Decatur Catholic High School - Tattler Yearbook (Decatur, IN)

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THE TATTLER 11 AJvfvvAfAAfAfJv AAfA1wvv wv9vfvvJvvffAAfAA A Few Suggestions. Bad books we oft with ggi confuse, 'Tis doubtful which to shun and which to useg Nor know we how to read that which is best, Until we're taught to put it to the test. Like the early spring flower that opens its chalice to the life-giving rays of the sun, the student of liter- ature must open his mind and heart to the quickering Spirit of God, man- ifesting Himself to His creatures in the productions of men of letters. To appreciate literature, one must learn to love it. How is love for it to be engendered? By reading wise- ly from those authors whose writ- ings are in accordance with good taste and form. Love for literature cannot be fostered in a bookless house, consequently, those books that are suited to the chi1d's age and mental capacity should be placed in his hands. As one choice thought and expression after another reveals itself, the mind gradually develops and becomes capable of drawing in- spiration and power from the great masters in literature. It is then the student lives in the atmosphere of the literary accomplishments of all ages and draws from each, those elements which most appeal to him. Acquaintance with, and apprecia- ion of, the best in English Litera- ture, is not acquired by the study of figures of speech and of classical allusions, nor by cramming for the sake of meeting college entrance re- quirements. A student of literature must strive to get at the soul of a literary selection, to read beneath the surface of the lines to catch the author's message, to see the beauty and truth underlying the printed words, to feel the emotion the au- thor himself felt, so that later in life he may turn to literature for solace, refreshment and joy in weary hours. Unless he succeed in doing this, he has failed in the study of English Literature. Development of a critical faculty is another aim in the study of liter- ature. It means to discriminate be- tween wholesome and unwholesome selections. The powers of discrimi- nation must be directed and guided until the student is able to judge for himself. He must have a teacher who will point out to him the merits and demerits of a passage, as Well as the lines which contain a message for him, and who by adroit question- ing will lead him to reflect and thus grasp the meaning of obscure pass- ages. Ruskin compares a piece of good literature to an Australian gold mine, and the reader thereof to a miner. The metal for which the stu- dent is searching is the author's mind and meaning, the writer's words are a.s the rock which must be crushed and smelted in order to get at the precious stone, the read- er's tools are his care, wit and learningg and the smelting furnace is his own thoughtful so-ul. Surely to dig successfully in this mine re- quires more than a superficial pre- liminary training of mental facul- ties. Literature must be chosen with the utmost care. It must be suited to one's needs and ability. In the be- ginning it is wise to read those works that arouse and stimulate an inter- est in reading, that cultivate a taste for better things, and develop the powers of observation and imagina- tion By reading such books the stu- dent of literature will gradually mul- tiply his individual interests, and this will prepare him to peruse ad- vantageously, works containing deep thoughts and obscure passages. Tell me with whom you associate, and I

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10 THE TIATTLER ther Otto Peters is our able coach and under his expert coaching we shall soon have teams to be proud of. Many thanks, Father. Rah, High School, let's go! LENT-The season of Lent will soon be here and will be faithfully observ- ed by all good Catholics. School girls and boys, what do you intend to do during this penitential period? You are not obliged to fast, but you cer- tainly can abstain from various pleas- ures. Surely no good Catholic boy or girl would dream of attending a movie during Lent. ln that at least we can mortify ourselves. As to candy and other sweetmeats it would be very exemplary to abstain from them also. Make good use of the Lenten Season and your Easter will be a joyous one. GLEE CLUB-Under the supervision of Sr. M. Odelia the High School and Eighth Grade girls have organ- ized a Glee Club. We had a good start when to our sorrow, Sr. Odelia became ill and left Decatur to re- cuperate. She is back again and working with us and we are so glad she is back that we are redoubling our efforts. In a few months, we as- sure you. you will hear from us. THE BAZAAR-November 23, 24 and 25 the St. Mary's Sodality gave a Bazaar in the K. of C. hall. As with all these energetic ladies under- take, it was a grand success. The ladies worked zealously and 33,000 was cleared. But we intend to take some of the glory. The school chil- dren donated one hundred and ninety-six pounds of home-made candy, quite an imposing array, for when viewed by Father Seimetz he exclaimed: t'Why there are not enough people in Decatur with a sweet tooth to consume all this candy. But it was all sold out and a splendid profit made. We were certainly proud of our effort. OUR SUPPORT-We cannot be too profuse in thanking those business men who were so kind as to insert an advertisement in our paper. As this is our Iirst venture in publishing we confess we feel a little shaky, but to the good will of those who aided us we give a vote of thanks. Christmas collection at St. Mary's church for the two orphanages of our diocese reached the grand total of 551,400.85 Truly we can be proud of our parish. When we reflect on the splendid showing made by the children in their fund for the New Church, we have but one comment to offer- Like father, like son! The example of the parents in being gen- erous has worked on the characters of their children and it is an example worthy of imitation. - Big Hotel in the Middle West Scene A colored porter comes tearing down the stairs gasping for breath and runs up to the night clerk, Jones by name, with the following: Rastus- Lordy, Lordy man! I'se ruined! I'm innocent! I neveh did see that man before, nohow! Jones-CPerpleXed9- What wrong, man? . Rastus- It am that lettah boss to 13. I'se always knowed 13 wuz un- lucky! Jones tsurprisedl- Well what of it? Did you deliver it? Rastus tgroaningj.- Yeh sah! Yeh sah! Oh lordy! Jones Cinrpatientlyj- Out with your story, or l'll can you! Rastus- Well I takes it up and Hands it to dat man '13.' He opens it says 'Byugoshl if theres' a black mail in this I'll call the policel' And then, lordy, I ran! Coz, lordy, I reckoned I wuz de black male allrighty! But boss I'se never laid eyes on dat man befoahf'

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ffvvvAfvxAAffAAfffffffffJfvf,,-,,,,-N,,,,,-J,-,.-,.-,-, flxrfflffxff! J ff-FJ! shall tell you what you are, is a time-worn adage, which might be paraphrased, Tell me what -you read and I shall tell you what you think. In lonely hours one's soul long for the companionship of a true friend. The lover of good literature need nev- er be alone for he has at his beck and call companions who will talk to him as long as he likes, whatever his rank or occupation may be. They speak to him in the choicest langu- age and on whatever topic most ap- peals to him at the time being. From these he will glean good thoughts, and fill his heart with inspiring verses and selections for every sea- son and occasion. He will truly live and breathe in the healthful atmo- shere of literary friendship. How many books or selections tions must one read before he may be considered an educated person? is a question that presents itself to the ardent student. It may be an- swered by again referring to Ruskin who says, You might read all the books in the British Museum, if you could live long enough, and remain an utterly uneducated, illiterate per- song but if you read ten pages of a good book, letter by letter-that is to say, with real accuracy-you are foreverniore, in some measure, an ed- ucated personf' Experience shows that a few books well read and properly studied have more educa- tional and cultural value than many books read hastily or superflcially. Literary selections should always be read carefully, but the studentis at- tention should not be so iixed on de- tails that he fails to appreciate the essential purpose and charm of the whole. If every household in our beloved country were furnished with elevat- ing and suitable literature, and if a love for reading were implanted in the heart of every child, what a peri- od of mental greatness could we look forward to in the coming gen- eration! -Sr. M. Vera, C. S. A. A PLEA. I Oh, holy Angel, Guardian dear, Thou leader on life's pathway drearg Be thou my help, my guide, my stay, And drive all evil from my soul away. II When thoughts perverse my mind do fill, Come to my aid and prompt me stillg Let thy spirit remain with me Till conquered the tempta- tion be. Ill When words unkind would pass my lips, Bid me remember God's preceptsg And klllfl fvords say to those who will My feelings hurt without thought of ill IV When actions wrong I would perform, Turn thou my feet by grace from harmg And keep me ever good and true In everything that I shall do. V And when life's day for me has 5 passed, Then lead me to the throne of light at last, That there with thee I may my Maker praise, Throughout eternal length of days. Sr. M. Vera, C. S. A.