Prattsburgh Central High School - Franklinite Yearbook (Prattsburgh, NY)

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E,:'1' .I FRANKLIN ACADEMY HIGH SCHOOL ANNUAL 27 Farm Club for the benefit of the members of the Agricultural classes. junior Project work was carried on extensively. This work was started first in 1917 by Mr. Van Whittemore. Mr. Watkins also taught in 1922. When in February of 1923, Franklin Academy burned, the Agricultural Shop was left standing, but a room in the Pinney house had to be used for a classroom. Mr. Watkiiis remained as instructor of the Agricultural Depart- ment in 1923 and then left for a larger field of work. The school and community were very sorry to lose such a valuable man. During the years that Mr. VVatkins remained here as teacher of the Department, he trained a judging team which won the silver cup at the National Dairy Exposition at Syracuse. j In September of 1924 school opened with Mr. R. C. Vrooman as instructor of the Department. In the fall of that year, Mr. Vrooman trained a judging team which won second prize in a potato judging con- test held at Alfred. Later that year, he trained another team which won a silver cup at a livestock judging contest held at Ithaca. The farm club also held an educational meeting at the High School Auditorium to which all farmers were invited. Speeches on interesting agricultural topics were made by different members of the club. In March 1925, Mr. Vrooman organized the boy scouts and was kind enough to act as their Scoutmaster. The Agricultural Department as well as all other departments of the school is now in the new fire-proof school building and it is hoped that the Department will be as prosperous in the future as it has been in recent years. A FAIRY STORY By HELEN COMSTOCK, '27 Moon-drop, a little fairy, once lost herself in a large forest. VVhile searching for her companion she stumbled and fell dcwn a small tunnel under a huge oak tree. At the foot of this tunnel she found a little brown door, which she opened, On the other side of this she found herself in a long, dimly lighted corridor. The illumination was obtained from cap- tive lightning bugs, held to the wall by spider webs. At the end of the corridor she opened a door, and stepped into a round room, almost as big around as the large oak tree under which it stood. There were about three hundred acorns of di-fferent sizes in this room. Little baby acorns, no higher than peas, were in their cradles along the wall. Larger acorns were playing on the fioor, while still larger ones were learning to climb ladders and to hang onto a limb that had been placed in one corner of the room. Moon-drop had stumbled into one of the rooms of the oak tree in which acorns are born, brought up, and receive their education. There were five similar rooms under this one. Vvhen any acorns grew up, they climbed up through these rooms to the starcase that was in the center of the oak. They would climb this staircase until they reached the

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26 FRANKLIN ACADEIVIY HIGH SCHOOL ANNUAL share of the money which he had received for the capture of New York's greatest highwayman. Forester was sent to England for trial. After many days of debate, the judges had him hanged for his many crimes, both in England and America. THE AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT I N une 71 1917 it was hrst voted to offer an Agriculture course i in Franklin Academy to begin the following September. Mr. g Mark B. Gwilliam was the first i-nstructor. The department was started with only one division, owing to the fact that it was a new course. The students in the new department reconstructed the old gymnasium into a woodworking shop and the wood shed into a forge room. Besides Farm Mechanics, the students in Agriculture took up Mechanical Drawing, Biology, and general Agriculture. The Seventh and Eighth grades also took up some agriculture work. The course seemed to be a perfect success. Mr. Gwilliam remained here for two years. School opened in September, 1914, with Mr. T. W. Howe as teacher and an enrollment of sixteen students. The courses studied that year were Fruit Growing, Animal Husbandry, and Farm Mechanics. These courses counted five regents counts each. During the year, lantern slides were obtained in all branches of study by Mr. Howe and shown through the aid of Mr. Stuart and his stereopticon. They were especially inter- esting. Each pupil in the Fifth and Sixth Grades also had a home gar- den, under the supervision of Mr. Howe. In january of 1915, Mr. Howe invited each and every person inter- ested in the general welfare of the community to attend a get-to-gether meeting at the Academy Hall, the meeting to be for the purpose of es- tablishing a Night School, wherein the subiccts of Agriculture, Business Methods, and Bookkeeping would be taught by a competent faculty. School opened in September of 1916 with Mr. Van C. Whittemore as director of the Department. He arranged to publish each week an article of timely interest. devoted to Agricultural topics. He was desir- ous of making his articles into a farm question box as much as possible. On October 27 and 28, the Agricultural Department of Prattsburgh High Schol held a combined poultry and fruit show at the High School. All entries were judged by competent men and ribbon prizes were awarded. Mr. Van Whittemore taught in 1918, until April eighth, when he answered the call of his country and left for Camp Dix. The school deeply regretted this loss. The Agricultural Department was again resumed in September, 1921, after a period of three years, with Mr. Oliver Watkins as teacher. and an enrollment of seventeen members, although two of them had to drop out on account of other studies. Mr. Watkiiis also organized the By WENDELL HALL, '27 J H y H . .

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28 FRANKLIN ACADEMY HIGH scHooL ANNUAL limbs. Then they would climb out on the limbs, and cling there, until the wind should blow them away. About forty of the acorns in this room were about to begin this journey, when Moon-drop entered. Immediately they seized her, and told her that they were going to lock her in the dungeon, for acorns do not love fairies. One of them jerked a golden cord that had hung from the center of the ceiling, and instantly a square opening appeared above. They got a ladder, and all climbed up, dragging poor Moon-drop, who wailed piteously. The trap door closed after the last acorn, and they found themselves at the foot of a circular staircase, which they started to climb. At inter- vals along the way there were stair landings, with fountains on them. On the thirty-seventh landing, another trap door was found. This was opened, and the fairy flung in. ' A Poor Moon-drop was then alone in a dark and dirty cell, half way up the trunk of an oak tree. After three days imprisonment she: was dying of hunger and despair, when she noticed that everything felt warm. Then all at once, she saw Fire all over the ceiling of her cell, and beyond that, the blue sky There was a forest fire, and the oak tree was burning with its brothers. A spark floated down to her, on which sat an ugly little imp. The imp caught hold of her, and they floated towards the sky. On the way up, he asked Moon-drop to marry him, but although she was in love with him because of his bravery in rescuing her, she did not want to marry an ugly little imp. But at that moment they met a magic rain drop, that put out the spark, and changed the imp into a handsome elf. The fairy and the elf rode back to earth on the rain drop. On their arrival they were welcomed joyfully by their fairy friends. A few nights later they were married at a fairy wedding, and they lived happily ever after. BILLY RACCOON By BEULAH BROWN, '26 Once upon a time there lived in a forest a little raccoon whose name was Billy. Billy's parents were fine, respectable people who lived in one of the largest trees in the wood and who were loked upon by their neighbors as well-to-do folks. In the raccoon world there are three classes of people, those who wash their food three times before eating, those who wash it only once, and those who never wash it at all. Billy's parents were placed in the three-time class, as you can readily imagine the social rank which they held in that community. Raccoons who-never-wash-their-food-at-all are considered by the three-timers as the most vulgar and vile, of creatures and are avoided by them in every possible way. VVell, to go on with my story, there was at this time a great party being planned by Billy's mother and father which was to take place down by the sandy banks of Raccoon River, in the bright moonlight of a June evening. It was to be a very formal affair, the men were expected