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

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THE CRIMSON AND GRAY THE FIVE MEN DOUGLAS STEENBURN ' 47 The torpedo hit us without any warning. The ship was in flames and sinking rapidly. Dead and wound- ed were strewn everywhere. The lifeboat was jammed with dazed sailors. As we pulled away from our gal- lant dying ship, we heard over the loud-speaker sys- tem, the fearless voices of five doomed men trapped in the wireless room. The five brave men were say- ing the Lord ' s Prayer. The words of the prayer were heard by all above the explosions and the cries of the wounded. While we were listening, the ocean seemed very calm and quiet; the five voices echoed over the ocean as they will echo in our minds forever. A PLEA FOR RAINY DAYS NATALIE HAZELTON ' 47 Have you ever watched the rain come streaming down and thought that your day was ruined? For most people this would be a question easy to answer They would nod their heads and think back to an outdoor wedding, a double header baseball game, or the washing that had to come down off the line But to other people, a rainy day promises a good time or a pleasant day spent indoors. For a child, a rainy, day was a day to look forward to in the week. If it was Saturday, vou had to play indoors and as a result, mother fed you hot cookies and cake fresh from the oven. On thi? day, the spicy odors of ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg mingled with rhe smells of chocolate, yeast, and other delicious ingredients. Since the rain made the day seem cold and damp, maybe a fire was lighted in the fireplace. This, coupled with the rain outside, made the house seem very cheerful and inviting. And who hasn ' t gone to sleep on a rainy night with the drumming drops of rain lulling you into drowsy sleep? This is one of the most pleasant ways to fall asleep, in my estimation. Counting sheep to conquer insomnia is not half so easy as listening to the rain. Walking in the rain is another fascinating pleas- ure heralded by the rain. The noise one makes as one ' s boots slosh through the puddles and gutters of flowing torrents gives one a thrill of enjoyment. Read- ing a good murder book and drinking a coke before a roaring fire after your excursion in the rain is an entertaining way to spend an evening with nothing else to do. Surely even you must be able to find some fun on a rainy day. THE ATOMIC AGE CARL MATSON ' 46 When the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, the lapanese had no idea what hit them. All that the military intelligence knew was that three planes had been sighted over the city. Suddenly the Hiroshima radio went dead and all communication with the city was gone. By some magic, the entire city seemed to have vanished. Later upon investigation, the japs found a citv of utter ruin with a hundred thousand dead and two hundred thousand burned. This is what hap- nend to Hiroshima and this is exactly what could happen to one of our cities. It appears that the atomic bomb could give its possessor the power to -.tart anrl finr.h a war in loss time than it takes to tell about it. le from this gruesome side of the atomic bomb, ; ientists seem to think that the power of the atom can be used in a peaceful nature. It is the opinion of some that the atom can serve as power for future trains, automobiles, ships, and airplanes. It is a known fact that in reality the only thing holding back the rocket ship is that means of carrying suf- ficient fuel has not been found. Atomic power could eliminate this fault because of the tremendous power that can result from an object as small as the atom. It has been stated that two atoms of uranium could furnish enough power to drive the Queen Mary across the Atlantic Ocean. With this in mind, we can see that the atom, put to a practical use, would gain more for a country than when used as a weapon of war. At the present time this country is more concerned with atomic power in war than with atomic power in peace. The recent decision of our government to conceal the process of manufacturing the atomic bomb from other countries meets my wholehearted approv- al. However, I do not believe this will prevent those other countries from eventually learning the se- cret of manufacturing the bomb. We can prevent the disclosure of the secret, but we cannot prevent atom research from being made in these other countries. The process of splitting the atom has been known for years. The length of time it will take these other countries to develop the process of manufacturing the bomb is exactly the length of time we have to find a way, if possible, to combat it. Unless we take positive steps to prevent it, we will find ourselves in a world armed with atomic bombs rather than a progressive world cashing in on the practical use of atomic power. The result will be war, since there is bound to be another world power monger. With this in mind, we can sit back and wait for the first — and final — atomic war. ODE TO A MOLE LUCILLE LUSICNAN ' 46 Oh lowly creature that thou art, Who liveth and toileth beneath the earth, Hast thou a mind, hast thou a heart, Hast thou a wit to bring thee mirth? If these things thou dost not crave, What kind of creature can thee be? Thou were not meant to be a slave, But a creation of Him who made all things free. MY DADDY IS HOME CHRISTINE WALKER ' 47 Nancy had tried every method she knew in her at- tempt to get to sleep, but try as she would, she was still wide awake. Perhaps it was just the thought that kept running through her head. It might have been the light that was shining under the door. Yes, that was what it was, the light was en in the living room. Her mommie was sitting up waiting for some man to come whom mommie called daddy. A man was coming home to stay at this very house. Well, she was going to show them. She would run away. She wasn ' t going to stay in any old house with any old man that took her mommie away from her. Nancy started to get up and then, hearing the front door open, she decided to peek out the door to see what he looked like. Slipping out of bed, she padded across the floor. Her pink nightie hung down to her little white toes which she wiggled to see how they felt in the dark. Her curly brown pig tails stopped bobbing up and down when she got to the door. For a full three sec- onds she stood staring at this so called daddy. Slowly her fists began to relax while she took in everything

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4 DECEMBER, 1945 T ' 2. 7- LITERATURE ig S ap fr W SWff i fr MS ft ' ' (aV: ) ' THANKSGIVING THOUGHTS NANCY WILKINSON ' 46 In this great land of ours Thanksgiving Day stands true to its meaning. We have much to be thankful for in this year of 1945. The war is over, and all our brothers, cousins, uncles, and sweethearts no longer face danger from fighting lines. Once again thousands will turn out for the Thanksgiving Day football game, this year with much lighter hearts; at every dinner table the roast turkey will have a much sweeter smell; and life all around will be merrier than it has been for four long years.. War against Germany, Italy, and Japan has been won. True we celebrated V-E and V-J days. True we had parades, danced in the streets, and made noise. Now, however, we ' ve had time to settle into peace. Conversion efforts are on all sides. We can- not ignore the problems of the atomic bomb, the present day strikes throughout the nation, and the revolution in China. We must not forget our wounded and the families of our gallant dead. But over all, people ' s eyes will glisten with thank- fulness — for this, our first Thanksgiving of peace. FIRST CHRISTMAS AFTER THE WAR BESSIE MICHAEL ' 46 December 25, 1945 is Christmas Day, but io the people of America it has a greater meaning. It is the first Christmas after the war. The millions of war- torn soldiers have finally returned to their homes and to the longing arms of their parents — parents who have prayed every minute for their safety; who have lived the past four years in constant fear, always dreading the words, We regret to inform you, which have been engraved in the hearts of many Americans. Yes, they, too, have done their job and Cod, in His wisdom, has rewarded many of them by bringing their sons safely home. Then, too, He has taken many; He has had to take many in order to show that He has little toleration for a world of greed and hatred. Our boys have died for that exact cause. They have died so as to preserve the peace and liberty, which, for so long, have been symbolic of our America. If it had not been for this sacrifice, this Victory could not have been possible. The sight of a united family gathered around the Christmas tree; the sight of a mother ' s happy tears as she looks adoringly at her son; the sight of a father ' s proud gaze upon the boy who had once been a fighting C.I. — these, also, could not have been possible without sacrifice. Therefore, on this Christmas Day, though many of us have a great deal to be thankful for, let us think a moment of the homes whose windows are still adorned with gold stars. Let us make this Christmas not just another holiday, but a truly memorable Christ- mas after the war. 1946 JEAN SMALL ' 46 With the dawn of January 1, a new year, 1946, will be given to the world. Let us hope that each nation will realize the vast opportunity offered by a new year and will take advantage of it. Upon the reaction of each and every nation depends the success or failure of this decisive year, 1946. If we look back on the year 1945, we will see that, though it has been a year of triumph, its cost has been great. It has been a year of death, misery, and de- struction. What terrible scenes Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and German horror camps recall! Yet, too, can we ever forget the atomic bomb, V-J day, and the world wide peace conferences? Though history may call 1945 a year of success and victory, we who have lived through it will forever re- member its gore and ghastliness. With these thoughts in mind let us resolve to do our utmost to further every worthy interest in a sin- cere effort to make 1946 a better year. In accor- dance with this wish, let us hope and pray that all nations under the divine leadership of God may come a little closer to our common goal, a world peace in 1946. THANKSGIVING LAURENCE SIMONDS ' 47 During the first dreadful winter of the Plymouth Colonies, almost half of the company had died. Soon summer brought renewed hope. When the corn crop was gathered, Governor Bradford set aside a day of Thanksgiving. The preparations were great and the women spent days boiling, baking, and roasting the food. As guests there were Indians who brought their share of the feast — wild turkeys and venison. The tables were set out of doors. Besides the feast- ing, there were prayers and sermons and songs of praise. From Plymouth the custom spread to other colonies until the Governor of each issued an annual Thanksgiving day proclamation. We are thankful today for peace, for freedom, for health and strength, for guidance in our daily walk, for grass and flowers, for songs and birds, and for our parents, sisters, and brothers. As long as people believe in God and his wisdom, there will be a thanks- giving.

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DECEMBER, 1943 from his shiny black navy shoes to his brown curly hair. Her mouth slowly turned from its scared look to a happy little smile. As she flung herself toward him and crawled up into his lap, their gray eyes met in the same crinkling way, and she said, Hi, Daddy. Will you take me fishing? LIT ABNER YOKUM THOMAS O ' BRIEN, ' 46 Li ' l Abner Yokum is one of the nicest people I ' ve never met. I ' ve never met him because he exists only in the imagination of Al Capp, his cartoonist creator. Nevertheless, he should be the ideal of every American boy. It is the responsib.l.ty of each of us to make up for the fact that there is no real Li ' l Abner. His appearance and environment are unusual. He is a big, clumsy, powerful built hillbilly with an open, contented face. Dogpatch, his natural habitat, is overflowing with high octane local color. Within its boundaries may be found the skunk rendering works, Cousin Weakeyes, Hairless Joe, Lonesome Polecat, Moonbeam McSwine, and a mysterious mons- ter called It , just to name a few. The Dogpatch census taker went out of his head trying to decide whether or not some of the inhabitants counted as human beings. But Li ' l Abner ' s charm is an abstract quality and has nothing to do with appearance or background. When he refers to himself as a sweet inner-cent child, he himself gives us an accurate character sketch of Li ' l Abner. Mammy Yokum ' s boy is innocence personified. His complete childlike faith in human nature is constantly getting him into difficulties. After unintentionally causing someone some trivial trouble, he imagines himself to be a cruel inhoomin monster. The intrigues and shrewd dealings of the outer world invariably draw from him the comment, amoozin but confoozin. Li ' l Abner is obviously not impressed by our worldly social system. To the best of my knowledge, he has never, in his life, done anything mean. Meanness is something be- yond his imagination, something he cannot under- stand or tolerate. When Fearless Fosdick, his fav- orite comic strip character, is being done wrong by, he is unable to eat or sleep until the culprit is behind the bars. Nor is the Yokum boy cursed with clever- ness or brilliance. He is happy and worries about nothing, mainly on account of ah don ' t know nothing. His three great loves are for Mammy, Pappy and pok chops. The first two show his faith in family life; the third shows good judgment. Girls terrify him and he consistantly avoids them. Dogpatch resi- dents, such as Hairless Joe or Lonesome Polecat, who would amuse or frighten us, are accepted as common- place by Li ' l Abner. He does not discriminate against those who do not completely qualify as members of the human race. On the other hand he does occa- sionally chuckle, How ridikulus, at some phase of what we consider commonplace. I can imagine him in a group of teen-agers. He would be polite, friendly, bashful, eager to learn, unable to dislike anyone, and thoroughly disliked. With his good nature, contentment, innocence, faith in human nature, and lack of prejudice and amoition he is not designed for any place in the world but Dog- patch. Nevertheless,. I can ' t help thinking that, im- practical as he is, he is much better than what we consider successful. If I were not committed to a policy of being me, I would most certainly want to be Li ' l Abner. THOUGHTS ON THANKSGIVING MARGARET JONES ' 46 What is Thanksgiving? One interpretation is that Thanksgiving ' s a holiday on which we give thanks for all that we have and all that we have been spared. It is a golden brown turkey lying in state on a large platter. It is creamy white mashed potatoes dotted with butter and perhaps sprinkled wih paprika to lend a festive air. It is orange squash and buttery onions, pumpkin and mince pies, and nuts and candy. The un- comfortable feeling afterwards is part of the celebra- tion and is taken in its stride. A NIGHT WITH A PURR-SIAN PRINCESS ROGER WOODBURY ' 47 What a time I ' ll have tonight, thought Willie as he thoughtfully wiped off his razor. His morale sored as he buzzed around dressing for the evening ' s masquerade. This particular masquerade was an event that didn ' t happen every day. This was the night when the buoyant effect of a concealing costume and a latherless shave was prompting him to his prowess with the weaker sex. About seven o ' clock his pal, Dinny, tooted for him and the two went off to the party, Dinny ' s car turning up a cloud of dust and a terrible racket. ' We ' re here. Let ' s go over to see Benny. He seems to be talking with some girls. I wonder where Charlie is tonight? Oh well! I can see that my work is cut out for me right here. So without delay they made their way over to Benny ' s position and were in- troduced. Willie asked the Persian Princess to dance while Dinny waltzed off with the little Chinese girl. Soon they were fast friends. As a matter of fact they went out together to a drugstore. The princess ate a tre- mendous banana split with ease. She even danced a little awkwardly, and not once did she retire to the girls ' room. All of these went unnoticed by Willie who was totally enraptured by the glowing charms of that enchanting thing, this woman to whom he had beaten all of the other fellows. Being together passed the evening away quickly. By now most of the others had taken off their masks; but, under the spell of her charm, to Willie, she re- mained unknown. All good things must come to an end, it is said, and this one was going fast. If he didn ' t act soon, all would be lost. After a quick struggle with his courage, he finally blurted out his request to see her home. Much to his surprise she was visibly pleased. Once again his head began to swim while the most pure pleasant confusion held him in the spell of her magic. As they strolled down the long street, sweet nothings poured in a steady stream from his lips. Was this really Willie? It was. As they reached her front porch, Willie in his only conscious act in hours noticed that seventy-six was the same house number as Charlie ' s. Charlie, no longer able to contain himself burst right out laughing. Willie couldn ' t talk. He was hot, cold, mad, and felt like fighting, screaming, and cry- ing all at the same time. Over the porch railing went Charlie. Directly behind came Willie. A few quick trips around the house and then a mad scramble on the ground. A fine way to treat a Persian Princess, said Char- lie still helpless with gales of laughter. Aahh, but this one lives at seventy-six Ashland Street, taunted Willie from his position on the top of the heap.