Scituate High School - Chimes Yearbook (Scituate, MA)

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THE CHIMES 9 heard the case of Mr. X, who found a defect in the title of an estate and suc- ceeded in winning it over for the same reason. You have heard these cases and many others of the same nature. However, technicalities of the law have been the objects of unfair criticisms. While many injustices have been wrought by complicated laws, constant effort is being made to correct and readjust them. In the United States, the laws are made in Congress; in Great Britain, in the Parliament; in France, in the Chamber of Deputies — but wherever they are being made, the intention is to meet the demands of the people, to repeal and amend laws to meet modern and social conditions. People are demanding that the laws be written in the language of the people. The generalities of com- mon speech, however, need to be avoided. The generalizing of the law will not better its administration and application, but it will call for more opinions and interpretations and, as you know, these are seldom precise and similar. There must be exactness in law for the same reason that there must be exactness in any field of science. In connection with the law we find no person more important than the lawyer. On him lies the trust of his community and of his fellow practi- tioners. His profession is one of great learning and dignity. His duty is to interpret the laws and to defend or ascertain the rights of anyone seek- ing justice. Of course, every profession has its incompetents, and the law is not without exception though the more stringent and exacting applica- tion of bar examinations and rules has reduced this number of undesirables. These few have chosen to disregard the ethics of their profession, but the stirring up of litigation for personal advancement is never in the mind of a true lawyer. Every lawyer is under an obligation to the people and to the community; his office is a public office. It is not due to delay on the part of your attorney if a great time elapses before your case is finally tried. This is primarily due to over- crowded courts. Thus a great lawyer of the past has said that a bad settle- ment is as good as the best law suit, a court trial which entails so much ex- pense being hardly worth the time and effort. This statement, however, could hardly be applied to this present day and age. Many people have been led to believe that a lawyer earns his dollars about as easily as any professional man could honestly do. However, thev have been, indeed, misled; for with few exceptions no one earns such a well- deserved fee. While little manual labor is attached to this business of law. the time, effort and mental agitation connected with preparing a case or doing any other such law work entails as much labor as any glutton for work might ask. Dwyer: Well, Bob, I graduate at the end of this year. Surprised? Ewell : No, I ' ve been expecting it for years.

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8 THE CHIMES beautiful, leap along the wood hungrily. They seem undaunted by the quantity of water being used to extinguish them. While people stand in awe gazing at the dreaded menace leaping and destroying, they are com- pletely oblivious of its terrible significance. How pitiful for those whose property has been destroyed or damaged! How hazardous for the firemen! And yet, how thrilling to the spectators! This is not a nation composed of cruel individuals — as it appears — eager for spectacular sights which wreak destruction. But fires are an exciting diversion from the ordinary occur- rences of life. As one wanders among the crowd, various rumors are heard as to the cause of the fire. Generally no one knows how it began, but all make pretenses of having heard of the authentic origin. Soon the fire is under control. Only a great ocean of smoke and the blackened building are visible signs of a disaster. The majority of the crowd begin to disperse. The excitement is over, and the firemen pick up their kit and depart. The fire horn blows tw ice. All out. SPRING Eleanor Secor, ' 38 I like the gay spring weather, It makes my heart so light; I like the April showers That patter every night. I like the little violets, That now are all in bloom; I like the yellow daffodils, That come and go so soon. I like the soft green carpets, That nature now has spread ; And the beautiful blue heaven, High above my head. THE LAW, THE LAYMAN AND THE LAWYER Sherman Gates, ' 40 Undoubtedly you have heard of certain hard-to-believe incidents which have arisen because of loopholes in our present-day law. You have heard of the notorious Joe Davin, who for five times in succession escaped the hand of justice because of technicalities in one branch of the law. You have

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10 THE CHIMES THE OLD MILL J KAN KlNDLUND, ' 40 king Philip, that great warrior leader, was attempting to force the white man out of the country and he thought of a plan worthy of his keen intelligence. He decided that if he destroyed all the grain mills situated in each small town, the white man would eventually be starved out. Having destroyed all the mills on his way north from Rhode Island and not having been met with much opposition, King Philip was not prepared for — well, that ' s my story. On the eventful day the quiet town of Scituate was resting peacefully. Brown smoke was curling out of the chimneys of the settlers ' houses and the distant ring of wood-chopping filled the air. Children were playing happily in the streets and dogs were peacefully dreaming in the sun of doorsteps. Suddenly up the roadway from the south the hoofs of a horse were heard, and there soon appeared coming through the village a much-excited rider. At the unusual sound the inhabitants of the quiet village gathered at their doors to inquire about the loud commotion. As the rider sped through the town, he shouted hoarsely, King Philip ' s coming! Flee from the town! and rode on down the road to give warning to other towns. The people, startled at the moment, only looked at each other with frightened eyes. The men, prepared as usual for such emergencies, entered their houses for their guns. Gathering together, the men proceeded to the grain mill. There they took vantage points in order to protect the mill to the best of their ability. Finally after a long interval, one look-out sighted the fantastically-painted body of an Indian creeping through the trees. After passing the word around quietly, the men cocked their guns and ex- citedly waited. Finally the many weirdly-painted bodies of the Indians were seen, and with a wild yell the savage horde dashed out to the clearing. The at- tack was not a surprise One, however. As soon as the savages advanced close enough, a volley of bullets came out of the old mill. The redskins, surprised by the unexpected reply, retreated hastily. But the did not give up! Again and again they came, again and again leaving behind the dead bodies of red men and white men alike. The women, watch- ing from the windows of the nearby cottages, shuddered and covered their faces at the sights they saw. However the Indians eventually retreated. The settlers, after making sure that the Indians had really gone, came out tq survey the ruins. The mill was still standing! But at what cost? Half the men of the community were dead.