Norwood High School - Tiot Yearbook (Norwood, MA)

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CLASS OF 1937 ll will have captured these foreign mar- kets and left Great Britain in a weak- ened disillusioned state. This would, without doubt, aggravate the stubborn, trusting John Bull to a state of war. It is not correct to say that war is im- pending as never before, because the grip of the depression has not been lifted from trade and commerce. How- ever, as soon as the period of ex- pansion and recovery occurs, some- one's toes will be stepped on, and the war dogs will bark. The war crisis in the world today may be briefly summarized. The ruling countries of the world, France, Russia, Great Britain, and the United States, have the choice of a peaceful land expansion, or war. The powerful, nationalistic countries, Germany, ltaly, Japan, Austria, Hungary, and Turkey, mean to obtain their raw materials and colonies by means, ethical or other- wise, The Manchurian and Ethiopian incidents substantiate this, Already in the Spanish Civil War, we see a slight conflict between the deadly adver- saries, Fascism and Communism. The hounds of war are beginning to bay, and Mars is polishing his sword. The war-prophets are no longer asking . . . Who? The question that now puzzles the world is . . . When? Carroll Woods '38 a NATURE'S LURE Through my barrier of books I catch the sun's entreating looks, Oh how he calls and calls my name, But all his pleadings are in vain. How can l break these prison walls To answer his repeated calls? These bars are strong, stronger by far Than those of stone and iron are. The clouds look like a downy bed Upon which to rest my weary head. My tired eyes look toward the sky And l wish with all my heart to fly Far away from lesson books, To sunny meadows and tinkling brooks. l long for each soothing caress of the breeze, For the birds and the gentle sway of trees. But all this wandering must end And again to the task, my head must bend. While to all those who work, I say, To the ones who resist this call each day, A time will come when you'll be glad, While many others are regretful and sad, For you can say with an open heart l tried my hardest--l did my part. Alma Spearwater, ' 38

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I0 YEAR BOOK affairs there are two aspects to this perpetual social struggle. First, there is the constant conflict within the in- dividual countries, which during the World Depression, was accentuated, and kept all governments locally en- gaged. Then there is the international aspect of the same problem which will always cause much trouble. For clearer definition, the international viewpoint, between the countries, may be divided into the two classes: the haves and the 'ihave-notsn. Regardless of the internal set-up of a country such as Socialism, Commun- ism, Capitalism, and Democracy, the following countries, with regard to social division, will be classified as haves : France, England, Russia, China, United States, and some of the independent countries that are wealthy in raw materials, such as Norway, Sweden, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. These countries will always have a common interest and protection, for they are the landowners of the world. In this other group, the so called have-notsn, it seems, strangely enough, that the type of government, Fascism , is an element, Fascism has sprung up in the poor , capitalistic countries that are deficient in money. land, and natural resources. The poorer classes in these countries have been made to realize, through the medium of a dictator, that there is nothing to be had by overpowering the wealthy of the land. On the contrary, they have been made to see that the cause of their plight is due to the stifling, oppressive, foreign countries. This par- tially true attitude, when correctly fos- tered, gives the people of the country a strong nationalistic outlook. It tends to unity, militarism, and a powerful, centralized government. Thus we classify the Hhavenotsn. The ruling countries of the world control about nine-tenths of the terri- tory and people, yet the strongly cen- tralized, proletarian nations are almost as powerful. The paradoxical element about the whole situation is that the Fascists hate the Communists, and the Communists likewise abhor the Fas- cistsg yet the two governments are basicly identical. Both forms have the centralized government. Theoretically they differ only in that the Communist fights against a ruling class within the country, and the Fascist plots against the ruling powers outside his country. Hitler, Mussolini, as well as the Japan- ese Emperor, have encouraged national- ism in their respective countries. They have clearly recognized that the only way for race advancement is by ag- gressiveness and militarism, No one can deny that these dictators have ac- complished their aim. Germany has been transformed from a defenseless, bankrupt, demoralized country into an upright, defiant, centralized people. Germany, ltaly, and Japan are lead- ing the remainder of the world into an armaments race that is leaving the latter, short-winded. Already Great Britain has been enticed into spending ponderous sums of money on protec- tion. This will leave England unable to tend to her foreign markets and she will find herself hard pressed to meet all her obligations. ln the mean- time, Germany, Italy, and Japan, with their aggressive, give-and-take policy,

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I2 YEAR BOOK Q THE POWER OF THE PRESS The Press has extended itself as a permanent guest into our homes. lt is like a bossy old aunt, who tells us what we shall eat, drink, and wear. lt tells us what we dog where we gog and how we act. The newspaper dif- fers from most aunts in that it is a really welcome guest. We await the coming of the paper more eagerly than the arrival of any friend, for it is indeed one of our best friends. Our aunt tells us what to do, but the moment that she is gone, we pro- ceed to follow our usual habits, The newspaper, however, controls our thoughts to a much greater extent than does our aunt. Of course, if you curse the paper boy, who is late on account of the weather, merely because you cannot wait to read the funnies, the more serious editorial page very likely holds little control over your thoughts. Most people never read the editorial page. I have a curious habit Cperhaps l have an oriental background, of going through magazines and newspapers backwards. l do this with magazines because it is easier for me to Hip the pages from the back cover to the front. As for the evening paper, the only explanation is that the funnies are at the back. The next section, going back- wards, is the sports page, and then, the editorial. Here, on theeditorial page. l spend more time than on either of the other sections. Considering the time spent, one might conclude that this section influences me the most. For the past century, the Press has held a tremendous influence in politics. The Press has elected its candidates for the highest office in our land, as it has succeeded generally in breaking the opposition. lt is known by all now how that political influence was wrecked fat least temporarilyl in the last election. Never before had the Press unleashed its resources so vig- orously to attack a presidential candi- date. Publishers and editors, who had been thoroughly Democratic four years ago, were totally opposed to Mr. Roosevelt. The slaves of the Press fi. e. the editors, the journalists, and the reporters, were forced by threat of being discharged, to write all sorts of slander. After the election, the papers tried to make the importance ol Roosevelt's victory at the polls seem small. That vote against Landon was really a vote against the Press, The public at last saw the Press as a tool of the wealthy, who are afraid of Roose- velt and his liberal ideas of sharing the wealth. A certain periodical hails this defeat of the Press as an indication of com- ing disaster to the big publishers. It may be as serious as that, or it may merely indicate a waning of the po- litical power of the Press. Two decades ago the Press was able to defeat Bryan by closing all its advertising space to him. Bryan turned to the only alterna- tive-speaking at open-air rallies and from the rear platforms of trains. He could not, however, reach a fraction of the number of people that his op- ponent, McKinley, was able to reach through the papers. Today, if the papers close their advertising space to