R J Reynolds High School - Black and Gold Yearbook (Winston Salem, NC)

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THE BLACK AND GOLD 25 Gllaaa Qiatnrg Qi-:W 'Wife NE bright September morning, eleven long years ago, ' there was excitement in many homes in Winston- Salem, for a host oflittle boys and girls with shin- , 5, . , , , 533. lng morning faces were to enter school for their T4 first time.f From all sections of the city these little scholars came, and vvhen the school records were made out that afternoon, it was found that they had filled to overfiovving the first grades of the West End, the North, and East Schools. This Was the Class of l9l6, and as vve look back on those first days that We spent in school We cannot help but smile. But even then no one doubted that our class would be a success. The very click of our little heels as vve marched through the halls with heads high and chests raised seemed to express determination. g Soon each small hand tightly clasped its first real school book, and a look of proud ownership covered each beaming face. Then came the good times at recess. Such feats as jump-the- rope, stealing-sticks, hop-scotch, and crack-the-Whip were a part of our daily schedule. It was usually with a feeling of regret that We heard ','rise, one, tvvo, three , Which meant you may go now, and We lookedfforvvard with eagerness to the day when We, too, should have second recesses. T :How quickly the time passed! Before We could hardly realize it, our little ThirdfReader had been left far behind, and We Were joyjully entering Grammar School. Here, for the first year or so, our feet wandered only through paths of pleasuren, but soon the novelty began to Wear off, and then vve noticed that our Way Was rough and difficult. At the sight of long division and geography and history our spirits sank, and our steps grevv slovv and uneven. Yet in spite of all our failures, We pushed steadily onvvard, and soon We found our- selves ready to enter High School,

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THE BLACK AND GOLD How far toward this end did Miss Mary strive Though We thought it a daily grind. 9 I remember all the original ways She thought up to relieve the strain, And the double worth in work and thought From her period We would gain. All our teachers did their best to make us strong, And Worthy may we beg For in each of our hearts for them shall live A thankful and dear memory. 10 But my High School days are over now, And I softly close the doorg Should I breathe a prayer as I leave this spot It would be, that forevermore Throughout our lives in Work or play, Our standard would always be That, only the best is good enough , In this land of the brave and free. LUELLA COCHRAN I- .wk C' ' 'Z fm. V U ': 2 ': A 5 W 'S EEN -iw .v dwg' 2, fy I -AMW if U A N :A fig- ,-.5 IIPI 9 '99-'5Tfmf1 ' l?G5a:14i1?z?f

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26 THE BLACK AND GOLD Think of it! For years we had studied with this one ideal in our minds, to enter High School, and now that we really were to become students there, our joy was complete. Up to this time we had been considered children, just pupils, now we thought ourselves pupils no longer but students. Imagine our surprise, then, when we found our teachers did not agree with usg worse still, they plainly told us that we had not yet put away childish things. During our first and second years, it is true that we some- times had to work pretty hard, but these thoughts of hard work are immediately swept out of our minds by the recollection of the many happy times we spent at class picnics, straw-rides, and parties. How we eighth and ninth grades did enjoy them! Our Junior year was not all happiness, however, for we were forced to buckle down and work as we had never worked before. Sometimes it seemed to us that we would never be able to master the perplexing problems of plane goemetry, but most of us man- aged in some way to reach the seventy-fifth notch, and then, again, joy reigned. The Hrst thing that we, as Seniors, did was to assume a very dignified air, and proceed to frown upon all misconduct by the lower classmen. Then, when we had become perfected in the art, more serious things were earnestly undertaken. The event that stands out most prominently in our minds is the adoption of Student Government. We are the second class in the history of our school to have attempted this form of gov- ernment, and we feel very proud of the fact. In the Commercial Department the members of our class who have taken this course have all done unusually well, and some of our number have won fame by their rapid typewriting. These are Gordon Ambler, Banks Newman, Alma Lackey and Lurline Wills. We who are not so proficient wish to congratulate them on their success. But our ability has not only been recognized in our school but the outside world has heard of some of us. Luella Cochran