Galt Collegiate Institute and Vocational School - Specula Galtonia Yearbook (Galt, Ontario Canada)

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sPEcULA GALTONIA as The Summer fTranslation from the Germanj By EDITH J. THOMSON The Summer, the Summer, Of all seasons the queen, Woodland flowers beckon us O'er meadows of green, Filling our hearts with happiness. The Summer, the Summer, Its joyfulness gratifies, As we chase and then run After gaily hued butterfliesg And gleefully laugh in our fun. The Summer, the Summer, With treasures bestowing, We seek the wild berries Under tall beeches growing 3 Their sweet succulence tarries. The Summer, the Summer, Spreading a merry radiance, As flower garlands we interlace And laugh, play and dance, In the eve's cool, fading rays. '69 Three Foreigners By HELEN FRY OR two days they followed us, beautiful, impressive, but almost sinis- ter in their persistence. On the flat prairie these three mountains seemed to huddle together like lonesome foreigners, but even this attitude held aloofness and pride. The highest peak was in the centre and seemed to shelter the two lesser ones in the purple cloak of mist which the distance created. Their great outlines were rugged, but the distance and light hid their sharp edges and a clear yet soft contour resulted. The dusty road wound over the plain and, as though curious of these foreigners, edged closer. These approaches showed that the lower parts of the mountains were wooded, the woods showing like green, velvet patches in contrast to the sharp, red, clay crevices. Still the air of aloofness prevailed and, as one drew nearer, it was more pronounced because of a veil of mist which shrouded the summits. Then the road, as though satisfied, continued its way over the plain and the mountains slowly became the remote strangers which the first glimpse had revealed.

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22 SPEGULA GALTONIA discussion, it was decided that on that mysterious trip Matilda must have met her lover and married him, only to be widowed by a wreck which befell the next fishing trip. Gradually the new kindness and esteem which the neighbours showed her, together with a few hints, made Matilda see the situation. Immediately she seemed to gain confidence in herself. Her head was held a little higher and her step became lighter. Although her guilty con- science urged the correction of this false impression, the mystery remained unsolved: for life was made interesting and worth while again by the fact that the villagers no longer saw her as an ordinary spinster-she was a widow! Kgs The Circle of Circumstance By ELLEN NORWOOD S he drew up his chair to the breakfast table that particular morning, every one of James Brown's Iive senses eagerly called for coffee. Mrs. Brown, however, had unthinkingly brewed tea. Thereupon, Brown saw red-picked up his offending cup and its contents, stepped to the back porch, and hurled them into the alley. Still furious, he next grabbed his hat and went out without looking back or saying good-bye. Meantime, Dr. Smith, a few doors down the street, was busy answer- ing the 'phone. Having swallowed a hurried bite, he climbed into his car, waved a hand and came swinging out of the alley turn-bang!-a punc- tured tire! The doctor swore fervently. From the tire he pulled a nasty piece of razor-sharp porcelain. Who ever left this broken cup here for people to drive over ? A good hour later a cool voice in a fashionable doorway said, Sorry, doctor, but we couldn t wait, we called in Doctor Gray. For the absent Dr. Gray came a long-distance call from his brokers in New York. Stocks were tumbling, should they sell or cover? But the minutes sped by, eleven o'clock came and, before a second call found him in, the doctor had lost S10.000. Whereupon a friend of his, to whom Dr. Gray had suggested his broker's name, learning of the incident, decided to invest his thousands elsewhere. Had that person's patronage fallen into their lap just then, the broker- age firm could have survived the bitter weather of the Street. Instead, client after client withdrew--and thirty days later their name was heard no more, save on the lips of reminiscing old-timers. By afternoon Brown had cooled under his collar considerably and was half-inclined to call his wife and thus pave the way to a peaceful supper. But he put this idea aside in favour of a reconciliation at the door, and in twenty-four hours the whole affair had been forgotten. However, some time later over his favourite beverage Know unfailing- ly brewed each morningl, he read the few words announcing the failure of the famous New York firm. He set his coffee down heavily, There goes our little old three hun- dred, Mary. He sat for a time silent. Well, he said, trying to smile, that's that. And presently from the door as he departed, he called back, Must have taken something pretty big to smash a firm as solid as they were. 'f

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24 SPECULA GALTONIA Fort of the Broken Heart By MARGARET DAVIDSON Accompanied by Tonti, a brave Italian ofiicer, the party reached Fort Crevecoeur on the Illinois Riverg but La Salle had to go back and face his creditors. In his absence the party was attacked by Iroquois and was forced to retreat to Fort Michilimackinac. HAT is all a text-book says about that lonely little fort, which was situated eighty miles north of the point where the waters of the Illinois first meet and mingle with those of the mighty Mississippi. This incident in the life of the great explorer occurred in 1669. Half a century before, a weary band of travellers, coming upon this spot, found that they must there build themselves a dwelling and fortify themselves against the cold and the Indians. Paul Fournelle and his parents lived in Fort Frontenac, that historic place, where Kingston now stands. For years the days and nights in the New Land had been filled with horror for the early settler. But Frontenac, the great Onontio, had pacihed the Indians to some extent and the colony was, as a result, more prosperous than it had ever been before. The older people might be contented with this change. It was well for them now to settle down to a peaceful life, after their years of labour. Paul was never satisfied with the life in the little colony. Traders who came to the Fort always found an eager listener in the young Frenchman, Indians related tales that fired his imagination. The call of a rover's life same to Paul Fournelle and he responded. One clear night in the fall of 1617, he left his home and his friends and joined himself to a band of In- dians, whom he had befriended. Paul found a comrade in a young brave, and together they roamed the forest, the one learning and the other teaching the meaning of the various signs of the woods and of the animals who lived there. J ibwa proved to be his most loyal friend, and Paul clung to him more than ever when he found himself rejected by his own race. For he had not counted the cost of his careless act. When he and Jibwa returned with the rest of the Indians in the spring to Fort Frontenac, he was treated as an outcast by the family- even the townspeople shunned him. From the Indians he learned that his family had disowned him. He became bitter, and abandoned the life of civilized man. The iron had entered his soul. He became a veritable savage. The wild war-dances and Wholesale slaughters, which inevitably followed, presented nothing new to him, now. The animal which they say is in every human reared its ugly head in the life of Paul Fournelle. In the summer of 1618, the tragedy occurred which added still more weight to the unfortunate young man's burden. He fell before the charm of a young French maiden, Adrienne Revasseur. Her family was proud and Paul had not now the right to his name. When Adrienne's people learned, as they finally did, that their daughter was communicating with an out- cast, they were scandalized. Love, however, recognized no barriers, and to Adrienne was presented the alternative: she must either give up all intercourse with Paul, or go with him and be forgotten by her own people.