Waltham High School - Mirror Yearbook (Waltham, MA)

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Salutator JEANNETTE n,nVaoLL LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: HE Class of Nineteen Hundred and Twelve welcomes you cordially to these exercises, which mark the close of our High School life. Qur school days have been busy, happy ones and they make us look forward with pleasure to the life be- books lies the soul of the Wfhole Past Time: the articulate, audible voice of the Past. when the body and material substance of it has altogether vanished like a dream. Perhaps the most inspiring books are those which tell about the lives of famous peo- fore us. ple. There is something In school we have pl HVAAI ullvv If inexplicable in a well- been continually urged Y i 'i ',i,, i written biography, which to do things which I we gain in no other should be of lasting Q kind of book. In auto- benefit. This last year, in -t':g 'D A biographies especially, especially, We have been A , the living spirit of the encouraged to read A i'i ii 'V,g . l ii' man breathes through books worth reading ' ,tsp every paragraph and and a list of the best 1 cannot but be inspiring. was given to each pupil. . A In the late Tom L. Now, is it not a waste Y,q, 5 if .Iohnson's book, The - --' ff f' t of time to read books which give us nothing to . think about and no in- ,ff ' ' , gag' . formation, when other 5 is books, written in just , Story of My Life, we feel very keenly the in- domitable power and will which fought so long and splendidly to as interesting a style, are at hand? For instance, we all know the bare history of the Civil NVar, the dates of the battles and the number of men killed, fvwlzajvs, but how many of us ever realized the human, the personal, the utterly sad part of it all until We had read such books as The Crisis or Tarbell's Life of Lin- coln ? NVe learn the facts of Roman his- tory, but it takes The Last Days of Pompeiil' to make us realize that real peo- ple lived at that time who felt in just the same way that we feel. These books are more interesting than many purely im- aginative stories, because they give the spirit of the past. XVe surely owe much to these books and we realize our debt, the more We read them. As Carlyle says: In conquer at last, and the thought comes to us, that if he could iight against great odds so bravely, surely we can tight and conquer our petty daily troubles. Reading the lives of such people as Alice Freeman Palmer, Booker T. Xlfashington. Thomas A. Edison, Lord Nelson, or Daniel XVebster incites us to accomplish things as they did. As one of the great uses of books is to arouse a good ambition in us, surely those books are most useful to us which have that intiuence. One good result of reading standard authors, such as Dickens and others who portray human nature wonderfully well, is the interest it gives us in people round about us. NVe like to watch them and see wherein they resemble characters with

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SALUTATORY whom we have become familiar through our reading. Everyone has met a Micawber. always waiting for something to turn up a Mrs. Micawber, who will never desert Mr. Micawberf' a beautiful little Nell, with someone depending upon her: a splen- did Agnes, ready to be a good angel to some David, and even a Uriah Heep, who is al- ways 'umblef' lVhen we are alone in a crowd, we feel much less lonely if we can amuse ourselves by finding the types of people about which we have read. Another result of good reading is the ability to discuss interesting subjects in an interesting manner and with enjoyment. A mutual enjoyment of books immediately gives a common bond of interest. Through another's eyes, we see the book in new light. If it is worth while, there are usually social conditions, characters or historical events to talk over. By this means, we gain a new insight into life and broaden our interests. No one is pleasanter to meet than the person who has read books on varied subjects and who enjoys talking about them. Then, too, historical novels are good sources from which to get the history of the times about which they are written, in a pleasant way. 3 From this it must not be inferred that we have not noticed, appreciated, and taken advantage of the progressive movement in our school during the last four years. Im- been made and we have not been blind to them. The Athletic Field is filling a long-felt need in portant strides forward have giving the school its own ground for all kinds of sports: an excellent equipment for presenting dramas in our own hall is surely a splendid additiong then, a vocational bureau has been formed to help those who wish, to hnd congenial workg the courses of study have be-eu enlarged and a great advance in Domestic Science and Physical Culture has been made. In the last two years, also, we have had the privilege of hearing men in the different professions as well as in business, tell about their work. Thus, we have had the advantage of listen- ing to a number of inspiring, live talks. Yet we believe that the reading of good books is essential and fundamental in any scheme of education in every age. More- over, there is a danger of forgetting this. especially today, when public school educa- tion tends so strongly toward the utilitarian. So our apology for speaking on this old- fashioned subject is-- Lest we forget. A A14 tm on -NN , 'H 2 9, Q0 I E K I E, I7 jf Q QL 5 f :J If E EAA L! -alibi Mic EQ7 'YSQ