North Bay Collegiate Institute and Vocational School - Northland Echo Yearbook (North Bay, Ontario Canada)

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THE NORTHLAND ECHO 23 Gnosrs 1 SHOULD LIKE TO gg-g,1Y'.y, MEET gg: . Betty McGonegal, Form V Do you believe in ghosts? NVhile with apparent scorn I say quite emphatically, 'No,' I must confess that my fingers are invariably crossed. And in those darkest hours before the dawn when awakened by a creaking step or a howling wind, I lie shivering with horror in bed. Ghosts are very real things to me. The ghosts I should like to meet are not those mysterious spirits that the late Sir Arthur Conan Doyle described, gliding through ancient castles moaning and sighing amid the rustle of silken skirts and the clanking of chains to visit upon human beings thc sorrows and misfor- tunes of their eventful lives. Those vengeful ghosts are not the spectres which I fear. The ghosts I should like to meet are the ghosts, not of real beings. but of inanimate objects on whose very presence the imagination of the world depends. You don't have to look for the ghosts I should like to meet, or spend a night of terror in some haunted house to meet one: they are all around you. For example, there is first the ghost of a chance, that hovers above the earth flitting nervously here and there, always ready to pounce upon a critical moment when time seems to stand still in expecta- tion. The ghost of a chance is like an elf, delighting in mischief, laughing glee- fully when some pessimistic individual happens to say despairingly, I haven't a ghost of a chance to succeed! Then there is the ghost of a tear, along with the ghost of a smile and the ghost of a sigh. These are very rare and beautiful ghosts. The ghost of a smile is a whimsical one that appears in the most unexpected places, utterly ravishing in its suddenness. The ghost of a tear haunts the most cherished memories in a person's life, hiding secretly until it suddenly appears from nowhere in all its radiant beauty. The ghost of a sigh. a quiet little ghost, is the rarest one in my imagination. Finally there is the ghost of a dream - a tall mysterious ghost that glides noise- lessly throughout the world holding in its possession all the wishes and the dreams of man. These are never terrifying and aveng- ing ghosts, but friendly and real appari- tions. They are the ghosts I should like to meet. it ttf.. Ev: ' I 'I' THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS Ezio Cappadocia, IIIA Collegiate Today, when Democracy is engaged in a war for the healthy continuation of its existence, it is more than ever import- ant for us to realize what Democracy is and what it should mean to us. ' A thot'- ough analysis of Democracy would require a greater amount of space than that at our disposal. I shall deal, there- for, only with these four aspects of the subject: ti! The fall of post-war Democracies in Central Europe, tiib The concurrent growth of Paci- fism in the western Democracies after the war, tiiii Democracy and its relation to minority opinion, tivb The future of Democracy. In recent years, we have seen the fall of many post-war Democracies in Cen- tral Europe. Their collapses were caused first by the failure of the Western Democracies to help these newly estab- lished Democracies, secondly by the fear of capitalists and industrialists within the new Democracies that a social revolu- tion against the misery and poverty of post-war period would take place, if it rigid system preventing this were not established. Last of all, however, the collapses were caused by the inability of the people living in these countries to use Democracy. since Democracy is the rule of the people, rule which depends upon

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24 THE NORTHLAND ECHO their knowledge and discuxion of public questions. As a result of these policies, Europe is today plagued with Nazism and Fascism, systems of government that are anti- democratic, anti-liberal, anti-humanist and anti-pacifist. They are also anti- religious, although German Nazism at the same time does not fail to claim that Hitler is performing God's purposes for Democracy, on the other Germany. hand, cannot be anti-religious, for it and Christianity go hand in hand, making neither social nor racial distinctions and therefore permitting a great variety of individual expression. The dictators, taking advantage of Pacifism and internal conditions, substi- tuted the army for the Christian method of peaceful arbitration. They increased their military preparations and kept pub- lic opinion in a state of nationalist pas- sion. While the dictators were develop- ing their war machines. the Democracies were preaching Pacifism according to Christian principles, and repeatedly pro- claiming that their desire was peace only-i.e.. that the world must remain as it was in 1919. Thus, when the high tension was reached in the crisis in the middle of the 1930's, the Democracies remained at a disadvantage and beheld the tragic sacrifices of Manchuria. Abyssinia, Austria, Spain and Czecho- slovakia. The dictators interpreted these pacifistic outbursts as admissions of weakness and of readiness to keep the peace at any price. The declaration of war by Britain, France and the British Dominions against Germany, subsequent to I-Iitler's brutal attack on Poland, must have caused grim realizations for thc Fascist dictators. But despite these post-war pacific poli- cies, the Democracies failed to make Democracy international by removing the causes of war. As a result, today we are again engaged in a second struggle to make the world safe for Democracy. If Christianity and Democracy are inseparaible, so too must Democracy and freedom be inseparable, But, unfor- tunately, when war begins, freedom ends. According to the policy of our govern- ment, what it terms hostile opinion, must be controlled because it hinders the successful prosecution of the war. Most people are willing to admit that some restrictions are necessary. But, how are we to interpret the phrase hostile opinion ? Does it imply hostility in the methods with which the war is being waged and to the end at which it aims? We must remembcrthat once our right of criticism is withdrawn, once our gov- ernment becomes a semi-dictatorship, it commits all the natural follies of a real dictatorship. Our politicians should not be the only people free to criticize our war policy. To many of them their party and its future is far more important than the successful prosecution of the war. There- fore, I believe that if anyone criticizes the national policy and supports his criti- cism Iby evidence that there is need for it, he should not be looked upon as unpatriotic or disloyal. The notorious Padlock Law, for example, passed in the Quebec Legislature, is an indication of the extent to which those in power may abuse Democracy, even in peace time, while preaching its maintenance. The sponsors of the law declared that it was an act to suppress subversive and com- munistic activities. What the term com- munism means was left for the former Attorney-General to interpret. The great problem facing the Democ- racies today is not only that of exter- minating the dictators, but also that of preserving Democracy at home. The economic strangulation of Germany by the British blockade, which is slowly but surely 'having its effect, and the growing superiority of Britain and France, both in the army and in the air, will inevit- albly bring Germany to defeat in spite of her striking power. But victory will not ensure the triumph of Democracy if it is not backed by a sensible peace treaty making the resort to dictatorship unnecessary. A new peace treaty must be based on an attempt to answer the legitimate demands of the economically weak world powers. For humanity will revolt against the idea that the World has to pass through a conflagration every 20 years because those demands have not been satisfied. We must remember that the only way to get rid of war is to destroy its causes. If Democracy is to survive and fulfill its purpose, it must extend its funda- mental belief in life, liberty and the pur- suit of happiness to the economic and social life of all national groups. It must also extend this belief to countries less fortunate than ours in their econ- omic and financial conditions, thereby making Democracy international, and at least trying to remove the major causes of war. Internally, Democracy must also repair the faults of modern industrialism and capitalism and readjust the mal- distribution of wealth. Concluding this brief survey of Democ1'acy, we realize that it gives us the right to know, to utter and argue freely, according to conscience. But these rights can only be prese1'ved if there is, in thc majority of individuals I A