University High School - Bisbila Yearbook (Minneapolis, MN)

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?ISSIL A April 28. 1930. Dear mary: It's been ages since I’ve written to you, but now that I’ve really begun. I hardly know where to start. A queer thing happened the other day; I’d been thinking about old school days when I ran right into someone who was prancing down the street. You can imagine how surprised I was to be staring right at Imogen Foster of all people. You remember her, don’t you, when we all went to “I ” High? She certainly has changed a lot, though, and I hardly knew her. She had the most world-weary expression and lines all over her face; she was half-starved-looking, too. and her red satin dress was terribly dowdy. You knew, didn’t you, that she had organized a company in competition with the Metropolitan Opera, in order to give some truly fine music to the public? She did have one star, though, Theodora Xerhaugen, the great soprano, the one who sings for Victor records, you know. Well, just outside of Excelsior, where they were playing, there was a walkout when little Cora Miles began to cry out loud when her cello string broke right in the middle of that touching melody. “W hen Dollar Rills Are Jingling.” Esther Rockwell’s latest hit—Margaret Thompson introduced it in her latest comedy. “Mischievous M a ggie. ’ ’ Of course, old “Impy” had loads to tell me about everyone we used to know. Poor, dear Emily Curtiss (spelled with double “s.” you know, not Klbridgc’s sister) has survived three husbands and is now taking in floors to scrub. It does seem a shame, doesn’t it. especially since she did have a good enough job with ()lson and Rorglin, massageuses? Oh, yes, Imogen said that the other day she went to her seance at Zuzu and Brown’s and when she shut her eyes, the woman with trembling voice told her that the great crisis had passed. Impy said she breathed freely when she found it was only that Frank Shaw and Kenneth Francis had successfully cornered the market on Itkilzem hair tonic. Imogen traveled a lot on her grand opera tours. She told me some of the funniest things that happened last month. She was visiting Ellis Island when she ran across Lizzie Erikson and Katrina Hummel, who were instructors in rhythmic expression there, to guarantee better citizenship. She visited Audrey Fox and Elizabeth blather at their studio in Greenwich village. They are dabbling in paint, and have bobbed their hair and wear smocks and everything. She saw Alice Hickey at New York. Do you remember that stuff she used to write for the Breeze? Anyway, Alice is a popular novelist now. and she had just been through Italy to get local color for a new book. “The Garbage Man’s Revenge.” Alice said that Leslie Hughes was holding down the job of station caller on the trans-Atlantic steamer she came back on. I was thankful that I had something to tell her. She didn’t know about how little Ruth Hicks got the heavyweight championship in the women’s division. Ruth has been giving three-minute talks in all the theaters, advocating the instruction of the womanly art of self-defense. Imogen seemed surprised to know that Ren W ells was a prosperous farmer, and got second on his pigs at the fair this year. Somehow, I’d always thought of Ren as a big, strong farmer. Then. too. that Helen Evenson, Doris Winchell. and Retty Morgan were running a matrimonial bureau; she couldn't quite believe it. It certainly seemed too killing when I read in your last letter that Nibs Clure was appointed floor walker at the New Leader because he had two suits of good-looking and dignified clothes. I always thought that he was awfully Page Twenty-four

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SEVENTEENTH : James Perkins grants to Rowly Moulton the privilege of carrying on the work he has so nobly begun, that called the “Locker Room Reform.” To anyone, he gratefully leaves the task of trying to appear irresistible while running the Breeze and Senior class. EIGHTEENTH: Marian Larson, in consideration of the “Skippers’ Union ’ wills to Bertha Eield her afternoons “off.” NINETEENTH: Fanny Graham and Margaret Morris donate the remaining issues of their joint subscription to the “Twin City Reporter” to Everett Comstock. Mugs, also, in sisterly affection, leaves Fredrica Alwav her love for hurrying as fast as she can in order to be on time for first period. TWENTIETH: Mary Boyd will surely thrive next year, for she has been ordained keeper of the key to the pies and candy by Margaret Thompson. Margaret consents to bestow upon Alice Fisher her love and craving for chow mein. TWENTY-FIRST: Helen Evenson. Theodora Nerhaugen, and Audrey Fox have gladly sacrificed their modesty and unobtrusive manner, hoping that all they possess will suffice, and have awarded it to Lowell Gilinor. TWENTY-SECOND: Truesdell Brown, in wishing to leave a few good times to U. H. S.. with great consideration, bestows upon Louise Congdon a few choice “thrillers” to be read during classes. His tender little nick-name, “Bluebell,” he lovinglv confers upon Chauncy Stuhr, dubbing him “Ye Tinie Blewbelle II.” TWENTY-THIRD: Elizabeth Erikson, in wishing to have her place in gym fittingly filled, leaves one pair No. 11 ground grippers with noisy soles to Lucille Jacobson. Her standing excuse for absences, a music lesson, she leaves to Katharine Kelley. TWENTY-FOURTH : Leslie Hughes hereby hands down to the school in general his abridged and revised edition of jokes, written by himself and illustrated by Joe Woods, with the appropriate landscape sketches. N. B. Winnie Hilgedick contracts to furnish the necessary laughs or grins, prophecying that they wouldn’t be easily forthcoming. TWENTY-FIFTH : Mary Stark is to be the beneficiary of the aesthetic grace of Greta Clark and Dorothy Sauter. Greta also conscientiously leaves a bit of her sense of responsibility to Rosie Du Fresne. TWENTY-SIXTH: Helen Barlow has agreed to leave Don to the next lucky Senior who can guarantee to look out for his general welfare and furnish at least two (2) notes a day. To Dorothy Chase, she wills her “non-fussable” poise. TWENTY-SEVENTH: Cora Miles gladly shifts the responsibility of being an example to “kid sister” upon Jane West, cautioning her to guide her well. TWENTY-EIGHTH: To the students as a whole. James Thompson, in consideration of the general health, donates his daily snoozes. To Lee Fisher, lie passes on a toothless comb. TWENTY-NINTH : Ruth Hicks leaves her marcelled coiffure to Eileen Ralph, and gives “ye wicked eeyn to Bessie Bacon. TlIIRTIET11 : F'inally, with due regrets upon leaving, yet with the usual thoughtfulness of our members, we bestow a general admission of gratitude upon the faculty for helping us along the rocky way. To the Juniors, we leave our worn, yet worthy shoes. Witness our marks this twenty-fourth day of April, in the year of our Lord, nineteen hundred and twenty-two. Witnessed by: Heck. “A’s to F’s.” Page Tii'cnty-thrcc

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 BI5BIL A dignified in high school, though, didn't you? W asn't it you, too, who told me that Helen Christenson was made professor of Greek and Latin at the I ”? Someone said that all the students were deathly afraid of her; you see. she wears big pince-nez, which give her a wild look, so they say. Wasn't it thrilling to hear that James Thompson was made official bouncer at the Arcadia? I remember that he always used to have a very commanding bearing. It seems perfectly lovely to think that Margaret Morris did actually win the governorship of Utah, especially over Gregory Ladd. Of course. 1 only voted for her because there weren’t any other women candidates, but 1 do insist on voting for women in all public offices! Greta Clark is running for municipal dog catcher and 1 do hope she’ll win. It’s quite a prize, but she always used to win all the prizes in school, you know. 1 had saved a newspaper that I was going to send to you. but it was destroyed, so I’ll try to tell you the contents that I wanted you to read. It seemed that so many of our old school friends had come into the limelight at once. There was an article about Joseph Woods and Winifred Hilgedick, prohibition officers, who recently made a successful raid on “Shady Cellars.” and who do you think owned the place? Marion Larson, of all people! In the same column it told how Jimmie Perkins and Florence Pierce, alias Slippery Pete and Fancy Flossie.” were arrested for breaking into 1). Sauter’s barber shop and stealing $26.48. I was never quite so flabbergasted— Slippery Pete and Fancy Flossie,” when all these years I’d remembered them as a sweet and innocent girl and boy; they used to be held as good examples to the rest of us, but I guess you never can tell in their tender years. There were two other articles 1 wanted you to read; one told that Lida Burrill and Robert Tyrell were working for doctor’s degrees on the problem of determining the coefficient of expansion of concrete shoe laces; this served to decrease the blackness of the other reports. The last one was about a truly surprising member of our class. The Rev. David 11. Canfield has created quite a stir in his good work done in Hollywood reforms. Two rival screen vain pires. Fanny Graham and Margaret Erickson, are notables among his converts. The other day 1 did a funny thing. I saw a circus bill and had a mad desire to go. since I hadn’t been to one since you and I were twelve. For one of the headliners on the program a large placard was put up bearing the names of the performers: Mine. Swedella. M. Blondolla, and Herculette. the human airplanes.” It bore no significance to me, however, until the performers appeared. Then 1 saw Doris and Lawrence Anderson go through delicate feats on the tight-rope and trapeze. On the outside of the tent Marjorie Cheney and Ruth Ecklcs were getting-rich-quick by efficiently carrying water to the elephants by their improved trunk line. Leslie Blomberg was selling popcorn and peanuts to the crowds. He has profited unusually well, however, for, with a delivery truck, a family heirloom, he covers four Sunday School picnics to the ordinary one. This letter sounds as if it should be addressed to Mrs. Grundy, herself, but it was all started by seeing Imogen again. Oh. yes. I forgot—I was downtown shopping yesterday, and when I was going by Child’s I nearly passed away, for there in the window, as big as life, stood Dana Bailey in full chef’s costume, flipping pancakes as precisely as if they had been footballs. I’ll try to write oftener after this, so that my letters won’t be so thick as to be a burden to the postman. Your old friend. UNIVERSITY OF MlNNESOlA. RUTH' HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY Page TWc„ly-fiv, MIMNFaPi i| |q vn i»e