Winchester School - Oui Dire Yearbook (Pittsburgh, PA)

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OUT-D I RE I5 quest, whatever it might be, so that he might win the escutcheon for his shield. Wfhat a noble thing for a man to do: to institute a means to help men live truer lives! How pure, true and unselfish was Arthur, even generous- ly forgiving those who betrayed his cause and sinned most grievously against him! Do we wonder that Arthur, the greatest hero of the Celts, has become an ideal knight of the uni- verse? H. c. D., '15, , MY SENIOR YEAR. As I finish my work this spring afternoon I gaze dreamily out of the window on the fresh green leaves which are quivering in the warm May breeze. Can it be my senior year is almost over? How long I have looked for- ward to this year! It does not seem possible that it is almost a past joy. Yet there will be the happy memory, one of the happiest I shall ever have. How eagerly I have awaited the reaching of this goal, The privileges of the Seniors: our own tables in the private and secluded corners of the study hall, the honor of studying un- chaperoned in the library, on the lawn in the beautiful days, or up in the bright sunny court, are the rewards gained through honest study. XVe have such good times together, as all the Senior classes do in our school. There are annual festivities, the pleasure of the inter- esting lecturesg we have even enjoyed our hard work. XVC are proud of the accomplish- ments and talents of the girls because they belong to our beloved class. NVe rejoice in those who sing and play: those who draw and paintg those who can write: and those who enter enthusiastically into their work and gain success. Our frequent meetings and friendly talks on important affairs of class and school have done much to bring us together. Unconsciously the bond of union in the class has become stronger day by day. Vtfe have learned to love the girls with a deeper and truer love, and We feel in whatever we do or whatever might happen, th-ough we be separated by land or sea, this union will never be broken. lkfe have tried to be examples of kindness, thoughtful- ness and obedience 'and we trust we will al- ways be a joy to our class and school. Wfe shall forever hold in loving remembrance our friendships and the good times of our class of IQIS. ' I' B W ,I5 4 i l-i.?l A SENIOR'S IMPRESSION OF DR. BUR- TON'S LECTURE ON DICKENS. Wlhen Miss Mitchell announced that Dr. Richard Burton, president of the Drama League of America, would speak on Dickens, the school unanimously agreed that it would be very pleasant to gain any enlightenment on that subject. In the Senior corner the inhabi- tants were much more enthusiastic. Xods and smiles were exchanged, and-l regret to say- perhaps a few whispers, as lle's awfully in- teresting, Funny, you know, besides being really intellectual. For, you see, the Seniors had been privileged in hearing addresses on Ibsen and Tiernard Shaw given by Dr. Burton at the Twentieth Century Club and they were wise. On going to the Gym the next day, we found -will wonders never cease-that the Seniors were in the front rows tfor being the elder, as the l.atin name implies, we usually sit in the last rowl. .Xlter much squirming land many discussions as to who should sit be- side whom, and whether this hair ribbon was in the way, and requests to please quit kick- ing my chair, when all this had subsided. I say, comparative quiet reigned, .Xfter some ca- lumnious remarks as to their respective ages, judge liuffmgton, as a fellow-graduate of his own college, verv delightfully introduced the speaker, Dr. Tiurton. As Dr. liurton began to speak of the bar- renness of the present-day feeling toward lit- erature, I forgot all consciousness of self, and self-importance. I realized that there is not enough encouragement in many homes, for the children to read good books, and that the schools, under the arbitrary requirements for college entrance, are not able to take time to create in the pupils a desire for cultured read- ing. Such a chance as we have! A populous world of books lies before each of us. Yet how many appreciate our blessings? XVe sav Scott is tiresome in his descriptions, Thack- eray moralizes too much, Dickens overdrawsg or we say nothing because we have read noth- ing. So Dr. llurton, attempting to interest us in this world,-to many an unexplored one,- began with Dickens, for of the many fine

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14 OUT SOME FAMOUS CHARACTER WORK- SHOPS. llifl you 1-vtr think of tlu- lllilllj' various 11111l niiifliu- wo1'lqsl1ops in XX'l'llCl1-llilllll'C has plaeed llltll wherein lo huild tl1e1r eharaeteri l11 aneient 'l'rov was lleetor's worksliopl lieoe w11lf's, i11 tl1e lileak north region? 5iUQ'f1'iC'l'5- 111 fill' dark 1-o1n1111tie forestsl Roland's, i11 the lilllllllllillli and grassy valleys of liraneeg King .X1'llilI1'iS, i11 tl1e heautiful l1illy eonntry ot Liornwall and Devon. l.ong ago. i11 aneient 'l'roy. lived Hector. that glorious a11d most nohle hero of tl1e Troje ans. Hector, resplendent i11 his eoat of 111ail with golden links, we11t forth XX'ltll tl1e host of warring plumes to light the hostile Greeks. XX'e admire lleetor as Zl warrior, hut the traits which toueh us most are tl1e simple liuman traits: tl1e forlu-ara11ee which l1e showed towards l1is stlnsh lurother, l'aris, who lmrought the hurilen of war upon tl1e Trojans hy ear- rying away the most lwlltlllflll llelen from tlreeee: tl1e gentle kindliness of lllk' 1111111 when lie speaks to llelen i11 the apartnient of liiIl1AiSQ I1l111ve11ll.thete111lel'flevo1i1'1n which lu- 5litDXVL'fl towards his Wife 11n1l little hahe. liusherl 11N lleetor was witl1 tl1e llllllly l3l'CDIll'Z'Lll111lS for war, yet lu- snatelivd Il few monu-11ts to seek out his dear wife and infant ehild i11 Il fond farewell. fill 21 hill 11t tl1e outsltirts of the eity lxe found tlu-111. .Xs tl1e little hoy, .XSlj'fll'lZlX, was l'I'lQ'lltCllL'4l at the sight mmf lleetor's great helmet. his father removerl it to emlaraee his precious son. lle kissed him tenderly upon the lrrow Zlllli fondly taking leave of his dear wife, .Xl1lll'0lHflCllL', he departerl. The 'l'ro- jans fHll5llll'l'Qfl lleetor IL great hero and so may we i11 Illlllllldllg these traits i11 l1i111 which lllllflt' l1i111 the gentlest and the hrztvest. XX'l111t Il worksliop tl111t great lieowulf had in the hleak north region XX'llll its rough seas and hlaek fens! 'l'l111t Saxton lu-ro had great eotirage and power to do flllflllg and nolrle deeds 11nd so it hitppened that l1e eanu- to rescue ll1'UlllQ'Ill H lllkfltl-llilll. lleorot, XX'llL'll it washe- ing 1'1lX'IlQ't'll hy that foul and hloody inonster, tireiidel. Xtith wl111t t'Hlll'flLft' he awaited that foul t'1'1-11t111'1- when all the tl111ni-s lay sleeping IH'IlCt'llllllj', and then ezinu- that awful hattle ol' whieh lie was vietorl lle was enahled too, to kill that lo11thso111e witch, Cil'ClNlCl'S mother, :1 fter a gory light l7CllCZ'll.ll tl1e murky waters 11ill1C Cl'C!ZlllIl'C'S den. After these daring deeds lieownlf returned with his faithful thanes over DIRE the Sea and ruled over his kingdom fOT fifty peaceful years, But his battles were not yet ended, for l1e had to fight a harder battle still. ln his putting to death a sealy dragon which was tl1e scourge Of the land he was mortally wounded. Beowulf was the embodiment of all that tl1e Saxons admired: courtesy, loyalty, service, helpfulness and courage. ls it not true that these are also traits which have al- ways helped to 111ake 111e11 great and women lu-loved? Siegfried l1ad a dark forest region for his workshop. He did much i11 his youth -to set himself on the right traek. He was horn with great strength, a11d as l1e grew up he became eonseious of it. Zlllfl consequently haughty and overhearing. His parents grieved because Siegfried did sueh brutal deeds. and finally Siegfried, moved at the sight of his parents' grief, resolved that from that time his deeds should he those of a gentle knight. DO we 11ot recognize l1ere a line quality ill the boy Siegfried? After this resolution Siegfried's deeds were good and nohle, XYith l1is trusty sword, lilllllllllig, l1e overcame gia11ts a11d fire- lireathing dragons, and l'IlZ1flC many kings his vassals. He wo11 the lovely Cliriemhild for his wife after rescuing l1er ffillli a horrihle drzigon. Siegfried 111et l1is death at the l12'lIlClS of traitors who were jealous of his might: hut he has never heen forgotten Illlfl has hecome the hero of a great eyele of prose and song. In a neighhoring eountry of 1110L1l'ltU.lllS and grassy valleys Roland the Frank, armed with Sl1ll'llI'IQ'Zll'1llOl', fought in many Fierce battles. lint, alas! He 111et his death i11 a terrihle hat- tle XX'lill tl1e l'aynim hosts. tl1e Saraeens. How nohle flllfl yet pathetie is tl1e death of this great knigl1t of Cl'lZ1I'lt'lNZ'lQ,'IlC, as l1e lay on the soft greensward i11 tl1e midst of a narrow llltrlllllillll pass, praying to God for forgive- 11ess witl1 his last hreatl1. Roland showed tl'LlL' huniility, I1 trait which has to he sought for nowadays. Roland lilllj' well he called the greatest l1ero of France and even now we can lear11 111a11y things i1'Oli1 tl1e life of this nohle knight. Now we turn to King Arthur, a11 example of ideal ma11l1ood. .Xrthur's workshop lay in the heautiful mountains of Southwestern England, in Cornwall and Devon. Here, on the rocky coast rose tl1e hattlements of tl1e royal castle of Tintagil. liarther no-rth lay tl1e fairy-likg and gay city of Camelot. Here King Arthur instituted his Round Tahle, where each of his knights waited in readiness to go on Some 5

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16 OUT-DIRE novels in the world those of Dickens stand out preeminent in interest and humanness. l'rimarilv Dickens was a reformer. England was certaiiilv in need of reform, and Dickens ,lpnlt 1,1.vvy giftt-1' ldow at the evils of his day. ln tllix'C1' Twist, what a wretched life the poor panptrs led. under the rule of the cruel Mig llnnilde, who would force the children into anv tradt to get rid of them, and who :txt-tl -fatter while the paupers waxed thin- ner, ln Ulilcak llutlxfn llickens ridiculed the tedious lawsuits in the tiourt of Liltancery, and stitral other liooks, so vividly portrayed the l,,,1-11,1-4 ttf the delitors' prison, that he may al- lllllst he considered the lirst champion for l'ris- on Reform. llc do get rather a cheerful pic- ture of the life which Xlr. Xlicawher lcd in prison, hut then anything connected with Mr. Klicawher ix cheerful, from his walking stick. swaggeriiig with two tassels. to the little din- ner parties with which he would entertain lit- tle David, when pecuniary hopes were high,- or when they had pawned the silver spoons. Yet in t'l.ittle llorritu the scene is gloomy enough. and Dickens knew whereof he wrote, for we know that he himself was far too fa- itiiliar with the interior of a prison. The sys- icxn of education received its share of censure, in that most interesting of hooks, Nicholas ,fi'l-.leliyf lJotheltoy's llall, where they cer- jf Jn! tht- lioys-a new thought to me, T 1 1: fd ','i. aj- pronounced it l7rlf!If7tJVX .V llall- -: f-- It fiery vivid picture of the very hungry lioy-. making a very nieagre meal, one .f.f--pofnititl apiece td hrimstone and IHO- f ft wi'y economical way of disposing of apprtitt s for hreakfast, Tyrannical '- had his own method of education, i -ttfllig' tltt' Ltctilllt to tllc XX'o1'tl, OF, to ti-Qplitit, of spelling winder and then and wt' must admit that this meth- , lift fl rc-nlts, 'I'o illustrate how ridicu- '- 'fi' 3'-twin of teaching was in those days, fi lZ'trion gave the spelling lesson, memor- :. f in more senses than one, whcrc Sissv vlujie, xmitlt great rapidity, interpreted a horse fi- xinnnal. tjnadruped, used for hauling or draw irtg liurdens. Although Dickens was a i't-lorttn-1, il is im posstlile to keep that lacl in nnnd Itergtnsl there are so many other l':ts.t'itt.ttiotiw in his lnnwksr lllt'l't' Lll't' llli t'lliIIJlt ll'lH' jnrlll.lNi'ml with that most individual ltwllt In .il l.,,,,,,,,-I liven if you havcn't read .int ol I n. l,, ,, ,' l,,,,,j,., you are actjnatntcd with wont- ol ln, .l,,,,,,,- ttts. Klanvx ltavt lnionls I.nn..l,, ,,,,ll,I,jl,,,,, in the English language. Pickwickia11,'f fOr instance. As in cartoons, some predominant feature is so depicted that in a pair of glasses and a smile we recognize our friend Teddy Roosevelt, so in Dickens' caricatures-for we shall call them that-the prevailing peculiari- ties, the small touches that reveal the whole, are so vividly portrayed, that once we become acquainted with one of Dickens' characters, we will never forget him-or her, as the case may lie. In illustration of this suggestive pow- er. take Tilly Slowlaoy thy rights it ought to to he Slowgirlj, standing with mouth and eyes agape, and garments also agape, showing some llannel vestment of singular structure and glimpses in the hack of a pair of stays, in color dead green, Cant you just picture her bringing the precious hahy's head in contact with deal doors, dressers, stair rails or hed- posts. Dickens has created hundreds, yea thousands ll'm not dead certain as to the ex- act numhern, of characters, and each as differ- ent and distinct as Tilly. Minor characters are as well drawn as major ones. and some- times ltetter. In David Coppertieldf' when David has wandered into town he meets a cab- man. XYe never hear of that cabman again. Yet we know that he was kind and sorry for little David and he directed him to Miss Betsy 'l'rotwood's house and gave him a penny, As for Dickens' humor-well his characters and his humor and the funny things his people do and say are so mixed together that it keeps you laughing all the time-unless von are crying. Y For not all of Dickens is funny. There is pathos and deep feeling shown in some scene or other in almost everyone of his books. fLet us except l'ickwick l'apers, it is just plain nonsensel Could anything he much saclder than the death of l'anl Domhey, or that of little Nell? Some say Dickens' sentimentalitv is overdrawn. Well what if it is? That it makes one cry. Well, what if it does? The Anglo- Saxon race is one which prides itself on its stern sell-control. Sell-control is a good thing, llltt who wants to he so self-contained. so un- accnstonietl to ever shedding' a tear, that when sonn-tltilng really sad happens his weeping or- gans w tll he out of coinntission, and he will not he :ddr lo cry ?, Think of not heing' able to cry al tour own ntother's funeral! Dr. Burton said that in his classes he considered one require- ment ol' living reallv well educated the ahilitv to laugh or to cry at the right time. Don't be .tlraidl When you come to a sad place, like S