Trafalgar Castle School - Yearbook (Whitby, Ontario Canada)

Page 11 text:

vox COLLEGII 9 teacher. Not. only has Miss Thompson given of her counsel and support, but we have also enjoyed her companionship throughout the year, and we wish to pub- licly express our appreciation. Instead of the last will and testament which has been given by the Seniors in former years, the Class decided to give a valedictoiy speech, and 1 know that you will all be glad to hear that Ruth Dixon has the honor of being appointed our Valedictorian. Miss Dixon then read the valedictory ' as follows : The task which I have before me, that of Valedictorian, is a very difficult one, for tw o reasons — first, that farewells are always painful, and, secondly, because, i valedictory address has no definite text. In spite of the difficulty and the sadness of it there is a certain pleasure in it. too, for it recalls to us our first days of school and all the happy hours of work and fun w hich have followed. I am sure that all present have vivid recollections of their first days at school, the straiigeness of surroundings, the bewildering numbers of new faces, the amazing knowledge dis- played by the old students, and last, but not least, the terrible awe inspired by the most learned and dignified faculty. How uncertain we Avere about courses, and how ambitious we w ere to make every subject on the curriculum fit Avith our time table! But w e gradiially gave up one subject after another and each finally confined herself to one coui se. The regular daily tasks, the friendliness of our school mates, and the sports and other activities of college life soon drove away all feelings of loneliness and home- sickness ; and it was not long before the college seemed to us a very dear home. Time sped by — hard work, fleeting week- end visits, sleighrides, our Junior con- cert, and before we realized it we found ourselves into the whirl of Commence- ment week. The return in the fall was a joyous on6 — friends separated for the summer months, reunited, and oh — the interest- ing talks and visits we must have with each other. In the midst of the joy of reunion, the recollections of the first lonely days of the previous year mado us anxious to extend a warm welcome to the new students, for we remembered how much a kindly word from an old girl really meant. The settling down to work and the ar- ranging of classes was not such a difficult task this year for we had learned many lessons from the previous year and we understood that the realizing of our at- tainments depended upon steady and un- failing work. Then we found ourselves with responsibilities, for we were the old girls, and must try to fill the positions of honor which the seniors of the year before had vacated. I am sure I speak on behalf of every member of the Senior class wdien I say that it is with mingled feelings of appre- ciation a,nd regret that we leave our col- lege home. We owe to it a debt of loy- alty because it has developed in us to some small extent the lofty ideals for Avhich it stands. We wish to thank Mr. Farewell for his personal and almost fatherly interest in each individual stu- dent which has made each one of us feel perfectly free to go to him at any time with our special difficulties. The ideals of development Avhich he is so success- fully working out in this college hava been a constructive force in our own de- velopment. His persistent optimism in seeing ahvays the very best in us has helped us to live up to what he believed us to be. To Miss Maxw ' ell Aye feel we owe deep gi ' atitude for the careful thought and anxious consideration Avhich she gives :to every student. Her kindness, and her SA ' mpathy in trouble have won our re- spect and affection. Her rare culture and refinement have influenced us more than even Ave ourselves realize. Those of us who have had the privilege of studying English under Miss Maxwell have some faint appreciation of her keen intellect and literary insight. To the Faculty we wish to express our sincerest thanks for all that they have meant to us during our school days. The awe Avhich we first felt for them gradually gave way to wannth and

Page 10 text:

8 VOX COLLEGII In this group are all those splendid souls who may well be represented by such as Florence Nightingale, Frances Willard. and the Seventh Earl of Shaft- esbury ' . 2. The second principle is— Life pro- pagates its own kind. We cannot die as Jesus died, but we must yield our lives as living sacrifices in the interests of men. For how can man die better Than facing fearful odds For the ashes of his fathers And the temple of his gods, or For whethej- on the scaffold Or in the battle ' s van. The fittest place for man to die Is where he dies for man. We cannot live for selfish purposes and then enjoy the common happiness and glory of the race. Self-seeking means self-destroying. Think of the burning, blighting influence of jealousy, envy or hate. God and the world demand our best work, and only what we do with pleasure can be our best. Find your happiness in the happiness of many rather than in the happiness of one, and life becomes simple and inspii ' ing. Every human life is un- der this law. Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone. This cannot be imderstood or appreciated by the selfish or self-center- ed, nor by any one charged with a sec- ond or third gi ' ade view. The contrast has been tritely set by Florence Earle Coates in a poem called: Poor Love, said Life. ' ' which runs as follows : Poor Love, said Life, thou has nor gold. Nor lands, nor other store I ween ; Thy very shelter from the cold Is oft but lowly built and mean. Nay, though of brushes be my bed, Yet I am rich, ' ' Love said. Persisted Life: Thrice fond art thou To yield the sovereign gifts of earth, The victor ' s sword, the laureled brow, For visioned things of little worth. Love gazed afar, with dream-lit eyes, And answered ' ' Nay, but wise. ' ' Yes, Love, said Life, What can atone For all the travail of the years. The yearnings vain, the vigils lone The pain, the sacrifice, the tears ' ? Soft as the breath breathed from a rose The answer came, Love knows. Life is a mission. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. Sent ? Yes, but not more than you and I are sent, also every one who ' ' willeth to do His vvill. Ask yourself these questions: — Whence came I? What am I? What am I here for Is there any good in me? If there is, have I found it? In wha t way is it functioning? Dear members of the Class of 1918, no class in any year has ever gone out in a time of greater opportunity. There is a place for each one of you. Find it! and say with Van Dyke : ' ' May I but find it in my heart to say, When vagrant wishes beckon me astray. This is my Avoi ' k ! my blessing ! not oiy doom. Of all who live, I am the one by whom This Avoi ' k can best be done. ' ' MONDAY JUNE 10th. ( ' lass Day is always very interesting, and nevei ' more so than this year. A new feature was the introduction of a tree planting ceremony by the .Seniors, a link which will bind the Seniors to the Col- lege for all time. It is hoped that this may prove a precedent for future grad- uating cla.sses. This ceremony was followed by the as- .sembly of the Seniors in the concert hall where the cutting of the dais chjiin, the reading of biographies and prophecies, the valedictory addi ' css and songs and sallies were gi ' catly enjoyed. The President of the class, Muriel Maw, presided and spoke feelingly and appropriately as follows : As President of the Senior Class I would like to say that the association has been a pleasant one. I have felt the support of the Seniors in all the func- tions that we have undertaken, and now, on behalf of the Senior Class, I would like to express our appreciation for the the counsel and support of our Senior

Page 12 text:

10 vox COLLEGII friendliness as we foiuid them always svTnpathetic and ready to help us with any difficulties. But while we bepran to think of them as friends our respect for their knowledge and their authority was not diminished. In fact they may haA-e suffered for their learuedness by bein x bothered continually with appeals for help upon every possible line. We es- pecially appreciate their readiness to en- ter into all our activities of school life ; indeed they have been as older sisters to us, helping us in every possible way. To our fellow students we extend all sorts of good wishes for their further work here, and if it brings to them as much pleasure and profit as it has to us, I am sure they will have very loving and grateful memoricvs of the Ontario Ladies ' College. To each member of the Senior Class we extend hearty congratulations and the very best of wishes for the work which each one is about to take up. Times arc so changed and uncertain and women are being called upon more and more to take positions of responsibility, thus making it necessary for a thorough train- ing. We feel that our graduating class this year is indeed going out well equip- ped to take positions of trust. There is a great call for well-trained business wo- men to take the places vacated by our men in active seiwice, and we are proud to say that we are sending out six capable girls who hope to help the situation as best they can. The problem of food con- servation has become so acute that wo- men with a knowledge of foods and their values are now in great demand, and wide fields of activity are open to the four domestic graduates. In the stress and strain of the present world situation we ought not to neglect the beautiful in life, and we are glad that the college can send out three graduates in music and one in Art, thus contributing to our na- tion ' s artistic development. No matter what our work may be, whether at home or abroad, may we all prove true to the ideals of our Alma Mater. After this splendid valedictory ad- dress the prophecies respecting the dif- ferent graduates were read as follows: MoRDKN Busby. In 1930, while visiting in New York, I was told of the presence of a large choir which was giving a series of concerts. I obtained a ticket and entered the large auditorium where the concert was to be held. When the choir came out on the platform I was very much interested in the appearance of the leader who looked so tall and stately, wielding her baton and directing the choir. I could not but think she looked familiar to me, and when obtaining a glimpse of her face you can imagine my surprise as I dis- covered her to be my old college chum, Morden Busby, a member of the grad- uating class of 1918 at O.L.C. After the pei ' formance I was alile to talk to her for a few minutes, when she explained her career since leaving college. She had taken a position as stenographer in the office of the manager of the choir. While there she had the good fortune to meet the director of the choir, and as the old story goes, love at first sight. She soon found her voice to be her foite and later, when hci- husband lost his voice, she had taken over the dii ' cctorship of the choir. Rtjth Dixon. As I sat in the street car this moi ' ning on my way down town 1 spied a huge notice on the back of the newspaper which the man opposite to me was read- ing — a notice telling the public that the much talked-of prize fight between the world ' s women champions would be held this evening. Gi eatly interested in the fate of our own beloved heroine, I im- mediately commenced to make my tele- phone wires buzz, and within a few min- utes had a legion of supporters promised for the evening performance. Would the time ever come! Dishes were left standing on tables, brooms in their cor- ners, husbands were commissioned to mind the baby without fail, while the all-important members of the family busied themselves with gathering to- gether groups of fans and supporters of Spitoonia. All the seats were filled long before the appointed time, women with their knitting or their newspapers, and