Welcome, Samuel Pickwick!

I would like to announce and welcome another new member, Samuel Pickwick! I trust that Samuel's contributions will be greatly enjoyed by our readers. Please be sure to check out Samuel's contributions in the May issue, which should be out beginning of May!

               - Augustus Snodgrass (editor)

The Pickwick Portfolio - April Issue

Greetings one and all! It is with extreme pleasure that I give you the April issue of our most extreme paper. It is an especially wonderful issue, with the addition of Note-able Composers, which Mr. Snodgrass will explain in the editor's note. So without further delay, the Pickwick Portfolio!

-Mr. Sam Weller
Publisher

The Pickwick Portfolio

April 2015

In this issue:

• “Abortion” by Theodore Winstint
  
  
• “Building a Snowman” by Augustus Snodgrass
  
  
• “Fun Things Almanac” compiled by Nathaniel Winkle
  
  
• “Preface to a Merry Life” by Sam Weller
  
  
• “The Best Instrument to Learn” by Theodore Winstint
  
  
• “Spring Is Here!” designed by Nathaniel Winkle
  
  
• Quotes to Note – compiled by Augustus Snodgrass and Sam Weller
  
  
• Note-able Composers 
   “Sergei Rachmaninoff” compiled by Augustus Snodgrass
  “Franz von Suppe” compiled by Augustus Snodgrass
  “Sergei Prokofiev” compiled by Augustus Snodgrass

• Story Time – “’Take Over, Bos’n!’” by Oscar Schisgall
  
  
• Poet’s Corner – 
   “Trust Jesus” by Theodore Winstint
  “The Wreck of the Hesperus” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
  “The Fishermen” by John Greenleaf Whittier

EDITOR’S NOTE

This paper is part of a club called “The Pickwick Club.” “The Pickwick Portfolio,” as this paper is called, is designed for the good of the readers. Its purpose is to serve as a paper of news, entertainment, and fun. Please take special note of our new section in this paper: “Note-able Composers.” We will be posting summaries of composers’ lives whose birthdays fall into the month of the issue. Enjoy, and I, in the name of all members and contributors of the Pickwick Portfolio, wish you a blessed Easter!

Sincerely,

Augustus Snodgrass

READ, LAUGH, ENJOY!

ABORTION – IT AFFECTS THE BABY, THE MOTHER, AND ALL OF SOCIETY IN A HARMFUL WAY

by Theodore Winstint

    It is murder; yet, it is legal in almost all countries. It happens every day. It happens many times a day. Nevertheless, people argue and say it is fine. Abortion has been looked at as the way to making men and women equal. Women can now have sexual intercourse just as easily as men can without being committed to having a baby. But, is this really the way it should be? Is murder the answer? Abortion should not be legal; it is killing, and killing should be illegal.
    The procedures and results of abortion are often distorted. Many women who choose to have an abortion do not know what it involves and regret their choice after they have gone through with it. One of the common myths of abortion is that the baby cannot feel any pain. This is far from the truth. In fact, the baby inside the womb has heightened nerve sensibilities, and therefore the pain that it goes through is felt stronger than a born human would feel. Dr. Paul J. Ranalli, a Neurology and Neuro-ophtalmology professor at the University of Toronto, stated: “Far from being less able to feel pain, such premature newborns may be more sensitive to pain...Babies under thirty weeks have a newly established pain system that is raw and unmodified at this tender age” (Fact #13). To be able to feel pain, noxious stimulus must be detected. Neurobiology and anatomy professor Maureen L. Condic says that these noxious stimulus require the neural structures which are present in the baby after eight to ten weeks of human development. She goes on to say that it is a “universal agreement that pain is detected by the fetus in the first trimester” (Muehlenberg, Does the unborn feel pain). Consequently, women should be made aware of how a baby is affected by an abortion.
    The fact that the baby feels pain during an abortion clearly shows that it is also a human being. The baby inside the womb is a separate body from the mother, and therefore it is not part of the mother’s body. The mother has no “choice” in aborting the child. Yes, she has a choice about what to do with her body, but that choice should have been made earlier. She should have chosen before whether she wanted to have a child or not and then act accordingly. Now, the choice is not hers anymore. Many women have a misunderstanding of the concept of abortion and what it does to the human inside them.
    Abortion does not just harm the baby, it also greatly harms the mother. A huge myth of abortion is that if it is done legally, there are no dangers of harming the mother. Many pro-abortionists defend their position by saying that if abortion were illegal, there would be many backyard abortions which would be harmful to the mother. They say that if it is done legally, the mother is protected and the abortion is done in a safe manner. This is a huge lie. Even if an abortion is done in a “safe and legal manner” there are numerous complications that can still arise. In fact, the mother often suffers more than the baby does. Even though it is excruciatingly painful for the baby, the baby’s pain is soon over. However, the pain that the mother has to endure is often very lengthy. Abortionists tell their patients that once their abortion is over, they will have to rest for one or two days and then be able to go on just as before and lead a normal life. This is not true.
    There are many ways that a mother can be harmed by an abortion. Common injuries that occur during an abortion include damage to the cervix, scarring of the uterine lining, perforation of the uterus, and damage to other organs. In addition to that, there are numerous side effects that can occur. If a woman has an abortion, she is 2.3 times more likely to develop cervical cancer than women who had no abortion and is exposed to an increased risk of developing ovarian or liver cancer. In addition, abortion will cause the woman to be two times more likely to have pre-term deliveries in the future compared to women who carry their baby to full term (Abortion Risks). Most women who undergo an abortion will experience some type of physical side effect. Some experience it immediately after the abortion, some several weeks later, and some even several years later. Of all women who have an abortion, approximately ten percent will experience immediate complications from which two percent are considered life threatening (Abortion Risks). Most of these physical side effects are not mentioned to a woman who is considering an abortion, and therefore many women are shocked about it afterwards.
    In addition to physical side effects, women also experience emotional and psychological side effects. In fact, these are much more common than physical side effects. Although some women only have mild regrets, others suffer from serious complications. Some of these symptoms include depression, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and feelings, anxiety, shame, and many more. When women decide to go through with the abortion, they have no idea what they will experience during the abortion or after. According to the American Pregnancy Association, “women commonly report that the abortion procedure affected them more that they expected” (Abortion Emotional Side Effects). The emotional and psychological side effects are most often not counted on, even though they are more numerous than physical side effects.
    Abortion does not affect the mother and child alone, it affects all of society. Children, youth, men, and society suffer from the results of abortion. NARAL Pro-Choice America stated the following about abortion affecting crime rates and abuse before it became legal: “A policy that makes contraception and abortion freely available will greatly reduce the number of unwanted children, and thereby curb the tragic rise of child abuse in our country...Legal abortion will decrease the number of unwanted children, battered children, child abuse cases, and possibly subsequent delinquency, drug addiction, and a host of social ills believed to be associated with neglectful parenthood” (Impact of Abortion on Society). Larry Lader, co-founder of NARAL, went on to say, “[Abortion] should usher in an era when every child will be wanted, loved, and properly cared for” (Impact of Abortion on Society). This has been proven to be the absolute opposite. Child abuse numbers have increased. According to the US National Center of Child Abuse and Neglect, child abuse has increased more than one thousand percent since abortion was legalised in 1973. In fact, there are more abused and unwanted children now than ever before. Children are looked upon as a product or “right”, not as a uniquely created human being or blessing. This is greatly harming society.
    Teenagers have been greatly affected by the legalisation of abortion as well. Many teens feel like “abortion survivors”, when they find out that their mother had an abortion. They feel that that
sibling could just as well have been them. It makes the teen feel worthless and just “lucky” to even be in this world. Because an abortion often leads to broken relationships, the biological father is often absent from the home. This causes confusion among young boys or men with their male identification. Because of the absence of the biological father, these young men then fear intimacy which leads to more problems as they get older. Young girls/women are inadequately protected from other males that might take advantage of them when the biological father is absent from the home. Teenagers that grow up in a home without their biological father face many troubles that others with their biological father present do not.
    Furthermore, men are also suffering from abortion. Except in China, men have no right to say anything about whether or not a woman is supposed to have an abortion. This makes them feel disenfranchised and powerless. They feel that they are not important. Abortion has caused the traditional role of men, which is to care for and protect, to be broken and it leaves them unsure of what their role is now. In fact, many men just see themselves as the “sperm donor”, not the protector and caretaker. Feeling this way, men act accordingly as well. They do not look at their children as part of them, but as full property of the woman. The children feel that their father does not love them as much, and therefore ignore him. This strains family relationships. Abortion does not just hurt the woman and child involved, it hurts children, young adults, and men.
    Abortion not only affects the woman and child and their close relations, but also all of society. Before abortion was legalised, people who were against abortion predicted that if it was legalised, infanticide and euthanasia would be accepted as well. This has indeed happened. Also, relationships started to suffer greatly after abortion was made legal. Studies have shown that seventy percent of women have relationship breakdowns within the first twelve months following the abortion (Impact of Abortion on Society). If personal relationships are suffering, the society is not going to do well either.
    Since abortion is legally available, birth rates are declining. They are now below the level that is needed for replacement. This is detrimental to the workforce and other areas. Because less babies are being born, the labour workload is going to weigh harder on the workers in a few years because many of the current workers will have retired by then, but not the same amount of people will be available to take over because of the lack of younger people. The workers who are still working will have a heavier workload which will then in return be not good for their health. Consequently, everyone will suffer. The declination of birth rates which is caused by abortion is harmful to all of society.
    Abortion affects not only the mother and baby, but also affects all of society in a harmful manner and therefore should not be legal. Although it is said that abortion is the solution for men and women to have equality in sex and that neither of them is committed to a baby, it is harming everyone greatly. In fact, in a 2003 Gallup Poll, it was recorded that seventy-two percent of teenagers are opposed to abortion (Impact of Abortion on Society). They believed that it is morally wrong. Legalising abortion was thought to help that specific generation, but the majority of that generation believe it to be wrong.
It is an act of killing. The society needs to be made aware of the true doings of abortion because it is ruining our countries. Abortion must be illegalised.

BUILDING A SNOWMAN

by Augustus Snodgrass

Building a snowman requires a child to follow certain steps. He starts out by searching for good packing snow. Once he has found a large and deep patch, he will start by building a large snowball and then rolling the large snowball in the snow. The snowball will pick up more and more snow until it is as large as the child wants the bottom snowball of the snowman to be. The child will then repeat this process twice, making each snowball a little smaller than the previous one. Then, the child will stack all the two last snowballs on top of the bottom snowball. The child may add some rocks for buttons, eyes, and mouth, maybe some sticks for arms, and a carrot for a nose. To finish the now-alive snowman, the child will dress the snowman in a hat and scarf. If a child follows this process, the snowman will be a success.

FUN THINGS ALMANAC

compiled by Nathaniel Winkle

TRY A TIP
Stage fright? Big event coming up? Nervous? Faking confidence can positively
influence your brain chemistry and actually make you more confident!
Believing you have good memory can do just that, helps you have a better memory
Missing the instructions to your Lego set? At WorldBricks.com you can find and
download almost all instructions to every known Lego set!
Always do your most dreaded tasks in the morning, knowing you have completed and
gotten it over with will make you much more productive the rest of the day
Feel a sneeze coming on at a bad time? Press your tongue to the roof of your
mouth until the feeling subsides
RIDDLES, JOKES, AND PUNS
Q) When is a baseball player like a spider?
A) When he catches a fly.

Q) Why did the fly avoid landing on the computer?
A) It was afraid of the worldwide web.
Q) What do you call a rabbit with insects all over it?
A) Bugs Bunny.
He who makes it cannot use it,
He who buys it does not need it,
He who uses it cannot see or feel it,
What is it?A coffin
What gets wetter and wetter the more it dries?A towel
I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger,
then it hit me.
How do you organize a party in space?You Planet
INTERNET SLANG EXPLAINED

• BTW – By The Way
  
• LOL – Laughing Out Loud
  
• YOLO – You Only Live Once
  
• FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out
  
• BFF – Best Friend Forever
  
• ASAP – As Soon As Possible
  
• DND – Do Not Disturb
  
• HAND – Have A Nice Day
  
• KISS – Keep It Simple Stupid
  
• LMK – Let Me Know
  
• JK – Just Kidding
  
• PPL – People
  

DIDN’T YOU KNOW? WEIRD SCIENCE EDITION

• Your body is made up of 10x more bacteria than human cells!
  
• Cockroaches can survive for several weeks without their heads!
  
• Your jaw is powerful enough to shatter all you teeth! (But you brain prevents this)
  
• Mushrooms are genetically more closely related to us than other plants!
  
• Tomatoes have more genes than humans!
  
  

AMUSING PALINDROMES
(Palindromes are words or sentences that read the same way backwards and forwards.)

• Dr. Awkward
  
• Cain: A maniac
  
• Bombard a drab mob
  
• Repel a leper
  
• Pa’s a sap
  
• Nate bit a Tibetan
  
• No, Sir, panic is a basic in a prison
  
• We panic in a pew
  

PREFACE TO A MERRY LIFE

by Sam Weller

I have been reading The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle and have been enjoying it immensely. At the beginning of the book, there is a preface written by the author. Most books have prefaces, and so at first I thought nothing of it. Normally I do not read the preface of a book, but this time I did. This time I stopped and took time to read the opening pages, and on them I read something almost as beautiful as the book itself...a preface so lovely and simple and merry that I wanted to start the book on the spot. I will say no more about it, and will let you read it for yourself. Perhaps you will want to go and pick up a copy of Robin Hood and lead a merry life under the greenwood tree for a time, just as I did. It goes as follows:

PREFACE

From the author to the reader

You who so plod amid serious things that you feel it shame to give yourself up even for a few short moments to mirth and joyousness in the land of Fancy; you who think that life hath nought to do with innocent laughter that can harm no one; these pages are not for you. Clap to the leaves and go no farther than this, for I tell you plainly that if you go farther you will be scandalized be seeing good, sober folks of real history so frisk and caper in gay colours and motley that you would not know them but for the names tagged to them. Here is a stout, lusty fellow with a quick temper, yet none so ill for all that, who goes by the name of Henry II. Here is a fair, gentle lady before whom all the others bow and call her Queen Eleanor. Here is a fat rogue of a fellow, dressed up in rich robes of a clerical kind, that all the good folk call my Lord Bishop of Hereford. Here is a certain fellow with a sour temper and a grim look – the worshipful, the Sheriff of Nottingham. And here, above all, is a great, tall, merry fellow that roams the greenwood and joins in homely sports, and sits beside the Sheriff at merry feast, which same beareth the name of the proudest of the Plantagenets – Richard of the Lion's Heart. Beside these are a whole host of knights, priests, nobles, burghers, yeomen, pages, ladies, lasses, landlords, beggars, peddlers, and what not, all living the merriest of merry lives, and all bound by nothing but a few odd strands of certain old ballads (snipped and clipped and tied together again in a score of knots) which draw these jocund fellows here and there, singing as they go.
Here you will find a hundred dull, sober, jogging places, all tricked out with flowers and what not, till no one would know them in their fanciful dress. And here is a country bearing a well - known name, wherein no chill mists press upon our spirits, and no rain falls but what rolls off our backs like April showers off the backs of sleek drakes; where flowers bloom forever and birds are always singing; where every fellow hath a merry catch as he travels the roads, and ale and beer and wine (such as muddle no wits) flow like water in a brook.
This country is not Fairyland. What is it? 'Tis the land of Fancy, and is of that pleasant kind that, when you tire of it – whisk! - you clap the leaves of this book together and 'tis gone, and you are ready for everyday life, with no harm done.
And now I lift the curtain that hangs between here and No-man's-land. Will you come with me sweet Reader? I thank you. Give me your hand.

THE BEST INSTRUMENT TO LEARN

by Theodore Winstint

Learning an instrument is very beneficial as it activates the left side of the brain. In addition, studies have shown that better memory is developed and fine motor skills are improved when one is involved with musical activity. Therefore, many parents wish to have their children enrolled in some type of music lesson. Even adults are seen to make time in their busy lives to learn an instrument. However, there are many instruments that are useful to learn and fun to play, which makes for a hard decision. Many ask themselves if there is one instrument that is more beneficial than the others. Does it matter what instrument a child or adult learns first? Some people argue that there is no difference in which instrument to learn first. They say that the one you want to learn should be the one you start with. However, many musicians agree that there is one instrument that every musician should know how to play. Moreover, it should be the first instrument to learn. It is the piano. The piano is generally the best instrument to learn first.
The piano is one of the few instruments where one can play a note and see the actual key. On stringed or wind instruments, the notes are connected with complex fingerings, but on the piano, they are connected with a single key. This makes learning the notes on the staff easier. As a result, one gains a secure understanding in note-reading which is necessary to success as a musician. To be able to read piano music, one has to be able to read notes in treble clef and bass clef. As a result, one will be able to
read the music for almost any other instrument as most of them use just one of the clefs. Furthermore, learning to play the piano is an encouraging process. For instance, some children wish to play the guitar because it is “cool”. However, when they start to learn it, they discover how much work is put into learning the different chords and then to be able to play an actual song. Then they get discouraged and quit; whereas with the piano, it is very likely that a student will be able to play a recognizable tune at the very first lesson. This greatly encourages the student. Trying to learn and improve playing an instrument when one is discouraged and one feels as though there is little or no progress is extremely hard. Therefore it is of great importance to have an urge to practice which is what learning the piano results in.
When learning to play an instrument, it is important to have a firm understanding of the note structure and grand staff. Learning to play the piano gives an extensive overview of the many types of music. It gives a greater understanding of the musical structure of songs than if one would choose a different instrument as the first one. Although learning other instruments proven beneficial in many ways, the piano has been found to be the decided precedent among musicians. Learning the piano is very profitable and has many benefits associated with it.

SPRING IS HERE!

designed by Nathaniel Winkle

Note: None of these pictures are owned by Nathaniel Winkle.

QUOTES TO NOTE

compiled by Augustus Snodgrass and Sam Weller

“Joy is the simplest form of gratitude.” – Karl Barth
“The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire.” – Ferdinand Foch
“If you do not think about your future, you cannot have one.” – John Galsworthy
“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.” – Saint Augustine
“Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow.” – Helen Keller
“Every noble work is at first impossible.” – Thomas Carlyle
“The best things in life are unexpected – because there were no expectations.” – Eli Khamarov
“Lost time is never found again.” – Benjamin Franklin
“Some of us think holding on makes us strong; but sometimes it is letting go.” – Hermann Hesse
“The delights of self-discovery are always available.” – Gail Sheehy
“Every gift from a friend is a wish for your happiness.” – Richard Bach
“Indecision and delays are the parents of failure.” – George Canning
“Our most intimate friend is not he to whom we show the worst, but the best of our nature.” – Nathaniel Hawthorn
“I am I plus my circumstances.” – Jose Ortega y Gasset
“When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.” – John Ruskin
“Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough.” – Og Mandino
“The noblest search is the search for excellence.” – Lyndon B. Johnson
“Always keep your smile. That’s how I explain my long life.” – Jeanne Calment
“You could never get a cup of tea large enough, or a book long enough to suit me.” – C. S. Lewis
“Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one.’” – C. S. Lewis
“There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” – C. S. Lewis

NOTE-ABLE COMPOSERS

SERGEI RACHMANINOFF

compiled by Augustus Snodgrass

Happy Birthday, Sergei Rachmaninoff!
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (April 1, 1873 – March 28, 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered as one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism Russian classical music.
Early influences of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov and other Russian composers gave way to a personal style notable for its song-like melodicism, expressiveness and his use of rich orchestral colors. The piano is featured prominently in Rachmaninoff's compositional output, and through his own skills as a performer he explored the expressive possibilities of the instrument.
Perhaps one of his most famous pieces is Piano Concerto No. 2. Here is a recording from YouTube played by Sergei Rachmaninoff: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8l37utZxMQ.

FRANZ VON SUPPE

compiled by Augustus Snodgrass

Happy Birthday, Franz von Suppe!
Franz von Suppé or Francesco Suppé Demelli (April 18, 1819 – May 21, 1895) was an Austrian composer of light operas from the Kingdom of Dalmatia, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now part of Croatia). A composer and conductor of the Romantic period, he is notable for his four dozen operettas.
Perhaps one of his most famous pieces is “Overture” to Poet and Peasant. Here is a recording from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3_aM_s0R1U.

SERGEI PROKOFIEV

compiled by Augustus Snodgrass

Happy Birthday, Sergei Prokofiev!
Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (April 23, 1891 – March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor. As the creator of acknowledged masterpieces across numerous musical genres, he is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century. His works include such widely heard works as the March from The Love for Three Oranges, the suite Lieutenant Kijé, the ballet Romeo and Juliet – from which "Dance of the Knights" is taken, and Peter and the Wolf. Of the established forms and genres in which he worked, he created – excluding juvenilia – seven completed operas, seven symphonies, eight ballets, five piano concertos, two violin concertos, a cello concerto, and nine completed piano sonatas.
A graduate of the St Petersburg Conservatory, Prokofiev initially made his name as an iconoclastic composer-pianist, achieving notoriety with a series of ferociously dissonant and virtuosic works for his instrument, including his first two piano concertos. In 1915, Prokofiev made a decisive break from the standard composer-pianist category with his orchestral Scythian Suite, compiled from music originally composed for a ballet commissioned by Sergei Diaghilev of the Ballets Russes. Diaghilev commissioned three further ballets from Prokofiev – Chout, Le pas d'acier and The Prodigal Son, which at the time of their original production all caused a sensation among both critics and colleagues. Prokofiev's greatest interest, however, was opera, and he composed several works in that genre, including The Gambler and The Fiery Angel. Prokofiev's one operatic success during his lifetime was The Love for Three Oranges, composed for the Chicago Opera and subsequently performed over the following decade in Europe and Russia.
After the Revolution, Prokofiev left Russia with the official blessing of the Soviet minister Anatoly Lunacharsky, and resided in the United States, then Germany, then Paris, making his living as a composer, pianist, and conductor. During that time he married a Spanish singer, Carolina Codina, with whom he had two sons. In the early 1930s, the Great Depression diminished opportunities for Prokofiev's ballets and operas to be staged in America and Western Europe. Prokofiev, who regarded himself as composer foremost, resented the time taken by touring as a pianist, and increasingly turned to Soviet Russia for commissions of new music; in 1936 he finally returned to his homeland with his family. He enjoyed some success there, notably with Lieutenant Kijé, Peter and the Wolf, Romeo and Juliet, and perhaps above all with Alexander Nevsky. The Nazi invasion of the USSR spurred him to compose his most ambitious work, an operatic version of Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace. In 1948 Prokofiev was criticized for "anti-democratic formalism," and, with his income severely curtailed, was forced to compose Stalinist works, such as On Guard for Peace. However, he also enjoyed personal and artistic support from a new generation of Russian performers, notably Sviatoslav Richter and Mstislav Rostropovich; for the latter, he composed his Symphony-Concerto, whilst for the former he composed his ninth piano sonata.
Perhaps one of his most famous pieces of music is Symphony-Concerto Op. 125. Here is a recording from YouTube played by the Orchestra of the University of Music and cellist Emanuel Graf: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=breQHJnnSb8.
Note: The summaries of the composers’ lives were taken from Wikipedia.

STORY TIME

“TAKE OVER, BOS’N!”

by Oscar Schisgall

AFTER TWENTY DAYS OF DRIFTING IN A LIFEBOAT, THE SAILORS WERE THIRST-CRAZED AND DANGEROUS. THE ONLY THING THAT HAD KEPT THEM FROM GUZZLING DOWN THEIR PRECIOUS WATER SUPPLY WAS THIRD OFFICER SNYDER, WHO SAT IN ONE END OF THE BOAT, POINTING HIS GUN AT THEM. BUT SNYDER KNOWS HE CANNOT STAY AWAKE MUCH LONGER, AND HE IS CONVINCED THAT ONCE…HE FALLS ASLEEP…IT WILL ALL BE OVER…
Hour after hour I kept the gun pointed at the other nine men. From the lifeboat’s stern, where I’d sat most of the twenty days of our drifting, I could keep them all covered. If I had to shoot at such close quarters, I wouldn’t miss. They realized that. Nobody jumped at me. But in the way they all glared I could see how they’d come to hate me.
Especially Barrett, who’d been bos’n’s mate. He said in his harsh, cracked voice, “You’re a dope, Snyder. Y-you can’t hold out forever! You’re half asleep now!”
I didn’t answer. He was right. How long can a man stay awake? I hadn’t dared shut my eyes in maybe seventy-two hours. Very soon now I’d doze off, and the instant that happened they’d pounce on the little water that was left.
The last canteen lay under my legs. There wasn’t much in it after twenty days. Maybe a pint. Enough to give each of them a few drops. Yet I could see in their bloodshot eyes that they’d gladly kill me for those few drops. As a man I didn’t count any more. I was no longer third officer of the wrecked Montana. I was just a gun that kept them away from the water they craved. And their tongues swollen and their cheeks sunken, they were half crazy….
The way I judged it, we must be some two hundred miles east of Ascension. Now that the storms were over, the Atlantic swells were long and easy, and the morning sun was hot–so hot it scorched your skin. My own tongue was thick enough to clog my throat. I’d have given the rest of my life for a single gulp of water.
But I was the man with the gun–the only authority in the boat–and I knew this: once the water was gone we’d have nothing to look forward to but death. As long as we could look forward to getting a drink later, there was something to live for. We had to make it last as long as possible. If I’d given in to the curses and growls, if I hadn’t brandished the gun, we’d emptied the last canteen days ago. By now we’d all be dead.
The men weren’t pulling on the oars. They’d stopped that long ago, too weak to go on. The nine of them facing me were a pack of bearded, ragged, half-naked animals, and I probably looked as bad as

the rest. Some sprawled over the gunwales, dozing. The rest watched my as Barrett did, ready to spring the instant I relaxed. When they weren’t looking at my face they looked at the canteen under my legs.

Jeff Barrett was the nearest one. A constant threat. The bos’n’s mate was a heavy man, bald, with a scarred and brutal face. He’d been in a hundred fights, and they’d left their marks on him. Barrett had been able to sleep–in fact, he’d slept through most of the night–and I envied him that. His eyes wouldn’t close. Narrow and dangerous, they kept watching me.
Every now and then he taunted me in that hoarse, broken voice:
“Why don’t you quit? You can’t hold out!”
“Tonight,” I said. “We’ll ration the rest of the water tonight.”
“By tonight some of us’ll be dead! We want it now!”
“Tonight,” I said.
Couldn’t they understand that if we waited until night, the few drops wouldn’t be sweated out of us so fast? But Barrett was beyond all reasoning. His mind had already cracked with thirst. I saw him begin to rise, a calculating look in his eyes. I aimed the gun at his chest–and he sat down again.
I’d grabbed my Luger on instinct, twenty days ago, just before running for the lifeboat. Nothing else would have kept Barrett and the rest away from the water.
These fools–couldn’t they see I wanted a drink as badly as any of them? But I was in command here–that was the difference. I was the man with the gun, the man who had to think. Each of the others could afford to think only of himself; I had to think of them all.
Barrett’s eyes kept watching me, waiting. I hated him. I hated him all the more because he’d slept. He had the advantage now. He wouldn’t keel over.
And long before noon I knew I couldn’t fight any more. My eyelids were too heavy to lift. As the boat rose and fell on the long swells, I could feel sleep creeping over my like paralysis. It bent my head. It filled my brain like a cloud. I was going, going…
Barrett stood over me, and I couldn’t even lift the gun. In a vague way I could guess what would happen. He’d grab the water first and take his gulp. By that time the others would be screaming and tearing at him, and he’d have to yield the canteen. Well, there was nothing more I could do about it.
I whispered, “Take over, bos’n.”
Then I fell face down into the bottom of the boat. I was asleep before I stopped moving….

When a hand shook my shoulder, I could hardly raise my head. Jeff Barrett’s hoarse voice said, “Here! Take your share o’ the water!”Somehow I propped myself up on my arms, dizzy and weak. I looked at the men, and I thought my eyes were going. Their figures were dim, shadowy; but then I realized it wasn’t because of my eyes. It was night. The sea was black; there were stars overhead. I’d slept the day away.So we were in our twenty-first night adrift–the night in which the tramp Groton finally picked us up–but now, as I turned my head to Barrett there was no sign of any ship. He knelt beside me, holding out the canteen, his other hand with the gun steady on the men.I stared at the canteen as if it were a mirage. Hadn’t they finished that pint of water this morning? When I looked up at Barrett’s ugly face, it was grim. He must have guessed my thoughts.“You said, ‘Take over, bos’n’, didn’t you?” he growled. “I been holdin’ off these apes all day.” He hefted the Luger in his hand. “When you’re bossman,” he added with a sheepish grin, “in command and responsible for the rest–you–you sure get to see things different, don’t you?”

Note: Introduction taken from Of People Literature.

POET’S CORNER

TRUST JESUS

by Theodore Winstint

Trust Jesus as a little child

Trusts mom when things are going wild.

Trust Him when there’s no other way,

Or when life seems to go astray.

Trust God Almighty, Sol’mon said,

And you shall in His paths be lead.

Trust Him, though life seems rough and hard;

He’ll never leave you – Trust His Word.

Trust God – Oh trust Him, never cease,

And all your chains He will release.

Trust Jesus every single day;

Trust Him, He’ll lead you all the way.

THE WRECK OF THE HESPERUS

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

It was the schooner Hesperus,

That sailed the wintry sea;

And the skipper had taken his little daughter,

To bear him company.

Blue were her eyes as the fairy flax,

Her cheeks like the sawn of day,

And her bosom white as the hawthorn buds

That ope in the month of May.

The skipper he stood beside the helm,

His pipe was in his mouth,

And he watched how the veering flaw did blow

The smoke now West, now South.

Then up and spake and old Sailor,

Had sailed to the Spanish Main,

“I pray thee, put into yonder port,

For I fear a hurricane.

“Last night, the moon had a golden ring,

And tonight no moon we see!”

The skipper, he blew a whiff from his pipe,

And a scornful laugh laughed he.

Colder and louder blew the wind,

A gale from the Northeast,

The snow fell hissing in the brine,

And the billows frothed like yeast.

Down came the storm, and smote amain

The vessel in its strength;

She shuddered and paused, like a frighted steed,

Then leaped her cable’s length.

“Come hither! come hither! my little daughter,

And do not tremble so;

For I can weather the roughest gale

That ever wind did blow.”

He wrapped her warm in his seaman’s coat

Against the stinging blast;

He cut a rope from a broken spar,

And bound her to the mast.

“O father! I hear the church bells ring;

Oh say, what may it be?”

“’Tis a fog-bell on a rock-bound coast!”

And he steered for the open sea.

Oh father! I hear the sound of guns;

Oh, say, what may it be?”

“Some ship in distress, that cannot live

In such an angry sea!”

“O father! I see a gleaming light;

Oh, say, what may it be?”

But the father answered never a word,

A frozen corpse was he.

Lashed to the helm, and stiff and stark,

With his face turned to the skies,

The lantern gleamed through the gleaming snow

On his fixed and glassy eyes.

Then the maiden clasped her hands and prayed

That saved she might be;

And she thought of Christ, who stilled the wave,

On the Lake of Galilee.

And fast through the midnight dark and drear,

Through the whistling sleet and snow,

Like a sheeted ghost, the vessel swept

Tow’rds the reef of Norman’s Woe.

And ever the fitful gusts between,

A sound came from the land;

It was the sound of the trampling surf

On the rocks and the hard sea-sand.

The breakers were right beneath her bows,

She drifted a dreary wreck,

And a whooping billow swept the crew

Like icicles from her deck.

She struck where the white and fleecy waves

Looked soft as carded wool,

But the cruel rocks, they gored her side

Like the horns of an angry bull.

Her rattling shrouds, all sheathed in ice,

With the masts went by the board;

Like a vessel of glass, she stove and sank;

Ho! ho! the breakers roared!

At daybreak, on the black sea-beach,

A fisherman stood aghast,

To see the form of a maiden fair,

Lashed close to a drifting mast.

The salt sea was frozen to her breast,

The salt tears in her eyes;

And he saw her hair, like the brown seaweed,

On the billows fall and rise.

Such was the wreck of the Hesperus,

In the midnight and the snow!

Christ save us all from a death like this,

On the reef of Norman’s Woe!

THE FISHERMEN

by John Greenleaf Whittier

Hurrah! the seaward breezes

Sweep down the bay amain;

Heave up, my lads, the anchor!

Run up the sail again!

Leave the lubber landsmen

The rail-car and the steed;

The stars of the heaven shall guide us,

The breath of heaven shall speed.

From the hill-top looks the steeple,

And the lighthouse from the sand;

And the scattered pines are waving

Their farewell from the land.

One glance, my lads, behind us.

For the homes we leave on sigh,

Ere we take the change and chances

Of the ocean and the sky.

Now, brothers, for the icebergs

Of frozen Labrador,

Floating spectral in the moonshine,

Along the low, black shore!

Where like snow the gannet’s feathers

On Brador’s rocks are shed,

And the noisy murr are flying,

Like black scuds, overhead;

Where in mist the rock is hiding,

And the sharp reef lurks below,

And the white squall smites in summer,

And the autumn tempests blow;

Where, through gray and rolling vapor,

From evening unto morn,

A thousand boats are hailing,

Horn answering unto horn.

Hurrah! for the Red Island,

With the white cross on its crown!

Hurrah! for Meccatina,

And its mountains bare and brown!

Where the Caribou’s tall antlers

O’er the dwarf-wood freely toss,

And the footstep of the Mickmack

Has no sound upon the moss.

There we’ll drop our lines, and gather

Old Ocean’s treasures in,

Where’er the mottled mackerel

Turns up a steel-dark fin.

The sea’s our field of harvest,

Its scaly tribes our grain;

We’ll reap the teeming waters

As at home they reap the plain!

The Pickwick Portfolio - March Issue

Ladies and gentlemen, here, at long last, is the March issue of The Pickwick Portfolio! (Applause and much cheering) Many thanks to our dear editor Mr. Snodgrass. And a warm welcome to our newest member Mr. Winstint! Thank you all for your patience!!

-Mr. Sam Weller

Publisher

The Pickwick Portfolio

March 2015

In this issue:

• “Ancient Rome: Did She Fall Because of Trouble Within or Without?” by Sam Weller……2
  
• “Character Traits of an Ideal Canadian” by Theodore Winstint……………………………………….3
  
• “Description of a Beach in Florida” by Augustus Snodgrass…………………………………………….4
  
• “Fun Things Almanac” by Nathaniel Winkle……………………………………………………………………4
  
• “All Aboard on the Underground Railroad” by Augustus Snodgrass……………………………….5
  
• “Mountain Vacation Versus Seashore Vacation” by Theodore Winstint……………………7
  
  
• “Set of Historical Fiction Letters” by Tracy Tupman………………………………………………………..8
  
• “The History of Chocolate” by Augustus Snodgrass………………………………………………………11
  
• Quotes to Note – “Ability” compiled by Augustus Snodgrass……………………………………….13
  
• Story Time – “The Foreign Devil” by Theodore Winstint……………………………………………….14
  
• Poet’s Corner – “A Psalm of Life” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow……………………………..15
  

EDITOR’S NOTE

This paper is part of a club called “The Pickwick Club.” “The Pickwick Portfolio,” as this paper is called, is designed for the good of the readers. Its purpose is to serve as a paper of news, entertainment, and fun. Please take special note of “Character Traits of an Ideal Canadian” on page three, “Mountain Vacation Versus Seashore Vacation” on page seven, and “The Foreign Devil” in the Story Time section on page fourteen, as it is written by our new member, Theodore Winstint. Also take note of our new section in this paper: Quotes to Note on page thirteen.

Sincerely,

Augustus Snodgrass

READ, LAUGH, ENJOY!

-2-

ANCIENT ROME: DID SHE FALL BECAUSE OF TROUBLE WITHIN OR WITHOUT?

by Sam Weller

Ancient Rome was one of the largest empires in the world and one of the most well known; however, the Roman Empire did eventually fall. There are many different reasons and theories as to why Rome fell. One theory is that “Rome eventually fell as an empire due to moral decline within rather than enemy invasion from without,” so we are going to examine some moral issues that Ancient Rome had, to help us decide if this theory could be true. By looking at the pagan religions, the Roman's small regard for human life, and the frivolous lifestyle lead by the wealthy class, we will look at the effect these problems may have had on the Roman Empire's fall.
    First, we will look at the many pagan religions in Ancient Rome. The Roman Empire was very large, encompassing many peoples and lands, and therefore all those people brought their religions with them.
Many of these gods were cruel and vulgar, encouraging horrific and unmentionable worship practices. People in Rome were surrounded by statues, temples, and altars to these gods. They also were entertained by games held in the god's honour, such as the famous gladiatorial games in the coliseum. People switched from god to god, as if they were the latest trend. These things most likely did not help the people retain traits like respect, loyalty, and purity.
    Next, we will look at the Roman's small regard for human life. Rome was very successful in all her wars; she was built on it. Every child was reared in the mindset that this was something to be proud of, and the Romans found much glory and pride in their military skills. With many wars, come many captives, and many captives mean many slaves. The Romans were surrounded by slaves, and thought nothing of owning a human being. The more rebellious slaves were sent to gladiatorial school, where they were trained to fight, and later were killed by the hundreds for the entertainment of others. Clearly the Romans were losing their conscience and sense of equality, as well as their respect for human life.
    Finally, we will look at the frivolous lifestyle lead by the wealthy class. The wealthy class, or the patricians (as they were known in early Rome), who were the leaders, threw lavish parties, and lived in absolute luxury. They didn't want to change anything. They were perfectly happy sitting in luxury’s lap, building new palaces for their own pleasure, or unneeded structures like temples and such that would give them credit. Besides, Rome was invincible, right? None cared if there were small attacks on their borders: nothing would happen. To the wealthy, everyone was below them; their troubles could wait. Because of this, not many helpful changes were made, money was swallowed up, and deaf ears were turned to important problems.
    Having looked at the effects of many pagan religions, the Roman's small regard for human life, and the frivolous lifestyle the wealthy lead, we can say that the theory at the beginning of this paper was true; these were some causes of Rome's fall. The many pagan religions did not encourage loyalty,
respect, or true devotion. The sense of pride and sometimes even enjoyment in killing and war, as well as the many slaves, and the treatment of them, suggests that the Romans were becoming immune to all forms of conscience, and were fast losing their respect for life. The luxurious life the wealthy rulers lead encouraged them to forget about the others around them, use as much money as they needed, and ignore the important and fast growing troubles that surrounded them. Rome's moral decline was turning them into a prideful, selfish, and self confident (but slowly weakening) empire. Then again, is our society doing much better?

-3-

CHARACTER TRAITS OF AN IDEAL CANADIAN

by Theodore Winstint

What would Canada be like if nobody worked, if there was just dishonesty in everything we did? Canada would not be the wonderful country it is today; however, if we do not watch out and take care that we keep these good character traits, our country will decline financially and morally, and Canada might become history. Three of many important character traits for an ideal Canadian are honesty, a will to work, and respect.
One of the character traits of a Canadian is honesty. The majority of Canadians are honest, and most people can be trusted. A great example of that is the way the Amish sell some of their produce. They put their products on their front lawn with a box for the money. They label their products so people know how much to pay, and the Amish trust whoever buys something that they will give them the amount they owe. No one would steal the money in the box. Another great characteristic to have as a Canadian is the willingness to work. Working men to provide for their families is a great trait for a country’s people to have. Women, if necessary, can also be very helpful at a workplace. By people working, the Canadian industry grows, and therefore Canadians benefit from their own work in more ways than one. A nation full of lazy people is very harmful to a country. Respect is another great character trait. There are many people to respect in Canada, but there are also things to respect. For example, respecting other’s property, respecting people’s privacy, respecting authority, like the Prime Minister, the Premier, the police, and other regional counselors…These all require our respect.
Honesty is important. The willingness to work is important. The most important character trait for an ideal Canadian, however, is respect. Respect for each other will result in honesty towards others. Respecting our boss and co-workers will result in being on time at work every day. Therefore, striving for honesty is significant, because the other characteristics will come along easier.




                                                                        -4-

DESCRIPTION OF A BEACH IN FLORIDA

by Augustus Snodgrass

God has made the world very beautiful. Seated on the porch on a comfortably rough beach chair, I enjoy the freshest, reddest, and juiciest grapefruit I have ever had. Below me, the lush, grassy garden seems to invite me for a stroll on the cool and soft carpet of grass. A stork stalks around the palms and bright pink and red flowers. Would I be closer I would hear the hum of the bumblebees covered in pollen. Through all this beauty towards the right I see the pool where I will soon be swimming to my heart’s content. Beyond all this I also see the beautiful, white foaming waves crashing onto the sandy beach. The smell of the salt water matches this amazing sight, as I cannot help but think of my Creator who created all this.

FUN THINGS ALMANAC

compiled by Nathaniel Winkle

TRY A TIP

• Put a piece of newspaper at the bottom of the kitchen trash bin to absorb food juices.
  
• Paper cut? Try applying some Chap Stick to soothe the cut.
  
• Is dipping your Oreo cookie a mess? Stick a fork through the cream part and dunk away!
  
• Do you carry so many keys that it's hard to find the one you are looking for right now? Try painting the keys different colours of nail polish for easier finding.
  

JOKES AND RIDDLES
Tom asks Joe, "Do you know what déjà vu is?" Joe answers, "I think I've heard of it before.”
Teacher: "Susan, please go to the map and find North America."
Susan: "Here it is."
Teacher: “Correct. Now, class, who discovered America?"
Class: "Susan!"
What is it that no man wants, but no man wants to lose?(A lawsuit)
What can travel the world in a corner?(A stamp)
Feed me and I live, yet give me a drink and I die. What am I?(Fire)

Imagine you are in a dark room full of Monsters. There are no exits. How do you get out?(Stop imagining!)

DIDN’T YOU KNOW?: BIBLE EDITION

• John the Baptist wore clothing made from camel hair (Matthew 3:1-4).
  
• In ancient Israel, men closed a deal by exchanging sandals (Ruth 4:7).
  
• Centuries before scientists proved it, Isaiah indicated that the world was round (Isaiah 40:22).
  
• Abraham had two nephews named Uz and Buz (Genesis 22:21).
  
• The name "Jesus" is mentioned 1,281 times in the Bible.
  

                                                                            -5-

ALL ABOARD ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

by Augustus Snodgrass

To be beaten and treated like an animal, to be spoken at harshly, to do a grown woman’s job at age five...Slaves in the 18^th and 19^th century had to experience these things. Would Harriet Tubman be able to abolish this great cruelty?
There were two main events leading up to Harriet Tubman establishing the Underground Railroad. A violent and daring attack on slavery occurred aboard a slave ship, the Amistad, when slaves were still being brought over from Africa. Harriet Tubman, a runaway slave herself, received a serious head injury as a child when her master threw a metal weight at her, because she would not help hold a slave that had tried to run away.
Not only were there events leading up to the Underground Railroad, there were also many people involved. John Brown launched a massive slave revolt on the federal arsenal in Harper’s Ferry, Virginia. It was unsuccessful, but it did inspire others who were undecided about slavery. Frederick Douglass was a famous abolitionist and antislavery lecturer. Henry “Box” Brown, as he came to be called, was a slave that had been shipped to the Vigilance Committee’s office in a shipping crate. Inspired by Tubman, Harriet Beecher Stow wrote the book, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, published in 1852. William Still managed to meet every escaping runaway that was going on to Canada and recorded their names and stories in a notebook. James Miller McKim was one of the busiest “station masters” in the Underground Railroad. All of these people, and many others, were individually important in the anti-slavery movement until it was finally abolished.
Many people had different goals that they thought the Underground Railroad would accomplish. One wanted to regain peace with the South. The other wanted to destroy the government so they could gain control. Harriet Tubman, though, had only one goal: to destroy slavery completely! That was her one and only mission for life.
Soon, the South began complaining to the government that their property was slowly disappearing only because of one small woman that was leading them away. The Fugitive Slave Act was established in 1852. This stated that if anyone helped a runaway escape, that person would be accused and punished for a crime. Also, slaves would not be safe anymore in the North until they were across the middle of Niagara Falls into Canada. Their masters could claim them at any time even if they were found in the northern anti-slave states. This made it more difficult for Harriet Tubman and runaways to escape, for no longer could they show their faces safely in the North.
Because of the Fugitive Slave Act, traveling was getting more dangerous and difficult. Some safety measures had to be set up. The members of the Underground Railroad decided to use “railroad language”. That way, it would not make any sense to an eavesdropping stranger. For example, the houses at which runaways would stay were called “stations.” The owners of the abolitionist houses where fugitives would stay were called “station masters.” The people leading the group of fugitives, as was Harriet Tubman, were called “conductors.” The runaways were called “passengers.” These and some other expressions were used to fool any overhearing slave catchers.
The “stations” and “station masters” were well equipped in case of danger. “A friend with friends” was the secret code that was whispered through the door once arrived at a “station,” just for safety that it was not a stranger. The “stations” usually had secret, built-in, underground passageways just in case slave catchers should demand to search the house. These and other safety measures saved many “station masters” and runaways alike in that perilous time.
After Abraham Lincoln was elected president in November of 1860, the members of the Underground Railroad were hoping that there would soon be no more need for the extreme caution they were taking. Little did they know how much longer it would take until their dream would be fulfilled.
On December 6, 1865, another step toward Harriet Tubman’s dream of a country without slavery was taken. President Lincoln had signed the 13^th Amendment. This did not make all slaves free, but it was an act of the government taking a turn for the abolitionists.
Now the abolitionists’ courage was boosted one notch higher. More and more slaves were escaping from the plantations, causing tension between the North and the South. As a result, the Civil War broke out.
Harriet Tubman, black herself, encouraged other fellow blacks to fight with her in the Civil War. Many successful battles, including the raid up South Carolina’s Combahee River, were fought by Negros and led by Harriet Tubman. Harriet Tubman and many others also spoke strongly for the women’s suffrage movement. Even though Harriet was not given the credit for winning some battles, she and her soldiers were not discouraged.

After a long, hard war, the North finally won! Then, on January 1, 1863, President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, liberating all the slaves in the South!
The Underground Railroad was a success. Harriet Tubman led over 1,000 slaves to freedom in all her life. She never lost a single “passenger” in the nineteen trips that she traveled across the United States. Harriet Tubman was determined to fulfill the words that were once written more than sixty years before on July 4, 1776 in the Declaration of Independence. “...For all men are created equal...that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness...”

                                                                           -7-

MOUNTAIN VACATION VERSUS SEASHORE VACATION

by Theodore Winstint

For a vacation I prefer the mountains to the seashore. The seashore is beautiful with its crashing waves and wonderfully white sand. In pleasant weather, one will see many people swimming in the water. Others will enjoy their time by playing various games on the beach, such as volleyball or badminton. Some, however, may choose to simply lie in the sun and get a beautiful beach tan. The seashore is a wonderful place to spend one’s vacation as it also allows one to absorb more iodine by the inhaling much of the seaside air. Nevertheless, my personal preference is still the mountains. Visiting the mountains is always extraordinarily exciting, especially the Canadian Rocky Mountains. The excitement starts with the drive there. Approaching the mountains, one will be able to spot the snowy peaks in the distance. As the time goes by, one will be entering the foothills, which are sort of the beginning of this wonderful mountain range. A few more minutes and one will find himself amidst the majestic and rugged mountains. Various activities occupy one’s stay in the mountains. During the winter months, many people take the opportunity to go skiing on a nearby mountain. In summer, many places are available for hiking. Depending on one’s preference for a long and hard hike or just a short hike, there are many choices. Other fun activities include canoeing or kayaking. However, the wonderful magnificence of God’s creation is what attracts me most to the mountains. One cannot stop gazing at these complex “rocks” jutting out the earth. The mountains have a special magnificence for me that the seashore does not have.

-8-

SET OF HISTORICAL FICTION LETTERS

by Tracy Tupman

This set of historical fiction letters is designed as a peak into the past, and as a window into the lives of three historic Canadians.
A LETTER FROM A SCOTTISH IMMIGRANT COAL MINER IN BRITISH COLUMBIA TO HIS SISTER BACK HOME
Dear Cassandra,
Forgive me, dear sister, for not writing sooner. I have been awfully busy ever since we left Scotland, but I am so glad that we came! Let me tell you of our journey to Canada, and how Ella, the children, and I are doing now.
The first thing we did after leaving Fife, and reaching Liverpool, was to board our ship that was off to Canada. Oh, what a voyage! Our cabin under deck was cramped for the five of us, and with John being five, Eliza four, and Edward two, you can see how we had our hands full! Those toddlers wanted to stick every little dirty object into their mouths, and Ella was constantly seasick. It seemed to take forever to get to Montreal, and let me tell you, we were relieved to get off that boat and back on solid ground, but another journey still lay before us. We found out that the mine we were headed for was still all the way across the continent - in British Colombia!
We hopped on a train car pulled by that smoking monster of an engine across railway, the – what do they call it? – oh yes, the “National Dream”. Fortunately, in their wanderings about the constricted train car, John and Eliza made some friends, including a young gentleman who had a special way of entertaining them. Usually, Edward slept. But sometimes he bawled until we thought we’d all go mad!
Finally, we reached the mining town. I got a shift from midnight to eight o’clock in the morning. The work is hard and dirty, but it’s a steady paycheck, and not the occasional money I got from farm work or coal mining back in Scotland. Just last month, we finally got ourselves a real little house, just perfect for the six of us. Oh, yes, I forgot to mention that Ella is pregnant! With a doctor in town, the chances of her losing this one like we did the other two are so much slimmer.
Now, when I come home, Ella runs me a nice hot bath, then I have some breakfast, sleep for a few hours, and by evening am ready to host guests or be a guest. Then, I grab another four hours of sleep before going out to the mine. Almost every night is that way. When it is not, Ella and I share stories from home with the children before snuggling them into bed. It is so wonderful, being here with a roof over our heads, food in our bellies, listening to the steady breathing of the children. Really, Cassy, you and Jody and your little one should come and join us.
Hoping to hear from you,

Your brother Robert Trotter

A LETTER FROM A FARMER STRUGGLING WITH THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND “DUST BOWL” TO THE PRIME MINISTER, BEGGING FOR IMMEDIATE FINANCIAL RELIEF FROM THE GOVERNMENT. MANY PEOPLE WROTE LETTERS TO THE PRIME MINISTER ASKING FOR HELP DURING THIS HARD TIME.

Dear Mr. Bennett:
I am in deep truble. I cant grow nothin in this dust and the drout has bin 6 months and my wife and children ar starving. I owe the bank a lot and dey are want to take the farm so I need releef for now. If you could just get the bank off my back for a year, I’m sher the drout will end and we’ll be fine agin and I can pay them, right now I just need releef. I have sum cows and we are living on ther little milk and killed one last week but they are getting thin and I don’t have much grain left for them or the family. I hav 5 little ones, and one is not weened, now we are giving her most of the milk there is only 3 litres a day so that at least she is fine because my wife isn’t making any more. 3 of the yung ones are school-age, but the mother won’t let them to school anymore for fear they’ll get caught in a dust storm and they are very sad and really want to learn. I wish they could; that way no man is going to trick you into buying or selling something for more or less than its worth. I am teaching them a bit, tho, when I am not trying to keep the cows together. The wife can’t do sums or read. Only 10 cows left, and don’t know how we going to last much longer unless you give us sum releef . I want to keep just 2, a bull and a cow so I can make a new herd once this blasted drout ends. Like I said, I need the releef now and ther will be 2 votes for you in the next election my wife and me. I no that you are a good man, so please help us. I’m depending on your help.
Sincerely,
James Thomas
Saskatchewan
(Note: Spelling and grammatical errors were intentional.)

WRITTEN BY A FICTIONAL THOMAS SMITH OF ONTARIO, A SOLDIER WHO IS SIXTEEN YEARS OLD, FROM FRANCE DURING WORLD WAR I

December 8, 1914
A stinking trench in France
Dear Mother, Father, and Vanessa,
I’m really sorry that I snuck off and enlisted without you saying I could, Father. It just felt like all the other boys were getting in. I must admit that I was longing for some adventure. Doing nothing but
working in the fields, I was bored, but let me tell you, I would give anything now, even a life-time behind a plow, to get out of this primitive ditch that I’m living in right now. Why, you ask?
First of all, there is dirt everywhere. The walls and floors are made of mud, and there are no roofs to prevent the rain from adding to the mess. It’s a constant struggle to try to find a way to keep my feet dry; most of the men already have something called “trench foot” from always wet feet, which makes their feet slowly rot away. I’m scared I might have it anyways. What I do have for sure, we all have. Hang those rotten body lice! Body lice are these ridiculous pale-looking little critters that have got a taste for your blood; basically, they’re leeches. Every few days all the soldiers strip down to our underwear with a partner, and we scrape ‘em off each other using bayonets. On top of it all, I’ve got a mean cough, but everyone seems to have that too. At least I don’t have a fever like some do.
It’s so cold here. You know, I’m really thankful to the Salvation Army, because they sent us all some little packages that just really help! I got the paper, envelope, and so forth for this letter in my package. It even had clean socks and a warm hat! Boy, you have no idea how these little “care packages” cheered us all up. And now I can brush my teeth at least once a day, carefully wrapping the toothbrush in my one clean hanky once I’m done. You have no clue how great it is to have a clean mouth until you haven’t been able to brush your teeth for two months.
To try to get out of the shin-deep water, I sometimes burrow into the walls with a shovel. I never go too deep, though, or my digging will reach – well, let’s just say someone who used to be alive. If I just don’t look out over no man’s land or dig too deep, I don’t have to think about death. I’m not scared of dying, though. Really, I’ll be just fine. I’ll come home, and together we’ll laugh away all thoughts of war, because I think for sure that I think I will positively make it home, really.
If you see Sylvia around, tell her If Sylvia asks about me Say howdy to Sylvia for me.
Anyways, there isn’t much else to write about; I don’t think that there is any impending action, as we have been told that we’re pretty much settled for winter. I might as well play a round of cards with Clark before I hit the sack.
With all my love,
Thomas

                                                                           -11-

THE HISTORY OF CHOCOLATE

by Augustus Snodgrass

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I ask you to find the defendant guilty. Guilty of the crime of being so tempting, so seductive, so delicious, that even the strongest of the strong cannot resist. Honorable judges, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls: what is this decadence that melts in your mouth? It washes over your taste buds. It’s smooth, silky texture rolls around your tongue. The first bite addictively tastes like another and allusively attempts to quench your craving. Can you guess what I’ve described? If you guessed “chocolate,” you are correct. I urge you to convict chocolate “guilty” as charged. Okay, so I know I’m being a little over dramatic, but haven’t you ever wondered, especially if you are a chocoholic like me, where such an amazing product even came from? Chocolate has not always been what it is now; it has definitely come a long, long way. The whole world has participated in the development of chocolate, whether by growing the cacao tree that produce the beans, to processing the cacao beans and adding other ingredients, to probably like most of us, simply eating it! The life of chocolate could be divided into three parts: its birth and infancy; its childhood, when it was brought to the other part of the world; and finally, its maturity, what we could call “The Modern Age of Chocolate” of today.
Derived from different sources, chocolate’s birth varies from 1900 B.C. to about A.D. 500. The earliest form of chocolate known was an unsweetened, bitter, and sacred drink used by the Maya people in the sixth century. About seven hundred years later, the Aztecs used it in the same way, adding spices to it such as corn meal or even hot chili peppers! In this way, chocolate, a bitter, sacred drink, lay dormant for at least a thousand years.
The trigger point for the chocolate industry to erupt happened when Cortes, a Spanish New World explorer, brought back some cacao beans to Spain. He suggested that the bitter drink be mixed with sugar, and, promptly, chocolate became a hit, but was only consumed by nobility. Spain kept this variation a secret for almost a whole century before the chocolate fever finally erupted and spread throughout all over Europe and the United States. In the next years, chocolate variations were constantly being invented among those being Casparus van Houten’s, a Dutch chemist, who created solid chocolate. Finally, the first milk chocolate was invented in 1839! With the rising of this new addition to the chocolate industry, chocolate’s popularity skyrocketed! Consequently, chocolate producers like Cadbury, Nestle, Ghirardelli, and Hershey arose and still flourish today.
Thus, milk chocolate increased the yearly production of chocolate and is the definite favorite today, comprising about half of all the chocolate consumed. And, even now, consumption is still increasing worldwide. A 2012 report has shown several countries and their enormous per capita consumption, with Switzerland being the highest at 11.9 kilograms per person per year! The modern age of chocolate today trends a little less towards milk chocolate than before and more towards dark chocolate with its recently discovered health benefits including lowering your blood pressure; increasing blood flow to the brain; and being loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals; which leads away from the sugar saturated milk chocolate with its high glycemic index, high calories, and empty nutrition. This brings us somewhat full circle back to the very early Mayan chocolate with its bitter taste.
And so, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, whether you are a milk chocolate lover or a dark chocolate lover like me, I implore you that chocolate is neither evil nor sinful and is, in fact, a nearly perfect food in nature. But I can’t defend, nor can I resist. And I’ll bet you can’t either!






















                                                                        -13-

QUOTES TO NOTE

ABILITY

compiled by Augustus Snodgrass

“A genius can't be forced; nor can you make an ape an alderman.”

– Thomas Somerville

“Ability hits the mark where presumption overshoots and diffidence falls short.”

– John Henry Newman

“Ability is a poor man's wealth.”

– M. Wren

“Ability is of little account without opportunity.”

– Napoleon Bonaparte

“Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there.”

– John Wooden

“Ability will never catch up with the demand for it.”

– Malcolm S. Forbes

“All endeavor calls for the ability to tramp the last mile, shape the last plan, endure the last hours toil. The fight to the finish spirit is the one characteristic we must possess if we are to face the future as finishers.”

– Anonymous

“Analyzing what you haven't got as well as what you have is a necessary ingredient of a career.”

– Grace Moor

“Aptitude found in the understanding and is often inherited. Genius coming from reason and imagination, rarely.”

– Samuel Taylor Coleridge

“As life is action and passion, it is required of a man that he should share the passion and action of his time, at the peril of being not to have lived.”

– Oliver Wendell Holmes

“As we advance in life we learn the limits of our abilities.”

– James A. Froude

“Big jobs usually go to the men who prove their ability to outgrow small ones.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Since it is so likely that children will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage."
- C. S. Lewis

                                                                            -14-

STORY TIME

THE FOREIGN DEVIL

by Theodore Winstint

Ai-weh-deh wore Chinese clothes, but her facial complexion and brown hair colour told a different story. She lived among the Chinese as one of them, but still, she was different. Ai-we-deh owned the Inn of Eight Happinesses in Yangcheng, China. It was known among the mule drivers that her inn was where there was good food to eat and a clean, warm place to sleep, plus a bonus of a story during supper. The stories were from the Bible, and this way Ai-weh-deh, also known as Gladys Aylward back in her home country of England, was able to tell more Chinese people about Jesus and His miracles. One of His greatest miracles was from her own experiences. The fact that she was in China was a miracle in itself. When she applied to the China Inland Mission to go to China as a missionary, they told her that she could not go because she did not know the language well enough. However, Gladys was determined to go, and thus she set out on her own. This journey was filled with individual miracles. She had to go through Siberia and over Japan, and then finally, after many hardships and hindrances, she arrived in China; however, she still did not know their language and did not know how to get to her friend missionary with whom she had been corresponding. Gladys had a magnitude of faith that is unbelievable. She knew that she was supposed to spread the Gospel in China, but she had no idea how she would do it and how she would even learn their language; however, God saw her faith, and He worked everything out so that Gladys arrived safely at Mrs. Lawson’s inn in Yangcheng. Here she began to learn the Chinese language from the cook and Jennie Lawson. When Mrs. Lawson died eight months after Gladys arrived, Gladys was at a loss what to do, because the inn was not making enough income for her to live off of. She trusted God to lead her where he wanted her to go, and He did. She became the foot inspector for the area around Yangcheng. This job earned more income, but it also gave Gladys the opportunity to witness to the people while she was unbinding and massaging the women’s feet. Another act of faith was when Gladys helped suppress a riot in the Yangcheng prison. The men in the prison were running around with axes and were killing each other. Gladys went in there and just stood and looked at the men. They did not notice her until one of the men came running straight at her with an ax. Then he stopped a few feet in front of her and just looked at her. All the other men became curious and stopped running around and killing each other. Gladys talked to them, and they all quieted down. From that point on, she was no longer called the “foreign devil,” but Ai-weh-deh, which means “the Virtuous One.” Ai-weh-deh experienced God’s help through her faith many more times. Although she was a small woman in size, her faith could move mountains.

                                                                      -15-

POET’S CORNER

A PSALM OF LIFE

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

WHAT THE HEART OF THE YOUNG MAN SAID TO THE PSALMIST.

Tell me not, in mournful numbers,

   Life is but an empty dream!

For the soul is dead that slumbers,

   And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest!

   And the grave is not its goal;

Dust thou art, to dust returnest,

   Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,

   Is our destined end or way;

But to act, that each to-morrow

   Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is fleeting,

   And our hearts, though stout and brave,

Still, like muffled drums, are beating

   Funeral marches to the grave.

In the world’s broad field of battle,

   In the bivouac of Life,

Be not like dumb, driven cattle!

   Be a hero in the strife! Trust no Future, howe’er pleasant!

   Let the dead Past bury its dead!

Act,— act in the living Present!

   Heart within, and God o’erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us

   We can make our lives sublime,

And, departing, leave behind us

   Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another,

   Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,

A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,

   Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing,

   With a heart for any fate;

Still achieving, still pursuing,

   Learn to labor and to wait.