Newspapers / Salem College Student Newspaper / Dec. 14, 1956, edition 1 / Page 2
Part of Salem College Student Newspaper / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Page Two THE SALEMITE December 1 4, 1956 Beyond Tbe Squore—By Caro! Campbell ‘Til clue you, cats, I just don’t I dash and the 400 meter relay and dig what blows here lately. You Harold Connolly with the hammer hnow your old dad, he keeps a throw. Russia won by virtue of pretty sharp ear bent to the notes from the jazz boys and up to now its many victories m gymnastics and Greco-Roman wrestling. Its it’s really been swingin’. I mean j outstanding athlete was trackman we’ve done nothin’ but rockin’ and I Vladimar Kuts. rollin’. But now and then I been hearing strange sounds. No chuck les, really strange, and this new bit is really square. No beads yet, gang, but you never know.” Well, you’re right, my friend. If you listen carefully to the cur rent music in America which has been tainted by the tinny clamor of Presley and Rock and Roll for far too long, you may hear the pure, sweet strains of an old Jamai can folksong. This is the dew-like voice of Harry Belafonte. It is in * this young Negro folksinger that I see the greatest salvation for the degeneracy into which our popular .niusic has fallen. Although, Harry Belafonte was born in New York City, the- major part of his childhood was spent in the British West Indies among the people of his mother’s native home land. Returning to the United States, he spent a hitch in the Navy and then decided he wanted to be an actor. Despite his hard work in a New York dramatic school where his colleagues were Marlon Brando and Tony Curtis, the breaks never came so he accepted a crooning position at the Royal Roost sing ing dreamy American love songs. ‘‘I got sick of that ‘good-looking hoy that girls go for’ routine”, says Harry, and he opened a restaurant that folded in a few months. Remembering the folk songs he had heard in his childhood, Harry and guitarist named Millard Tho mas combed the Library of Con gress to gather folk songs and then began singing. Embellishing the spirituals, folk songs and calypso with good rhythm and a keen sense of the dramatic, he was an im mediate hit. Several of his records were top selling successes and he found rapt audiences all over the nation when he joined Marge and Gower Cham pion last year to tour in a show entitled ‘‘Three for Tonight.” His repetoire ranged from the delicate ballads which he seemed to be sing ing more for himself than the audi ence to rousing calypso chanted with faultless clarity and an infec tious smile. But overshadowing the tall good looks and the sensitive interpreta tion is the natural, husky voice of the singer himself. This is what captivates the listener and this is the secret of his magic. Harry Belafonte still carries the dream of becoming an actor. In 1954 he said, “I guess I’d rather act than be the greatest singer in the world.” But to me he has a far greater calling, that of bringing America a high level of music which it has needed for a very long time. THE WORLD Last week in Melbourne, Austra lia the trumpets sounded a parting fanfare, the flag with five inter locking rings was lowered, the torch was extinguished, a cannon roared a final salute and the 1956 Olypiad was brought to a close. Standing before the assembled ranks of athletes from 68 nations and a packed stadium, the Presi dent of the International Olympic Committee, Avery Brundage, pro claimed the closing of the games and called upon the youth of all countries to assemble in four years at Rome to celebrate the next games of the Seventeenth Olym- paid. Here are the results of the con tests in Melbourne. In first place was Russia with a total of 37 gold medals, in second place the United States with 32, and in third place was Australia with 13. The sur prise came with Hungary’s failure to capture third place, which had been expected, but the accepted ex planation is that the current crisis in this country took the heart out of most of the attempts of the Hungarian athletes. Our country triumphed in the rarea of men’s track and field events with stars such as Bobby Morrow '.who won the 100 and 200 meter Third place went to Australia through its victories in swimming. Billy Cuthbert won all seven free style races and Murray Rose kept his title as the world’s greatest swimmer by winning the 100 and 200 meter dashes. Just for the re cord, the United States also scored victories in the woman’s high jump, basketball, weight lifting, yachting and in a spectacular struggle with the teams from Canada and Aus tralia, the 8-man crew from Yale carried away the prize in rowing. * * In Hungary the Kadar puppet government has made a final at tempt to squelch the resistance of the W'Orkers of Budapest. Last week came the news that they have declared martial law, dissolved the Workers’ Councils and have cut all communication between Hungary and the outside world. With the acknowledged purpose of driving the Soviet troops from Hungarian soil, the workers have; been striking and sabotaging pro duction and have thus hit the Ka dar regime where it hurts the most, Since November 4, the United Nations has adopted six resolutions calling on the Soviet Union to cease its intervention, withdraw its troops, cease deportations of Hun garians ' into Russia and has re peatedly asked permission to admit U. N. observers into Hungary to organize distribution of U. N. re lief and to study the situation. On every count, the Russians have said NO. THE NATION As for the refugee problem, there has been much criticism of the Ad-i ministration for the way in which it has handled our program of re lief. We claimed we would offer asylum for 21,500 of the 120,000 Hungarians that have fled over the manhunt in the history of the Police Department.” ^alemite * * * The latest report on the progress of the struggle for school integra tion in Clinton, Tenn. is that the Federal Government has at last taken action. So far sixteen per sons have been arrested in Clinton for interfering in the Court’s de cision concerning integration and instigating riots against the twelve Negro students who had entered the local high school. It will be interesting to see what further role I he federal government will play in this story of local and state of ficials versus the Supreme Court. ENTERTAINMENT The latest sensation in the the atre world is a fine play by Lillian Heilman and Leonard Bernstein which has been adapted from Vol taire’s Candide. Most of US have forgotten that besides being a furi ous pamphleteer and philosopher, Voltaire began his career as a tragic dramatist in the classical tradition of Racine. Overcoming the author’s use of the characters as illustrations of a theory, Bernstein has created a sparkling musical holiday and the New York Times calls it “the first musical of the season that has dis tinction”. * * * Don’t miss The Rainmaker with Katherine Hepburn and Burt Lan caster and Anastasia starring In grid Bergman and Yul Brynner—» soon to be seen in your neighbor hood theatres. Published every Friday of the College year by the Student Body of Salem College A Real Thing This is the story of a family. It isn’t a dramatic story. It’s not even a sad story. But you may like it. It most probably won’t make you sing any fewer carols or like Christmas trees any less. It shouldn’t. But it may stir some thing in you. It may give you new feeling this year—or revive an old one. It was Christmas Eve, but this Hulk ,4/^0 M. PRESS Subscription Price—$3.50 a year OFFICES—Lower Floor Main Hall Downtown Office—304-306 South Main St. Printed by the Sun Printing Company Editor-in-Chief Jo Smitherman Assistant Editor Martha Ann Kennedy Managing Editor Caro! Campbell News Editor Miriam Quarles Feature Editor Marcia Stanley Pictorial Editors Dottie Ervin, Nancy Warren Make-Up Editor Jeane Smitherman Assistant News Editor, Mary Ann Hagwood Faculty Advisor — Miss Jess Byrd Business Manager Ann Knight Advertising Manager Martha Jarvis Circulation Manager ........ Peggy Ingram Assistant Business Manager, Suejette Davidson Staff Writers: Pat Flynt, Mary Walton, Anne Catlette, Betsy Smith, Sally Bo- vard, Pat Greene, Sissie Allen, Mar garet MacQueen, Mary Brooks Yar borough, Martha Goddard Circulation: Ronnie Alvis, Barbara Bell, Evo Jo Butler, Helen Babington, Ruth Bennett, Laura Bible, Mary Calhoun, Nancy Jane Carroll, Susan Childs, Lina Farr, Betsy Guerrant, Ellie Mit chell, Marilyn Shull, Nan Williams, Merrie Jane Brown. Business Staff: Nancy Lomax, Sally Townsend, Sue Davis, Headlines: Mary Jo Wynne, Ruth Ben nett, Jerome Moore Letter Qllh ^alem QIljrtBtmaH border into Austria m the last six .... , K.,1- r u 1 ysar It was different. There was weeks, but so far we have only . n u . . i j t H r t* Zi o c ^ I Knf- nf-nvHvr 4-1 y-4 -«r.:.4.vr taken in a thousand. In retaliation, Ike announced the establishment of an ‘air-lift and sea lift’ to bring 21,500 exiles to the U. S. by January 1, but the criti cism continues of: 1) packing the exiles into troop planes to bring them to the U. S. while other countries like Canada are trans- and ships and 2) using Camp Kil- porting them by commercial planes mer in New Jersey as a central place to process the immigrants be cause their first taste of American life should not be that of a military atmosphere. While Lt. Gen. Raymond Wheeler is working out the prob lem of cleaning of the debris of sunken ships in the Suez Canal, the statesmen in Washington, Paris and London are attempting to clear up the debris of a broken Western Alliance. Vice-president Nixon made a major policy address last week call ing for an end of recrimination.^ against the British attack of Egypt and praising them for the with drawal of their troops and John Foster Dullies flew to Paris for a meeting of the N. A. T. O. Council to discuss the British need for oil aid and to send tankers to bring Eastern oil around the Cape of Good Hope. Meanwhile in the Suez the U. N. E. F. has outnumbered those of the British and French for the first time since the beginning of the Anglo-French withdrawal. . * * * For sixteen years a mysterious twenty five bombs in Manhattan little man has planted more than and airports and has never been theatre’s, bus station, train stations, grabbed by the arm of the law. Last Sunday he struck again when a bomb went off amidst 1,500 peo ple who sat watching Tolstoy’s War and Peace in the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre. Although no deaths have occured as a result of the explosions, four teen persons have suffered injuries and Commissioner Kennedy of Newthe real Christmas York has or,dered “the greatest the tree—small, but sturdy and very straight and green. And there were the ornaments, and the strings of lights, and the tiny cardboard vil lage snuggled in the paper moun tains, covered by the white sheet below. But tonight Father wasn’t there . . . nor was Mother. He had died in early spring, and Mother had taken a job as a waitress in a restaurant to support the family and keep them together. This meant that she must be away from home during the supper hour, and Christmas Eve was no exception. John was six, and his sister, Carole, was eleven. They had eaten their evening meal—enough and abundance—Mother had seen to that. Now they sat very close to the fire place and talked ex citedly about Christmas and Santa and presents and the pageant at the church. They won’t be going to the church, for there was no one to take them. They had their own pageant . . . with a plastic cowboy for Joseph, and a flashlight shin ing thru a small cushion for the light of the Christ Child. There were Indians for shepherds and real gifts for the wise men. And there were lines, too, for each of the characters, and a beginning and an end to this story of the first Christmas. Sleep came early for the children and they were already in bed when mother came from work. But her task was ahead for her for there were presents to be brought from hiding places, and wrappings to be made. Then she slept. In the morning there was a warm house to waken in, and a bicycle for John ... a heart- shaped locket with a blue stone in the center and a bracelet to match for Carole . . . and a house coat for Mother. For dinner there was chicken . . . baked with oyster dressing . . . and mince-meat pie for dessert There was health . . , family . . love Even Christmas in Salem’s early days was different. Salemites dared not sing “four more days till we get out” for they rarely did get to go home—even for Christmas. A journey home for many of Salem’s first boarders entailed many days of strenuous travel. To Greens boro was a day’s trip. However, for these little Salem girls, Christmas was a merry time They spent many weeks making gifts for their classmates and fami lies. They painted little pictures and wrote gay tunes. They painted china and silk screens. However, most of the gifts were examples of their needlework. To their little sisters, the Salem ites would send rag dolls; to their mothers, embroidered purses, or vases; to their fathers, monogram- med handkerchiefs or silk change purses. It was fun for the girls to make the decorations for their room com panies and parlors. They strung pop corn, made tinsels, and many gay ornaments. Salem was deco rated as much like home at Christ mas as was possible. Christmas was celebrated with beautiful services in the Home Church. And Salemites never failed to realize the true joy of the sea son. Mary Archer Blount The residents of Old Salem were a ^ large part of the Salem board er’s observance of Christmas. The homes were elaborately decorated with greenery. Each house had a cresche the family had made. Long hours were spent in the carving and building of these little nativity scenes. ^^yid, in many families, each year there were new pieces in the scenes. The figures were intricate and very beautiful. (This elaborate celebration of Christmas in Old Salem homes is the forerunner of the present Candle Tea and Putz.) Snow often added to the beauty of Old Salem Christmases. Horse- pulled sleighs were numerous. And the Salem girls were often invited by families to ride. The residents also frequently, had the boarders in their homes for dinners and other festivities. Dear Jo, You asked me to write something about Christmas for the Salemit; But I must confess I cannot do it I tried. I dug under stacks oil paper and programs and pulled ont my old yellow legal pad, hoping would inspire me. I talked to people and asked what they would say if they were writ ing about Christmas. I thought, looked, and wondered, and even time I came up with the same ans wer. I cannot write about Christ mas. Christmas is not a season, j color, or a particular kind of weat her — though December, red, and cold are the usual conditions. No, Christmas is a feeling—a feeling it the air, in other people, and itj yourself. And you know as well aa I that the only way to express a feeling is through an incident 01 character. And that’s where I failed, for I could not think of any single in cident or character that would ex press the feeling of Christmas, You see, something that means. Christmas to me is a series of little- things that add up to the big whole.- It’s coming in- from class, dead-1 tired, and finding a tree in the| living room. You drop in the near-f est chair and watch until someone comes up and says “Listen, friend' UP! You’re going to put at least one icicle on this tree.” And you' do. j It’s shopping with your mother just waiting for her to see some-j thing she wants, no matter howl expensive, so you can go back and get it for her. It’s picking-out a football or doll for a Negro orphan who won’t! know you gave it to him. It’s being so busy with tests, i shopping, decorating, that you can’t i even sit down, yet you smile all|’ the time. It’s singing all the old I songs like Silent Night and Whiter Christmas and never being tired ol them. It’s walking down Main Streel loaded with packages and bumping into at least ten people everj| ) block, and swearing you won’t goi j again, and then proudly showing^ what you’ve bought to give some-| ^ one. Christmas is not Santa Clausi j though he is representative of iti It is not the birth of Jesus, thoughp v| that’s the reason for it. What is,I I it? I don’t know. It causes smiles, joy, laughter. It makes you happ)f | to spend all your money on gifts! | for other people. It makes yoi want to decorate, to admire, tcj. sing. I cannot express it. I don’t know how, and I don’t know of an in cident that would show it. And so I wrote you this letter to explaii why I cannot write the article yoi asked for. Sissie. tlell m... Will you tell me of Christmas little sparrow, looking for the sup per crumbs the mother-housewifi forgot to throw to you ? Will you tell me of Christmas, dirty puppy, sniffing at the barret; salvation army pot hanging on thfj chair ? Will you tell me of Christmas^ , little black child, holding youfl. || mother’s hand and watching th( f white child come out of the storf with many packages ? | Will you tell me of Christmas tagged florist boy, carrying th(- great poinsetta up the marblj' ' steps ? Will you tell me of Christmas,'- hungry delivery boy, sorting ou| the fat turkeys ? Will you tell me of Christmasi widow mother, looking in the face.'| of your hungry, parentless chili'| ren ? Will you tell me of Christmajf Hungarian orphan? Will you tell me of Christmas,r'^J marching soldier of any countryjs.if thinking of home? |i| -Mary Brooks Yarborougtj
Salem College Student Newspaper
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Dec. 14, 1956, edition 1
2
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75