Newtown High School - Newtowner Yearbook (Elmhurst, NY)

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IN DARKEST AFRICA How rr started I don't know. Perhaps it was the pickles and ice cream I ate, or maybe it was the fifth Welsh rarebit. Anyhow, I found myself in the heart of nowhere, a friendly little jungle on the African continent. Boy, was it friendly! The place teemed with sociable ten foot snakes, amiable man- eating lions, neighborly crocodiles, picturesque swamps, carnivorous plants, and other enjoyable forms of biological creation. I had just finished making preparations for a short hike, about 500 miles, into the interior. I carefully packed my razor blade, water pistol, sub-machine gun and other weapons that were later to be my protectors. I set out with no one as my guide. After trekking about fifty miles I entered a clearing. Looking about, I saw facing me three of the most ferocious lions conceivable. The lions were short, tall, fat, skinny lions. I felt my heart to see if I were dreaming, but it was gone. It had jumped out of my mouth in fright. Undaunted, I took a bowl of wheaties from my pack and quickly downed it. I now felt ready for anything-anything except lions. But was I afraid? Did I lose my courage? Did I flee toward the nearest tree? Yes! About a quarter of the way up an enormous tree my progress was halted. Why? Because I rudely bumped into a leopard. I wonder what Emily Post would say about that. The leopard glared at meg I glared at himg he snarled at meg I moved to another tree. A swishing sound caught my sensitive ears. I looked above me. There was the scourge of the jungle-a deadly python, or maybe it was a wha-sha-ma- call-it. I was too scared to find out. This time I could not flee, for below me was a man-eating gorilla. Heaven only knows that he would have gotten indigestion if he had eaten me. I reached for my pistol. It was gone, fallen s in my scramble up the tree. The lions 'E-gf' Ay' X were playing with the sub-machine J + gun, and all were closing in on me. I ' A still had a weapon more dangerous than those that I had lost. Besides, if things got too hot I could always give the denizens of the jungle an icy S e,wn.,A stare and then climb the stair out of danger. But back to that terrible 'eil if ' 'l 4 , ligjl s, :wi ii i . l . ' a ' A VIR . A 3.1, 2 Q11-1 ,FN . --' y , weapon. This weapon was so deadly j I 115' 6 - JM 6' Q' - X, fra and terrible that men cringed at the V' y I s if, sight of it. Without a moment's i3 ill, , fl' ii ,' hesitation, I drew my trusty sharp 5, wi . 'ex dangerous razor blade from my pocket. 18

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JEWELS Can diamonds ever equal the dawn For pure majestic splendor? Can gold ever give you the thrill The fresh green grasses render? Can precious jewels cleanse your soul Like pure faith in God? Can anything equal the feel of the earth That once your ancestors trod? Is there anything like a human man Who strives on for his goal? Is there any beauty to equal The beating heart of a soul? Is there any thought so beautiful As that of a world without strife? Is there any story in any book That equals the story of life? ANNE LICHTMAN How does he know Which way to steer that pencil in his hand? It seems to go Quite, oh! you know, without the least command. It makes a stroke, It makes a scratch, all perfect in design VVhy does that pencil Choose a route so opposite from mine? My drawings look like big mistakes. Our works you can't compare. I think he must have all the breaks, And talent plus, to spare. The one essential difference is, And of this, I am sure, He knows his art, while I am called A mere rank amateur. CYNTHIA PRICE

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Slash! Bang! Crash! Roars, growls, and yells filled the air. Blood flowed faster and thicker than Niagara Falls. Suddenly there was a crash louder than the rest. Believe it or not, that crash was my salvation, for I found myself on the iioor of my own room grappling with the pillow and holding my covers in my hands. Now dear reader, if your blood pressure is pounding, and your heart is throbbing, don't be afraid, because you too may have thrilling adventures like mine by just eating a mince pie or some similar dish before retiring. I Wish when you retire tonight that you have pleasant dreams. WILLIAM GREEN The Few PIERRE OPENED the drawer and lifted out the large black revolver. It had been used against them in 1914 and now it was to be used again. Yet this time it was not to be used by a proud young officer leading an army on the field of battle. Tonight its master would be a stealthy creature who darted from shadow to shadow, a creature more like an animal than a man, and who killed, only to slink back through those enveloping shadows to wait, and to pray that he would not be caught before he could kill again. For a moment a feeling of futility swept over the pale man. What good was all this? One army might defeat another and thereby win a war, but a handful of defeated men certainly could do no good by killing off a few unwary soldiers. He sat there for a while, staring at the flickering candle on the table. Suddenly he arose, opened the door and stepped out into the night air. The coolness of the wind seemed to lift him from his lethargy. In the East there wasa red glow in the sky and a dull rumbling could be heard.. The channel ports were being bombed again by the English flyers. Good luck to them! He turned about and walked towards the door, his mind filled with many thoughts. Suddenly, he stopped and turned again to the East. A certain phrase had leaped into his mind. Never have so many owed so much to so few. Yes, perhaps that was it, perhaps that was the reason he had searched for. Yes, France, too, will someday owe so much to so few ! Pierre opened the rusty gate and started slowly down the dark road. The weight of the revolver in his pocket was reassuring. He walked on, his eyes still on the glowing horizon in the East. SIDNEY KNowLEs 19