Watkins Glen High School - Senecan Oracle Yearbook (Watkins Glen, NY)

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THE PEPPER POT 5 experienced the true Christmas spirit and have been brought closer to the words, “Behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be unto all people.” —Mrs. Winifred Love, Our Principal We wish to call attention to a well known member of our faculty, one who has at heart the best interest of every boy and girl in school, Mr. John A. Beers, who by his capability, loyalty, and devotion has built up our school to its present high standards. Professor Beers began his education at Candor, Pa. After graduating from the High School, he entered the Susquehanna Collegiate Institute and was the valedictorian of his class. From there he entered Syracuse University from which he was graduated with election to Phi Beta Kappa and the degree, Bachelor of Arts, Magna Cum Laude! Since his election as Principal he has been untiring in his efforts in behalf of the best interests of the school and has won the esteem and admiration of all the students, who wish him many more successful years in Watkins Glen High School. A Hearty Welcome to Our New Teachers! As the members of the office force of any organization are ever changing, so, necessarily, is that vital part of our school organization,—the faculty. It is with regret that we lost our beloved teachers, Miss Swallow and Mr. Casey, but we realize that they were but making way for others who, like them, will give their best, that this school may progress. We do, therefore, heartily

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4 THE PEPPER POT Those of us who have stood before a caudle and sung: carols on Christmas eve know it is one of the most thrill-ingly beautiful of all our Christmas experiences. Yet its origin is almost lost in obscurity. However, in looking-back over the centuries, we find that long after Christmas was recognized as a Christian festival of great importance there was a great hearted and lovable man named St. Francis who lived in Assissi, Italy. Realizing with dismay that the idea of Christ was becoming too much of a mere theological abstraction he sought some means of presenting in a real way the human side of our Lord’s life. This he did by placing in the church at Grecia, near Assissi, a manger, an ox and all the trappings of a stable. It was a reproduction, as far as he and his brethren knew, to bring to the people the realistic side of the Christmas story. It served well its purpose and to this event we owe not only the origin of the Christmas carols but also the mystery plays. Strange as it may seem many of the most beautiful carols are unknown to the majority of people nowadays. How many of us know the beautiful old French carol, “Cantique de Noel,” or “Good King Wencesles,” “God Rest You Merry Gentlemen,” or “The First Noel.” Perhaps the only Christmas hymn which originated in America is “0 Little Town of Bethlehem,” the poem being written by Phillip Brooks in 1868. It was set to music by Lewis Redner of Philadelphia. The hymn “Joy To the World,” was written by I)r. Isaac Watts, and the tune “Antioch” is an adaptation from Handel’s oratoria “Messiah.” Most of the carol tunes, however, were of folk order, being popular melodies of the times adapted to carol words. In this lovely old mediavel custom, which has been revived in America, millions of people have, in a measure

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6 THE PEPPER POT welcome you their worthy successors,—Miss Prentice, Mr. Perry and Mr. Fox. Miss Prentice conies to us from Elmira College and Mr. Perry from Horseheads High School where, we are sure, they were as sorrowfully lost as they were joyously added to our faculty. Mr. Perry now has his Master’s d gree, and it is understood he is working for his Doctor’s degree. May his be success! Mr. Fox conies from Cortland Normal School, where he recently completed his under-graduate work. Though young in experience, he has already exhibited, as have Miss Prentice and Mr. Perry, unlimited ability as a teacher. May their work in Watkins Glen High School prove an endless joy to them; not a task, but a pleasure. Again we sav: Welcome ! ! Student Government When this magnificent nation of ours was first welded into a perpetual union under the Constitution, the government was quite simple in comparison to that of today. But, as we have progressed and our life has become more complex, the government has also increased in its complexity, the result of which has been the creation of numerous branches. Time and use have proved that through the co-operation of the heads of departments and these subordinate branches, greater efficiency has prevailed and satisfaction to all concerned has been assured. The same may be said of the government in schools. With the growth of large schools has come the need for better relationship between school official and student body. To meet this need various forms of “student government” have arisen. In high schools, one of the most successful of these has been that of a student council, composed of the student body, with the presidents of classes and societies acting as an executive body linking