College of St Marys of the Springs - Yearbook (Columbus, OH)

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-A NWI6, i :WIC :MQI6 5 XWIC f SMH: Q :WIC Z Xwlc BWI: XWIC Q Dl'QSS RQTOYIII df Sf. mdl'V'S 5 ,ff A X N HE. world is constantly undergoing changes. Reforms, polit- ical, social. moral, are being ardently advocated by the gen- Wwf 'Wm eral publicg but especially pronounced just now is the agitation on the question of dress reform. The crying, if not howling, need of some variation from the present styles is patent to all. One has only to stand on the prominent street corners of our - large cities and watch the absurdities and monstrosities that are 'rs . X'-if .' 7 constantly buzzing, shuffling or flitting by to be convinced that 5 :VI fc QVCUNZ2 i N GT we have almost attained the height of the ridiculous in the mat- 7 ik' 7 ter of fashion. This article, however, is not intended to excite a dress reform. .nor even to serve as an indictment of prevailing fashions: it is a history, pure and simple. It owes its origin to the fact that the dress reform movement, spreading daily over more extended areas, at last penetrated the calm and repose of our peaceful convent life, and set in action the cerebral springs of our legislative body: so that while magazine and newspaper editors were spending their vital force in unprofitable talk, those that guide the destiny of St. lVfary's of the Springs, Shepard, Franklin County, Ohio, two and one half miles from the city of Columbus, not only advocated and attempted reform, but actually carried out their views and designs, as the student body will vociferously testify. , This Renaissance of Simplicity began in the year 1910-I l, and was completed most completely in the present year of grace, 191 I-IZ. In its early stages, the reform was of the suggestive kind-coaxing and persuasion mingled with mild ridicule and gentle reproof were the means employed: but as time wore on, more drastic measures were resorted to. Last year it was, Will you do it P This year it is You will do it. The warfare first began against the rats. The battle was fast and furious, but finally terminated in favor of the wagers of the crusade. The banishment of the rats resulted, of course, in a sudden drop of pompadours, What once had been a lofty tower, all at once became a wide-spreading bungalow. As a solace for their woe caused by the sudden decrease of these puffs of hair, the young ladies resorted to the wearing of a comb in their small pompadours, thus pushing the hair down over their f0rC heads. and producing a charming vestibule effect, the fringe of hair doing dutv HS H portiere. Just at this stage official decrees passed from the negative state of prohibition, to the positive state of injunction. A regulation was made requiring everyone to wear her hair skinned back tight and hanging down her back. No matter how hot the day 01' i10W Stupid the lesson, there was no inclination on the part of HHYOHC to Ci0Z6. 33 the tightness of the hair made the closing of the eves a difficult. not to say, an impossible undertaking. The.second clause of the decree. if unwelcome to the pupils, gave great satisfaction to .the Sister in charge of the study hall. who congratulated herself that it would n0W be P0SSliJie I0 distin- guish the young ladies from the rear of the room bv the length fmcl thickness of their hail'- This means of identification would obviate the difficulty of having I0 perambulate up and down the aisles in order to find out iust who waS miSSing and who was performing antics suffi- ciently droll to cause all shoulders in her immediate VlCm1tY to shake convulsively. But the 38 Wi m nfl R

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ww N541 5 N541 2 KXWIC 1 ,twig V' LKWIC j 555546 255545 QWIQ, His thoughts still of her, he looked from a window of the barn in the direction of her home. Imagine his horror, when he saw sparks flying in the air above the little dwelling, and giving sufficient light to enable him to see that smoke was curling from beneath the low eaves. What could he do? Out in the country as they were, he knew there would be no way to fight the flames. The Andersons were evidently not aware of their danger: he could alarm them at least, and this he must do as quickly as possible. Having reached the door of the barn, he set off with his utmost speed in the direction of the house: and as he came nearer and nearer, the fire seemed to gain more headway with his every step. It seemed ages to him before he could reach the burning structure. Meanwhile he tried to collect his thoughts and decide just what he should do first. His duty was immediately pointed out to him, however, when he heard the frantic screams of the terror-stricken child, as she leaned from her upstairs window. Tony gained entrance to the house, by a window which, fortunately, was unlocked, and rushing into the room. was confronted by a cloud of smoke so dense that it fairly blinded him. Reaching the stairway, he groped his way up the steps which even now swayed from his weight upon them. lVlarie's cries had not ceased, and he could hear her calling her father. She was un- answered. The thick, black smoke had suffocated lVlr. Anderson and when she at last found him he was lying insensible on the floor of his room. At the top of the stairs, Tony called to Marie, and instantly recognizing his voice, she begged him to save her father first. l-le was loath to do so, but at her earnest entreaties, he lifted the unconscious man, and carried him down the already burning steps, and out into the air. He had just succeeded in reaching the head of the stairs a second time, when with a loud crash, they gave way, thus cutting off their only means of exit. By this time the house was fair- ly enveloped in flames, which were bursting through the roof and windows, their lurid glare illuminating the sky and surrounding country. i Imagine the feelings of the terrified girl. standing as she was, in the midst of smoke and flames with scarcely a hope of escape. She, at last, grew sick and dizzy, her brain reeled, and she sank to the floor, as unconscious as her father had been, but a while before. A few minutes more and it would be too late. Fearlessly making his way through the dense cloud of smoke, himself nearly exhausted, Tony at last found her. l-le hesitated a moment. Life seemed dearer than ever before. There was something to live for, after all: he had just dis- covered it, and why must he relinquish his claim so soon? But Marie must live, life was be- fore her, while his was almost spent. Too, he had no one to mourn his loss, neither was there anyone for whom he would so readily sacrifice himself, and he determined to do it. So gath- ering her apparently lifeless form securely in his arms, he placed one foot on the charred window sill, and in an instant it was accomplished, he had leaped some thirty feet to the ground below. i , Neighbors arriving on the scene found Marie only slightly injured. Her rescuer, how- ever, was in an almost expiring condition. I-le lay there motionless, breathing heavily, but with an expression of exquisite joy on his wasted countenance. They lifted him tenderly and bore him to the nearest Cottage, but just as the first gray shadows of dawn were stealing over the earth the brave spirit of Tony Saunders winged its flight to a better world and he had taken his last leap. 1 MAE Smm-1, 'I 3. 37

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if H EWWL SWL QRWL KWWL Us 'fllllli' Mm WIHRWL U ul flx'lNf 'fNflmf 'aff ,xii L . v- N .. - 2 .. 1 Q .. 1 2 .. svgjr.. sv: .. :VA .. sv! .. 3-rw-FQ-fiQ+L fZ+1c.J.+Q+w+Q1+Q+i+ic Jmwsi J.+Q2+w+M1+Lm+L dismay of this official may be imagined when she discovered that a girl who on Monday had only a wee wisp of washed-out-looking hair, appeared on Tuesday with a rippling, riotous, luxuriant mass of dark brown or golden-hued curls. Several days pondering on this phenom- onen of nature afforded no explanation. Stands were diligently searched for bottles of mar- velous hair restorer, but to no avail. At last one night, the Prefect, having occasion to enter an alcove after the retiring hour, caught sight of three or four long, black, hard looking ob- jects. No amount of scrutiny gave a clue as to their composition. Finally it was necessa- ry to question the occupants of the alcove. Why, Sister, came the ready response, that's my switch done up in old ribbons so's it'll be curly tomorrow. So here was the solution of the mystery. An amendment was forthwith added to the original decree, and ere long switches were laid side by side with the vanquished rats. The hair question disposed of, a vigorous campaign was opened against the tight skirt. Who will ever forget the day when the Inspector General made her review of reviews? Just one week was given to the unfortunate possessor of a tight skirt, either to insert panels in the front, back and sides, or invest in an entirely new garment of sufficiently wide proportions to meet requirements. Fringe was absolutely tabooed on these expanded creations. Pupils from a distance were facing a serious proposition, for how could they obtain an entire new outfit in a week? What were they to do? Visions of themselves garbed in bed spreads were but transient, as the presence of fringe debarred these as a make-shift. Next a box-pleated skirt was prescribed with pleats several inches apart to give room for the insertion of voluminous gathers. This particular mode was selected as a precaution for the preservation of the lives of the young ladies while out on their daily constitutional along the macadam boulevard south of the institution, which highway is not infrequently infested with autos going at a rapid rate of speed. The dimensions of these skirts give the wearers thereof free and unimpeded motion, which greatly conduces to a hasty removal from the path of the speeders. Though hair-dressing and skirts were the leading questions at issue in this twentieth cen- tury reformation in a teapot, minor details of the toilette were not overlooked. Collars evoked a standing regulation-apologies would not be accepted. The prescribed height was 9 3-8 inches in the back, gradually sloping to 9 6-I6 inches in the front. A special contrivance was invented for loosening this neck environment when throat expansion became necessary., Sleeves were to be long, extending at least to the second joint of the index finger. Shoes, too, came under the executioner's ax, but contrary to conventional form the winged heel and not the sole took flight. Even those little aids to nature which we so inno- cently used to enhance our charms and which we took care not to display too ostentatiously on our dresses were always found missing. Turn where he would, there was never means of escaping Fashion's avenging Nemesis. Such then has been the radical dress reform effected at St. Mary's this memorable year: rats, heels and cosmetics have decreased: collars, sleeves and skirts have increased, and in the midst of this contraction and expansion, this action of opposing forces, we find our- selves. not disturbed or tossed about, but in an attitude of stable equilibrium towards our Alma Mater and the fearless stand she has taken on a vexed question-an attitude of pro- found respect and devoted loyalty. BLANC!-IE DUNLAP, '12, 39