Oak Grove Coburn High School - Oak Leaves Yearbook (Vassalboro, ME)

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OAK LEAVES YOU Lilacs Budding, Breath of spring, Warmth of sunlight On the world, Light on your face- Your face I know so well And hold so dearly, Sunlight on your face- And love in my heart. ANON., '38. A LETTER FROM THE PHILIPPINES It is only a year ago that I was Waving good bye to you and dear Oak Grove where I had such happy days. I shall never forget Oak Grove or Mrs. Owen. This year finds me at home in Baguio, on the Island of Luzon which is about halfway around the world from Maine, or approximately twelve thousand miles. By boat from San Francisco it takes twenty-one days, stopping at Honolulu, Yokohama, Kolb-e, Shanghai, Hongkong and Manila, but by Pan American lClipper the trip can be made in live days and that b-rings us much closer. Baguio which is about a hundred and twenty-five miles north of Manila can be reached in one hour by train and is a unique city, more like a beauti- ful park in a forest of stately pines atop green clad mountains. Although one mile above sea level, its ideal climate which never knows frost or severe B1 .r 15

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OAK LEAVES and sentiment, beneath her bitter cyncinism, is real- ugly, and yet beautiful. Carefree and eager-she embraces allg on her stages and screens- mighty dramas, mediocre plays, flop-quick musicals, tawdlry burlesques. But behind the scenes, beyond' the tinsel and gauze and glitter. lies the greatest play of all,-heart-wrenching human drama, the painful climb, and the swift slip downward. Broadway is thronged with her people-old-timers selling pencils on street corners: new-comers gazing wide-eyed up the street that is their hopeg hardened troupers swinging confidently along in the knowledge of their success. But see! It is growing dark. The famous lights of the Great White Way are beginning to glitter. From the high. dark island of a distant roof, all that can be seen of Broadway is the faint aura of redf light that hangs over her through the night. She seems to be sleeping and at peace, but the ceaseless murmur of her traffic is an insistent reminder of the life's blood that surges and throbs through the Heart of a great city. Blue dust of evening over my city Over the ocean of roofs and the tall towers Where the window-lights myrad and myrads Bloom from the walls like climbing fiowersf' -Sarah Teasdale PHYLLIS WEBB, '40. 1.- 1ll PINE AND STAR Against the sky of night A pine tree stands, Strong and sure and beautiful And nestling in its arms Is one small lonely star. Oh! be to me the pine tree For I, too, am A small, lonely star. ETHEL WENTWORTH, '8. 14

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OAK LEAVES heat, makes it a mecca for visitors during th-e whole year, but especially in April and May which are the hottest months in the lowlandfs. The beautiful United States Army Post, Camp John Hay, is not far from my home. We often go there to see th-e Igorot women Weaving G strings and blankets, and occasionally to attend Canao, which is usually given in honor of some visiting celebrity. Among the soldiers at Camp Hay are Igorots from almost every non-christian tribe of the Mountain Province. The Bontocs, Ifuguaos, and Kalingas are the warlike head hunt- ing tribes from the land of the famed Rice Terraces, and the peaceful Benguet Igorots are those who live in and around Baguio. At a Canao each one of these tribes gives an interpretation of some of its native dances, as taught by their parents, and such as were actually danced back in their native villages in celebration of Marriage , Victorious Head Hunting Expeditions , Rice Planting and Harvest Time . I could ramble on for hours telling you of the many interesting things in the Philippines. Do you know that Dr. Fulton of Yale just made a trip over here by Clipper to get a Tarsius monkey in Bohol which is the only place in the world they can be found? I could tell you of my trip to beauti- ful Zamboanga on the Island of Mindanao, Moro Land, where the monkeys really do have tails, so don't believe the song. I cannot complete this panorama of Baguio without mentioning the most important industry, gold mining, for the Philippines produce more gold than Alaska and the Benguet Consolidated mine and its subsidiary, Balatoc, are among the richest gold mines in th-e world. They have given em- ployment to many thousands of Igorots who formerly maintained only a bare existence by farming some small plot in these rugged mountains. As a result these Igorots, now grown prosperous, swarm into Baguio on pay day to make the Baguio Market Place a colorful scene. The Philippine Archipelago lies about six hundred miles southeast of China and five hundred miles north of the Equator. There are about one thousand inhabited and six thousand uninhabited islands in the group. The largest is our island, Luzon, which compares in size with the combined areas of Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut. Do you realize that I can leave Manila by Clipper at five o'clock in the morning, have lunch in Hong- kong, and return to Manila the same day in time for dinner? I wish you might all fly over to visit us. With fond memories of Oak Grove and best wishes to you all, ANN CLEMENT. . TWILIGHT The smoky sky with the rosy streaks: The place where the foothills waver, cease g And the fairy mists over the hills Bring a feeling of mystery and peace, Hauntingly tender, hauntingly sweet. 16