Ipswich High School - Tiger Yearbook (Ipswich, MA)

Page 22 text:

casts and market reports are at his in- stant disposal. In the evening when his day’s work is finished, he and his family can sit around the fireside and enjoy an opera or other musical concerts given by the best of talent just as well as if they were at the theatre, or even better, for when one becomes tired of this type of concert he can tune or regulate the ra- dio apparatus to give an instructive lec- ture or speech by some notable profes- sor or statesman. Radio sets are now being installed in large stores and schools as a means of entertainment and education. Police departments are sending out descriptions of criminals through the broadcasting service and are aided in locating and capturing es- caped prisoners. Our government uses the radio to send out various weather and market reports every day. In fact the system of broadcasting has so many uses and services to render that it is hardly possible to name them. Another phase of communication where the radio is now proving itself and in which it is bound to be of perma- nent value is in the case where it is de- sirable to communicate with moving ob- jects, in which case the barrier of mo- tion has been an obstacle in the way. The radio as a means of communication between ship and shore is no 7 an ab- solute necessity. This is also the means to communicate with airplanes. It is possible that the wireless will be used on trains to do away with the monotony of travel and will thus make it more en- joyable. Campers and travelers can be located by their friends and can enjoy a conversation with the home folks. So you see the really remarkable uses to which the radio is now put and the many uses which could be brought about by no other apparatus. W here there are natural barriers and obstructions such as mountains, forests, deserts, and large bodies of water which render it impossible or impracticable to lay cables or make any wire connection whatever, the radio has overcome the difficulty and made it possible to con- verse over these obstacles with the greatest ease. Because of its far reach- ing and wide range of travel and its comparatively small expense, the radio is recognized as an especially practicable means of international communication. It is not, however, serviceable as yet where absolute secrecy is desired, but for all that it is bound to bring the na- tions of the earth closer together and thus to produce better understanding. Since it is upon the communication and exchange of ideas and intelligence that civilization depends, the radio with its great future possibilities is bound to contribute greatly to the progress and happiness of the world. Ross Whittier. VALEDICTORY “VINCIT QUI PARTITUR “Vincit qui partitur!” He conquers who endures! We must all agree as we are about to take up the tesks for which our years of study have been preparing us, that this is a good motto to bear in mind. It is the man, the country, the nation that through constant toil, hard-think- ing, and sustained effort, has succeeded and risen to greatness. Nothing is gained but by hard and earnest effort and what we get without toil is not last- ing in its effect. To be conquerors, we need to have confidence in our work and in ourselves. The test that shows whether we are en- during the difficulties and disappoint- ments in life is whether or not we can answer in the affirmative to the ques- 20

Page 21 text:

the present devices and utilities the ra- dio is without the least doubt the most popular and the most promising. This remarkable little device has brought with it untold wonders. People are running wild with enthusiasm over this means of rapid, reliable, and long dis- tance communication by the use of which the human voice, music, and other desirable sounds can be heard distinctly for many hundreds of miles through the air without even wire or other physical connection. Think of it! Do you won- der then that the radio has become so immensely popular throughout the earth? Yet the radio is by no means a new invention or discovery. In fact, ex- periments of a radio nature were being tried as far back as 1827. The origin of the wireless, however lies in the ex- periments of Hertz, a German scientist. But it was not, to be sure, until 1896 that the mastery of air communication received its first real impetus. It was then that Marconi ' s valuable patents were made known and in spite of all the splendor and value of these inventions and in spite of all the extensive advertis- ing and publishing they meant nothing to the general public. Interest prevailed only among a few — a small technical class and a few devoted amateurs. Since then, however, interest has ever been in- creasing as scientists have contributed multitudes of inventions which have tended to make the radio take rapid strides towards its perfection. But with the advent of the radio telephone came the present great popularity of the radio and to-day we find this little device the most talked of and the most enjoyable of all objects. Pages of the daily papers, new books, and magazines devoted entirely to radio all remind us that we are living at the beginning of a new epoch in world wide communica- tion. The radio, although comparatively young, even in its present state of de- velopment has opened up new fields and new opportunities in the world of com- munication. But for all the valuable work that it has shown itself capable of, there are a few pessimists who describe ar.d insist upon terming the radio as only a passing “craze at the height of its popularity and development and soon to pass on forgotten. On the other hand there is a large class who are delighted with the results thus far accomplished and are looking forward to an even greater future. The question is often asked, “Will the radio ever displace the present cable systems or the present wire telephone? To my mind the an- swer to this question is of no real im- portance. Whether or not t he old wire telephone is replaced by the present ra- dio telephone matters little as far as the permanence of the radio is con- cerned. The wireless is in a class by itself with its own fields of communica- tion to take care of. It has opened up at least three new phases of communi- cation in the world which are now and will ever remain predominant. First of all by the so-called method of broadcasting, the radio telephone has made it possible to address an enormous- ly large audience scattered over wide and distant areas of land. At present there are scores of broadcasting stations which send out every day means of en- joyment, entertainment, and education to hundreds of thousands of eager and interested listeners. The farmer living in far off and isolated districts who was hitherto shut off from the rest of civilization is now receiving numerous bere ts of all sorts. He is now con- stantly kept as well informed about daily news and current events as the city population. Fresh weather fore- 19

Page 23 text:

tion, “Are we in the right place, the place where we can be most useful and most serviceable?” We can be happy m our life-work, only when it is counting for something. We need to be care- ful lest we take the easy path and the path of least resistance, rather than the path of duty. Whatever trade or profession or calling one undertakes, he must be doing and giving a real serv- ice to God and man. We must not make drudgery but serv- ice our daily work and this can be conquered only by real and honorable labor, for as Dryden says, “They con- quer who believe they can.” Let us turn our thoughts back to the time three hundred years ago, when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth. They re- solved to found a country which they ould proudly call their own. Could they have done this if they had not endured misfortunes, hardships, privations, and Indian scares, which were indeed enough to discourage the strongest of hearts? No indeed! the sturdy bard grew, and what is more , endured the oppressive taxes and the worst periods of suffering to found a home for all freedom-loving races. Many great men have we had in our country, men of honest hearts and true 1 deals, who have made success by per- severing in the most trying times, and have made themselves examples to oth- ers and an inspiration and model. George Washington began as a young man, led his small army against the English and Indians, and did he give up? No! by repeated efforts, he over- came his foes, and helped to make America the free land it is to-day. Abraham Lincoln, the poor boy, born in a log cabin, the rail-splitter, and clerk in a country store, “Honest Abe” as he vas called, what did he not attain by enduring the hardships of the life which he had to live? He made the most of his humble surroundings, taught him- self how to read and write, and by do- ing this he helped to bring himself up tne ladder of success, beginning from the bottom, and climbing round after round of the ladder, slowly, but with a firm footing and hold. How can we account for the great in- ventions which take years and years to plan and develop? They sometimes take the whole life-time of a man who never gives up but plods on and on until he reaches his goal. One great living example to the world to-day is the suffering and endurance which we experienced during the world war. But ! what was our suffering com- pared to that of little Belgium, of war- ravaged France? There are indeed many examples of those who have endured through the hardest of trials and have come to the end victorious. We have been favored with the spe- cial equipment and preparation such as is taken advantage of by an all too small proportion of the people. But it is only preparation and not conclusion. There is net such a thing as finished education. The world must contribute its prac- tical experience, its intimate knowledge, its discipline, and disappointments, to complete the equipment. We can learn much from books but if we learned only from books, we would learn only the wisdom of the past. Humanity is seeking for those who can see widely, clearly, and fearlessly and men all about us need the best we can give them, and we cannot give our best without enduring the difficulties ac- companying our upward strivings to seek the things that are higher and bet- ter. We, the Class of 1922, shall never for- get the debt owed to our parents, teach-