
This Week in NMH History 2016-2017 #16
75 Years Ago
75 years ago the United States
entered World War II after attacks on U.S. military bases across the Pacific,
most memorably at Pearl Harbor in the U.S. Territory of the Hawaiian Islands. For
your final exam, in an essay of no fewer than five hundred words, please compare
and contrast the schools’ reactions to war in these editorials from the
Northfield and Mount Hermon newspapers.
from The Northfield Star, vol. XXVI, no. 2; p. 2
(December 17, 1941).
OUR PART IN DEFENSE
Think of
all the little children in Europe, girls, and conserve! The world is really
beginning to take notice of the abilities of our fair sex and we accordingly
should prove our capability by accepting, along with the privileges of equality,
the responsibility involved. We can “do our part” in defense by following Miss
Wilson’s noble advice about conservation of water and electricity and the
serious promotion of health. The men of a country have a more spectacular part
in national defense, but they depend on us to carry out the more commonplace
functions that they have had to abandon. Obviously at our tender age, we can’t
leave school to go out and plow a field, but we can practice those little
economies that in the end contribute greatly either to a success or a failure.
We need not go into the intricacies of these measures with which you are all by
now undoubtedly quite deadly familiar, but keep them in mind and don’t let any
old soldiers get ahead of us in preparation for national defense.
from The Hermonite, vol.
LV, no. 7; p. 2 (December 17, 1941).
THE WAR AND HERMON
Currently
raging on campus are two major questions. The first, “How old are you” and the
second, “Have you heard the latest?” But really, of what matter to us are these
insignificant interrogations?”
“How old
are you?” – what difference does it make? The draft age has not yet been
lowered to eighteen, despite prevalent rumors that it has. None of us,
therefore, are subject to an immediate call into the armed forces. Moreover,
the present need is not for man-power, but rather for machinery and weapons.
Therefore, here at Hermon are we able to do the most good, for by avoiding such
foolish talk of enlisting we are able to restore calm and order. By continuing
our customary activities without hysterical excitement are we best serving our
country. Consequently, our place remains on this hill; our duty is to train for
the bitter post-war days by completing our education now.
“Have you
heard the latest?” – similarly wasted time in asking this question. Ninety-nine
out of a hundred times “the latest” is only the product of some fanciful
imagination. Let’s “turn a deaf ear” to the propaganda mongers about the
school. They only cause anxiety and excitement.
It has been
said that the axis powers will conduct a “war of nerves” against this country.
Thus we will doubtless be flooded with groundless rumors from foreign sources.
We must learn, therefore, to receive all reports with calm deliberation, waiting for official Washington statements before we become too alarmed.
We must learn, therefore, to receive all reports with calm deliberation, waiting for official Washington statements before we become too alarmed.
This does
not mean, however, that we should be idealists; that we should not face the
facts. War is definitely here! We cannot crawl back within our shell in a
policy of isolation, for in the past two and one half years we have learned the
lesson of similar mistakes in the foreign relations of such nations as Poland,
Norway, Denmark, and France. On the contrary, we must plan for a long war; a
war in which our cities may be bombed, our civilians killed, our buildings
destroyed; a war abounding with disheartening defeats.
Doubtless
there will be shortages of many vital supplies. In the emergency it will be
necessary to make patriotic sacrifices. But nevertheless throughout all we must
continue as nearly as possible our usual activities.
Above all,
we must not fall victims to gossip, for gossip breeds excitement, excitement
breeds confusion, confusion breeds chaos, and chaos in the United States aids
the Axis cause.