Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts - Mohawk Yearbook (North Adams, MA)

Page 23 text:

THE and that the time had come when we must say adieu e friends we loved, After the impressive exercises we, ul, Juniors of yesterday, were Seniors, dignified Seniors, ted to inspire and lead the new Juniors. Let us here Sssghree cheers for Old Normal, its faculty, and the class of nineteen twenty-two. Three cheers, may we say, for my first successful year as members of this school. May our second year be as successful, if not more successful than our first. i With the pledge to return with two dollars and a half to ,nrt out Washington Fund, the New Seniors departed to gpend the summer recess in play and study to prepare for che last year at Normal. Florence Mack Senior Glass Tbistnry HAT a fine feeling it roused to see our teachers and friends again after our long summer's vacation! tFor we were Seniors though we sometimes persisted in calling ourselves Juniors.J Better still, when the roll was called, every one of the Seniors proved true to her promise to return in the fall. What a pleasure it was to welcome such a large class of Juniors! Another source of great enjoyment was to find the new members of our faculty present. There was Miss Evelyn Perry, who came to take charge of the Music and Arithmeticg Mr. Wallace Venable for Zoology, Botany, and Gardening: and the new Principal of Mark Hopkins, Mr.C.E. Carpenter. At Taconic Hall we welcomed our new Assist- ant Matron, Miss Virginia Sears. We Seniors, proud of our loyal members, found another surprise waiting for us when Pauline Johnson, Edith Fobes, and Elizabeth Dunphy enlisted with us. And here we were, well launched with numbers aplenty. For captain and ofiicers we elected: President, Helen O'Neill Vice President, Lilian Douglas Secretary, Rita Agan Treasurer, Katherine McMahon. With the backing of a crew of enthusiastic and willing workers, with a stock of ideas, a cargo of suggestions and plans Clesson plansb, chests of good feeling, and a small amount of money, they started us on our year's voyage. From time to time, we let people know what we were doing through our Junior project, THE AXIS. The columns of this paper told that Seniors as well as Juniors and faculty were well on their way early in September. Our reception to the Juniors proved to us that we were over one hundred strong as a school, and our new school mates were fast becoming loyal and helpful friends. For Section 2 of the Seniors, the long-looked-for time soon Came when we could find ourselves in front of a class of real children. What an inspiration children are, and how fine a feeling it was to think we were really teaching! As we look back on those early experiences, we wonder sometimes that there are any survivors of our questioning ways to keep Sec- tion 1 still busy. Soon the tides changed, however, as they will do, and we found we could certainly make use of every bit of knowledge we possessed in order to keep up with these children. Every assignment at the training school proved increasingly interesting and continues to do so for the half Of the class now out teaching. Classes also took on new interest for us. Here we were learning about everything in nature around us. In both Zio AXIS .-......--. - 4 beginning by EN' , . , raise 3 ..!l!' ' Ceography and Ztxxinltvlvemwz N New the remams of our ting out-of-doors. 1 X: Surprise, they seemed labor m the garden ' lf . .cvs if trim rows. How . , vt.. 1 likelittle forests instmf-tt ff k.,.i,.k9fs and grasshop- . ' . 1 we did enjoy out: non. mit i l,ax :hv merest lime fellow pers! How gla M' XWN ' 'f ' , . d l t far from our limits! F fish ate fish food : and X03- Xvili' xx 'if Vvndtr we learn? tm .ge K--giytish breathed with 11 nb th. . Til!! Bk' ssfvllded Bradley rea ing apparatus I Of visited Natural hmm' N' . Nth-it inspiration was ours as ' , - .. --Q - -rnul hills! and ever shall be from out X-it hh de- .r.t. ,isnt-e haunts, we soon n we generated vim and 'l3A,Cgpliy and learned many new things about North Add! From our roamiigci tll'01m'i veloped a spirit of :ttit-t-:xtatv How fortunate we are to - . , ' I ' 'l VK , . strength for a liiktltxti tus? :tv-MK uw crownmg height of have Within Ou' 'WT' I,Q ,.IfQ ., :rip to Albany which held Massachusetts. N,-xt wi.: .. kxlpilol and Educagioiial many dehghtfuls ii.t..nx...xHuw:: :md parks an pmx.,d,,d Bl-llldlllgs, the Sfhmhr .i-,,l,if..,,.giliglit drive home acvvlll- Special features W us' ' nf - - over the hills of - - H . , ,S :Ng :ts iourse . pzamed w1thNchmrttilrsvlwtisxxmm lwlgging over an old bridge vex-Kar' Q L v ,. .- . h I. 'Thor- , Q. ,- .3 -arnonet 9 lg ' -that standing lti' 't'llr 1if:,Wi,.. wt- were convinced more oughly thrilled with ou 1... , X wqghington. Even though K ' ' - -- must D' 1 . . than ever that wt 8 MM time, we had dey sloped lmiginlif' Now after at short :d tx-zuib' to PUSTI forward any- school had been in svsswtl bli- the mania for at 'l'riP li' was journey we wen' cnthrzilhxi if thing which mt-:int a little. ITU As the result of the inspxffli and this desire. Wt' ! '?i ' H mm- fur our fund. im, dm-it-ed from Miss Baright r dramatics early in the N9i!!'- . . , . --ir first attempt- It not only The Columbus llay was :ycuwlnh of Octoberybut helped served as a celebration for it-ii ngvt our heads together and to prove to us that N' NJ-' nw Pilgrim Play, w,.im,,, by Write plays.-Q '1-ltositcxtxw :ti q.l,,i,wd about thrG9 lllllldwd our girls. li ith tl:isl.i::ini'gtlx:m Svhools of the City- Th., and fifty of tht- t-.lit .N it mile Sketch portraying the Christmas CRN? vwnnililf-.-L-it ions. was presented and showed History of hristmas H -' audience . . , .' .' v f:h'Islwf0I'93T1 ' . . a umque mp of Tllsliiihiic i-:unc around, we were ritihtsin By the mm' I M K ln'-in-odiii-tiori was concerned. lhc Our element as .nb if '.lZh0,.,, seemed most fitting for the Selection of 3 N I mg U . inet-vi-tioii and attention tIiW'l to C1355 P1333 lh' 'lumitilt .-vidvnt in the final l'Vf'S !!mh0 ' every detail was wrli.fl..ii1,. si-4-im-d, and how lizilvhihwi- wi-ri. How pleasod qw :list lhiriglit we owe all credit we rc- at the success. 1 - . - .. - l. ' tl is an-liivxiim n Q U i cewed from. IN . il-it writinii came the ewr-muiul Along mth iiin I I . b What a help it was to us. NP! what Better Speech W' V Qi-son using slang or poor a drain On our iun'lu'll 'liSi Al-3,0 plavs HA Magic y0i,.,. - - - : ' ' ' ' H . . Enghsh was timid MN: Hooks were given. llio lillll I' and the Umnsmh. ilu- Q.-ninrs and demonstrated to us that was worlivdlup not nu-nlionillg any nantes. llmdi' NTU several 0 IN NWS' , - , , cdlas. good diCtionarics and ini 5 i 10: Geography classcS, 11 l!! 'j t - .- I -inllucnvi' 0 . -t Whlle umm i liillrivoq- I should Say grew out of it ftld s ran UD. 01' 5 ' crown, UI' ' ' - ' -' 3 '. S . group of undvrfvd mdmdugs Our County of Berkshire this is what we gmlmmidli for ?'.culinary effects all over the vide so nu c easi Y :t?ti.feil2':3:0not assi-nihle all together? exilingfliiimcin every k f d and product map Showing Soni et next ma e a OE ty The name Berkshire Banqll so it town in t e coun. . ' what that meant. I W.. ull knew . .n came to our cami. ilanni-d a very clever and entertaini ti happengd that w I t eat--such an appropria - ts o evening. a good time and lo

Page 22 text:

22 THE AXIS Then welcome each rebufi' That turns earth's smoothness rough, Each sting that bids, nor sit nor stand, but go. Be our joys three part pain: Strive, hold cheap the strain. Learn nor account the pang. Dare, never grudge the three. Elizabefh Dunphy ling Eong - Tune: Voices QfEz'c1z ing Now that we are leaving Normal Our hearts are filled with memories dear, Our voices join in songs of praises For Alma Mater in the coming year. As a token of our love, dear Normal, W'e plant this clinging ivy vine, A symbol of our life devotion To deck these dear old walls of thine. Climb, O Ivy, strong and steady, May nothing mar your progress true, Protect and guard our dear old Normal, i We leave the future years to you. R. Agan '23 K. .lfclfahon '33 3unior Qlilase ibistorp In answer to the call of America for more experienced teachers to prepare her future citizens,fifty-fourjolly but timid girls entered the halls of North Adams Normal School in the fall of nineteen twenty-one. These fifty-four mem- bers made up the class of nineteen twenty-three. Each realized to a moderate extent that she had a great task, a great duty, before her. Early in our career we be- came aware that we knew far less than we had credited ourselves with knowing, that in Miss Lamphier's class es- pecially, accuracy was not only helpful but necessaryg that we could sing solos even though we thought we couldn't and that the class of nineteen twenty-three had few artists in its midst. We were also warned that although the Sen- iors were few in number they were exceedingly precious. After the first days of our sudden awakening we were in- formed that the faculty, in view of the fact that Mr. Smith had become our new principal, had planned a house warm- ing in his honor, and we were invited to help make this event a success. We do not know about the surprise of the party, but we do know that all concerned spent an enjoy- able evening at Mr. Smith's home. Shortly after, we were socially received by the members of the faculty and the Senior class at the annual Junior Reception. On this occasion we discovered two inter- esting and welcome facts. The first was that the Seniors were as fun loving as we, while the second was that Miss Skeele was a friend to drive away the gloomy hours, which fact became known when she gave her demonstration waltz with the broom. We had often heard that this or that m-an was a stick but we had never tried this substi- tute for dancing partners. If for any reason your man can't come to the next dance don't feel too bad, just try Miss Skeele's suggestion. Then, the business activities of our class began A meeting of its members installed, Miss Madeline Tracy as its president, Miss Irene Messier as its vice-president, Miss Florence Mack as its secretary and Miss Ruth Nesbit as its treasurer. Some of us received invitations from the Seniors to become members of the Glee Club. It was with fear in our hearts and voices that we attended its first meetings. The last of October we were told that the first of aseries of four Man Dances was to be held. Man Dances ! What are they? Who ever heard of a dance without men? Such questions were among the many asked by us when we heard this expression. Later we found that there could, indeed, be dances without men. You may be sure that each girl present at this affair resolved to take advan- tage of this one of few such occasions, and had the best time possible. Eleven o'clock sounded all too soon, and good- byes must be hastily said to the lads who had been found with such difficulty. Many were the girls from the dorm who that night expressed an envy of the home girls, as they climbed the stairs of the dorm to retire andinciden- tally to dream of the man of the first Man Dance. Miss Skeele again showed her interest in twenty-three by helping in the planning of our Party for the Seniors. Here, again, we found the Seniors an enjoyable group. Who will ever forget the costumes of Mr. Smith and Myron, on that night? Not one member of twenty-three at least. By Christmas, the dorm girls had accustomed them- selves to the rules of their council and were wearing hats, if not because of the hat rule because of the cold. With the beginning of the second half of our school year, our dear friend and adviser, Mrs. Couch, left us to take a trip south to improve her health. Mrs. Caldwell took up her duties and made an able substitute for us. Who will forget the pride of our class upon the publication of the first school paper under the capable direction of Miss Ruth Clarke and her able assistants? Nineteen twenty- three may always remember with pride that she is the mother of the school's first paper. We hope that in years to come THE AXIS will continue to improve as it has under her direction. In March we witnessed one of the finest productions ever presented at our school. This play, The Three Chaufi'eurs, was given by the Seniors under the careful supervision of Miss Baright. To her was extended the hearty congratu- lations of a most appreciative audience. Until then we had failed to realize that twenty-two had so many good substi- tutes for the opposite sex. On April twenty-eighth we watched, with longing, the Seniors start on their trip to Boston which they had been planning so long. Then, we resolved that our class, too, would take a trip, not to Boston, but to Washingt0r1- Whether or not we should be successful remained to be seen. The Seniors warned us, and the faculty advised us, not to place our goal too far away, but all to no avail. At last, the Juniors were to have a chance to prove to the public of North Adams that they had in their midst 3 group of talented young women capable of its patronage- And so, on May nineteenth, in spite of the disapproval of the weather man, the Glee Club Concert was given. During our short stay at North Adams Normal we learned to love and admire the Seniors and faculty and it was with deep regret that we realized that graduation was near 2 t

Page 24 text:

24 THE AXIS vt combination. It was our privilege to have as guests mem- bers of the faculty who joined us most heartily. Full of initiative, they responded with witty speeches and songs. The memory of this feasting will last as will the large map we made. We owe our accomplishment to the careful and untiring work of Miss Sholes and Mr. Eldridge who made such an affair possible. At certain clearly stated intervals of the year beginning in the fall, we ventured upon our social roles. These presented themselves as Man Dances. This year we found that we could not hope to softly glide without interruption within the walls of Taconic Hall. Thus it was that we showed our individuality once more in entertaining at Normal Hall. It was not so normal either that night. What had hap- pened? Had a cyclone struck the place? If so, it was very helpful, for the desks, chairs, and everything suggesting the atmosphere of the assembly were swept away, and the place looked festive and gay. The members of our receiving line appeared to enjoy themselves even though they were out of the way on the Church Street side of the hall. We have now had three of these functions, and Mr. Smith has con- gratulated us on the fine spirit of the evenings spent in this wise. May our last dance on the eve of Class Day be a fitting climax to these pleasant events! All these good times and work still went on. What could we do to earn money? Have a bazaar? Just the thing! So it was that we planned to provide Christmas gifts for everyone, that is-all who cared to help the class by pur- chasing useful articles displayed in the gymnasium. Vari- ous booths were arranged to hold fancy work, candy, a fish- pond, lolly-pops, and fortune tellers. Here, again, the cook- ing department was requisitioned. How quickly our home- made candies disappeared! We seemed to progress much through the correlation of departments. Just think what a fine chance this was to put to test our ability in store arith- metic. A sympathy orchestra Cconsisting of Nukes and the pianoj played for the amusement of the children present, while Pauline Johnson danced and Bessie Barber sang. Now that our secret hope, Washington, seemed clearer to our view, we were glad to acknowledge that prospects were brighter, as we had made seventy-five dollars. Each girl now pledged herself to earn one dollar a month. So it was that we found plenty of candy, good eats, and helpful service. prevailing. It was only a matter of small cost to have a shoe shine, hair curl, manicure, or even a feed This dpmpetition surely laid low old H. C. L. of former times and swelled our treasury. After Christmas we turned our attention to a new enter- tainment. Through the suggestion of Miss Perry, we were to illustrate song poems and the Songs of Seven. This blought back to us many of our sweet Songs that Never Grow Old. To complete the program, there was aesthetic dancing by Beth Cooke and Pauline Johnson and songs by the Glee Club. The eminent success was due to the hard, continuous efforts of Miss Perry. Miss Baright kindly read for us, and Miss Pearson and Mrs. Van lent a willing hand to arrangements. Was not this a fine demonstration of what we as teachers might do another year with our children? A new semester now began. Our new subject was Psy- chology. When we think of all we took for granted before, it makes us thankful to know now that we have reasons to back us up. How glad we were to find that we could adopt th-at phrase that's the psychology of it and really know what we were saying! What a treat it was to go to class and listen to Mr. Smith's stories! Were they not illustrative and to the point? How everyone of us wished she might train her memory to be as acute as his! However, never carry your laws of association so far as to make you think of a certain person when you see a goat in his window. An added feature of our work presented itself as drama- tization. Beginning with the primary stories, we soon ad- vanced to those of the grammar grades. We took up play writing again. This time we had stories from texts for a foundation. We developed our characters, too, all the way from a bench dog to a walking Wolf in Rip Van Winkle. Our inter-class affairs during the winter took the form of stationary basketball which was a source of much compe- tition. The Juniors showed their athletic powers by beat- ing us at this. Our accomplishments in debate demon- strated that Senior I. was more capable than the other sec- tion, but that the Juniors could outwit us on the Japanese question. Now for Washington! Our Captain and President Helen O'Neill, had planned this cruise for us from the be- ginning of the year. Through thick and thin she steered and encouraged every venture. We now elected two splen- did chaperons, Miss McCormack and Mr. Cummings. The last Saturday in April the wished-for day came. Every one of us feels gratified for the effort of earning the money. We think that all citizens of our Nation should, at some time or other, visit the center of our democracy. No place could ever be more inspiring! The lessons with Miss Pearson led to the appreciations for the magnificent buildings, beautiful designs, and sculpturing. We certainly could not have taken a more lovely time of year to be there. The city was ad- vanced into spring and everything was perfect. What a feeling of patriotism was received and with what awe and reverence did we visit the sacred places where Washington and Lincoln had been! We could not help thinking of that quotation: Lives of great men all remind us We can make oul lives sublime. And departing, leave behind us Footprints on the sands of time. We had never realized to such an extent how true this really was. Then there was the heavenly spot at Mt. Vernon, that old colonial bit of beauty. We can never hope to tell of the promptings and emotions furnished by our stay here. Every one of us has carried away a heart full of love for her country and feels a pride made possible by the work of our great and noble countrymen. We cannot help but think, in connection with the trip, of our splendid faculty and Juniors, who had to put up with a great deal while we were preparing to go. The Glee Club, made up of both Seniors and Juniors under the direction of Miss Perry, has accomplished great things. The annual concert given a month ago was most unusual. A fine choice of songs was rendered, and the inter- pretations of artists added greatly to the enjoyment of the program. Along our horizon now rise the thoughts of Commence- ment. Are we so near to the end as this? No, our Ban- quet, Class Day, and Graduation are here, but the end for this class can never be! We wish to tell the Juniors that we shall ever have fond memories of our year together. To teachers ever loyal and true, We owe the praise for all we do. We know not what our fates will beg I But we are content to wait and see. The honor we give you, we cannot rhyme But we hope to show it in future time. Alice Smith