Nixon Township High School - Nixonia Yearbook (Weldon, IL)

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THE NIXONIA 19 2 3 much in athletics had they not been injured in playing basketball during their early life in High School. Out of the four boys in our class, three went out for football and played a strong part in the team’s achievements. Now, out of your class of seven boys, only two have been successful players, and out of this same seven we admit nearly all tried to play football, but most of them lacked the necessary ability. You must admit that the Junior’s representation in athletics cannot be compared to the ability in the Senior class. We are all creatures of circumstances, and since you Juniors are not blessed with a strong ability in music and athletics we advise you not to feel bad about it. We are glad to see that you realize the position in which you are placed and we believe you should adapt yourselves to the prevailing circumstances. Since you are not the possessors of such ability, we advise and also beg of you not to brag about something you are not. We would much rather you would leave your ability for the public to discover, and if the public ever discovers some of your abilities that we have overlooked we would be glad, as well as surprised, to hear about it. We would also like to offer you some advice on your behavior and attitude in school. You would do a great favor to your under classmen next year if you could find it convenient to buy a few pencils and some writing paper. Now, we Seniors don’t begrudge you the vast amount of writing material that was borrowed and never returned, but we would be pleased to see you depend on yourselves for some of this material. It is rather impolite to interrupt a fellow student, when he is deep in study, to borrow a pencil or an eraser. It is more impolite to interrupt the same student the second time by bouncing the eraser off his head. We realize that from the lack of experience you are not fully accountable for your acts, but we trust that by next year you will discard these childish habits for ones more polite. And then when you go to class don’t sit like a candy owl gazing off into space, but pay attention to what the teacher is talking about and be ready to answer her questions. This sleepiness in class is very unbeneficial to you students as well as distressing for your teacher. Juniors, you have acquired the habit of repeating three words and as long as those words linger in your mind you will be hopeless cases. Of the few chances I have had to be in the Junior’s classes 1 have heard half of you answer your teacher’s questions with “I don’t know.” What you don’t know you had better find out and be able to throw these three words in the waste paper basket. If you don’t do this, some day the teacher will ask if you wish a holiday and what will be the consequence? We advise you also to arrive at school on time. If next year you do not improve on your tardiness the school board will be broken up buying excuse blanks. When you come to school, enter the building with a smile Away with the books; let's have some fun—Donald Gray.

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19 2 3 THE NIXONIA his own personal honor. This is one fault that really exists in your class and is very likely to cause serious trouble in your Senior year if it is not overcome. Now each Senior can boast that each individual member has worked for the honor of the class as a whole. The boys in our class refused to take part in the Senior play in order that better qualified students from an underclass could handle these parts more successfully. This raised the standard of the class because the public was pleased with the splendid cast of characters which were involved. But the Senior girls fully covered the gap which was created by the inability of the Senior boys as actors, and you Juniors must admit that none of the girl members of your class possess the ability of the girls of our class of twenty-three. We can boast that one of our members carried away the first prize in the county through her ability as an orator. Second, we advise you to give your personal opinion in every matter that confronts you. Don’t agree with another person unless you are fully satisfied with his or her decision. We have noticed that you have thrown the entire class responsibility upon the shoulders of two or three of your members and that you are ready to agree to any suggestion that they present. This is a very serious thing to do, for these two or three members might all become sick at the same time and this would place your class in a critical condition. We, the members of the Senior class, have always offered suggestions which we thought would mostly benefit the class. As a result we didn’t always agree. Since our class consists of four boys and nine girls, the girls, who were the majority, always had a chance to carry out their own ideas. Again, we must remind you of the capability of the Senior girls, for, through their careful planning, our class has completed four successful years in High School. Third, we must compare our musical ability with that of your class. There is not a member in our class who cannot play some musical instrument or charm the hearers with his or her singing. We could create an orchestra that would awaken Beethoven from his grave. We have one member who can play any instrument that ever entered our High School. And you Juniors must admit that this is one feat no member of your class could possibly accomplish. W e do not wish to condemn you Juniors on your musical ability, but we can frankly say your musical ability is either small or that it has never been developed. Imagine the Juniors organizing an orchestra to play for some public entertainment! Why, your audience would place their hands to their ears and fiee from the building in terror. Fourth, we would have you notice the comparison of the two classes in athletics. Out of our class of four boys two are lettered men, having played every game in their four years of high school that were permitted by the state athletic rules. We have two more players who would have done won't be home till morning—Sylvia Mire.

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19 2 3 THE NIXONIA on your face and show a set of pearly teeth that signify you have been up long enough to brush them. We advise you to come to school clean and dressed neatly, as it will make you feel better and also please your teacher. We Seniors set that example this year, but you seem to have failed to catch the significance. Now we feel as if we had given you sufficient advice to make your Senior year a successful one. We have not tried to criticize the Junior class, but we have merely shown you your mistakes and given you some methods by which to improve them. I take great honor in behalf of the Senior class in presenting you this gavel, which is handed down as an emblem of sincerity between the classes of the school. We Seniors will pledge ourselves to stand behind you in the defense of the purple and gold and extend to you our sincere wish for a successful year during your last term in X. T. H. S. Walter West, '23. JUNIOR RESPONSE Seniors:—In behalf of the Junior class, I accept this gavel and along with it the well meant advice which you have so kindly given to us. Yes, as I lock at it, I will admit that the Seniors have made a few marks of achievement. Hut, Seniors, when the Class of '24 gives the gavel to the Juniors next year, it will be so covered with our achievements that it will take three men to hold it, instead of one. We have listened attentively while you have tried to advise us as to how we are to act. You have endeavored to show us our few mistakes, but, Seniors, you have made an utter failure. The comparison of our few mistakes to your appalling, awesome, and monstrous blunders are—as the field mouse is to the elephant. Seniors, in your charge you advise us to work as a whole, and not individually. If that is what you advise us, why did you not set an example? But, furthermore, we did not need an example. When you said we worked individually you made a bad error. Look at your own class, Seniors. When you have a class meeting, people all over the northeast end of town think there is a general uprising at the schoolhouse. You are so loud and quarrel so much at your class meetings that you have two class advisers, men, at that, to keep you from fighting. When the Junior class has a class meeting they quietly and without violence settle their difficulties. Seniors, we do not quarrel over our class issues as you do—we discuss them. You say in your charge that the reason the Senior boys failed to be in the class play was because they wished to give the under classmen a chance. Seniors, do you really think that is the reason? I will tell you the real reason. The boys of your class would not be in the play because they Lover of all girls ami winner of none—Owen Tilbury