Soldan High School - Scrip Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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Aff , 'Wai ' or i 'i me --1 - J ' take lessons in plain and fancy first-aid work, because there are sure to be some who didn't know it was loaded. Then there are those who, while learning the manual of arms, nearly amputate their right little toes learning order arms. This apparently simple movement has been the cause of many sore feet, because the butt of the rifle seems to have a tendency to fall on the rookies, pedal extremity. This results in sore feet and soothing words addressed to no one in particular. Then there is always the novice who scratches his forehead on the front sight of his rifle while mastering present arms. This also is the provoca- tion of endearing terms, whispered lovingly, of course, because the stern order, Silence in the ranks, there! must be obeyed. All joking aside, Soldan should be, and is, proud of her battalion. Some of the cadets could not enter the army because of physical unfit- ness or because of their young age. However, the boys have shown that their spirit is patriotic and the majority will enlist when their coun- try needs them. It proves conclusively that the student body of Soldan is loyal to the Government and patriotic. Let's give nine big ones for the army! -William Gentry, 8. :Che Scrip in lhe Jlfaking ' t LOTHES may not make the man, but at any rate they have ff 1 a great deal to do with the impression he gives. The Scrip does not make Soldan, but as a good suit of clothes shows i V a man to best advantage, so also does the Scrip reflect what is within our school. The Scrip is the thermometer of school spirit, the store house of our intellectual accom- plishment. The Scrip tells others just what Soldan is. Since we are judged by our appearance, it should be of interest to every Soldanian to know just how the Scrip attains an aspect which has given it favorable comment from all over the country. In the first place, the Scrip begins in the cerebral folds of the stu- dents. By this I mean that the Sctip is the direct result of what they think concerning it. After a while these thoughts of the pupils begin to classify themselves under two heads. The work which the student produces is either for the literary or the business side of the Scrip. If a student has an eye to business, likes to make money, and isn't afraid to talk, ad-getting appeals to him. Although he may not be able to write a sonnet any more easily than he could sing Il Trovatore in Italian, he's right on the job when it comes down to th.e commonplace task of con- vincing Mr. Hans Schwartzman that Hans's Chile Hause can't pos- sibly expect to continue its profitable business unless it is represented in the Scrip by an advertisement. For instance, last term Leon started getting ads. He had never got one before, but he had an idea all his own. Almost every afternoon he turned in a new ad or two until he sv LQ

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, .-L,-421-' r - Q' ' .sc-fy-Q -, ,,.,x,,',. , 1 .- '-K- who receive commissions are the captains and first and second lieuten- ants. The battalion will be clothed in the regular army khaki uniform for which each cadet will pay seven dollars and thirty cents. The Gov- ernment has agreed to furnish the battalion with the standard Spring- field rifles, but bored out to .22 instead of .30. It also agreed to furnish us with cartridge belts and bayonets, but this trouble with Germany has arisen since that promise and so we are still waiting for our equipment. Part of the program planned for is target practice and by the time our rifles arrive, the Board of Education will have provided a shooting range for us. They will also fit up an armory for our rifles. Last Sep- tember there was a plan on foot to have a camp at Nevada, Mo., this summer for the cadets, but nothing as yet has been definitely decided upon. One of the principal arguments for military training is that it straightens one's shoulders and makes for erectness of carriage and firmness of step. We now ask you to look at the pictures of us that Clarence Welsh took. The First one was taken soon after we com- menced drilling. Look at our positions. A manufacturer of a certain hook and eye has for his slogan, See that Hump? Now turn your at- tention to the second photograph, taken a little later. You can't See that Hump now, for squared shoulders and a straightened backbone have taken its place. The hands, feet and arms are now in their proper positions. You can easily determine whether a boy belongs to the bat- talion or not. just watch him as he goes down the corridor. If he has his body erect and resting equally on the hips, shoulders square and falling equally, chest lifted and arched, arms and hands hanging natur- ally, head erect and squarely to the front , as the Infantry Drill Regu- lations require, you may be sure that he is a member. But, if he shuffles along with his back humped over and his head hanging down, you may be equally certain that he is not a member. One may scoff at the tin soldiers as much as he pleases, but he must admit that the tin soldier is more erect than the scoffer. It has been suggested that the girls organize a Red Cross unit and c. WILIN 56

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- gr ' '5 ' U2 ' rs-' - s 7. had signed up sixteen by the time the first issue went to press. The peculiar thing was that almost without exception the advertisements were those of instrumental or vocal teachers. He had simply picked out one line of trade and stuck to it for results! Could Leon write? Well, he never tried to write even a joke and we didn't want him to, either, as long as he could get ads. There is also the fellow who couldn't sign up an advertiser if all his chance of getting an E in Latin depended on it, but he will sit in the Scrip room by the hour doing the necessary cler- ical work. And when he gets that done he'll go up to the art rooms and make a few posters which are about as artistic as a picture of a Missouri mule crossing the Hellespont by moonlight. Nevertheless the Scrip couldn't get along without the fellow who does this work. I have spoken of those who are interested in the business side of our paper and who make up one group which is responsible for the Scrip. The other group is composed of those shining lights who have been blessed with a spark of intellectual originality which causes them to pro- duce some literary effort of more or less valueg most of the time less. It's hard to believe that there are boys in school who would rather write poetry than eat apple pie, but it's the truth. Now you know why the Scrip begins in the gray matter of the stu- dents. They either get the inspiration that they can write something or that they can do something. They are classified accordingly, as has been said before, and put to work. These premises having been of- fered, here is just how the Sctip grows, beginning in the minds of the students and ending by being inclosed in an artistic brown and gold cover, and resting upon your reading table. The Scrip convention has been held, the new staff chosen, and down in the sanctum sanctorum-speaking in the vernacular, room 230-Mr. Smith, the Editor, and the Business Manager are assembled in solemn conclave. They are deciding which members of the staff are to fill such positions as advertising manager, subscription manager, director of pos- ters, exchange editor, editor of the Tattler, athletic editor, reporter of auditorium sessions, and so on, until all have a certain duty assigned which seems to fit best with their ability. While there is no such title as office boy and general fiunky, some one of the staff occasionally finds it becoming to his dignity to remind the others of the fact. The duties of the Business Manager are to superintend the work of the staff, to see that the fellows are keyed up with lots of enthusiasm, to keep the books and write all checks, which is quite a man-sized job, and in gen- eral to do every thing that no one else does. The Editor must see that all writers get their assignments, plan for the date of issue, see that all expected material comes in on time, and help Mr. Smith whenever he can. If the editor chances to have a particularly amiable disposition, he occasionally helps the Business Manager also. One duty that they ss