description:
THE SKYSCRAPER (Special to The Skyscraper from our foreign correspondent, through CP despatch.) Some day when you are tired and chilled, and just a little weary of the hustling crowds in the windy city, come and join me here in Central America. Some people always asso ciate the name of Central America with the Panama Canal. To others, who are in the business, Central America means coffee, but to me the whole place is banana land. The na tives in some portions of the country are ignorant, uneducated people, who live much as their ancestors did. As the centuries passed, they have changed very little; they still use the crude wooden plow and hoe in their gardens. Of course they do not raise enormous crops; just a little grain, potatoes, and beans, and they are satisfied. They are an easy-go ing race, in more ways than one. They are not easily provoked; not even in the smothering heat, when there is an erupting volcano and the mosquitoes are biting, do they be come angry. Possibly an earthquake might disturb their calm. But or dinarily life is just one lazy day after another, and nothing, not even an other Panama Canal, will change them. If we have time, we will spend a day or two on a banana schooner, cruising down the southern shore, which is bedecked with trees laden with this famous tropical fruit. From the boat, as you watch the dark crea tures running up and down the trees cutting off the fruit, you will swear they are monkeys. But they are not. These men have trained their feet to curve around the trunk of the tree like a claw. They move swiftly up the tree, bend the top for the bananas grow only there toward those ready below to cut the bunch off, and when this is done, the climber slides off and starts on a new tree. Only one bunch of the fruit grows on a tree, but there are a great many bananas in a bunch. When darkness comes, and you are reclining in your deck chair, trying to breathe in the hot, Sticky night, you will hear the crooning voices of the darkies, the cutters of the banana, floating out over the water. They are singing and beating time on their very original musical instru ments, while a few of the more en ergetic ones do a wiggling, stamping dance in the moonlight. As the night wears on, and the singing continues without the least idea of signing off, your nerves become ragged, and the love you once had for bananas dimin ishes to a faint liking. After you have rolled over at least four hun dred times, you can't even think of the long yellow body builders with out becoming dizzy. However, when you awaken in the morning, you are again ready to wit ness with interest the stowing of the bananas into the schooner. You watch as they regulate the tempera ture in the store room so that the fruit will not be too hot nor too cold, for it must not be allowed to ripen until it has arrived at its destination. Then you settle down to watch the scenery until another banana planta tion is reached. All along the water you see the little black huts with their straw roofs, and occasionally a small white cottage that is the home of a white man, the overseer of the plantation. Travel is difficult here in Central America, because of the moist low lands and of the highlands in the in terior, and for this reason, few rail roads have been built. The country repays your effort, however, for it is very beautiful, and possesses many lakes. Among these is Lake Nicara gua, said to be the largest inland body of water south of the Great Lakes and north of Peru. There are many volcanoes, and indeed much of the fertilization of the soil is due to vol canic ash. Archaeologists have locently dis covered, upon digging through these layers of ash, that there existed in Central America an early civilization which in some way was lost. The In dian natives in the lowlands, indeed, retain many of the traits of their sav age ancestors; they hunt and fish and weave and make pottery, much after the manner of those centuries before their time. The people throughout the country have accepted Christian ity without any strong intellectual grasp on it. Perhaps their white brethren are somewhat to blame for this condition, ior in some districts YOUNG ARTISTS STUDY DESIGN Strangely enough, the majority of the students at Mundelein know com paratively little about the fascinating work that is going on in the Art De partment. Perhaps one reason ior this is the fact that the studios are up on the eighth floor, where few people but the speech students, who occupy the same floor, have the op portunity of observing. However, our artists are doing things that every girl would like to do if she knew how to go about it. Some manifestations of their work have been seen in the various posters that have announced important events, notably those for the Christmas play, the basketball games, and the fudge sale of the Home Economics depart ment. But this is only one field of their activities. tin unusual feature of their work is the apparent simplicity of their mate rials. They are finding new uses for linoleum blocks. Besides carving them, they are using them to design fabrics. They anticipate beautifying towels, handkerchiefs, and scarfs with the de lightful aurora cone work, and are now formulating designs for book plates. Most of the ink designs for Easter and greeting cards are to be made from the new block press. These designs are most attractive and origi nal. The new class in Applied Design this semester works with water, clay, and enamel, and carves such prepos sessing creatures as cocky dogs and saucy cats. Each student is required to complete eight definite projects from a number proposed by the in structor, so that at the end of the course she has acquired practical technical skill along at least a few lines. These are just a few of the in triguing things going on in the seclu sion of the art studios. If the Munde lein artists would give an exhibition in the near future, in order that the delightful work they are doing might be displayed for the benefit of the public, no doubt the number of art students would be considerably in creased. Synthetic Fibers Subject of Talk Professor Joshua Miller, eminent chemist of the Cellulose Corporation of America, stopped long enough at Mundelein College on Wednesday, February 11, to give the students a true picture of the important work the chemists of today are contributing to the manufacture and care of textiles, especially of synthetic fibers. Chemistry, the Professor stated, is particularly active in the field of silks. It has aboliched the old method of killing thousands of silkworms to sup ply the constant demand for that lovely material, and in its place has substituted the process of weaving wood and vegetable fibers. This new method has produced materials, called synthetic fibers, that not only com pare favorably with the old silks in beauty and durability, but are guaran teed to pass the same washing and ironing tests. With respect to the care of fabrics, the Professor dropped some hints that were of especial interest to the stu dents of Home Economics. He cau tioned against soaking clothes too long or washing them in strong soap, for both cause the material to lose its strength and prevent it from wearing well. Drying clothes in the sun, he said, is likely to fade them, and press ing them with a very hot iron may weaken, burn, or even melt them. The Skyscraper expresses the sym pathy of the college faculty and stu dents to Professor G. M. Schmeing on tne death of his father on Febru ary 5. FUTURE HOUSEWIVES GAIN EXPERIENCE The Meal Planning class of the Home Economics department is put ting the aims of the course into prac tical use by cooking and serving the various types of meals in the Model Apartment on the fourth floor. The class is applying the budgeting system by preparing and serving a series of breakfasts, luncheons, din ners, and suppers, starting with the four types of breakfasts, which may be called the very light, light, medium, and heavy. Beginning with a nine- cent breakfast, the students prepare the morning meal on a gradually in creasing scale of expense, making use of careful budgeting and quantity purchasing to keep down the cost. The class has learned that the new hospitality revels in informality, that the keynote of entertaining today is simplicity, and that, although the food they offer must of course be the best, the manner in which it is offered and the atmosphere surrounding the function are the vital details, and have the power to stamp the occa sion a failure or a success. They have nine objectives which they hope to attain: to learn the me chanics of the home; to take advan tage of every time-saving device; to budget family income so as to allow funds for entertaining; to study the nature of their guests; to be self-ef facing, kind, and considerate; to learn to draw out each individual's person ality; to lead the conversation along pleasant lines and to patch up dan gerous differences of opinion; to ig nore any mishaps or unexpected hap penings; to be themselves, and to maintain constant poise. They have worked out a plan by which their objectives can be carried out. At each meal that they plan, cook, and serve, each girl has a spe cial duty to perform. She is given a chance to act as hostess, host, waitress, assistant cook, marketer, or general assistant. The hostess is the head cook, besides presiding at the table, and the host is responsible for conversation, as well as for his special duty of scoring the meal. The meal is scored on the follow ing points: selection, preparation, service, and atmosphere. The work is also scored in the following man ner: ordering and planning amounts, order in preparation, utensils used, time of preparation, condition of lab oratory, resourcefulness of cook, dish washing, quiet, and cleanliness. Urges Definite Goal they have reduced the natives to a state of peonage little better than slavery. Such a state of affairs oners little incentive to enterprise and ideal ism. And besides, if you just spend a little while down here in this hot, sticky climate, you will not feel tempted to blame the natives for their inactivity. Mrs. Anna G. Peterson, head of the Home Service Department of the Peo ple's Gas Light and Coke Company, visited the Home Economics class Monday afternoon, February 16, to give a brief talk to the students on the business opportunities open to women trained in Home Economics. Although cooking was the principal topic of the discussion, Mrs. Peterson also touched upon the value of in terior decorating in the home. She stressed the two essentials, science and tact, for success in the field of Home Economics, so that good health and efficiency, the two most valuable contributions one can make to busi ness, may result. She emphasized the need of correct ingredients in food, bringing out the fact that you are what you eat three-and-a-half hours after you eat it ; that is, certain foods will produce energy, and others will tend to lessen or destroy it. Mrs. Peterson particularly empha sized the importance of idealism for students of Home Economics, and held up to them the necessity for a defi nite choice of life work. We live in a day of specialists, and you can specialize in anything you want to. What do you want to be? What is your vision? What is the contribu tion that you can offer in that work that is some day going to be yours? The hardest thing in the world is the simplest thing, when you sit down and think it out, were her closing remarks to the assembly. The pleasant, informal manner of Mrs. Peterson, and her very evident delight in her subject, captivated the students to such an extent that she left them fired with the determination to accomplish even aristocratic hash. Mrs. Peterson has had many years' experience in the teaching of cookery. She is the mother of seven children, (Continued on page 4, column 5) CATHOLIC ACTORS SEND PORTRAITS National Drama week, February 8- 14, was fittingly observed at Munde lein, culminating in the formal open ing of the Little Theatre on February 13 by the Mundelein Laetare Players, with a program of three one-act plays. A large and appreciative audience filled the auditorium for the occasion, afterward adjourning to the Little Theatre, which was naturally the cen ter of attraction in its color scheme of silver, black, and cardinal red. The feature of the decoration, how ever, in which the Laetare Players took the greatest pride, was their unique collection of autographed por traits of contemporary Catholic actors who are eminent in the theatre world. At present there is only the nucleus of the fine collection the club pro poses to complete; nevertheless there are to be found, among others, such artists as Grace George, Eva Condon, Helene Lackaye, Wallace Ford, Pedro de Cordoba, J. Warren Kerrigan, and Eddie Dowling. These pictures, se cured from the artists through the kindly offices of Mr. Donald Brian, president of the Catholic Actors' Guild of America, are later, with others, to form a frieze around the walls of the Little Theatre, beginning at either side of the proscenium arch. A further notable gift that adds much to the attraction of the Little Theatre is the collection of portraits by Mr. H. C. Phibbs, of the Harry C. Phibbs Advertising Company. Mr. Phibbs' favorite pursuit is portrait photography, particularly of actors and playwrights, and he is well known for the excellence of his artistic work in this field. The portraits donated by him are large studies in sepia finish. The following are among the sub jects: Whitford Kane as Sir Toby in Twelfth Night, Dudley Digges as Sir Patrick in The Doctor's Dilem ma, Mary Agnes Doyle as Juno in Juno and the Paycock, Lester Lu ther in The Wild Duck, Dick Steele with Whitford Kane in The Pigeon, Art Smith as the Joxer in Juno and the Paycock, Mr. Kirkpatrick as Mal- volio in Twelfth Night, Lester Lu ther as Ornwulf in The Viking, The Sons of Ornwulf, and S gt;dney Mor gan as the Joxer in Juno and the Paycock. HISTORY OF MUSIC ALLURING SUBJECT Speaker Explains Mundelein Plant The heating system of the college was explained to the students of the Physics and Chemistry classes in a lecture by Mr. W. C. Zingheim of the C. A. Dunham Company on Wednesday of this week. Accompanied by Mr. Zingheim, the students made a tour of the building, visiting the boiler room, the fan rooms, and the several heating zones. They learned of the differential vacuum control sys tem whereby the entire heating plant is operated by means of switches on a control panel in the boiler room, of the unit ventilators used in such rooms as the cafeteria and social room, and of the mechanical stokers used for firing. Before the tour, the principles involved in the heating system were explained and illustrated by Mr. Zingheim in the science lec ture room. (Continued from page 1. column 5) formulated by the Reverend John A. Ryan, Ph. D professor at the Catho lic University of America, is in sub stance: Prevent overproduction by shorter hours, and underconsumption by higher wages. The order of rebuttal was reversed from the usual affirmative-negative form to the negative-affirmative. The thorough knowledge of their subject displayed by the debaters, to gether with their clever handling of the material, won the interest of the audience, even those who knew little of the subject before. The students became enthusiastic listeners, and after the debate was over, many fa vorable comments were heard. Both teams showed good sports manship and a strong sense of humor. The audience was both pleased and entertained with this unusual form of instruction, and the students of Mun delein College hope to share in some of the future offerings. The members of the Mundelein Col lege History of Music classes com pleted, in the first semester, a sur vey of the initial stages in the growth of the world's music. The line of study began with the earliest attempts Of man to express his emotions through musical soui.d. Music, it was pointed out, existed among primitive negroes and Indians, and records of the early steps in the development of musical instruments are to be found in the carvings and hieroglyphics of the Egyptians. The class followed the thread of music through the history of China, Japan, Palestine, Greece and Rome, observ ing the important influence it exerted on the various nations. The romantic era of the troubadours and minnesingers was presented, and research was made into the part that these minstrels played in the lives of the people of the medieval cen turies. The modern Duo-Art reproducing grand piano, with which the History of Music class room is provided, will be an aid to the understanding of the work to be covered in the second se mester. It is intended that this sec ond half of the year's program will deal with contrapuntal forms of writing in their early and advanced stages. The Duo-Art is so constructed that it plays rolls illustrated with pic tures of the composer, the theme of the composition, and explanations of the construction of the work. By means of a projector, a roll similar to that being played is flashed on a screen and so regulated that it corre sponds in its revolutions to the piano roll, thus enabling the entire class to hear the music and read about it. This instrument will be a great asset in increasing appreciation of the value and perfection of the work of the contrapuntal schools. A recital by the faculty of the Mun delein College School of Music is to be presented for the members of the Mundelein Cecilians at a meeting to be held this afternoon. One section of the Mundelein Col lege Music Library is devoted to orig inal compositions contributed by the faculty and students of the composi tion class, and now contains the nucleus of a collection of piano, vio lin, 'cello, harp, and vocal solos, cho ruses, and selections for orchestra. An important and beautiful addition in the form of a fugue, which will be heard in a spring recital, marks the fourth original composition to be sub mitted for public performance this year. Mundelein Minstrel The Laetare Players, not satisfied with the vocal talent already present in their ranks, have added the name of a great tenor to the roll call of their members. Their neophyte, Mr. Thomas Atkins, better known as Tom, has already made his d6but with the Players. His first role was that of brilliant songster and cheer ful atmosphere in Where But In America, recently presented in the college auditorium. He was skill fully supported by the Misses Anna merle Kramer, Clare Allender, and Helen O'Gara. Despite the fact that he arrived late for the semester, Tom will receive full credit in the School of Speech be cause of his brilliant premiere; that is, provided his scholastic career is not cut short by some unacademic habit of his. For horrible dictu it has been whispered that Tom even ventured on one occasion to interrupt the sacred silence of Religion class by vocal practice with brilliant colora tura effects. (Yes, my dear, it's ab solutely true ) We were unable to obtain data of Tom's past, further than that he was born in Madison, Wisconsin. He is socially inclined, despite his evident shyness, and he holds At Homes in the solarium every day. His private apartment is an airy room in green, and Tom harmonizes with the color scheme in his fashionable coat of black-and-.vellow. Swallow-tail? Of course not What would a canary be doing with a swallow-tail?
title:
1931-02-27 (3)
publisher:
Women and Leadership Archives http://www.luc.edu/wla
creator:
Mundelein College
description:
Student newspaper for Mundelein College
subject:
Newspapers
subject:
Religious communities--Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
subject:
Students
subject:
Universities and colleges
subject:
Women's education
relation:
Mundelein College Records
type:
Text
language:
English
rights:
This image is issued by the Women and Leadership Archives. Use of the image requires written permission from the Director of the Women and Leadership Archives. It may not be sold or redistributed, copied or distributed as a photograph, electronic file, or any other media. The image should not be significantly altered through conventional or electronic means. Images altered beyond standard cropping and resizing require further negotiation with the Director. The user is responsible for all issues of copyright. Please Credit: Women and Leadership Archives, Loyola University Chicago. wlarchives@luc.edu
coverage:
Chicago, Illinois
coverage:
Mundelein College