Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1896-06-12
COM M ENCEM
Tenth Annual of the Alma High
School.

held in the opera house last evening
The stage was very prettily arranged
and decorated for the occasion. The
exercises opened with a selection by the
Alma orchestra followed by the invoca-
ton by DIR. Kendall Brooks, at the close
of which Miss Ward rendered piano
solo in excellent style.
In his oration, stepping Stones, d.
Major Lemen urges wise and careful
use of all the helps that are afforded for
advancement and progress, the selec-
ton of such pursuits as ones physical
and mental abilities adapt Them for, and
then to work cuCrgctically, for energy
and invincible determination, with a
noble motive, are the levers that move
the world
Miss Laura Buttons essay was about
Supplements" which she defined as
that which supplies deficiency and
serves TO complete and make perfect
that with which it is connected. In
contrast TO the supplement she spoke OF
an appendix as something which IS
added but is not essential TO complete
ness. The pith of her essay is in these
words: almost every instance of not
able success in life marks a man who
| has possessed unusual powers of select
self, " and cited instances Of the success
| ful careers of men engaged Ill the
various avocations of life.
In her essay, Echoes, " Harriet Wood
ward gave a resume of the great events
| in history, beginning with the crusades
linaugurated by Peter the Hermit the
work done for England by Oliver Crom-
we'll; Wilberforce, Napoleon, Wendell
Phillips, Garrison, and on down through
| the long list of men who have wrought
| for the up building and uplifting of the
race, the echoes of whose works have
reverberated through all the subsequent
years.
Blanche CurtisS, in her essay, "WOm-
ans part in freedom, reviews the
work done 10y woman in all avenues Of
reform, and closes with these words /:
The home is the hallowed spot where
the foundations of liberty and life are
| laid, and here woman reigns supreme,
without Il rival, without peer Here
| she mOulds the thought, here she guides
| the nations way Into every avenue,
and through every cline, penetrateS the
mothers life or follows the mother :
anxious care From the cradle to the
grave the sacred places of the soul-the
part of the temple called holy, into
which even the friend may not enter,
are the abiding places of the wife and
mother. There let her reign, the sover-
| eign of love and peace SO long as man
shall love the good and seek the pure,
the promoter of his highest thoughts,
the inspiration of his noblest deeds
"Beauty's Eyes" (TostiD was sung by
Miss OTIS so pleasingly as TO elicit hearty
applause from the large audience.
James b. Gargett chose for the sub
| iect of his Grafton "RooSeveltiSm, and
| handled his subject well. He gave a
history of the civil service as wrought
out by Mr.. Roosevelt; told of the abuses
of the spoils system, and contrasted II
with the benefits which have accrued
since the adoption of the civil service
| law. and in closing said: "The needs OF
our country are multiplying with our
growth; the masses of our people are
absorbed i'll private pursuits, and the
great need is for the far sighted, the
brave and the true.
| In her essay about Bachelor Women
| Miss Bertha Struble deplored the un-
| happy, uncongenial marriages which
have embittered many lives urged upon
young women the necessity OF thor
ough preparation for life's work, not as
a means by which they can get hus-
band, but rather as the aids TO indie
pendence and usefulness, and in closing
said: IF this is her aim Ill life, what
ever her attainments, she is Strengthened
by the attainments, and long after she
joins the silent majority her memory
will live in the hearts of those who
knew and loved her"
Miss Stella Eagon's essay on "lnde-
pendence Day" was well written les
son on true and lofty patriotism. She
deplored the laXness and want Of noble
motives which too often characterize the
annual celebrations of our independence
day. She would not have the mere
physical pleasures entirely ignored. but
said that the chief purpose of these Gel
ebrations should be TO bring the masses
more in touch with the history of oul
country and the great political problems
with which we have TO deal. Miss
Eagon's delivery was quiet, but force
full, and made a fine impression upoI
the audience.
Empress Josephine" was the subject
chosen by Miss Boneita Greig. In hel
essay Miss Greig gave an excellent
sketch of the history of this woman il
her domestic, social and political rela
tions to the history of France, of hel
constancy to a noble ideal through lif'
marked by sorrow and embittered 10y
the treachery and intrigues of others
Truly, the great virtue of woman il
cOnstancy."
The Alma orchestra favored the audi
ence at this point with another admira
bly, rendered selection.
John Knoertzer's Grafton, "a tru,
standard" was well written, and wa
rich i'll helpful, practical suggestions
The gist of the Grafton is in these words
1T matters little what we are today. i
is what we can be tomorrow, the height
we can attain, the good we can do, tn
knowledge we can acquire and use, tina
is the measure of our worth. ="
Lillian McCullough's essay, 9TH
roses of ashes, was an earnest plea L
look for the good and beautiful in uneX
pected places. mo matter what tn
appearance or how i'll, everything ha
its rose, whether seen with naked eye q
revealed by the microscope. We shoul
know our gardens well before judgin
its flowers, remembering that while tn