Santa Rosa High School - Echo Yearbook (Santa Rosa, CA)

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14 THE PORCUPINE thankful for is the opportunity to use our minds for the end of self development. eee This month’s joshes were compiled while laboring under the difficulty occasioned by the loss of our popular josh editor, Floyd Wisecarver. He and his brother, the genial “Doc.” have removed to Modesto, where they will enter the High School at that place. Floyd’s departure causes regret among a large circle of friends, especially among his classmates to say nothing of certain mem- bers of the fair sex. Although we suffer from the loss, we wish them the best of success in their new home. eee A word or two on things in general. It is still the editors conception of heaven as being a place where he will have nothing to do but read manuscripts that are handed in, unbegged for, aye, even unasked for. And the said manuscripts are written legibly, in ink, on the long way of the paper. see About the joshes. Only those joshes are printed that will give the greatest pleasure to the greatest number. Joshes that are understood by only a small circle are care- fully omitted. Under no conditions are the joshes to be considered as personal hits from members of the staff. We are willing to be responsible for anything printed, but, in fact, no person has a right to kick if he becomes the victim of a little pleasantry, especially when it is his own act that lays him open to it. eee We are greatly indebted to Miss Ruth Overman for the cover design of this issue. The drawing comes from the pen of her sister, to whom we express our gratitude by this means.

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THE PORCUPINE 13 ducive to seif development? To our mind it is the power to think. Such a statement seems almost insane, but to judge from the actions of those with whom we daily come in contact it cannot be iterated too often. It is only by the power of thought that the asperities of our daily lives can be smoothed. Only in proportion to the strength of our minds can we gratify the desires of our hearts with any safety. We laud the minds which have broken the shackles of religious oppression in the past, yet, today the churches are the most crowded, where reason least exists. The number of illustrations is unlimited; every ereat movement of the past or present, be it religious, political or social, hs sprung from a thought. In High School we are rushed from class to class, while facts are unceasingly poured into us. We grasp these facts, but we do not get hold of the greatest fact of all, that these facts are not thoughts. Facts are merely the materials out of which we shape our thought; the more we practice with the materials, the more perfect become our thoughts. Premature judgment is bad, but it is to be preferred to no judgment at all. We can at least put our twos together and make fours of them and later, when our light grows stronger, our fours can be squared. If thinking is needed at any time in our lives it is right now. Weare daily forming habits and prejudices which are to be the foundations of our future characters, and yet we are daily proceeding in our endeavors to veneer the dead shell and allowing the kernel, our true foundation, to lie neglected. Character is the world force of today. It can only be gained by self development. Self devel- opment is dependent upon thought and wise action, the concrete form of thought. What we should be

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THE PORCUPINE 15 xchanges Sibyl, we are interested in your continued story, “The Light in the Window.” Please do not fail to send the rest of it. ‘The exchange department shows careful and conscientious preparation. Furthermore, the criticism is honest. The Russ is good—-what there is of reading matter in it. It must be confessed that advertisements are not the most interesting of literary productions. The Lowell is fairly brimming over with readable things. The cuts are well drawn and appro priate and the cover is neat. The quality of the paper and the type used do not do the Sea Urchin justice. The contents of the October is- sue, if these defects are overlooked, are well arranged and worthy of commendation. The Crimson and Gold possesses the most valuable factor in conducting a school journal—school spirit. The Orange and Black, from Spokane, has a literary department that is worth reading. Unlike most High School journals, it does not confine itself to the criticism of the literature studied in the English course. Current literature is discussed and commented upon quite cleverly. The Review, from Sacramento, has uncommonly good editorials. In the October number some valuable ideas concerning the management of a High School magazine are expressed. Judging from the Review itself, these ideas are successfully applied. The Skirmisher is full of life and spirit, as its name would indicate. There is something distinctive about the Item. It is made artistic by some well executed drawings. The jokes are original and, above all, are really witty. We agree with the editor in his appreciation of “The Tragedy of a Day.”