Woodbury High School - Warrior Yearbook (Woodbury, CT)

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Page Eighteen ❖ ❖ •: • ❖ ❖ ❖ i ❖ • • • ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ • • ❖ • ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ - ❖ ❖ • §» ❖ ❖ • ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ in his pocket. He invested this in a piece of prune pie, which turned out to be a bogus—it had nothing in it but pits of prunes. What did this poor young immigrant bring to this country? Apparently nothing, but as he says, he brought “a knowledge of and a profound respect and admiration for the best traditions of his race,” and this he feels was his key to success. Pupin started his career in America by working in a boiler factory. From the boiler factory he entered a cracker factory and during this time he roomed with a scholar named Bilharz. Pupin entered Nassau Hall as a night student and was taught Latin and Greek by this friend, Bilharz. After he had finished at Nassau Hall he continued his studies, both at home and abroad. He first entered Columbia, then later he attended Cambridge University in England, and finished his studies at Berlin University. He is now professor of science at Columbia University. Although he writes a great deal he still has time to continue the deep study of electricity. Every chance he could get he experimented with simple objects, and in 1892 by the simple observation of bagpipe tuning he invented “electrical tuning.” At that time all mechanical difficulties had been overcome in the telephone but still it was found that when the wires were carried beyond a certain point, the sound became very indistinct. A scientific problem which no one could solve stood in the way of using telephones over long distances. For awhile this prevented any progress, but before long Professor Pupin heard of it and solved the problem. By experimenting with the problem of propagating electrical motion from one end of a long conducting wire to the other, Pupin invented coils for conducting electricity along wires. This invention was patented and is used by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, thus solving the problem and saving a great deal of money in transmitting sound over long distances. A foreign-born citizen of the United States has many occasions to sing praises of the virtues of his country which a native-born citizen has not. Such occasions arise whenever the foreign-born citizen revisits his native land and hears what his own people think of America, with opinions based upon European prejudice, and born of ignorance. Professor Pupin says that America is a wonderful country, full of wonderful opportunities, a country of wonderful men, and a country of idealism and not materialism. “American materialism is an invention of ill-informed Europe,” says Pupin, “but the European who has lived in the United States and has had the good fortune to catch the spirit of America, revolts when he hears this phrase, and he rightly should.” On the other hand Americans are too quick to criticize immigrants and not quick enough to praise them. Pupin deserves much greater praise than he has ever received, for without him the progress of the telephone would have been slowed up for several years. Furthermore in Pupin, America has one of the most successful scientists, (particularly along the line of electricity), and teachers of this age. He should be considered as one of Franklin’s greatest followers. America cannot claim him entirely but she should always pay him due honor for he has added much to her credit, in the line of scientific experimentation making some European countries respect American scientists more than they have respected them in the past. Dorothy A. Morgan. ♦♦♦♦ LATIN IS A LIVING LANGUAGE Barbara Isham. In order to prove this statement I must show that Latin is now living. When a thing is living it continues to exist. Surely, Latin continues to exist for we speak it every day. Every time you call the doctor you are speaking Latin because doctor is a word that hasn’t been changed since the Roman times. Every time you say you are superior to your next door neighbor your sentence is partly Latin because superior is another Latin word. Every time you refer to a cantata in which you are singing, you speak Latin because cantata is an old Latin word. Every time you see an animal you are seeing a Latin object because the word animal was handed down directly from the Romans. Every time you look at the pendulum of a clock, you are looking at an object with a Latin name for pendulum is a Latin word. Many other common words which we use every day are derived from Latin and in order to understand them better, Latin is necessary. For example, manicure comes from manus, meaning hand, and curare, meaning to care for, hence it means, a person who takes care of people’s hands. Tent comes from tendere, meaning to stretch, and it is a shelter made of some strong material which is stretched over poles. Fine comes from finis, meaning end, and it means a sum of money which is paid in order to put an end to a transaction. Secretary comes from secretarius, which means a keeper of secreta or secrets. These words are so familiar that people don’t stop to think of their origin. When you were elected Ceres of your Grange did you know what the title meant? Ceres was goddess of agriculture and mother of Proserpina. Proserpina was carried to the underworld and only came up at the command of Jupiter. Ceres grieved so when her daughter was in the underworld that all things died. This time was rep- i

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Page Seventeen ex-soldier of the German army gained recognition, and a band of followers, by delivering a number of fiery speeches. His band grew rapidly and many important men joined his party. This man’s name is Adolph Hitler. While delivering one of his speeches he was arrested and sentt need to jail. All his followers left him and every one thought that his party was doomed forever. After staying in jail for about six months he was released, and started forming hi party again. In times when business is good, no one will listen to him, but when business slows down, he can convert many people to his ideas. In 1929 the business depression offered an excellent chance to increase his party and Hitler doesn’t pass up any chances. His party gr w so fast that now he has over six million people under his direction, making his party the next to the largest party in Germany. If Hitler could gain control of Germany, the first thing that he would do would be to repudiate the treaty of Versailles. In this way reparations would be stopped and the eastern boundary of Germany could be changed. The next thing that he would do would be to do away with all large department stores and large business firms. Everything would be owned and operated by individuals, and wealth would be distributed more evenly among the people. The Jew is a public enemy of all Hitlerites and would be quickly expelled from Germany. The Jews are bankers and consider the treaty of Versailles merely a business transaction, and they expect to live up to their part of the contract. Hitler wants to cancel reparations and therefore one of his slogans is “Down with the Jews.’ Other countries are objecting to the ideas of the Germans. The more the Germans seek revising of the treaty, the more determined France becomes against it. Neither is Great Britain going to give up her ex-German colonies, or is Italy going to surrender Alto Adiege. As to the Polish Corridor (meaning Poland’s access to the sea made possible by the seizure of Danzig and part of Silesia, which formerly belonged to Germany) many people in Poland think it a decided advantage to abolish it, but the Polish government doesn’t share this point of view, and it has instructed its representatives abroad not to discuss the subject. The amount of the German debt to the United States has been reduced about two-thirds since 1921, and if another serious depression should take place the debt would probably be cut still further. It is only a question of time now before something will take place, whether it is a revision of the peace treaty or a new war between France and Germany. If war should take place, the destruction and ruin would be considerably greater than that of the world war. If the treaty is revised, any settlement would be the signal to unloose all the forces that menace the stability of Europe and such action would also be a definite encouragement to the extremists in every country. ROBERT FOWLER. “MICHAEL PUPIN, SCIENTIST AND INVENTOR” Dorothy Morgan. The great modern scientist, Michael Idvorsky Pupin, is a fine example of a foreign boy who came to America and made good. He was born at Idvor, Hungary, in 1858, the son of a stern Serbian herdsman and a pious peasant woman, who knew the scripture from beginning to end, although she could neither read nor write. Pupin’s education began in the little school of his native village, but soon it was noticed that he possessed unusual ability as a scholar, so he was sent to a school at Prague in Bohemia, where he remained until he set out for America. While he was at school in Idvor, he, along with the other boys, spent his summer vacations on the pasture lands caring for the herds of oxen. In Hungary, on perfectly clear summer nights the stars are so bright that the sky looks black by contrast, and on such nights it was impossible to see the oxen if they were more than a few score of feet away, but the boys could hear them if they pressed their ears to the ground. Because of this they placed their knives in the ground and by putting their ear to the handle they could hear every step of the oxen. Th n they estimated the time of the night by the light of the stars and by their position. Thus light and sound were associated with Pupin’s way of thinking even at that early age, and this was one thing that helped in his dealings with vibration of sound. These associations also led him to question his teacher “Kos,” through whom he first heard of Franklin, and his kite, and who finally convinced him that sound was the vibration of bodies. When he was at Prague he received a letter from his sister informing him of his father’s sudden death, after only a brief illness. Michael immediately wrote his mother that he would return to Idvor and help her care for the land, but she wouldn’t listen to it. He knew what a burden his schooling would be to her and he was going to try to relieve her of it if possible. Then one day he saw an advertisement of the Hamburg-American line, offering steerage transportation from Hamburg to New York for 28 florins, and at once he decided to try his fortune in the land of Franklin and Lincoln. He sold his watch, his clothes, and his books, to make up the sum necessary for traveling expenses. Finally after a few days of traveling hardships he landed at New York harbor. When it came his turn to be questioned by the immigrant officials he was very much alarmed. They asked if he had any relatives in America, and he replied that the only American people he knew were Franklin, Lincoln and Harriet Beecher Stowe. This amused the officials and he seemed so honest and so really helpless that the officials let him by because they were so deeply impressed by him. When he landed he had just five cents % . «|» • :• ► ❖ ❖ ❖ • ❖ • ❖ • ❖ - ❖ • ❖ • ❖ • ❖ ❖ ❖ • • » » « • « j» »j

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Page Nineteen resented as winter. When Proserpina came up again it was springtime. Many such interesting stories are connected with every day incidents. State mottoes are usually in Latin. The United States motto, “E pluribus unum,” meaning one composed of many, and the Connecticut nn tto, “Qui transtulit, sustinet,” he who transplanted, sustains, are used very ofen. When we travel in a strange graveyard we notice Latin inscriptions. In memoriam is very common and such expressions as “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori, it is sweet and fitting to die for one's country, are used occasionally. Secondly, we wish to point out the fact that Latin is commonly spoken in school. Some people who go to school, boast that they are not taking Latin, but whatever the subject which they are taking may be, Latin is bound to be encountered. Let us study physiology for a moment. Did you know that there are more than 200 bones in your body, every one of which has a Greek or Latin name? Did you know that in science you are known as homo sapiens? Did you know that you are the possessor of eight bicuspids? Did you know' that without the orbicularis oculi you could not go to sleep at night? Or if you wish to study Physics you will find Latin a great help in learning and remembering terms. For example, heat conduction, from Latin conduco, to lead, means transference of heat from molecule to molecule. Aqueous, from Latin aqua, means pertaining to water. Capillary tube, from Latin capillus, meaning hair, means a tube resembling a hair. A calorie from Latin calor, meaning heat, is a heat unit. In zoology, as in Latin, we find that a horse is equas, a cat, felis; a dog, canis; and a rabbit, lepus. In Chemistry it is much easier to remember the symbols for different chemical elements, if we know the Latin names. Tin has Sn for a symbol, its Latin name is stannum. Mercury has Hg from Latin hydrargyrus, a kind of quicksilver. Au means gold in chemistry, which is taken from the Latin aurum. In botany Latin helps us to remember the parts of flowers. Stamen comes from the Latin word stamena, which means thread. Sepal comes from sepalum, leaf and petals from petalum, petal. Pansy comes from pensare, to ponder, and it is often used as a symbol of thought. In English w’hen one reads Milton's poems or Shakespeare's dramas, frequent references are made to mythology. Have you ever had to spell the word separate, or the word aeroplane, in a spelling match? If you happened to know' Latin the words didn't bother because separate comes from separatus and aeroplane from aer. In the professions Latin is essential. In law such terms as alibi, meaning presence elsewhere, mal fides, bad faith, and pro tempore, for the time being, are Latin expressions, and can be much more easily remembered, if the lawyer has a knowledge of Latin. In the study of medicine, stimulant comes from stimulo, to arouse or incite; fever comes from Latin febris, fever; inflammation comes from inflammare, to set on fire. The musician learns the meanings of many Latin words. Did you ever notice an f on a page of music? That f means firm and loud and comes from Latin, fortis. Dulce, meaning soft and smooth is taken from Latin dulcis. The minister encounters hymns with Latin names, phrases from the Bible in Latin, and, if he is a Catholic minister, carries out his services in the Latin tongue. This list might be prolonged indefinitely. Latin is commonly objected to because it is called a “dead language. It is said that no one speaks it now. Latin is spoken extensively even at present. Catholics repeat prayers and hymns in Latin. Lately a broadcasting station has been opened in the Vatican at Rome. This promises an extended use of Latin as a spoken language. Latin is not a “dead language; it has only changed its name. “Popular Latin has never ceased to exist. It is the language of France, Spain, Italy, Roumania, and all the Roman countries of today. Its history has been unbroken from the founding of Rome to the present time. says Professor Frank Frost Abbott. Latin isn't generally spoken in the form used by the Romans of Caesar’s day. But does anyone speak the English as it was used in the time of King Alfred? If you read the Lord's prayer in the English of that day you could only understand six words. We do not speak the English of Chaucer's time either. And yet English today is not called a “dead language. We only say that it has changed greatly since the days of King Alfred and Chaucer. In the same way Latin has changed since the days of Caesar, but in its modern form (now called Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Roumanian—the latter a direct survival of the language of the Roman legions quartered in that country—)it is still 90 per cent Latin. The Latin language when spoken is beautiful and dignified. Listen to the Lord's Prayer in Latin. Pater noster, qui es in caelo, sanctificetur nomen tuum, adveniat regnum tuum, fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo, et in terra; panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie; et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut nos dimittimus de-bitoribus nobis; et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. Ita fecit. In conclusion, Latin myths surround common objects with beauty. Do we ever stop to think, when we are looking at the stars, of the story connected with the big and little dipper? Jupiter fell in love with a beautiful maiden, Callisto. But Juno, Jupiter's wife, wras jealous and to stop this affair, she changed Callisto into a bear, and she was driven into the woods and deprived of her home. Jupiter vainly looked for this maiden, and after a long search, he discovered her and her little bear son. In pity for their sufferings, Jupiter put them both in the sky, where they are known as the Great and Little Bear or the Big and Little Dipper. Barbara Isham. ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ ❖ •