Erskine Academy - Pinnacle Yearbook (South China, ME)

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THE PINNACLE 11 ly for a few minutes, then hopping to his place in center gave the signal that he was ready. The ball went into the air and Randall, jumping like a fiend, tapped the ball lightly into one of his forward's hands, raced down the hall and received the pass, before anyone was near enough to guard him. The ball was seen to drop clearly through the hoop. Randall's only thought now was to get his hands on the ball, which happened very often, and when it did was almost a sure basket. At the end of fifteen minutes the score was tied, 26 to 26, and as Randall passed the timer, he heard him say, one minute more. Almost instantly the referee's whistle sounded and he shout- ed, Foul on Brownell. Randall grabbed the ball and darted for the chalk line. The ball rose gently and with a swish dropped through the hoop. Almost the same instant the whistle blew, and the game was over. Hilltop had won by one point and was champion of the state. With a rush the Hilltop cheerers were on the floor, and rais- ing Randall to the shoulders of two husky boys, gave him a furious ride over the hall. He had surely shown the spirit of his ancestors-to keep on fighting although de- feat seemed certain. LEWIS TURNER, '23. OUR BASEBALL TEAM. The members of our baseball team Are rather small in size, But the home runs that they knock out, Would fill you with surprise. There's not a fellow on it, But he'll try to do his best, And if he ever gets a chance, He'll knock the ball out west. The other teams don't have much show, When our lads are at the bat, We could knock the ball across the fence, And win a score on that. It's spirit that they cherish best, No matter what may come And with their pluck and batting eye, The game's as good as won. MARION BROWN, '25. ADVENTURES OF THE WIND-SPIRIT MAN. Prologue. Terranus, the spirit of the wind, had the form of a man. His dad was the Tornado. His mother, the Cyclone, each rulers of the atmosphere. But Terranus preferred the home of the primative man and there- fore in behalf of his desire, his parents, on his ninth birthday, gave him the body of a human being and placed him in the jungle of Africa, where he might live and enjoy his spirit powers. 3It was late in the afternoon one quiet summer day. The elves of mother West Wind were playing incessantly over the brow of a muscled giant of the forest, who was sitting on a slice of granite, crunch- ing hungerly on a piece of raw boar's flesh. Eighteen years had passed since Terranus, as he was called by the Afri- can jungle tribes fbecause of his swiftness, like the tornadoj, had become one of the wild forest members. He loved this life of danger and solitude, and seemed to his forest friend, Nature, a part of it. As he devoured the delicious steak the rays of the afternoon sun fell in dazzling tints over the coarse locks of his coal black hair, giving him a look of magnificent beauty and splendor. At last his magnitude of hunger satis- fied, he threw his graceful form at full length upon the verdant banks of a bab- bling stream and quenched his thirst with swift gulps of clear water. Then feeling a lust for adventure, he called the wind spirits to his aid, and as the ground opened swiftly to his summons, he decended to the realms of Purgatory, to intrude on the domain of old Nick. Fifteen minutes later he found himself in the main furnace room of Satan's pri- vate parlor, and, before another half de- gree of time had passed, he had the sat- isfaction of being safely concealed behind a box of kindling watching with delight the movements of man's great adversary, who was arranging the furnace dampers. As he watched, a dare-devil look, half a smile, half a frown with perhaps a trifie of sar- casm, crept across his face. Now wouldn't it be fun to take out a section of that

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10 THE PINNACLE But the scholars all had fled, While many murdered lessons, Rose up as from the dead. First came poor dog-eared'Latin, I wept as it passed by, Then up rose stale old Algebra, Those black letters caught my eye. Then troops of themes and Roman kings Dashed in with one frightful cry, I woke to find those books on my desk, Staring me- right in the eye. THELMA COOPER, '25. THE FIGHTING SPIRIT. It was in the winter of 1776. Wash- ton's army had received defeat after defeat and was now camped at Valley Forge. The soldiers were half clothed and half starved and many were leaving for home. Around a little campfire, a dozen of these patriots were seated, one cold day, when a tall, gaunt, young man rose and threw more of the old boards on the fire, then facing the gathering, said, with fire in his eyes, Boys, we will fight it out and show this tyrannous king what the patriots are made of. And so they did, with Elijah Randall doing his part. Our next scene is the third of the battle of Gettysburg, before the wonderful charge of Pickett with his confederates. In these lines was a young man who resembled his father, Elijah Randall, Sr., very much and who was fighting for what he thought to be right, the same as his father did before himg but he was fighting in a hopeless cause. George Randall, the fourth generation from the beginning of this story, travelled all the way to the little town of Shawmut and enrolled in Hilltop Academy, the old high school where all the Randalls for the last three generations had attended. Hill- top Academy had a gymnasium and sup- ported a fair basketball team, winning a little more than half of its games the year before. Young Randall had little diiiiculty in making a back position on the team his first year, since he stood six feet and weigh- ed around one hundred and sixty. They won about half of the scheduled games as usual, but did no starring. The next year Randall played center for Hilltop and his coach saw a great future for this young man and also for Hilltop. He developed speed and had a great eye for the basket, scoring more than two-thirds of the team's points for the Whole year. Dur- ing the entire season they lost only three games. But the marvelous thing about Randall that most people could not under- stand was that he could play better and fight harder for his team when defeat seemed certain than in an easily won game. This was the old fighting spirit of his grandfather and great-grandfather, that had counted so much among their fellow- men at Valley Forge and Pickett's charge. A great season was looked forward to in Randall's senior year and perhaps a cham- pionship for Hilltop. Randall went out for center as he had for the last two years and easily made his place, but after win- ning several games from some of their best teams, he seemed to lose his great ability andfighting spirit, and when two large able bodied, young basketball players came from the city, he slowly lost his place to one of them, by the name of Hilton, and took the place of sub-center. The team won all of its games and was to play against a city school, by the name of the Brownell Institute, for the state champion- ship. The date 'came and the boys journeyed to the city with Randall along as sub-center. The Hilltop boys had confidence, but were not used to the large fioor and were over- whelmed in the first half by a score of 22 to 8. Hilton did not seem to be doing his best for some reason, and when the second half was three minutes old, Hilltop's coach turned to look over his substitutes, and as he turned he met Randall just coming tow- ard him with a look in his eyes he had never seen before. With a pleading voice Randall said, Coach, put me in, I will do my best. The coach eyed him for a mo- ment and then remembering Randall the previous year said, All right, go in. Ran- dall pulled his sweater off and then called his men together and talked to them stern-

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12 THE PINNACLE pipe, and fix the dampers so that it wouldn't turn, mused Terranus. Finally old Nick, having arranged mat- ters to his satisfaction, left the room. After giving a hasty glance after Satan's retreating form, the lord of the African jungle glided with swift and stealthy steps to the back of the great furnace. The heat regulated, Terranus was about to take apart the pipe, when a suppressed, Oh, my sir-! vibrated against his ear drums. Whirling, with a lightning like movement, the spirit of the wind found himself facing the fairest damsel of the under world. Rays of light filtered through the draft, rebounding, in enticing beams, from against her fair cheeks. On her lips there seemed to be a mute appeal. As Terranus gazed at her, for an instant their eyes met, and to him there was a sweet fascination stealing out from under the velvety lashes, which seemed to hold him in spell bound awe. For the first time during his wild life, the man who loved nature and the elements alone, felt a different thrill of devotion surge through his heart, and the blood quickened in his veins, as he asked in a voice which carried a tremor of feeling, Who are you? Oh, sir, she answered, advancing tow- ard the wind spirit man. I am the prin- cess of Venus, and just because I carried on a iiirtation, a small one at that, with some of the neighboring Star princes, I was proclaimed wicked, by the King of the Constellation and given to Old Nick. Surely I was not guilty of a crime which deserved such punishment as this, do you think? she questioned with a hopeful smile. Terranus gazed with admiration at her lovely form, and answered, One like you could surely never sin. Is there no chance of escape? I am watched very closely, she re- plied, but perhaps if you- I will do all in my power, for your happiness and free- dom, he finished for her. Now follow me, he directed simply. Without further words the two, Terranus in the lead, swiftly left the apartment. One hour later found them creeping slow- ly through the outer hall of Purgatory. Soon they were at the foot of the crack where Terranus had descended, but the entrance of the ground was nearly closed up. Terranus called to his brother windt spirits but they apparently did not hear, and before he could useqany miraculous means in aiding their escape, the slam of a door was heard back in the hallway, and Nick appeared followed by seven human imps. Swift action followed and ten minutes after the scene of conflict, Terranus and his friend from Venus were rising up tow- ard the surface of the African jungle, through the fissure, which had now opened. Back in the hallway lay the dead bodies of seven men, while out in the furnace room, raving and roaring, because the fuel was damp, stood old Nick. One might ob- serve he had been recently worsted in some scrap, by noticing him raise a shaggy paw now and then to wipe drops of blood from the raw edge of a broken horn. Ten days later, when night had cast her dark robes over the waving sentinels of the forest, a storm was raging in the un- tamed interior of Africa. The graver ele- ments were at play, lightning glared in dazzling sheets across the heavens. Thun- der rolled in rumbling echoes through the dark ravines and all of Mother earth seemed to be in for a shower bath. Far above the storm, sailing majestically on toward the Portals of Venus, was the wind spirit. On his Visage was a gleam of love. Why should I not be happy? he ask- ed himself, as Peri,ithe female Genius of Venus murmured: I love you. MILLARD STUDLEY, '22.