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

Page 21 text:

Vox Fluminis 17 ILIITIERARY FOND MEMORIES HERE'S a river winding there 'Neath the willows bending low, As through the languid air Soft breezes come and go. There are green and spacious lawns 'Neath a sky of azure blue, Where joyous springtime dons ' Her robes of every hue. There are wintry snow-clad hills That are bathed in silver light, There are all the magic thrills Of a northern winter's night. There are buildings rising high, Casting shadows on the ground, Where the open gateways lie By the drives which circle 'round. There are joys and sorrows, too, And a love that ne'er will end For the happiness we knew In our life at Riverbend. There are voices young and gay Echoing through the stately halls, As to happy girls at play A youthful spirit calls. And it calls them through those gates To the mighty world beyond. Where another life awaits Those who to that call respond. When we near our life-time's end And our tired eyes dim with tears. We'll remember Riverbend And the joys of all those years. MARIE BOND, Grade VIII, Garry Hall. BURNT FINGERS ANE Martin bummed a tune as she whisked her duster over the num- erous chairs in the Brantford living- room. It certainly was a change to be working peacefully in a lovely home, she thought, after dragging herself from one oflice to another looking for a job as she had been doing until two weeks before, when she had seen the Brantford's advertisement and had answered it. The job was not without its romantic side, she observed, for the young Mr. and Mrs. Brantford had been married only recently and would be returning from their honeymoon that afternoon. She crossed the hall and entered the library. When she reached the doorway she paused and gazed longing- ly at the many and varied wedding presents kept there waiting for the bride's return. Oh well, perhaps some day- , Jane walked over to the fireplace and stood before it, thinking, and as she gazed into the fire began visualiz- ing the day when perhaps she might own things such as those. She picked up the poker in the stand beside the fire-place and began absently to poke at the dying fire. The sound of the doorbell interrupted her thoughts at this point and, leaving the poker in the fire, she hurried to answer the door. Any shoe laces, pencils, bobby pins- No, thank you. Not today. She closed the door abruptly, partly because the face of the man at the door had bothered her with its unshaven chin and shifty eyes, and partly because it annoyed her that a mere beggar

Page 20 text:

16 Vox Fluminis were not able to have our garden party, owing to the dull weather, the band was present as usual and played during the tea hour. But as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. The guests were beginning to leave a few at a time. It had been a happy afternoon and now it was all over. M.D. .1 THE HALLOWEEN PARTY HE great day had arrived! The day for which everyone had spent so many exciting hours of preparation. Hallowe'en! Due to the fact that the junior grades held their celebrations in the afternoon, one was not surprised to find shepherdesses, Indian maidens and many other story book people peek- ing at one from behind doors and around corners. The gym. was the scene of much merriment in the evening, as this was where the seniors held forth. Dancing was enjoyed in between the skits put on by the various classes and prizes for costumes were presented. A trea- sure hunt was one of the highlights of the evening and everyone was rewarded with as many peanuts as it was possible to scramble for. Everyone left the school with the feeling of having put another successful and enjoyable Hal- lowe'en Party behind her for that year. B.W. THE IVORY DOOR By A. A. MILN1: T WAS an exciting surprise when Miss Carter told the senior girls that they were going to put on a play called The Ivory Door, by A. A. Milne. The girls were chosen for their parts and work commenced directly. There were many practices, but no one mind- ed, because we enjoyed working at such an interesting project. Miss Car- ter generously gave her time to direct us, and Miss Grant assisted. There were many humorous mistakes made when practising, and the crowd, although sometimes only two, made enough noise for twenty people. We had a dress rehearsal before the night of the play, and our king, Catherine Bingeman, looked so much like Errol Flynn that there were many hearts beating faster. As for our beef-eaters, they appeared as if they had stepped out of the 15th century with their red uniforms and white ruffles. But it went off well and the play was enjoyed by everyone. RC. LECTURES URING the past year we have learned 'much more on various subjects through illustrated lectures, brought to us by several people. We have enjoyed these a great deal and I am sure each girl has profited by them. Mr. Henderson, of British Columbia, gave us a talk on that province and his colored pictures of the mountains, the coast, and their industries made us long to see them for ourselves. Mrs. Taylor's lecture on astronomy was most enjoyable and her slides of the moon and stars were most inter- esting. Mr. Jenkins brought us a lecture on the post office as well as additional pic- tures of other industries of Canada. It proved an excellent way of teaching us one part of the work of the govern- ment as well as our geography of Canada. The last lecture we have had the pleasure of hearing was given by Mr. Martin, who told us of his wonderful trip on the Nascopia. His pictures also gave us a beautiful impression of Nor- thern Canada and the Arctic. We have appreciated these talks very much and thank those people heartily for taking the time to bring them to us. We all hope there will be many more next year. One of the most attractive entertain- ments this year was the concert given by the Nelson sisters at Rupert's Land. The beautiful program was most en- joyable and each girl appreciated the music very much. I am sure we are all proud of the Winnipeg trio and Wish them every future success. M.H.

Page 22 text:

18 Vox Fluminis should come to the front door and drag mud all over the front steps which she had carefully scrubbed about two hours before. She returned to the li- brary and resumed her dusting. How nice it would be to see Mr. Brantford! She supposed he would be tall and dark and most certainly hand- some, because it was inconceivable to her that lovely blonde Marian Carter would have married anyone who was not good looking. Mrs. Brantford had seemed very attractive the only time Jane had seen her. She was tall and very fair and her dignified bearing and pleasing personality had won Jane at once. The air in the library seemed to be growing rather heavy, so Jane turned and started towards the window to open it. She had scarcely gone a step when she drew back in alarm. A heavy mas- culine hand and arm had begun slowly to raise the window. She stood para- lyzed for a moment, the fear that gripped her heart rendering her mo- tionless. She watched as the window rose slowly, inch by inch, and the hand took a firmer grip on the ledge as if someone were trying to hoist himself up on to the broad window sill. The wedding presents! The thought of these made Jane turn quickly, grab the first thing she saw and begin beat- ing the hand with it. A hoarse scream, like some animal in pain, reached her ears from below and, looking out the window she saw a man's form disap- pearing around the hedge into the street. She turned from the window and ran into the hall, her heart pounding furi- ously. Then she noticed she was hold- ing something in her hand and, look- ing down, she saw the poker which she had so carelessly left in the fire a few minutes before. The poker still glowed from the heat of the flames. A sort of half-smile played around the corners of her mouth as she reflected on the fact that the sneak thief would be suffering a very severe burn at the moment. The smile faded as she real- ized that all the valuable gifts were her responsibility. Who knew but that the thief might return? She stood for a moment trying to see a way out of her difficulty. Just at that moment the thought came to her. The woman next door had seemed very friendly when Jane had spoken to her that morning. Perhaps she would come over and stay for an hour or so. She picked up the telephone book and began searching for the name. Perrin! There it was! She dialed the number quickly and was answered in a few seconds by a woman's voice: Hello. Mrs. Perrin? CCYBS 77 This is Jane Martin, the maid at Brantford's, your new neighbors. Could you possibly come and stay with me for an hour or so? Something awful has happened. A tramp tried to break in and steal Mrs. Brantford's lovely wed- ding presents. I'm afraid he'll come back. Pm awfully sorry, came the answer, I really do appreciate your difficulty, but you see there's trouble here too. My husband has just come into the house with a very badly burned hand. BARBARA ALLAN, Grade XI, Nelson Hall. THE LADY OF SHALOTT Back in the days when knights were knights And went on journeys bold, There lived a lady fair to see, As we have oft been told. The Lady of Shalott was she, A knockout pure and simple, Her face, through using powders and creams, Had neither mole nor pimple. As Tennyson has aptly said, She plied her loom one day When my,-O, what a sorry chance- Sir Lancelot passed her way.