The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-06-25

students 0f Crosby, Wflby and Le2venwegth High schools com. DeteA the honorable tudges e. IecteG Miss Naomi Schnltman of Wflby as 10lts outstanding Ora. toE. She was presented the Harry L. Beardsley Award at the recent commencement exercises, Miss SchnitSnan is the dsughteF of Mrs. Rae and the late Charles N. ScEsnltmnn Of i4S Plsza avenue. Her splendid OsatiOn en . timely theme not only won the decision of the judges, but the cOlSsnenda" ten of her teachers snd associ. ates. Her oEstoricaI esfOFtS ell" maxeA one of the most interesting contests held in years.
 Her address follows:
 The history Of man is the hisD tory of the challenge Of new frontiers. From ancient times 1t was this challenge that made pos. gtble the now slower and now rap- i'd advance from ail ttlcultivased jungle to a fertile plane, from an 1Iliterate mortal to masses who c an irnmortalizc themselves through the pen and the spoken word. Always each age has felt the urge Of the pioneer--thc de- sire to conquer new worlds, to go in search Of adventure either i1 the practical world or the world of the mind, the heart, the soul.
 What 6 challenge 1t must lave been for that human who first bee held the sea stretching out end. IeESIy before hiini How he must have Ionged to break the barrier Of the unknown, to accept the challenge Of fear and mystery and death and penetrate into that great beyOadI How powerful must have been the inspiration of that mortal who first conceived the idea OE group rule among men ir- stead of the rule Of the Individual. What impulses and what emotions must have driven him on to con- quer the jack of faith of i1ian in man and to be willing to submit to collective rule instead of the rule Of might and cunning.
 Through the ages such challeng- eS have been hurled ct man in his conquest Of the physical world, ta his conquest Of the heart and the mind Of man, in his conquest of the 1ifnitlesS speculation into the unknown. Such was the chal- Ienge to sn Abraham in q world Of chaos, such was the challenge to Columbus in a world Of doubt, the challenge to Q Pasteur iil Q world Of superstition, the chal. jenge to OUT pioneers in a world of persecution and economic suf- feFing, such was the challenge to our founding fathers in a world Of tyranny and isnperialistic cru- city.
 New Frontiers
 Tn our own day and age much has been written and much has been spoken about the lack of new frontiers. We have been told by the pesgimist and by those who sought to hide their own failure in myriad excuses, who sought to obscure their own fear of adven- ture in Q cry of despair that there are no new worlds to conquer, that the enterprising, the daring, the stimulating, the dashing are but a thing Of the past. These AIexanderg the Great who sit with a Woe-begoi1e expression and are grief stricken that they see no more worlds to conquer, would Stifie every natural impulse with in the youth of today, would sen- tence us to an eternal prison of boredom, ennui, and despair.
 How true is their cry, how real their complaint? Is 1t true that with the closing of the physical frontiers of the civilized world there is a closing Of all frontiers? Has fife indeed made 8 complete circuit and are we faced with a backward Swtng2 Not only would such an assertion be the burying of the hopes of the present and ali future generations, but 1t would be the basest of falsehoods, the viiest of prevaricationS. Even in the physical world much yet remains to be done, the pioneers of yesterday find their replica in the Admiral Byrds of today. We have not yet spanned all the rive CTS, nor bridges all the mountains. We have not yet fought off the attacks of sand storms, the ero- sion of soil, the plague Of floods, and the blight Of swampS. How much ingenuity, how much of the adventurous spirit will man yet have to display to overcome these and countless other physical ob- stacles to break through these frontiers which challenge him!
 Human Relations
 And when we enter the field of human relations. the field of em- plOyer and employe, the field of nation and nation, group and group, person and person, what a challenge presents itseifi Shall we. as the ridiculars of Columbus, cry out. There is no distant ho- rizon, there is no possibility of changing human nature and hu- man relationship7 Or shall we set sail on the perilous sea of hu- man conduct to find newer. yich- CT. more workable philosophies, with which we can correct the ills e.H kfaA aenEfA mm AasaaN1Nmea xNinaaeAFg