Lancaster High School - Mirage Yearbook (Lancaster, OH)

Page 11 text:

I CENTRAL HIGH ,'t

Page 13 text:

DEBRIS. 7 RURAL LIFE. URAL life is usually a pleasant and soul- inspiring one, posses- sing the right union of light and shade, sunshine and shadow, rest and labor to bring out the latent forces and dcvclope character fitted to withstand life’s battles. The prosperous farmer of today is a man of science and a gentle- man of culture and leisure. lie carefully reads the latest and best books which treat on the various subjects of his occupation. By means of the steam and electric roads, the telephone and the rural delivery of mail, he keeps in touch with the outside world, and is fa- miliar with current events. The Pilgrims of 1620, who land- ed on the forest-covered shores of America were welcomed by the gifts of nature. The pure air from across the sea; the fragrance of the flowers around and about them in the summer months; the rip- pling water of the streams; the winter cold and snow; all united to make them a happy and pro- gressive people. The sons and daughters of the sturdy pioneers, though the most industrious, were after all, the happiest, healthiest, and the most successful offspring of the early American inhabitants. If we trace the prosterity of our forefathers and carefully note the characteristics of those who lived always in the country, we shall see that the brawn of perfect man- hood, the intellectual ability of great men, the pleasures of a really happy life, and the highest type of true morality, bloomed and flourished to the greatest degree in those of the latter class. As the westward stream of im- migration was slowly but surely working its way across the fertile valley of the Ohio; as the people in that great procession stopped at various places along their seem- ingly endless journey and viewed her green and mossy banks, trying to decipher the sites that would be the most suitable to lay out their sections, places of greatest safety from savage foes and at the same time places where they could ex- ercise the greatest freedom and liberty regarding their educational and religious views, it was rural rustic scenes that always met their gaze. They purposely went in the wrong direction to find large cities, believing them to be places of ill repute. If they had not known of the great advan- tages in a pleasant, happy and progressive life that the solitary forest offered over that of the large city, they would have headed their ships to different shores. Men and women visit and in- habit disreputable places in large cities, where hard earned dollars are spent and easy dollars are earned. If they would pay greater attention to, and follow the exam- pels of their friends who enjoy the blessings of morality, of happi- ness, of peace, and of prosperity, while living in the country, the people in general would more re- semble those who settled in the valley of the Ohio in the early part of the nineteenth century. The character of the American people would have less stains, and the thousands who are now every year losing themselves in sin and shame might hope to enjoy that eternal peace that lies beyond the grave. The morality of the coun- try boy and girl of today, is great- ly superior, in most cases, to that of those in the city. The farmer boy who rises early and wades about on warm summer mornings in the cool, refreshing dew that kisses the grasses and the flowers, who roams across the meadows, through the woods, and along the banks of the creeks in search of wild flowers and beauti- ful pebbles, studying nature every minute in the day, is Jhe boy who is always happy, healthy and wide awake to every new thing to be learned either from books or from personal observation. God, in all he has created, set no tempting snares into which the boy, experimenting with nature, may be caught. Nothing exists that would ruin, or blight his life, that might be set up as an exam- ple to guide and direct the way- ward steps of others, who have been walking in the ruthless paths of sin. They have been dragged down by the seemingly innocent pastimes prevalent in the city to a ruined, dissipated, wanton and de- bauched condition from which many are never able to rise. We may be censured and run upon; we may be teased and tor- mented. we may be called various names pertaining to our rustic manners; yet we should feel it an honor rather than a disgrace; a blessing rather than a curse, to know that we have the privilege of living where naught can mar our character; where we may walk the innocent paths of a rural life, and where we may reap the rich re- wards and beautiful treasures that lie hidden in the green turf be- neath our feet. Let us hope that every country boy and girl in America will send up a fervent prayer for their city friends, who have been robbed of these privileges; and that they may be the victors in the great battle of life in which their charac- ter is at stake. —Scott Courtkight, ’09.