Winchester School - Oui Dire Yearbook (Pittsburgh, PA)

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OUI-DIRE 31 served it, was now a dark green, almost black, and many Whitecaps could be seen curling toward the shore. Xafhat was that? A distant peal of thunder! As I watched, the sky be- came darker and the great black clouds cast shadows on water and shore. The wind was rising and the tall trees around me swayed from side to side, warning me of the approaching storm. The thunder was more distant now. and here and there a Hash of lightning streaked the clouds, which hung low over the earth. I was not far from the cottage, so I decided to remain until the storm broke, for its approach was a beautiful sight. The wind had in- creased and was now blowing a fgale. The waves appeared as huge rollers, and as they broke upon the shore the very earth seemed to quiver. Half a mile along the coast, the beach became narrower until the soft white sand dis- appeared and the rocks and cliffs rose directly from the sea. Upon these the waves were beat- ing with their mighty force and l could see the white spray rise and fall as they struck this wall of rock. The vivid flashes of lightning that occurred so frequently now, illuminated the heavens, and were followed by terrific claps of thunder. A flock of seagulls flew past me, only to descend and skim the top of the waves. Something damp and cooling blew in my face. Vdas it the spray from the lashing waves which the wind carried my way, or the oncoming rain? I started up and made my way back through the forest, arriving at the cottage just as the storm broke in all its fury. li. C. l., 'ig. WE. CTU be sang to Sprites of Hn' Niiflz! are rec. are rec'. l Dignihed Seniors are we, are we, Important as we can be, can bel Dressing neatly, Smiling sweetlyg Examples to all, you see. Back for the Seniors all must fall, Wfe march along so proud and tallg Reproving small girls, Wfho, shaking their curls, Push up in front of us all. Studious Seniors are we, are we, Brilliant as we can be, can be, Latin, German, All we're learnin' College grinds we soon shall be. . . -.. .....,.,...,T.,..,.,-,, - X- Thinkers are we like ll Venser osou, and like him we aver, Rlirth she is crazy, l,'Allegro, lazy, Contemplation much better. Taciturn Seniors are we, are we, Quiet as we can be, can beg Never laughing, Never chatting, lYe never act sillilyl H A'Reden ist silber, Schweigen, gold That be our motto till we're old llracticing ev'ry day .Xble we'll be to say Ninety nine in our S. R51 Rl. ll. ll., 'ii R means School Record. Il A CLASSICAL ROMANCE. XYhilc reading the Pickwick l'apers, lJavid Copperfield fell asleep in Ht irandfather's Chair in Hur Hld Home, The llouse of Seven Gables. The XYinter Tale which llarnaby Rudgeu had been telling him, gradually faded away into a beautiful Midsummer Nights Dream. The Snow Image, which he had watched lJombey and Son mould, was trans- formed into 'tlflsie Yerner, who was now watched over by her Guardian Angel. Pages from an old Volume of l.ife were turned over before him and the Twice-Told Tales once more reproduced in his dream. lle was back again to the Twelfth Night of 1 Jur llundred Days in Europe, at the l-Bleak House, the home of Nicholas Nicklebyf' Hur Mutual Friend. There he had met lflsie Yernerf' The Fair hlaid of l'erth, and there The lllithdale Romance began. They had often chatted Myer the Teacupsu with The Auto- crat of the Breakfast Table, and frequently visited The Uld Curiosity Shop, Une day in Kliddlemarch, he was summoned to the front by Richard III. .Xfter fighting In the Ranks In the Kings Country, he was captured as The Spy Under False Colours, and thrown into St Roman's XX'ell. llis Letters to Elsie Yernerv ceased, yet she watched for them with Great lixpectationsf' XX'ith the aid of Two Gentlemen of Verona, he made his escape with l recaution, and re- turned again to Elsie Yernerf' Ifler Needless Alarm for him was over, and there was Much Ado about Nothing when she remembered how long it had been since she re-

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30 oUr-DIRE OUR GRANDMOTHERS SCHOOL. llear little grandmother of mine. how funny vou would look to us to-day, tripping daintily along to school, your brown curls escaping from your little poke bonnet, which was tied under your chin with a huge bow: your pret- ty. ruffled dress, stilllv starchedg and your tiny, dainty slippers book and gaily would show us that you were on your way to for Young La- with their gay buckles. The flowered bag on your arm Miss Sharps Select Academy dies, where the course of study which you pursued consisted of music, dancing, orthog- raphy, geography and all sorts of embroidery and needlework, Your straight little back. which, even now, scorns the alluring comforts tif an easy chair, shows the result of Miss Sharp's rigid training. rXs if the stately old red brick house and the straightbacked, hair cloth chairs themselves were not enough to remove all desire to slouch, you were required to sit in the drawing room for hours each day and practice Hdeportment and carriage with the aid of a backboard. .Xnd what a strange room it was! The pic- ture of Miss Sharp's father in a powdered wig seowled down on the row of geraniums on the narrow window sills as though he considered their brilliant colors wholly out of keeping with the gloomy dignity of the room, Un the mar- ble-toppeil table in the exact center of the room was a family llible, a family photograph album, and a bowl of wax tloners, .X wheezy little organ stood in one corner and when visiting parents were present the most accomplished young ladies were called forth lu perform upon it, ln a sideboard nearby wine and cakes were kept, and these delicacies were brought forth on state occasions, such as when the reetor call- ed, but. alas, forbidden fruits are always tempt- ing, and l fear that you and Madge sometimes sampled the fruit Cake, which was the pride of Miss -lemima's heart, instead of practicing your duet, Hpposite this sideboard was a high mas- sive secretary and a haircloth sofa and chairs completed the furnishings. ls it to be wonder- ed at that with such an atmosphere as this Miss Sharp succeeded in sending forth her vonng la- dies worthy to occupy a fitting position in their polished and rehned eirclcf liehind the drawing room was the school- room with its double desks scarred bv the pen- cils of many an idle pupil, flu a raised plat- form in front was the desk over which Miss Sharp presitled. liehind her was a blackboard, and on this she wrote out simple algebra prob- lems which you did with the greatest ease, but which were the trial of her unmathematical soul. She never could understand just why parents wished to have their daughters study this useless subject, but thought perhaps just a little might be advisable, so the girls might know what it was all about. I often wonder, little grandmother, what you would think of the hop, skip and jump, with which your youngest granddaughter starts for school. XYould her sturdy, scuffed little shoes horrify you, and her face, berry-brown from the sun and wind, cause you to turn aside your own pink and white sunbonneted one with alarm? flow it would amaze you to hear your elder granddaughter talk glibly of Latin, :Xl- gebra, Geometry, German and French! Xlihat use would a girl have for these! But, Grand- mother dear, won't you agree with me that eurythmics and athletics are far superior to the backboard methods? XYon't you confess that our sunny schoolrooms are much more at- tractive than Miss Sharp's drawing room? And last of all, don't you think that in spite of our more extended education and wider variety of amusements, we are the same little girls at heart as those playmates of yours in your own school days? ix, L, nec., '15, AN ONCOMING STORM. lt was an extremely warm afternoon in the middle of August. l left the cottage with a good book and a pillow, in search of a shady nook, where l should not be disturbed and where l could enjoy the fresh ocean breeze, A beautiful spot high upon a bluff overlooking the water and beach for miles around, enticed nie. .Xfter arranging my pillow, l began to read, but my mind wandered. and my surround- ings held my attention. f listened to the sweet notes of the birds as they hopped from bush to bush, and the buzz ofthe bees as they busied themselves in the heart of the honeysuckle. lirom where l lay, my hand could easily touch the daisy, buttercup and wild rose. The dragon tlies which alightcd on the tall, sharp blades of grass amused me. llow long l had been gifts l knew not, but I amine the frail petal of a wild rose and noticed gathering around the sinking. The ocean, blue when I first ob- interested in nature's raised myself to ex- that black clouds were sun, which was slowly which had been a deep N

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32 OUT DIRE ceived his last letter. .Xfter The Tempest The l.overs walked to The llpen Nvindowf' lt was t'Twilight and the birds were singing their evening song. They listened to the little brook whispering and laughing softly as it danced along Under the tlld lflmf' .Ns The tlld Clock on the Stairs was strik- ing, he opened his eyes. lle looked around for his lflsie, but found A'She Came and XYent only in his dream. lt, lf. ll. 'If,. IN THE DESERT, tlnce upon a time a caravan set out across the desert, laden with rich merchandise for a far distant market. Some of the camels carried pig-skins full of the rarest wines of the tlrient, other rare species, tapestries and silken cloth. flu l7ahanger's camel was a load of salt. lt was the hope of each merchant to reach the tiolden tiity at the time when the liajahs entered by the tiolrlen tiate, for if they were fortunate enotigh to arrive at this time, they were permit! ted to enter and to follow the royal train to the court, where their wares brought fabulous sums. To be sure, the tiolden tiate was not forbidden to every body. lt swung open at any time to a privileged few: such as the messengers of the king, or princes, or anyone bearing merchandise so precious and so costly, that only kings could purchase: but no common vendor could hope to enter except in the rear of the liajalrs train. which came yearly to visit the Holden City. The merchants urged their camels on, desirous of reaching the Holden liate at the proper time. lioremost in the lead was lfahanger, whose heart burned with the mad desire of being the tirst to enter the tlolden tiate with his wares. L'ufortunately, however, but halfway across the barren desert, as they paused to rest at an oasis, his camel became lame. ln vain he urged it to arise and to continue its journey, the poor beast could not do so under its great load. Sack by sack he lessened its weight, at lirst throwing it otl' grudgingly and with sighs, for he wanted to lose as little as possible of his prospective fortune, but even rid of the entire load the camel could not arise. ,Xfter delaying with liahanger for two days and nights, the caravan was obliged to go on without him. l'oor lfahanger was desolate. lfor four flltji and tour nights he watched and waited, hoping that at any moment he might go on, but his camel, though able lt: stand it little gmtl to walk a little, was unable lo carry the sacks of salt. Hzxllflll has indeed forgotten med' he Cflfffli beating his breast and tearing his mantle to pieces, for even if his camel were able to con- tinue the long hot journey, it would be useless, because he would arrive too late to enter the tiolden tjate. Thus discouraged and worn out after the long days of waiting, he sat down to rest under a palm. Presently a bee began to btizz around him, but he paid little heed. Ah woe is mel tlf all men I ani most miserable! t lf all dooms mine is most unjustl XVhy should I, with life beating strong in my pulses, and am- bition burning in my heart, be treated thus? The bee, growing tired of buzzing around, set- tled on the back of Fahanger's hand, but stung him not. XX'here there are bees there is honey, he thought. lle arose quickly and followed the bee, forgetting for the time his misery and mis- fortunes, forffettinff the heat and barrenness of 5 m . the desert, Un and'on he went, until he came to a?- could it be the Garden of Allah? lt was a beautiful oasis full of flowers of all de- scriptions and colors, and as he entered a rare and delicious perfume filled his nostrils. He had entered the rose gardens of 4 lmar Khayyani. Now Umar lihayyam was a sage who had the miraculous power of transmuting the most C0111- things of earth into something brecious. fame had spread into far countries, and mon llis many pilgrims sought him to beg his wizard touch, but for a generation or more his where- abouts had remained unknown. No living crea- ture had ever been able to discover him. Only the bees knew, and following the bee, Fahanger found himself in Umar Khayyanrs presence. Now liahanger was a youth of gracious mien and pleasing withal. Xvith straightforward speech he told his story and Umar was touched by his tale. lle bade him go and bring his camel thither, and without a word Fahanger did as he was bid, little knowing who the man was. Xvhen he returned, Umar said, Thou dost not know who l am, Fahanger. lflast thou never heard of Umar Khayyamin XYith a low cry of surprise lfahanger fell at his feet, for now he thought he cottld reach the Golden City. and that tlmar would change his salt into precious stones, and he would be far richer for his delay, But alas, his hopes were in vain, for instead Umar continued, Thou thinkest that be- cause l am I lmar Khayyam I can grant thee what thou most desirest. Nay Fahanger, that would be wrong. livery man must be his own al- chemist. Have patience. Here, if thou wilt, on these dry sands shallst thou lind such secrets, that when thou dost liually win the Golden Gate. it shall be with wares that shall gain for thee a N