Fryeburg Academy - Academy Bell Yearbook (Fryeburg, ME)

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The Academy Bell 31 the mud. On picking it up, however, I discovered it to be a box turtle. Ever since this time I have been extremely interested in turtles. Being a geologist, and having the opportunity to go on many field trips during the summer months, my father was able to supply me with the majority of my collection. Late one afternoon of that First summer, after having been on a trip to south Iersey, he returned with an orange crate containing eight different sized tortoises. This really got my collection under way. At one time during my period of collecting, I had a total of twenty-two box turtles. Since some of these turtles had individual characteristics of their own they each had a special name. Ex- amples of these names are Aunt Minney, Crawly, the first turtle found, Crawlus, Big Boy, Squirticle, Princeton, Elmer, and Speedy. The reason I was able to accommodate conveniently so many turtles is the terrace which is built onto our house. The main difficulty in keeping them in- side the enclosure arose when one of the gates would accidentally be left open overnight. One morning my father discovered such a situation and called my at- tention to the fact. Frantically we rushed out into the back yard and began the search for the escaped turtles, and, after hunting for an hour or two, only Big Boy was left unfound. Two weeks later, however, a friend of mine, who lives three blocks away, discovered him crawling across his front lawn, and, recognizing him as a member of my collection, returned him to me. The process that a female turtle goes through before and after laying her eggs is extremely interesting. Late one autumn afternoon I observed that Crawlus was busily occupied digging a small hole near the edge of the garden. She would back down into the hole, and then, with a quick Hip of her hind legs, would send out a little spray of dirt. Because this was such a slow procedure, her digging continued until it was too dark to see what she was doing. On going to the loca- tion the next morning, I was amazed to find that there was no trace of the earth having been disturbed. Crawlus's camoufiaging job was perfect, so I drove a little stake into the general area to mark the spot. When spring rolled around the turtle population of the terrace was increased by five. Turtle races proved to be a good source of amusement for the neighborhood children. Each child would pick the turtle he thought to he the fastest. Then all the turtles competing in the race were placed in a box which was then turned over in the middle of the terrace. The lucky ones landed right side up, but others, less fortunate, would be dumped out on their backs, and sometimes they would- n't even bother turning over until the race was completed. The object of the race was to see which turtle could reach the edge of the garden first. Because the com- petitors themselves were in no hurry whatsoever, the race was even more inter- esting. One turtle would strike out across the lawn with determination written all over his face, and then, Hve feet from the garden he would stop, pull in his legs, and just sit there, craning his neck around in the breeze. In the meantime some other turtle, not so aggressive at first, would slowly overtake him and move into the garden, the winner.

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30 The Academy Bell THE PARTY THE room was crowded with people, all talking noisily and busily. He glanced around for a secluded corner in which to relax for a few moments, and his eyes lighted on the doors leading to the veranda. Wonderful! he thought, it will be much cooler out there, and besides the people will never miss me. I really don't understand their conversation any more. It's been too long since I shared their outlook. The doors were open a trifle, and he glimpsed the vague outline of Blanche. Her slender, erect figure was hard not to recognize. I-Ie noticed Mil- dred across the room look at him as if she wished he would join her, but he glanced away quickly and slipped out to join Blanche. 'lHello, he said. Are you enjoying this clambake at all? She turned her head slowly in his direction as if reluctant to bring herself back to reality. Why yes, she said quietly. It's a little different from what I ex- pected it to be, but I think I am enjoying it. Especially now. She raised her eyes with a shy look, quite unexpected. The man looked at her with hidden admiration. Blanche always, somehow, still surprised him. Despite all the years he had known and loved her, he could never quite understand this fair, tall, aloof-looking girl. He realized suddenly that she was really very beautiful. With one last smile, she left him to join the party again. And who was that handsome lass to whom you were speaking? said an amused voice behind him. Startled, he turned around to Hnd himself gazing into the merry, brown eyes of Mildred. That,', he smiled, was Blanche. Oh, she smiled back, a little shade of uncertainty in her manner. Do you suppose that she is enjoying herself, Bill? It's so different from what she is used to doing. I do believe, however, that she is quite the most attractive girl here. Excepting my hostess, the man stated firmly with an affectionate tone. Blanche meanwhile moved gracefully from group to group. She wished sud- denly that Mac were there, but, of course, the crowd was just a little out of Macls class. lust as well, really, as he'd never behave like a gentleman. More the out- door type, she thought, like me. She looked across the room to where Mildred and Bill stood absorbed in con- versation. They were nice people, she thought, for parents, but gee! they just couldn't understand that she'd much rather spend her fifteenth birthday with Mac, her Scotty, than at an old party with all those drips. FLORENCE Woon, ,49 MY GARDEN ACQUAINTANCES ONE afternoon during the summer of 1938, while I was walking through my back yard, I spotted what I thought was a smooth elliptical stone, half buried in

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32 The Academy Bell One of the saddest days of my life came in 1944 when, because of the high cost of dog food, the main source of the turtles' nourishment, we had to dispose of the collection. After I piled them into a large box which was placed in the back of the car, my father drove down to Lake Carnegie, which is about a mile away. Then, with one of us at each end, we carriedlthe box along the shore until we came to a secluded spot. Here they were set free. Being given permission to keep one, I selected Princeton, a large black and orange turtle that had been my favorite for a long time. He died during the winter of 1947. All that remains of my turtle collection is his carapace, which is now clamped securely on the top of a fence post in our back yard. As far as I can see, tortoises make just about the best pets for small children. I've never heard of anyone ever being bitten by a box turtle. The turtle's best defense is not offense, like a dog that will bite if teased, but instead he will merely shut up until the danger has passed over. Once a turtle has closed up he can take a terrific amount of punishment. Another reason that the tortoise makes a good pet is that he oxidizes food very slowly, and therefore does not have to be fed regularly. Even though turtles are extremely stupid, with no brains whatso- ever, I still maintain that they are about the friendliest of the quadrupeds. COPELAND MACCLINTOCK, ,52 POP! IT always seemed funny to me how the girls of this dorm always seemed to get blamed for all the mischief and merriment there. I made a very strange discovery last week, and I must tell you about it. I havenit told anyone else because I was afraid that they wouldn't believe me. Last week, as I was cleaning my room, I moved my bureau to clean the dust from behind it and what should pop out but a little man, who immediately scrambled under my bed! This sudden surprise nearly Hoored me, and it took me several minutes to recover. But when I did, I rushed for the bed too, only I was armed with a broom. It took me no more than a few minutes to procure this little fellow, squirming and kicking as I dragged him by the arm from under the bed. The dwarf danced about sneezing, coughing, and shaking the dust from his merry clothes. He was dressed like a jester in the court of the devil, and as I watched him, I could plainly see that he had some of the devil himself. His eyes danced like the little man. My First question to this jumping-jack, who was re- siding in my room, was what he was doing there and why? His answer came af- ter some minutes of the continual bobbing, while I became more curious and ag- gravated. After what seemed like a century had passed, the little dwarf answered my question by saying that he was a Sataner of dorms. I then asked him what his duties were, and he answered my question by asking me one.