Elizabeth City High School - Spotlight Yearbook (Elizabeth City, NC)

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, SIINUYIFILIIGG-lHl1f CLASS PROPHECY The muddy yellow Waters of Soochow Creek were jammed with traffic-small sampans and junks that jostled and bumped each other as they swarmed about, too crowded together to make any headway at all. I stood on the little concrete bridge over the creek and watched the scene, fascinated. How much I had read of this, seen pictures of it, heard about it, even dreamed of some day seeing for myself the mysterious Land of Confucius. I never expected to ever visit China, yet here I was-actually in Shanghai, a veritable part of that teeming mass of humanity which is the Chinese race. Bly presence in the Far East was not one of necessityw-merely of curiosity, and a desire to become closer acquainted with the mysteries of the Orient. I had not been altogether disappointedg for although Shanghai is much like any large western city in construction, there is an undefinable air of mysticism about it, that gives one a queer, exciting thrill of anticipation. The Chinese will tell you that it is the spirits of their honorable ancestors , but whatever it is, it has a strange allure that you will never forget. You feel that at any moment you may come face to face with the mysterious, the unknown. Such was the feeling I had, as I left the bridge and climbed into a ricksha. The boy started off at a lively pace, and as I bounced over the cobblestones, I wondered if I would actually see anything of the mystic side of China during my sojourn there. VVe approached the Bubbling IVellg and for some reason, as I saw it, the words of a poem I had read long ago came to my mind, Oh dark and fllfffllj .vtezu from Irlelf, Ewr--nzystvrious, ewr-flowing Bubblirzg IVFII, If thou roufdst Sf7l'Ilf', 1L'llIlf could thou IFN? I called to the boy to stop. I had a queer notion that this antiquated cistern of black water could tell things. It must have been that the mystic breath of the old city, which I had felt so strongly, had taken pos- session of my reason. At that instant I did not doubt but that it was possible for supernatural things to happen in the Domain of the Buddhas. I walked over and gazed into the inky contents of the well. The bright Eastern sunlight made spark- ling patterns on the bubbly surface, I watched, fascinated, totally oblivious of the busy thoroughfare all around me. How long I stood thus I do not know. The enticing swells of the pool made myriads of whirls that became a part of my inner mind as I watched, set my brain to whirling like the water. Gradually, the patterns on the surface took shape and formed pictures of the turbulent panorama of my thoughts. I found myself thinking of people I had known, old friends and acquaintances. Distorted likenesses of their faces appeared to me in the water. Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder-I looked up quickly, half expecting to see Buddha himself. A wrinkled old Chinaman stood beside me. His small, birdlike eyes were half-hidden in the saffron folds of his skin, and on his head was a black skull cap. He regarded my startled gaze with a gentle twinkle in his eyes. You seek message in Blubbling VVell? he asked, in a quaint voice that sounded exactly as if it belonged in the cool, dim shadows of a sacred temple. An excited shiver passed over me. VVhy, yes, I managed to say. I was wondering about my friends -what theyire doing now. The old man looked troubled. You lost-from friends? No, nof' I assured him. I mean my friends back home-in America. I havenit seen them for a long timed, VVell will tell you, said this old sage, nodding his head. 'fBlubbling IVell have much power. Here. He reached into the folds of his long garment and brought forth a queer looking pebble. Is heart of long dead ancestorf' he explained. Drop into VVell. He handed me the stone. I was a bit reluctant to handle the heart of this venerable Chinaman's predecessor, but nevertheless I accepted it and dropped it swiftly into the bubbling water. Now, concentlatef' said he. XVill leave lNIelican to musingsf' And before I could say anything, he shuffled off down the street. The queer well blubbledg a little faster than before, it seemed to me. I concentrated, as the old man had directed, and a whole picture formed in the swirling water. It was a brightly-lighted cabaret, and Thomas Nlarkham stood at the microphone as master of ceremonies. Gug Lombardo is leading the orches- tra, and among the players are two true Uvermans, Ida and Bobby. Quite a list of celebrities are there, too, enjoying the music-lNIarion Cooke Foreman, famous tragedienneg Harry Kramer, noted explorer, who has just discovered a new country south of the Anarctic Circle, IXIiriam VVhite, the famous artist, and lllartha Ann Scott, cooking expert for Good Housekeeping llagazine. The picture changes, theatres on Broadway appear. VVell, what's this- Tobacco Road still going strong? Yes, and Kathleen Shannonhouse has the leading role. Another theatre is staging a beautiful bal-

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SIUNIIYII' ILIIGGIHHT LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF THE SENIOR CLASS 1 9 3 8 VVe, the Senior Class of l38, realizing that what comes in must go out, have finally, after much sorrowing and grieving, given up our position in this haven of advanced education, so that those following us may become more learned. The Senior Class hereby bequeaths with many regrets the following articles, ARTICLE I. To The Class of ,392 1. Our beloved staterooms, l, 2, and 12, on the port side of the old ship, where we have weathered many storms. 2. Our chief-mates, lst lXIate Gordon, 2nd iXIate lNIoore, and 3rd KIate Calloway, who also have weathered a few storms. 3. The privilege of getting seasick on one-session days. ARTICLE II. To The Chief-llatesz l. A week's vacation in which to recuperate from the past voyage. 2. The privilege of saying with much pride a few years hence: VVhy, that gob used to swab decks below me! ARTICLE III. To Captain Bundy: 1. The problem of finding a more able or seaworthy crew. ARTICLE IV. To the good ship itself, we leave: 1. Discarded chewing-gum on the under-side of the state-room furniture. 2. Fondly carved works of art on said furniture. ARTICLE V. Bobby Overman leaves his job of personal maid to Chief-Slate Gordon to Emmett Ingram. ARTICLE VI. Klarion Cooke Foreman leaves her discontinued string to Elda VValker. ARTICLE VII. Hugh Marr leaves his dictatorship to Levin Burgess Culpepper. ARTICLE VIII. Bedie, Bessie, and INIartha Ann bestow their drum-majoring talents tif anyll upon their successors. ARTICLE IX. Jeanne Armstrong leaves her excess fat to Pearl Sawyer. ARTICLE X. Robert Andrews' masculinity is very kindly left to -Iohn Hughes. ARTICLE XI. Thomas hlarkham leaves his oratorical ability to Frank Venters. ARTICLE XII. jack Jarvis leaves his power with the members of the opposite sex to Bob Gard. ARTICLE XIII. Ida Bland Overman leaves her heart to Baxter Slaughter. ARTICLE XIV. Bobby Foreman leaves his voice to Herbert johnson, and goes out into the world to seek his fortune as a ventriloquist dummy. ARTICLE XV. Raymond Sawyer leaves his knack of being a noisy pest to Harry Sheep. Having thus endowed these landlubbers with our most prized possessions, we hereby set our John Henries to this masterpiece, on this, the 8th day of April, in the year of our Lord, 1938. Chief Testator: VVitnessed By: RIARGARET HANNA. CHIEF TXIATE GoRnoN's 2nd period History Class.

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SIINUYIFILIIQGIHITT o CLASS PROPHECY CContinuedj cony scene, and the ardent Romeo beneath the roses is KIelvin Cartwright. A tall, statuesque blonde ap- pears at the windowg but no, it isn't who we thought it would be. The lletropolitan Opera has bowed to a new star, a lusty baritone-Julian Bray in the celebrated role of Faust . The theatres where Ted Lewis and Benny Goodman chased away your blues are different places now. The competition of Jeanne Armstrong became so strong that Benny packed up his tooter and left. And Edwin Aydlett plays his sax in top hat and tails in the spotlight that Ted Lewis vacated. Helen Klorgan had her dayg so did Klartha Raye. Now in a happy combination of the two, is IXIayo Burgess, making a hit with Bobby Foreman's latest song success, Oh, YVhy Do They All Love IXIe So ? The picture faded and another bubbled into its place, a familiar one this time-Elizabeth Cityl The town is celebrating the election of a new mayor-Francis Griffin, nattily dressed as ever. One of the city's leading citizens, VVilliam L. Spence, U. S. Senator from North Carolina, is presenting him with the key to the city. The stately pastor of the First Baptist Church, Rev. Robert Andrews, is nearby. Hilda Perry, the first woman chief of police in town, is maintaining order as the people press forward to see the mayor. The schoolhouse looks the same as every but since Mr. Bundy left there is a well worn path beside the shrubbery where hlr. Aydlett goes back and forth to school. Tsk! Tskl Tskl Two members of the class of '38 have returned to their dear alma mater to teach-YVilma VVilliams, instructress of English, and R. L. VVhaley, professor of math, physics, algebra, geometry, and what-have- you fwhatta manll VVilliam Bell is now printing the school paper, and Inez Tillett has taken her place behind the desk in the office. Other familiar places come into viewg quite a number of the class have remained in their home town. Phil Bauer has followed in his father's footsteps, and has become an excellent watchmaker. Annie Davis is teaching Sunday School, and lending her splendid alto voice to the choir. Raymond Horse Henderson is tending cows, still manager of the City Dairy. Carlton Perry has built himself a candy factory, and for the first time in his life has all the candy he wants. Carlton Thornton is running the Pepsi-Cola plant. Thomas Sawyer is engineer of Elizabeth City's new streamline train. And that man who is so earnestly praising the new 1948 Dodge to his prospective customer is none other than VVillis IVright, jr. And now a tender scene meets my eye-a balmy Spring day on Main Street and those proud mothers displaying their pretty babies used to be Hlarjorie Hardison, Elizabeth Hughes, lXIarjorie Voeth, and Francis Pat Newbern. lVVonder why Pat's baby is eating peanuts????J Ruby Pritchard and Norma Klorris are still getting automobile license numbers. They have nine hun- dred and ninety-eight now-only three more and they will see their future husbands-maybe. The city of VVashington appeared next. Two men seemed to be in conference, and as the picture be- came clearer I saw it was Raleigh Griffin and Lester Knight-G-Klen. They were planning the capture of two fugitives from justice: Fletcher Bailey, Public Pest Number One, and Robert Stevens, who failed to pay his income tax. Elizabeth Byerly, famous woman detective, was busy looking for clues as to their where- abouts. The next scene was the Navy on parade, and in the ranks of those white uniformed officers appeared the faces of lylurphy Phelps and Bascom Sawyer. The Navy Band has turned out in full regalia, with Bobby Munden beating the bass drum. On the sidelines I recognized Mrs.-ah-Elizabeth Barnes, her face wreathed in admiring smiles. Hmmmm--VVho's she proud of? I wonder... The Navy Air Corps has claimed two of the class of '38g john Frisby and jonathan Spruill. Their uniforms are very becoming too. Then-Hollywood! The first thing I saw was a sign- Brothers Bros. Moving Picture Company. The Brothers were none other than lklargaret and Edward. And at last! After ten long, weary years of research they have finally found a Scarlett O'Hara. Gone with the VVind is really under production, and Scarlett?-our own Florence IVoodley. Rhett Butler is familiar, too. -lack Jarvis' popularity as a matinee idol won him the coveted role. The scene changes to another studiog a picture is in production here, too. Ray and Roy VVest, still exactly alike, have the leading roles in the picture, entitled Mike and Ike. Kladelyn Spruill is taking the character part of their mother, having just finished the leading role in INIother lNIachree. On the same set I saw two familiar figures in the backgroundg Nlarjorie Upton, double for Shirley Temple, and Elizabeth Copeland, stand in for Zasu Pitts. Swiftly the setting changed to New York again, and I recognized quite a number of faces as scene after scene flowed before my eyes. Billie Seymour is society editor for the New York Timesg Lillie lklae Russell and Marjorie Turner fstill inseparablej are running a fashionable dress shop on Fifth Avenue. Hugh Marr fOh, if lNIiss Gordon could see him nowlj is a capitalist. His income mounts yearly, and the poor workers in his factories suffer greatly by this iron-hearted man's unscruplousness. Esther Rhodes has come into her own as a famous novelistg critics everywhere are acclaiming her latest