Wells High School - Crimson and Gray Yearbook (Southbridge, MA)

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EPITORIALS CO-OPERATION Co-operation, the dictionary says, is the act of working jointly together. The Mary E. Wells High School is the pride of over three hundred students. Do these students co-operate? Do they get as much out of school as they ought? Take for instance the student who comes to school every morning, goes through his classes, and leaves school at 3 P. M. School parties? Oh, he doesn ' t like parties. Basketball, football, baseball? Why does he want to spend his money and time watching these games? Then last, and let us mention now the main object of this editorial, The Crimson and Gray. Here again the high school student thinks, why do I have to spend a dollar in this way, when I can read the other fellow ' s for nothing ? So the student who lets his duty slip by in the other school activities, does the same when his school paper is about to be pub- lished. His paper! The paper of which he is part owner! The paper containing the ac tivities of his school! Is this student getting as much out of school as he ought? How much is he putting in? To have co-operation in a school, every stu dent — the Freshman, the Sophomore, the Junior, and the Senior — who takes pride in himself and his class, must put every ounce of energy possible into his school. A few students, of course, are co-operat- ing, but we want all to work together ; all to have one aim: More co-operation in the school. In a way we are all one big family. If there is no co-operation in a family, what happens ? You can answer that for yourself. Our high school is the highest institution of learning in this town. Do we want the town ' s people to be interested in our activi- ties? Of course we do, but we must ' first be interested in them ourselves, and show some amount of co-operation. Agnes Tait, ' 26. THANKSGIVING DAY What does Thanksgiving Day mean to you? Does it still mean a day on which you are going to have a feast of turkey, cran- berry sauce, mince pie, ice cream, etc. ; or have you another meaning for it? When we were young children, the only idea which came to our mind when we heard of Thanksgiving, was the pleasure and good time we were going to have. But now, what should we know about Thanksgiving? We should know that it is a legal holiday, cele- brated in all parts of the United States ; that it is a day set apart for a public acknowledge - ment of Divine goodness and mercies; and that it has been a holiday since the days of the Pilgrims. On Thanksgiving Day, we should not think only of putting work aside and enjoy- ing ourselves, but we should give, at least, a few minutes to thinking of our Pilgrim Fathers, their hardships in colonizing the New World, and their glorious success. By doing this, I am sure that we would enjoy our feast a great deal more, and the holiday would be spent more happily than if we had thought of only ourselves. Delina Dugas, ' 26. DON ' T BE A BORE All bores talk about themselves. Delight- ful conversationalists either talk about the person they are addressing, or allow that in- dividual to talk high, wide and frequently about himself. If you have a hobby, ride it alone. If you have symptoms, keep them to yourself. If you have ambitions, do not compel a long- suffering friend to listen to your architec- tural ideas for your air castles in Spain. There are lots and lots of people who at times are supremely happy just to sit and say nothing, and have you say nothing to them.

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CONTENTS Editorials Co-operation Thanksgiving Day Don ' t Be a Bore The Courage To Be Somebody What Do You Know About Music? Literature .... A Brother Too Many Pluck A Hallowe ' en Party How We Won the Game My Trip to Mexico Locals 12 Alumni 13 Jokes 15 Exchanges 18 Athletics 19

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THE CRIMSON AND GRAY The way not to be a bore, the way to be in- teresting, is to be interested. Even Thomas A. Edison cannot thrill his hearers by telling them how little sleep he had the night before. If he can ' t get away with it, how can you? Sympathy soon turns into a suppressed yawn. Interest keeps alive only in promissory notes. Each of us has some one subject which is a fair-haired child to him, but a cause of well defined pain to others. He drags that sub- ject into the conversation whenever he can — and that is on all occasions — and delivers a Chautauqua course upon it. Think it over. Figure out what it is. Put your finger on it and press hard. When you get to heaven, don ' t even tell St. Peter how you got there. He has heard the same story a billion times. Walk right in and make it heaven for the rest of us by leav- ing your hobby tied outside the gate. Roland Delage, ' 26. THE COURAGE TO BE SOMEBODY It takes courage to be somebody. It takes courage to come out of the ranks and show yourself different. There is safety in num- bers, and a good many people feel secure when they are thinking like others and act- ing like others. Columbus needed courage along with other things. Probably more men than we have any idea of agreed with him in his theory of reaching India by sailing west; but there were not many with the courage to say so, to face the sneers and scowls brought forth by such an opinion. The leaders in a new move ment may be ahead of the crowd intellectual- ly, but they must also be ahead of it in point of courage. Some, who are fitted intellectually to be leaders, fail because they are not brave enough. They lack the courage to lift them- selves over the heads of others. They lack courage to be somebody. Philip Renaud, ' 26. WHAT DO YOU KjNOW ABOUT MUSIC? Do The Three B ' s mean anything to you? Have you ever listened with a queer feeling in your heart to the strains of Chopin ' s beautiful Prelude in D Flat and heard the note of longing that is carried throughout the entire piece? If not, you have missed one of the loveliest things in life. When you hear Greig ' s To Spring spoken of, does it not call to your mind right away the lovely swinging movement of this composition that is so suggestive of the spring season ? Do you realize the hard- ships and privations which these great men endured in order that you might listen to their works? It is wicked that countless numbers of peo- ple know little or nothing about the real music of the world. All the Jazz-crazed world seems to want at present is to listen to the moan of several instruments in a snappy fox-trot. They never give a thought as to who composed the music they listen to, and never once stop to think that some of our most popular dance pieces are taken al- most directly from the old masters ' works. The beautiful classics are being robbed of their loveliest phrases which are set to the time of the modern dance piece. People seem to be afraid of the word Classic. One should not turn a deaf ear when a piece is being played that has an espe- cially long name attached, and therefore is expected to be very dry and horrid. It is not fair to prejudice yourself against listening to good music. Listen with an open mind to whatever is being played, and try to gather something from it. Different kinds of music appeal to differ- ent people. Make a study of, or at least hear enough music to know which type suits you best, just as the most exacting women hunt eagerly for certain perfumes meant for them. Do not be so foolish as to confine your- self to the enjoyment of jazz music. This music is easy to understand and is like des- sert. Too many sweets are sickening, and you will soon tire of jazz if you continually make up your mind to listen to nothing else. The world (especially our own country) is now going through a period of poor music. What is the matter with us? Is so much of our time taken up with business that we find no time for the arts that should find a place in everyone ' s life? What are the Americans doing in the musical world? Leading high- paying jazz orchestras. That is true, but who are the leaders of the great Symphony