Central High School - Aglaia Yearbook (Manchester, NH)

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IANUARY AGLAIA OF THE ORACLE 9 You Spare A Dime becoming the leading vocal cry. Composed during the depression, you can readily see-those of you who are well acquainted with its words, that it cer- tainly must have been inspired by the bank- closings, money hoardings, and even the piti- ful sight of ragged men selling apples on street corners. Occasionally it was sung with bitterness, but it conformed itself more close- ly to the American spirit on the occasions when it was spoken with humor, mirth sus- tained under hard conditions. For the boon of the decade, we would naturally be obliged to return to the old ditty, My God, How The Money Rolls In-but we all are certain that during aperiod of easy money, the spirit of the day was in Makin' Whoopee. As the former expressed the economic joyfulness, so did the latter express spiritual recklessness. In the late twenties a new source for popular songs arose, those written as theme songs for the talking pictures whose purpose was mainly to aid lovers and Sweethearts. The general effect was to create self-pity and lament about life. Helen Kane, a pert little vaudeville singer, achieved her fame by in- serting meaningless syllables such as boop- a-doop here and there in her song. In accepting so far as you can my theory that popular songs are inspired by the spirit of the day, why not analyze the connection between our up-to-date songs and the spirit of our era? Do not listen to these hit tunes without thinking about them. Have an in- quiring mind concerning their economic and social background. In other words, sing and be happy, but know what you are singing about. RUTH BROWN FEET Ballet feet, Hat feet, Chinese feet, big feet, small feet--there are so many feet of different types' and characters. The tall, skinny girl has long, bony feet, and she toes in selfconsciously when she walks. The football hero has large broad feet and some- times a few hammer toes for decoration. The society charity ball sponsor has short, fat feet, which she squeezes into black satin opera pumps two sizes too small and which look painfully uncomfortable and top-heavy. Of course there are the Astaire-Rogers mil- lion dollar feet. Then there are the campus feet-unshapely but by far the most content. PRISCILLA LAFLAMME RENDEZVOUS Elusive and intangible, a moonbeam walked through the dark paths of night, bringing peace to earth men. It tinted the leaves of the quivering aspen with silver and glided among the rushes at the lower end of a lake, revealing a doe and her fawns. It rested on the ripples of the water, then shed its light on the figure of a solitary man sitting on the beach. It caressed the night

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4 , WZ, ,, 8 JANUARY AGLAIA or THE ORACLE THE TENTH MAN As summer comes to start the fire Of baseball's annual show, As placid humans choke with ire And feel their senses go, I drink a toast to the man in blue, The umpire, if you please- He's just a guy like you or you And not a hunk of cheese. In know you think he's dumb and blind, ' But before you raise a howl, Consider your state of mind- Perhaps that was a foul. And if you still would climb his frame And claw him into bits, Remember that the ump is game And handy with his mitts. RONALD E. STILLMAN TO LISTEN OR NOT TO LISTEN Have you ever taken a casual glance at the members of a congregation in a small rural church during even the most interest- ing services? If you have, you have probably noticed that a goodly number have found diversions other than listening to the minis- ter. As the sermon starts about ten members take off their glasses and begin to remove imaginary dirt. Having made sure that his are clean, the church treasurer begins to count the collection and catch up on the church records, while a young Sunday School teacher makes out papers for her class. Mean- while, the choir director is picking out the music for the next week and two male mem- bers of the choir are fighting it out to see who is the checker champion. The rest of the choir is reading or passing notes as is a goodly number of the congregation. A stately looking gentleman near the back of the church scans the choir and scowls. Having succeeded, he changes his position, puts his head against the back of the hard seat, and in a few minutes does not know what is happening around him. He is rudely awakened shortly, however, as a bevy of damsels seated in back of him giggle at a picture which they have just drawn. Sudden- ly the gaze of everybody turns toward a late comer as he tip-toes down the aisle to a front pew, and later, toward an usher who is struggling to open the window. The 'whole of the attention is then turned toward the minister as he finishes his sermon, and then, as if on signal, everyone clears his throat. As the service ends, all the inattentive mem- bers rush to the door to be the first to con- gratulate the minister. I wonder if it would not be better if all of them took the hint of the anonymous Writer who says: The Worst wheel of the cart makes the most noisef' MERVIN LOXTON IAZZ AND THE SPIRIT OF THE DAY Your hit parade is on the air! Are you a faithful follower of this weekly radio pro- gram? Do you write the names of the three most popular songs of the week on a penny post card and send them to station WBL? You, too, may be another jazz-lover, but have you ever wondered what inspired musicians to create this gay, frivolous rythm? Well, my theory is contained in the fact that popular songs are inspired by the spirit of the day. Truly, we find from time to time vocal outbursts which have a real signifi- cance in reflecting the spirit, customs, man- ners, and moral ideals of the times. We might take for our overture the song Smiles, written in 1917, followed by My God How The Money Rolls In. Both songs had a direct and intended relation to the times- but with the panic of 1929 their exuberant popularity ended with a crashing finality. Regardless of this disaster, jazz continued with the universally familiar Brother, Can

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10 IANUARY AGLAIA OF THE ORACLE into almost unbearable beauty, and the man spoke softly. ' Moonbeam, I suppose that idealism is a stage that everyone goes through. Some of us build our thoughts so high that nothing can touch them, and others come tumbling down almost as soon as they are erected. The foundations of some of our ideals are firm, those ofothers are built on earth-work no stronger than your light. Mine are still strong. That's why I'm sitting here enjoying the beauty you have made. After reading An Apology for Idlers, I feel more than justi- fied in doing so. No answer. You know, Moonbeam, you might be one of us. One of us idealists, I mean. You've a never-ending job on your hands just as we have. No matter how much lovli- ness you make tonight, your old cousin, Sun, will change it all with a few strong charges from his sun-ray machine. We build our loveliness too, and after repeated shots from practicalness we're done for a day. But we come back, and sometimes we Win. That's why I feel rather sorry for you, Moonbeam, something bigger than yourself controls you. Father Moon is taking you away already. It's dark now, but 'Out of the night that covers me, Black as a pit from pole to pole I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul' H. BARBARA BURNS THAT DREADED MOMENT Being called down to the ofhce is noth- ing unusual, and experiences similar to this one are probably not uncommon. The telephone rings during English class and everybody glances up to see who is a public enemy now. After answering the tele- phone the teacher turns around, and with a shock you find that YOU are the victim as she' says, You are wanted at the P. A. Unite- You're out of your seat and ready to dash. -at the end of the period. In your seat you try to think back. Gee, what have I done now? I didn't skip any classes and I wasn't late. I bet I know, that teacher must have seen me reading the paper during that speech in assembly today. No, it can't be that. What in the world can it be? You glance at the clock and figure out that there are still eighteen whole minutes to Wait. Since it is perfectly obvious that you are not paying attention to the class work, the teacher asks you to continue reading. Your friends try to help by telling you that the place is on the next page. A great help- theretare only six paragraphs to choose from. After wasting a few more precious seconds in deciding which one to read, you take your chance on the last. lust your luck, it was the Hrst. The teacher, who has reason to be disgusted, tells you to report in Room 3 at 1:45. With the best of your ability you try to concentrate. The ticking of the clock tempts you to give it one more look. Iust one minute to go. It seems like three. The bell finally rings. You elbow your way out, but your pace slackens as the awful thought comes to you. At last you think. Mr. McLaren must have seen you leave school bounds at recess. Gee whiz, if I ever get expelled-1. You pivot around for another drink at the fountain to delay the dreaded moment. What will Mother and Dad think of me? Honestly, I'll never go near Bill's Lunch again. You Hnd yourself just ten steps from the outer door. You gather up all your courage but really you know you look as if you were doomed for the guillotine. Face to face with the submaster-your heart has really stopped now. Mr. McLaren looks up and says, The Red Cross would like to have you help with their Roll Call in Ward Z. SOPI-IIE PINSKA