Brattleboro Union High School - Colonel Yearbook (Brattleboro, VT)

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OFFICERS OF THE CLASS OF 1922 S. A. S. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MIKADOH HE UT OF CAST UNCIL CO UDENT EST TH

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mands are economically unsound. It is an undisputed fact that wages have been the highest in the history of the industry and that they did not decrease when living costs decreased. C. E. Lesher of Coal Age states that the whole country is pointing 'thumbs down' on every effort to sustain inflation or to prevent deflation. The operators claim it is impossible for them to meet the miners' demands, and they must lower prices. Revenue reports of 1919 show the average profits of 1,518 corporations were between 8 and 9 per cent, but 1919 was one of the best years the industry ever had. The anthracite op- erators claim that recent profits average only 2150.10 per ton. C. E. Lesher claims that when all costs are considered the profit sinks to 4 or 5 per cent. Definite and re- liable figures, except those of the Revenue Bureau previously quoted, are impossible to find, however, as the operators have made it a business not to exhibit facts about costs and profits. That prices must be lowered is more easily proved. British coal has been flowing, at a lower price, into markets thought to be held by American coal, although America produces more coal per man than England does and would therefore seem able to sell coal cheaper than England. ln foreign markets in the future coal must he cheaper. At home the public is clamoring against high prices. The recent publicity given to a report that wage' reductions offered ,anthracite miners would form ,a,basis for future ne- gotiations with a promise of cheaper coal was misleading. A The fight is not won.' The public must not be fooled by such state- ments, for this report apparently grew mushroom-like out of the darkness, no one admits responsibility for it. The public must take initiative in the settlemgnt, but in such a way that the basic troubles of the industry, which have continually caused turmoil, shall be remedied: Some of these difficulties are poor mine management, over- expansion, seasonal demands, lack of rail- road cars at the mines and poor methods of selling. All these matters are elements of waste for which the public must pay. Over- expansion alone costs one million dollars per working day, F. G. Tyron of the U. S. Geological Survey estimates. Further- more, there are 150,000 men in the mines whose labor is not necessary to the coal de- mands of the country. Still more costly and wasteful is the incessant warfare be- tween capital and labor. The supreme im- portance of strike settlement lies in its fu- ture effect upon industrial progress. Congress is investigating the subject, and many plans are before this body for lim- iting and regulating the coal industry, these being, in general, disfavored by operators who fear government ownership, the ad- mitted dream of the union. A commission The tal has been appointed to ascertain important facts which will establish a basis for impar- tial settlement. Eartr must be known first before a settlement can be made. ln review- ing the possible means of such settlement of miners' difhculties, the successful experi- ment, for such it was, of the government in directing the coal mines during war time comes to our minds. Chaos reigned in coal. The railroads confiscated what they carried. lndustrially everything was upturned. lt looked as if the domestic consumer would never get his coal. The government sought the remedy from an engineering view- point. The mines were treated as one vast resource, attention was paid to indi- vidual mine-management, by careful or- ganization cross shipments were avoided. The result was success. Such willingness to cooperate as then existed may not be found at present, but if the coal industry is to be made democratic and the consumer at the same time to be treated justly, coal must be respected as a great entrusted re- source. Another plan now proposed, which has not, however, been tested, is that of, licensing mines. By this plan only eco- nomical mines would be permitted to oper- ate and over-expansion would be elims inated. M, Taken all in all, the coal industryqpre- sents an intricate maze of problems through which we cannot expect to work without clear vision and a de- our way termined spirit. The United States has be- gun to troubles, realize the seriousness ,of coal and thinking citiiens andfstates- men are seeking justice foriall, not merely satisfaction for themselves. What is most needed in the industry is true democracy and a square deal based on a knowledge of facts. --PHILIP H. WHEELER. CLASS HISTORY l A FRESHMAN YEAR 0 ,V Without seeming to boast of 'our own importance, we shall try to set forth in modest terms the achievements as well as the interesting events connected with our four years' course in B. H. S. There are many memories that we shall cherish of the happy days we have spent here, but perhaps one which stands out more than any other is our first day in Brattleboro High School. On a beautiful September day, one hundred sixty curious, eager, frightened Freshmen entered the portals of that sanctum sanctimonium of all placesABrattleboro High School. We were assigned to different rooms and as each little group of friends became separ- ated our spirits and courage sank lower. At last schedules and classes were arranged and we were able to look about us and make remarks upon the amiability of our teachers as well as their personal appear- 11 ance. Then when we were beginning to recover a little of our bravado the awful summons of assembly came to us. What a panic it caused! Meekly we allowed our- selves to be led to the slaughter. Our first glimpse of assembly showed us a sea of moving faces. At our appearance the upper classmen showed their appreciation of us by clapping their hands and shouting. It was very nice of them, but tosay the least it was very embarrassing. It was right then and there that the class of ,ZZ showed its own particular independence. In accord- ance with tradition, we should have turned green or at least appeared to be green. ln- stead of this all of us turned a very bril- liant red and rpshed to the nearest seats. Shall we ever iforget how Lyman Adams looked? Lyman, blushing a deep crimson, gave one Wild glance at us, which seemed to say- every man for himself -and then rushed to the nearest seat where he suc- cumbed. It was the first and only time that Lyman succumbed to anything or anybody. A short time after this we elected our class officers. They were: Philip Wheeler, president, Laura Hoadley, vice-president, Helen Manley secretary, George Shea, treasurer, and Mildred Greenwood, assist- ant-treasurer. ,One of 'tliefitimleasant 'surprises we had during our Freshman year occurred on the 11th of November, 1918, After the first period we were called to the Main Room, where it, was announced by Mr. Warren that Germany had signed the armistice and the War of Nations waspat an end. Never before or ,since has any news been received in that assembly hall with such shouts of joy and such applause. We were dismissed for an hour to celebrate this great event. and marched returning to up, we were B. H. S. formed a parade down Main Street. After school, when the hour was dismissed for the day. VVe immediately started out to paint the town red, Fresh- men in the lead. An event of almost equal importance, occurred Dec. 6. This was the day that we celebrated the annual Freshman party in the Odd Fe1low's Temple. The upper class- men gave us a babyparty, which was sup- posed to represent our coming out party. The Seniors gave 'a short play, L M. SMART. We enjoyed the play and the dance which followed immensely. We felt right at home with those big seniors who, for some unknown reason, seemed to have lost their dignity, when they had assumed their baby clothes. In February Mr. Warren read us the play, Nathan Hale. I am sure that every Freshman boy present believed himself to be a Nathan Hale. Some of us were lucky enough to be able to take part in the school play. Howard Rice, Merrill Coleman, Kathleen Sercombe, Kinson Doak, Allen

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Brackett, Helen Manley and Laura Hoad- ley took the parts of school children in Nathan Hale. Our class was represented in another activity, that of athletics. We did not exactly shine in that line of work, but in the Cross Country run, which took place in the Fall, Robert Winchester came in 14th, and William Moreton, our presi- dent, finished 15th. As June approached, through Mr. War- ren's thoughtful kindness and sincere in- terest in us, we came to realize that Life is not all play. We Were all very fortunate in having a man of such character to ad- vise us. June came and with it the last day of school-that day of all days when your classmates promise to write to you during the vacation and then send you only one picture postcard during the whole summer. Although we were glad to welcome our vacation we were also very proud to think that we were Sophomores. Two things, however, we learned during our Freshman year which We have never forgotten: first, that X-i-y:z, and second, that school spirit is one of the most splendid things in the World. LAURA HOADLEY. SOPHOMORE YEAR On September 3, 1919 we were able to enter the portals of B. H. S. with uplifted heads and dauntless eye, for then we began our career as full fiedged Sophsl No longer did we look with downcast eye as we felt those glances of the upper classmen rest for a moment upon us, and then turn to some object more worthy of their time and attention. Oh! what were those words like music in our ears: Please, will you tell me where Room F. is? Would you please explain this class program to me? VVith heartfelt sympathy for these poor un- fortunates, we gladly smoothed out their troubles, for had we not been in their plight once? Yes, at last we were 99 eager Sopho- mores, and were beginning a new school year. This year we welcomed as new teach- ers Miss Piggot and Messrs. Crosby, Lee, and Holmes, whom we felt sure we would like. The old saying proved true, the first impression was a lasting one. As Sophs we bequeathed our closely guarded class color, green to our younger cousins,,and ourselves inherited blue. Al- though our elders saw fit still to play jokes upon us, we decided that we liked blue much better. V In order to help us bear onward the honor of our class we chose as oflicersg President, Philip Wheeler, Vice-President, Laura Hoadleyg Secretary, Marion Laugh- tong Treasurer, Howard Riceg Assistant Treasurer, Ethel Irish, and were amply re- TEIJB tal warded by the untiring efforts of these ofhcers. The Freshman Party, held at Odd Fel- low's Temple, proved a great success due to the enjoyable comedy Freshmen Fol- lies, written by Helen Miller '20. How well it recalled to us our first day in High School! We laughed heartily too at the last part of the performance, written by Arthur Barrett '20, presenting a group of colored janitors who sang songs and told jokes. Many of the advanced pupils in French now began to enjoy the privilege of writ- ing to French correspondents, and how important we felt at being able to read to our neighbor a letter written in French. We had not yet wholly put aside our childish days, for one morning B. H. S, harbored a veritable kindergarten class of girls who Wore their hair in curls tied with big bow-ribbons. In February 1920, '22 made its debut be- fore B. H. S. in the form of a party given by our class in honor of the Seniors. The evening's entertainment was in the form of a play Our Awful Aunt, and little did We or our elders realize what talent had been hidden in the erstwhile green freshies. Shall we ever forget Aunt Matilda and hen amberil ? The school play, Rose o' Plymouth Town proved a great success and was very interesting, as it pictured the early colonial times and customs. The various parts were very well taken and the actors showed fine ability in depicting characters. Later the High School chorus gave the can- tata, Ioan of Arc, by Gaul. The chorus was seated on specially constructed tiers of seats arranged in a semi-circle on the stage. Shall we ever forget those spe- cially constructed tiers of seats ? I know I shall never forget the dizzy heights we had to climb in order to sit in the tier that had been designated 'for us. Although we were continually prodded by the knees of the next higher row, we sang our part, and felt that the cantata was a success. During our Sophomore year B. H. S. proved herself champion in many of her sports, We were proud of our school, which shared with Rutland the honor of being classed as the best school in Vermont in athletics. The football season of '19 closed-with our boys capturing the Connect- icut Valley Championship. We had for three successive years succeeded in defeat- ing every opponent with one exception, when, through a hard struggle, a college team, the Massachusetts Aggies, came out ahead. Success was also added to the hon- or of our schoool during the baseball and basketball seasons, our basketball team capturing fifth place in the Franklin Coun- ty League. To overflow her well filled cup of success B. S. won the Interscholastic I3 Championship Cup at the meet at Burling: ton and the Invitation Track Meet held here, The year 1920 sped rapidly by and final examinations loomed in the horizon. But why worry?fWe had successfully passed through mid-years, and the courage given us then, expressed in the words of our classmate Frank O'Brien, guided us through our last trial in Sophomore life: Some poets sing of the springtime, Some poets sing of the fall, V But no one sings of the mid-year time, The most wonderful time of all. So, looking forward to September when 'we should be Juniors, we happily finished our Sophomore career. -EVELYN AUSTIN. JUNIOR YEAR The junior year was a Renaissance period in our High School course. We had put away childish things. We had found grown up studies and activitiesg our in- terests were broadeningg we had come to a dearer love for B. H. S. We were upper classmen now. The class of '22 chose for its class offic- efis: President, William Moreton, vice- president, Helen Woodworthg Secretary, Ruth Fredricksong treasurer, Richard Galeg and assistant treasurer, Dorothy Miller. These officers guided us wisely through a successful year, At the beginning of our Junior year, the Honor Society was adopted. The school had always recognized in many ways her athletic heroes but perhaps had not done justice to those engaged in other activities, which required as much effort and earnest school spirit. This honor system provided fair recognition for the student's varied talents which were being directed toward the needs of the school. Our class was very proud of her three class members, Laura Hoadley, Howard Rice, and Philip Wheeler, distinguished for scholarship, services on the DIAL Board, in the school play, and as class officers, who Won their coveted B's during their junior year. On September seventeenth the annual Freshman Party was held at Island Park. Many of the members of our class took part in the performance called, The Mystery of the Dark Cloud. What mysti- fied us was how this remarkable dramatic presentation could be produced in so short a time, and with such artistic finish and complete costume and stage effect. On February twenty-four and twenty- five the High School presented the delight- ful modern comedy, Green Stockings. This was a great success. We were proud to be so well represented with three mem- bers of our present Senior Class taking major parts and showing histrionic ability, Philip Wheeler as Mr. Farady, Laura