Winchester School - Oui Dire Yearbook (Pittsburgh, PA)

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GUI-DIRE royal entrance, but thou must remain with me and I shall show thee how to lind these secrets. Fahanger consented, and when the moon shone white and full in the heavens, Umar sent him into the gardens to pluck rose leaves. This is thy work, he said, every night must thou all these jars with rose petals and sprinkle them with the magic water of the fountain. 'ZX task for poets, thought Fahanger as he set to work diligently: but the thorns began to tear his fingers, and his back began to hurt, and the hiss- ing and rustling in the grass warned him of the presence of snakes, Night after night he con- tinued his work until long months had passed. At times he became overcome by a mad desire to slip away on his camel, which was now quite well. Xllas he not wasting his life in this lonely place? Then the words of Omar, Patience, have patience, Fahang-er, came to him and he would take a new grip on things. At last one day towards the close of the long hot summer, Omar called him to him and said, Fahanger, I have watched thee continually since thou hast been here, and I think thou de- servest thy reward, for thou hast proved thyself worthy to be a sharer of my secrets. Come, I will show thee. Seest thou this tiny vial? lt weighs but a rupee and yet princes would give one-half of their kingdoms if they could but ob- tain it. It contains the marvelous perfume of my roses. Take it, Fahanger, and proceed to the Golden City. Behold the gift of the desert, this is thy reward for thy patient service in its soli- tudefl So saying, Omar Khayyam placed the vial in Fahanger's hand and bade him good-bye. Then Fahanger went forth, and the camel. healed in the long wait, bore him swiftly across the sands to the Golden City, and the Golden Gate which would not open to any common vendor, swung wide for Fahanger. llrinces brought their pearls to exchange for drops of his perfume, and kings their bags of gold. livery- where he went, the sweetness of the magic attar opened for him a way and won for him a wel- come. Xklhenever he saw a head bowed down under misfortune he would whisper Clmar's words and stop to teach tlmar's lesson, that from the commonest experiences of life may be distilled its greatest blessingsf, l.I.. ll.'1q. liliil SUMMER NIGHTS. The water lapping softly, Against my little boat, Makes music sweet Unto my ears, .Xnd through the years, .Ns on I float, No sound so very meet: For me no music costly. Stars over the whole world shine, tliently winds are blowing llirds calling sweet, The waving trees, The balmy breeze, The cows' soft lowing, .Nnd all the summer heat: T'is of all the loveliest time. 1. M. 12. 15. MY PET CROW. -lim was captured by the employment of an energetic small boy to climb the pine tree where the nest was. .Xfter being lifted from the nest, he was gently put into a bag and lowered by a cord to the ground. lle was then taken home and put in a barrel. In the bottom of this, many small sticks had been placed for him to catch hold of with his feet. lle continually cried for food, and even kept on siluawking with his mouth full. Until he could be perched outside his barrel, lim was given a diet of milk-soaked bread. Presently he was placed on the low roof of the woodshed, and taught to fly. After this lesson was learned, he became a self-sustaining member of the house- hold, and by no means the least conspicuous member. lle had the free range of the garden and of the farm. He never molested the garden or the lield corn, in spite of the many opportunities. The reason for this may be because he could easily get food at the kitchen door!scraps fallen from the garbage-pail, for instance, for crows are natural scavengers, and they are very fond of meat and fish. No effort was made to confine him, yet he showed no desire to join his feathered fellows. ln fact he seemed to fear his own kind, and when wild crows came into the garden, he would fly for the protection of the woodshed. He never molested any of the numerous robin and held-sparrow nests about the place, simply be- cause he could get food elsewhere. Isle turned out to be very beneficial in the garden. XYhen the gardener picked up a hoe or a fork, and started out to cultivate, lim would come walking with that quaint, or rather uncer- tain sidelongi gait of his tribe, and follow the rows of fresh-turned earth behind the gardener, 33

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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

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34 oUr- DIRE pouncing upon every white grub in sight. Thev were evidently his favorite morsel, as he would frctpuently neglect other worms when the fat white ones were plentiful. llis capacity for these gruhs seemed unlimited, and when you re- member that one white grub can kill in a single night a cauliflower which is worth fifteen cents to a gardener, -lim is seen to have had a very positive commercial value. Another item of .lim's dict was mice. XYe first found this out after the corn had been shocked and the fields frozen, for he used to follow anyone who went out to the barn for a load of fodder, and hover over the box as it was lifted. Frequently, mice would scurry out from beneath, and ,lim would pounce down upon them with astonishing speed, and apparently kill them with one tweak of his bill. Then he would hide them. It was curious to watch him hide things. .Xny small shining object particularly attracted him, and he would spend hours attempting to hide bits of crockery in the dog's ear. ,Tack's ear seemed to be his favorite hiding place. -lim would hop upon the dog's head, drop his treasure into -lack's ear, then carefully fold the ear-Flap down. -lack did not seem to mind this if he were awake, but if he were trying to sleep, it provoked him greatly, for -Tim would follow him from place to place and repeat the offense, lt seems to me that crows might be taught to talk, lt is said that if you would slit their tongues they could talk. Certainly ,lim said l'apa, as plain as most babies do when they are being shown off. We found our pet dead one morning, no doubt from having eaten too much, for he seemed to like to eat better than to do anything else. Al- though he seemed to desire only human com- panionship, our pet never showed any affec- tion. He would let you stroke his head, seem- ingly because he enjoyed the sensation, but if you attempted to pick him up-away he would fly. Nevertheless we missed ,lim greatly, for we never have had another pet like him. i hi. 'I5. WILL OF THE SENIOR CLASS. a member of the Senior Class, attending Xlmchester School, Fifth avenue, being of sound mind, memory and understandingi do make, publish and declare this to be my last will and testament. ' .Xfter the payment of our debts, I devise and bequeath all of our estate, consisting main- ly of school property, old customs, honors, and privileges to the members of the upper school, VIZ.: To the Eighth Grade-the new Ninth: The honor of moving down to the first floor, .Xn honor I know that young 'girls just adoreg To be counted as members of the upper school, .-Xnd promising to go by our great Golden Rule. To the Ninth Grade-the new Tenth: The honor of stepping up one other place, .Xnd looking all daily tasks square in the face, Uf coming nearer and nearer the long-wished- for goal, As days, weeks, and months swiftly past you do roll. To the Tenth Gradewthe new Juniors: The honor of giving the ever-famed dance, tThe thoughts of which make every one prancel. - XYith its planning and troubles, perplexities great, .Xs it takes every penny for giving this fete. To the -luniors-the new Seniors: The honor of being the great Senior Class, ttf owning the book shelves with doors made of glassy Uf possessing the dignified set-apart nook, XYhere all things in order, give a neat, tidy look. The honor of reproving small chatt'ring girls, .Xll a-shaking their heads with their long, bob- bing curlsg XYho pass swiftly and merrily along through the halls, .Xnd who turn a deaf ear to our soft warning calls. The honor of being the guests at the ball, lfor which plans are made throughout the whole fall, .Xnd for which you no longer your money must pay 1 llut when clocks strike out one you no longer Can stay. The honor of roaming about at your will, tXever once being told that you must be more still PU, To the library, lawn, or perhaps to the roofg lie as faithful as we if you need any proof. T nominate and appoint the President of the Senior Class the executress of this our last will and testament. XYitness my hand and seal, this the tenth day of May, nineteen hundred and fifteen. L. H., IIS. S