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

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THE NORTI-ILAND ECHO 27 viceg you do not even hear it. Instead you are feeling the sting of the snow on your face, ex- periencing the thrill of your first leap on that new ski jump, or landing that beautiful speckled trout that you could have boasted about for weeks to your rivals. Then, not having heard two words of the service, you swear that you will never go back again. In this case, the minister cannot be blamed for an uninteresting service. The radio rightly bears some of the blame for poor church attendance. You are afforded the opportunity of receiving the church service to a better advantage at home, since you have the privilege of switching off the radio if the sermon does not suit your taste, or if the story you are trying to read while you listen, proves to be more entertaining than religion. Too, radio reception does not demand an early rising on your part, nor does it require Sunday clothes. Bathrobes and Romeos serve just as well, especially if you are going skiing later on and will later have to deck yourself out in ski clothes. On Sunday night comedy radio programs prove to be a greater attraction than church because you don't feel like dress- ing again after that strenuous day of skiing. Next Sunday, since the weather is bad, you, and a fair congregation, turn out to church and the topic of the sermon is, Poor Church Atten- dance and Lack of Fundsf, You are informed that if you are absent this Sunday, remember the Church expenses go on just the samef, This request annoys you and some of the congrega- tion, who had resolved, perhaps rather unmean- ingly, to reform and go to church more often, and you, now resolve to continue with your air reception where you are permitted to listen if you wish. Once again the church attendance declines. BEFORE THE CURTAIN RISES M. MACDONALD, FORM V The dressing room is crowded, the walls covered with what might be the loot from a mixture of pawn-shops and Bond Street cloth- ing stores. Overalls and stiff shirts, boots and dancing pumps, all are there, spread about in mad disarray. Here and there boys, trying to pull on their socks or shoes, are standing like storks or hopping about like dancing-dolls. What a sick-looking bunch they are-all white as a sheet: you look in the mirror to straighten your tie and-Shades of Sir Cedric Hardwicke! Can this ghost-like creature be you! Why, your face looks like the front of one of those shirts. Funny thing too because it's very warm in here. Loosen your collar: there, that,s better. Now youire ready for make-up, or are you? Letis see, have you forgotten anything? Got that scarf? Mustn't forget it again to- night. Remember what happened at the dress rehearsal. All set? The make-up room is on the next floor up. This way: say, what's your hurry? You took those stairs three at a time. Here you are. First the cream:'rub it in well then rub it all off, remember, its just to soften your skin, not bury it. Try to stand still, how do you expect the make-up man to get that lip-rouge straight? There, that's that! Eyeshadow: just a little. Hair okay? Fine. You might as well go upstairs to the stageg nothing to do now but wait. Wait-only liif- teen minutes more till the curtain. Wait-and your heart beating twice as quickly as your watch. Wait---wait ----- wait. There's a funny feeling in the bottom of your stomach. Come on, buck-up-only five more minutes. Pretend this is just another practice. What do you say when you go on first? What, you've forgotten? Never mind, it will come to you on the stage, if you ever get there. There's a big crowd to-night so do your best: you mustn't disappoint them. Only three more minutes-ah! there's the orchestra now. Three more minutes, one hun- dred and eighty seconds. You never knew be- fore how long a second really is. Thereis the prompter settling into her chair by the end of the stage. It won't be long now and you've a good audience: steady, brother. Say, you ac- tually look happy? Feel better now? Great! there goes your cue, the curtains' rising. So long. Keep your fingers crossed .... MORE ABOUT GRAPEFRUIT H. Nxcor. V To eat a grapefruit is a task in all parts of the educated world. Many breakfasters shun the round, oversized lemon, because it provided them with a shower of acidy juice expelled with considerable force from the large globules, which ruined both apparel and temper. Breakfasters descend from the bath-room and with a cheery morning salutation to the cook, seat themselves at the table and are in- stantly confronted by a large half of a grape- fruit, staring them in the face. With a shudder, the would-be consumer, hesitantly, picks up the culinary instrument customarily engaged for the purpose, and searches for an opening in the mel- low fruit. Cook has been careless to-day and has not sliced the adjoining walls of the fruit so the worst can be expected. Like a wary con- testant in a iistical engagement, the person circles the fruit with his eyes and prods ginger- ly, first at the sides then the centre. He eases the spoon gently down into the side and is re- warded for such an audacious act by a yellow streamer of juice full in the optic. Never daunted, the daring attacker grips the evasive victim in his left hand and with a sudden down- ward thrust of the spoon, jabs viciously at the fruit and receives another liquid torrent, ac- companied by a huge seed.

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26 THE NORTHIJXND ECHO The achievements of better standards of labour in Mr. Roosevelt's Administration are greater than those in any previous administration. This has been accomplished despite Henry Ford's baronial independence, and continuous bitter attacks against all labour organizations. In 1936 although many of the lower class realized that the New Deal was imperfect, and that it had not achieved what they had ex- pected, they felt that they had a friend in the White House and one who was at least trying to help them. They demonstrated their ap- preciation by supporting him for re-election. Throughout the democratic world Mr. Roosevelt is better known for his foreign policy than for his domestic one. To Canadians he is a friend. His Good Neighbourn policy with us, and the Pan Arnericanism directed towards Latin America, is one of the greatest achieve- ments of his career. It has always been his goal to have North and South American solidarity in the face of a hostile world. His assurance at Kingston that the American people would not stand idly by if Canadian soil is threatened by any other Empire was received with the greatest possible amount of enthusiasm by Canadians. The ties of friendship between Canada and the U.S. were cemented in the Ogdensburg De- claration by Mr. Roosevelt and Mr. King. The esteem with which Mr. Roosevelt is regarded in South America was demonstrated when these Republics declared a national holiday on the day of his re-election in November. His judgment of international events has always been superior to that of his opponents. In 1938 he shocked the isolationists by pro- posing at Chicago that the aggressors be quar- antinedf' This speech was the cause of many bitter attacks against Mr. Roosevelt by his op- ponents. They claimed that he was speaking of war in order to relieve his precarious political position in the U.S. When in 1939 he asked Congress to repeal the Arms Embargo in favour of the Cash and Carry basis, he was accused of war-mongering. Later, a special session of Congress was necessary to repeal the law since war had already broken out in Europe. When this terrible catastrophe struck Europe he took all the necessary precautions to prevent America from being involved in it. He declared a safety zone on both sides of this continent and prohibited American vessels from going into belligerent zones. However, when war broke out in all its fury, and many free countries, France included, were conquered, Mr. Roose- velt saw that America had to send more help to Britain, since Britain was the only remaining obstacle in Hitler's path. It was also evident that if Britain were defeated and the European economy were in Hitler's hands it would be a difficult task for the United States to compete in the world trade with Germany. And unless the United States would co-operate with Ger- many she would face economic ruin and a lowering of her standard of living. America, as Mr. Roosevelt said recently would be living at the point of a gun. Accordingly, despite opposition from some quarters-incidentally the opposition is not the same as that which opposed him in his domestic policy, because financial interests derive profit from rearmament-he decided to enlarge the American rearmament program and give more help to Britain. Recently he declared that the United States will become the arsenal of de- mocracy since there can be no appeasementi' between the democratic world and Hitler's world. He re-affirmed his belief that the Axis cannot win, and that with American help the democracies will be victorious. As far as one can see at present Mr. Roosevelt's new foreign policy is backed by the majority of the Ameri- can people. But many of the opposition especially among the lower class who have al- ways supported the President are alarmed by his blunt language and straight talk to the dictators. Will he, now that he has changed his foreign policy, be able to keep America out of war and keep his campaign promise and yet be the economically helpful ally of Britain? Or will he be forced by circumstances and events to become a second Woodrow Wilson? Both his supporters and opponents are anxiously watching Mr. Roosevelt steer the ship of State in these tortuous channels. How will he fare? To-day he has the greatest op- portunity to win personal triumph and be a real statesman, now that he is no longer bound to the party machine and has no longer to play the politics. What will happen during his third term no one is in a position to predict. That he will go down in history as a great democratic leader, there is no doubt, although no one can foretell how Mr. Roosevelt will be remember- ed. At all events, American life will never be what it was when he took over the leadership of the United States in that fateful morning of March 4, 1933. DECLINE IN CHURCH ATTENDANCE ISABEL CHERRY, V COLLEGIATE Nowadays, if there is nothing else to do, you go to church. All day Saturday you watch to see what kind of weather is in store for Sunday. In the winter, a good fall of snow will prompt you to wax your skis and start out for a good day of Sunday skiing. In the spring, a bright cloudless day will send you heading for some cool brook for a good day of Sunday trout-fishing. But if the weather man does not treat you so gen- erously, you go to church. In such a case of church attendance, you do not enjoy the ser-

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28 THE NORTHLAND ECHO At this point, the consumer usually throws down his spoon in utter disgust and calls for his waffles. But the more diligent and persevering of our retaliating grapefruit-eaters, stick to the task of carving up the fruit, which California so graciously donates to the continent. He usually succeeds. I, myself, one of the less persevering break- fasters. give up in disgust, after the first attempt. To you fellow-suffers, I have one piece of consoling advice, which will rid you of such a horrid and damp experience every morning. It is as follows: Take the fruit to the kitchen, draw out the grapefruit squeezer and squeeze unmercifully until the fruit is dry. Then discard the con- quered and base rind into the sink, place juice in a glass with a little sugar and down the tangy juice. In my mind, this is the only way to enjoy a grapefruit in a safe and joyous manner. Then you can say, There is more to grapefruit than meets the eye. THE DECLINE OF COURTESY TOWARDS WOMEN EDYTHE WHARRAM Without a doubt, courtesy towards women is not what it used to be. Every day in all kinds of ways, in the many walks of life this fact is evidenced. One has only to step onto a crowded bus, or get caught in a waiting theatre line to appreciate the fact that men no longer consider women as frail, delicate creatures, en- tirely dependent on their strong manly com- panions for protection against the rude ways of the harsh world. This decline of courtesy on the part of the men is, in my opinion, a result of woman's ad- vancement in the general affairs of the world. The men feel, and rightly so, that since women have shown themselves capable of contesting most fields with men, they should not receive special consideration. Today, choose whatever phase of activity you please, you will doubt- lessly find women in ever increasing numbers rivalling the men. In politics, business and sport, the position of women is steadily growing more important. Years ago a woman was edu- cated only in the frivolous arts such as music and sewing so that by her charming wiles she might bring some man to make her the grace- ful head of his household. Today, men and women receive equal opportunities of education, thus enabling women as well as men to have a career or enter into business. As a result, the modern woman is quite independent and not demanding of the same courteous deference shown her home-loving grandmother. I believe also that the modern way of life has a great deal to do with this decline of courtesy. The speed and our lack of confine- ment in our modern society make the stuffy courtliness of former days quite rediculous. Whereas the stalwart of former days swept a stately bow to a feminine acquaintance, the modern youth greets her with a nod and a nonchalant, Howdy, I fear that there are no Sir Walter Raleighsf' amongst our modern males. Today, if a girl is distressed by a puddle she does not look around for some gallant fellow to sacrifice his best coat for her but with a determined look she leaps the puddle and continues uncon- cernedly on her way, which action would have made her grandmother blush for shame. This decline of courtesy does not however mean that men have become rude and incon- siderate of women. The majority of men will give up their seat in a bus or theatre to a woman if she is standing. The man who doesn't, is deemed unmannerly and rude. It is still considered most cowardly and brutal for a man to strike a woman and the old act of dropping a hanky still enables the vamp to gain the at- tention of the men. For these reasons I do not consider that the decline of courtesy towards women is a serious development but rather a veiled tribute to the social advancement of our sex. ' THERE IS BEAUTY IN CANADA'S NORTHLAND ALICE RANEY There is beauty in Canada's northland. While I was driving from North Bay to Camp Lorraine on Lake Temiskaming this fact was impressed upon my mind. The great rocks of ruddy red, to be found almost anywhere in the great northland have a beauty all their own. The northland has many contrasts of beauty. For as suddenly as these majestic rocks had loomed up they gave way to a placid lake fringed with stately evergreens. The fra- grant scent of pine needles refreshed our nostrils. In the course of the afternoon we passed many such lakes. The one that stands out most in my memory was a narrow winding lake charac- teristic of lakes in the northland. High rocks on the left side crowded us almost to the mar- gin of the lake. It was wild country seemingly uninhabited. The jagged shoreline was covered with pine trees through which the setting sun cast rays of deep purples, glorious reds and oranges on the ripples of the lake. As we drove on, the great pine forests faded into forests of tall white poplars, standing like eerie ghosts in the dusk. The evening breeze touched the keys of some mighty organ and the air was filled with its faint soft music. The moon rose over the hill of Lorraine valley showing us a still different aspect of the northland. The dark hills stood out against the still darker sky, the moon cast a golden light on the road and the whippoorwill's mournful voice came to us from somewhere in the forest. There is beauty in the Canadian northland.