Cerro Gordo High School - Gordian Yearbook (Cerro Gordo, IL)

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broke an ankle. Because we were always boisTerous, one esTeemed Teacher deTermined To alTer our naTures. We were inTormed in a deTen- Tian aTTer school ThaT we girls playing leap Trog were hardly puTTing on a ladylike exhibiTion. The same Teacher had made us all shake in our booTs when she roared aT The poor Tellow who had The hiccoughs. And Thrills oT Thrills when The Teacher came in The room wiTh a belT in hand which he had Taken Trom his panTs To whip a boy. A new sTudenT who made a Timely debuT during The lull enTerTained us wiTh such anTics as swinging over our heads and under our noses. a dead sparrow Tied To a sTring. l-le would also make groTesque Taces while pre- Tending To sliT his ThroaT or cuT oTT his ears wiTh a pockeT kniTe. We were always an aThleTic group, roller skaTing, sledding, playing whipcracker. and swinging ouT'wiTh calloused hands Trom The merry-go-round. The girls even goT down on hands and knees and engaged in marble Tourna- menTs. The TirsT day oT May was almosT as good as ChrisTmas: we'd all Trudge down To The violeT paTch, spend The evening making baskeTs and Then aTTer dark sTealThily Till Them Trom The neighbors' choice Tlowers. SomeTimes we Took Their Tlowers and leTT onions and dandelions which were a sign oT scorn. All The Teachers were aware oT our mischievous na- Tures and were parTicularly disgusTed when we explored The aTTic. Class was oTTen broken up by The wail oT ThoT old organ in The aTTic and pound- ing TeeT overhead. One, hoping To scare us. locked us in. BUT aTTer a delayed exiT on our parT, she came aTTer us and we hid Trom her among The huge chimneys and in The cupolas. lT's a panicky Teeling To run Tram a Teacher. ' We belonged To all The organizaTions--MoTher's Jewels. King's l-lerald. and Girl ScouTs. ATTer The meeTings oT The laTTer we would sere- nade and heckle Those oT The TaculTy who had, in our opinion. deserved vengeance. NighT oT nighTs was graduaTion evening. Boys sTiTF in whiTe Trousers, girls resplendenT in sTarched organdy--all waiTing wiTh held breaThs Tor The Legion awards. Our rural pupils didn'T deTracT Trom our enviable record. They were painTing all The liTTle whiTe school houses red wiThin a radius oT eighT miles Trom Cerro Gordo. They hid in The culverT unTil Their Teacher had gone home and Then pilTered The school house. There was a Triendly old cow which The pupils plied wiTh orange peels and bread crusTs. The cow musT have been a specTacle rearing down The pasTure wiTh sacks on her horns and colored sTring Tied To her Tail. Bob McCarTney. by repeaTed shavings. was able To coax ouT Three whiskers. Bill ArmsworTh had all The appear- ance oT a lady's man and early learned ThaT girls love To have passes made aT Them wiTh Tishworms. The CiscoiTes were held gaping aT Dick Remmer's Tales abouT his numerous greaT uncles. Mary Blick used To have a yen Tor slim boys, buT she's changed, Too. Mary Helen l-liser was breaking The records Tor volubiliTy and is sTill seTTing new records. These are buT a Tew oT The Tomily skeleTons. Perhaps They'll drag TorTh a Troop oT oThers To amuse you-ghosTs, especially memory ghosTs. love company. 52

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GRADE SCHOOL RAREBITS Those TirsT eighT years oT our school liTe were giddy and happy and so disillusioning when we look aT ourselves now. Our TirsT grade Teacher musT have made a propheTic TorecasT oT a TuTure oT swing, Tor The rhyThm band assembled daily. We ThoughT The rhyThm band was grand and especially envied The Tambourine player, who happened To be Corinne WolTT. The drum was oll righT, Too, unTil someone sTuck his TooT in iT, and iT had To be discarded. MosT oT us TirsT graders were conscious almosT To The exTenT oT conceiT oT our TooTwear, and reading class was oTTen inTerrupTed because a wise Teacher knew Time could be saved if The new shoes were given a liTTle aTTenTion. We oll regarded Corinne WolTF wiTh awe, Tor she used words like encyclopedia and expressed a desire To beauTiTy herself wiTh Treckle cream. ' Meanwhile our counTry Triends were also making The news: Doris Myers sTood in The corner wiTh her nose in a ring: l-lelen Clow, when ad- vised To simpliTy her number problems by counTing The caTs, hesiTaTed because she ThoughT The number mighT be increased by a loT oT liTTle ones when she wenT home ThaT evening. l-lerby RoberTs, according To oTher sources, was a TaT, girl-shy boy. l-le's changed Though. BeTTy STeele was learning ThaT alThough The Teacher was her aunT, she had no Tamily peTs when anyone copied. When one looks aT an early group picTure, his memory reacTs mirTh- Tully. Reid Voelcher was quiTe The Don Juan. Girls vied wiTh each oTher To siT by him and even cried To sTand by him in class picTures. OTher recol- lecTions are Those oT Emily Grove's baggy kneed socks, BeTTy WigTon's blousing bloomers, and Corinne's exposed shimmy shirT. BUT we've changed and-Then we haven'T. Corinne sTill grumps abouT her Trecklesg buT Treckle Taced, runTy Lil Leach has pushed The bangs ouT oT her eyes and become The school siren. ln The second grade The day was always sTarTed by marching around The room while Miss Mamie pumped on a wheezy old organ. Each li++Ie sTudenT had a placard on his desk bearing his Tull name which remained There Till he knew who he was. We even had sewing lessons and pieced miniaTure quilTs. Twice a day we Tiled on TipToe over To The big building, which was Then The high school and six upper grades, and moisTened our whisTles. There we scraTched our iniTials on a TrosTy painTed window. The ouTsTanding accomplishmenT in The second grade was a noTebook in which we counTed To a Thousand, adding TiTTy or so daily. Then The book- leTs were hung in a Trieze around The blackboard, and appropriaTely com- plimenTed by oll visiTors. The highlighT oT The Third grade was The breaking up oT a noTe-wriTing gang by The lady PinkerTon. Each Ii++Ie sinner was summoned ouTside The door To conTess and, we hope, To repenT. We were in The TourTh grade when a disTincT Type oT shoe wiTh Tan uppers and black paTenT leaTher boTToms was iusT The Thing. Knee socks worn Then weren'T TlaTTering To healThy calves. The school yard was large and roomy, and The more advenTuresome hid liTTle noThings in The hollow sTumps and made ouT Treasure maps. We played iail in The ash piT and slid down The Tire escapes unTil Naomi Moore Sl

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STUDY HALL BACKGROUND IT's hard To sTudy in an ordinary TirsT hour bu+ band pracTice makes iT aImosT an impossibiIiTy. All inTenTions To concenTraTe are broken when noTes, rhymThic as The iungle beaT. hold your mind Tense in a powerful grip. IT carries you away To a Throbbing land oT sound which only a bell can shaTTer-buT, IeT The band speak Tor iTseITI FirsT a soTT and genTIe Tingle Like The rain drops on The shingle: Then a sTop-all noTes drop, NexT iT soTTIy sTarTs again Like waTer boiling in a pan: Now begins a merry Trill Like a crickeT in a mill: Soon The Tones grow loud and wide As The rising OT The Tide: WiTh .iT comes a sTeady cIaTTer Like The maid when sTirring baTTer: O'er The music comes a change Every Tone is wild and sTrange: LisTen To The IoTTy Tumbling, I-Iear The mumbling, Tumbling, iumbling Like The rumbling and The grumbling 3 l See Our QuaIiTy Farm ImplemenTs EDWIN BEAN Of The Thunder Trom iTs slumberingg All The earTh is shaking, I-leads are aching: Glory bel IT's wondrous, Rolling, over, round, and under us Like an old voIcano's sTroke, So Thunderous. Now iT's louder! Won'T iT soon be Through. BuT There's iusT one Thing To do- Iv1usTer up your courage Tor a bang, I-IIT ThirTy seven quarTers wiTh a band, STriIce a high noTe wiTh a Twang. Give The bass an awful whang, And end iT all WiTh a rang, Tang, clangl WILLIAMSON PRESS H. L. Williamson. Presidenf A FUN Line of Springfield, Illinois OLIVER FARM IMPLEMENTS Your business will be appreciaTed C3 . , QuaIiTy farm implemenTs aT reasonable prices Telephone No. 4I Cerro Gordo, III. YEARBOOKS OF DISTINCTION 53