Mary Baldwin College - Bluestocking Yearbook (Staunton, VA)

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14 The Animal of Ah, well, it is our fixed opinion that there were giants in those days, and that, take us all in all, you ne ' er shall look upon our like again. We can make a shrewd guess that there are many things in which six years ' time has not made so great a change, We should be willing to wager that as soon as spring holidays were over, you began to make elaborate (and probably, incor- rect) mathematical calculations as to the number of days, hours, minutes and seconds which must elapse before coti- mencement — just as we used to do. You have the same wicked feelings which we used to have, when you get a letter from home reminding you ttiat this is the happiest time of your life, which letter usually reaches you just as you are about to go into the horrors of a Latin final — and when you feel any- thing but happy. (I don ' t express all I feel on the subject of Latin finals. because I ' m afraid that Miss Strickler might see this). You are also practicing the same solos, duos, quar- tettes and octettes which we used to practice, and you are tak. ing care of your larynxes, as we used to do. in order that you, as we, may pass, in singing, like the swan. You medal girls are practicing the sweet start of surprise, with which you will greet the announcement that you won the blue ribbon, for you did not expect it. Oh, no ! Neither did we. So you see it would not take us so very long to become acquainted, after all, and I certainly hope that time will bring us the opportunity to do so, individually, if not collectively. Miss Strickier has suggested that I .say something about our beautiful spring, but I cannot think of anything to say on that subject quite so good as what Horace said in his Ode to Sestius, of which I made the following very free, and very rough translation one day when the balmy weather so warmed the cockles of my heart that, like Mr. Wegg, I felt like drop- ping into poetry. I give it becau.se you are all familiar with it, the fourth in the first book of Odes, you remember, and be- cause it is seasonable. TO SESTIUS. Now is the strength of Winter past And Spring, at last,

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The Mary Baldtvin Seminary. 13 taken place since we left , and al)out our friends in the faculty and in the servants ' hall, the former of whom still have our af- fectionate interest and the latter of whom we are by no means disposed to forget. In turn, we should try to convince on that in our time were the golden days; that never were brains like our brains, talents like our talents, voices like our voices, nor jokes like ourjokes. Strict candor would compel us to confess that there were jokes like our jokes which amused Noah and his family in the ark ; also jokes gotten oflf by our predecesors and handed down to us, as I have no doubt, ours have been handed down to you. Any way, they are good jokes, arn ' t they? With a little encouragement we should tell you about the jolly little glee club of ' gi which made hideous the warm nights of early spring, when the balcony of Long Room re- sounded with the strains of I ' ll Be All Smiles To-night Love ' and My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean One of the teachers used sometimes to entertain her callers out on the front porch. On those occasions we took a peculiar school -girlish delight in in warbling Goodnight Ladies and Home Sweet Home, in the alluring hope of embarrassing the visitors. We had on- ly one guitar and we had to resort to di.scipline to keep all the members from singing falsetto or trying to, because it was so nice to get in the little grace notes at the end of every line. Everybody laughed at us and we all laughed at ourselves and at each other ; but we had a very happy time over it ayid the present glee chib with its recognized place 07i the commeyiceynent program has grotvn ont of it! In those days they would soon- er have thought of putting us in jail than upon the program for commencement, I am sure. We should probably tell you, too, about Mr. Thompson, the night-watchman in our time, with his red cheeks, red blanket, and a dearer redness than that of either cheeks or blanket — the redness of the big, luscious apples which he used to bring in his capacious pockets for those of us who teased him most. How he used to frighten the life nearly out of us as he came tip-toeing along the back gallery in his big squeak- boots — to see if everything was all right !

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The Mary Baldwin Seminary. 15 Her lovely face all smiling shows, And soft and sweet the south wind blows. The sailor lad brings down his boat And once afloat With sails outspread, he spurns the land ; The herds no longer idle stand. The farmer too forsakes his hearth ; The fallow earth, From snow and chilling hoar-frost free, Brings forth her fruit abundantly Now in low hanging Luna ' s light, Doth Venus bright, With Nymphs and graces, hand in hand, Join in the dance a merry band. Now comes the sound of anvil ' s blow And in the glow. Of Cyclops ' forges Vulcan stands. A lifted hammer in his hands. And it is meet to deck the brow With flowers now Or wreath of myrtle from the fields : A wealth of green the glad earth yields. Now should we in some syloam nook, By babbling brook. A sacrifice to Faunus kill A lamb or kid, which e ' er he will. Alas ! pale Death knocks at the door Of rich and poor ; To all comes his impartial tread. To all he shows his visage dread. Go thou, and come another day, In vain we pray. In vain we murmur : life ' s brief scope Denies us long account with hope