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

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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

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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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THE NIXONIA 19 2 3 knew they would ruin it. Did you ever stop and look at them? They are very curious looking creatures. They knew that if they appeared before an audience the bricks and tin cans thrown by the audience would be directed at them. If I were one of you Senior boys I would wear a veil when I went out on the street. Seniors, you did not mention the class play of last year. Why ? Because it was a failure. You did not have the ability to put on a play. You seem to forget that after working three months on this play you failed to have it. It seems strange that a class of your type would try to advise one of our type. In your charge you also forget about last year’s banquet. You did not get it paid for until this year, and then only after you had received many duns. It is strange how you forget. Seniors. We always pay our debts promptly. And then you talk about the standard of your class. Seniors, I hate to say this, but I must; it almost brings tears to my eyes, but it is my duty to say this: If the Junior class and under classmen follow the standard you have set, in three years there would be no high school. You talk of the wonderful actresses in your class. If they are so good, who do the under classmen get all the leading parts in the plays? Seniors, you say our class is not organized. I can say this, and the faculty will affirm it: The Junior class is the best organized class in school. You say the girls of your class are so good in their studies, in fact, they actually carried the whole class through. Yes, we know your girls are fine. But there is something wrong with them. They seem to lack something. The young men do not go with them. The music teacher will not even have them in the Glee Club, or maybe they don’t want to be in it. There are eight girls in the Senior class and only four in the Glee Club. There are thirteen girls in the Junior class and all of them are in the Glee Club. In your charge you said all the members of your class played some musical instrument. The only musicians I ever saw in your class were a drummer and a saxophone player. When your drummer plays, which is very seldom, it sounds like Sherman’s army marching through Georgia. And that Saxophone! Here is a little poem dedicated to the famous Senior saxophonist: “When you hear the Senior moan Upon his saxophone, It sounds like the last groan Of a dying cow.” - Where is that wonderful orchestra you were talking about that would raise Beethoven from the dead? Why, Seniors, don’t you know it was such music as you produce that killed Beethoven. We have no class orchestra, but if you call that drummer and saxophone player an orchestra, we have you far outclassed. In our class we have a trombone, saxophone alto, piano and violin. If we should choose to organize an orchestra we could far exceed your orchestra. Zealous yet modest—Frances Gala way.