Siskiyou Union High School - White and Gold Yearbook (Weed, CA)

Page 24 text:

Everyone in The audience roared wiTh laughTer because They knew ThaT There was no elecTriciTy in The school house. IT was aTTer This sTraighTTorward guesTion ThaT Ma saT down amid a vigorous applause Trom The audience. Ma Brown, however, was noT sure ThaT she had won The people's voTe by her ridicule oT Mr. Skinner, so she soughT The wiTe oT The presidenT oT The school board. She ThoughT if The people saw The school building, They would voTe Tor The bonds. WiTh The help oT The presidenT's wiTe a Tree enTerTainmenT was held aT The school house. PosTers were hung on The walls. A picTure oT The old school house wiTh a guesTion mark around The laTTer were hung on The walls and The ciTizens OT MounTain View sTumbled on The old sTairs which were dimly lighTed by candles, They shivered in The draughTs Trom every direcTion, and They kepT Their eyes on The wide secTions oT plasTer ThaT seemed ready To Tumble down upon Their heads. Ma Brown capably presided over a Tive gallon can oT hoT coTTee during The inTerval when reTreshmenTs were served and she heard snaTches oT conversaTion on The subiecT uppermosT in her mind. The druggisT's wiTe, Mrs. Moore, said ThaT she had heard ThaT all The new school buildings had modern kiTchens and she ThoughT ThaT if a new building was To be builT in MounTain View, iT should have a modern kiTchen. Mr. Skinner, who was sTanding nearby, reproached Mrs. Moore, say- ing ThaT The idea oT a new building was all nonsense. No sooner had he said This Than his Tace Took on a ThoughTTul expression. IT a kiTchen was Turnished he mighT sell The needed sToves, eTc., To The school, Tor he owned a hardware sTore. Ma Brown iusT hoped ThaT The Tree enTerTainmenT aT The school and The chance To see The building iTselT had changed The voTes oT aT leasT a Tew people in Tavor oT The bonds. AT lasT came The elecTion day and The liTTle Town oT MounTain View hummed wiTh exciTemenT. Ma Brown seT ouT Trying To geT everybody and his dog To voTe in Tavor oT The bonds. She Took care oT The small children OT many oT The moThers so ThaT They mighT voTe. AT The end OT The day Ma said she was compleTely Tuckered ouT, and ThaT she had done all she could Toward geTTing The bonds Tor The school passed. ATTer The polls had closed Ma Brown wenT home and Took a brieT resT. While she was peaceTully sleeping she suddenly awoke and remembered someThing she had TorgoTTen. IT was while she was Trying so vainly To remember whaT she had TorgoTTen ThaT she heard a knocking aT The door. The school superinTendenT, Mr. l-lawks, bursT inTo The room and Told her WHITE AND GOLD

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Ma Brown was opposed fo any exfravagance fhaf would raise fhe faxes for fhe people of Mounfain View, buf she did nof like fo agree upon any- fhing wifh Mr. Skinner and if was wifh fhese fhoughfs fhaf she suddenly decided fo visif fhe school house and see The condifion of fhe building for herself. She asked her friend, Mrs. Williams, who was one of her mosf ardenf and sympafhefic friends, fo accompany her on fhe invesfigafion. The nexf day fhe fwo elderly ladies paid brief visifs fo each room af fhe school and lisfened polifely fo 'rhe recifafions. When fhey mef in fhe hallway fhey looked af each ofher and commenfed upon fhe condifion of fhe building as a whole. They noficed how fhe wind came in under all fhe baseboardsu, how fhe windows raffled in fhe frames , how fhe sfairways were worn fo splinfersu, and how The plasfer was falling off in a dozen places . Affer Ma Brown saw fhe building she was more defermined fhan everfo see 'rhaf fhe vofe carried in favor of having a new school house. One evening as fhe elecfion day clrew nearer a fown meefing was called and Ma decided fo affencl. There was a good sized crowd af fhe hall fhaf evening and people for fhe mosf parf were sfill undecided as fo which way fhey should vofe and also, fhey were willing fo hear bofh sides of fhe quesfion which was before fhem. During fhe evening fhe posfmasfer spoke againsf fhe bonds, and in furn fhe superinfendenf of fhe school spoke in favor of fhem. Mr. Caleb Skinner rose, and his argumenfs againsf fhe bonds were cenfered mosfly around fhe hard fimes and fhe exfravagance of replacing a good building. There was fainf applause for him as he saf down and 'rhen fhe chairman of fhe evening asked if anyone else had anyfhing fo say. Wifhouf infending fo do so, Ma Brown sfood up, amid fhe friendly clapping of fhose who knew and loved her, and said fhaf she would like very much fo ask Mr. Skinner some quesfions. The chairman granfed her wish and he asked Mr. Skinner fo kindly sfand and would he answer fhe guesfions which Ma Brown asked. Caleb grimaced and rose hesifafingly. You said fhaf fhe old school house is good enough for fhe children of our frown, said, Ma quiefly. l-low do you know if is? lmpafienfly Mr. Skinner answered fhaf everyone knew if was. Ma Brown smiled af him and asked, l-lave you ever been in if? The audience saf smiling as Caleb answered fhaf he had nof. My lasf guesfionsf' said Ma. l-lave you really gof elecfric lighfs in your hen house? Af fhis quesfion Mr. Caleb Skinner furned purple wifh rage and shouf- ing fhaf fhis was all nonsense he saf down quife abrupfly. WHITE AND GOLD

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The glad news. The bonds had carried! Ma Brown, oT course, was very proud and pleased and she grinned good naTuredIy Trom ear To ear, Tor she had been parTIy responsible Tor This good news. The Tull measure oT good news was yeT TorThcoming Tor Ivla, however. Ivlr. I-Iawlcs Then Told her ThaT The school board had a meeTing and Tallced iT over and ThaT They had decided ThaT a woman like Ma herselT, should be on The school board. They were oTTering her This posiTion. Meanwhile Ma had suddenly remembered whaT she had TorgoTTen To do and all The joy wenT ouT oT her hearT. She said raTher halT-hearTedly, No, lvlr. I-Iawl4s, I'm aTraid I will have To reTuse This Icind oTTer because I don'T Thinlc iT would be legal Tor me To hold This oTTice. Ivlr. I-Iawlcs wanTed To lcnow immediaTeIy why she could noT accepT 'I he oTTer. Ivla looked around her as iT she had commiTTed The worsT crime anyone could and said, I TorgoT To voTe in Today's eIecTionI VIRGINIA JONES, Tulelalce I-Iigh School. I ETH EL PAULSON Weed .High School Honorable Menfion WHITE AND GOLD