Sandy Township High School - Flambeau Yearbook (Du Bois, PA)

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8 sandy township high school flam beat hopiny all arc m il. as I am ai present. W ell mother. I mast soon leave fur the battle front, hut don't worry about me. for if it is the will of the Wise and 1 miyhty. I ill come hark, and if not I nill stay here, hut nevertheless there will be more mothers and fathers left without sons before this irar is over, so yon won’t be alone if it is (Sods will for me to stay here. Well I will eaU this yood for this time, tmt if spared will write yon a lonyer letter after the oat tie. With a hearts best lore, and kisses for all, Your loriny son. JOB'S .1. ROIHIHRS, Mattery It. Mrs. Rodgers eyes were very misty as she neatly folded the letter and plan'd it in thcl ox again. She thought as she often had Indore, that he must have been killed or he would have written after the battle. She plan'd the letter box bark in its plaee and sat the table. •hist as she finished Nellie drove the cows into the barnyard and closed the gate. Then calling her grandfather from the field she went into the house. “Supper ready grandma? asked Nellie as she entered. Yes, dear, ail I is ready”. Mr Rodgers then entered and soon they were seated at the table. Mr. Rodgers had just returned thanks for their daily bread when there was a timid knock at the door. Nellie aruse, ojiencd the door and was surprised to sec a tall man standing there. “Is this where Harry Rodgers liven, lady?” It is. sir, please step in, replied Nellie, and the stranger obeyed. Mr. Rodgers arose and in his simple hospitable manner asked. Won’t you sit down to supper with us stranger? I will, thank you, as I’ve been on the road since morning '. he answered. Nellie hastily sat another plate on the table while Mrs. Rodgers poured his colVee and soon all were enjoying the evening meal. After supper was over they went into the parlor. The stranger and Mr. Rodgers smoking while Mrs. Rodgers again took down her knitting. Nellie did nothing in particular blit watch the stranger and admire his steel blue eyes and his dimples. Stranger you might as well stay all night with us , said Mr. Rodgers. 1 shall In glad to do so if it will not be too much trouble for Mrs. Rodgers , he replied. milk the cows, but as he took down his hat he said, Nellie go up stairs in John's rmmi and bring down the pictures and show to our friend until I have returned.” Nellie arose immediately and went up and brought them down. She placed her chair up beside his and began taking them out one by one until nltuut half the pictures had been shown. Then she lifted out the picture of a beautiful woman, saying, This is mv mother, she has l»een dead almost eighteen years; Don't you think she has a sweet smile? I certainly do, she smiles just like you. little lady , he answered in a shaky voice. Here is my papa , she said handing him the next one. lie had it taken just Wore he went to the war. and oh, lie had such nice dimples too, something like yours 1 imagine. Now lien is my picture, see I am awfully sad there, my mamma was dead and papa was going away too. and I was cry ing. As she finished talking she looked up at the stranger’s face and was very much surprised to see large tears sttiding in his eyes. “Are you sorry for me”, she asked, but did not wait for a reply, for Mrs. Rodgers, who had been watching the stranger since Nellie s|s ke of his dimples now began to sob. Nellie went and put her arms around her neck and said. What is the matter grandma?” .lust then Mr. Rodgers returned, “what is the matter? he asked, looking from one to the other, but Mrs Rodgers said in a clear voice, Nothing only ibis stranger made me think of .John”. “That’s just who it is, mother,” he answered doing up lie took her in his arms and kissed her tenderly as he said, I just wanted you to guess awhile mother dear. lie kissed his father and then taking Nellie in his arms he said, My baby! How much like your mother . After cverylmdy’s excitement was over, Mrs. Rodgers said. John where have you been all these years, and why haven't you written home to us.

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SANDY TOWNSHIP fllO'n SCHOOL FI.AMBEAT 7 dnir Bessie!” Tln»n they thought of Hu picture and again a( if. Sun enough, there was a slight resemblance between 11»« picture ami Sarah. 1I»th Mrs. Drew and Sanili won so happy that thoy thought it ini|H)ssihli to wait until Mr. Dn w came homo to break the giMsI nows to him. Novor was thoro a happier man on earth than Mr. Drew, when lie foiiml out what ho had so lout: waited to hoar. ••lint , ho said after the greatest of the eon fusion was over, Wlmt is to ho done with that moan Perkins' family? Thoro is nothing too erne! to ho done to them, sineo they have kept Bessie so long from our sight. ’ This matter was attended to at onee. Perkins paid a heavy lino and tried to make an apology, hut eon Id find none suitable. After ho paid the required tine he was very inueli ashamed of himself and immediately loft the neighborhood. They wore never hoard of after that. It was still two weeks until school started. Sarah Brown, who had now taken her real name, Bessie Drew, had no m od to worry about getting to High School now. She was well dressed and ivceived the liest kind of care. Mary Join's and Bessie often paid each other visits. Well, aren’t you glad you took the eighth grade examination”. asked Mary, while visiting Bessie before school started. I certainly am,” returned Bessie. I am sure that if it had not Imimi for you I wouldn’t be thinking of going to High School this year, and more than that, mother and father said that I could' go to college, if I eared to.’ L. W. L. 22. dimit A iinmr Autmm thr JJinrs Over the beautiful green hills of New Hampshire, the sun was slowly sinking. The lieautiful illumination of the sky gave a promise of a nice day on the morrow. A girl came tripping along a path that stretched across her (1 rand father’s farm. She had long black curls, which hung around her head in clusters. Her face shone with smiles, and her blue eyes sparkled with joy as she ran along after her dog. Nellie Kodgers for this was the girls name I lived with her grandfather and grandmother in a little cottage far up among the old New Hampshire hills. This little cottage was hidden among some beautiful pine trees which reached far alsive the roof of the house. Inside sat an old gray haired lady, very busily knitting, as the last rays of the sun made their way through tin pines into the neat little room when she sat. She was very fond of her home and also of Nell, but list now she was not thinking of either her home or Nellie: but instead, of a little scene that had taken place in this very room just eighteen years ago today. She remembered it all very well. There in the farthest corner her son was kneeling licside tin-bed of his dying wife. His one band on her hot brow, and the other around the waist of his little daughter. Suddenly a beautiful smile lit up the face of the dying woman, and she whis|M»red, My Darlings.” and then all was still. She was dead. John lingers arose, placed his little daughter on a chair and lowered his head in grief. Presently his mother came into the room. One glance at her son told her that Lucie was dead. Six months later John Kodgers was culled to help his country. He left his daughter in his mother’s care. As he stood on the |s»rch he gently took his mother in his arms and kissed her. saying. Take care of little Nellie, mother, and don’t worry, I am coming home again.” Don’t forgot to write, John”, said Mr. Kodgers. in a shaky voice, but Mrs. Kodgers could only say, good-bye.” Eighteen years”, sighed Mrs. Kodgers as she folded her knitting and arose to prepare supjM r “Eighteen years and lie has ouly written once.” After she had supper started she got down a little box from the cupboard and opened it, she took out the yellowest and oldest looking envelope in the box and read : bear Mother, Father and Ihmghtcr:— Just a line to let f ou knoic I arrived safe and sound, and

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SANDY TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL FLAM BEAT! 9 •‘Well mother I'll tell von as I do not think tin thing I have done was very dishonorable, yet it was against the rules. When we were at the front we ere not allowed to stop and rare for a fallen comrade. hie day, in the very thickest of the battle one of my very 1m si pals was shot through the top of the head. I stoo| ed down and gently raised him from where lie had fallen, hut his life was then almost gone, and he softly whispered, ‘‘flood live, old pal . As I laid him hack on the grass he closed his eyes forever. The next night I was called to the generals quarters and thoroughly talked to about disobeying orders. I told them it might be the orders of man, I had disobeyed but it was not the orders of God. This angered them very much and they sentenced uie to a long imprisonment or banishment to the Philippine Islands. 1 chose the Islands, but I was still guarded and was not allowed to send any mail, and they kept me as long as possible, .lust day liefore yesterday I again lumh d in America. Mother, eighteen years has been a long time, and you have not been the only quiet sufferer. But at Inst we are united. Soon all retired for the night, and everybody's dream was full of |s rfect peace, katie McDonald, 22. alt? arustuuirthu § mt Job—n? Hi—: Job—n! “Where an you?” It was John’s father who had called. He was the owner of the only wood lot within many miles, lie was a big husky liimlmrman, with an abundance of lustrious brown hair, dark piecing eyes, and a tunned skin that was not unpleasant to sec. His little son of twelve, who rcscmhhd his father in every way, runic quickly to oliey the call he knew so well to Is a command not to Is disohey d. “Did yon call, father? asked John. ••Yes , said his fathter, “Go and gel the mail, and hurry, John, for I am expecting a very ini|M»rtant letter which 1 must have as soon ais possible. “All right, father, said John. And lie dartid down the road. “I'll be back as soon as possible. Mr. North did not like to send John after the mail but he did it lM causc he knew he could trust him. John had not gone far when he saw a strange dog, he had never S4 en before in the neighhorlnxid of the lumlicr lot. He thought at tirst that mavis it was a dog Isdonging to some one who was trying to steal his father’s logs, lie had heard his father discussing something with mother this morning, but he had not listened, for he knew his father would tell him if he wanted him to know. “Well , said John to himself. “I'l follow the dog, I know father won’t care, liecause may-lie 1 can find out who is stealing the logs. Then won’t father l»e glad? So lie followed the dog and had a pretty hard chase for awhile, then all of a sudden he came upon a clearing in the woods that he did not know was there, for father had not cut any logs from this side of the lot. And he just stcp|M d back into the hushes in time to escape being seen by a party of men. One mail who seemed to Is leader of the men, said: “Well here is Bruno back again. Did you get the mail old fellow? The dog seemed to know what was being said to him, and that it really was him they wen talking to, for he walked up to the man that was shaking and stood before him, the man reachtsl down by tin dogs side and there o|M ned a belt that was fastened around the dog which I had not noticed before. From this he extracted a leather picket, and then said, “Well Imys this looks like the real stuff. Little John now had to change his positiou for his legs wen all crnnt|M d, and while he was doing this a twig cracked underneath his feet. He gave a start but the men did not seem