Clifton High School - Rotunda Yearbook (Clifton, NJ)

Page 14 text:

THE REFLECTOR W' Ill .... and the Memorial stadium cost several million .... new Chem buildings .... transfered because of finances .... D so prattled the new companion of Holt's. Instead of becoming bored as one usually does when another boasts of past experiences and surroundings, Meade proved an open-mouthed listener. He had seen pictures and heard fabulous tales of Eastern colleges, but this was his first contact with a genuine student of one of the Big Fourv. Besides, this fellow was a darn interesting talker, even if the sub- ject was himself. By the time they reached Perry Hall the two were Holt and Phil to each other. After seeing his new acquaintance properly installed in the dorm room, Meade proceeded to show him around the spacious but scan- tily developed campus. The book store, engineering labs, and a half-dozen other buildings passed in quick and careless review. They halted at a huge fieldstone building with a beautiful blue-grey slate roof. This, so Holt stated, was his frat house, the newest and most luxurious building on the campus. Pemberton had no fraternities, and therefore Phil was impartial as to frat relations except in a professional sort of way, for he was now studying to be an architect. His Dad had decided that a mere B. A. degree was not worth the money being expended in regard to its future use- fulness. Upon viewing the dinky stadium, Phil blandly spoke of a million dollar team, coach, and of the fact that he had been one of the players on last year's squad. For several weeks he moped around when not studying or attending classes. He knew but three or four students better than a nod or brief hello. On the first day of the third week the coach issued a general call for all football candidates. While on his way from Physics, his eight o'clock class, Phil met Holt on the 42nd Street and Broadway of the campus, the spot where the walks from the men's and women's dorms and from the lab and recitation buildings met at a War Memorial Fountain. Holt was leaning rather sleepily against a Civil War drummer boy, which, oblivious to the student's friendly attitude, was grimly lunging forward, perhaps to beat out a tattoo on Holt's blond head. Hi! Pledge, he mumbled quite indistinctly and equally fuzzy, mwhere to and if so, why? Perry,,' was the brief and haughty answer. It was now Meade's turn to be talkative. Pal, I remembered that you said you played on the football team back at Pemberton, so I gave you a break and handed your name in to the coach early this morning. Our house is going to initiate you at the next meeting, and we haven't had a man on the squad for the last three years. Ten

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THE REFLECTOR was OW l+ , TDS Yagi, CO W COLLEGE -il' WINTHROP PHILLIPS II, a new student at Kings- , ton, glared at the antique, brownstone building he was approaching and thought of the splendor of '53 - Pemberton University, which he had so recently left. L, Why, they wouldn't use a place like this for a tool ff shed back in the regal surroundings of the New Jersey school. So this was Old South ! To hear Dad talk you'd think that it was the White House! Another thing was the way these Mid-Western students dressed! ,lust before he passed through the plate glass doors into the Registrar's office, he cast an appraising glance at his fashionable tan topcoat, brown suit, white shoes, and dark brown hat perched at the pre- cise Pemberton angle. Back east he may have been just one of a type, but out here his clothes made him feel as though he had on a formal outfit while in the middle of a cornfield. Evidently old corduroy trousers, sweaters, preferably as discordant in color scheme as possible, and a dilapi- dated sheep-skin coat represented the height of fashion. A few minutes later he was formally signed up as a student. He felt as though he were signing his own death warrant as he endorsed a receipt for his payment of the matriculation fee and for incidentals. I say, my good fellow, could you inform me as to the location of Perry Hall? Holt Meade grinned good naturedly at Phillips and offered to walk over with him. Perhaps he might learn where this evidently out-of-place student came from, and why he chose a cow college like Kingston in- stead of the Eastern school he had formerly attended. Nine

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THE REFLECTOR VN IW Regrets now arose in Philis heart, because he had not mentioned the facts that the team had been the fourth one and the only reason that he had made that was because he was the only one out for the position. Turn- ing out for a major sport was not quite the thing in Pemberton, you know. Another reason had been the fact that he had had an aversion to oncoming backs. But now he realized he had talked just a little too much. For some unknown reason he did not attempt to talk his way out of the rather embarrassing situation. Instead, meekly, he reported for prac- tice and found the frat boys had talked him up to the coach until the poor gentleman had the glorious idea that he had got a prospective All- American guard. Phil found himself the center of a crowd of second team players and the object of many devout glances. The fact that he knew personally the men who had had their names blazoned across the Sports finals every Saturday evening, and that he had been on the squad of a big school com- bined to make the simple souls look upon him as a hero and a sure-fire future first team man. They were almost right, for he made the second team, shattering his faith in divine powers for several weeks. All his prayers for expulsion from the dreaded agony of a whole sea- son on hard and unsympathetic benches and in the bleak stadiums were unheeded. While all over the country hopeful candidates were struggling for a place on their school squad he was the first player in the history of the game to ask for deliverance from the sport. The sudden metamorphosis to a campus idol, formerly liked by none except Holt Meade, who was conceded too dumb a cluck to know other- wise, aided the unseen cause against the pride of J. Winthrop Phillips, II. His room was now usually crowded with football enthusiasts, and Phil just couldn't help talking. Outwardly he acknowledged the fact that he would rise to the first team as soon as he got on to Kingston ways. If they could only feel the anguish promoted by the mere thought of a two- hundred pound back charging down upon you with murder in his eye and the will to die for dear old Podunk! On the eve of the opening game of the season he had a premonition that he might be called upon to prove his mettle, and therefore he enter- tained a peculiar sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Always when he had entered the field at Pemberton, the cheering had made him envy the first team men, but now, with a chance of playing, the shouts and the sight of the gold and blue pennants streaming from the stadium flagpoles seemed to be giving him the royal razzberriesn. While hunched under the huge blue blanket with the golden K on it, he thought of the quiet of the Kingston College cemetery where, perhaps, if he were lucky, he would end a perfect day. I-Ie hoped that the end be sudden and minus the jeers of students who had seen the truth of the matter. A sudden hush over the stadium arose him from his reveries. Eleven