And then I wrote...

by Dick Schilling, "Editor Emeritus"

... that May Day has come and gone for you as you read this. Given the many situations around the world, that international cry for help may have meaning. It is an American interpretation of the French phrase for “help me,” m’aider.

May is graduation time for high school students, and The Des Moines Register has named its all-state academic team. There are ten members of the “first” team, and 20 honorable mentions, if you will.

As I looked at photos and names, I was struck by the fact that half of the top ten appeared to have national backgrounds other than the United States. Four appeared Asian and one Indian. The nation, not early American.
Four of the next 20, likewise.

A couple ethnic groups more populous in Iowa are conspicuous by their absence.

Does that prove anything? Well, maybe that education is more valued among certain groups than others. Asians in particular have that reputation.

That same Sunday, an article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette (I’d be lost without newspapers!) featured the all-girl (most recently) Scottish Highlanders bagpipe marching unit of The University of Iowa.

They disbanded as that group in 1961.

They were at their peak when I was at the university in 1952-56. A glance at my yearbooks showed membership of around 125 girls, about 85 of whom performed while the others learned.

But even then, they were not as much appreciated on campus as in outside appearances. Male students in particular made unflattering comments. For one thing, a bagpipe is not the most melodious of instruments and seems to have a limited range.

The girls wore kilts and one might think college men would appreciate a coed leg show. Those were the days when basketball shorts were short and cheerleaders’ skirts were long. But the kilts came to the knee, so I never heard speculation about what the girls wore under their kilts, because it wasn’t going to show!

It takes an effort to keep the bag inflated, using some wind which could have been used in marching in long parades, such as the Rose Bowl parade and one on New York’s Fifth Avenue. They also toured overseas. One member in my earshot came up with a perfect squelch about a comment ftom a male about her lung capacity. She said it was too bad he could not join, because he had the necessary qualification, being a blowhard!

There was a brief resurgence when males were allowed again, but the group was never as popular.

Actually, it started as an all-male organization in the 1930s, but when the war claimed all the men, the girls took over.

I think they once performed at Decorah’s Nordic fest, didn’t they?