Lafayette High School - Legend Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

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Chapter 3-The Flowering of Culture Then one summer's day, a lapanese town was wiped off the face of the earth, and a new era began. Meanwhile, the abilities of the children who had entered Lafayette were increasing, now they were juniors. They began to join activities with un- natural zeal. Literature spread through Lafayette as two examples of de- mocracy flourished. Then, as the world celebrated a long-awaited event, the juniors felt an electric change comlng over their personalities. Their faces had become more worn, and wrinkles had appeared on what was once the smooth skin of ignor- ance. They began to take interest in elections. Their intelligence increased to the point that they found more differences in the candidates than were evident in their faces. They realized that elections were a vital part of democracy and that interest in elections is mandatory for citizens in a democracy of any sort. One day they looked into a mirror, saw a sparkle in their eyes and the reflec- tion of the sunshine in their hair. Their spirits were buoyant. ln a flash they realized what had transpired. They had become seniors! And somewhere on a South Pacific lsland, a boy knew that he would see his family again, soon . . . Chapter 4-No Decline and Fall of the Lafayette Empire Suddenly the seniors became button conscious. Each day they walked into their rooms and grinned at the teacher saying, Did they come yet? The more impatient ones made their own. Then one day a witch doctor entered the classroom bearing a box which had upon it the words: !'Seniors, take one! Upon the tin was embodied the spirit which had transformed naive children into naive adults. The seniors pinned them on and strutted through the halls shouting, One side! Senior coming through! Then in proud dignity they strode into the cafe- teria where they asserted their new found power. And as families were reunited, the seniors left the kingdom of Lafayette- they left to become the men and women of America. They left to take on jobs to get a higher education, to search for happiness and peace. f Epilogue Yet, as they left, there were new people to take over the kingdom of La- fayette, for it was realized that any civilization dependent on one person group, or minority, would die. 1 Throughout the history of the world there have been many civilizations. Let us honor one whose people have triumphed over circumstance, yet have not been vanquished by time. Let the bonds which bind them n'er be broken, but let them hold as a monument to time. THE EDITORIAL BOARD Sixteen

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amfmi-The Lafayette People Preface To help the graduates to understand the ideals, traditions and institutions which have shaped their development in Lafayette and to stimulate them to think honestly about the problems facing the modern American, have been the guiding principles in the preparation of this history. The minor incidents and humor concommitant with these situations are also a vital part of the graduates development. We have tried to lose neither the humor nor the drama of your development, we have tried to again point out those countless, fond trivialities which accompany the development of the child into the adult, Come back with us four years. A transport is carrying your brothers, cousins, and fathers overseas. A little, cringing child tries to hold his head high, and gazes into the future. Chapter l-The Discovery ln l943 a dilapidated bus owned by the Pinta, Nina, and Syken Bus Serv- ice, lnc., floated into the marshes. A three foot-three inch individual left the bus and crawled through the foliage to observe a mighty empire built upon a sand dune. Racing back from whence he came, he reported the discovery of this mythical empire with golden bars over the windows. This incited the ad- venturous graduates of low schools to apply for admission to the glorious school beyond civilization which they called, because of its elevated position, a high school. Chapter 2-The Infiltration of Civilization The obviously savage inhabitants of the golden empire were glorified and civilized by the entrance of the freshmen. Soon their civilization had become so complex, that in order to spread it, the older citizens had to stand in front of large rooms and write on black walls with White crayons. ln l944, an es- pecially large exodus of immigrants from the low schools, caused an influx of many people into the high school, which they called Lafayette. And, as thousands of ships and planes rolled off the assembly lines, the freshmen held their heads a little higher, and were called sophomores. CContinuedD Fifteen

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e Z g :gy b iid All if We, the Seniors of the graduating UD class of lanuary l948, despite num- erous insinuations, claim to be of sound mind and body, and having been seized by an attack of generosity, do hereby bequeath the following: To our esteemed principal, Dr. Oswald, we leave our sincerest gratitude and deepest respect. To Mr. Grady We extend our appreciation for the subtle humor that brighte ened our daily life. To our much respected grade adviser. Mrs. Rafter, we leave our everlast- ing thanks for her understanding nature and her patient assistance and guide ance. To those others who are left behind, we make the following beaueaths: Mr. Pincus and Mr. Bloom: A nice, dwell-mannered WJ Senior assembly. Mr. Novak: A blackboard without geometry symbols cluttering it up. Miss Holihan: lUU unbreakable thermometers. Mr. Starrs: Students of good moral stability, filled with respect for parents and teachers and not filled with statements that question authority, Miss Costa: A quiet hall while she is teaching classes. Mr. Nazer: We leave The Lost Chord fif We find itD. Mrs. Holden: A last row of students who don't kibitz. Mr. Levine: A good 25 cigar and some thousand dollar bills to light it with. Miss Teijeiro: lU,UUU cubic feet of fresh air. lContinuedl Seventeen