Quincy High School - Goldenrod Yearbook (Quincy, MA)

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1 Rose? Betty Wilson had been left an orphan at the age of eight, when her mother and baby sister had been lost in a ship wreck on their way to France. Betty had inherited an immense fortune, and after her graduation from college she decided to take a trip to France, for she was often lonely in the great house of which she was mistress. When she arrived in Paris, she spent some months wandering about the places of amusement, and the historical sections of the beautiful city. Then, feeling lone- some, she decided to look for a com- panion. Many young girls applied for the posi- tion, and in the end she chose a pretty, bright-eyed girl of seventeen who was different from the typical, excitable French girl. She was very quiet, this fair-skinned Madeliene. Her parents she explained, lived in the suburbs of Paris. They did not wish her to work, but she felt she was too much of a burden on them in their old age, for they were not very well off. They had always given her everything, had struggled to send her through one of the best Lycees—now she wished to repay them a little if she could. Betty became very fond of pretty little Madeliene. One day Madeliene came hurrying to Betty, holding a paper in her hands and exclaiming: “Oh! Mees Betty, regard ez-la-look! la guerre! the war! Eet ees begun, enfin, what?” Betty took the paper exxcitedly, and saw that it was true—France was at last engaged in war with Germany! “Cette guerre est mouvaise!” exclaimed Madeliene, “I must go to my parents. Je ne veux pas d’aller—I do not wish to leave you—But oh, peut-etre, you come too? Please, Mees Betty, please do!” Betty, after her first surprise, agreed to accompany Madeliene home. The next evening they arrived at Made- liene’s house—a typical French building, almost entirely hidden behind a big stone wall. As in most of the yards of these houses, there was a large garden, through which led a walk to the house—But this garden! It was the loveliest that Betty had ever seen. The place abounded in roses, roses of all colors and kinds. There were other flowers, too, but it seemed as if whoever had planned this exquisite gar- den had been very fond indeed of roses. Betty managed to gasp, “Oh! how i lovely.” Madeliene smiled and replied, “Oui, mon pere et moi, oh—we think so. Comme je suis content! happy, yes, oh so happy to be home encore.” They were welcomed by Madelienc’s parents, who. if they were surprised to sec Betty, did not show it, and bade her welcome in true French fashion. During her long stay, Betty was treated very kindly, and could not have wished for a better companion than Madeliene. At times, though, Betty was puzzled. Madclicne’s parents spoke nothing but French, yet when she or Madeliene spoke in English they seemed to understand perfectly. There was also in the house a room which was always locked, in

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4 THE GOLDEN-ROD SCHOOL SPIRIT ONCE MORE The baseball manager has sent out a request for school cheers and songs for the coming season. Already there have been distributed to the school pamphlets containing some Quincy cheers and songs, but new and better ones are wanted. If you are a poet let a few stanzas of song flow from your pen, or, if you happen to be just a common rhymer, grind out a few words of cheer. TO THE FRESHMEN Owing to the division of the school into two entirely separate parts, you live practically out of touch with the main body of the school, consisting of the three upper classes. Because of this condition, there is danger of your thinking that you are a complete unit in yourselves and not part of the larger organization of Quincy High School. Your school paper is one of the best means of keeping in touch with the school. If it seems to contain too little of your doings, remember that you are the newest and smallest part of the school and that your time will come later. Remember, too, that you will someday have the management of the school paper placed in your hands, and will then wish heartily for the support and co-operation of the freshmen, just as we do now. Every school activity needs all the support of every member of the school. It is both your duty and your privilege to assist in the life of the school, and we, of the upper classes, hope you will not fail to do so. LATE When you hurry along and your trolley is late, And you're due at school at quarter-past eight. And you stand on the curb and worn and wait. Oh! it's a terrible feeling! Then you dash off the trolley and rush up the street. And you turn as you spy a good friend, whom you greet, Just then a truck splashes mud o’er your feet. Oh! it's a terrible feeling! You get to the door, a-gasping. at last. You grab hold of the knob, and look through the glass: You rush up the stairs to room twenty-eight. 'You feel so fagged out that you're like a dead weight. And you find that it's just sixteen minutes past eight, Oh! it's a terrible feeling! 1. Hadley, Sepc., '25. POINTS TO OBSERVE Don't put off till tomorrow things you can do today. Don't let things just slide along a careless, sloppy way, Don't think you can just “skin” through without a bit of work, For that's been tried by others,” (and it doesn t always work). So plug away, and day by day you’ll get a little better,” Don't mind the talk” of the rcg'lar guy” who says you are a quitter. And when you pass with the best of the class, and it's time to graduate, Just look back at the rcg'lar guy” who’s peeping through the gate. Ron ald Woodamax, Feb, '26.

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6 THE GOLDEN-ROD which Madeliene’s father spent a great deal of time. Betty wondered, too, why Madcliene often wandered in the garden of roses, and returned looking so wistful. But before any of these things were ex- plained America entered the war, and Betty left this wonderland of roses for a very different scene, a grim and hor- rible scene, to nurse in one of the hos- pitals only a short distance behind the firing lines. Madcliene went, too, al- though Betty had objected at first. feelr ing she was not old enough. » One day a larger number of wounded soldiers than usual was brought in, among them several who had been badly gassed. Betty was very busy when Madcliene came excitedly to her and said: “Oh! Betty! I don’t know what to do! There’s one boy there—in American uni- form—he won’t keep still. He keeps muttering about Rose—and if he doesn’t —the doctor said his recovery depended on his keeping still—W hat shall I do?” Betty went to the restless boy, and found him tossing and turning, mutter- ing somethin» about Rose. Betty tried everything she could think of to quiet him, and finallv he dropped off to sleep, much to the delight, but wonder of Betty, who was never able to tell how she finally quieted him. When he awoke Betty was there, and catching sight of her, he smiled. During the long weeks that it took him to recover, Betty was often with him. Physically, he was improving rapidly, mentally—he appeared normal enough, and was very intelligent, but one thing troubled the doctors—he could remember nothing that had happened before he was wounded, not even his name, which they had no way of finding out, as there was no identification tag on him when brought to the hospital. Betty strove in vain to lift the darkness which seemed to cloud his past. One day, thinking of when he had been delirious, she mentioned “Rose,” and asked if he could remember anyone of that name. He tried to think, but finally replied, “Rose?—no, perhaps it was but a dream, perhaps not. Anyway,” he ended, with a good natured laugh, “I’m beginning to think I must be someone else instead of myself—whoever I am.” Thus it happened that when Buddy, as the nurses called him, was able, Betty took him for his first out door walk. On the way back he had to stop and rest. As they sat together, Betty thought he was acting very queerly. He seemed to be thinking very hard, perhaps of the front line trenches, or some battle he had been in, for every few moments he shud- dered. Finally he broke the silence by saying: “It is getting dark, we’d better be go- ing.” Then, after hesitating a moment, he continued, “I suppose I’m foolish, but something seems to tell me there is dan- ger near, for I have the same queer sensation that came to me before I was wounded. If anything should happen, if we shouldn't get back, I’d like you to know how much I love—” A blinding flash followed, the earth shook, rocks and dirt flew in all direc- tions, and Betty and Buddy did not con- tinue on their way back to the hospital. For some time confusion reigned in the hospital. Every nerve was on edge, wait- ing for another explosion. A French offi- cer came riding in, and told them that a bomb had been dropped by a German air- ship, probably intending to hit the hos- pital. The plane had been brought down by French machine guns, and there was no longer any danger. After this peace once more settled in the hospital. Madeliene was the first to notice the absence of Betty and Buddy, and, greatly alarmed, she ran to tell the head nurse. A search was at once made, and when everyone was about ready to give up, Madeliene found them, lying side by side about fifty feet from where the bomb had landed. They were carried back to the hospital, where it was found Betty’s arm was broken, and she was suffering from a severe wound in the head. The recks had also done their damage to Buddy. When they were at last restored to consciousness it was found that they were in a very nervous condition. After a consultation with Madeliene, the doc- tors decided to send them to her home, to recover in that wonderland of roses. Madcliene was given a leave of absence,