Wakefield High School - Oracle Yearbook (Wakefield, MA)

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THK W. H. S. DKBATKK rA(iE XINK c=; a l}=3 Issued b J the Senior Class olt the WdkeHeld High School Alec G. Williams Margaret Clark ) Marion Keiitiedy ) Millard Threslier Arthur Maxwell Noriuau Kiutjstou Eliot Z wicker Editor. Assistant Editors. Business Manayer. Assistant Business ! lana j:er, Exchange Editor. Athletic Editor. T we sTRioe HIS Dkuatku is the jood-l).ve number for the memhers of the Senior class. Tlie time has come when we must say oood-hye to the teacdiers who have helped u«i, and the huildiny- which has sheltered us. We are about to drop the baud which has led us, and to strike out for ourselves. Let us strive. The world with its work and play, pleasures and sor- rows, is ours, and we must use it an l use it well. Let us not forijet we are of the seneralion which must soon rule the land. As we step on to the staye, some- body steps off, and in jroino- says, My place is yours, use it well. Let us never fortjet the ideals which have been tauoht us. Let us give our lives to the world, that the world may be benefited by them. Oh, friends, let us be good, be honest, be true, merciful in l)ower, and courageous in trouble. May the light of (io( shine ever upon us. The Dekatkr says good-bye and God speed to the class of 1915. OiK fathers are citizens of liie town of Wakeliehl. ' IMiey are good citizens and we are prou l of them. We are citizens of the Wakefield High School. We also must be good citizens. The Debater questions if the citizens of our school live up to their citizenshii) as well as the citizens of the town of Wakefield. The town of Wakefield goes to great expense each year, that its streets may be clean and beautiful. Do the citizens of our school attend to paper in the aisles and empty desks? The town of W akefield maintains good order in its midst. Do the citizens of our school liave tlie same respect for law ? l,et us think this over from the teachers ' i)oint of view, (iet to know the teachers. We shall discover that they are human, after all, and have many of the same views of life that we have. If we were to do these little things, and other duties that come our way, we should indeed be citizens of a community that we could be proud of. Let us remem- ber that in our little town we have the opportunity to accpiire those qualities which make for good citizenship- In two of the greatest disasters on the sea that the world has ever known American men have shown that they can die like heroes. Let us, the living, show that we know how to live like heroes. 1mim;ovk your oiq)ortunities. Young man in the Freshman class, have you improved your opportunities this winter? Are you going to become a Sophomore

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taop: EI (i I it THE w. IT. s. dei}atp:h THE CO M VIEHCIAL OEPART VIENT H OW many people liave ever thonjulit of the ad- — vauta -e the Coininercial Departmeut affords W the pupils of the Waketiekl Hiy-h School? Perhai)8 if more cousideratiou was gfiven this course, there would be more interest sliowu in it. What does this department afford the averatje boy and girl who must leave school after their hijj-h school course? This is the only departmeut in the school in which the boys and girls are fitted to earn tlieir own living- after graduating-. It (jualities the student to take dictation witl) the average stenograi)her and gives him a moderate rate of speed in ty])e-writing-. C ' omi)lex book-keeping is also taught while letter-writing re- ceives careful and thorough attention. But with all these advantages there is still one very necessary thing lacking in this Iepartment. That is room space to accommodate all the classes. The com- mercial department in the Wakefield High School numbers eighty-two students. At certain times in one of the three rooms used for this department, there are fifty i)ui)ils some studying and some reciting at the same time ; wliile in the next room, separated by a partition which is merely a frame work, Iwenfy-four or twenty-five type writers are going at once. Other students are forced to study in a room wiiich should be used for drawing purposes only, and whicii has no desks or conveniences for liolding pajjcrs or books. li some of the good citizens of our town would come and visit our school and note the crowdeil conditions, I am sure that they would go away thorouglily con- vinced that the right time has come for our town to have a new high school. 31ari()n- Kennkdv, Com. ' 15. Her manners are beyond criticism. She does not chew gum, neither does she laugh or talk loudly in ]nib- lic places, or at the office. She regards i)unctuality as a necessity, and arrives at the office a little before time, rather than late, and IS not afraid to remaiii after hours, if there is any- thing to be done. Accuracy is a very important element in the making of an ideal stenographer. She i)ractises shorthand until she can read it cpiickly and accurately. H ' an em])lojer has to wait for liis stenographer to make out shorthand o itlines in a liurry letter, it oftentimes loses liim busi- ness. Accuracy aiail ability to read notes (juickly are necessary to the ideal stenographer. ' Anyone can write shorthand, but if he cannot read it, what is it worth? There is no profession in whicli there is so much neeil of good t nglish, as there is in stenograi)hy. If the employer lacks a good knowledge of English, and makes an error in dictating, the stenograjiher must correct it. But if the stenographer is the one tiiat is deficient in this respect, and the errors are not cor- rected, tlie em])loyer is likely to be ridiculed, and he will soon find it necessary to get a new assistant. The ideal office assistant is very careful about her spelling. Careless mistakes in siielling, such as p ' inciple for ' l)rincipal, know for no ' to for ' too , are ver.v annoying, and show very little thought on tiie part of the stenographer. The ideal stenogra])her regards honesty as the best l)olicy . She is always ready to admit an error, and while at the office considers only the interests of lier emi)l()yer. Siie is courteous and considerate at all times, as she is the representative of iier employer. A stenographer, having these cljaracteristics, is work- ing to success, and deser es to be called an ideal office assistant . i I. E. KicKKK, Commercial ' 15 THE ID6AL OFFICE ASSISTANT Our building is a hive of ind.ustry from morning till THERE are many necessary- (lualitications in the making of the ideal (flii ' e assistant, but ai - evening and, in the winter months, even into (he night. pearance is regarded as the most essential. With the forenoon sessions for upper classes and after- The ideal office assistant dresses neatly, and noon sessions for the freshmen, the elementary Evening attractively. i)ut not in the extreme of fashion, taking pai ' ticular notice of the little but iinijortant things, that help to make an attractive |)ei-sonal appearance, such as shtjcs i)olished, hair combed in a becoming manner, finger nails neatly manicured. At the office she shows the utmost care in keeping her desk and offic-e sur- roundings in order. School and School for .Millinery, the Boys ' Debating Society, the (iirls ' l)el)ating Society, the monthly meet- ing of the Wakelield I mi)ro enient .Vssociation. and the regular meeting of tlie (iirN ' (Jlee Club, there woidd seem to be little further use to which the building- eoulil be put. We wonder that the janitor can tind oppor- lunitx to keep the building in condition.

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pa(;e ten THE W. ir. S. DElJATEli with five or ten jioiuts to make up : ' We have been in the High School for four years. We understand it fairly well. We know that opportunities lost in school are lost forever. Ten points lost mean a lot of trouble at the end of the Senior year. As it is in school, so it will be in life. We who have learned say to you who are learniny do not let anything- get by you while you are in the Wakefield High School. If you improve your time here, you will be sure to improve it in later life. le- member that in nine cases out of ten, I don ' t know , and, l can ' t , are the result of i)ure laziness. ] e dili- gent, and improve your opjKjrtunities. We regret to announce that, because of lack of space, we have been obliged to omit from our columns an in- teresting letter from Editor Cade of The Tech News, Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Mr. Cade, who is a graduate of the Wakefield High School, says the Poly- technic Institute is an ideal place for a young man. TiiK Dkhatkh congratulates Mr. Howe on the last fire drill, in whicli the building was cleared in the record breaking time of one minute and forty seconds witli- out noise or confusion. It has been said that the boys of Wakefield lack ini- tiative. This the Dkisatek feels to be untrue, and is a bit indignant that such a charge should have V)een made. Acts speak louder than words, boys, therefore, be forceful in the management of all your enterprises. I n the light of world events, it would seem wise for all human beings to ponder in their hearts the words found in a rare old Book, Thou shalt love thy neigh- bor as thyself. TnosK of us who were fortunate enough to liear Jerry Buckley ' s rendering of Robert Emmet ' s last speech will not soon forget it. VVe are sorry to lose Jerry from our ranks, but we are glad of tlu ' new op- portunity that has come to him. THE A MERICAN MEHCHANT MAHINE qv? qv? We congratulate the winners of the honor parts this year. All the members of the class feel tliat those so honored are the ones wiio deserve the honor. I ' or four years they have set a good example to their class- mates ; they have been good and cheerful friends and companions. Oil boys, if you would but work, you might shine likewise. THE situation of the American Merchant Marine, forty years before the Civil War, was one of !@li ascendency. It held sway over the commerce of the Western Hemisphere, thereby bestow- ing upon American shii)pers, a position of importance in foreign and domestic financial affairs. Practically every city on the Atlantic coast boasted a fleet of mer- chantmen, equal in number to a tenth of its male popu- lation, sailing under the American flag. These vessels were manned almost entirely by American citizens, to whom the time-honored customs of the high seas were a sufficient law. Such a merchant marine had been develoi)ed by the constantly increasing production of cotton in the South, and of manufactured goods in the North, which greatly exceeded the demand in this country. However, this condition of affairs was soon to be terminated by two causes, both vitally important to the United States : first, the Civil War, and second, the opjjression of American sailors. At the time of the Civil War, the American Navj consisted of a few poorly-armed vessels, which could not be cousidej ' ed as men-of-war. Consequently, the merchantmen of both North and South were com- mandeered by their respective governments, to engage in bl()(dvade duty, which determined tlie downfall of the Confederacy. So bitter was the struggle, that at the end of the war, only a mere fragment of the fleets of once prosperous merchantmen remained. Tlie causes of the second blow to our merchant marine, namely, the opi)ression of the sailors, were maiiy and varied. During the thirty years directly jtreceding lS50,the i)rofits which bad been deriveil from .American vessels in trade with Great Britain and tiie West Indies had been immediately re-invested in more ships until American shijjpers were overstocked witii merciiant- men, thus giving rise to keen competition. The fore- most siii]! owners, being well ecjuipped witii essels, ceased to re-invest their profits, but combined to form a corporation, for the i)uri)ose of i)utting an end to indi- vi lual ownership. This was soon followed by other combinations which precipitated the comj etition into a war for financial control. There could be hut one result. The comi)anies immediately began reducing exi)enses by diminishing the oi)erating costs. This led to such ojjpression of vXmerican sailors, that stringent laws were ])assed by the I ' lnted States government, which together with the ravages of the war (•omi lctely demoralized American shii)i)ing. Ill the fifty years that have elapsed since the close of the Civil War, the condition of .American shippers has