Momence High School - Monesse Yearbook (Momence, IL)

Page 15 text:

.JUNIOR YEAR BOOK. 3 He was very particular to have everything perfectly clear. Those seem¬ ingly little things in the bills which other men would rather have unnoticed, Burke brought to light, tore to pieces and explained. However, he often passed over arguments as unworthy of notice, which others made the most of. But we must not think Burke was without fault as an orator. His speeches were not carefully composed. He was almost as likely to begin with conclu¬ sion and end with the introduction as he was to begin with the introduction and end with the conclusion. He jumped so quickly from one subject to an¬ other that it was difficult to follow his line of thot, if there was really a line of thot, to follow. Burke did think and thot deeply. That master mind of his did much marvelous work and he had distinct ideas of what was right but did not arrange his ideas. His mind was comparable to a glass of effervescent liquid. Ideas were continually bubbling up, and he presented them accordingly regardless of order. His comparisons were shocking and he thot nothing too horrible to describe to illustrate his point. He did not seem to know when to stop; often after he had won his point he talked till he lost it again. He was always for the Rock¬ ingham Whigs and thus it was said of him, “He gave to party what was meant for mankind.” As a statesman his sole ambition was to have everything done right. He had a passion for order and justice and fought bitterly for it against strong op¬ position. The result of it was that he became impatient, irritable and stem. Naturally dignified and reserved, he made few friends, but he made hosts of admirers. He scorned dishonesty and would rather have died than resort to the trickery common among the politicians. After all the defects were few when compared with the virtues. We can forget them as we view his wonderful intellect. He was truly a great man,— great hearted and great minded.

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12 J LTN [OR YEAR HOOK. Mrs. Kallender wishes here to express her gratitude to those whose liberality made possible the cash prizes awarded in the Year Book Contest. Such interest on the part of the citizens is a great spur to effort on the part of the pupils. THANK YOU. CHARACTERIZATION OR BURKE . ESSAY BY SADIE CROSBY. Burke was one of the few politicians who try to do what is right. His home life was happy. There, instead of the dignified, brilliant politician, he was a kind, loving father and husband. His was an impulsive nature, capable of deep feeling, as was shown by his intense grief at the death of his son Robert. He inherited a fortune but soon spent it and was always in debt, owing to his taste for books and to his habit of helping his needy friends. As an orator he was very eloquent but his Irish brogue probably lessened the effect of his arguments. His speeches were full of deep thots, which he poured forth in such a torrent that only by the closest attention could his hear¬ ers follow him. And listen closely they did, simply because they could not help it. His powerful, fervid way of speaking, the greatness of his thots, his ready wit and his bitter sarcasm carried everything before them. Nor was Burke’s style of delivery at all monotonous. He would stop in the midst of the most ponderous arguments and throw his audience into convulsions of laughter by the use of his keen wit, or would suddenly come down from a lofty flight of imagination on the ideal state of things, and put in the most bit¬ ter, cutting sarcasm. His speeches contained a wonderful amount of facts, probably more than any other man’s at that time. For instance, if he were making a speech on the condition of affairs in India, he would give the exact amount of export and im¬ port and the produce and expense of that country. He would state to the last cent the amount of tax received from it. He would give the exact population and probably the number of soldiers, the number of merchants, the number of farmers and the number of aristocrats.

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4 JUNIOR YEAR BOOK. OUR SCHOOL HOUSE. == -• -=i A tall, old brick building Is the school house in Momence; No walls are around it— Not even a fence. The school is located In the center of the block. Looking as large and as roomy As an old-fashioned clock. Two beautiful vines Climbing over the wall Of the school house so dear, Make it look much less tall. Long walks of concrete, Encompass it round, Which quite clean and neat Are generally found. From the street to the school Immense trees form a line, And these with the lawn, Make a view very fine. The lawn is a beautiful Carpet of green, So soft under foot, So cool, fresh and clean. I have tried to describe Our old school house so dear, Which is filled to the top, With wisdom and cheer. Emma Pittman.