Comstock High School - Corral Yearbook (Comstock, MI)

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OWLETTE i. 1—....... . Wjgg SALUTATORY — PRESIDENTS ADDRESS Maxwell Mead Parents, and all those who have shown an interest in our welfare: In behalf of the senior class of 31, I wish to extend greetings and a cordial welcome. This, the last meeting of our class, we hope to make the most memorable of all occasions, for tonight is the cross-road at which we go our several ways, but not without a feeling of sadness. After tonight our paths may seldom cross; however, you may be assured that wherever our steps may lead, there will always lx these twelve faithful alumni to say a word for our Alma Mater—Comstock High School. We graciously extend our appreciation to the people who have made this evening possible, have offered us this chance, but still more to the parents, who, accepting our problems as their own, have offered much and expect a little in return. To them we are indebted; since it is they whom we must thank for these four accomplished years. During that time we have been looking forward with alacrity to this hour which would mark, not necessarily the eve of a higher type of life; but the time when we shall have gained a better foothold on the rock of independence. Now that time is at hand, but the proximity of it causes us to pause, to look around like the child emerging into manhood; hesitating one moment to ask the question: ‘'Has not the past outdone the hopes of the future?” Never- the less, past time is not revocable; neither can the future be foreseen; what we shall do or lx is held secret in the book of the future. As the possible leaders of tomorrow, our task is to aid in guiding mankind from distress and to promote the achievements of our fore- fathers. As you will see, our work is quite definitely laid out. In this day and age, when the products of science make living so convenient and enjoy- able, when it is remaking the earth, as it were, we seldom pause to consider1 the magnitude of the problems which it has created. In the first stages of human progress, nature dominated with choas; she ever attempts this and only with the extreme effort, called civilization, do we resist that attraction which distinguishes us from the beasts of the field. For example: A barbarian having, of course, no knowledge of natural law, was greatly frightened by a flash of lightning and the crash of thunder. Therefore, seeing that he could not control this phenomenon and in general could not hope to dominate his environment, was not prone to ask the question: “What controlled these phenomena?” but, “Who controlled them?” Early man had much to learn; for instance, great care was taken to discourage anything pertaining to medical aid. Should a man lie suffering or dying, his fellows probably gathered together, offered sacrifices and danced wildly about a camp fire in order to effect a cure. Then suddenly an event occurred which had, probably, more practical influence upon the history of mankind than any other of secular history. It was fateful because the world did not foresee the consequences. It was simply a man sitting by a fireplace gazing at a boiling teakettle. No doubt thousands had seen this lx fore, had seen the steam raise the lid on the kettle, but this man’s reaction set up a train of circumstances that was to turn man's quest in another direction. Out of it grew the Industrial Revolution. From it grew a series of dis- coveries until that, which was shrouded in mystery and superstition, has now come under the domination of the human mind. Now the borders of the unknown are being pushed out farther and farther until there is no department of knowledge that has not come under the ceaseless searching of the human mind. This change, however, was a slow and costly one. for persecution and discouragement were on every hand. If a man made a discovery which had in any way the appearance of being connected with the supernatural, he was speedily squelched, lest others lx influenced. Now the earth is a much better home for man; religious views are free and uncompelled, and it would seem, on first thought, that ideal conditions exist; but here there is a question. » I 9 3 1 • 13

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g§t OWLETTE —: - ... . VALEDICTORY For the last four years we. of the Senior Class, have been engaged in preparation at Comstock High. At last the goal for which we have been aiming has been achieved; now has come the time to say farewell to our High School Days. 1 choose to speak on the subject “Preparation is the Keynote of Achievement.” The first eight years of school were spent in building a foundation. When a child first comes to school he still possesses some of the animal instincts as selfishness. The child must he taught to adapt himself to the society that he is in and to get on with his fellow students. This is no small lesson, for it is one of the greatest lessons that the world has to learn. If these rough spots are smoothed off, the child settles into almost perfect harmony with his classmates. Then he begins to take an interest in his work and to assimilate part of the knowledge placed before him. If the child does painstaking work he thus builds a founda- tion of concrete which will endure. As he advances in school lie is adding slowly but surely, step by step to the firmness of the foundation. If the child is content with ha If-completed work, his foundation will be of sand and liable to crumble at the first crisis. It is like building a skyscraper or any structure; the first requirement is a foundation; a firm founda- tion for a skyscraper or one of sand for a cabin. Now that the child has a complete foundation of essentials, it is time to start the structure. In the last four years we began the framework. We had our choice of plans. Already there were indications by some that they planned to build skyscrapers; while others were content to build cabins. Their structures would be just the same as thousands of others. It is possible to get a house, all ready to set up, from a mail order house; but thousands of others can have houses of the same kind for the same price. Thousands have High School Diplomas and have built their structures to the same height and then stopped and of these there are too many. The man who gains a position is the one who spends a longer period in patient, painstaking preparation, and whose structure surpasses all of his competitors. In terms of preparation there is no better illustration than that of Charles A. Lindbergh. Was his flight an achievement? He will go down in history as second only to Columbus. Did it make preparation? Yes. his whole life prepared him for this big chance. He spent years in studying and training to prepare himself. He built a structure which is unmarred by slip-shod work. loday we are patiently building away at character and preparation. Tomorrow’s work will begin, on the superstructure. Our friends advise “Build Well.” Tomorrow will tell what kind of a structure we produce, but it will be our best. Repre- senting years of patient, ceaseless labor it will bear the stamp of individuality upon it. It will represent years of preparation and will be a supreme achievement. A structure of char- acter and preparation that we can survey with pride.

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 OWLETTE' time. Second: The strain upon the nervous system of the individual, and though man’s life is engthened if measured by his activities, what has he gained if his years are numbered less by loss of nervous energy ? Third: This is the age of mass production; however, the best work has not been produced by machinery but by men. Take for instance, the old Stradivarius violins which today are valued at thousands of dollars; there is an example of work that has lived. Under this machine age everything and everybody looses their individual- ism until it seems some times that man has made a machine which will destroy him. For were you to go into a modern factory you would see how great an extent machine labor has displaced man labor. This gives rise to the problem of unemployment. We have shown in the beginning that man, in seeking the goal of human welfare, went the road of religion, found the forbidding god of superstition looming in his way. He then retraced his steps in the opposite direction, tried the road of science, and found the god of “The Machine” blocking his path. Then what is the solution? What and where is his goal? Perhaps it is in a field hitherto unexplored, never inquired into; but more probably this long sought for goal lies somewhere within these fields of religion and science, though as yet man must lx guided or stumble upon that Golden Means. As a final word I shall say that we Seniors, seeing the prodigious task ahead solemnly pledge ourselves to accept and execute those problems which obscure the path to the desired goal. For practical purposes distance is no longer measured by miles but by time. The auto- mobile, airplane, and railroad have made speedy transportation possible. The radio and telephone make possible almost instant communication. Machinery is being made with the idea of speed playing the important part. Though speed has brought man nearer his goal, it has created problems which he must consider. First: The accumulation of too much spare IN MEMORIAM FORREST D. SIMMONS Scluxil Board Member, September 6, 1930 IN MEMORIAM WILLARD MEADER A Respected Friend, February 2, 1931