Hastings High School - Saxon Yearbook (Hastings, MI)

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which made him the great man he was, the Presi- dent of the United States, and the preserver of unity in our country during the great Civil war. Although we all cannot be Lincolns in the world of statesmanship, or Pierpont Morgans in the financial world, by the faithful attendance upon the small things in life w'e may attain an exalted character, which is greater to ourselves than the greatest literary fame, or a name which will live after us. How, then, shalt thou know thy opportunity? It may be always found by earnest, persistent effort in whatever task presents itself, no matter how little or insignificant it may seem. In our chosen work of life, obstacles and disappointments may come, failure and discouragements be ours, but if we are determined to succeed in character build- ing, we will find our opportunity and nothing can prevent it. As each day closes and w'e look back over opportunities neglected or unperceived, we need not be disheartened, for though disaster and defeat seem to be our portion, and darkness and gloom surround us, let us look up, for God’s in His Commencement Parts Class Motto heaven, all’s right with the world. The darkness will soon be over and another day will dawn, a tomorrow with new aspirations and opportunities to do with what we will. HASSAM’S PROVERB King Hassam, well beloved, was wont to say, When aught went wrong, or any labor failed: “Tomorrow, friends, will be another day!” And in that faith he slept, and so prevailed. Long live this proverb! YVhile the world shall roll, Tomorrow, fresh shall rise from out the night. And new baptize the indomitable soul With courage for it’s never-ending fight. No one, I say, is conquered till he yields, And yield he need not. while, like mist from glass, God wipes the stains of life’s old battlefields From every morning that he brings to pass. New day, new hope, new courage, let this be, O Soul, thy cheerful creed. What’s yesterday. With all it’s shards and wrack and grief to thee? Forget it, then—here lies the victor’s way. HELEN HAYES.

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Commencement Parts Class Motto know that with the desire always comes the op- portunity. We are living in a wonderful world today, an era of progress and advancement without parallel. Man, with his powerful intellect, is reaching out as never before along the lines of research and in- vestigation, and there must needs be great oppor- tunities to enable him to perfect the great things of which he is capable. To the primitive man. in intellect scarcely above the animal, there came a time when there was born within him a desire for development, for things higher, and with that desire always came the means of fullilling it, and there swept over the world a wave of progress and development which has continued until the present time. We speak of these eras of progress and of the great reformations, and what were these but the call of the human soul for higher things, for the opportunity to advance towards perfection. Strange as it may seem, we are often told that opportunity knocks but once at every man’s door. We hear it from the platform, the pulpit, and the press. Even we of this High School were told this most eloquently a short time ago, and were urged not to be like the belated passenger turning the corner as the train pulled out from the station, for- ever too late. Never was teaching more pernicious, more untrue than this. Opportunity is as patient and everlasting as the goodness of our Heavenly Father. It comes from Him, and is always waiting for the discouraged, despairing soul. Of course, it is given to very few to have a great opportunity present itself which seems a turning point in their lives by which they find themselves in the world’s list of the great in art, literature, medicine, music, or abstruse learning. But true success in life does not necessarily mean the accumulation of great wealth or the attainment of social or literary position. Success, as our Heav- enly Father means it, is the faithful performance of the common every-day duties of life in which the small opportunities presented seem more for the development of character than worldly success, and are ofttimcs unappreciated. In the most common, prosaic lives there are always occasions for culture and self-development, and for the making of what- soever things are honest, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are just, and whatsoever things are of good report. However, let us remem- ber the faithful performance of the small things of life is but paving the way to the broader life, which will some time present itself and for which these small occasions have prepared us. Many are the illustrations I could give of great men who have achieved wealth and success in the face of what seemed unsurmountable difficulties, but what greater one could I mention than our own Abraham Lincoln, whose chances of advancement in life seemed so few as to be almost unnoticeable, but whose desire was so intense that out of dis- couragement itself he developed opportunities

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Commencement Parts Prophec}) It was in the summer of 1924 when the writer started for a walk near the seashore. As I neared the water’s edge, I looked down into the water and saw a bubble which arose to the surface, and as I looked at it. I saw a boy and girl and heard the girl say, “Yes, Blair. I am so happy.” They were seated on a green bank, and as I looked once more, I noticed the girl was Vera Woodard. Blair said that Maurice Healy was the principal of the Grand Rapids High School, and then the bubble disap- peared. Another fairy-like ball arose before me. and I saw a sign which had the following words upon it: “Vote for Tolhurst”, and upon reading the item I found that Leon was running for President of the United States. Michigan having accepted equal suffrage, it was certain he would receive one fair child’s vote. Helene was at that time teaching Eng- lish in the Detroit High School. I watched the bubble grow larger and it seemed to take the shape of a theatre. “Make Hay While the Sun Shines”, written by Edmund Wood, was being played to a full house. Among the actresses were Florence Payne, Clara Huffman and Hazel Barnum. When the orchestra began to play, the name of Lois Agnes Velte was upon the lips of everybody, for she, the greatest of musicians, was the leader. After the play was over, Lois and the actresses had a midnight lunch, and I heard Clara say that Katherine Bowler and Esther Turner were stenog- raphers for Walter Phelps. The latter had a large ranch in North Dakota. In a few minutes Hazel said: “Yes, and Ethel Ward is a missionary in Africa.” They were just about to leave when their conversation turned to Chester Stem, and one of them said that he had a large automobile factory in Chicago. The bubble moved, and I saw a sleigh load party, and the principal thing which attracted my attention was a parasol which was up. The wind was blowing and the parasol fell out of the sleigh, and whom had it been protecting but Hazel Lawrence and a friend. This bubble disappeared and another one came before me. I saw a large mine and in the entrance were seated two men who were loiter- ing. One of them said: “Come on, here comes Doud. the boss.” The other man immediately arose and they hastened into the black depths of the earth. Soon a man came up to the entrance, and as I looked at him I knew he was Raymond. He was walking along and reading a paper. He dropped it as he entered the mine. I was surprised to see in large letters on the paper. “Madame Sadie Glasgow will set sail from San Francisco today in her noted bal- loon. ‘The Ray’.” In smaller letters below this I saw the following words: “She will not take any companions with her, but only some Michigan waters.” As this fairy-like ball turned around, I saw a house. A woman came to the door and said to a man who was working outside: “Gilbert, shall wc take up a free land grant out West?” “Yes, Mary,