Riverbend School for Girls - Vox Fluminis Yearbook (Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada)

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VOX FLUMINIS ll VENTILATION IN THE SCHOOL ROOM LOSE the windows! That is the first thing anyone hears on entering the grade nine classroom. The classroom is as divided as two political parties. The half that wants the windows open is known as the fresh air fiends, and the other group is known as the grandma group. All day there is a continual feud. All day win- dows go up and down and the heat goes on and off. This has gone on since September and will probably go on till June-if there is any heat to turn on or if the windows can still go up and down. Freezing or boiling are the two adjectives 'that are always applied to the grade nine classroom. MARGARET GRABAN, '38, York Hall. PRIZE WINNING POEM Inspired by a Free Press Photograph ' UFARMYARD, GoNoR, MANITOBA F- Fronting on the highway, reaching to the Red, A A little plot-snug, homey spot, I snapped as by we sped. R Rugged 'gainst the north wind, snow-flanked to the sills, Mike Robak's house, his barn and shed, the picture partly fill. E Y Yonder in the backyard, windlass topping well, A And Mike, husband, full pail in hand, water for Rosabel. R Rosabel, the housewife, out of sight indoors, D Doubtless engaged with bairns, or broom or other wifely chores. G Gleam like steel the sky doth, white the dark-roofed walls, O On every tree, beyond a lea, hoar-frost's clear sheen enthrals. N Neatly piled the firewood, chimney yielding sparks: O O'er snowdrift crests, fence-shadows creep, apace comes on the R Relieved, how'er, by twinkling stars and new moon's ldark, radiant arc. M Manitoba strange to, born in the Ukraine, A A gawky youth, this Mike forsooth, unto our country came. N Nothing then of world's goods, only brawn, and grit, I In twenty years, this happy home, he gained bit by bit, T Toiling at the harvests, lab'ring jobs as well, O On summer nights, young love's delights, wooing Rosabel. B Blessings on the Robaks, on their neighbors too! ' A Accomplishments like theirs reveal what industry will do. ELEANOR MACINNES, '36, Douglas Hall.

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10 VOX FLUMINIS Oh, whispered Sally, looking at Lorry, who was yawning widely. Will he ever be 'unwitched' again? ' . Peter nodded. You see, he said in a dreamy voice, Prince Lorendavia always wore a beautiful ring which his great-great- grandmother had given him. This ring is magic, and as long as the Prince wore it nothing could hurt him, but his uncle persuaded him to take off the ring, and when Prince drew off the ring the wicked man immediately transformed him to a puppy, and seized the Prince's kingdom. The magic ring in the meantime had seemingly vanished, and after a vain search the uncle finally decided the ring had disappeared. The ring did not vanish, however, instead it took on the shape of a monstrous beast. One day this beast will kill the uncle, and so break the spell. Lorendavia will re-sume his princely state, and the wild beast will become the magic ring and return to the finger of the Prince? Sally had listened enchanted by the tale, fearing to speak lest the story should abruptly end. The shadows lengthened as the sun crept towards the western horizon. Sally, said Peter, someday, someday when I've- grown to be a man, l'm going to write a book about a lame boy, only he'll,--he'll get better, and he'll be able to race, and to jump, and--to ride a bicycle. It'll be a famous book like Dickens' and Kip-ling's, and everyone will read it. There was another long silence. Then,-- and, Sally, I'm going to dedicate that book to you, because,--because you're the only person who has ever cared about a crippled boy, who can't run, who must just sit,1and dream. CAROLINE HARRIS, '38: Douglas Hall. THE FIRST RIDE Up! Up! Nothing below me, air above- Mountains appearing, wind sweeping by, Clouds in the distance, and dust in my eye. Hands all trembling, breath comes in gasps, Oh, good heavens! How long will this last? Whirling and twirling, spinning with a zoom, Hold her boys, or we'll hit the moon! Soon there's a city, then it is past, Sinking and sliding, why so fast? All full of fear, l'm thinking of home: Slow her down, or you'll be alone! 'Tis only a nightmare. Am I going to die? T Oh, no! I am living, there's the blue sky. With half of my senses, and more dead than alive, The plane has landed! She's lit on her side. LoU1E LEIs'r1Kow, '38, York Hall.

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12 VOX FLUMINIS THE THEATRE BEFCJRE THE CURTAIN ROSE T ten minutes after eight I entered practically an empty audi- torium, walked down the wide aisle until I decided that I was somewhere within the vicinity of my place. I then proceeded to count the rows of empty seats, and jerked down into the one I had decided was mine. I settled myself as comfortably as possible, counting the numer- ous articles I must hold in my lap, scarf, gloves, purse, handkerchief, program, so that I would have some idea of what I should be carry- ing when I left. As it was exam-time, I drew out my little speller from my purse, and concealed it in my program. To all intents and purposes I was diligently memorizing the names of the Various 'cRomanova's, Sedova's and Pavlovitchsky's who were to ap- pear, while I was in reality muttering with an ever-increasing frown the complicated spelling of our even more complicated language. I was, of course, sitting in an aisle seat, where I had to be pre- pared to rise at short notice, so that numbers of beaming gentlemen and perfumed ladies might stumble over my feet to their places. While the auditorium was quickly filling, I noticed with a groan that there were to be two fifteen-minute intermissions. I knew, from other performances, that the two girls who were at that mo- ment crawling past my legs, would be in and out four or five times before the evening was over. From time to time heavy gentlemen and stout women rested their arms heavily upon my shoulder, as they fell over other peop1e's feet in the row behind me. As I went on to memorize the third column of spelling, I was too busy to gaze around the room and nod at various friends and ac- quaintances. I was just getting ecstacy into my head, e-x-t-a-c-y, when sure enough four or five people were waiting politely for me to rise. As they crossed over my feet, ruining my light shoes, I dropped my program and my handkerchief. A stout man and his wife marched up the aisle, and, of course, the man plunked down ahead of me, so that now all I could see in front was his broad back and bald head. I practised craning my neck to decide which side was the most comfortable to lean on, so that I wouldn't have to find that out after the performance had started. Resigning myself to the fact that I would be able to see only the dancers' heads, and sometimes their arms, I went back to my spell- ing, only to have to rise for a portly gentleman who jerked down beside me. Hastily I settled my arm on the narrow arm of the seat before he got his there, and then went through a bad five minutes while he took his coat offi, during the course of which I received several biffs in the side from his elbow, and a slap in the face from the sleeve of his coat, which then brushed slowly across 'my hair. I dis- covered that my coat had fallen down from the back of the seat,