Skule Cannon: Difference between revisions

The next day, the Cannon was fired outside UC's Junior Common Room, where their parliament was meeting. This was followed by a brief snowball skirmish. Due to this and the fact that we recovered the Cannon before they got to present it, UC declared war on SkuleTM on Friday, February 16. SkuleTM responded with a proclamation of hostilities on Tuesday, February 20. Plans for the permanent destruction of UC were published in the Toike Oike on February 23. UC was saved from certain destruction by an agreement to channel hostilities into the Hart House elections. These elections were, of course, dominated by SkuleTM.

[[Image:Nov30.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Varsity ad placed by SkuleTM asking for the location of the Cannon (Varsity, Nov. 30, 1944)]]

[[Image:Dec1.jpg|200px|right|thumb|The thieves' response the next day (Varsity, Dec. 1, 1944)]]

[[Image:Feb16-1.jpg|200px|right|thumb|More Varsity commentary (page 2) (Varsity, Feb. 16, 1945]]

[[Image:Feb19.jpg|200px|right|thumb|UC declares war on SkuleTM! (page 2) (Varsity, Feb. 19, 1945)]]

[[Image:Feb16.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Varsity resource/images/articles/cannon/timeline of events (Varsity, Feb. 21, 1945)]]

[[Image:Feb22.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Varsity commentary (page 2) (Varsity, Feb. 22, 1945)]]

The 1949 Chariot race, held on Thursday, February 3, had a good start. SkuleTM won the first heat, and the second heat was started by a blast of the Cannon. Then, disaster struck. The Cannon was grabbed by a Med student, beginning a huge brawl between all the parties present who wanted possesion of the Cannon - that is to say, everybody. Eventually a SkuleTMman managed to grab it and retreat to the Little Red Skulehouse. Even there, however, it was not safe from the thieving Meds. Two of them, standing just inside the door, took the Cannon from the exhausted engineer and made their way to the Medical building by a back route. The engineers quickly regrouped and entered the Meds building, but were prevented from recovering the Cannon by an overwhelming number of Meds. They took II Pre-Meds president Bob Sheppard captive, but were forced to release him later the same day. They replaced him by taking Bob Hetherington, Meds Society vice-president, from the frat where he lived. Hetherington was held hostage over the weekend while negotiations took place, and was traded for the Cannon at 17:30 February 7. On its return, the Cannon bore a blemish in the form of an inscription reading "Captured by Meds 5T2 3 Feb. 1949."

===1949: U.C. steals the Cannon===

The engineers had arranged for a photo shoot of the Cannon with a Varsity photographer, yet when they arrived at the meeting a group of U.C. students snatched the Cannon and fled in a car. In order to recover it, the CA Paul La Prairie assembled a large group of engineers in front of U.C. while some SkuleTMmen dressed as construction workers entered the building through a side door. These engineers set up proper construction barricades around the main staircase, and carefully removed the U.C. gargoyle from the newel post on the stairway. When word got out that the wooden gargoyle was missing, the CA was summoned to Dean Young and President Sidney Smith, to whom he assured that it would be returned safely in exchange for the SkuleTM Cannon. A truce was then arranged with U.C. to exchange the Cannon for the gargoyle on front campus. The Cannon was handed back, and the engineers presented the artsmen with a bag of sawdust, supposedly the remains of the gargoyle. While this happened, the gargoyle was being placed back in its post by the SkuleTMmen.

===1950: First official firing of the Mark II Cannon===