JUVENILE SECTION OF "NAPREDEK"

CLEVELAND, OHIO, MAY 19th, 1937

WITH OUR JUNIORS

By Michael Vrhovnik, Director of Vrtec and English Speaking Lodges

Vrtec No. 72, Sygan, Penna., Enrolls 8 New Members to
Take Lead From Pioneers and Trail Blazer, Jrs.

Celebrate in June

“Oh! What is so rare as a day
in June!

Then, if ever, comes perfect
day;

When heaven trys earth if it be
in tune,

And over it, softly, her warm
ear lay.”

The month of JUNE, to most
boys and girls of school age,
means the beginning of VACA-
TION DAYS, the beginning of
rounds and rounds of play last-
ing through nearly three whole
months; but this year, JUNE
takes on another significance
among our Juvenile members ...
For the first time in the history
of our Society, a special period
of the year has been set aside to
be devoted primarily to the pro-
motion and increase of activity,
interest and membership of our
JUVENILE DEPARTMENT.
That special period is the month
of JUNE.

The members of the Supreme
Board, realizing the importance
of our Juvenile Department to
the future progress and growth
of our Society, and knowing
full-well that our Juveniles are
to be the leaders of tomorrow,
that the very LIFE, HOPE and
PROSPERITY of our Society
■svili hinge on the amount of re-
sponsibility they will be ready
and willing to assume when thp
time comes for them to step up,
unanimously a p p r oved and
adopted a resolution designat-
ing the month of JUNE of each
year as SSPZ JUVENILE
MONTH and, thereby, making
every day in JUNE an SSPZ
JUVENILE DAY.

The month of JUNE should
be fittingly celebrated by each
and every Vrtec unit in the So-
ciety. A d ministra tors/trices are
urged to collaborate \vith their
Vrtec officers and other adult
members in planning a special
program of entertainment for
their members, parents and
friends. It may be an indoor af-
fair ealling for a party with a
short program of recitations,
songs, etc., or an outdoor event
such as a picnic or outing with
appropriate games and recrea-
tion. None need be to eleborate
or expensive. Refreshments, of
course, should be one of the high

JUNIOR WHEEL OF
PROGRESS

(Standing as of May 1, 1937)

GROUP “A”

Vrtec New

No. Location Members

72 Sygan, Pa... 8

1 Forest City, Pa. 6

139 Chicago, 111. 6

5 Cleveland, Ohio. 5

169 Bridgeville, Pa. 5

11 Cleveland, Ohio. 2

3 Slovan, Pa. 1

Total..'...33

GROUP “B”

140 Pierce, W. Va. 5

126 Power Point, Ohio. 3

121 Russellton, Pa. 1

Total . 9

GROUP “C”

131 Coverdale, Pa. 4

31 Chicago, 111.   3

62 Krayn, Pa. 2

Total . 9

GROUP“D”

138 Harmarville, Pa. 2

163 Louisville, Colo. 1

spots of every celebration and
back of every celebration, too,
should be the idea of gaining
new members and keeping the
WHEEL OF PROGRESS
ROLLING ON and ON and ON...

“Get a ne\v member” shall be
the CAMPAIGN SLOGAN of
the month for not one day in
JUNE shall be complete with-
out gaining at least one new
member . . . Boost the JUNIOR
WHEEL OF PROGRESS mem¬
bership campaign by inviting
your friends to attend your
JUNE celebration. Show them a
good time and then ask them to
join your Vrtec.

Frank Mivec and William Pevc
Top Liieranj Groups in April

Well, boys and girls, here’s
the news you’ve been vaiting for
since the third Wednesday in
April . . . With the publication
of this issue of the Vrtec Sec-
tion comes the narnes of the
JUNIOR LITERARY CON-
TEST winners for last month
and \ve’re not one bit surprised,

The second month of our
JUNIOR WHEEL OF PROG¬
RESS CAMPAIGN finds a new
leader in the pilot’s seat setting
the pace for NATIONAL HON-
ORS. Vrtec No. 72, led by sister
Julia Kramzar, mother of the
secretary of this Vrtec, gained
eight (8) new members and, in
doing so, displaced the leaders
of a month ago. At that time, if
you recall, Vrtec No. 1 of Forest
City, Pa., and Vrtec No. 139 of
Chicago vere tied for first
plače. Today, these two Units
are stili even in the number of
members gained and tied for
second best honors. A very fine
spurt vas made by Vrtec No.
169 of Bridgeville, Pa.... Here,
sister Christine Kvartich, ad-
ministratrix, put her shoulder
to the WHEEL and enrolled
four (4) new members, to bring
the two month’s total to five
(5). With the exception of
GROUP “A”, no changes took
plače in the three remaining
groups. For further campaign
news, turn to the E. S. L. Sec-
tion of the Napredek.

as we glance over the names of
the prize vinners, to find that
there are a number of repeaters
on the HONOR ROLL.

The outstanding literary
“gem” of the month came from
the pen of FRANK MIVEC,
populai; president of Vrtec No.
9; Indianapolis, Ind., in form of
an original story entitled, “Pom-
padori! Pompadori!” . . . His
poetic creations, also, sho\ved
real talent and a promising fu¬
ture in the literary field. FIRST
PRIZE, in Group “A”, \vent to
FRANK MIVEC.

ANNE GAČNIK, brilliant
secretary of the “Outlookers,”
Vrtec No. 11; Cleveland, Ohio,
and WILLIAM PEVC, active
president of the Pioneers, Vrtec
No. 1; Forest City, Pa"., who \von
first prizes in March came thru
again, the former finishing a
very close second in Group “A”,
and the latter once more having
things pretty much his own vay
by copping the first and only
plače in Group “B”. Both \vere
excellent contributions.

The poem, “Study Hall,” re~
called memories of by-gone
days for, when I was a boy,
many and many a spitball sail-
ed overhead, and as FRED BA-
SHEL so eloquently puts it,
“Whang, Oh! It landed oilto the
teacher’s hair” . . . Those were
happy carefree days when the
only regrets came with the sting
of a paddle or spending an hour
or two, overtime, in school after
regular hours. THIRD PRIZE,
in Group “A”, vas won by
FRED BASHEL, member of the
“Outlookers.”

In addition to the regular
prizes, the judges awarded tvo
consolation prizes, one going to
FRANK M. ZAKRAJŠEK of
Vrtec No. 9; Indianapolis, Ind.,
and the other to JULIA M.
KRAMZER of Vrtec No. 72;
SYGAN, PA. . . . Cash avards
were as follows;

GROUP “A”

(Ages 13 and older)

Plače—Name Prize

lst—Frank Mivec .$1.50

2nd—Anne Gačnik . 1.00

3rd—Fred Bashel .50

CONSOLATION AWARDS
4th—Frank M. Zakrajšek.. .50

5th—Julia M. Kramzer.50

GROUP “B”

(Ages 12 and under)

lst—William Pevc . 1.50

If you were among those who
failed to win a prize last month,
don’t feel discouraged, but keep
right on trying ... The JUNIOR
LITERARY CONTEST has
four more months to go and in
that time twenty-four monthly
prizes vili be awarded; surely,
if you try hard enough, you can
vin at least one of them. TRY
AGAIN . . . and to those of you
vho have yet to write your first
article for the Vrtec Section, do
let’s hear from you! There is
room for your name on the
HONOR ROLL, too! !

Let’s Play

SLAP JACK —The players
stand in a circle, clasping
hands. One player runs around
the outside of the circle and
tags another as he runs. The
player t a g g e d immediately
leaves his plače and runs in the
opposite direction. The object of

(.Continued on pagc 4)

Total

i?

Juvenile Section of ‘‘JSfapreclele.”

JVlu-.v 19th, 1937

SIROTEK KUŽEK

France Bevk

Škorec je stikal po krovu. Pod
je bil čist, deske bele, špranje s
Črno smolo zamazane. Klepec je
zdaj jezno piknil po njem. Tu ni
bilo črvov ne polžev. Pod stro¬
pom ni viselo vipavsko grozdje
kot v domači koči.

Pustil je iskanje in si rajši o-
gledoval potnike. Radoveden in
stikav kot je bil, je našel marsi¬
kaj zanimivega. Neki izseljenec
je imel spodal razcefrane hlače.
Škorec m je odtrgal nekaj niti in
prinesel Lukcu plen. Drugemu
je zgrabil za vrvco na čevljih
in mu jih odvezal. Tretjemu je
padla pomaranča iz rok. Klepec
je s krikom letel za njo, le nerad
jo je vrnil lastniku.

Tako je hodil škorec po krovu,
kakor da je v koči na Vipav¬
skem. Temu je raztrgal časnik,
drugemu je odnesel kaj svetlega
Izseljenci so ga že prvi dan po¬
znali po imenu.

Za ceno sladkega prigrizka se
je pustil pobožati. Prijeti pa ne.
Da bi ga privabili, so mu včasih
ponujali ništro. škorec je bil
moder. Poškilil je z enim oče¬
som med prste. Če ni zagledal
ničesar, kar bi ga mikalo, se je
naredil gluhega. Ali pa je udaril
sitneža s kljunom:

“Bedak’ Bedaki”

Opoldne je zapel zvonec. Iz¬
seljenci so se postavili v vrsto in
dobili dva krožnika jedi. Sedli so
v jedilnici za preproste mize, ali
pa so počenili kar po krovu in
jedli. Lukec in škorec sta jedla
iz enega krožnika. Klepec je bil
izbirčen. Ni pokusil vsake jedi.
Kadar se mu je stožilo po vipav¬
skem grozdju, je skočil Lukcu
na ramo, ga vlekel za uho in
.vpil.

Po večerji je krov oživel. Lju¬
dje so sedeli in govorili. . . Tudi
mati in Lukec sta slonela ob o-
graji. Slokar je kadil cigareto.

“Jutri se bomo ustavili v Mar-
seju,” je dejal. “To je na Fran¬
coskem. Čez nekaj dni v Lisabo-
ni na Portugalskem. Nato do A-
merike nič več.”

“A!” se je čudil Lukec. Nje¬
gove misli so bile odsotne. Tudi
mati je mislila na dom. Tiha,
drobna žalost se je oprijemala
njenega srca. Spomnila se je na
moža.

“Bog ve, če je oče dobil pi¬
smo.”

1 14 ‘

“Zemlja! Zemlja!”

Potniki so postali nemirni. Na
severu se je prikazal rjav pas
zemlje. Videla so se pobočja, na¬
to drevesa in hiše. Nad parni¬
kom so letali galebi. Iz meglene
daljave je raslo mesto. Marsej.
Parnik je zapiskal in zavil v pri¬
stan.

Vseokrog so stale ladje. Na
bregu je bilo živo vrvenje. Mor¬
narji, težaki in potepuhi. Rjavi
Jjudje s fesi in belimi turbani.
Zamorci s kratkimi, zvitimi la¬
smi. Tuja, neumljiva govorica.

Nekateri potniki so zapustili
parnik. Prihajali so novi izse¬

ljenci . .. Lukec je gledal in po¬
slušal. živega vrvenja na bregu
bi se nikoli ne bil naveličal. Pa
se je spomnil na nekaj, kar ga
je že dolgo mikalo.

V nekatere dele parnika je bi¬
lo potnikom prepovedano vsto¬
piti. Kaj je tam? Lukec je bil še
bolj radoveden ko škorec, čakal
je prilike, da bo lahko pogledal
skozi ta ali ona vrata.

V tistem trenutku so bili vsi
mornarji zaposleni, častniki so
stali ob vhodu. Izseljenci so gle¬
dali na breg. še škorec je bil
vtaknil glavo skozi ograjo, lovil
glasove, ki so prihajali s pomo¬
la.

Lukec se je tiho, po prstih na¬
meril v notranjost ladje. Tedaj
se je škorec ozrl: “Luka!” Rad
ga je imel, a v tistem hipu bi ga
bil udaril. “Molči!” mu je za¬
mahnil z roko. Klepec je mislil,
da ga Lukec kliče, že je bil pri
njem.

Vzel ga je na ramo. Grozil mu
je s prstom, naj molči, škorec
je molčal. Pogledal mu jev uho,
nato ga je pocuknil za lase. Lu¬
kec se ni upal zavpiti.

Zašel je v temen hodnik. Po
dveh stopnicah je stopil v ozek,
prazen prostor. V steni je bilo
dvoje okroglih oken. Eno je bilo
odprto. Na tleh je ležal svitek
vrvi. Konec je visel skozi odpr¬
tino.

• Kam se vidi skozi okno ? Lukec
je vrgel škorca na tla. Vtaknil
je glavo skozi okence. Videl je
zaliv, ladje in čolne. Vrv je vise¬
la od okna do vode. Vrvi se je
oklepal v sivo oblečeni gospod in
plezal navzgor.

Lukec je od začudenja olese¬
nel. Kaj to pomeni? Sivec pod
njim je bil ves zaripel v obraz.
Plezal je počasi, a vztrajno. Ped
za pedjo. Bil je že blizu okna.

Škorcu ni bilo po volji, da ga
je Lukec postavil na tla. Stopi¬
cal mu je nekaj časa okrog nog,
nato mu je skočil na hrbet. “Lu¬
ka! Luka!” Splezal mu je do
vratu, iskal primerne špranje,
da bi tudi on pogledal skozi o-
kence.

Nenadoma je škorec odskočil
in zavpil: “Potep! Potep!” V
tistem trenutku je zgrabila Luk-
ca trda roka za obleko na hi'btu.
Nekdo ga je potegnil iz okna s
tako silo, da mu je posnelo kožo
desnega ušesa . . . Pred njim
je stal dolgin v beli obleki. Gle¬
dal ga je kot bi ga hotel požre¬
ti. Polglasno, sikajoč so mu lete¬
le jezne, nerazumljive besede iz
ust.

Lukec ni vedel, kaj se z njim
godi. Bilo mu je jasno, da mora
bežati, škorec se je postavil za
svojega gospodarja. “Bedak!”
Razprostrl je peroti in dolgina
junaško piknil v čevelj. Lukec
ga je popadel in jo hotel odku-
riti. Začutil je brco, da se je opo¬
tekel po tleh.

“Aj!” je zaječal. Pobral se je
in tekel po stopnicah.

(Dalje prihodnjič)

Našli so ga spečega na vse
zgodaj pred vrati neke bogate
hiše. Okrog vratu je imel nave¬
zan listek, na katerem je bilo
napisano:

“Lepo prosim, kdo bi se u-
smilil tega malega kužka in bi
skrbel zanj. Moja mati mi ne
dovoli, da bi ga imel pri sebi.”

Malo besedi, a te pričajo o
doživeti tragediji v duši male¬
ga otroka.

Ko so prvi žarki vzhajajo¬
čega solnca padli na mesto
Knoxville, Tenn., je neki do
smrti žalosten otrok končal to
pisanje na strganem koščku
papirja. Bledi objokani obra-
od neprespane noči se je skla-
zek, zmršena in trudna glava
njala čez napisano noto in de¬
bele solze so kapale na okorne
velike črke. Ko je svojo željo
izročil papirju, je vtaknil svin¬
čnik v usta in se zamislil: Ka¬
ko bi mogel ljudem povedati,
kako je to, kako se imata de¬
ček in kužek rada. Vsako noč
ko je šel spat, je pritekel k
njegovi postelji kužek, se vse-
del pred posteljo, mahal z rep¬
kom in cvilil, dokler ga ni vzel
k sebi. Kako bi mogel ljudem
povedati, kako srčen je bil ko
je ovil svoje roke okrog kužka
in sta tako spala do jutra sku¬
paj. Kako toplo mu je bilo ve¬
dno pri srcu če se mu je po¬
srečilo dati kužku svoj košček
mesa, ne Čla bi ga bila videla
mati. Kako lepo, kako dobro
ga je vedno gledal njegov ku¬
žek. To so stvari, si je mislil
ta otrok ki jih odrasli ljudje
ne morejo razumeti.

A morda si deček ni ničesar
mislil, morda je samo ubogal
kar mu je zapovedala njegova
mati. Tudi njegov kužek je sa¬
mo ubogal.

Ko je bilo v sobi še vse tem¬
no, se je potihoma dvignil iz
postelje, si oblekel hlačke, pri¬
jel kužka in odšel bosonog v
kuhinjo. Tam je odtrgal košček
papirja in napisal svojo proš¬
njo. V predalu je našel košček
vrvice, preluknjal s svinčni¬
kom papir in navezal listek
kužku na vrat. Kužek misleč,
da si je deček izmislil zanj no¬
vo igro, si je na vse načine pri¬
zadeval dobiti listek v svoj
gobček. Deček je stisnil kužka
pod suknjo, tiho zaprl vrata
in se zgubil v cesto.

Dolgo je blodil po ulicah in
iskal hiše, ki bi se mu zdela
dovolj varno zavetje za nje¬
govega kužka. Tudi daleč je
moral odnesti kužka, da ne bi
našel poti nazaj. Ceste šo bile
še prazne, vse je še počivalo.
Prekoračil jetrgovski del me¬
sta in se približal stanovanj¬
skemu. Krenil je v ulico najbo¬
gatejših domov. Same velike
krasne hiše z obširnimi vrtovi.
Tu mu je ugajalo. Zaželel si
je, da bi se med temi ljudmi
našel človek, ki bi vzljubil nje¬
govega malega kužka.

Dečku je postajalo čedalje
težje. Tihe solze so se spreme¬
nile v pridušeno ihtenje. Ku¬
žek ga je gledal s svojimi ža¬
lostnimi očmi in mu lizal sol¬
ze.

Pri štev. 1320 Fremont Pl.,
se je deček ustavil. Pred njim
je stal mogočen dom. Velikan¬
ski vrt se je raztezal okrog hi¬
še, dosti rož in dreves jo je ob¬
krožalo. Ugajalo mu je. Tu bi
se njegov kužek gotovo počutil
dobro, koliko prostora za igra¬
nje bi imel. Na verandi pred
glavnim vhodom je ležala meh¬
ka preproga. Deček je posled-
njikrat stisnil k sebi svojega
kužka in ga položil nanjo. Ko
je kužek zaspal, se je deček
tiho odstranil Ihteč se je vra¬
čal skozi lepo bogato mesto na
svoj uborni dom.

Mati je bila rekla, da ne
mara imeti v hiši psa in on jo
je ubogal.

Kratko nato je služkinja go¬
spe Barkley na štev. 1320 od¬
prla vrata in skoro stopila na
spečo živalico. Ko se je skloni¬
la, je opazila košček papirja,
ki je bil obešen na kužkovem
vratu. Prečitala ga je, nežno
dvignila kužka in odhitela v so¬
bo gospe Barkley.

Gospa Barkley je bila vsa
ganjena. Odvezala je vx*vico in
odstranila listič. Malo je bilo
besed, toda gospa Barkley je
veliko razumela. Njeno srce si
je zaželelo imeti tudi otroka,
hotela mu je povedati, da je
njegov kužek našel dober dom.
Ko je telefonirala v redakcijo
nekega lista, je bil njen glas
še ves tresoč od ginjenosti.

“Vidite,” je govorila gospa
psa in dveh ne moremo imeti.
Barkley, “mi imamo že enega
Morda bi se našel med vašimi
čitatelji dobro srce, ki bi se
usmililo tega kužka.”

Drugi dan je naslovna stran
velikega KnoxvilIškega časopi¬
sa prinesla sliko kužka s prive¬
zanim lističem okrog vratu:

“Lepo prosim, kdo bi se u-
smilil tega malega kužka in bi
skrbel zanj. Moja mati mi ne
dovoli, da bi ga imel še pri se¬
bi.”

Poleg kužka z lističem so ti¬
sti jutro prinesli časopisi vse
polno poročil o volitvah v dr¬
žavi Tennessee, o grozotah
španske vojne in o konferen¬
cah v Washingtonu, toda mi¬
mo vsega tega so ljudje čitali
in govorili samo o siroti kužku
in o ubogem dečku, ki mu ni
bilo dovoljeno imeti niti kužka.

Telefon v hiši gospe Barkley
je začel zvoniti. V prvi jutra¬
nji uri jih je poklicalo naj¬
manj 12 ljudi. In ko je število
interesentov za kužka naraslo
na 200, gospa Barkley ni več
beležila koliko ljudi se je za¬
nimalo za kužka.

Neka družina potujoča z av¬
tomobilom v Michigan, se je
vstavila pri gospej Barkley in
prosila, če bi mogli vzeti kužka
s seboj. Po telefonu se je slišal
otročji jok in prošnje, da bi do¬
bili kužka. Neka gospa je tele¬
fonirala petkrat, da bi ga bila
dobila. Možje so telefonirali
iz uradov ali sami prišli pogle¬
dat najdenčka. Zopet druga
ženska je ponudila da bo ku¬
žek spal v njeni sobi na lepi
mehki blazini, samo naj ga do-
(Dalje na Jf. str.)

May 193T

J\ivenile SectioriL o£ “Napredek.”

^>\.raxv ‘4

Letters Frotn Our Vrtec

Members

\vhieh goes on yeav

A LETTER OF APPRECIA-
TlON

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — I
am vvriting this to express ap-
preciation for ali the aid re-
ceived from the senior lodge No.
22 in connection \vith the pre-
sentation of the play given in
Slovene. We are equally grate-
ful to ali those who took parrt in
the play, the name of which was
“Kralj Herod.” The čast of the
play was as follows: Frank Mi-
vec, Gašper; Frank Zakrajseck,
First Študent; Martin Dragon,
Second  Študent; Valentine
Stroy, Jera; Frank Zakrajseck,
Branjevec; Louis Znidarsich,
Prvi Hlapec; Tony Boyt, Dru¬
gi Hlapec.

I also wish to thank the mem¬
bers of the senior lodge who
came to see the play and helped
us out in various ways: Louis
Znidarsich, Frank Golob, Steve
Škorjanc, and Mr. and Mrs.
Hvalica \vho helped us behind
the scenes, particularly vith the
make-up, at the box-office and
in serving refreshments after
the performance.

I advise ali the boys who want
to go to Cleveland to play in-
door bali at SSPZ 01ympics to
join our Vrtec No. 9 before June
first. At our last meeting \ve dis-
cussed the ques.tion of the outfit
for our team. I want ali you
boys to come to the next meet¬
ing and join our Vrtec. It will be
held at the Slovene National
Home on June 6, at ten o’clock.
Ali members are urgently re-
quested to be there.

Louis Znidersich  (Age 14),
Treasurer, Vrtec No. 9.

(Editor’s Note: The publica-
tion of this letter was delayed
in order to publish it in the i'egu-
lar Vrtec section of Napredek.
For this reason the June meet¬
ing date vas used instead of the
one for May.)

VRTEC AND SENIOR LODGE
GIVE DANCE
MASSILLON, Ohio. — The
SSPZ Benefit Dance, sponsored
by the adult lodge No. 158, and
Vrtec No. 110 \vill be held at the
Translyvania Gardens on the
Back Canton-Massillon road,
Saturday, May 22nd. Musič will
be furnished by the Happy Hi-
Hatters from Barberton, Ohio.
So come one, come ali, the ad-
mission is only 25c. Dancing
from eight till ?

We invite ali the neighboring
lodges, far, and near. We’ll be
looking for you ali, so don’t dis-
appoint us.

Fraternally yours,

Josephine Selan,  Vrtec 110,
Secretary.

THE HI ST O RY OF TIIE
TRAIL BLAZER J RS.

CHICAGO, 111. — On the 25th
of October in 1935, the first
meeting of the Trail Blazer Jrs.
vas called to order. The mem¬
bers of the Supreme Board were
introduced and explained the
functions of the Vrtec units.

The work was really started
in November, 1935 and with the
help of our administrator Bro.
Stanley Tome and the Supreme
Board the officers were elected
as follows:

Stephen Lavrič, president;
Henry Bezlaj, vice-president;
Katherine Zadnik, secretary; x
Emil Brolick, treasurer; Wil-
liam Tršar, sargeant-at-arms.

On May 9, 1936, the Trail
Blazer Jrs. put on an Amateur
Show and with the Trail Blazer
senior lodge’s help it was a big
success. The proceeds of this
show vere approximately $60
and this put us on our feet.

On December 20,1936 we gave
a Christmas Party and Santa
Člaus paid us a visit.

In January, 1937, a new ad¬
ministrator Bro. Frank Pintar
was appointed and the election
of officers was again in prog-
ress. Ali of the officers remain-
ed in their Office with the ex-
ception of Bro. Henry Bezlaj
vho was replaced by his brother
Frank Bezlaj.

In the year and one-half that
the Trail Blazer Jrs. vere or-
ganized we have already 30 ac-
tive members and 15 inactive
members.

We have a treasury of about
$100.00 and we are waiting for
summer to roli around so we can
spend 'it.

Katherine Ztidnik,  secretary
of Trail Blazer Jrs., Vrtec No.
.139.

MAV, THE MOST BEAUTI-
FUL MONT H OF THE YEAR

SYGAN, Pa. — Spring is
here, and vith it came ali the
happiness of life. Some of the
early flovers and trees are be-
ginning to bloom. Do you ev.er
wake up in the morning, when
the sun is shining bright, and
hear the birds warbling and
twittering in the trees? If you
do, do you get the feeling that
spring is here at last. Of course,
spring began in March, but the
beautiful spring days will be in
May. May lst is the most beauti¬
ful day of May. May lst is cele-
brated in many countries but is
mostly an international holiday
in Jugoslavia, as my parents
have told me.

How Jugoslavia Celebrates
Mag lst

As we ali know Jugoslavia
has many holidays but May lst
is the most important of ali. On
this day, no one goes to \vork,
neither coal miners nor workers
in factories. Nearly everyone
takes part in something. Even
the children, as well as the
adults take a gi-eat interest in
this holiday. About five o’clock
in the morning the miners’ band
begins to play. They parade
around the coal miners’ homes.
The bands play on until 10 or 11
o’clock. In the afternoon they
meet at large clubs where they
eat and drink and are enter-
tained with mušic and pro-
grams. This is a custom of Slo¬

vene peopl
after year.

Do we celebrate the coming of
May as Europe? Ves we do, but
not as much as in Ecope. The
customs of this celebration dif-
fer greatly. For instance, in our
churches and Sun da.v schools,

. May Queens are chosen who
wear white gowns and carry
flowers. After the queen follov
children, \vho are also dressed in
\vhite and carry flovers. They
ali join in to sing.

Ho\v will our Juvenile Vrtecs
celebrate May? Let's ali co-
operate, and do our pa rt.

Miss Julia C. Kratnzer,  S ec V
of Sygan Vrtec No. 72 SSPZ.

(§ummer Morning

WHITE VALLEY VRTEC
WHITE VALLEY, Pa. — I
would like to impress upon you
members of Vrtec 103 a few
points concerning our meetings.
First of ali our attendance is
poor; second, the monthly dues
have not been paid on time. The
20th of each month is the clos-
ing date for the lodge dues, so
members please bear jn mind
the paying date.

We have come to the conclu-
sion that June is the Juvenile
month of our lodge Vrtec 103.
Since it is the most pleasant
month of the season, we juven-
iles have planned to have a pic-
nic with the aid of the adult
members of Lodge No. 142. We
have set the date for June 13,
1937 for our picnic to be held at
White Valley Slovene Hall. To
our surprise and appreciation
Michael Vrhovnik, Vrtec Direc-
tor vili be present at our picnic
to show exciting pictures. I’m
sure the public vili appreciate
his kindness as much as our Vr¬
tec members.

Neighboring lodges p 1 ease
keep this date open in order that
our Vrtec 103 picnic vould be a
success. You are ali assured a
rvonderful time and an enjoy-
able evening this 13th day of
June. More will be said about
the picnic in the next issue.

Here is a poem which I have
commenced to \vrite in this is¬

sue.

Our Vrtec

We have been organized more
than a year,

So look with your eye and listen
with your ear.

We have a fine group of mem¬
bers,

These we will always remember.

SSPZ adults have stolen three
of our active chaps

Do you know, we felt like giving
them a slap.

We had a dance in April and
October,

Plenty of fun because we vere
ali sober.

December vas a month of worry

Elections of course but ve vere
not sorry.

Our officers in lodge doings
vere deep,

We vanted the same ones so our
Vrtec wouldn’t fall asleep.

At our March meeting ve vere
visited by an Easter Bunny,

To active members, it doesn’t
sound funny.

Spring is here, and summer
birds are humming,

By Anne Gačnik
Early every morning, a cer-
tain bird perches in the apple
tree just outside my vindov,
and sings as though his throat
vili burst. His song is beautiful,
and entirely different from that
of  any bird  1’ve heard yet.

I vas beginning to get curi-
ous; so, one morning I got up,
just as he started to sing, and
tip-toed softly—so as not to
frighten the 'creature—around
the  corner of the house. There,
perched on one of the lowest
branches of the tree ■  vas a tiny
bird.

Its plumage wasn’t brilliant-
ly colored. Instead, it  vas a
dark grey vith bits of delicate,
shiny blue on the head, a long
the beak, and on the vings.

I stepped forvard a bit in or¬
der to get a better viev of this
tin 3 q feathery creature bubbling
over vith happiness.

It stopped! Oh, dear, he saw
me. To my dismay and intense
disappointment he took to ving.

As he glided sviftly upvard^
into spatfe, he resumed his song
vhere I had interrupted him.

Its rich toneš grev softer and
softer as he flev higher and
higher until at last he becarne
just a tiny speck in the sky, and
he could be heard no more.

I iooked up again and the
tiny blue and grey bird had dis-
appeared entirely into the deep,
blue, summer-morning sky.

We sure are glad for picnics are
. coming.

Boys and girls if you vant to
have a good time,

Join our Vrtec anytime.

Julia Kosmach,  Sec’y
Vrtec 103 SSPZ

THE PIONEER VRTEC

VANDLING, Pa. — Vrtec
No. 1 held its regular mcnthly
meeting on May 9, vhich hap-
pened to be Mothers’ Da,y.

Mothers’ Day is a day set
aside for the honoring of our
best friend our Mother. The
vearing of the red or vhite car-
nation is the visible manifesta-
tion of the event. It is celebrated
by family reunions. Miss Anna
Jarvis of Philadelphia, Pa., sug-
gested Mothers’ Day. Before a
publie meeting she crystallized
the sentiment nov back of its ob-
servance by saying “In honor of
the best Mother that ever lived
—your Mother.”

We stili celebrate Mothers'
Day by presenting her vith
gifts.

The meeting of Vrtec No. 1
vas not veli attended. This vas
due to .the practice for the cele¬
bration in tovn Sunday May 23.
We vere going to plan for an
outing or an indoor party for
the next meeting, but it vas im-
possible for there  weren’t
enough members to discuss any-
thing. So please take more in¬
terest in the Vrtec meetings. Did
ve forget the “Wheel of Prog- _
ress” campaign? Come to the
next meeting and try to get nev
members so that ve vili be in
Continued on Page 4

puran  S'

Juvenile Section of “Napredek”

May l£>th, 1937

Letters From Our  Vrtec Members

(Continued from Page 3)

W1TH OUR JUNIORS

the lead for we surely have lost
by not getting any this month,
but hoping \ve shall have a great
number next month. This month
is very busy indeed for every
one because school is coming to
a close, which means some
studying has to be done for the
final examinations. When \ve
close our school books then we
should ali get very busy and in-
- terested in our Vrtec and or-
ganization SSPZ by putting new
spokes in the “Wheel of Prog-
ress.” For there is no other or-
ganization or Vrtec that is so
educational. This organization
is the only one that offers such
a\vards for securing new mem¬
bers.

I wish to express my sincere
thanks to the J umor Literary
Contest judges for the prizes I
have received from them for my
monthly articles in the “Napre¬
dek.” The amount was received
with great appreciation.

Wm. Pevc,
Vrtec No. 1

' OUTLOOKERS
CLEVELAND, O. — The Out-
lookers have started their spring
training already. They say that
they \vill beat the Spartan Jrs.
again this year.

There were twelve anxious
boys \vho like to be good bali
players and make the team this
year. In which I hope they do.
John Ažman one of our new
members this year, has been out
to practice already and hopes
to make the team too, as well as
the other eleven boys that were
out too. There \vas another fel-
low out to practice, he is the
other new member of our Vrtec,
but I can’t seem to remember his
name. But anyway our assistant
manager asked him if he could
pitch and the boy answered by
saying that he had pitched for
his Street team once in a while.
Before I go on writing I might
as well tip the Spartan Juniors
off that they b e 11 e r get
used to left-handed pitching be¬
fore they are scheduled to play
us this year. This fellow I’ve
been talking about will be one
of our hurlers of the team. I
think that he \vill be one of the

ffrst left-handers the Outlook-
ers ever had and \vill have a
good chance of showing us that
he’s good.

Edward Stefanic is out to be
the other star hurler for his
team. I hope Stefanic, Zaman,
Ažman, Slejko, Gačnik and Ru-
dolph ??? are hitting the bali
ali around. It was too bad that
our star second-baseman Elmer
Pintar couldn’t practice on ac-
count of having thirteen stiches
in his right arm. We ali hope
that his arm will heal up readily
before our next practice, be¬
cause we can’t afford to lose a
swell player like him. Bobby
Zaman sure had the toughest
time in his life hitting ali the
balls being pitched by his broth-
er J ohnny. ,

The whole team seems to like
our assistant manager Joe Me-
heli, because they cooperate
with him as well as with the
boys. So if anybody that wants
to come out to see us practice,
can come out on any Saturday
at 4:00 o’clock at Grovewood
Playground.

“The Handsome Grasshopper”

OAKLAND, Cal. — I laughed
at these. You may also. Here it
goes.

La\vrence: “Your suit begins
to look a little rusty.”

Karl: “Yes, my tailor guar-
anteed that it would wear like
iron.”

*

The story of William Stoker.
His sister called him Willie,
His mother called him Will,
But when he went to college,

To Dad ’twas Bil, Bil, Bill!

*

Teacher: “What parties have
there been in our history besides
the Democrats and Republi-
cans?”

John: “The Boston Tea Par-

ty. ”

*

Mr. Adamson: I think my
wife’s mind must be breaking

up.

Mr. Ottosen: How come ?

Mr. Adamson: Because she is
always giving me a piece of it.

•fi

Yours fratenally,

Lillian Nemanich,  (Age 12)

(Continued from page 1)
both runners is to get back first
to the vacant plače. Whoever
succeeds, wins, and remains in
that plače, the one left out be-
coming the runner the next time.
This game is one of the standard
favorites for children. Try it
sometime.

SHOPPING —The first play-
er says, “I’ve been shopping to-
day.” Her righthand neighbor
asks her, “What did you buy?”
and she ans\vers, perhaps, “An
egg-beater.” “How does it go?”
she is asked. “Like this” ... and
she imitates the action of the
egg-beater. Her neighbor, in
turn, teliš her right-hand neigh¬
bor, and so on around the group,
each one imitating the action of
the thing she bought. This game
can be made. more difficult by

Sirotek Kužek

(Dalje iz 2. str.)

bi ona. Ljudje so kar tekmo¬
vali, kdo bi mogel kužku nuditi
boljši dom.

“500 kužkov bi bila lahko
preskrbela tisti dan, če bi jih
bila imela,” je rekla gospa
Barkley.

Nekatere družine so v svoji
prošnji navedle vse družinske
podatke. Natanko je bilo razlo¬
ženo, zakaj si tega kužka tako
žele in kako dober dom bo imel.
Nekatere rodbine so celo na¬
vedle priporočila. In to vse sa¬
mo zato, da bi bila gospa Bar-
kley potolažena, da je oddala
kužka v varne roke. Neka mla¬
da mati je pisala, naj ji dajo
kužka, ima sinčka-dvojčka in bi
tako rada vzela tega psička,
da bi se z njim igrala.

Neki deček je pisal: “Pro¬
sim gospa, jaz sem izgubil mo¬
jega kužka. Tako rad sem ga
imel. Bil je bel in črne pike.
Ime mu je bilo princ. Tako
sem jokal ko ga ni bilo več na¬
zaj. Prosim, dajte meni tega
kužka. Tudi njega bom klical
princ.”

Gospa Barkley se je bila že
odločila, da bo dala kužka te¬
mu dečku, ko je zvedela, da so
mu prvega stariši sami odpe¬
ljali. Bila je velika družina in
malo zaslužka. Težko je bilo
vzdrževati se kuška.

“Jaz sem mala deklica, sta¬
ra osem let,” je pisal drugi o-
trok. “Imam dosti punčk in hi¬
šico zanje. Toda kužka bi ime¬
la še rajši. Spal bi v hišici za
punčke. Prosim, dajte ga me¬
ni.”

“Kako dobro, da imam tele¬
fon tudi pri postelji,” je rekla
gospa Barkley. Ljudje so še te¬
lefonirali pozno v noč in drugo
jutro na vse zgodaj. Menda se
je bila vse mesto Knoxville za¬
interesiralo za tega kužka in
otroka.

Med tem ko se je odločala
njegova usoda pa je mali svet¬
looki kužek spal v topli koša¬
rici na polički pol telefonsko
mizico ali pa je igral z doma¬
čim psom, ki je gledal še ne¬
koliko postrani tega vsiljivčka.

Končno se je morala gospa
Barkley odločiti. Kužka je od-

limiting articles bought to those
beginning with certain letters.

MUSIČ AL NEIGHBORS  —
Half of the members present are
blindfolded. They are then seat-
ed so that each has a vacant
chair at his right hand. The re-
maining half of the players no\v
gather in the middle of the room
in perfect silence. At a signal
each of the unblindfolded play-
ers takes one of the empty seats.
When requested to sing, the un¬
blindfolded ones must do so in
unison, disguising their voices as
they choose. The blindfolded
members listen attentively, and
each tries to guess who his sing-
ing right-hand neighbor is. No
blindfolded player is to remove
his bandage until he gives eor-
rectly the name of his right-
hand neighbor.

dala neki gospej, ki jo je dobro
poznala. Gospa French je ime¬
lo veliko lepo vilo, obrnjeno na
reko Tennessee. Poleg hišice je
bila velika trata in vse, kar si
more poželeti malo kužkovo sr¬
ce.

Toda tudi tu ni bil kužek
sam. Gospa French je imela še
krasnega plemenitega psa z
dolgim rodovnikom. Ubogi ma¬
li sirotek kužek pa je bil brez
imena, brez rodovnika. Toda
vsi so bili zelo obzirni. Nihče
ni omenil  njegovega rodu.
Aristokratski pes in mali ple¬
bejski kužek sta bila neločljiva
prijatelja.

Gospa French je dala kužku
ime Trixi. Njenemu psu je bi¬
lo ime Trouble. In ko je neke¬
ga dne obiskal gospo French
poročevalec lista  American
Weekly, da bi kaj podrobneje
zvedel o tem kužku, ki je vzdig¬
ni ltoliko prahu po celi deželi
in še izven nje, sta se Trixy in
Trouble ravno podila po trati.
Trixy mu je sedel na repu in
Trouble ga je vlekel seboj do¬
sti hitreje, kakor bi ga bile
mogle nesti njegove kratke tač¬
ke. Na trati pri kužkih se je
igral tudi  osemnajstmesečni
nečak gospe French, Egon Col¬
lins. Odkar je bil pri hiši
Trixy, je bil tudi otrok vedno
pri svoji teti.

Mnogo ljudi je tudi še po¬
zneje telefoniralo  gospej
French, naj jim odstopi kuž¬
ka. Ponujali so zanj visoke vso¬
te denarja. Toda gospa French
ni hotela o tem ničesar sliša¬
ti. Vedno je mislila na uboge¬
ga dečka, ki je moral dati proč
svojega ljubega kužka in je ta¬
ko želel, da bi kdo dobro skr¬
bel zanj. Za nobeno stvar bi ne
mogla dati tega kužka proč.
Dala bi ga samo, če bi prišla
ponj dečkova mati in bi oblju¬
bila, da bo kužek imel dober
dom.

Toda nihče se ne oglasil.
Nihče ni poznal dečka, niti
kdaj videl tega malega kužka
na cesti. Sprva niso niti vedeli,
ali je bil listek napisala dekli¬
ca ali deček. Neki dober pozna¬
valec pisav je ugotovil, da je
pisel deček star šest ali sedem
let. Po časopisih so iskali tudi
dečka, da bi mu bili dali boljši
dom, toda vse je ostalo brez
uspeha.

VRTEC LIBRARY

(Books for Boys and Girls)

Programs for Springtime

Celebrations..

The Children’s Book

(Miscellaneous) .

In Honor of Mother (Mis-

Mother’s and Children’s

When Polly Was Queen of
May (Play or Pageant) ...
Fancy Drills and Marches ....

Ideal Drills and Marches.

Specialty Entertainment for

Baker’s Stunt and Game