Scituate High School - Chimes Yearbook (Scituate, MA)

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THE CHIMES 23 MY FRIEND THE MINUTE NEWT Charles Colman, ' 32 One balmy day late last May, lured to my log ' retreat, I di ' scovered to my great surprise that the borers, beetles and what-not in their bewitching agony of spring ' fever had wrought such vengeance on the chinking of the cabin in their mad rush for the open that they must have forgotten completely to shut the doors to their winter homes. In truth, glowing shafts of life-giving sunlight flooded thru several slits and formed patches of gold on the rough floor. I was not angry with these insects; I was really glad they had filled my cabin with holes. I know how they felt on that glorious day when all the world was waking up and re- birth was everywhere. And I was glad to go down by the bubbling brook to gather the cool moist moss once more to the cheerful tune of the old man in the brook who seemed to bubble out his peace like one bursting over with joy. I lifted the bulky moss basket from its nail and swung it over my shoulder. Then I wound my way to the brook along the path which was shaded by fresh leaves and bord- ered with dainty hairbells and pure white anemones. A tiny grass snake wiggled lazily away. Approaching a more shaded section, I encountered a swarm of pine flies, who lit on my neck and arms in buzz- ing clusters. But there is one thing about the pine flies which I like, and that is that they are very easy to kill. Whether it is because they have a yellow streak down their back or that the warmth of their favorite weather makes them slow to move as it does me, I cannot say. Upon arriving at the top of the hill overlooking the brook, I could hear the old man of the brook mumbling to himself, and in a few minutes I was on the good old bridge. I no- ticed that the cowslips were well gone by anjrl the skunk cabbage was fully knee-high. Just appearing at the surface of the water two fat spatter-dock buds could be seen. Having arrived at the brook and having taken a slight rest, (it was getting uncomfortably warm) I proceeded to gather the moss (the reindeer moss) which grew in large spongy patches on the banks of the brook.

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22 THE CHIMES a saiicv i)i(|iiaiit month, lar e g-reen eyes, and riotons red hair. Come 1)ack ! T cried feebly. ' ' Come ])ack, yon fool with the marvelons voice. Confonnd this cold wind, I mnt- tered shivering. Did T hear high sc[neaky langhs? Were the elves grin- ning? Were the poplars shaking angrily? Was the moon leering? I felt as though all were looking at me. Did somebodv or something say this? — Mortal, mortal, mortal, thieving mortal! You steal our glorious night. You sit there and see things you should not see, and, ho, if you don ' t call after the immortal Pierrot to tell him that someone can make a ' Caruso ' out of him. Ho ! Ho ! You call your graceful Pierrette a fool. You shiver when Pierrot chases her up to the moon! You swear by ' Virgil ' and ' Hamlet, ' whover they are, that you are crazy. Get hence, unappreciative, practical, egotistical, boasting mortal. I was cold. The sky was growing cloudy. I was hun- gry and sleepy. The moon had disappeared. One lone star twinkled sorrowfully. The wind blew hard. I was sure it was all a dream. ' ' Virgil lay open on my desk at home. Hamlet, thank heaven, was finished. I began to think I had a pret- ty good imagination. Perhaps I could follow in the foot- step ' s of even Shakespeare; bu t as I turned before entering the house, I saw that the tremulous clouds had parted, and the sullen moon was glaring at me. SCITUATE HIGH Alberta Turner, ' 34 Scituate High is loved most dear By all her boys and girls Toward her our hearts are most sincere To her our flag unfurls. Her banner bright of blue and white Is always flung on high To her we cling with all our might Till parting time is night.

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24 THE CHIMES I was scra]) ' ng up an extra larg ' e handful when niy eye ' s were attracted Iw a white forn.i which I mistook for that of a caterpillar. I never had seen so white a caterpillar and so I examined it more carefully. To my astonishment I found that it had four tinv leg ' s and a pair of beautiful little eyes which were watching- me carefully from beside a stem of moss. I w as delighted beyond words, for it was none other than a tiny newt, •hich I had ahvays wished to see. It w as about an inch and one-half long and had a diameter of about three-sixteenths of an inch. Its upper half w as a rich reddish brown and its under side pure wdiite. Both its ur] er and lower sides were covered with a mucous pe- culiar to the batrachian group. Its legs were very short in comparison with its body and tapered towards the body rather than away. It had four dainty toes on its front feet and five on its hind feet. The tail, which I thought would be long, was stubby and I w as led to think that it must have been broken off, but later a new tail grew. The eyes of this newt, I think, excelled in beauty any gem I had ever seen. They were go d around the edges which spark- led with a jet black center like a true gem. As the newt did not move, I gave it a slight tap on the end of its tail. It gave a leap fully eight times its own length and started on the most ridiculous amble that ever Avas staged. Eirst it advanced the front leg and the hind leg on the other side, then just the reverse. During this walk its long body, similar to a w easel ' s, and its tail wiggled in unison. I put it is a ball of moss and, forgetting every- thing, ran home. I secured the most beautiful ma3-onnaise bottle I could find and placed the newt and moss in it. Then I added a little water and put the whole on my desk. There I added a little water an4 put the whole on my desk. There Mr. Newt stayed until the first of September and in- creased in wisdom and stature upon a diet of air and good- ness-knows- what. One might have asked how this little amphibian could live over three months with nothing to eat. I certainly did not intend that it should starve and so I caught a number of plant lice and small ant ' s and put them in its jar. 1 do not know whether the newt disliked this bill of fare or found