Lawrenceville School - Olla Podrida Yearbook (Lawrenceville, NJ)

Page 28 text:

Soon after these happy occurrences, we settled down to the commonplace of. schoolilife. We began by unanimously electing McLeod Thomson, President and JlITlH.VVCStCl'VC1jE, VICC-Pl'8SldClll,'Wlfl'l t' Bill Moorhead, Secretary and Treasurer. What a peerade we had in celebration of these elections! Well can we remember that night when, prancing over the campus, arrayed in milk white robes, we proceeded to serenade the various Houses. Imagine our surprise and the shock to our dignity as seniors, not to mention the dampening to our spirits, when from a window of one of the Houses someone poured water on us. Such freshness was not to be endured, and only barred doors saved that House from utter destruction. But revenge we had, for, as Virgil wrote Cprobably thinking of usj, Suddenly tumbling down, it brings thundering desolation with it, and falls with wide havoc on the Grecian troops. But others succeed : meanwhile neither stones nor any sort of missiles cease to fly. During the remainder of the evening we ceased not to vent our wrath wherever our path lay. Thus the evening passed off g but lo! the next morning we found trouble brewing, because in our Ht of indignation we had become a trifle destructive. A Class Meeting was held, however, and it was decided to make suitable pecuniary atonement, and once more we settled down to hard work. After this bit of excitement, things ran along smoothly for a time, and nothing worthy of note appeared. Then football season was on, and we watched the progress of our team with great interest. What a hard-working lot they were, and how well they deserved their many victories I The thought of the Nlercersburg game, and our exhibitions in the sprinting line, rise to our mind. So, too, the Upper Dance and all its pleasures. Then came the Hill game. The band and the crowds, such as Lawrenceville had never before witnessed, the fight our team made in the face of certain defeat, all come before us. But, though defeated, Lawrenceville can never be more proud of her coach, her captain and her team. None ever showed more earnestness or more spirit to uphold the old school's name. g After the game, the Class of l9Ol held its first reunion and were given a banquet by the school in the Upper. The Hamill Dance, which took place the same evening, was a great success, and girls were so plenty that fellows soon rose way above par. I S0 time sped on, but Ilalmost forgot Oop Sawdust and his dog. Oop, they say, is quite a iunter, and one bright moonlight evening, volunteered to furnish a dog to track coons, if a few others 18

Page 27 text:

not to be disappointed, as our Form produced some of the best athletes in the school-Captain Wester- velt, Fritz Behr, Tough Bryden, 'Q'Bull Brown, Willie Jones, Charlie Chase, Tub Waller, and many others. In the shark line we were all keen, of course, but we shall have to give Durell, Brooks, Moorhead and Schell the credit of having the biggest pulls with the Masters. 1 Thus our Third Form year advanced smoothly and steadily, though we were overwhelmed for a time in the intricacies of the new marking system. Quite a bit of excitement came upon us early one Sunday morning towards the close of the year. There, out on. the school flag pole, waved the glorious banner of our Class. How it got there no one seemed to know. The Class of 1901'didn't seem to like it, and gathered about the flag pole. They exclaimed, Aye, tear her tattered ensign down ! But how todo sothey knew not, and thus it waved until outside assistance could be obtained. The affair was settled, however, quietly and without bloodshed. But time now sped rapidly on and almost before we knew it vacation had come, and after a few weeks of ease, we found ourselves back again in this quiet town. With what a feeling of pride we walked through the halls of the Upper or loafed on the esplanade, and we could not help thinking of the various underformers, and rejoice that we were no longer under the supervision- of a Master, and that enforced study hours were a thing of the past. -- s, g - i : I - 4 , ' But come ! There were many changes in Lawrenceville, several of which are worthy of mention. There was the gym. Yes, that long-abused subject of conversation, or rather hot air, was really going 'up before our eyes. True, they would build the walls up for a few days, then tear them down, still we had waited so long for this same gym. that we were glad to see even a pile of lumber. A But a greater change than this had taken place, and it came as even more of a surprise than the gym. The smoking privilege was given to the members of the Fourth Form who could get permission from their parents. Such a thing had never been dreamed of by any sane member of the school, and the delight of those who obtained permission and the sorrow of the unfortunate ones were equally inspiring and touch- ing. After hearing of this the Class was ready to expect anything, and received the New System of Grading with awe and resignation. lt is a marvelous system and worthy to stand side by side with the memorable marking system of last year. ' ' 17

Page 29 text:

X would accompany him. A few fellows readily agreed to this offer and waited the appearance of Oop and the dog at the laundry. Oop claims to be a specialist on coon dogs, it is said, and finally found one to his fancy. How he got the owner to trust him with a dog is an unanswerable question Qit is suggested the owner held a grudge against the poor brutej. 'The dog, however, objected seriously to the trip, but ff Oop was not to be denied and, fastening a rope about his neck, delivered him after much persuasion Con his party and with much growling Con the dog's party at the laundry. The party then started off, watching with eager eyes the keen-scented hound, but the only thing the cur seemed able to track, it is said, was Oop's heels. The fact that no coons were found Oop attributes, I believe, to the weather, and claims that the wind spoiled the scent. Others, however, claimed that his dog could'ii't tell a coon from a cat-Hsh, and made slighting remarks about f' Oop's abilities also, I am told. The Thanksgiving holiday came and we left for a few hours of pleasure. On our return from this recess, we found that Lawrenceville had installed yet one more change from preceding years. Mr. Prentiss and Nlr. Mason, the gym. instructors, had come and taken charge of the winter sports. Through their efforts, both inthe baseball cage, used as a temporary gym., and on the fields, many otherwise wasted hours werespent to much profit. I E . A Christmas came and was over almost in a flash, and the first of the year saw us back once more, and the drudgery and hard work of the winter.term before us. During this term Lawrenceville under! took two indoor track meets, and in one was quite successful, winning three cups. Thus the winter term dragged out, interrupted by the excitement of confiscating the Dickinson House slide Cwhich was ,kindly returnedj, and by the great Upper House slide. Then came Wilk's famous Pool Parlor. Games at all hours! At last, the frequenters began to feel so very much at home that they thought the joint belonged to them, and one evening felt quite insulted when requested to git in the wee sma, hours. But these innocent pleasures were not to last long, for one afternoon the police descended and the renowned Pool Parlor wasnno more. The Upper Mid-winter Dance took place about this time, and such a time as we had! The afternoon of the Dance, however, we were driven into the deepest despair to learn that there was a suspected case of measles in the House. If this was found to be measles, we could have no Dance, thus the Doctor decreed. We saw all our long looked-for pleasures 19