North Andover High School - Knight Yearbook (North Andover, MA)

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Class Oration “WE SHALL FIND A PATH OR MAKE ONE” “We shall find a path or make one” is an extremely apt motto that we, the graduating class of ' 1952, have chosen. It is our goal to make this world a little better for our having been in it, by each doing his share to achieve peace and justice. If this seems like a grandiose ambition for high school graduates, let each recall that society, both nationally and internationally, is a social organism. The wholesome activity of each part contributes to the health of the whole. Each grain of sand plays its part to make the beautiful coastline of New England and similarly each tiny tissue that the blood stream nourishes contributes to the healthy, virile body. Likewise, each of us can make his tiny, but essential contribution to the welfare of the national and international societies which make the world. Many are the paths which have been beaten out for us. What trail blazers, through the savage undergrowth of selfishness, greed, stupidity, brutality, and disunity, were such greats as Washington, Jackson and Lincoln! George Washington, to whom our nation turned first for leadership, and who is admired today by everyone, young and old, was exceedingly instrumental in aiding the American people to realize their dream of a free, democratic country. At all times during the Revolutionary War, he was fated to lead an army that was ill-fed, scantily-clothed and lacking ammunition. It was only through his ingenious military strategy, equalled only by Caesar, that he mastered these overwhelming forces and won the war. Yet not once during that bitter fighting did Washington lose sight of its purpose — the improve¬ ment of the life of the people, their liberty and the pursuit of happiness for everyone. Another outstanding example in American history is Andrew Jackson, a courageous frontier lawyer from Tennessee, who devoted his life to making the Federal government serve the common man. It was his firm belief that any honest man could hold a public office acceptably. This expension of political ideas to include the common man indicates the fast-growing feeling of democracy, and the gradual turning away from the aristocratic ideas of the mother country. Another great pioneer was Lincoln. We are indebted to him for his tireless efforts to preserve and pacify our country so that it might become the united nation it is today. He did not achieve this extremely difficult task by the subtle art of politics and intrigue, nor by resorting to ruthlessness and inhumanity. This goal was accom¬ plished by his rigid ideals, firmness of purpose, and qualities of humanity. To this great man we owe gratitude for the lesson he taught, — that the combination of understanding, kindness and humanity with leadership constitutes a true greatness in statecraft. Even in our present day, prominent trail blazers such as MacArthur, our E.C.A. administrators and innumerable unknown heroes in and out of uniform, are facing the same seemingly insurmountable odds that our past leaders struggled with. They are attempting to spread the exact ideas of democracy to the other countries of the world, trying to show these nations the benefits of a people’s government compared with a Facist, Nazi or Communistic regime. World Wars I and II were waged because of this, and it is also the primary reason for the ominous threat of a third cosmic eruption. To make newer and broader paths now will be the work of our generation. We cannot and we must not, like lost wanderers, be without an objective. We must realize the uselessness of sulking cynicism and petulant disillusion. The world crisis we face affords us neither the time nor inclination to strike poses, to lick our wounds, or to weep great salty tears of self-pity. For us a more virile and American task is at hand. The patient courage of a Washington, Jackson’s abiding faith in the worth and ability of the common man, the clear-eyed and all-embracing Christian charity of a Lincoln — all these are the frail marks which point for us the way to go. And as we push down these glorious paths we shall push on into newer realms of newer problems. But from the paths we have followed we shall know how to mark out the new paths needed. We have found the path. It is now our task to advance it and make the new one. Marian Bamford I }

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Class Essay UNFATHOMABLE SCIENCE How far are the creative and imaginative powers of man going to extend? Is there ever going to be an end to his discoveries and inventions? Man has been en¬ dowed with intellectual powers that have made him the master of nature and its incredible storehouse of energy. He is surrounded by facilities which encourage him to exercise his intellect. The earth is his well-equipped research laboratory. Every nook and cranny of it is overflowing with unknowns, teasing and luring him in to exploration. Daily, these dimly perceived, half-sensed areas are yielding their powers and secrets to the probing scientists, those modern magicians who are discovering the miraculous powers in nature and who are unearthing the mysteries that this old world has contained for so long. Will they someday exhaust nature’s reservoir of wonders? Already man has advanced scientifically to unbelievable heights. There appears to be no limit to the peaks he can reach. In the vast sea of science time is just a gentle ripple, composing an ever- changing tide, which washes ceaselessly on every shore. The Victorians felt the measured impact of the shifting tides as their shores were littered with accumulated knowledge. The Victorians, by use of this knowledge in their smug, small, secure, universe, imagined themselves to have reached the ultimate in modern existence and inventions. They proudly boasted gas lighting in the homes and streets. Their newly improved roads in¬ sured fast communication, their elaborate horse-drawn vehicles provided transportation, and the many plushly elegant theatres offered entertainment. The tide did not cease to ebb as they anticipated, but continued its endless journey. We, as others before us, are feeling the force of this mounting turbulent sea. Our speed is dominated by jet propulsion, atomic and hydrogen energy are setting the pace for our power, rapid communication is via the wireless, our entertainment is brought to us through the mediums of moving pictures and television, and newly proposed space bases are to be placed outside the earth’s atmosphere to enable man by the use of tele¬ scopes and other powerful lenses to inspect the daily actions of all the peoples in the world, thus erasing the iron curtain and every material barrier. These bases may be the in¬ strument to promote world peace. The pace of recent scientific advancements is frightening. Man has surged forward materialistically and allowed social and spiritual fields to remain inert. He is like a child receiving a new toy, not knowing exactly what to do with it — a toy, which in his inexperienced hands can be both creative and destructive. This well may be the time for mankind to make a change of emphasis. From the Renaissance until now, man has concentrated on material development. From now on, in the face of our present frightening evolutions, perhaps man had best de-emphasize the physical and material in order to use his almost fabulous creative and imaginative powers to explore and develop other than his material resources. Just as the physical horizons receded before his ingenious attacks, so can the moral, political, and spiritual horizons lift and broaden. Who knows what new Edison, Einstein, Steinmetz, Whitehead, or Roentgen the immediate future is preparing to usher onto the stage of the world? The battle for man’s physical control has been largely won through the brilliance of such men. Now the world, in breathless hope and anxiety, waits for the social, moral, and spiritual geniuses who will come one day to teach mankind how to use the great powers he now has for the common good of humanity. Elizabeth Duncan

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Hits of 1952 {20