Plainfield High School - Hermiad Yearbook (Central Village, CT)

Page 17 text:

x 'II-IE HERMIADN -W W Ybvg V-NWN W-wil BALLAD OF THE TEN FRESHMEN fDonald C. Gallup-19301 Ten timid Freshmen, looking most divine, One was initiated-then there were nine. Nine angelic Freshmen, not a small, bad trait, - But one went out for football-so there were eight. Eight important Freshmen could hardly count to 'leveng One met Miss Armstrong-then there were seven. Seven innocent Freshmen, taught a few new tricks, Mr. Chapman's office-and then, only six. Six weakening Freshmen, just barely alive, One skipped a P, T. class-then there were five, Five poor, poor Freshmen, praying for no more, One iiunked his mid-years--so there were four. Four tired Freshmen, longing to be free, One died of over-work--then there were three. Three lonely Freshmen, feeling rather blue, One sassed Miss Bouvier-then there were two. Two forgetful Freshmen, out for a rung They ran in the corridors-so there was one. One forsaken Freshie, didn't have any fun, He perished of homesickness-tl1at's why there are none. 4938? SILENCE-A PROTEST Games Foy--19291 T is embarassing to have entered upon an era in which we are asked to re- form and to be natural at the same time. Men have come through bursts of naturalness and they have not seemed to be permanently injured by the paroxysms of reformation, but to be both free and refined, for instance, must always appear complicated. Passionate appeals for spontaneity come from all sides and stir us to do our bit. There is no longer any argument against the awfulness of repression. Yet other considerations call us. The awkwardness must be plain even to the deepest dyed advocate of silence. Fancy the din of a neolithic dinner! In that splendid tumult punctuated by magnificent crunchings, and giving space and privilege to the chorused gusto of rude appetites, man must have made mighty sounds. A spectator who could for a moment have forgotten the rawness of the scene might have

Page 16 text:

io ri-use asaunw again for the same amount but received no pie that time. All that winter was spent in shovelling coal and painting cellars. In the spring he went onto another farm. The farmer was a deeply religious man and tried to persuade Michael to join his church. Michael, however, remained true to the Orthodox Church and early one morning left the farm without giving notice. He sat under a tree near the entrance of a college and while watching the students go to class he resolved that he, too, would enter college at the iirst opportunity. His next work was as an assistant to an engineer in a factory. The engineer was a true philosopher and gave his helper many bits of advice which were of great help to him. He was promoted to a place in the shipping room and studied nights to obtain the knowledge of Greek and Latin neces- sary for entrance to college. His main object was to pass the examinations so that he would obtain free tuition. After much hard work the examination was passed successfully and he prepared to enter Columbia. Michael had, from his farm life, developed strong muscles and these helped him to gain esteem among his fellow students by winning the Fresh- man-Sophomore lemon rush and by gaining a place on the rowing team. He quickly gained fame in the college for his proficiency in mathematics and took a position as coach for students who were not good in that subject. At the time of graduation he received a scholarship to any other college which he might choose. The English colleges were best equipped at that time for electrical study so Pupin went to England, first, however, returning to his native village to see his mother. For some time he stayed in England delving deep into the nature of electricity. He soon saw that the German laboratories were best fitted for the investigations which he wished to conduct and so, overcoming his hatred for Germans, he went there and entered the laboratory of the great Von Helm- holtz. Helmholtz explained to him many puzzling problems and when he finally left Germany his hatred for that nation had disappeared. After another visit to his home he returned to America, at last convinced that he should become a permanent citizen of that country. He then set to work in earnest and discovered new processes of great help to the world. Studies into the nature of electricity were topped when Pupin heard of the discovery of X-rays. He set to work on this subject and discovered the method of X-my photography now used all over the world. Electrical tuning, without which radio selectivity would be impossible, was another of his great discoveries, made before radio was ever thought of, Michael Pupin is now a professor in Columbia University and has gained world renown for his explanations of electrical phenomena. His mother died many years ago but he says that without her help during his childhood he would not now be the great thinker which he is.

Page 18 text:

, aw 12 THE HERMIAD found in the symphonic uproar a truer revelation of man than all the later fumbling succeeded in doing, An ear correctly attuned would have deduced from a study of the Knights at a time when they were gnawing denuded bones under the Round Table, a better understanding than was 'possible to any sentimental Tennyson. The prophets of old who dipped their crusts in the common tureen could be simple men. In that day no taboo had yet vulgarized the primal music of mastication. That whole-hearted eating must have helped to establish the gastric integrity which centuries of politness have not wholly succeeded in breaking down. Without the testimony of children we are able to learn that noise is an expression of naturalness. The instinct to enjoy the sound of our own processes is repeatedly indicated in our habitual longing for expression. The blacksmith's joyous supplement to the strictly necessary blows of his weapon is a beautiful case in point. As the one-time neighbor of a blacksmith who has heard what he has heard I speak with precise authority. It would be absurd to pretend that all occupational sounds hold an equivalent glory, but I am positive that the carpenter not only knows but needs the cry of the driven nail and that shriek of his jackplane. If you understand carpentering you understand its impacts. The technique of nail- ing is capable of exquisite refinementsg these are more than welcome to the educated ear. Every occupation, no matter how trivial, advertises some phase of the same instinct. The man upstairs does not feel that his shoes areioff until he has made the fioor understand, When some one six iiights up shoots him- self, the thing passes without notice upon the theory of a slammed door. The natural way to know that a door is closed, as any child may teach us, is by the detonation. Some people can look for a scarf or a glove in various drawers of a dresser upon the same theory. Each thud seems to say with particular malice, Well, it isn't in that drawer anyway. If the Searcher is a fragile lady imperfectly addicted to swearing each thud is not only a wooden damn but a rich and virulent obscenity. Therefore silence is a degenerate ideal. When we say that a man likes to hear himself talk We are uttering the veriest platitude. One's own bron- chial reliefs are the true basis of vocal art. It is so with all expression. How can you feel busy if you are noiseless? How can you be brisk on rubber heels? Imagine a man at a trolley lever who could not get an answering thunder! Imagine a restaurant dishwasher after a well meaning science has invented rubber plates! J It is in domestic noises, however, that we get the sharpest suggestion of dangerous ideals. Rather handsome caveman snores have resulted in more separations than the most silent drinkings. When love was simpler and strong men were stronger there was no debate over the trivial rhythms of life. In those days men ate soup in a manly way, They had a sort of bearded appre- ciation. Silent maleness is modern but it may lead to great degeneration. 4 -Ia, ft