Berkeley High School - Olla Podrida Yearbook (Berkeley, CA)

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The Wonderful Century and the = 9. Wonderful Class of ' 03. » N 1900, when all the glory of the Century was on every tongue, when Columbia, goddess supreme among nations, had reached a point in progression never yet attained by any other country, when the great Century was passing away in all its magnificence, in that year which rounded to the full the wonderful period whose achievements mark it as superior to any that went before it, there gathered within the walls of the Berlceley High School, a class worthy of the departing Century, one which, on going from the school, was destined, just as the age, which it resembled, not to die, but to live in spirit and its exploits forever in those halls. I do not mind confessing to you that some of us Juniors thought it rather a fitting climax. Certain people in the classes following us were unkind enough to say later that we really never recovered from the idea. But I hope to prove to them that we have been fully juti- fied. Still, comparing our class to our century, we should look first at the inventions of each. In the nineteenth century three distinct methods of locomotion have been originated and brought to a high degree of perfection. They are: the steam car, the steamship, and the application of electrical power. We ' 03 ' s also have new methods of motion — two in number. One we might call Lack-o ' - motion, — for was it not in our time that Mr. James com- menced his endless cry of Move on? The other mear.s is employed in cutting to go to Mason ' s. This inven- tion, though a credit to our brains, was not one to our morals, so we dropped it, and it has lately been used chiefly by the Middlers. This century has, moreover, a few inventions which have the character of quite new departures; since they not only greatly diminish labor, but perform, by mechanical de- vices, operations which had been supposed to be beyond the power of machinery to execute. The more important of these are the sewing machine, the typewriter and the combined reaping, thrashing and winnowing machine. Into a contrivance like the last we each have formed our- selves, and, going through the Library, we have reaped where we cared to, thrashed our material thoroughly, and finally separated what we wanted from what we did not want. By this invention, the Hackley Reaper, Thrasher, and Winnower, each of us, in a short time, can get a result that it has taken before us many people several years to obtain. In the line of communication we also have gone ahead of the century. The history of the progress of communi- cation between persons at a distance from each other has gone through three stages which are radically distinct. At first it was dependent on the voice or on gestures, and word to one far away could only be sent by a messenger. Then writing was introduced, which simplified matters some. But the third stage, when by means of electric signals it was rendered independent of locomotion, is that

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Departure of ' 03 And the toilers still remaining. Glad to leave behind the rulers, Oh, those dreadful, awful rulers! Who had made tliem most unhappy With their laws and rules of conduct. And yet there were some who went out, Who seemed sad at thought of leaving — Thought of all the friends they knew there, Whom they left behind on going; Thought of rulers kind and loving, Who had helped them when they stumbled, Wno had often cheered their toiling, Who had made their sojourn happy In the blessed land Higliskoolum. And they sighed and went out weeping. IRENE GAINES. ' Oa. BERKELEY HIGH SCHOOL

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History Class which has especially distinguished the Nineteenth cen- tury and our class. First came the telegraph, and then the telephone, wonderful themselves, but far surpassed by the wireless telegraphy, which was brought to perfection by us. Two people, who have something interesting to say to one another, obtain two little instruments so per- fectly attuned that on the least desire of either person the bell will ring on the other ' s instrument, or rather the other ' s heart, and they can then communicate. The great success we have had in this is marvelous, and, since this wonderful device has no wires, even the teachers cannot tap them. Means of obtaining fire and supplying light are also branches of invention in which we have obtained remarka- ble results. It needs only elections or contests of any sort in our class to start fire and heat. I assure you they far surpass friction matches. And as to light, we did noc even have to try to give that. We could not help it. Have we not always been a brilliant light, shining on all and forming the star to which our younger sisters and brothers have hitched their carts? One more discovery we have made. Now, listen, Mid- dlers, Juniors, and Scrubs, and follow my advice. When you have Exes take Anaethetics. It will render the most severe operations (after the Ex) painless! Invention and discovery are not the only lines along which we have designed to turn our endeavors. In ath- letics we have always added greatly to the gloiy of the High School. In football Dick McQuesten. though he left us in our Senior year, in the Junior and Middle years brought great honor to the class and the school as a star player. And he, Wink Farrar, and Charlie Monson were not only good football players but crack baseball players too. On the track, also, we have our men, Blakemore, Kyle, and Gaines, all excellent in their lines. In debating and writing we excel. Grace Piatt, our poetess and able editor of the Girl ' s edition of the paper, Harry Sulley, Bessie Magann, and Berthold Hews, all good story writers, are enough to fill our hearts with pride. That is not all, however. There are still our de- baters on this year ' s team, Newhall and Whitney. Our class play, The Good Natured Man, by by Oliver Gold- smith, was one of the best ever produced. But when we consider how very fine the 011a Pod has been, since the editor from our class has had it in charge, our cup of con- tent and happiness has flowed over. I hope, that at last every vestige of doubt, if there could have been any before, is swept away, now and forever. We have made discoveries and inventions fit to be com- pared with those of the century just passed, and about which no previous class ever even dreamed; we have given athletes, debaters and writers to the class and to the world; and last, but not least, we have put forth a body of people fitted in both body and soul to take a part in life ' s drama, and to give renown to Berkeley, to Cali- fornia, and even to the whole United States. Truely,both as regards the number and the quality of their onward ad- vances, the age ' to which we have not long ago said good- bj e, and our class, which is now to break up, fully merit the titles I have ventured to give them, — The Wonderful Century and the Wonderful Class of 1903. K. ELLIOT TROWBRIDGE, ' 03.