Milford High School - Oak Lily and Ivy Yearbook (Milford, MA)

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18 THE OAK, LILY AND IVY. a foundation of physical and mental well being that extends through the most important years of our life. Correct physical habits formed during this time will be kept up in later life. Equally true, wrong physical habits, if not corrected at this early period, result in accomplishments far inferior to what might have been acquired. Our modern schools, fully equipped with gymnasium, swimming pool, athletic field, and other facilities, open to all students, is the best source of acquiring those fundamentals of physical health. No school is without some form of sports, ordinarily football and base¬ ball, so beneficial and enjoyable to the boy. The authorities often forget that the girls would also enjoy and benefit by sports of their own, as swim¬ ming, tennis, and basketball. One can usually tell if a boy or girl takes part in such activities. They develop alertness, strength, and correct posture, along with sportsmanship, fair play, loyalty, and self-reliance. Such quali¬ ties are always admired by everyone and are always to be desired. The student should be urged and taught to take care of his physical health. Without bodily soundness his mind becomes inactive and dull. Only suitable habits of diet and rest with proper exercise will keep one alert and efficient, and capable of giving his best to life mentally and spiritually. Let us hope that we may see physical education a part of the curriculum in all High Schools, whether compulsory or optional. Eleanor Shaw, ' 32. SALUTATORY. On behalf of the Class of 1932 I extend to you all a most cordial welcome. To-night, the eve of our graduation, marks the successful culmination of our high school career. For the sincere encouragement and co-operation of our teachers and the sacrifices of our parents we are indeed most grateful. THE AMERICA OF GEORGE WASHINGTON. America is this year commemorating the two-hundredth anniversary of the birth of her first President, George Washington, known to every school boy as the “Father of His Country.” It is most fitting, therefore, that the accomplishments of this great man be recalled to the minds ofi us who have inherited the marvelous institutions and fine traditions of a country whose very Constitution is built on a foundation of liberty. It is likewise most proper that the conditions of our land in which Washington lived and attained the deeds of greatness we remember him by, be reviewed in order that due credit and honor may be bestowed upon him. England, with other nations of Europe, early established a colonial em¬ pire in America. Less than two hundred years after the first settlement was made, these same colonies were engaged in a mighty Revolution with their mother country, which had oppressed them. Success was theirs, and with the historical surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, these colonies or states became free and independent. But conditions in America in the eighteenth century were vastly differ¬ ent from those in America to-day. When the Revolution began, delegates from the several states met in a body called the Continental Congress. This

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THE OAK, IimY AHt) IVY VOL. XLVII. MILFORD, MASS., JUNE, 1932. No. 1. Published by the Pupils of the Milford High School. Under the Supervision of Miss Marion A. Ryan of the English Department. BOARD OF EDITORS. Editor-in-Chief—Eleanor H. Shaw, ’32. Business Manager—Annette S. Rivard, ’32. ASSOCIATE EDITORS. Theresa R. Consoletti, ’32. Wilbur J. Sweet, ’32. Edith F. French, ’32. Edmund J. Sullivan, ’32. J. Harvey Burford, ’32. ASSOCIATE BUSINESS MANAGERS. Doris I. Moore, ’32. Donald F. Bowen, ’32. Irene A. Parente, ’32. Bernard R. Marcus, ’32. Majc E. Rice, ’32. Business Management of this Magazine under the Supervision of Miss Lillian L. Egan of the Commercial Department. Single Copies, 15 cents. Address all communications to Oak, Lily and Ivy, Milford, Mass. EDITORIAL. THE NEED OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION. The general belief regarding the value of physical fitness, in relation to its effects on the mental condition of an individual, is the necessity of a sound body and a sound mind. It is true that one may attain a degree of mental development without due care to his health, but if in doing so, his physical welfare is ruined or seriously impaired, of what use would be such development? A weak, sickly body is not conducive to a happy existence. A person is more likely to be a burden to himself and to those about him. Yet in spite of these facts there are many who believe that the time and money used in our schools in furthering physical fitness are wasted, and that physical instruction might well be banished. The main reason for this attitude is a financial one. But how many educational advantages of worth and value can be had with little or no cost to a community? Most certainly physical education is worth more than the price we pay for it. Nothing can take the place of sound physical development acquired during the formative period of life, that is, before and during the years when we are attending High School. It is during this period that we lay

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THE OAK, LILY AND IVY. 19 group raised an army, issued paper money, borrowed gold, and conducted the war. In reality it had no power at all but, under pressure of war, its de¬ mands were readily acceded to by those who were fighting for the one com¬ mon end—freedom. Soon need was felt for some sort of union, and the Articles of Confeder¬ ation were drawn up. Congress ratified them in November of 1877, but they were not accepted by all the states until the Revolution was nearly over. Under the Articles of Confederation the states were all-powerful. Each state sent not less than two nor more than seven delegates to Congress, and each state had one vote. These delegates were paid by the states and might be recalled at any time. It was further necessary for nine states to favor a law before it could be passed. According to the Articles, Congress was given the right to establish post offices, and make treaties, but it had no power to appropriate money to carry out these great enterprises. It could merely recommend the amount of money that each state ought to pay toward carrying on the government, and many states refused to grant the money requested of them. When the Revolution ended, conditions became worse. The army remained unpaid, interest accrued on debts contracted with foreign nations during the war, and many people became discontented. Enmity arose between the sev¬ eral states because of trade conditions, and there was even the possibility of civil war breaking out. Something had to be done; consequently a plan for holding a convention was suggested in 1787. It met in Philadelphia in May, and Washington was selected to preside over the meetings. This Constitutional Convention, as it was called, had met to revise the old confederation, but there was talk of establishing a new government in which the nation, rather than the re¬ spective states, should be supreme. Two plans of great importance were submitted to the Convention; name¬ ly, those of Virginia and New Jersey. Both agreed that the new government should consist of the three independent departments of the legislature, execu¬ tive, and judiciary. The plans differed in that the one proposed by Virginia recommended proportional representation in the legislature, while the one submitted by New Jersey favored equal representation for each state. A compromise was agreed upon in which Congress was to consist of two houses, one of Representatives and one of Senators, exactly as it does today. Many other important arguments were settled during four months of discussion, and the Constitution was finally adopted and sent by Congress to the states for their approval or rejection. More than the necessary nine states ratified the Constitution, and it became the supreme law of the land. George Washington was unanimously elected President of the new union and John Adams, Vice-President. Thus our land of freedom was born. The country over which Washington was called to preside in 1789 was vastly different from our United States of to-day. It was a third-rate power, inferior in population and wealth to Holland, for example, and nearly on the level with Portugal and Denmark. Her population, numbering approximately four million, was sparsely scattered between the Alleghenies and the Atlantic Ocean. Few more than one hundred thousand pioneers had ventured to set¬ tle west of these mountains in the land which now comprises the states of Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio, for that region was then wild, forest country. They had followed Daniel Boone and John Sevier, hardy frontiersmen who had explored the country, and were chiefly of Scotch-Irish stock from Vir¬ ginia and North Carolina. In the East, the population consisted mainly of English, Dutch, French, Scotch, and Irish. The seven hundred thousand