Cohasset High School - Tessahoc Yearbook (Cohasset, MA)

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T ESS A II OC One day. in the last week of February, the members of the French Club went to Boston to see an exhibition on French cooking at the Jordan Marsh store. Profits from the big March sale have been used for the purchase of French pins for the members. The French Club is doing a fine job this year. a it has in the past, and we hope it will con- tinue to receive full cooperation from the stu- dent bod) in the future. Robert I Iky wood, ' 51 What Would Happen If — Mi. Harris ' s classes didn ' t laugh once in a while in his room? John Fmanuello didn ' t speak to the girls? Janet Ross ever yelled? There wasn ' t one person who brought a snack for 10:30? Gerald Ferreira grew another inch? Faith Carolan lost her pep? All the seniors were satisfied with their class pictures? The chorus sang popular songs? Mr. D ' Antuono ever entered stud hall without saying. All right, there ' ll be no more ' tawk- ing ! The cooking classes didn ' t make white sauce? Class meetings began on time? Joe Figueiredo didn ' t blush? There wasn ' t one person in each class with chew- ing gum? Janet Litchfield got to school on time for a whole week? Rennie kept quiet for an hour? Jimmy Woods had to walk to school? Nancy and Anna were parted? Ceorge Hamilton hadn ' t come to town? Due didn ' t tell one good joke a year? Miss Terry didn ' t see her daily paper? The no school signal sounded on a good da ? nne Stoughton tame l school untidy? Tim Horigan shaved his sideburns and cleaned his white bucks? Mi-- elch sen ed a sundae? Report On Charlestown State Prison On March 20. 1951, the Sociology Class visited Charlestown State Prison. The guards split our class into two groups, and I imagine both groups saw and heard the same things. From the outside the prison looks very dark and dismal, but when we got inside we found that it was quite bright and immaculately clean. The painl was new. the doors were clean, and there was no smell of the pungent disinfectant that we noticed at Framingham Women ' s Reformatory, The guards took us on a tour of the prison, which is divided into three wings. These are called the North Wing. South Wing, and the West Wing, hi the center of these wings there is the visiting room and the majority of the prison offices. On the lower floor, in the center, there is the kitchen. This kitchen is spotless and the clean smell of the bakery is noticeable. The average prison cell is approximately 10 feet by 12 feet. In some of the cells they are allowed to have easy chairs and various other furniture brought in from the outside. The aver- age cell has a bed. one, or possibly two chairs, a desk, ash trays, book shelf, earphones, maga- zines, and the equipment they use in pursuit of their hobbies. For instance one man had a draw- ing hoard, compasses, rulers, and other instru- ments. Another inmate made miniature statues and painted them. The earphones 1 have men- tioned were used in the place of radios and also for the warden to make announcements. The warden ' s name was John J. O ' Brien. On the top floor of the prison there is a large auditorium w ith a seating capacity of 1.000 men. It is in this room where church is held on Sun- day. Occasionally, on week-ends and holidays, movies or shows are given in this auditorium. At present there are approximately six hun- dred and thirty inmates. The capacity of the prison is nine hundred and twenty. After leaving the main building we visited the library. It was here that we were given a copy of The Mentor ' . This pamphlet is put out by a group of inmates and is quite interesting. After leaving the library the boys in our group visited what is called ' The Shop ' . It is in this building that all the license plates for the State of Massachusetts are made. It is a very intri- guing process. They begin with large sheets of metal which are cut into ten-foot strips which weigh twenty-eight pounds. These strips are then cut into squares by machinery and num- bers impressed into them. After this the plates are put on an endless conveyor chain. On this chain they are painted and dried. After leaving the shop, we were shown ' the death house . It is here that criminals are elec- trocuted. A prisoner is in a cell just outside the electric chair twelve hours before his electrocu- tion. A man comes from New York to adjust all the intricate wiring, cutouts, fuses, and other equipment. Since 1900 there have been only 60 criminals who have been electrocuted. The last one was in 1947.

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TESSAHOC L5 Last Chapel At dawn Sunday morning as we drove out to the point, the fog seemed to thicken, and we seemed to be further from clanging civilization and closer to God than ever before. Toward the chapel, the point grew narrower and we could hear the surf pounding on the breakwater and occasionally see the salt spray spurt into the air. We parked the car and walked along the tiny footpath to the chapel. Here the neck grew still narrower and once in a while we could feel the spray as it bounded from the rocks. Nearing the chapel, we could hear the organ, while in the distance the fog horns growled dismally their warning to the ships. Now and then we could catch the flash from the Cozy Harbor light. At last I caught a glimpse of the tiny chapel of which I had heard so very much. It was just as I had pictured it: small, with a little steeple in which hung a tiny bell. It was built of stone, and the arched windows were softened by stained glass, depicting the life of Christ. The steps of the chapel were wet from the heavy fog, and inside, the chapel itself was damp. The dampness, however, was overcome by the inner warmth one feels at church. The service was short and simple, but lovely; as the postlude played, I paused on the steps. This was the last day of my visit. 1 had loved every minute of it. and now came this perfect climax. Onward Christian Soldiers! The fog had formed an even thicker blanket: the interval be- tween the fog horn s growls had shortened; the surf beat harder. As I walked away from the chapel, I was surer, surer than ever, that I was a Christian Soldier marching forward, for- ward to more adventure accompanied by God. Janet Bates, ' 51 What Democracy Means To Me Democracy is defined in the New Century Dictionary as follows: Government by the people: a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exer- cised by them or their elected agents: also, a state having such a form of government: in a restricted sense, a state in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised di- rectly by them rather than by elected officials: also, a state of society characterized by nominal equality of rights and privileges: political or social equality: democratic spirit: also, the common people of a community as distinguished from any privileged class; the common people with respect to their political power. Americans have a blase way of assuming the attitude that they are just lucky to have been born into this American heritage. Our form of government has lasted all these years: why should it fold up now? If these people were to be deprived of their democracy, they would com- plain loudly! This is quite apparent in rebellions within our country: oh, not bloody rebellions like those we read about. Rebellions appear in all forms, from a mere child ' s tantrum to nation-wide strikes. In many cases it is re- bellion against a force which interferes with prog- ress. Democracy is progress! Democracy is an intangible something that people have died to keep living. It might be described as the matter contained in the Bill of Rights ; or it might be our entire Constitution. But actually democracy is more than that, isn ' t it? Democracy to me is the smell of a cooking roast after church on Sundays, the cheers at a football game, the shriek of a policeman ' s whistle, a little boy crying over his bleeding knee. It is larger too, by far, than a small cry. It is the roar of a large city, whirring machinery, tons of water pouring over our great dams. Newspapers, movies, clergymen, our public servants, even our meals are the very essence of democracy. To us in the United States democracy stands for a great deal. It is not a type of government. It is a symbol of freedom. We are Democracy! Janet Bates, ' 51 French Cluh In Cohasset High School, one of the most ac- tive clubs is the French Club. Most of its mem- bers are studying, have studied, or are going to study French. At present, the French Club has twelve mem- bers. They are: Faith Carolan. President: Janet Ross, Secretary: Barbara Turner. Treasurer: Stuart Heywood. Philip James. Nancy Barrett. Nancy Thayer. Margaret Zuccari. Jane Mulvey. Nancy Coggan. Ann Simeone, and Barbara Hoss. Miss Reed is the club adviser. This year has been a very busy one for the French Club. Since September it has had ten food sales. Cookies, cake, and fudge, which are donated by Miss Reed, the members, and their friends, are sold at these food sales. The profits are used to send packages to an orphanage in France. These boxes contain a number of items such as: pencils, erasers, paper, shoes, clothing, food, toys, and many other much needed articles. The French Club has had two social gather- ings this year. The first one was held at Faith Carolan s home, and the other was held at Bar- bara Turner s home.

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TESS AHOC L7 Charlestown State Prison is a good prison in main ways. The food is supposed to be good, the prisoners are supposed to have enough free time. On the whole. I would say that I benefited quite a bit from my visit at the prison. Robert Heywood, ' 51 A History Lesson hen I think of all the things at school girl has got to do — And studving historv. as a rule. Is worst of all I think, don ' t you? And though I study day and night. There ' s only one thing I ' ve got right. That is fourteen ninety-two! Ann Patrolia, ' 52 The Framingham Women ' s Reformatory On our arrival at the reformatory we were met by a Miss Noonan. a secretary employed at the prison. We w ere requested by her to sign our names, addresses, and felonies if we had com- mitted any. She then unlocked the door and took us into the interior. The prison was laid out in a series of corridors. We first saw one of the dining rooms in which the inmates ate. This room was uniform, but quite pleasant. Then we were brought through a class room. Here I thought there was very little difference from that of a classroom in a public school. We were told that there were various subjects the inmate could take. Further on we saw the small chapel, the infirmary, and the librarv. One thing in the librar which I thought unusual was the tele- vision set. On a different floor the work rooms were located. Here the flags were made to be purchased by the state: these flags were both state and national. The state flag took a great deal of sk ill, because the inside emblem had to be hand painted. In a room next to this one we saw the other type of work done by the inmates. This was the making of men ' s wool socks. Last and most important thing we saw was one of the cells in which an inmate was kept for the first three weeks of her term. This cell was very small with brick walls that had been white washed. It contained one chair, one table, and one bed. The corridor in which these cells were located was very dark and depressing. During the tour we went into the large chapel and here Miss Noonan gave us a chance to ask questions. One thing which she told us was the typical day for the typical inmate. At six-thirty she would arise and by eight she would have her bed made and have eaten. From eight to twelve she works at many of the sundry jobs. At twelve she eats and has a smoke: then goes back to work until three. From three to five she will go to school. At nine-thirty she must be in her cell and the lights will be put out. We were also told that a girl may he entered on a charge of drunk- eness to murder. I think the reformatory is a very clean and well run institution. It gives many tests, etc.. to help the inmate to find what is wrong. Two of these tests are the Wexler and the Rorshach. The Rorshach is the most helpful and the most ex- pensive. The inmate is shown a series of ink blots and they tell the doctor what they see in them. By doing this they get to the subconscious mind. Though there are locked doors at the prison, there are many ways in which the inmate can re- lease her energy. They try to help the prisoner occupy her mind during her imprisonment. One feature of the reformatorv which helps do this is the gym. a place I was surprised to find in a prison. Here there were the conveniences of a public school. I think the trip to this modern reformatory will be a great help to us. Paula Twomey. 51