Tillsonburg District High School - Tatler Yearbook (Tillsonburg, Ontario Canada)

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4 W' The Mim- forth to kill and eat or be eaten. The pres- ence of these sounds destroys perfect silence. To the casual observer, a class during ex- aminations is an example of perfect silence. However, the frequent crumpling of a page, shuffling of feet and continued scratching of nibs and noggins exclude all real possi- bility of silence. The short pause after the prolonged clat- tering, clanging and grinding of an onrush- ing train may give an observer the sensa- tion of silence. It may appear to be silence, but it is caused by the utter distraction of the auditory channels and for this reason cannot be real silence. True silence can be gained only by a com- bination of quietude of mind and utter ab- sence of external disturbance. For this reason, silence is as rare as gold and is often. unknown to those who have riches. Peace of mind comes from a total lack of worldli- ness and freedom from pricks of conscience. Seldom can a combination of these be found in this tumultuous world. Therefore silence in its true form is unknown to the masses of people in the world. . Richard Rokeby, XIII. wi T 'BT tllonourable Mention, Short Storyj lt was many years ago, as men reckon time, that there lived in a small village of China a crafty miser. The Chinese have always been predominantly a poor nation materially-though they are rich in philo- sophical learning-and the village, where lived the miser was no exception. There were few, if any, in the poverty- stricken little community who were not under the shadow of debt to the ugly little miser. Among these was an old peasant farmer whose simple honesty made him feel obligated to pay the stupendous sum which Fate had caused him to owe to the shrewd miser. It was of no great surprise -or concern-to the people of the village that, when the old farmer died, worn out by life of hard, unceasing labour, the debt was still uppaid. Scarcely had the unimpressive funeral ended, when the miser left his home to take an inventory of the old farmer's simple hut. Perhaps, he thought, I may nnd some- thing of value to partially pay the debt, al- though not likely. THE TATLER u I His rich clothes furnished a sharp con- trast to the barren landscape of the country from which the inhabitants had striven for centuries to wring a pitiful existence, but his face, a dirty sickly yellow with deep wrinkles, blended perfectly with the dry, cracked soil as he approached the rude dwelling. He entered the little hut with an air of disgust and surveyed the few poor, simple furnishings. The miser was annoyed at the worthlessness of his late debtor's posses- sions. Surely, he muttered angrily, in his long, useless life he must have saved or acquired something of value. He had no friends or relatives on whom to waste money. He examined the table, chair, lamp . . . then began frantically to search every darkened corner-in vain! The miser felt that he was being cheated. Anger swelled within him and he kicked at the dirt floor. Seizing an ancient vase, inscribed as a gift from mother to son, he hurled it through the only window, screaming insanely, Sen- timental old fool! Villain! Thief! As he heard the vase smash on the hard rocks outside, into innumerable fragments, his anger was strangely satisfied, it cooled, and subsided. In the brilliant light of sun- set, he left the hut and strode home. Late that night, the miser vainly fought wakefulness as sounds of revelry drifted from the village into his room. Despairing of sleep, he rose, dressed, and hurried into the village, now bright with the light of many fires. Uttering an angry curse, he approached one of the conflagrations, the happy chatter ceased and the peasants stared at him in silent awe as he screamed, VVhat have you fools to celebrate that per- mits you to keep your superiors from their X pu slumbers. All seemed stricken with dumbness at his words. Answer me l shouted the enraged miser. O noble sir, answered one, bowing humbly, to-day, as some of us were re- turning from our daily labour in the fields, and as we were passing the hut of our late- departed brother, the gods showered a rare blessing upon us. Beside the road, in the shattered pieces of an old vase, scattered among the rocks, we discovered the great- est hoard of money any of us has ever seen. Gary Miller, Xll. 39

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i M was ee.- -Qfw fa WY A ee J 't W' , Www? iq ' jr, wry, J - , ,M f fmgjgzrf Q ,dl L 3 l ' i , IQ l fjlf ' ' A A Z 474 r Hy! - - ... - sf A C 3- . , '- ..... - i , f -s , .- ' i . I , d x ' gl ,ji Ili' ' ' f , 1 .-.-f: T if ff ,ff 4 ,dj ff W , U ffZ7777f7jflff7f f7W7f f!!Wffg!WMWf f IMWE7' ffff777ff2wf0f Ijfffffgffffffiffff st -.10 - , I .,,x hull! , . f ia elfe so s s 1 N tj .e . .fi -1- rf Q iy-.- efiiiii f i ' ' 0 , - .19 . fl ii l U fl . 1 l, , ff' Ai 4: Q2 7 ' if fi 1- , . I Jil' X gg 'f' l mx I Q f i -- 2 Q- Q - 'F' I AU lX ig?-gi -3 1 f fl -. --- f 'f1fWWWHf1WW WWW fff WI .vfmwwwmowfff Mwffffm4m,ff IT'S A MAN'S WORLD IN T. D. H. S. First Prize Cartoon Edith Moon, Xll Silence Silence is one of those golden things of which we citizens of the modern enlight- ened world know little. Many people dis- regard silence, and of those who stress it as a virtue, few know its true meaning. True Silence is seldom achieved. A sound-proofed dwelling may bear the outward appearance of silence, but, beneath the veneer of appearances there is external strife-strife of thoughts, words and actions which destroy the idea of silence. The lull before a summer storm may be considered by many as silence, but the background of tinklings, chirpings and nest- lings of hidden beings among the grass and leaves destroy silence. Besides the stirring insect life, there is a tension in the air, a foreboding of the approaching storm. 38 Although this is not true silence it is much nearer to silence than that which is obtained by sound-proofing and ear-plug- ging. In the thick of a heavy, steady, windless, quiet snow storm, a measure of silence may be obtained. The air heavy with snow bears a feeling of silence, utter peace and quiet. However, this silence is shattered by the collision of legions of tiny floating ice particles, colliding with one another and with the stark reality of cold immovable objects on the earth. Many people consider that silence can be achieved only while asleep. To them, sleep is utter solitude, but about them, the quiet- ness is broken by the whisper of the wind, the croak of frogs and the pattering of tiny feet as myriads of minute creatures journey THE TATLER

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ON HAVING NOTHING TO D0 My examinations finished and should be handed in,- The people round me study, in fact, they all have been Doing so for half an hour. Alas! I cannot follow their tedious occupation, For I left all books but French at home, in dread anticipation Of a tiring, gruelling, time-consuming, quite horrible ordeal, And I thought for sure that all my time would be completely sealed With verbs and authors, sight translation, I participe passe, And the hundred million other things we're s'posed to know each day. But now I'm done, I've checked and checked,' no error can there be! And I should like to study Latin and geometry. But woe is me! I cannot do, for of these books I've none . . . What good is it to me to have my French exam all done? Hence you will see, with chemistry, geo- metry and Latin All bearing down, reminding me that I am far from through, This morning I left these at home . . . at home just where they sat, 'n' Now alas, I sit and wait, for I have nought to do! R. Jones, XII. 0 My Impressions of the New T.D.H.S. flionourable Mention-Essayj September the third, 1950, I marched proudly up toward the flagstone terrace of T.D.H.S. situated on the southern slope of Tillson Avenue. There, I was greeted by a doorman who smilingly bowed and opened the door. As I stepped inside, I was met by a hum of pleasant voices mingling to- gether over the soft liquid mellow tones of Billy Ekstine. I walked freely, unhamp- ered by books, as a porter had previously relieved me of them. As I proceeded down the cool, wide corri- dor, stopping once for a cool tall glass of orangeade at the soft-drink booth, I peered into one of the many rooms, where plush- lined seats awaited their willing occupants. There, I noticed a new teacher writing on one of the huge blackboards. Changing her mind she pressed a lever and a sheet of new board slid in place of the other one, thus eliminating chalk dust and the weary work of cleaning. 40 I then proceeded to the second floor, taking advantage of one of the numerous escalators scattered throughout the build- ing. Nowhere was there confusion or commo- tion on this, the first day of school. Infor- mation booths were on each Hoor for stu- dents wide-eyed with wonderment and joy. Being a fourth-former I tried not to show my ecstasy over the chrome-finished labora- tories, where Mr. Sinclair would commence his teaching of atomic energy, the padded stools with their high backs and head-rests, the electric fans that would immediately remove any gaseous smell or odour, and the intricate and mysterious apparatus that would assist us in doing experiments in splitting atoms or making engines for jet- powered aeroplanes. From the laboratories I went next to the gymnasium. The skylight above afforded natural lighting, the yard-wide baskets would assist us in gaining needed points, and the padded walls and non-skid floor, all combined to make a gym each of us could be proud of. I ventured then, to the locker rooms with their wide, spacious closets complete with hanger and shoe shelf. The rooms were comfortably heated and nowhere was there any jostling or pushing. I visited next the Home Economics room with its beautiful Home Freezer, Bendix washing machine and all the accessories necessary in the up-to-date millionaire's home. Then I ventured into the Work Shop with its beautifully carved statues and models produced by the boys themselves. For the first few weeks of school, things went along very smoothly. I loved our Home Economics course with sewing and cooking, and I am sure the boys enjoyed their Arts and Crafts course, but there seemed to be no close harmony. No one A.B. would dare put L on the immaculate X.Y. polished desks. The live-foot span between desks eliminated tripping, and the two gyms even removed the friendly weekly quarrels between the boys and girls as to whose gym it was. Yes, strange as it may seem, by the end of September I was wishing for something I thought I would never want to hear again -that old familiar call of the desperate, To your classes! Clear the halls! Joyce Hibbert, XIA. THE TATLER