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

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fix S Sunset By HUME WILKINS O pause on a ribbon-like road in front of the pine-shielded schoolhouse at Torrance, and behold the Ruler of Day take his seat amidst the western isles of Lake Muskoka is to have reached the summit of beauty. The inside of day's blue bowl is overlaid with fairy gold, misted with all the delicate films of the rainbow. These dream-hues mingle with the sky-line in a sheaf of ruby flame. Down the rippling waters dance the wraiths of the exotic heavens, in a wild Bacchanalian riot of magical colour. Battleship Island, its towering pines jet-etched against the blazing hor- izon, stands in dark-browed dignity to guard the way to the bedside of the sun. With a stroke of His brush, the Painter silvers the edges of rose-tinted cloud-feathers, which hang, motionless, above the fire-pot, and the colours begin silently to steal back to Iris, the rainbow maiden. The orange lamp of day sinks out of sight, and ephemeral twilight embraces the world with sensuous caresses. At her coming, the breezes, thrilled with her evasive loveliness, pause in their revels, and all is still. 'il Harold Dando-School Captain Like some young cypress, tall, and dark, and straight, Which in a queen's secluded garden throws Its slight dark shadow on the moonlit turf, By midnight, to a bubbling fountain's sound, is the well deserving winner of the coveted Thomas Porter Scholarship for School Captain in nineteen thirty-one. AROLD STANLEY DANDO is a native of Two Twenty-three North Water Street, Galt, city of a thousand other glories. He first put in an appearance there on October Fifteenth, Nineteen Twelve. Mr. Dando is tall and slender, lithely built. His locks, parted on the right side of his head, are curly and raven, characteristically kinky. Spark- ling eyes reveal the mischievous imp dancing behind them. His cherry complexion is easily fluctuated by emotion. His face is long and oval, at times assuming a pale cast of thought, although he is more likely to act on the spur of the moment, Without cogitation. Mr. Dando uses his tongue extensively for the purpose to which it was intended, but secrets are as safe as Gibraltar when once confided to him. Occasinally his calm temper turns testy side up, and his organ of speech moves accordingly. To hisbest friends he is always pleasant and suave, except when they annoy him unbearably. He is unceasingly tender- hearted, and delights to perform the small courtesies. Sociability is 1n- alienable to him, and a coterie of admirers often surrounds his attractive self. 33 .

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-'ll l' ,-'- ri. . ' - - if 'WA 'rusl L' A Pnrrvs I' 'W native Cambridge 'with a view to doing a little looking around in the Valley of Kingsf From his veiled periodic remarks I concluded that the question of Biblical truth played no small part in his movements. His goal was the recently discovered tomb of Amenopothet, that great Pharaoh, who, museum authorities claimed, so cruelly enslaved Moses and the Israelites. As a last great stroke of generosity he condescended to take me into his confidence to the extent of giving me a clue, he referred me to the tenth chapter of Exodus. After this enlightening announcement he decided to tolerate my presence on his venture, and combining our resources we set out towards Luxor, the Valley of Kings, and the tomb of the great Pharaoh Amenopothet, On our arrival there, Flinders explained that we were to obtain en- trance to the inner chamber where the royal mummy lay. Although still unaware of his exact purpose, but being quite free, and with the spirit of adventure strong within me, I agreed, though not without apprehension. We waited until nightfall, and then, crawling on our stomachs, fearing lest we should be watched, we reached a small stone doorway. Once inside we breathed more easily. The guards were now out of sight, and 'out of sight, out of mind,' so we lit our torches and made our path towards our destination. Unfortunately our way was barred by an anachronism in the unmistakeable form of a Yale lock. Petrie, however, with his natural re- sourcefulness, soon filed this in two, and we beheld-the inner chamber! I shall not dwell at length on the golden images, the inlaid furniture, the woven canopies, or any other evidences of a cruel splendour. Suffice it to say that the sight bewitched us, but our purpose was of a nature other than that of petty tomb stealing. We made our way to the opened sarco- phagus which occupied a central position in the rocky vault. Before us lay the mummy of Amenopothet, Pharaoh of Egypt, overlord of Ethiopia, Beloved of Ra,--titles long since obsolete. Flinders took, from a satchel he carried, a scalpel, and several bottles of chemicals. Then he set himself to his task. The operation consisted in removing the heart of Amenopothet, and placing it on the ground for inspection. He tapped it, and it cracked and crumbled like old china. This gruesome procedure forced me to won- der whether our pastime came under the head of 'Grave Violation? The old fe-llow had been dead for some time. but-my nervous reverie was disturbed by 'Note how brittle it is' from Flinders. I noted it, but for the life of me could not see what serious bearing the observation had on an adventure for which I had dared to risk my skin so carelessly. After experimenting on a piece of heart for some time, he again looked up and spoke, breaking my soliloquies on the discomfort of Pharaoh's Mother-of-Pearl bed. Then he said, and his voice had a ring that impressed me, 'This heart contains salts, which, in Pharaoh's life, encrusted it, har- dening the arteries-a sort of angina pectorisf I was almost annoyed at this interruption when Petrie continued in the tone of one who is exposing a riddle, 'And the Lord said unto Moses, Pharaoh's heart is hardened .' Then I understood l 32

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'ig I' ..- .--. M' W , Rl I S In ..., . ' f f x x . - - -, 1, if . P5 Q uf. A if Mr. Dando has earned for himself, through the years, something of the reputation of Peck's Bad Boy. His earliest recollection, in fact, is of getting the works for attempting to abscond with his brother's wrist watch. He confesses to having felt the schoolmasterly lash- twice since he entered the portals of the Collegiate. Once in the dear dead days beyond recall, when Miss Harding held court in Room Ninety-four, the very young Dando was committed to the mercies of the oflice strap, on a charge of shooting rice, at whom we do not know. He chewed gum one day, and was scathingly bidden to discard it, by whom we dare not say. The School Captain is a sportsman. As far back as he can remember, he has been snap on a rugby team. Wherever a group of schoolboys band themselves together to play a game, he may be found. Last year he was chosen Captain of the Basketball Team. The Gym. Team has known him ever since its inception. He is the Major of the Twenty-First Cadet Corps, and a crack shot with a rifle. The Man Dando's travels have led him afield to Cochrane in the wilds of the North, and the Border Cities on the edge of gangsterdom. He ap- proves highly of the inhabitants of the Ontario mining town, but considers Detroiters and Americans generally as grubbing and mercenary. His best loved sports are tennis and basketball, in both of which he is a steady, dependable player. He gives no reason for reading the books of Philips Oppenheim and Gene Stratton Porter. As interviewing representative of the Specula Galtonia, I asked Mr. Dando several pertinent questions. What are your political views ? ' I am a Tory, he replied. As to your question regarding the St. Lawrence Waterway, I think it would be tough on Montreal. My idea of Empire Free Trade is that it would be practicable if it were somewhat restricted. What is your opinion of the teachers and pupils of the school ? Well, the teachers are all right in the main. One or two of them might take reducing exercises. Some others might be somewhat more amicable, for instance it wouldn't hurt them to say good morning to us when they meet us in the corridors before nine o'clock. That would make for better feeling between them and us. The pupils are too staid. Why don't they get over their foolish inferiority complexes, and enter into things more? They don't mix enough, and it wouldn't do them any harm to slide down the bannisters once in a while. Perhaps Mr. Wholton would make some concessions in that case. To what do you attribute your successful school career ? I don't know whether this is the proper thing to say or not, but I think it developed mainly because I have- always tried to be friendly and congenial with everybody in the school. Have you a definite ambition ? Yes, I want to be a chemical engineer, and discover a way of turning old newspapers into sugar. My concluding question was one that has puzzled the master minds of the generation. But Mr. Dando's answer to it came quick as a flash. What is the solution of Unemployment ? If every person had a job, there would be no unemployment. 34