THE

SHIRBURNIAN

SHERBORNE : AT THE ABBEY PRESS

VOL.XLV

MICHAELMAS

No. 3

1955

..

THE

SHIRBURNIAN

MICHAELMAS

VOL. XLV

1955

No. 3

Illustrations Senior Diving

Editorial School News O.S. News Comment

Genevieve

CONTENTS

Concert Given by Choir of Salisbury Cathedral The Kidnappers The Abbey Organ ... The Church in East London Sherborne House, Southwark ... H.M.S. Tintagel Castle The R.A. Camp, Larkhill Topsham Barracks Chapel Collections

School Societies The Duffers Interpretes Les Polyglottes Green Ribbon Club ... James Rhoades Music Club The Wildman Society The Alchemists The Golf Society Ornithological Society Band of the C.C.F .... Photographic Society The Orchestra The Museum S.S.N.H.S. The Fishing Club The Philatelic Society

Correspondence Literary

Eleventh Hour Riviera Moonscape Summing it up " Lyin' Under a Ruddy Edge " Dr. Johnson Visits Sherborne ... Wages of Sin Remembrance Day November Fifth November the Fifth or Poppy Day My Wish Moles

Games Cricket Tennis Shooting notes Swimming ... Rugger Fencing

Valete Stop Press

Frontispiece Facing 105

Page 83 85 86

88 88 89 90 91 91 92 93 94 95

96 96 96 96 96 97 97 97 97 97 98 98 98 98 98 98 99

101 102 102 103 104 105 106 106 107 108

109 112 113 113 114 116 117

119

S. Young

School " A " v. Canford-B. C. Simmonds

EDITORIAL Editors who prop open their eyelids at the traditional midnight hour in order to write a

scintillating introduction to The Shirburnianare, we find, faced with three alternatives in their task. They may decide to give a purely factual account of the term's more outstanding events such as was the normal practice at the turn of the century. Our worthy predecessors, having first selected a relevant Latin quotation with which to propitiate the authorities, would launch into a review of the latest book on Public School life, or print a concise history of Sherborne Castle, or otherwise contrive to make the " sella editorialis " a mine of information. This course, however, would encroach upon other sections of the magazine in its present form, and risk the strong possibility that after going to press, the importance of the editorial subject matter would be immediately eclipsed by an occurrence of even greater moment in the second half of the term. Looking elsewhere for inspiration we note the tendency in recent years for editors to be wholly introspective, that is, to write delightfully about nothing in particular with occasional comments on the time of night, the last minute rush and the ink capacity of the editorial pen. While we enjoy playing the dilettante in this way, it is clearly inadvisable to disclose too many of our activities to the gentle reader, lest he gain illicit insight into the psychology of editors or mis­interpret our ways. So this choice we are also driven to abandon.

There remains the third alternative, which, far from being plagued with disadvantages, seems to us the proper purpose of any editorial. We must use the licence to which an editor is naturally entitled, to voice any criticism, constructive or otherwise, that has some weight of school opinion behind it, but normally can find no adequate form of expression. Our faculties of criticism vary of course, as may be seen by browsing over the correspondence columns of terms gone by. Sometimes there is no reason to stir from mental lethargy at all. Sherborne life carries on, come weather, come war. Sometimes there is good reason.

With these considerations in mind we thought this a valuable opportunity to express some views on the undisturbed monopoly which several business concerns in the town enjoy at the School's expense. The fact that a constant demand of certain articles is assured through the School without any competition is, we feel, injurious both to the reputation of the businesses and the interests of the. customers. Not unnaturally, security tends to lower the standard of service. To take a typical example, the official photographs at Commem. are taken by only one of the two town studios, so that whatever the good intentions of that concern, the owner knows he will sell what he produces, and the School is limited in its choice. This in fact applies to all official photographs of School functions.

84 THE SHIRBURNIAN

Of even greater importance to us financially is the buying of clothes. It is regrettable that to obtain any degree of satisfaction from the School outfitters a regular castigation in The Shirburnian has become almost essential. This term a member of the XV was refused the service of having gold braid sewn on his blazer after receiving his colours, on the grounds that the blazer was too old. Having at length succeeded in buying the braid separately, he was fortunate enough to have the alteration made elsewhere free of charge. The price normally quoted by the outfitters for this service, exclusive of the cost of the braid itself, is twelve shillings and sixpence. Of the two types of lst XV fez that are made, the less expensive one costs a third of the price paid for a grey suit, although no member of the XV can possibly wear his fez more than a dozen times a term. This, however, at the time of writing (half-term) is largely irrelevant, as there are none in stock. Inefficiency in supply and shoddiness of quality in other articles have now become almost taken for granted by the School. Clearly it would be superfluous for the emblems of honours that are rarely won to be sold at more than one establishment, but it is expected that since they are honours and rarely in demand, they should be obtainable without difficulty or cause for complaint when the need does arise. As for standard clothing in more general demand, there is every reason why competition should be encouraged, just as bookshops, barbers, cleaners and hotels exist side by side without distinction. If a business rejoices in the title of School outfitter, we have a right to expect the title to be justified.

In our opinion the only institution which merits protection at all is the Toey, since it has the unenviable task of subsidising the fund for the upkeep of the games fields. Where other monopoly does still regrettably exist, it should be treated as a privilege, not a right.

NOTEBOOK We are glad to see that the R.A.F. section has acquitted itself so well oflate. In addition to

notable academic successes, it has been graced with the services of yet another worthy officer­legatus Classicus pennipotens.

The new classrooms, now in permanent use, will reassure those who have doubted the ability of the contemporary architect, their excellence being rivalled only by that of the palatial edifice just opposite. Worthy indeed of their place in the Courts, they have but one disadvantage -we find doors easier to open when they possess door-handles !

Destructive as well as constructive events, however, have played their part in Sherborne life this term. A fire at the golf club, and the consequent risk of equipment belonging to members of the School being lost, prompted swift and efficient action from G.G.G., that master of strategic brilliance. Forsaking what was clearly a promising round of golf, he arrived on the scene to conduct a most military retreat, reminiscent of past successes in the Corps.

Other operations are reported from a certain house on the western front which show further admirable esprit de corps. When honoured by the undeserved attentions of our friends in the town, the house was obliged to repel its invaders with large quantities of water. Our sympathies to the member of this house who, on November 5th, was ambushed in return by three youths of ruddy, if not recognisable appearance.

Members of the various science groups have lately developed something of a persecution complex with regard to their treatment at the hands of Shirburnian editors. To show that this time we are more liberally minded, we make mention of an unofficial, but nevertheless thriving new society run by the School's medical group. The Symbionts, it is said, meet several times a term in one of the less fragrant classrooms. Ample refreshments are purchased from the tuckshop through a pool of financial resources. This ensures the right atmosphere. Papers have already been delivered on topics varying from myxamatosis to murder, from criminology to hypnotism. No narrow-minded scientists here, it seems.

THE SHIRBURNIAN 85

We feel it an injustice that the small but talented band of singers who delight the Chief with their performances on a Tuesday afternoon should be unknown to the School in general. Perhaps they might entertain us at the end of term concert.

The winter (and not infrequently summer) rain which is such a marked characteristic of the Shcrborne climate always tends to dampen our high spirits. How refreshing, therefore, to sec the enterprise of one worthy master who brightens the Courts by brandishing a huge red and gold golfing umbrella in defiance of the elements-a weapon of such vast circumference that its owner can scarcely be seen beneath it. Let us take note of this example. There is no rule that umbrellas must match either ties or political sympathies.

We do not often mention the national press ; now however we find it is inevitable, if only to record for posterity's sake that it has seldom reached such heights of sensationalism and hypocrisy, as in recent articles on royalty. More than that is better left unsaid.

This is the first football season in which we have enjoyed full use of the extension to the Upper Pavilion. For this most thoughtful and practical gift, we are indebted to the generosity of Mr. Gourlay. The Shirburnian gladly takes this opportunity of expressing our appreciation of his kindness.

SCHOOL NEWS Head of the School

School Prefects ...

Editors of The Shirburnian

Captain of Football Secretary of Football Captain of Boxing Captain of Squash Captain of Fives ... Captain of Shooting Chapel Prefect ...

We congratulate :-

SCHOOL OFFICERS

P. C. HORE (a) A. C. GARROD (b) A. F. N. DEW (c) A. E. H. GERRY (d) C. C. T. HENFREY (f) R. J. HODGSON (g) D. M. SUMMERSCALE (h)

C.C.T.HENFREY

D. F. MALLAM J.P. DEVITT R.T.THOMAS C. M. PAYNE R. M. PIRIE P.J.C.ROWE P. N. B. SHADDICK P.J. WESTON

P.J. WESTON A. K. GOLDSMITH P. N. B. SHADDICK R.J. HODGSON

D. F. MALLAM C. M. PAYNE E.R.RIX J.P. DEVITT J. S. B. PRICE P. N. B. SHADDICK P.J. C. ROWE

The following on winning state scholarships as a result of last term's School Certificate examinations.

J.C. KEY in Classics and Divinity. D. A. ALLPORT in Modern Languages. C. M. PAYNE in Mathematics. G. C. MITCHELL in Science. C. J. S. TUPPEN in Science. F. P. NICHOLS in Science.

86 THE SHIRBURNIAN

D. A. ALLPORT on winning the Huish Exhibition. M. J. A. W. FITZMAURICE (g '49-'54) and M. J. STONE (d '50-'55) on passing out

top of their groups at the Officer Cadet School at Eaton Hall, and G. M. S. SQUAREY (g '50 -'54) on passing out top at Mons.

G. P. GENT (f '50-'55) on playing cricket for Wilts. P. WATKINS WILLIAMS (d '25-'29) on being appointed a PuisneJudge in Trinidad and

Tobago.. . J. A. GOLDSMITH (a '39-'43) on winning the Leverhulme Prize for Cost Accountancy at

the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants. Mr. and Mrs. HOLMES on the birth of a daughter. Mr. and Mrs. GIBB on the birth of a son.

We welcome to Sherbornc R.S.M. ALDEN, who replaces the "Major", and his family. We wish them every happiness.

0.S. NEWS OBITUARY

GARLAND, Edward Andrew (c 1912-1916). HAWLEY-EDWARDS, Spencer Faulkner (a 1895-1900). KENDLE, Colonel George Harold, R.M.L.I. (c 1900-1902). MILLIGAN, James (Writer to the Signet) (f 1900-1903). POWYS, Littleton Charles (Wildman's, 1886-1893). THOMPSOM, Lewis Charles, M.B. (f 1927-1931). WILSON, Edward Archibald Rathmell (a 1897-1902).

L.C.P. 1874-1955 Littleton Powys with his elder brdther John came in 1886 : was placed in the lowest form,

spent three years in the VI th : was head of his house : in the XV in 1892, in the XI in 1892-1893 being captain in his last year. Such is the brief school record of a distinguished O.S., known to few ifany of the present generation, but well known and loved by many of his old boys and by a host of friends ; not the least remarkable member of a remarkable family. If any reader is interested beyond what must be a bare record of his life at Sherborne School he cannot do better than delve in his book " The Joy of it ", numbers of The Shirburnian from 1886-1893 and in Mr. Gourlay's History.

The seven years of his school life were eventful. The palmy days of Harper were followed by expansion and enterprise in many directions. The San was built in 1887, Young's added to the Upper in 1888, the Corps started by Wildman in the same year, the first camp in 1889, the first shooting VIII in 1890 : the Carmen came from the Headmaster's pen in 1887 followed by a regular stream of school songs, now (unhappily) neglected or forgotten : two organ recitals by the great French organist Guilmaut in 1888 and 1890 : the first High Dive, referred to in a celebrated poem by James Rhoades in 1890 : the first School register in 1893.

The staff numbered some very able men and some lovable characters. Young himself and the Vlth form masters were fine scholars. In order of appointment among assistant masters were "Gaffer" Wood, John Blanch, Tommy Wilson, A. D. Langmuir, L. N. Parker, C. Regan, W. B. Wildman, James Rhoades, C. Hodgson and H. R. King. Many of these, whose names are familiar have left memorials, having given long years of service and remained through all the vicissitudes of fortune unshakably loyal. The average service of these ten is thirty-two years.

THE SHIRBURNIAN 87

But there were two others who were not easy colleagues, and Young's latter years from 1888 were marked by ferocious quarrels with each in turn. The issue of these lamentable discussions was a split in 1890, a sudden drop in numbers from 288 to about 140, and the resignation of Young two years later. For lack of boys Powys' original house, Maperty (now the convent : its black and white colours were revived by Westcott House in 1920) was sold, and the boys migrated to Whitehead's (g), where L.C.P. at one time was one of three. In 1892 began the gentle reign of Westcott. About the quarrels The Shirburnian is discreetly silent : but gives space to a great gathering of O.S.S. in Dec. 1890 to attest their faith in the School, and to a dinner in 1892 giving a welcome to the new Headmaster. Throughout these years Frederick Temple was chairman of the governors : and as Custos of the gate the immortal Charles Scott.

Yet from "The Joy of it", the reader would be completely unaware of the events. No mention is made of them and not much of the masters. Though deeply impressed by Rhoades, King and Wildman, and to a lesser degree by Young and Westcott, Powys confesses to taking work very lightheartedly. His interests were elsewhere : in games, in friendships (such as with John Carey and Bensly) : in the country round Sherborne. In a small blue Macmillan edition of Horace Odes II he made the entry " Powys minor, and a happy life is his ", thus writing prophetically his own epitaph. Flowers, trees, fossils, birds, butterflies, fishing were his delight, as well as just walking in the sunshine and the wind. He and his brother " knew Corton Down and Cadbury Camp well : we walked to Stalbridge, to High Stoy, to Yetminster, and on one or two occasions to Montacute." This passionate love of nature, to which was added an equally passionate love of a perhaps limited range of poetry, lasted and grew through life, and served to maintain his unquenched spirit and relish of existence when physical infirmities kept him prisoner in a single room. He says he lived in the present : but he adds by way of valediction to his school days : " I had learnt enough book lore to serve as a foundation for further studies : I had learnt what it meant to be in authority : I had learnt something oflife, its good and its evil : I had learnt the value of friendship, the joy of companionship, the pleasure of games : I had learnt to love the School, and increased the love of nature which my home upbringing had given me : I had learnt, to some extent at least, the way to live ! " Could any boy bestow a more generous tribute upon his school ? Could a school desire to do much more for any boy ?

G. O'HANLON.

EDWARD ARCHIBALD RATHMELL WILSON Wilson came to the School in 1897 and on leaving went to St. John's College, Oxford. On

going down he was for eleven years on the stage ; he was on the staff of the Pall Mall Gazette for a year or two.

Mr. Patrick Braybrooke, F.R.S.L. writes :-Rathmell Wilson was one of those personalities who was versatile without being brilliant. Aristocratic by birth he could mix easily enough in London bohemian circles;

His literary output was varied and completely original. He travelled very widely and gave us his light hearted impressions in such books as" The Wandering Gentile" and" All Sorts". He could deal easily with incidents in various countries, and he could record them wittily and with whimsical charm.

His verse was certainly jingle, and poetry was not his best medium of expression. Prose suited him better : his style being easy and pleasant.

For quite a while after his Oxford days he played with the Benson Company and he toured with various companies in a number of plays. Acting did not find him specially gifted. His acting was stiff and too unemotional.

Perhaps more than anything else he was a personality and to find him in his happiest mood was to sit next to him at one of the famous " Monday nights " at the Author's Club. He was a fascinating talker and a fairly patient listener but sometimes was a little reserved.

He did not care for lecturing on any subject ; but he was a good enough reader of a selected play. He read a play aloud, carefully and with assurance.

I knew him for over thirty years and he was always cultured, eclectic in taste, and interested in impersonal and international subjects.

88 THE SHIRBURNIAN

After he finally left London he went to live in Brighton and I saw him there several times. But somewhow London always seemed " empty " to me when he had left.

In one of his books of travel his dedication greeted his friends on " both sides of life's frontiers". He had a mind at once mundane and groping. In his books, in his verse, in his long love of France, he showed his essential personality.

He was fundamentally the literary dilettante, and had he been forced to write professionally, his published work might have achieved wider recognition. Modern life after the first war, was not quite to his liking. His best work was in his earlier days; his" Happy Days before 1914 ".

COMMENT " GENEVIEVE "

To an audience that is rapidly growing to respect the latest luxuries of Cinemascope and stereophonics, the diminutive size of the Church Hall screen and the rather inferior soundtrack proved not a little disconcerting. However we were fortunate in the choice of film, for "Genevieve" proved a first-rate comedy. An analysis of humour, and especially the British sort of humour, is notoriously difficult. But perhaps it was the great variety and contrast which made this film so enjoyable. We are all endeared at the outset to that grand, eccentric habit of racing veteran cars, and he that can look upon Genevieve without affection is either heartless or an alien ! The journey to Brighton is comparatively free of incident. The "Journey's end", however, belies the proverb, for matrimonial matters are no better. A trumpet solo provides more enter­tainment than do most these days, but it is the hundred pound wager and the subsequent race home which really provide the laughs. The scene changes constantly, methods fair and foul, though usually the latter, are employed with delightful abandon, and we follow every incident at the exhilarating pace of those fine old veterans. The final scene of triumph on Westminster Bridge left Genevieve justly proud, and her audience thoroughly satisfied.

B.H.D.

CONCERT GIVEN BY THE CHOIR OF SALISBURY CATHEDRAL Concert given by the Choir of Salisbury Cathedral, in the Abbey, on Wednesday, October 19th.

Master of the Choristers : Douglas Guest. Assistant Organist : Christopher Dearnley.

BY MASTER .... It was a good first concert of the series, chiefly because it set a standard of performance.

The enunciation, tone and balance of the Cathedral Choir seemed almost faultless to one seated in the south aisle of the Abbey, towards the back and out of sight of the Choir. The organ playing, too, was neat and fastidious, even if overtension or mechanical hypersensitiveness brought on the wrong combination of stops for a shattering second here and there.

The choice of programme leaves endless room for debate. Perhaps it was a good pro­gramme simply because it was controversial, and because we never heard the pealing organ flow to the full-voiced choir below. Instead, we were treated to" baroque" registration, almost staccato fingering, and a selection and interpretation of items which never gave vent to five years' collections-worth of honest diapason. Quite plainly, we were sent empty away, unless we happened to prefer the style which we were given, and it would have been rewarding to hear the full range of the new organ. Cymbals may be loud as well as being well-tuned. In any case, the Three Pieces written for a musical clock did not justify their place ; they were altogether

THE SHIRBUR.NIAN 89

' too precious and trivial. On the other hand, the Hindemith Sonata was a bold venture which came off. It offered a study in pure form, released from the bonds of melody, so that the mind could observe the pattern of the musical phrase-making with unaccustomed detachment. The uninstructed might have preferred to have the movements marked in English ; German is a minority option.

The division of the programme cannot be faulted ; its satisfying chronological order, and the unity of each part gave evidence of forethought and nice judgment.

It would be tedious to anatomise the choral parts of the programme ; the singing of 0 vos omnes (Victoria), and Tristis est anima mea (Lassus) distinguished the first section ; the well­known motet, When David heard (Tomkins) did not turn into as moving an experience as one has known it elsewhere. Perhaps that was because it came at the beginning of a section. The final open fifth in the motet, My God, My God (Blow) tested the perfect intonation of the Choir in the most satisfying way.

A Peter Warlock partisan, who wonders why we do not hear more of this exquisite and tragic person's work, enjoyed the setting of " Lullay my liking " without reserve. For a moment, he forgot his task as critic, and gave himself up to joy. Here, tone, balance, speed and words, were judged to perfection.

The Herbert Howells carols might have come last. No doubt it was decided that as they venture into harmonies unfamiliar to the general ear, they ought to be followed by the com­parative melodic " normalcy " of Rachmaninoff. This was a pity ; the Hymn of the Cherubin turned out to be an anticlimax, in spite of itself.

F.C.C .

. • • • AND PUPIL The Concert Club, in its wanderings for the 1955-56 season, pitched for the opening concert

in the faithful Abbey, where the choir of Salisbury Cathedral, under the watchful eye of Douglas Guest, gave an excellent concert of church music. The choir got off to a good start with two short Weelkes anthems, "0 Lord, grant the king a long life", and "Hosanna to the Son of David", although the latter was slightly bottom-heavy, as the trebles were divided. Victoria's " 0 vos omnes " provided, with Tomkins' " When David heard that Absalom was slain ", Blow's "My God, My God", Purcell's" Hear my prayer", and the Warlock carol "I saw a fair maiden ", the best singing of the evening. The tone and pitch were good throughout the whole concert, and the singing was beautifully sustained and balanced, the trebles coming through their nightmare of pianissimo top F's in " Tristis est anima mea " by Lassus with great credit. The new, long awaited, Abbey organ, played by Christopher Dearnly, twice gave the choir a welcome breathing-space, and the difficult Organ Sonata No. 2, by Hindemith was particularly well performed. The choir also sang two very similar but lovely flowing carols by Howells "Sing Lullaby" and "A Spotless Rose", which the school choir is boldly assaulting for the Carol Service at the end of term. The concert ended with Rachmaninov's well-known Hymn of the Cherubin. The choir excelled in the Tudor and Stuart anthems, in spite of an occasional lack of final consonants, particularly noticeable in Purcell's" Jehova, quam multi sunt hastes mei ", but the whole evening was a great success, and the singing of the Altos in particular would be equalled by very few choirs in England today.

P.J.C.R.

THE KIDNAPPERS-SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22No The title was misleading, for it led us to expect plenty of action. This the film by no means

supplied. The actual kidnapping consisted in the inadvertantdiscoveryofan unguarded foundling, and served to bring the film to its rather obvious denouement. For the first hour we were treated to a series of incidents, the purpose of which was to shed light on the central character, Jim Mackenzie. Movingly portrayed by Duncan Macrae, this striking Scotsman, with his rigid Presbyterianism and clan prejudices, might have come straight out of the massacre of Glencoe. The domination he exercises over his wife and household is skillfully developed as the film moves slowly on to its only logical conclusion-the relenting of Jim Mackenzie,

90 THE SH/RBURNIAN

The acquittal of Harry, the elder grandson, from the charge of wilful kidnapping brings peace between the Scots and the Boers. The latter are depicted sympathetically in the doctor and the rival settler Hooft, who to judge by his appearance had the least right in the world to expect marital bliss. The story moves on slowly, even the noises emanating from the woodshed were, one might say, painfully slow. The climax when it came was long overdue.

With a loosely constructed plot, the whole appeal of" The Kidnappers " lies in characteris-­ation. The delightful naivete of Harry and David was superbly acted, while the touching portrayal of Jim, the settlers and even the comparatively drab love affair were all commendable. However, in. spite of the high standard of acting, the film aimed at leisurely enjoyment of the armchair and pipe variety, rather than the entertainment of the lower school on a Saturday evening.

THE ABBEY ORGAN (by request of the Editors)

R.G.S.

Thousands of Shirburnians have heard the Abbey Organ at Commem. and most of us have just taken it for granted. It was in fact a remarkable instrument, which created a great stir in London before being sent here on the new railway a hundred years ago. Leading organists, as well as the Prince Regent, played it in the Exhibition Room of Gray and Davison, the organ­builders. It was certainly an Exhibition organ, as there was not a single knot in the hidden, inner woodwork, and old men remember the tradition in the firm that" it was a special job". It was almost certainly shown at the Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1854 after " several competent professors " had considered various schemes submitted and the order had been given in 1853.

St. Aldhelm knew about organs, and it is probable that there was some primitive instrument in his Saxon cathedral where the Abbey now stands, and the records are clear of organs being used in the Abbey for nearly three hundred years past. A strong point in the recent appeal was that the dignity of the Abbey demands such. The builders, Gray and Davison, after two hundred years of organ work, were damaged in the late war, and two great authorities, Dr. Henry Ley and Dr. Andrews, voted that the work of rebuilding should be given to Walker and Son of Ruislip. They have done a grand job.

For a place like Sherborne to raise ten thousand pounds at a time when charity was suffering much from taxation was no light undertaking. But " The men who built the Abbey did not falter, and why should we ? " After all, many " impossible " tasks are in fact possible to men of vision and resolution, and The Committee never looked back. The School, like others here and an amazing number of institutions and societies, played a valuable part. Somehow two thousand pounds a year was won by donations, concerts, lectures, bridge tournaments, skittle competitions, a Gift Day (St. Aldhelm's Day), the. great Abbey Fair of 1953 in the Courts, the organ-pipe collecting boxes made by Mr. Perrott and Mr. Lambert, the Silver Mile in a new form and the Golden Quarter (Mile) after it, of which only half was needed, for on October 14 the money was there and the fund was closed. An immense number of small sums shows that it was a real communal effort. One letter is worth recording. " I am a poverty-stricken, modern pagan, who has lately pitched his tattered wigwam on the outskirts of your town. I could give many reasons for refusing your appeal, but •...•.. ; and so I will give up cigarettes for a week and I enclose my cheque ". (He'll get an anonymous gift of cigarettes at Christmas, I expect •..•. )

The old organ lasted a hundred years and much of its lovely work is incorporated in the new organ. But modern electrical gadgets have not the long life of the old equipment, so all this may arise again in some seventy years unless they start a replacement fund right away. For the old Organ a three-day bazaar in the Courts produced almost the total cost, some £1,100 ; and that was the sum taken at the Abbey Fair of 1953, but the cost to-day is some ten thousand pounds, of which two hundred went on electric cables and other things outside the contract, nearly two hundred on masons' work, timber work in the Abbey and so on, and the rest in normal Appeal expenses, which have been kept reasonably low. The splendid Service of Dedication on

THE SHIRBURNIAN 91

October 7 had the congregation singing as never before, and Dr. Ley's Recital will live Ion,!!' in our memory. The recorded broadcast was most unfortunate and must have given donors outside Sherborne a bad impression.

This moment gives the Hon. Sec. Appeal an opportunity to thank every man and boy in the School for their help in Sunday offertories and other ways. It has all been a great encouragement to those in charge.

THE CHURCH IN EAST LONDON Towards the end of last term two members of the School attended a senior schoolboys'

conference in Stepney, organised by Father John Grosser, an Australian who has worked in East London for more than thirty years. We met at a large house in the middle of dockland, known as the Foundation of St. Catharine. The purpose of our visit was to gain some first hand knowledge of the life and problems of East Londoners, and to witness the work of a militant Church in this district. As such it was eminently successful.

We spent three days moving amongst docks, factories, working clubs and communities of every kind. In the evenings we would go out and get talking with the local inhabitants, and listen to tales of the blitz days, views on politics and other variations on the Cockney's philosophy of life. Of particular interest was a discussion of current industrial problems with dockers, railwaymen and Trades Union officials. Public indignation was, we felt, justified during long drawn-out labour disputes, but certainly the point of view taken by the Daily Mail in such situations is very far from being the only, or even necessarily the correct one. Everything during our brief stay suggested that more hard feelings are caused in politics today through unintentional misunderstandings between different sections of the public, than ever arise out of a simple case of right and wrong. Whether it is that elusive but inevitable " Communist " who exploits our ignorance, or whether the dubious machinations of the daily press are not more to be held responsible is a question which might amuse the Wildman Society some evening.

We are at any rate unanimous in our gratitude to Father John and his colleagues in Stepney for a stimulating and enjoyable visit.

P.J.W.

SHERBORNE HOUSE, SOUTHWARK

" Sherborne House, Southwark " will shortly become " Sherbome House, Bermondsey " ! This is because the lease at 31, Union Street, Southwark expired in June 1954, and that meant closure or removal to other premises. The first course seemed the most likely, and would have been the inevitable result, if it had not been for the timely and generous intervention of The William Johnston Yapp Charitable Trust, in November 1953. The full story of this Trust's expensive action for the benefit of the Club, is told in the Annual Report of Sherborne House, which has just been published and circulated to all Old Shurburnians : suffice, therefore, to relate here, that magnificent premises have been purchased, repaired and equipped, and handed over to Shirburnian Trustees to administer on behalf of the Southwark Cadet Corps and Sher­borne House Boys' Club, at a cost of over £12,000.

The new premises will shortly be ready for occupation : no date can be given, for the contractor is already overdue in completing the work by the end of October 1955, and it seems that there will be at least two months extension to be granted. There is a faint possibility that partial occupation may be granted around Christmas 1955, but the position is by no means certain, for in addition to the contractor's delay, there is difficulty over the electricity supply in the district which is being converted from D.C. to A.G., and further, all this uncertainty has made it impossible to engage any permanent staff. However, once the Club is open, O.Ss. and Members of the School who happen to be in London, will be most welcome visitors.

92 THE SHIRBURNIAN

It had been hoped to continue the old Club at Union Street until the new premises were ready for occupation, and one year's extension of the lease was accordingly obtained : but this proved too costly (at a vastly increased rent) and in June 1955 we had to close. When we do re­open, it will be a matter of starting from scratch with new members and new staff : this will not be easy, but it is only the least of our troubles, for we have almost exhausted our funds. It is estimated that we may have just sufficient to see us through to the end of the ne'Y financial year in September 1956, unless there is an immediate and satisfactory response to the Appeal which has just been launched. If the Appeal fails, the Club may well have to hand back the premises to the Trust, before it has ever had time to get properly started : that would be shocking in­gratitude on the part of Sherborne to those who (with no known connection with Sherborne) have given so generously to Sherborne. We hope and trust that all Shirburnians will see to it that failure is out of the question. Appealing for funds is neither a pleasant nor easy task, but it has got to be done, and we have done it, and in quite a novel way. But it has been a heavy responsibility for the Committee to undertake, for never was there so much uncertainty in any venture : offers of such premises come but once in a lifetime, and rejection of the Trust's offer would have meant certain closure ; acceptance of it, however, involved gambling on all Shir­burnians helping to run it ; we now look to Shirburnians to translate that gamble into assured success.

For years, indeed since the start in 1889, the Corps and Club has been run by Voluntary Officers, with' the assistance of a married couple living-in : the funds, even with various grants, have never permitted the employment of more than a caretaker-cµm-C.S.M. and his wife : this has been sufficient, because hitherto there has always been at least one O.S. able and willing to give an average of four nights each week to the leadership of the Cadets : whilst it is hoped that, once we have a worthwhile Club, a number of young O.S. may give one night per week regularly, it seems that I am the last of the line of those who can give four nights regularly. I have done this for the past ten years, and others have done it before me : but I can do it no longer. The ultimate leadership must be in the hands of one person : that person, to be effective, must be in regular and constant attendance, and that means that in future, the leadership must be in professional hands. It is clearly no use employing an N.C.O. to do an Officer's job, so the days of the mere Caretaker-cum-C.S.M .. are also over. We hope to employ a married-couple to live-in, do the cleaning and perform certain domestic duties connected with the Club ; but we also need to employ a Club Leader to command and lead the Unit, in succession to myself. That, together with increased costs of up-keep will require a considerable annual income : if each of the 3, 700 Old Shirburnians would subscribe one guinea per year under a Deed of Covenant for seven years, the future of Sherborne House would be assured. Anything far short of such a result to our Appeal, will mean the closure of Sherborne. House, despite the generosity that has been given in large measure by The William Johnston Yapp Charitable Trust.

JOHN STREETER,

Hon. Warden. 34, Decima Street, Bermondsey.

H.M.S. TINTAGEL CASTLE · I was suddenly struck with horror by the thought that the exploits of the Naval Section had

gone unmentioned in last term's Shirburnian, and seemed destined to do so in the present edition. Thus I felt that some word of the Easter holidays' camp, though slightly belated, would not be out of place. The Naval Section was granted the privilege of leaving one day before the end of term, on Sunday, March 27th. Accordingly, twenty-four seamen under the command of Lieutenant Boissier departed at 6.21 p.m. bound for Southampton, where we were to join H.M.S. Tintagel Castle. First impressions of our temporary home were somewhat dimmed by the presence of our next door neighbour, S.S. Southern Cross, the latest Shaw Saville liner. However we were given a warm welcome,, and told we would be expected to work hard and play hard, with the emphasis on the. former. We were divided into two messes in which there was not a

THE SHIRBURNIAN 93

superfluity ofroom, but sufficient to eat and sleep. The evening of arrival was spent in collecting the necessary articles of clothing, together with hammocks and blankets, and then searching vainly for somewhere to put them ; this was followed by frantic attempts at slinging hammocks with varying degrees of success. At 6.30 next morning, as every morning, we were rudely awakened by a horrible screeching, known as piping, which we learnt ·to tolerate by the end of the week. This was followed by a few pungent remarks over the loudspeaker, by the end of which we were supposed to be nearly dressed, At 7.45, having stowed hammocks and had breakfast, hands fell in on the quarter deck. Then, with the exception of the cooks of the day, whose duty it was to scrub the mess and prepare the food, they reported to the respective parts of the ship and settled down to the task of cleaning ship, a not unusual pastime in the Royal Navy.

The first three days were spent at sea from 7.30 a.m. to 4.30 p.m., which resulted in acute misery for a fairly large number of the contingent. This was nobody's fault except the elements', and Tintagel's herself, but it did not exactly add to the enjoyment. However, shore leave was granted two days out of three from 5.00 p.m. till midnight. This was usually spent in viewing extraordinarily bad films in Weymouth, eating a square meal and generally rejoicing in being on " terra firma " again. Thursday was spent in harbour, and a great deal of solid manual labour took place in the form of heaving cable, but most people were so glad to have re-established physical equilibrium that they quite enjoyed it. Friday passed pleasantly as the sea was as calm as a mill-pond, and Saturday morning was spent in harbour. Shore leave on Saturday started at one o'clock, providing an opportunity for long excursions. The contingent said farewell to Tintagel Castle at 8.30 a.m. on Sunday. A week on the lower deck of one of Her Majesty's ships w~s indeed an experience, and, in restrospect, a worthwhile and enjoyable one.

A.C.B.M.D.

THE R.A. CAMP, LARKHILL

This camp was the first of its kind for cadets within the area of Royal Artillery, Southern Command. Of necessity, this report must be an inventory : for it can truthfully be said that everything, down to the last detail, went according to plan ; infantry commanders can only make this boast in so far as the weather did not spoil the week's programme. The camp was in fact a course in gun-drill, including the semi-technical work of artillery boards, directors, Sands' graphs, and so forth. Such was the organization and compression of the instruction that everyone who attended knew something about everything. Even those who spent two days on an R.A. signals' course missed little, and gained by venturing on to new ground.

The consummation of the course came on the last two days. Divided into two troops under officers and men of an airborne troop, plus the School of Artillery instructors, we spent half of each day firing the 25 pr. guns and the other half directing the fire of the other troop from strongly­shielded observation points up the range. Every one of us had the opportunity to load the shells, to operate the sights, to fire the gun, and to act as observation-post officer. The signallers, too, were entrusted with the communications between the guns and observation post, fortunately under expert guidance ! The experience gained by this was enormous, and not without amuse­ment-especially when two of the Shirburnians put a round four hundred yards in front of the post instead of two thousand.

The rehearsal for "Ambassador", the R.A.'s "open" day, was another feature of the camp. It was here that a few of us fired our first 25 pr., besides learning how the R.A. was adopting its defensive role against faster aircraft and guided missiles. .

Every day we were free by 5.0 p.m. With Salisbury so near, every form of recreation was open to us, although Larkhill itself offered all pastimes from cricket to the cinema. Despite the drought, enough water was found to add a further pastime in Camp ; Sherborne especially came under heavy ""fire", but was able to keep the hut fairly dry after some trial and error.

Altogether we profited by an army advertising scheme. As Brigadier Hills said when he welcomed us, the army was putting its wares in the front window. The food was excellent ; we were shown how the " better half" live in the officers' mess ; the B.S.M.'s and I.G.'s were

94 THE SHIRBURNIAN

unusually polite for army sergeant-majors ; even early-morning knockers-up took their duty seriously, despite the order "no swearing in front of cadets". These details made the Camp a success as much as the training programme, and it was a pity the response from the School was so poor. The efficiency of the instructors of the School of Artillery, led by Major Goddard, combined with the enthusiasm which Capt. Gibb has striven to keep alive in the School members of the R.A. during the duller hours at the drill-hall to make this a most enjoyable and constructive Camp. It would be a shame ifBrigadier Hills' initial idea should fail through lack of support from the schools, especially as Brig. Hills found time to keep in touch with us throughout the camp and personally to ensure that all went well.

R.H.B.

TOPSHAM BARRACKS Once every four years, the Army has decided, we should be treated to an inside look at

barrack life, just to see how favourably it compares with the four star hotel existence. This was our lucky year, and accordingly we found ourselves spending a week in delightful self-contained quarters, pleasantly situated in the heart of glorious Devon. We enjoyed every modern con­venience during the stay-cupboard space, constant hot and cold, wirelesses, billiards, bars and even free transport for sightseeing. All this of course was hardly surprising, in view of the fact that Topsham Barracks, Exeter (the local name for luxury) is under the command of an O.S.

If the standard of comfort was high, it was certainly matched by the standard of cleanliness which we were expected to observe inside the barrack rooms. It was in fact a little disconcerting to see how, in the Army, even so mundane an object as a bucket is not allowed to remain simply a bucket ; its surface must be so transformed with brasso and elbow grease that it serves as a communal mirror for all to gaze in. There was only one other school with a contingent at the barracks, and, with all due respect to that worthy rival, we felt " one up " on them most of the time. As a regular officer was heard to remark one day, " You can distinguish Sherborne from -- by the mere sound of one of their platoons marching."

The training area, though some distance from the depot, was worth the journey. It was admirably suited to our exercises. Night Ops., as usual met with varying measures of success. A day on the open range was of advantage to us, and the route march was accomplished with the traditionally energetic, if not entirely melodious vocal accompaniment. Our proximity to Exeter assured no lack of entertainment, and the senior N.C.O.s were on one occasion regally feted by the officers. Even an evening on gate duty in the guardroom had its amusing moments !

As a whole the camp was enjoyed by all. Quite apart from other considerations, it gave us a useful glimpse into the first few weeks of National Service, for which we should thank our efficient hosts at Topsham Barracks and the able organisation of Major Buchanan.

.- THE SHIRBURNIAN

Date

Summer Term June 26th July 2nd } July 3rd July 10th July 17th July 24th

CHAPEL COLLECTIONS Object

Abbey Organ Fund Commemoration Services : divided between Sherborne House,

Southwark and the Friends of Sherborne Abbey St. Dunstan's Abbey Organ Fund Cancer Relief Fund

Michaelmas Term :

Sept. 18th Sept. 25th Oct 2nd Oct. 9th Oct. 16th Oct. 23rd Oct. 30th Nov. 6th

Sherborne House, Southwark Royal National Lifeboat Institution S.P.G. St. Francis' Home, Batcombe Diocesan Quota of Sherborne Abbey Royal School of Church Music Church School in Sherborne, New Building Fund (Remembrance Sunday) Earl Haig's Fund

We take off our hats to :-

The corporal who instructed " At the halt the feet should be 30 inches apart." The prefect who gave out a notice reminding his house that it was Wednesday. The master who greeted his form with" We are rather deleted this morning." The would-be P.T. instructor who told his squad not to bend their toes.

From The Shirburnian of fifty years ago :-

95

Amount £ s. d.

IO 17 9 . 86 8 7

61 1 11 9 IO IO 9 3 8

11 17 11

8 18 11 11 12 3 8 IO 7 9 3 6

11 9 9 11 1 5 IO 7 4 28 16 1

" To commemorate the centenary of the battle of Trafalgar the Last Post and the Reveille were sounded by the Corps buglers." " The museum has just been enriched by two gifts oflndian butterflies."

" A sham fight was held between Poyntington and Oborne : a fight which was notable for the lack of spirit and keenness shown by A Company."

Food for thought:-" If the gentle reader cannot find time to provide us with sager observations from the storehouse of his own fertile wit, he must resign himself to whatever nonsense the wretched editor may be compelled to stuff his pages with."

96 THE SHIRBURNIAN

SCHOOL SOCIETIES THE DUFFERS

To date, two meetings have been held this term : the first on Sunday, September 23rd, at Abbeylands, when all the members and a large number of Honorary Members gathered to hear Alec Waugh Esq., whose name is so familiar to us, speak on "Two Modem English Novelists". He spoke elegantly, fluently, and for some amusingly, but the value of his paper aroused more controversy than its style. We then assembled at Lyon House on Sunday, October 23rd, when A. K. Goldsmith, read an admirably constructed and delivered paper, full of humour and interest, on "The Social Novels of H. G. Wells". At the last meeting of the term, at Abbey House, we shall be hearing P. J. Weston presenting his thesis on" The Existentialist".

Our thanks are most sincerely due to Mr. and Mrs. Watkins and to Col. and Mrs. Holmes for their kind and ever-generous hospitality, and we must take this opportunity again for thanking the Chairman for his unflagging and zealous care for the interests and standards of the Society, which he so successfully maintains.

D. M. SUMMERSCALE, Hon. Secretary.

INTERPRETES The Society, accompanied by associate members, visited Bradfield shortly after Commem. and saw an excellent

performance of" Oedipus at Colonus " : we met later in the term to discuss this play. Towards the end of the term we heard about some" Outstanding Romans" fromJ. C. Key, and Mr. Anderson visited us and gave us a lecture, with lantern slides, on the Campus Martius, which proved both interesting and stimulating.

This term we have met twice : at the first meeting the Logothetes spoke, and at the second Mr. Macdonald, whom we welcome as a new member, talked learnedly and lucidly on the Linear Script " B " of Mycenae and Minoa. Later on we are to hear from B. H. Dean, possibly the Int. Max., and others.

Our thanks are due as always to the Logothetes and Mrs. Morrison for their hospitality.

LES POL YGLOTTES

c. c. T. HENFREY, Int. Max.

With a number of new members this term we began by reading an Eighteenth Century French comedy, " Le ' Philosophe sans le Savoir ", and followed this with a very excellent play by Grillparzer, "Weh'dem, der lugt ! "­one of the four good German comedies written ; a reading of Moliere's " Le Misanthrope " is now beginning.

As usual, our thanks are due to Mr. Baker for his constant hospitality. D. A. ALLPORT,

Hon. Secretary.

GREEN RIBBON CLUB Two meetings occurred last term after The Shirburnian went to press ; at the first of these we heard Sir Horace

Wilson give a talk on "Modem Government", dealing chiefly with the relationship between the Civil Service and the House of Commons ; and if at times he was infuriatingly " hush-hush ", he was throughout extremely interesting, and it was a valuable opportunity for hearing about the Civil Service from a first-hand source. At the last meeting of the term we heard an instructive and informative paper from Miss Janice Cockburn, from our Sister Society, on "The Civil War in Dorset".

This term we have so far had only one meeting, at which we heard Miss Crichton-Miller give a fascinating paper on "Nicholas II ", a subject which few of our members knew anything about before the meeting. We hope to have two more meetings, at one of which the Secretary intends to hold forth on" The French Wars of Religion" ; the other is not yet fixed.

Thanks are as ever due to the Chairman and Miss Crichton-Miller for their enthusiasm and hospitality. A. K. GOLDSMITH,

Hon. Secretary.

JAMES RHOADES At the last meeting of the Summer Term "The Seventh Man" and "The Browning Version" were read.

"Outward Bound" was chosen for October 9th, our first meeting this term. It was much to our credit that in spite of the weakness of the play we all made the most of it and enjoyed the reading. "The Government Inspector", a Russian comedy by Gogol, provided an entertaining change for our next meeting on November 6th.

To replace members lost to the Duffers, M. A. Zimmerman, M. F. R. Whicker, G. S. Hodgson, T. J. Walsham and C. K. H. Cuff joined us.

I should like to put on record our thanks to the Chairman and Mrs. Buchanan for their hospitable generosity in welcoming us to Lenthay Fields where we have again this year enjoyed many pleasant Sunday evenings.

J.P. L. TORY, Hon. Secretary.

THE SHIRBURNIAN 97

MUSIC CLUB The last meeting of the Summer Term, held at Nowell Cottage during a colossal thunderstorm, was a pleasant

informal Concert given by members. This term we have met once at Elmdene where we were nobly entertained by Mr. and Mrs. Brook, and delighted by Mr. Runge, who talked on" Music and Gadgets".

We are to have two more meetings this term. The first will take the form of a short Musical Quiz, followed by a short talk, to be given by D. G. Welchman. And, at the end of term, we are to have our terminal concert.

We must, once again, thank Mr. and Mrs. Ferry for all they do for the Club. c. c. T. HENFREY,

Hon. Secretary.

THE WILDMAN SOCIETY Athletic activities were the cause of a depleted House for the last Debate of the Summer Term, when by 17

votes to 4 it was decided not to "Deplore Modern Tendencies in the Arts". This term there have at the time of writing been two Debates. Although thirty new members have increased the complement of the Society to more than sixty, a certain reluctance on the part of some to be stirred out of mental lethargy into expressing their opinions has unfortunately caused the actual debating to be spasmodic and Jess vigorous than usual.

On October 8th we debated the motion that" This House Deplores the Public School Type". It was defeated by 38 votes to 17. Three weeks later, on the 28th, our two resident Americans successfully defended their country and way of life against attacks of pomp and pedantry, when the motion" This House Considers that Columbus Went too Far" was lost by a convincing majority.

The Society will meet again in November for the term's third and last Debate. We shall look forward to hearing the views of Mr. Watkins and Mr. Hart on whether the bachelor's lot is a happy one or not.

As always, though no less gratefully, we owe the Chairman our thanks for the time and trouble he has taken with the Society.

P. J. WESTON, Hon. Secretary.

THE ALCHEMISTS So far this term the Society has had two meetings, and a day's excursion to the works of the Bristol Aeroplane

Company. The first meeting was on Friday, September 30th, when Miss Noel Streatfield talked to us on" Writing". The subject was perhaps unusual for a Science Society, but the discussion which took place was both interesting and refreshing. On Monday, October 17th, some films were shown in the Physics Laboratory : they included two exceptionally instructive short features on the Electron Microscope and the Developmenc of the Gas Turbine.

The excursion to Bristol, though a new vencure, was a great success. We were shown the Bristol Britannia in production, and an assortment of civil and military helicopters. We also spent much instructive time in their aero­engine division.

We have two more meetings this term. On Monday, November 7th, K. Richards, Esq. is to talk to us about "Recent Scientific Developments in the Wool Industry", and on Friday, December 2nd, G. B. Evans Esq. is reading a paper entitled" Winged Metals".

P. c. HORE, Hon. Secretary.

THE GOLF SOCIETY A greater interest has been taken in golf in the last two terms throughout the School, and the competitions

have been well-supported. The O.SS. Knock-out Competition Prize, played last term, was won by R. M. White, who beat P. M. Kemp in the final. On Sunday, October 23rd, a friendly match was played at Downside, which the School won by 5 matches to 4, and owing to the success of this experiment we hope to arrange some more games in the future.

A Medal Competition was held on October 2nd and the weather was very kind to us: M. T. Ireland won the scratch prize with a score of 74 and R. M. White won the handicap prize with a nett score of 61. The House Four­somes Competition was won by Harper House, who beat Lyon House in the final at the nineteenth, after two very close semi-finals.

P. M. KEMP, Hon. Secretary.

ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY On Saturday, October 29th M. H. Woofford, Esq. gave a talk on Falconry, its History, and the training of

long- and short-winged hawks. E. H. Ware, Esq., well-known at the School, will give a talk on November 5th on " Islands and Birds ", showing slides which he has made personally on his journeys.

Regrettably, G. S. Cansdale, Esq., is unable to come to the School on November 15th, but it is hoped that he will be able to spare the time next year. No work has been done on the duck trap-as yet the temperature has not been consistently cold enough.

R. D. F. ALLAN, Hon. Secretary.

98 THE SHIRBURNIAN

BAND OF THE C.C.F. Life for the Band has been quieter-not literally, of course, but in the way of concerts-than usual this term.

Certain parts appear to be very thin this year and there is a good deal to be done before next Summer, when we hope to go to Camp again as a Band. Mr. Ullman is once again to be thanked and admired for the way in which he has remained unperturbed by the idiosyncrasies of certain instruments and by the ruthless but good-natured and enjoyable lambasting of certain eminent musical pieces.

P. J. C. RowE, Staff Sgt.

PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY The Society has not had any lectures this term ; but two have been arranged for next term. However, a meeting

is shortly being held to discuss and criticize several mounted exhibition prints, kindly loaned to the Society by J. Wallace Heaton, Esq.

A second-hand lens has been fitted to the 120 Special Enlarger, which has proved very worth-while. No other new equipment has been bought this term, though a dryer, kindly left to the Society by H. H. Brown, Esq., has been put into the Darkrooms, and has been very much appreciated.

B. c. SIMMONDS, Hon. Secretary.

THE ORCHESTRA The Orchestra had a most successful concert in the Abbey at Commem., playing the Overture and three

Choruses from Handel's" Samson'', a prelude by Vaughan Williams, some pieces for strings by Lully, and a Mozart Flute Concerto, the solo part of which was ably rendered by D. M. Summerscale.

This term we are at work on two movements from Mendlessohn's "Italian" Symphony, the "Tancredi" Overture by Rossini, and some Vaughan Williams and Purcell.

Our thanks are due to Mr. Ferry for his unfailing enthusiasm and patience as Conductor. c. c. T. I!ENFREY,

Hon. Secretary.

THE MUSEUM-S.S.N.H.S. Since nearly everything that could be done in the Museum, in its present surroundings has been done, and

many of its members had a great interest in field work, the Museum Society has now been changed into the Sherbome School Natural History Society.

There have been many palaeontological expeditions already this term ; and the aim of the Society will in future be to make a very comprehensive survey of the flora, fauna and geology of the Sherbome district.

THE FISHING CLUB

J. F. BERRY, President.

So far this term only one small pike has been caught, although many others have been seen. As the Hatchery is now completed some trout ova has been ordered for rearing this winter. A meeting will be held later in the term, when films will be shown on fishing and tackle-making.

J. D. PETER·HOBLYN, Hon. Secretary.

THE PHILATELIC SOCIETY So far this term, the Society has heard one lecture, on" The Red Cross Movement and Stamps", by F. R.H.

Young Esq. This lecture was well-attended. All members who wish to compete in our Annual Exhibition next term should take special notice of the rules

of entry, etc., on the notice-board in the Courts. The Society, now in its second year, is flourishing under the Chairmanship of Mr. Hey, to whom our thanks are

due. R. c. w. MALIM,

Hon. Secretary.

THE SHIRBUR.NIA.N 99

CORRESPONDENCE To the Editors of The Shirhurnian

Dear Sir, Earlier this term members of the Girls School began to feel that lawful acquaintance with boys was desirable

during the term-time. That their mistresses were in full agreement with this idea was shown by the numerous invitations to a quiet Sunday afternoon tea-party which followed. Much to many boys' annoyance, and in many cases, dis­appointment, permission to go was not granted.

Surely it is absurd that a boy in his middle-teens is not allowed in the presence of girls without supervision. Is not this old fashioned ? Is there not something severely amiss ? .

(We are hoping for a remedy soon-Ed.)

Sir,

Yours, etc., "ANON"·

It seems to be the fashion nowadays to cry out on behalf of the poor, downtrodden, overworked fags. While by no means agreeing with this view, I do think that one of the fags' greatest bugbears could be removed with out much difficulty, namely the carrying of notes to people in other houses. This at the moment is probably the most essential part of fagging. But would it not be simple enough to institute an inter-house telephone system ? One phone per house operating, let us say, from the head of house's study would be quite sufficient. Provided that the lines were only connected with other houses, and could not for instance be extended to the Girls' School, I can see no objection to such a system.

Sir,

Yours, etc., A.C.B.M.D.

I consider it unhealthy in the extreme that there are no facilities for taking showers after a period of Gym. Often -especially after the Commando Course-one emerges from the Gym to change feeling as hot and uncomfortable as after an hour's squash or fives ; only to be forced, as usual, to change straight away. In consequence it takes at least half the next period for one to recover from the feeling of stuffiness and exhaustion that inevitably follows.

I think it would be perfectly practicable for the shower that is already in the Gym changing-room to be put in order ; and that some system be adopted whereby all boys have a towel down in the Gym. I am certain that the present system is detrimental to the health of the School.

Dear Sir,

Yours, etc., "SWEATY".

To see the variety of pastimes in which the School indulges, one has only to turn over a few pages and survey the Societies' section. There is, however, strong support for another interest in the School which as yet enjoys no official recognition, although it runs to an open competition, a ladder, and considerable enthusiasm in the houses. Chess, sometimes ignored and occasionally condemned by popular opinion, is in fact almost an art, by virtue of the scope for creativeness which it provides. In many other Public Schools its standing is assured by the existence of a Chess Club. To form a successful club, the advice and supervision of a master is helpful, for he can arrange talks by visitors and contacts with other schools, as is the practice in our societies at present. Would any member of the staff be willing to take on this activity ? It is surely worth trying.

Yours, etc., P.J.W.

Sir, Although I know the theme I am about to harp on is one often touched upon, I feel it incumbent upon me to

protest once more. Can anyone give a good reason why parents and visitors sit in the Hen·coop in Chapel ? They have a somewhat uninteresting side-view of the Altar, are cut off from the service by the screen and the Choir, and during Lessons and Sermons the reader or Preacher has his back towards them. Surely it would be better for them to sit in the front rows of the centre aisle, where they could at least see what goes on, and could take a more easy part in the service.

My other;grievance is this : why are Sermons nearly always preached in the evening, and yet a period enforced in the morning until 10.45 during which boys must return to Houses even if they are out with parents ? If the parents wish to get away from Sherborne their time is limited by this period at the beginning, and by Evening Chapel after­wards. Would it not be more convenient either to abolish this " letter-writing Hall ", and so allow boys out from breakfast-time until Evening Chapel, or else arrange Sermons for Morning Chapel, so that they may stay out after that service until 9.00 p.m. ?

Yours, etc., C. j. BRYANT.

100 THE SHIRBURNIA.N

Sir, Does your wireless fuse ? If it does fuse, do you know why it fuses ? If you don't know why it fuses, I shall tell

you. There are in Yeovil certain gentlemen who reside under the auspices of the Southern Electricity Board. I shall not

attempt to suggest how these worthy people pass their time by day, I shall merely inform you that by night they become very adept at fusing wirelesses-espec1ally, so it seems, my wireless l This, I am told by those who are more informed in matters of electricity than I, is the result of a voltage fluctuation.

Such a fluctuation becomes very apparent when one is confined within a small space, as for instance a study, with a 75 watt bulb dangling above one's head. The light from this bulb may vary between a deep shade of yellow, thus encouraging the use of a torch to aid the vision, and such a dazzling brightness as to demand the immediate use of a pair of dark glasses and a bottle of aspirin.

I have already carried on a correspondence with the Board, complaining of these fluctuations, which result in my having to remove continually the more intricate parts of my wireless, but have so far only obtained a somewhat sarcastic reply, stating amongst other things that mine was the only complaint of such occurrences. Yet I know that I am not alone in my troubles. Masters have complained of poor light in their classrooms during afternoon school. May I appeal to readers of The Shirburnian to help remedy this deplorable situation, by joining in correspondence with the gentlemen of the Board ? I am sure they would be most willing to oblige.

We take off our hats to :-

Yours, etc., "CON-FUSED".

The medical student who remarked" Most people who are good at nothing else are good at something." The master who in a translation period commented " I don't like the word ' song '. It tends to remind one of

singing." The Classics master who accused the Vestal Virgins of chastity.

THE SHIRBURNIAN

LITERARY , ELEVENTH HOUR

" Howl on the long night wind and cry Cry, polyphemious astral sky ! Why? Whither and whence away, alas ! And no birds sing • • . • '

W*ston looked up and nodded : "Put it in." " Now look .••. " began Goldstein.

101

" It isn't a question oflooking," W*ston cut in wearily, "You just have to keep your eyes and your ears tight shut and put them all in. We can't afford to have another' Sh*rb*rnian 'with a one-page literary section."

"Well, I'ld put that under' We take off our hats to •• 'anyway. ' Literary' indeed ! " "Oh shut up, you intellectual ass ! " It was the first thing Haddick had said since about

10.30 that evening. It was now gone half-past eleven. "You seem to forget you won the Poem Prize two years ago with your ' Break, break, break ••. ' Everyone knows you copied it from Wordsworth, and changed the last two lines to make it original."

" It was Tennyson who wrote ' Bweak, bweak, bweak .•. " " Brrrrrreak is the word ! " " I said ' bweak ' ! " "Do you deny, you inarticulate ape, that you copied it from Wordsworth ? " " Tennyson ! " "All right you lot," Hogsbody's voice came from across the study, "Break it up ! " "Anyway," Goldstein went on sulkily, "What have you been doing for the last hour ?

I suppose you've got a novel hidden under those contributions over there." "As a matter of fact I was reading an article on some expedition to Sp*tzb*rgen. Complete

wild goose chase."

102

" Oh, ha, ha ! " W*ston's laugh was not convincing. "Well, that doesn't take an hour to read."

THE SHIRBURNIAN

" It certainly does. It's twelve pages. And I'm just about browned off with it." " Quite cooked your goose, I suppose,'' muttered Hogsbody to himself. " You've got a lot to joke about. Just what contributions have you unearthed ? "-Goldstein

sourly. · "There's the usual photograph of the courts being dug up. And one by a new boy of his kid

brother holding a puppy." " Scrap the lot." "Good. Then there are the inevitable '-isms' from the Gr**n. Enough to send cold

shoulders down anybody's spine ! And then there's .•. " Alarums and excursions without. Enter Housemaster. Exeunt Editors of' The Sh*rb*rnian'

to bed in disorder of seniority. Disgruntled and sleepy Housemaster apparently gruntled.

CURTAIN

RIVIERA MOONSCAPE

The trembling fingers of the frozen moon Send breathless shivers through the swaying palms. A pool of glowing white upon the strand Displays the beachboy with the waitress in his arms. All day he sweated on the burning sand­Sunshades and pedaloes and foreign scum-'Till, in the evening's cool and fragrant hum, His lover from the cafe near at hand Has cast off drowsy kitchen cares and come To play beneath the heavens' dancing lights ••• Ah, the sweet stillness of such perfumed nights !

SUMMING IT UP

D.A.A.

MARC.

Away with these complaints of no contributions from the Scientists ! The finest poem I have ever written was sent back a term or two ago with a polite note to the effect that there was no room left for that term, but would I please keep on contributing ! Remember the editorial when we were told, " Contrary to general belief, we do not use blue pencil-we find it better to rub out our comments before returning their efforts to our contributors." Don't believe it ! My poem had "Doesn't scan ( !) " written against a perfectly sound line.

What is the Science group supposed to contribute ? Take the case of the boy who threw a banana skin at his housemaster. A historian can write a witty anecdote (or perhaps analyse the case psychologically) for us ; the linguist quotes parallel instances from the French and German playwrights and poets he has studied-but what can the scientist do ?

" A schoolboy, sitting on the first floor, throws a banana skin of mass 3 oz. through an open window, so that it just passes over the sill 30 ft. above the ground. At this instant it has a velocity of 8 ft./sec., and makes an angle of 30 deg. to the horizontal road beneath. His housemaster, who is making a steady 5 m.p.h. along the road, at rt. angles to the path of the skin, is struck on the head by it. Neglecting air restance, find out (a) the two possible distances from the window-sill to the housemaster's path, and (b) how far the housemaster is from the ultimate point of contact when the banana skin passes the sill.

Would your answers be different if the schoolboy was wearing glasses ? " R. w. s. HIRD.

THE SHIRBURNIAN

Artist's Impression

" LYIN' UNDER A RUDDY 'EDGE '' We was marchin' in a column up the road to old Ypres, With the bugles blowin' fit to bust and no one feelin' gay, When art the sky comes an airyplane, with bombs slung underneath, Promisin' some poor blighter death without a wreath.

So it's scatter, scatter, scatter, With the shells a-fallin' fast Lyin' under a ruddy 'edge, waitin' for the blast. Thinkin' yer last thoughts Of yer kids and wife and 'ome, Of the sights you used to see, the haunts you used to roam.

Oh, I know there's wars to be fought, all them battles to be won,

R.F.R.

And that right must take the place of wrong. But must all this be done By killin' all them blighted souls and starvin' a few more, While them ruddy diplomats sit at home ans snore ?

So it's scatter, scatter, scatter, With the shells a-fallin' fast, Lyin' under a ruddy 'edge, waitin' for the blast, Wonderin' the reason of this 'ell without measure Because some infernal clots forgot the use of leisure.

103

A. R. CRICHTON.

104 THE SHIRBURJIIAN

DR. JOHNSON VISITS SHERBORNE Dr. Johnson and myself, having concluded our visit to Dorchester, continued towards

Sherborne, a small country town, some twenty miles to the north, and eventually found our­selves approaching the town down a steep incline. The appearance of Sherbome seemed to please the Sage, but he resented the atmosphere, which he described as " lethargic and tainted." However, when we entered the town his opinion sank as he encountered more and more of a feature of old country towns to which he took particular umbrage, namely one-way streets. " Sir, I fail to comprehend to what object local authorities plague the public with the exorbitant inconvenience of one-way streets." It had been his intention to lodge at the top of the town, considering it healthier, but as we turned a corner he espied a hostelry by the name of" The Plume of Feathers" which seemed to be to his liking, for it caused him to bellow, "Frank ! Halt the conveyance", which the servile Francis subsequently did. He was pleased to find on entering ample facilities for the game of table-skittles, which he had played ever since the violent exertion of hurling the missile in the parent game had caused him to assume a recumbent posture. I was uninterested in this " pleasant folly " as he called it, and desired to draw him from it with what I considered to be a cutting remark. Boswell : " Surely, Sir, you do not consider that intelligent men should waste their time with such trivial amusements ? " Johnson : "Sir, the most intelligent men must rest from their labours ", and added, as though in after-thought, " I am resting."

Eventually he lost interest and I succeeded in drawing him away to pay a visit to the beautiful Abbey church. He was very much struck with the beauty of it, and with customary generosity made a contribution to a fund for a rebuilding of the organ " though I never did like music." He examined the edifice with reverence, for he was always a deeply religious man, and was silent as we emerged through the Norman doorway into the bright sunlight. He was still silent as I, who knew the school from past experience, led him towards the science labora­tories where, with his habitual desire for knowledge, his countenance lifted, and he bowled up the short flight of steps into the building. I introduced him to a member of the science staff who, I assured him, could show him the place better than I. " Sir '', he said, " I am delighted to meet one so well versed in the mysteries of alchemy as I have heard you are.'' He insisted on being shown as many experiments as possible and we slowly toured the various laboratories leaving behind us a trail of broken glass, fumes, and an excruciatingly aromatic variety of sea­weed.

Upon entering the quadrangle of the school he remarked on the pleasing appearance of the buildings, save one, which I informed him was a new block of class-rooms. " Sir, it is too long, too narrow, and too tall." I prevailed upon him nevertheless to view the interior. Upon entering he took up a piece of chalk and traced on the blackboard a mysterious shape, adding triumphantly, " Sir, it is my only artistic accomplishment." When I ventured to ask what it portrayed he seemed somewhat taken aback, but replied, " Why, Sir, it is the hinder-quarters of an elephant." He seemed pleased at having taken the opportunity to display his ability as an artist but lost his good-humour when he endeavoured to erase the masterpiece, indelibility being a curious property of new blackboards. " I cannot destroy my elephant " he exclaimed, " therefore I shall draw Hodge also." (Hodge being the learned doctor's pet cat). Whereupon he took up the chalk-box and, at the expence of three sticks of its contents reproduced what he fondly imagined to be a faithful reproduction of the animal, an artistic accomplishment for one so renowned as a literary giant.

His efforts pleased him, and in a merry humour he traversed the quadrangle to the location of a number of notice boards. · He was pleased to see the notice board of the army section of the Combined Cadet Force, and held forth for several minutes on the desirability of a career " in this honourable section of the Queen's defences against the militant powers of the world­particularly America.'' (He had a habitual and immovable loathing of the American race).

He then espied the notice board of the Royal Air Force section. He was much interested, and we got embarked on the subject of parachuting. He was proud of having discovered, and perfected to his own entire satisfaction, the principle of this unique engine of war.-" I once, Sir,

Senior Diving, 1955-A. C. Garrod

"Snobisme "-P.J.W.

THE SHIRBUR.NIAN 105

descended from a wall holding alogt my mother's umbrella." He did not apparently consider it necessary that the parachute should have evolved beyond this stage, and said so in sonorous tones.

After this journey we returned to our hostelry, during which journey the Doctor's balance was disturbed by one of the small rubber pads that give guidance to the erring nocturnal traveller. He was much displeased when he found himself in a recumbent posture in the middle of the thoroughfare. " Sir, what is the necessity for these infernal contrivances ? " I of course en­lightened him in the matter, but he remained adamant. " Sir. I would rather be run down than suffer their intolerable presence." With which parting shot at the innocent township, he entered the inn, where he spent the night, before continuing on his way the next morning.

"J.B."

WAGES OF SIN The O.S. who gets a scholarship to Andover (or any other American institute of higher

learning) is in for a surprise. For four years now he has led a parochial, sequestered life. Cold, hard walls of Sherborne School have kept him from paths of sin. But as his parents wave him goodbye and brush away the tears, they fear lest he be influenced by the wicked life of an American prep-school !

Let us hop across the Atlantic and see how our friend John Bull is making out. The Conductor of the train yells out "ANDOOOVERRR." John picks up his cricket

bat, gets out, and is grabbed by an enterprising capitalist taxi driver, who charges him three dollars for a half mile drive to the school (cricket bats are extra). John thinks this jolly good because he is not familiar with real money (U.S. currency) yet ; he tips the driver an extra dollar.

There is no one to meet him at his dorm. He wanders in ; as he climbs the stairs, he is smashed by a loud herd of boys. They have just sacked someone's room and are quitting the area to escape housemaster's wrath. John peels himself off the wall and finds his room. On the door is written :

John Bull •• Joe Prep.

It is not long before these two meet. Down the hall a booming voice is heard: " Hey, gang, I'm back. It's me, Joe. Where is everybody ? " The door is swung open. In walks Joe. John does not believe it is his roommate for he is wearing " cat " clothes : pink shirt, black shoe­string tie, black pegged pants 2 and black and white striped coat. So this is a Teddy boy, says John to himself. Says Joe : "So you're the limey? I see you've snagged the best bed. At least you're learning our ways pretty good. Shouldn't be long before we straighten up your lingo." And off they went to supper.

It is now night. John and Joe are sitting in their room getting acquainted. Other boys begin to drift in. Word has spread that John has a cake. In minutes there is a glorious bull session3•

The discussion ranges from females to Anglo-American relations, back to Marilyn, then on to Ike's heart. Finally the cake is finished and the boys disperse to search out more food.

John is left in the room brooding over a few remaining crumbs. The bell tower strikes ten, and he is reminded of his lights-out days in Sherborne. It is a tired John Bull that crawls into bed. He runs over the day's events. His final thoughts are : " Three school dances a term ! Three school dances •.. three dances .•• three ... " He falls asleep with a smile on his face.

P. c. PARSONS.

l. American equivalent of English Public School. 2. Drainpipe trousers. 3. General discussion of nothing in particular.

106 THE SHIRBURNIAN

REMEMBRANCE DAY-NOVEMBER THE FIFTH A red star moved slowly up and burst, splaying colours about the sky, and a squib jumped

jerkily at our feet to an accompaniment of screams. Faces, excited faces with sparkling eyes, watched the majestic flight of a rocket, whilst grubby hands clutched "sparklers" and the long evening shadows contracted to the terrifying brightness of burning phosphorus. Suddenly the bonfire went up, and, attracted by the light, my eyes centred on the Guy, who hung dejectedly, transfixed against the sky, a pitiful wreck of humanity with a twisted grin on his face.

My mind began to wander : the field became Flanders, and the bangs were enemy shells, and the " guy " twisted in the mud, with death in his eyes, and one pitiful arm hanging riddled with shrapnel ••.

Someone pulled at my sleeve and shouted ; everyone was running to see some fresh spectacle across the field, but I stood and watched the fire. A poppy had been dropped on the ground, and as I watched, a flame spread across and engulfed it.

The sun was sinking over the horizon, and a clear voice was saying " At the going down of the sun ... we will remember them." But the words were lost in a rush of sparks and a howl of senseless enjoyment.

NOVEMBER THE FIFTH or

"POPPY" DAY The rain has put out the bonfire, And all the squibs were dud. My shoes have got in an awful mess Through squelching about in the mud.

It looked such a beautiful bonfire, On the top a most wonderful guy ; It didn't take long to discover That the wood we had used wasn't dry.

They seemed such a nice lot of fireworks, Roman candles and rockets galore, But the candles just fizzled and spluttered, And the rockets refused to soar.

The Catherine wheels were lovely, But someone put one in a car, And I always say that a joke's not a joke If the joke is carried too far.

I was hit in the back by a cracker, A porn-porn went off in my hand. Oh, I'm fed up with fireworks, November the Fifth should be banned !

H. D. SPURR.

SIMVA.

(The editors disclaim all responsibility for the views expressed in this article. They print it as a literary curio).

I couldn't think of a title ..... . Few know the classroom where we meet of an evening. Few know we exist at all. That

is why I now condescend to offer the School a crumb or two from our esoteric cake, by writing something in the nature of a report on the activities of Sherborne's most exclusive brotherhood. First of all, you must realise that we Bohemians (no racial prejudices, of course) are rebels. from the shoelaces upwards, and we move with the times. Tradition that is four hundred years old is best preserved in formalin-(alcohol too precious). Our's is the life of mystical enlightenment.

THE SHIRBURNIAN 107

We are progressive. We aim to sublimate the urges of the thwarted student. We know no dis­tinction of group, though in fact we are mostly historians-with a Group I homo sapiens here and there. (MS6a on sufferance only). If your individuality is suppressed and the fire of your genius a little damp, then you should become a Bohemian.

We gather for our meetings at an unspecified hour, punctuality forbidden. Proof of member­ship must be shown on entry. Walking shoes and superegos to be left outside the door. Members are reminded that it is a serious breach of etiquette to attend with hair less than the regulation half an inch over collar. Proceedings will begin ten minutes after the last member has failed to arrive. For a successful evening and the creation of a suitable atmosphere the following access­ories are advisable :-One gramophone (or phonograph if preferred), one large pile of jazz records for jam sessions, cigarette smoke to reduce total visibility, one inexhaustible supply of pep pills (recipe protected by copyright), one memo pad for writing down inspirations white hot.

After a bout of jive (a la Dionysos) to warm up, our poet laureate obliges with his latest masterpiece in vers libre. . . . . N.B. This is essential. The poets recommend mescalin as an invaluable stimulant at this stage of the meeting. It is then customary for a short paper to be delivered on some relevant subject. At the last celebration of our rites, the brilliant young Hon. Sec., and I say so in all modesty, proclaimed his highly original views on Inhibitions and the Individual or "What the id did." As usual, his thesis was admirably written in Kafkaesque language and green ink. A toast to the nineteenth century decadents, and we move on to politics (no quietist society, this). The leading intellectuals refuted the claims of Public School author­itarianism long ago in a concisely argued manifesto entitled " Swinburnes of the Sixth, unite ! " Negotiations are in progress with the A.B.S. to publish a pocket edition of this useful document in the blue book series, probable price tax incl. 5fd. The manifesto is widely read among Bohemians and accepted as unofficial dogma (Mr. Alec Waugh out of print and date). Our theorists, you will be glad to hear, are now engaged in working out the last details for the revolutionary putsch soon to be effected in the School. To judge from recent events at the golf course, our technique in arson is improving.

I must take this opportunity of announcing to members that the society's annual Saturday in Soho will be held on the first weekend of the approaching holidays. Rendezvous chez Romano Santi, Greek Street (usual hour, no drugs on the premises please). If anyone in the School thinks he will join our number, I should remind him that membership is by invitation only. Accosting likely initiates in the Courts on the subject is not guaranteed to produce the desired result. We are a modest lot. Not even the" happy harry" could tell you which room we use.

In conclusion, dear thwarted Shirburnian, the only reason why this report does not appear under Societies is that the literary standard is too high. Besides, it is anonymous.

"MY WISH" When I am dead and leave this earthly shell, When I have gone to seek celestial day, Burn not my body, as in fires of Hell Nor lay it in unfeeling churchyard clay. Anoint me not with precious, costly oil, Nor let me to the family tomb be born ; For I would have a grave than these more royal. A grave beneath the trees on Saltern's lawn. The snow-drop there will bow her dainty head And crocus dance in golden fairy rings. Beech trees shall be the four posts of my bed, And daffodils shall wave like angels' wings. There let me rest, unkown, forgot by all But happy 'neath dear Saltem's mossy pall.

P. R. HuxHAM,

108

moles once he saw the Sun ; now he digs black tunnels with blind snout. once he touched the Sun ; now angry farmers root him out and kill him. it is rumored that he even set It free ; now he is blind and digs black tunnels. and yet ••. he is not lost, for the Sun he knew is warm. he fumbles out his humid tube and revels in the warmth, but quickly stumbles back into the groping ground, and onward forms his little mound.

how much like moles are we

THE SHIRBURNIAN

P. c. PARSONS.

THE SHIRBURNIAN 109

GAMES CRICKET

lsT XI RETROSPECT

The side was a useful one, and might have been very good if the new ball bowling had not been weak. The batting was consistently good, and only broke down once-at Marlborough on a lively wicket before lunch. Five batsmen made more than three hundred runs, and made them well.

The fielding was thoroughly sound without being in any way brilliant, though the throwing was very good as a rule. The bowling relied far too much on Tindall and Lawrence. The former bowled his leg-spinners really well and was never collared ; Lawrence bowled slow medium off-spinners and out-swingers very accurately. But the rest of the bowling lacked hostility, and never looked like getting sides out on good wickets unless the batsmen were attacking.

G. P. Gent was an outstandingly good captain both on and off the field. And he won the toss nine times out of twelve. Looking back it seems that one or two more matches would have been won had the side batted second, because the batting was so strong compared with the bowling.

In School matches \Vestminster and Downside were beaten ; there were draws against Radley and Blundell's ; and the Marlborough match was lost.

AVERAGES IlATIING

Inns. N.O. Runs Highest Average C. C. T. Henfrey 11 2 308 105 34.22 M. B. Wilson 12 2 321 85 32.10 P. D. Cowell 14 1 355 118 no. 27.31 G. P. Gent 15 I 380 74 27.14 C. R. J. Eglington 14 1 320 64 no. 24.62 J. Lawrence 10 1 162 33 18.00 P. C. Eglington ... 15 1 251 53 17.93 J.J. Barber 8 2 94 27 15.67 J.P. Devitt 11 3 125 28 15.63

BOWLING Ours Maidens Runs Wickets Average

S. P. Tindall 216.1 53 632 48 13.08 J. Lawrence 172 59 365 20 18.25 M. Maley 67 12 210 8 26.25 J.J. Barber 151 37 347 12 28.90 P. D. Cowell 103.4 23 317 9 35.22

Results : Played 12 ; Won 3 ; Drawn 6. Lost 3.

110 THE SHIRBUR.NIAN

2ND XI As will be seen from the results the 2nd XI had a very successful season. The side was well balanced, and was

in many respects as strong as a School 2nd XI can hope to be. The bowling possessed variety-sometimes infinitely so when the spinners were on-and the batting was a nice blend of orthodoxy, in the persons of the openers, Mermagen and Price, and of crude violence, in the persons of numbers 3 to 11. The whole sic\e gained a very good understanding of the technique of half-day cricket-an unbeaten record and 7 wins out of 8 finishes shows what can be done if every member of the side is working for the same end. The team enjoyed their cricket and reached a very presentable level of fielding. Pirie's consistent wicket-keeping helped considerably in this ; also the Captain's example at mid-off, where he gave a very fair imitation of a sandbag. The season produced many interesting memories-notably the Taunton game, when the side took 42 minutes to score the runs that the opposition made in 2! hours. However, Kirkwood's attempts to get himself out in the last match, and so achieve an average, will perhaps last longer in the minds of the rest of _the pl ayers.

Results. (Played 10, Won 7, Drawn 3). v. Bryanston. Drawn.

*Sherborne 163 for 7 dee. (Mermagen 92). Bryanston 160 for 8 (Kirkwood 6 for 26).

v. Millfield. Abandoned (rain). Mill field 77 for 6.

v. Allhallows. Won. Sherborne 116 for 5 (Kenyon 36, Price 33).

*Allhallows 1!3 (Madagan 6 for 19). v. Hardye's. Won.

Sherborne 108 for 6 (Price 38, Maley 27). *Hardye's 106 (Prince 4 for 30, Neve 3 for 26).

v. Blundell's 2nd. Abandoned (rain). Sherborne 98 for 6 (Carwardine 42).

*Blundell's 130 for 7 (Kirkwood 3 for 16). v. Downside 2nd. Won.

*Sherborne 151 for 3 (Kenyon 70). Downside 73 (Rowe 3 for 11, Neve 4 for 22).

v. Taunton 2nd. Won. Sherborne 103 for 3 (Kenyon 70).

*Taunton 100 (Robbie 4 for 11). Won.

v. Canford 2nd. *Sherborne 176 for 2 dee. (Mermagen 91). Canford 97 (Neve 4 for 15).

v. Shaftesbury G.S. Won. *Sherborne 175 for 8 dee. (Mermagen 47).

Shaftesbury 75 (Kirkwood 3 for 13, Neve 3 for 25). v. Dorchester C.C. 2nd. Won.

Sherborne 130 for 4 (Price 42). *Dorchester 127 for 2 dee.

* Batted first

3RD XI The 3rd XI, now unbeaten since early in the 1953 season, won all its nine matches. The strength of the side lay

in its slow bowling, helped considerably by the sound captaincy and wicket-keeping of Dew. Ellison's leg-breaks mesmerised many opponents, and he took 35 wickets in seven matches ; Curtis took 18 wickets, but he was less effective on the hard pitches later in the season. The batting was unreliable, and the season was not without its anxious moments, but somebody always came to the rescue in the end. Barkshire played two good innings, as did Porter and Galletly, and Dew played a captain's innings in the last match which enabled the side to beat Crewkerne School by three wickets in the best game of the season.

For the first time the Extra 3rd XI played official matches, winning one and losing one of their three outside matches. It was a good year to start these fixtures, as they gave match practice to several boys worthy of a place in the 3rd XI of some other year.

v. St. John's Boys' Club

v. Western Gazette C.C.

v. Wessex C.C.

v. Thornford C.C.

v. Downside 3rd.

v. Foster's.

Results *Sherborne 186 for 8 dee. (Galletly 99).

Boys' Club 80 (Robbie 4 for 12). Sherborne 83 for 6.

*Western Gazette 82 (Curtis 7 for 10). *Sherborne 99.

Wessex C.C. 52 (Ellison 4 for 12). Sherborne 124 for 5 (Porter 78 nt.).

*Thornford 123. *Sherborne 178 for 5 dee. (Barkshire 72 nt.).

Downside 57 (Ellison 4 for 18). *Sherborne 126.

Foster's 67 (Ellison 6 for 22).

THE SHIRBURNIAN

v. Bruton 2nd XI

v. Crewkerne School

*Sherborne 131 (Barkshire 49). Bruton 2nd 64 (Ellison 7 for 31). Sherborne 84 for 7 (Dew 33 nt.).

*Crewkerne 83.

* Batted first

COLTS

111

Although the paper results (3 won, 1 lost and 3 drawn) are nothing to write home about, the Colts Game con· tained several players with definite talent, and the general standard was encouraging. The batting had a veneer of polish on top of a somewhat shaky foundation. On a good day-arid Clifton was one of them-runs flowed in an attractive manner from several bats, but when the wicket was not quite perfect or when the bowling was hostile­as in the case of Millfield-it was a different story. Technically far ahead of the others was H. R. J. Walker who never failed and averaged over 30 for his five innings. D. B. Hill, who played in the Game last season, was dis­appointing ; ability is undoubtedly there but he seems unwilling to learn from mistakes. His running and calling were atrocious, but that went for most of the side which, between the wickets, often resembled Middlesex on one of their worst days. Brookes and Wyatt Smith do not yet possess a sound enough'defence but both played several delightful and valuable innings. Hood struck the ball with vigour, Fletcher never learnt to pick the right ball for his leg sweep but made quite a lot of runs. Rugg-Gunn was improving enormously towards the end of the season, and A. C. Evans, Shirley, Bissell and Blacker all made useful scores. Hughes, who played only one game because of an injury, may well be as good as any.

The bowling was tidy but lacked hostility. Hood, a slow-medium left arm bowler, was the most penetrative and he took nearly twice as many wickets (18) as anybody else at about half the cost (5.72 each). On a wicket that gave him any help he could be most unpleasant to face. Blacker, with his accurate in-slanters, and Bissell who was a Junior Colt by age, with his less accurate but potentially more dangerous out-swingers, opened the bowling and both should train on. Wyatt Smith, off-breaks, and Brookes, leg-rollers, both got wickets but neither is yet accurate enough for the quick footed or aggressive batsman. Spin was also provided by Rugg-Gunn, Walker, Hughes, P. M. Wilson and D. Turner, while Hill, C. G. W. Murray and Shirley trundled away at medium pace.

The catching, especially close to the wicket, was below standard but the ground fielding and throwing did a lot to make up for this. Much of the credit for the team's success and for the enjoyment which all seemed to derive from their cricket must go to the wicket-keeper, Pegg, who not only accepted a high proportion of the chances offered to him but also captained the side with skill and an infectious enthusiasm.

The following played during the season : Pegg* (Captain), D. B. Hill*, Brookes*, Wyatt-Smith*, H. R. J. \Valker*, Hood*, Blacker*, Hughes*, Bissell*, Fletcher*, Rugg-Gunn*, A. C. Evans, Shirley, Eveliegh, D. Turner, Morgan, \V. A. Evans, P. M. Wilson.

*=Awarded a Colts Cap.

v. Canford.

v. Bryanston.

v. Downside.

Match abandoned. Canford 18 for 3.

Drawn. Sherborne 134 for 5 declared. Bryanston 100 for 4.

Won by one wicket.

Results

Downside 54 (Hood 5 for 16, Wyatt-Smith 5 for 20). Sherborne 55 for 9.

v. Taunton. Won by 17 runs. Sherborne 62 for 9 declared.

Taunton 45 (Blacker 6 for 14). v. Downside. Drawn.

Downside 149 for 4 declared. Sherborne 110 for 5.

v. Millfield. Lost by 7 wickets.

v. Bruton.

v. Clifton.

Sherborne 40. Millfield 43 for 3.

Won by 129 runs. Sherborne 182 for 5 declared (Walker 61).

Bruton 53 (Brooks 5 for 21). Drawn.

Sherborne 178 for 5 declared (Hill 58 not out). Clifton 140 for 8.

112 THE SHIRBURNIAN

JUNIOR COLTS

A very satisfactory season, especially as the strength of all the sides put into the field lay in the uniformly high standard, and not in a few individuals.

Some 25 boys played in matches, and a further 30 received regular coaching and trial games. Results (Played 7, Won 4, Drawn 2, Lost I).

v. Canford. Rain stopped play. v. Bryanston. Won.

*Sherborne 153. Bryanston 62.

v. Downside (first match). Lost. *Sherborne 131 for 8 dee.

Downside 132 for 5. (second match). Drawn.

*Sherbome 129 for 8 dee. Downside 79 for 8.

v. Taunton. Won. Sherbome 56 for O.

*Taunton 55. v. Foster's 2nd. Won.

Sherborne 77 for 2. *Foster's 76.

v. Bruton. Won. *Sherborne 111 for 9 dee.

Bruton 90.

* Batted first

SENIORS FINAL Result : Abbeylands beat Westcott by 9 wickets. Gent won the toss, and put Westcott in to bat. Wilson made 58, and shared in a partnership of 46 with Cowell.

Westcott were finally all out for ISO, Hood 5 for 59 and Prince 4 for 40. When Abbeylands batted disaster nearly struck, as with 7 wickets down the score was only 96. However, Kirkwood came to the rescue with a good innings of 78. Robbie bowled well and took 5 for 42.

Westcott went in again and made 176, Wilson making 52 in 2! hours, and Martyn: scoring a brisk 42 not out. Hood again bowled very well, and took 6 for 48. Abbey lands scored the necessary runs for the loss of only one wicket, Gent scoring 60.

Teams: ABBEYLANDS-G. P. Gent, C. C. T. Henfrey, R. M. Pirie, I. M. Kirkwood, M. F. S. Prince, M. Whitaker,

A. R. Hood, T. G. Groome, P. M. Kemp,J. Robson, D.J. Pegg. WEsTcorr-P. D. Cowell, M. B. Wilson, C. J. A. Robbie, J. M. Galletly, P. V. Martyn, R. G. Smithson, G.

Gregory-Smith, D. M. Summerscale, Norman, Barkshire, Brookes.

j UNIORS FINAL Result : Harper won by 73 runs.

Scores: Harper 165 (Morgan 58) and 102 for 3 dee. (Morgan 53). Westcott 90 and 104 (Brookes 54).

Teams: HARPER-Morgan, Hill, Fletcher, Evans A. C., Murray, Evans W. A., Yeldham, Brown E., Venning, Liddell,

Evans S. WEsTcorr-Brookes, Shirley, Maynard, Newbery, Pink, Heaton, Honnor, Wymer, Moore, Spice, Chubb.

TENNIS The season ended on a busy ifindifferently successful note. The remaining matches of the term were pursued with

varying results-we lost sadly to the O.S., but comfortably defeated both Millfield and R.N.C. Dartmouth before losing our final and possibly best match to Marlborough 3-6. The House pairs competition was won for the second year in succession by Westcott House (D. M. Summerscale andJ. C.H. Longrigg) who beat Abbey House (J. R. T. Mayo and A. C. Garrod) in the final. R. N. Spink won the School Singles Competition, and in the newly instituted junior events School House A beat Abbey House in the final of the pairs, and R. Hooper won the singles. It must be noted that two matches were also played by a School second VI.

It seems difficult to combine sport and pleasure. At the Youll Cup at Wimbledon, and at Queen's, enjoyment was certainly had, but equally certainly not success. We held, however, that we preferred to play the game in what we considered to be the right spirit, and we paid the consequences in our results. At Wimbledon we beat Clayesmore 3-0 in the first round, but lost disastrously to Marlborough in the next, largely due to the inability of the Captain to serve a ball into the correct section of the court. The official team-D. M. Summerscale, R. N. Spink,J. R. T. Mayo

THE SHIRBUR.NIAN 113

and J. C. H. Longrigg disbanded, but Summerscale and Mayo were joined for Queen's by R. S. O'Brien and C. M. Payne. The first pair reached the third round before succumbing to a St. Paul's pair ; the second met with little success, and in the singles it were better that results were not detailed. However, both the tennis and all which accompanied it were of great enjoyment to all concerned, and after all, that was largely the object.

D.M.S.

SHOOTING NOTES While the last edition of this magazine was in its final stages, the VIII was indulging in its final throes on the

Open Range. Our visit to Eisley for the Ashburton was interesting : practice shoots produced the usual triumphs and disasters, and when the day came, we went on to the firing point in some uncertainty as to what our form was. Encouragingly, we scored highly at 200 yds., and were among the top ten at lunchtime : fortune was holding herself in check for the time being, and lunch was a cheerful meal, in spite of the lemonade. The 500 shoot, as usual, was our downfall : we started badly and continued worse : we came 34th with a total of 494. The cadets did well to reach 17th, and H. W. Walker is to be congratulated on a fine shoot in the Spencer-Mellish ; otherwise, our only successes on that day were Schools' Hundred badges for R. D. A. Savage and M. C. Cumberlege.

On our return, we shot off the Open Range House Pairs, Harper, represented by Cumberlege and Lonsdale, winning with the excellent score of 130. We took this opportunity of inviting Comdr. Smithwick to come down and present the Smithwick tankard to Cumberlege. Thejumor prize went to Monro.

All told, we had an unobtrusive season to mark Capt. Brown's retirement ; we achieved no great success nor suffered any resounding failure, but we are in danger of wearing a comfortable little groove for ourselves, and the time has come for something spectacular : perhaps next year .... who knows ?

There were 6 Old Colours left at the beginning of this term, which was an encouraging start. On the Miniature Range we were faced at once with two very welcome innovations-R.S.M. Alden and the Staniforth Cup Com­petition, a combination we have by now come to regard as inseparable : between them they have, among other things, solved the problem of what the VIII is to do in the winter term. For the benefit of the uninitiated, the Stani­forth Cup is a competition fired under N.S.R.A. conditions-that is, with a bull just larger than the size of a .22 bullet hole, and graded rings to match. After some preliminary match practice which served as an introduction to the severer conditions, we fired the competition on Wednesday, October 2nd, scoring 767 X 800. This was as high as we had ever achieved in practice, but not outstanding, since we now hear, unofficially, that Blundell's scored about 789. These scores are subject to confirmation by the authorities.

At the time of going to press, we are in the middle of effecting the changeover to Country Life Conditions, which prevail until the end of term.

Senior Shooting proceeds gently, with the introduction of two sighters for each man, a measure which has cut out yet another cause for complaint.

This year bears the stamp of an experimental period : already countless things have come to light which nobody so much as suspected before, and doubtless they will continue to do so : a breath-nay-a gale, of fresh air has hit us in the shape of R.S.M. Alden, and so far nothing but good has been the result. Further, I should like to propose a vote of thanks to Col. Green, whose welcome patronage is as unobtrusive as it is unfailing.

Senior;

Senior

1 length free-style. I. Norman (h) 2. Robson (h) 3. Miller (g) 4 lengths free-style. I. Walker (h) 2. Mallam (a) 3. Norman (h) I length breast-stroke. I. Macdonald (h) 2. Wright (c) 3. Harrison (f) I length backstroke. I. Norman (h) 2. Goldsmith (g) 3. Tuppen (a)

I. Westcott 2. School House A 3. Lyon

SWIMMING FINALS OF SCHOOL SPORTS

Junior;

Relays

I length free-style. I. Page (a) 2. Jamieson (a) 3. Murray (g) 4 lengths free-style. I. Page (a) 2. Key (h) 3. Neill (a) I length breast-stroke. I. Rugg-Gunn (g) 2. Page (a) 3. Kettlewell (c) I length backstroke. I. Murray (g) 2. Dolman (h) 3. Shirley (h)

Junior I. Westcott 2. Lyon 3. School House B

P.N.B.S.

114

Senior 1. Mallam (a) Diving

2. Norman (h) 3. Palmer (g)

Plunge 1. Key (h) 2. Maclean (c) 3. Heaton (h)

RUGG ER

THE SHIRBURNIAN

Junior 1. Hughes (a) 2. Bamber (h) 3. Page (a)

Dinkledein (f)

INTER-HOUSE FOOTBALL COMPETITIONS

In view of the fact that the present Three Cock organization is to be discontinued as from the Lent term 1956, a brief summary of, and a few comments on, the previous history of the House football competitions may be of general interest. The detailed records up till 1950 can all be found in the Sherborne Register.

The Three Cock competition was begun in 1873. The School House taking on the best team that the three combined Out Houses could muster. M the School grew the arrangement was modified and from 1916-1928 the Three Cock existed in name only, as only two Houses were represented against the School House.

In 1928 the present system was introduced whereby the winning Out House was strengthened by one repre­sentative from each of the next two Houses. Since the inception of the competition up till 1955 School House has won 27 times and the School 55 times. (The Seniors and Thirds competitions were not completed in 1947 owing to pro­longed frost). The Cup was won for 16 years running by Abbey House 1912-1927. School House had a six year run from 1899, and won five years out of six from 1936. Between 1904 and 1932 School House did not have a single win. The Cup has been won by Out Houses as follows :

Day Boys twice, 1874 and 1875 ; Price's (given up 1890) three times ; Abbey House twenty-four times ; The Green nine times ; Harper three times ; Abbeylands nine times ; Lyon House three times ; Westcott House twice. (The latter two Houses were opened in 1911 and 1920 respectively). It will be noted that the Cup has never been evenly shared, although since 1946 it has been more widely dis­

tributed than at any other period in the history of the competition. It remains to be seen what will happen in the years ahead now that School House are to take their place in the draw like any other House, in a knock-out com­petition. Mathematically, of course, the larger the House the better the chances over a period of years, bm what abom 1912-1927 !

The Juniors Competition really began in 1896. The School House playing in the final the combined team of the winners and runners up of the Out House competition. This lasted until 1937. Between 1919 and 1937 the School House-won only 4 times, and it was decided to make a change. The present knock-out Juniors Competition was then begtin, with a School House team at the top and bottom of the draw. This new organization has provided the keenest and closest games of all the House matches. Since 1938 the division of the Cup has been as follows:

School House " A " three ; School House " B " two ; Abbey House three ; The Green three ; Harper once shared ; Lyon House once and once shared ; Westcott House two. In 1950 no final was played owing to snow, and Abbeylands and Westcott House divided. The 3rd Competition dates from 1904; School House playing a team chosen from the best two Out Houses

in the Final. This organization continued until 1950, when it was decided that School House should play in two sections, as in the Juniors Competitions. (School House had never won and only once drawn between 1918 and 1934, though they won for five consecutive years from 1937. Thirds were organized into two leagues on the all-play-all system, the winners of each League meeting in the Final. House records in the 3rd Competition have been as follows :

1904-1950 School House fifteen wins ; Abbey House nineteen ; The Green three ; Harper House three ; Abbeylands one ; Lyon House six. 1951-1955 : 1951, Lyon ; 1952, Lyon ; 1953, Lyon and Westcott ; 1954, Westcott; 1955, The Green. The object of these notes is to show how the House match organization has changed over the years to meet the

needs of a developing School, and to demonstrate to the ultra-conservative that changes are at times both necessary and healthy, however strong the attachments to a particular system may have become. The object of the authorities must always be to provide the fairest competition to fit the needs of the times. Plus t;a change, plus c'est la meme chose.

v. Blackheath 2nd. Lost 5-12. v. Richmond "A ". Lost 16-24. v. Harlequins" A". Lost 0-B.

H.F.W.H.

CLUB MATCHES

THE SHIRBURNIAN 115

SCHOOL v. TAUNTON. Home (Won 8-0) This match was played at Sherborne under perfect conditions for fast open play ; yet as a game it proved to be

something of a disappointment. Somehow it never seemed to recover from a lethargic start when the School allowed Taunton three attempts to kick the ball ten yards !

Taunton were the first to attack and for some fifteen minutes looked to be the better side. An early break through the centre was only just checked in time, and then play was mostly in the School twenty-five. Taunton did not score and did not reveal any clever running, nor the concentrated backing up at which they are generally so good. Having survived this period of pressure, the School began to play with greater confidence and effect. The forwards gradually won the upper hand, and the backs, given more of the ball, looked capable of scoring tries. Rowe hit the crossbar with an attempt at a dropped goal, a penalty goal kicked by Carwardine provided encouragement and' by Half-time the School looked to have the match in hand. For most of the second half the School were attacking, but lacked finish when tries seemed likely. Haines did score a try by an intelligent piece of footwork, but no other score could be contrived. Taunton rallied in the closing minutes, and once or twice looked likely to score, but the School defence held out.

The game scarcely merits more detailed description as it was strangely lacking in fire and tension throughout. Perhaps a somewhat fussy whistle had something to do with it.

The School team was not well together. The forwards were not effectively led, and though they had somewhat the better of things it was only in the line-out, where Payne was outstanding, that they showed clear superiority. David was energetic and useful, and at times Mallam shone. The halves worked well together though Rowe had a patchy game. Henfrey made several good runs, but the handling in the centre at critical moments was uncertain. Mermagen brought off two good tackles, but generally his play did not inspire confidence.

Team : Mermagen ; Cassidy, Henfrey, Taylor, Haines ; Rowe, Murray ; Thomas, Hodgson, Carwardine, Payne, Whitaker, David, D. F. Mallam, Kenyon.

ScHOOL v. DARTMOUTH. Away (Lost 6-15) Dartmouth won by four penalty goals and one try to one penalty and one try. It was a good match, played

under perfect conditions, and would have been a very good one but for a referee, who gave endless penalties and seemed determined not to let the game get going. The School should have made certain of a win in the first half, when, at one stage they looked like over-running Dartmouth ; but luck was against the side, and in the end Dart­mouth won because of increasing forward superiority and very good covering by the forwards.

The School started really well ; the forwards heeled, the halves combined well, and either Henfrey or Haines were going through almost every time. After a series of excellent movements, Cassidy scored in the corner. Dartmouth continued under pressure, but scored two penalties in almost their only visits to the School half. After a good run by Henfrey, Rowe went over near the posts, but the referee gave a penalty ; then Henfrey nearly scored, and Cassidy did cross the line, but the corner flag went down. And one or two forward rushes nearly resulted in scores. As well as all this, Carwardine missed two quite easy penalties. Gradually Dartmouth came into the game more ; their forwards began to exert themselves, but no danger threatened from their outsides except possibly from their fly half. Half time came with Dartmouth in the lead.

In the second half the Dartmouth forwards gradually got on top, and exerted steady pressure. The School's line-out play deteriorated, and the halves were harassed and slow ; teamwork throughout suffered. All the same the scores were equalised midway through the half when Carwardine kicked a penalty. But Dartmouth were soon back on the attack, and two more penalties were kicked. And the score remained at 12-6 till the last minute when Dartmouth scored a try after a kick ahead had bounced badly for the defence.

The School actually played their best game of the term, and, for the first twenty minutes, things went very well indeed. Rowe did well, and Henfrey and Haines were in excellent form in the centre. But Dartmouth must take credit for refusing to be overrun in the early stages, for taking their chances, for some fine covering and tackling, and for excellent play by their pack.

Team: Dew; Cassidy, Haines, Henfrey, Taylor; Rowe, Murray; Thomas, Hodgson, Carwardine, C. M. Payne, Whitaker, David, D. F. Mallam, Farmer.

ScHOOL v. BLUNDELL's. Home (Lost 14-13) There had been rain showers on and off during the morning, and the Upper was rather damp ; but there was

no rain during the match, and the ball was not difficult to handle. In one of the best and most exciting games seen on the Upper for years Blundell's won by a goal and three tries to two goals and a try.

From the first the game was open and exciting. It soon became clear that Blundell's had a fine pack, and also, for the first time this year, we were outplayed in the Iineout. Almost the first time the School got the ball, Rowe made a nice opening for Henfrey, who ran very well indeed to beat a number of coverers before scoring under the posts ; Carwardine converted. Blundell's at once attacked ; and their fly half, running diagonally, made an opening for a centre to score a try. For the rest of the half, play seemed always to be in the School's 25 with Blundell's per­sistently on the attack. Their forwards were right on top, and their scrum half ran dangerously ; but very stout defence by David and all the three quarters kept them from scoring. And the Blundell's handling and running in midfield was not good. There was no further score before half time.

116 THE SHIRBURNIAN

In the second half the School forwards stuck to their job manfully, but continual pressure enabled the Blundell's scum half to make two tries, one of which was converted. The School came back with great spirit to the attack. The forwards got a fair share of the ball from the tight, and, from a kick ahead by Rowe, Cassidy scored a try by fast following up. Carwardine kicked a good goal. Then followed some very exciting play ; the School forwards rushed the ball down into the Blundell's twenty-five, and some good handling ended with Farmer scoring a try. Ten minutes were left to play, and for five of these the School were on top ; but then the pressure of the Blundell's forwards exerted itself, and their outsides kicked the ball down into the School's twenty-five. After a series of loose heels, the Blundell's scrum half broke on the blind side, and a try was scored far out. Henfrey kicked off to the blind side, and the ball rolled just the wrong side of the corner flag ; Blundell's managed to clear from the drop-out, and a thrilling game ended.

The School three quarters played very well in both attack and defence. Rowe was adequate, but slow in getting in his kick. The best of the forwards were David and Farmer, who defended tirelessly ; the rest played with great spirit against a better pack.

Team : Dew ; Cassidy, R. A. Haines, C. C. T. Henfrey, Taylor ; Rowe, Murray ; R. T. Thomas, Hodgson, Carwardine, C. M. Payne, Whitaker, David, D. F. Mallam, Farmer.

Co LOURS

The following have been awarded colours so far this term :

lstXV 2nd XV D. F. Mallam

Oct. 15 22 C. M. Payne (regained) 29 R. A. Haines (regained) Cassidy A.

R. T. Thomas (regained) Farmer C. C. T. Henfrey Martyn

Hayward Nov. 6 A. C. B. M. David Whitaker

P.J. C. Rowe Murray C. S. Carwardine Kenyon

Kent Norman Oliver Haines]. Prince

Nov. 12 A. F. N. Dew Maley M. V. Taylor Watherston R.J. Hodgson Brown, S. F. M.

Sir,

3rd XV

Johnson P. Gregory-Smith Spry MacDonell Parry-Jones Devitt Chadwick Wilson P. Honnywill

Colts

Venning

Jones C. L. Carss Nicholas

Crichton Tully

Stopford Rowland KentR. W. Chesshire

I would like to express the thanks of the School to Dovey and his Staff for the excellent way in which they have cared for the Playing Fields ; also to the masters who have given up their time to coach and referee. .

Yours, etc., D. F. MALLAM,

Captain of Football.

FENCING On October 27th, Clifton brought 3 teams to fence us, 2 foil and 1 sabre team. In each event they beat us by one

fight, mainly by having had much greater match experience. On November 3rd, H.M.S. "Thunderer", Plymouth, beat us by 7-2 in the foil and 6-3 in the sabre. They are

a good team, and are having a good season ; here again our lack of experience was shown up. R. D. LLOYD.

THE SHIRBURNIAN 117

VALETE SCHOOL HOUSE

P. C. HoRE-came 19503-VI (Group IIIA)-Head of House; Upper Sixth ; Shooting Colours '55 ; P.T. Instructor with Badge ; Member of Duffers, Wildman ; Hon. Sec. Alchemists ; C.S.M. in C.C.F. To Army and King's College, Cambridge.

D. F. MALLAM-came 19513-VI (Group IIIB)-School Prefect; !st XV '54, Capt. '55; Athletics Colours '54, ' 55 ; Trebles '53, '54, '55 ; P.T. Instructor with Badge ; R.S.M. in C.C.F. To R.M.A. Sandhurst.

J. P. DEVITI-came 19513-VI (Group IIIB)-School Prefect; House Rugger Colours '55; !st XI Cricket '54, '55 ; Capt. of Squash '55 ; P.T. Instructor ; Member of Wildman ; P.O. in C.C.F. (Naval Section). To R.N.C. Dartmouth.

R. K. HILL-BROWN-came 19503-VI (Group IIIB)-House Prefect ; Upper Sixth ; P.T. Instructor ; Member of Duffers, Green Ribbon Club ; Sgt. in C.C.F. To Army.

J. W. D. HEw!'IT-came 19513-VI (Group II H. & E.)-Upper Sixth; 3rd XI Cricket '55; P.T. Instructor; Member of Green Ribbon Club ; History Essay Prize '54 ; L/Cpl. in C.C.F. To Army and Trinity College, Cambridge.

J. G. P. WmTE-came 19513-V (Group II M.L.)-Member of Music Club; Cpl. in C.C.F. To R.M.A. Sandhurst.

P. C. TAME-came 19523-V (Group IIIB)-Gym Colours '55. To R.A.F. College, Cranwell. M.J. RAISON-came 19532-4c. To Merchant Navy.

ABBEY HOUSE R. T. THOMAS-came 19513-VI (Group II H. & E.)-School Prefect; !st XV '54, '55 ; House Cricket

Colours '55 ; Athletics team and Colours '55 ; Trebles '55 ; P.T. Instructor with Badge ; Member of Frogs; Sgt. in C.C.F. To R.M.A. Sandhurst.

D. G. WELCHMAN-came 19513-VI (Group II H. & E.)-House Prefect; P.T. Instructor; Member of Green Ribbon Club, Wildman, Music Club ; Cpl. in C.C.F. To Army and Business.

J. W. ST. M. SHEIL-came 19513-VI (Group II H. & E.)-Cpl. in C.C.F. To R.M.A. Sandhurst.

118 THE SHIRBURNIAN

THE GREEN A. F. N. DEw-came 19503-VI (Group IIIA)-Head of House; Upper Sixth; 3rd XV '54, 1st XV '55;

2nd XI Cricket '54, 3rd XI Capt. '55 ; P.T. Instructor with Badge ; Member of Duffers, Alchemists ; Junior Plumtre Prize '51 ; Senior Plumtre Prize '53, '55; C.S.M. in C.C.F. To Army and Cambridge.

R. A. HAINES-came 1951,-VI (Group II H. & E.)-House Prefect ; 3rd XV '51, 1st XV '54, '55 ; 7-a-sides team '55; Athletics team '51, '52, '53, Colours '54, '55; P.T. Instructor; Member of Wildman; L.S. in C.C.F. (Naval Section). To Royal Marines and Canada.

T. R. M. HAYWARD-Came 19512-VI (Group II H. & E.)-House Prefect; 3rd XV '54, 2nd XV '55; House Cricket Colours '55 ; Athletics team '55 ; P.T. Instructor ; Sgt. in C.C.F. To Army and Business.

M.J. KENYON-came 19512-VI (Group IIIB)-House Prefect; 2nd XV '55; 3rd XI Cricket '54, 2nd XI '55; Boxing team '52, '53 ; P.T. Instructor; Sgt. in C.C.F. To Army and Business.

G. RADFORD-Came 19513-VI (Group II H. & E.)-Member of Green Ribbon Club, Wildman ; L/Cpl. in C.C.F. To Army and Oxford.

T. H. D. NEVE-came 19521-V (Medical)-2nd XI Cricket '55. To Army and Agriculture. M. T. BECKETr-came 19523-V (Modem Studies). To Agriculture.

HARPER HOUSE R. P. BENNETr-came 19522-V (Modem Studies)-Junior Gym Squad '55. To Business.

ABBEYLANDS C. M. PAYNE-came 19511-VI (Group IIIA)-School Prefect ; Upper Sixth ; 1st XV '54, '55 ; 7-a-sides team

'55 ; 2nd XI Hockey '54, 1st XI '55 ; Athletics team '52, '53, Colours '54, '55 ; P.T. Instructor with Badge ; Member of Duffers, Alchemists, Wildman ; Plumtre Prize for Mathematics '52 ; Sgt. in C.C.F. To Army and Oxford.

R. M. PIRIE-came 19511-VI (Medical)-School Prefect; 2nd XV '54; 3rd XI Cricket '54, 2nd XI '55 ; 1st XI Hockey '55 ; P.T. Instructor ; Member of Wildman ; Cpl. in C.C.F. To Army.

LYON HOUSE P. N. B. SHADDICK-came 19513-VI (Group 1)-School Prefect; Editor of The Shirburnian; Upper Sixth;

Shooting Colours '54, Capt. '55 ; P.T. Instructor ; Member of Duffers, Wildman, Interpretes ; School Latin Prize '55 ; Wildman Latin Prose '55 ; Cpl. in C.C.F. To Army.

A. K. GOLDSMITH-came 1951 2-VI (Group II H. & E.)-House Prefect; Editor of The Shirburnian; Upper Sixth; P.T. Instructor; Member of Duffers; Deb. Sec. Wildman; Hon. Sec. Green Ribbon Club; History Essay Prize '54; English Essay Prize '55 ; Senior Langmuir '55 ; Cpl. in C.C.F. Scholarship to Trinity College, Oxford. To Prep. School.

H. C. WATSON-came 1951'-VI (Group IIIB)-House Prefect; P.T. Instructor; C.Q.M.S. in C.C.F. To Army. .

C. W. M. PENN-came 19512-VI (Group IIIB)-House Rugger Colours '55; P.O. in C.C.F. (Naval Section). To Navy and Business. •

G. S. HODGSON-came 19532-V (Modem Studies)-Member of James Rhoades. To Business.

WESTCOTT HOUSE No departures.

We take off our hats to :-

The master who was overheard to remark, "The Bursar and I are the only two practical men in the School." The master who warned a boy that once he had pickled himself, he could not be unscrambled. The master who ordered " Don't put it in the fire. Bum it ! " The master who informed his boys that the sole object of being in his form was not passing exams.

THE SHIRBURNIAN

STOP PRESS 1st XV.

Nov. 12th v. Downside. Away. Lost 0-3.

Nov. 19th v. Marlborough. Home. Lost 0-6.

Nov. 26th v. St. Mary's Hospital "A". Home. Won 8-6.

2nd XV. Nov. 12th v. Bruton. Home. Won 12-3.

Nov. 19th v. Clayesmore. Away. Won 9-0. Nov. 26th v. Bryanston. Away. Draw 11-11.

3rd XV. Nov. 12th v. Crewkerne. Cancelled. Nov. 19th v. Yeovil School. Home. Won 23-3

Nov. 26th v. Downside. Away, Draw 3-3.

Colts. Nov. 12th v. Downside. Away. Won 11-3. Nov. 19th v. Clayesmore. Away. Won 34-0. Nov. 26th v Kingswood. Home. Won 24-11.

Colours A. F. N. Dew R. J. Hodgson M. V. Taylor A. A. Cassidy M. D. Murray M. Whitaker P. B. Fanner

M. Maley Watherston Brown S. F. M. MacDonnell Spry Wilson P. M.

Parsons Knott Waugh

The Editors cannot accept responsibility for any misprints in the Stop Pres5,

119

CONTEMPORARIES

The Editors of The Shirburnian would like to acknowledge the receipt

of many other school magazines.

--

NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS.

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If an article is to be continued m successive numbers, the whole is to be sent in at once.

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