause from the

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6 THE BARRETONE LITERARY THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT Is it the turkey, pudding, sauce, and pie That stirs the Christmas spirit o’er the earth? ’ith gorgeous gifts must we forever try To celelmate the little Christ Child ' s birth? Is it the tree so tow ' ring and so tall. Decked out with ornaments of every hue? Or do the dainty parcels at its foot Breathe forth our Christmas message true? Ah, no, ’tis none of these mere earthly things. Which please us only for a little while. It ' s bringing cheer and greetings glad to all •And sharing festal joys, however small. It’s spreading Christmas tidings far and near That makes this day the best of all the year, Gladys Abbott, ' dO. AT MARKET THE DAY BEFORE CHRISTMAS Oh, the excitement and bustle of marketing the day Iiefore Christmas, hat intense mystery is in the air, and what a busy sense of preparation the hurried shoppers convey as they rush frantically from one store to another! All one needs to join their ranks is a huge mar- ket basket, a long list of toothsome articles for the Christmas dinner, an ample purse, and an over- developed sense of ambition. Then he may draw his warmest coat tightly about him, pull his cap firmly over his ears, grasp his market basket fer- vently. and stej) briskly out into a cold, raw De- cember day, probably characterized by thin, sting- ing flakes of falling snow. However uninviting the weather, one finds the Christmas spirit of his fellow-shoppers unchanged. All are rea:ly with friendly smiles or cheery Christmas greetings as they hurry along the crowded streets, their arms piled high with bun- dles and their market baskets filled to the brim with all the delicious luxuries of Christmas. Even the little wreaths that are hung in the windows cjiie passes emit a friendly. Christmas ghiw. and the jollv, rubicund face of the rotund .Santa Claus on the ' corner reflects all the joyful anticipations one had when he leaned without doubt upon the miraculous generosities of that kindly Christmas saint. When one reaches the crowded and active mar- ket. it seems the goal of all his hungry longings. There he sees wonderful fat turkeys, luscious red cranberries, graceful, white celery, wholesome jiumpkins. turnips and squashes, and ai)petizing foods of all descriptions. He tries to elbow his way through the anxiously waiting throng, and. if successful, he may soon be shouting the contents of his lengthy list into the attentive ears of the tired clerk who hurries to serve him. Later he hurries homeward through the cling- ing snow, his basket filled and his mind at ])eace with the world. Upon his brain is stamped a hap- ])v, jumbled impression of persons. Traces, and things, which, however ordinary they may actually be. certainly contribute to that indefinite thing we call the Christmas “feeling.” Mary Louisa Taylor. ’.C PURCHASING A NECKTIE It was the morning of December twenty-fourth that Mrs. Brownell took her flour-begrimed hands out of the dough that she was mi.xing. A thought that had been troubling her for weeks again came to h.er. What would she buy for her brother’s Christmas present? Again the only answer that came to her mind was. “Get him a necktie.” When her holiday baking was finished, she went downtown, keeping in mind the fact that she •.addn’t siiend too much money. She walked down Main street, glancing into the shoj) windows for ideas, yet all things were either ])riced toi high or would not be a suitable present for her brother. She gave uj) all hope of finding any- thing different when she saw a display of gaily- colored neckties in a small shop window.

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8 THE BARRETONE student body. Then and there, you vow that you would rather write a hundred essays than speak a l iece before the whole school. Hester Chisholm, ’32. “A TALE OF TWO CITIES” VS. “TIDE OF EMPIRE” In comparing these two novels I will first take up the characters. The traits of Dickens’s characters are, tor the most part, brought out in conversation, while conversation and action combine to develop Kyne’s characters. For almost every character in “The Tale of Two Cities a similar one may be found in the “Tide of Empire.” Dermod D’Arcy, son of Erin, who has come to establish himself in California, is the hero. To me his character stands out more distinctly than either that of Carton or of Darnay. The heroine. Josej ha Guerrero, is more inde])endent and active than Lucy. In this story Carton has two parallels. One is Obadiah Pop])y. a Bostonian jn-eacher whose weakness is rum. but who before the end of the story reforms himself; the other. Sir Humphrey “Bart O’Shea, a former captain in the Medical Corps of the Brit- ish XMvy. He refrains from drinking during the smallpo.x epidemic and saves a number of lives. However, he himself, finally falls victim to the disease and is totally blinded. B. Jabez “Be- jabers ’ Harmon, the jailer who is introduced as the saddest figure in the world is similar to IVIr. Lorry. Like Mr. Lorry he was business-like and gentle, yet unlike Mr. Lorry he had a cjuick wit which he used to the greatest advantage. A widow. Marge Minturn, compares with Miss Pross. Barsad and Cly may be compared to Rom- auldo Guerrero. Joseph’s half-brother, and Alvah Cannon. . ny of the Dons, who are all poor busi- ness men. resemble Mr. Stryver. This leaves only Mine. Defarge. Monsieur Defarge, the Vengeance. Dr. Manette. and Jerry Cruncher unparalleled. With the exception of Madame Defarge and Sid- ney Carton. I think the characters of the “Tide of Empire stand out more distinctly than those of the “Tale of Two Cities. Dicken s ' s main plot is not reached until the fif- teenth chajiter. while that of Kyne’s is evident in the third chapter. Yet once begun, the movement of Dickens ' s tale is very fast. His climax is care- fully approached and is better than that of Kvne’s. which to my mind is poorly planned. Numerous sub-plots in Kyne’s tale are very interesting and provide the reader with many amusing incidents. In his story Dickens gives us an excellent view of both London and Paris at the time of the Erench Revolution. His descriptions of the times leave a distinct picture or impression in the read- ers’ minds. California at the time of the gold-rush is Kyne’s setting. The peacefulness and beauty of California before the discovery of gold and the rampage caused by this discovery constitute Kyne’s main descriptions. The historical basis of Dickens’s story is true, while Kyne has intermingled true incidents and characters with those of his own manufacture. In Kyne’s story one happening seems to me im- probable. It is during an epidemic of smallpo.x in Happy Camp when Miss Josepha Guerrero aided the stricken. Unvaccinated and in contact with the diseased every day, Miss Guerrero was not even stricken, although about three-fourths of the town’s population had passed away. Pathos abounds in both novels; Dickens’s tale, however, leads. Kyne has a large abundance of humor to even up matters. Dickens uses similes and metaphors a great deal. Eoreshadowing and suspense are found in his “Tale of Two Cities’’ and serve really as interest-builders. In Kyne’s story no foreshadowing and similes or metaphors worth mentioning can be found. Dickens, therefore, is the more artistic author. Dickens ' s purpose in writing his “Tale of Two Cities” was to portray the wrongs of the op- pressed French jieople, the care-free manner of the nobles, the horrors of the Revolution, and the great love man can have for his brethren. In his story Kyne showed the hardships of the miner of ' 49, showed that even the worst man can Iietter himself, showed how civilization ruined a peacefulness which is known only to those who have no enemies and dwell in a land of plenty, surrounded by their dear ones. Henry J. Puchalsky. ' 31.