Phillips Exeter Academy - PEAN Yearbook (Exeter, NH)

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The faculty in 1900 - headed by Principal llarlan Page Amen. lixternally imposing, internally it was not very good. But everything was not a step backwardsg one new addition, the POI'-l'0Il7'7'i Ca humor sectionb was superb. The one year lapse in the P01111 fit was not published in 18965 didn't seem to have inspired any great ambitions of the five editors of the '97 I'cfavr1. lformals and senior biographies added a great deal to the completeness of this Pearl. The most significant section of this annual was only one page-a biographical sketch of Harlan Page Amen, who had come back to Exeter as Principal in 1895. Could anyone have then imagined the influence of this man who was, to a great degree. responsible for transforming the Academy and setting it on the path to greatness? Of all thc f,L'i7ll.l' the '98 edition xi as perhaps the most conservative. There is a conflict in yearbook writing between a desire to be as accurate as possible and a hope to be amusing and interesting. This conflict is hard to resolve, and the editors of the '98 Perm did not succeed. XVith Hue venite pueri ut viri sitisf' a gold clock impressed upon a violent red cover, the '99 Penn made its auspicious appearance. Even with this it is dubious whether this Pean was indicative of anything more than the imminent arrival of a new century. The editors of this volume, while determining to follow the beaten path of their predecessors, have resolved not to be beaten in the path which they have followed. This one sentence from the preface to the 1900 Perm expresses the policy of almost all P61171 Boards. ln spite of the weather, the fates, and the Faculty, the seventeenth volume of the Perm bobs up serenely. And here's a smile for all who have helped us, and a grin for all who have hindered. The smile is brief and Hitting, but- watch us grin. I'ei111 Boards have always enioyed their positions, and part of their positions is the inherent, inviolable right and pleasure to grin at the rest of the school. To the rest ofthe school the editors speak a foreign language of ems, half-tones, and line-cuts. lt is significant to notice the senior editorial. Perhaps it has relevance this year. f'The class of 1901 has not been an extraordinary one in any way. 'VVe hope we have done some lasting good to the school, and we know it has done lasting good to us. There are very few experiences in life which can give us as much fl'llC satisfaction as our course at lflxeter has given, is giving, and will give. lt is no wonder that the '01 Perm is what it is, one of the best. Some of the interest and ideas of the executive board of the '01 Penn must have been transmitted to its successor ,... The P61111 of 1902 will be found much like the Pealfr of previous years, and yet we trust that it has an individu- ality of its own. Klaudy gold, daring red, and a photograph marked the cover of the '03 Peim. XYhether this was artistic or even attractive is questionable, and unfortunately this was almost all that was even distinctive Cgood or badl. The high and mature quality of the '04 Perm can easily be seen when one reads the senior editorial. . . . XVhen we came here, we little realized what

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A drawing on the first page depicted an Iixonian surrounded by obnoxious store-owners clamoring for him to pay all sorts of bills. At the bottom of the page was written 'fAt the Iind of the Termf, CAs it was in the beginning, is now, and always will be.j The first photograph in the Perm also appeared in this edition. There is nothing to be said for the '88 Perm. And as for the '89 and '90 editions, they were not published. We have been unable to learn why. After ten years of not very stimulating Pefms, four of which were never released, the 1891 edition was remarkable. Witlicmut writing it had been impossible for the Penn editors to depict anything more than the external and superficial side of lixeter life. The '91 Perm took a step to correct this situation. Class histories began with the '91 Penn. This was an innova- tion which was to become a permanent feature, although its form was to change. W'hatever the title-History, Class Memoirs, or Class lfditorial-this feature has always been one of the most interesting and certainly the most profound. The outstanding feature of the '91 Perm was the historical section. The second part of this was concerned with the town of Exeter and its relationship to the school. It is certain that the town of lixeter, without Phillips Exeter Academy, would not be what it now is, and that many of the pleasures of the P.E.A. student would not be found if the Academy were situated elsewhere. One cannot help wondering if the editors believed what they had written. This was not the reflection of a romantic, unreal situation. Difficult as it is for us to realize, there were htm ties of friendship between the school and the town. 'fThe duty of singing the Penn now devolves upon us, and it is with great ioy that we enter upon the task of writing our class history. But the smaller 1892 Perm could not measure up to its predecessor. One quotation is, however, worth noting. A typical senior was quoted as saying Qand certainly believingj No narrow limitation circumscribe his future worth, Ere the time of graduation he's prepared to run the earth. If this was not an accurate reflection, then human nature has changed beyond recognition. For a I'ci111 which nearly every other man in the school Cexcept the three editors who of course displayed the usual optimismj thought would be a complete failure, the '93 edition was pleasingly artistic and amusing. Although secret societies had been abolished, a new organization of very dubious nature sprang up. It was l.A MAFIA, its motto, Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant. The editors of the '94 P01111 made one important change, the editorial copy was increased. Rah, rah, rah, and the '95 Pearl appeared with the cover design a pennant in school colors. Many students used to live in boarding house rooms such as this one. The Academy Football Team of 1882 lines up for a game. . . M, V

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1 The Smile That XVon't Come Off. A Latin Classroom in the Third Academy Building. boundless opportunities the school would open to us. We cannot measure how much we have gained from these years, we cannot begin to express all the old school has done for us. In return for all this, if we cannot do anything more, we can, and will cherish for her, deep in our heart of hearts, a loyal and abiding love. If this is not the true reflection of the thoughts and emotions towards the school of some mature senior, then what is? It is out of this conflict between gaiety and seriousness that meaning comes, and it is gratifying to examine the '04 Perm where this balance was so well maintained. ln conjunction with the superb editorial writing came another advancement: sports stories. They have always been a headache to any editor, but they are necessary if the Perm is to be a complete reflection. The most amusing page in the '04 Perm, particularly to this year's executives, contained only a small portrait and a short poem: The Smile Thar W07l,f Come Off. The Pcmfs out, at last l'm free, No more of this hard work for meg And so upon my face you see The Smile That VVon't Colne Cfl. The '05 Penn was not unusual, but the 1906 Perm was the strangest ever. With a green suede cover, a colored frontispiece, and colored divisors, and the text printed in sepia, this Perm was novel. VVe hope the book will accomplish its object, that it will be a reflection of and not on the school life for the past year. The criticism has always been that yearbook writing is a glori- fled form of a chronological table, and in most instances this has been true. lt is always pleasant to remember only the successes and joys of Exeter life. Yet it is important and even necessary to remember the failures and disappointments. The '07 Perm deserves credit if it has helped any Exonian to reflect on his life at the Academy by presenting a reflection of that life. The '08 Perm was an increase in size, yet there seemed to be little originality to distinguish this Perm from so many others. The influence of '08 and '09 was very great, too great. It is important yet discouraging to perceive that, although there were short stories on the four class football teams, there were few articles on other organizations. It is amusing to peruse one of the poems-The Rbime of the B7l.Vi7IC5.Y Mnvmger. A student has just been caught by the Business Manager and has paid for his Perm. Then: He went like one who hath been stunned, And is of sense forlorn, A sadder and a wiser man He rose the morrow morn. There seems to have been a mould for all Peam from 1908 to 1912, the results were almost the same, except for KNOCKS, the humor section. But if there were no enlightening changes in layout, editorial, art, or photography there were some pecu- liar ones in content. In 1909 the Tenstickstoit Club appeared. What the club did has now become a mystery. The editors of the 1913 Penn stated their hopes rather well. Anticipation, realization, and reflection are three emotions com- mon to everyone . . . Reflection, to treat on the third emotion,