Milton Academy - Yearbook (Milton, MA)

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ljafecfictory We have all heard a great deal in the past year or two about the critical times of to- dayf' and how we cannot afford to take it easy in such ucriticalv times. There is some- thing rather irritating in this phrase, aside from the fact that you hear it so much. Per- haps the irritating part is the part that im- plies that, whereas we could let up in less critical times, we cannot afford to do so now because of the world situation. Is this true? History has been interpreted as a tre- mendous curve of progress, interspersed with periods of reversal. Each civilization reaches a certain peak, and then is destroyed. There follows a period of darkness, and then a new civilization is born, reaching a higher peak of progress than its predecessor before it, in its turn, it destroyed. We can't tell how long this cycle will last, nor what its ultimate end will be, if it has one, but we can remark on the general trend of this cycle, the trend of progress. If we accept Science as an example, we must agree that the trend of civilization has been one of progress and self-betterment rather than decline. Originally, Science was tied up with Theology, as in ancient Egypt. Then Thales, the astronomer known as the father of science took over the throne of science in ancient Greece about 600 B.C. As knowledge spread, however, Thales' ideas became dated and finally gave birth to a new and better science, the science of Aris- totle. The Aristotelian peak was reached, and another period of reversal set in. Two thousand years later, science sprang to life again in such men as Harvey and Mendel, and we know the heights to which science has soared today with the development of atomic energy and radar. The question that we ask today is: Could these accomplish- ments have been achieved if the men who achieved them had been content to take it easy when times were easy, and do their best only when times were critical? When we think about these cycles, we wonder whether they were man-made or decreed by fate and therefore inevitable. There is something fairly terrifying in the fatalistic point of view, and if we have any faith at all in man's ability to improve him- self, we are apt to be skeptical of those who prefer to recline on the handy, comfortable cushion of fate. To get back to the opening point, can we afford to take it easy when things are going Well? Furthermore, is this problem up to society or up to the individ- ual? At Milton, we might rephrase this: Is the studenfs welfare up to him or up to the school? The answer is probably a combina- tion of both. In American History, we can find ex- amples where neither the individual nor society pushed itself much because the times were relatively easy. The Gilded Agen of the 1870's and ,80,s is one example, another is the reactionary period of the Roaring Twentiesf' When we examine these two periods, we find it hard to believe that anyone can take it easy when times are easier. Perhaps if the Americans of the '80's had not taken it easy, there would have been no World War I. Perhaps if the Amer- icans of the ,20's had not taken it easy, there would have been no depression or World War II. Perhaps if we had not taken it easy after the triumphant years of World War II, we should not be faced with the critical times of today. Of course this is all theory and second-guessing, but it seems to indi- cate that one can never really take it easy and get away with it. Unfortunately, this tendency to let up when you are ahead is a very human one, if we could compare life with a mile race, with ultimate perfection of man equivalent to a four minute mile, we should soon see that the four minute mile would be much nearer the reach of a good miler if he had a tough competitor to give him the competi- tion he needs to produce his best speed - fContinued on Page 741

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Favorite Haunt C impus in sun F ilmouth Hingh im So of the Border Bursar s Oflice Princeton Le Ghoul' Room A my party Known For Muscles Sour notes Talking Aggressiveness Spirit Capacity Scholastic Ability Hoii Thrift Suppressed Desire Nose Neckties Indoor Sports Size Athletic Ability S uppressed Desire Peel on Track Bleed Nums' tires Egg Wigg Desk Cut off Tonyis nose Clean out Batch Grow a beard 0-100 MPH in 6 secs. Out-talk Boyden 3 3 S 3 Sleep None suppressed Moon Milk Satisfying same To be a Cop Be a Schoolboy Herd' Ambition Own a Ferrari Get married Run in Olympics Always changing Play for Yankees Make Money Censored Read Everything S S S S To succeed Write Win with Taft g 'Q -P' 2 'Viz Olympic swimmer , Cook eggs Intellectual B C' Night School Punctuality Be Highly Irregular Bead Bhagavad Gita Best Dressed BTO Wechsler . . . 23 Davis . . . 38 Swett . . 18 Wald . . 2 Segura . . 5 Swett . . 2 Out to Lunch TWA Ticknor . . 16 l Durkee . . . 18 Parsons . . 10 Davis . . 5 Iones . . 5 Others . . . . 28 Politician Most Versatile Boyden . . 45 Ticknor . . . 39 Batchelder . . 2 Bradley . . 2 Davis . . . 1 Me . . 1 Apple Polisher Hacker Marlow . . 35 N obili . . . . 36 Durkee . . . 5 Schwarz . . 5 Swett . . 1 Ward . . . . . 4 29 1 V 'x

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Glass gflstorcg This is supposed to be a Class history. What it will outwardly be will have little semblance to a history of any sort, except for a vague chronological sequence, and for you who didnit graduate from Milton in '53 and are just leafing through this during a dead spot in some party, it will be con- fusing and quite senseless. It isnit meant for you, and you will do better reading Night and Dayf' It is ours: names, scandals, and all. If you want to see our achievements, you can find them on a different page. Sure, we're proud of them, but they arenit what made the narrow walls bearable, it is the other things we remember. One more thing before we begin, this matter of names. Some can't be explained in gentle Society, others can't be explained anywhere. The significance of them is doubtful, and their origin all but forgotten. If a boy's Chris- tian name is given here, it probably means his real one is unprintable. The Class of '53 had its beginnings somewhere back in the dimmed memories of Cawk, Bumps, Cecil B. Lewis, Duke, and the totally blank memory of Moose. Presumably it was quite normal till the Fifth Grade, when it showed the glimmer- ings of character as Martin and Perry as- sassinated a car and wisely sold the gun. In the Sixth Class were 17 members who have stayed with it and are still part of us. The Class developed a spirit of solidar- ity in the persecution of Hobart Dailey, who got wise sooner than most and switched from Latin to finance. On the athletic side, the highlights were the triumphs of the Packers and two injuries, Big Art getting his nose squashed, and someone hitting an eagle with a foul ball. There was also a perfume incident in War- ren Hall. The next September was a landmark as Nobili arrived with 9 others, giving us 86. The Blue Team, under A. O., won the foot- ball championship, and darned if the League All-stars didnit lick the B string of our undefeated Warren Hall Squad. The Fourth Class was the year, and certain gentlemen had a rough time of it. Colonel Ehrhard developed a good arm and an almost mechanical bellow: Out, Sar- gent! CAlmost any name of 14 was used at some time in place of Win's.j Mr. Duncan might spin at the noise of a can- nonball rolling down the aisle, only to scc a great cloud of chalk dust filling thc back of the room. Sometimes, the class would move in pieces to the basement, and once Nums was hefted in front of his father. Even Bird was kicked out while attempting to quell a riot. Hughie got a letter, the 4 is .A V first in the Class. Sports were pretty suc- cessful, but we lost the Tri-League Baseball Championship in a playoff. Wopo, of all people, was star center on the winning Football Team. The year drew to a close, but could not be complete till Cap hauled out his box and returned the frogs, tops, and rubber bands he had collected. We got religion, of a compulsory sort, and we leamed by experience and Graham lecture what things were all about. fLewis wants it made clear that he didn't collapse when we think he did.J It all ended with some wild Scout trips to Plymouth and Long Pond. CContinued on Page 72l