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she went away shaking her head but made no oral comment.
The Washington School principal, Miss Bond, was an older lady
with white hair and a seeming knowledge of each of us. I recall that I
hit my brother Gordon with something, probably a rock (he no doubt
deserved it!) and Miss Bond lectured me on my behavior. I thought
she was wrong after all, the incident hadnt happened on the school
grounds! Anyway, Miss Bond was a lovely lady. Miss Bond traveled
during the summer school vacation. At least once each school year she
would show us picture postcards (on a screen) of the places she had
been London, Paris, Berlin, etc. I was always very interested.
We had no school auditorium, but periodically during the school
year Miss Bond had us assemble in a central foyer, where we sat on the
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At that time, a wonderful old man named Walter Damrosch led the New
York Philharmonic Orchestra. He would broadcast special programs
for us school kids. He would explain the musical composition before it
was played. Often he would have instrumental soloists demonstrate the
sounds their musical instruments could produce. I enjoyed it, whereas
most of the kids simply tolerated it.
In grade school, most kids walked home for lunch, as I did.
Home was only two blocks away from school. Some days I walked with
Franklin Bass, who lived on our block. Franklin was as black as the
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eyelids inside out! Franklins father was a Pullman porter, which was
the elite of jobs for blacks at that time. Porters received a base pay, but
they received big tips from Pullman car passengers, whom they served
by making up their bed berths, loading and unloading their luggage, etc.
In the fall of my kindergarten year, Edge obtained the loan of a
pony from the operator of the Pony Ride Concession at the State Fair.
The operator, rather than feed the pony all winter until he could be used
at fairs in the coming spring, let us have the pony for the winter. Edge,
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of our garage, next to the family car. Our Dad bought hay and grain
to feed the pony. Despite his periodic instruction, we kids overfed the
pony, who became fat and round as a barrel.
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