After 105 years, answer to poem's question is 'yes'

Local historian George Frost shows the 1916 yearbook of Hughes Springs High School student Grace Daniel. Daniel says in her book no one may know of her and her class 100 years from then to now. But George does.
Local historian George Frost shows the 1916 yearbook of Hughes Springs High School student Grace Daniel. Daniel says in her book no one may know of her and her class 100 years from then to now. But George does.

Some 105 years ago, Grace Daniel of Hughes Springs published a poem in her graduation yearbook.

The poem asks the question, "Who will know we ever lived, a hundred years from now."

She was right to ask and, in her case, the answer is one person for sure. He's George Frost, who grew up in the Union Chapel community not far away.

George, now a retired teacher, coach and historian, found Grace's yearbook in the Atlanta Library as it was about to be thrown away.

The book was called "The Girl Graduate: Her Own Book." It would be the student's yearbook for memories. Senior students were given a blank, model yearbook published in Chicago to fill it out on their own and for themselves.

George read the serious poem Grace included as a quote from a popular poem of the day by Mary A. Ford. It was called "A Hundred Years From Now." Here are a few lines:

"The surging sea of human life forever onward rolls.

And bears to the eternal shore this daily freight of souls;

Though bravely sails our bark today, pale Death sits at the prow,

And few shall know we ever lived a hundred years from now.

Why should we try so earnestly in life's short, narrow span,

On golden stairs to climb so high above our fellow man?

Why blindly at an earthly shrine in slavish homage bow

Our gold will rust, ourselves be dust, a hundred years from now."

Grace's poem is so serious. Maybe it had something to do with World War I which was underway in Europe and which the United States would enter in 1917.

But, like all seniors, Grace's words also tell of happy and optimistic high school years.

Some names she mentions to start are those of school superintendent W.W. Campbell, valedictorian Truman McWilliams and teachers Lola Dees, Maude Stewart, a Mr. Black and a Mr. Harvey.

The senior spares no one. She writes frankly. For example, of the superintendent who also taught math, she says, "Mr. Campbell was a good math teacher. He could not teach Latin. But he told witty short stories, was almost constantly teasing and aggravating. He was bald-headed and about 40 years of age."

As second example was that of English teacher Mr. Harvey.

"Mr. Harvey was well-educated boy, for that was what he was a boy, nothing but a boy. He was better in teaching English studies."

And then, Grace gets into the real muddle of every students' yearbook. That is, the funny parts and the predictions of the future. Grace takes a whole page to explain she has become and is a "prophetess," a female prophet.

"Strange but true, I am a prophetess. Not many inspirational prophets and prophetesses in these dark days, but I am one."

And then she begins to tell of meeting classmates in the future. She even meets herself becoming the bride of the future governor of Texas.

"I saw him walking with me. I recognized myself, but I didn't know who he was," she says comically.

Drawing aside the curtains of time and declaring the thrilling events of the future, Grace sees Jessie Reeder who is a prima donna singer in a New York musical. Beatrice Smitz is an artist who spends all her time going to art galleries with a handsome escort.

The prophetess gets emboldened by telling that one of her classmates, Milo Mayfield, will be elected president of the United States with the greatest number of votes.

Hughes Springs High School will become Hughes Springs College, one of the best institutions of higher education, the prophetess predicts.

By the way, Eugene Finley is still boarding at the college as a teacher of English.

Daniel has much more to tell with her yearbook. It's all written with strong, clear handwriting in ink. Unfortunately there are no photos.

It's been a hundred years, Grace. Now someone has stepped up to answer your question. Your yearbook remembers you and many others. Those memories may last several hundred more years from now.

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