Waltham High School - Mirror Yearbook (Waltham, MA)

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Prophecy of the Class of 1916 HE feeling that I must go back home to llfaltham after many years of ab- sence came to me as l was dressing one morning in a little seven by seven state- room on the huge t'Transcontinental Aero- plane Expressf' The evening before I' had been reading Nazie Yan- der XVyk's Herbs and Their Uses. I had bought the book of Gladys Orr at the news- stand in the Express station a t Adanae. Gladys had a reputation there not unlike Samuel Johnsons Pa. It was said of her that she was so well acquainted with the voiumes which she exposed for sale that the express ofhcials thought her an oracle on modern Best Sellers. W'hen I first saw the book on the shelf, I thought that the author's name looked familiar. I am sure now that the author of this book and the Mazie I knew in school are iden- tical, for if I remember correctly, Mazie once wrote a long article in the High School Mirror just to inform us that she could not get an inspiration. My purchase taught me that she is still without one, for the story was so uninteresting that I threw the book over the side of the aeroplane and did not even look to see where it had landed. I have a habit of going through my pockets if I haven't anything else to do, and as this was my predicament after throwing away my literary purchase, I went carefully and slowly through them, finding, much to my surprise, in my inside pocket a neat un- , K opened envelope. That morning when I asked for my mail at the desk in the Nettor Ielotel, Vilma liittredge handed it to me. Now I had never spoken to her before in my life, that I know of. but since we were both originally from Wial- tham and because there was no rush at the desk that morning I stayed and had a line talk with her. much to the plainly evident envv of the , f' many business men who loafed in the lobby. Naturally enough, I ask- ed if there were any lValtliam folk staying there. lust one, she said, but Gladys Stevens, Thelma lllakely, Grace Xliinslow and Alberta Sanderson, under the name of 'The lIard Shell Quartettef with Delphine Haskins, pianist, were here all last week. Thelma is the manager, arranges the program, star soloist, prints the handbills and tickets, makes the tour arrangements. holds the cash and O. Kfs the bills, I ven- tured. All right except one, said Yilma, she is not the manager. Delphine is. I had forgotten that Delphine was strongly inclined towards suffragism. Had herself appointed to that position ?' I asked. Yilma didn't know or at least the tele- phone bell rang and she had to answer it. The conversation at this end of the wire was of course disconnected. Hello-what room-number, please-you say that in walk-

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PROPHECY ing across the Hoor you cut your head on the chandelier F-do you want a doctor ?- yes-yes-all right Miss Sewall, l'll attend to it at once. - If she wants first aid. I can help her, I whispered to Yilma. Vilma shook her head. Yes-shall I send a maid P-all right-yes-yes-Good- bye. A.Xntl she's got the biggest room in the place, said Vilma, turning to me, what do you know about that XYhen the doctor came I left. lint to get hack to the letter. XYhen she gave me my mail the envelope had been among the rest. It was necessary that I read my business mail before I left Adanac. so I had stuffed my personal matter into this pocket, and just like me I had entirely forgotten it. The handwriting was a bit familiar. but I knew by the punctuation that it was from Marion Chapin. It was the first letter I had re- ceived from her since I left High School in IQIG. You can imagine I quickly opened and read it. Marion had made a good big sum making and selling candy and wanted my advice about investing it in the llaltham Chemical Company, now run, owned and financed by Hon. Charles Ilurnham of Rob- erts, who. like his predecessor, Mr. Martin. was strong on politics. chemicals and cock- roaches. The letter closed, as most letters do, and to it was added in postscript form. I'odgy French linally graduates next week. XYhy don't you come to ll'altham? This occasion is certainly worth it. At that moment a door somewhere closed with a bang and an oliicer in pnre white came up to me and asked me if it were I that had just thrown a package overboard. Sure, Xliesleyf' I said, putting the letter into the envelope and the envelope into my pocket. Sure I did. Wihat is the harm F Gilbert was some surprised to be ad- dressed by his front name, but he recognized me after one long look. Hello, Doc, he exclaimed, nearly shak- ing my hand and arm off as he did so. He always called me 'Doc.' It was my nick- name in the Jr ll. MET XYIFE .NTI CORRESPONDENCE AGENCY So it was you, was it? XVell, I hope there is no harm done, but whenever there is, tht-,courts hold the company responsible. just last year Lincoln McCullough met his corresptindence-agency wife on board here for the first time. She affected him so strongly that he threw a stool at her and, as in his guesses in English, he missed. A week later we got summoned to court. Ma- bflle Spencer was suing us for SIODOO. It seems that the stool unfortunately fell in the tub in which Mabel was washing some lace. And she claimed that she caught cold from the water that was splashed on her, and that the cold ruined her voice. She sang before .fudge I'ickett and her tones were lierce all right. But I think that it was a put up job. Associate judge Stone didn't see it that way, and Pickett is deaf in one ear anyway. so she got the money. Since then we have been niighty careful. XYhile we had been talking, we had been unconsciously walking and we found our- selves in front of his room. ' Come in, Charlie, he said. 'fThere is someone else in'here who will be glad to see yon. Olive, I thought, but I was mistaken. There were two small bunks in the rooms and on one of them his friend lay sleeping. lYesley woke him and he got up, reached for his cap, grinned at Gilbert and opened the door. Don't be hasty, Gilbert said to him. Here is a friend of ours from XVal- thamf' jackson recognized me at once, but he only shook hands and hurried off, for, as Xyesley explained, Jacksons watch began in one minute and it would not do for him't0 be late. Gilbert himself had to turn in, so I left him, giving him my card and asking him to write me, once a year or so.