WAITAKI OLD BOYS.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19786, 26 November 1929, Page 13

WAITAKI OLD BOYS.

REUNION IN LONDON. ADDRESS BY MR MILNEK. LONDON, O tol-'.' 5 1 '. The annual dinner of the AVaitaki ».." ■■'- 8..v„- Association of Great Britain ws; hold ai the Tmcadero Restaurant on October *>th. when thp headmaster, Mr Frank Miln.-r. C.M.G.. was v rPs,:nt - Mr A. F.. Hasiam prcsidv.i and "f the evening was Mr BuiHf c>Kvans, s"vr«?tary of the Public J-thoo's Emjdovment Uurt-au. Proposing the health of Mr Bulk'.UyEvans, Mr Hasiam referred to bis c\o»assoriation with Mr Milner m the scheme under which some twenty English public school boys bad gone out t" Waitaki to prepare themselves for lit' on the land in New Zealand. "1 here tii.v are to be under Mr Milner s guardianship. He is to exhibit towards thpm, to adopt a medieval expression about Xh" fourt of Chancery 'the watehJ"u!u''si i>f ;i nursing father." r lhe arrival of boys from the public schools of England should be of great benefit to Waitaki. Fresh blood is always bene ti'-ial, and I ran think of no better iptluohop to bring into the school than that of the English public school "boy." , i \ pplauho.'/ Mr Bulkelpy-Evans faid ".My i.- \*>ry much in the subject of public -■■hool boy migration, and I have tried to get boys worthy of their opportunity. The old scheme, which achieved a large measure rf success, has gone, as :■>; hemes do when there are changes of Government. Now the new scheme has come up. and J hope it will develop. The Government, however, is not likely to hplp any private schemes in New Zealand at present. "The boy.s we send out mu:-t have capital. It is no good sending out boys from good homes to be farm labourer? all their lives. It is, however, a tremendous problem for parents to fit them out with sufficient capital. I am sorry that the scheme has been cold-shoulder-ed by the Government and that, as a result, the outlook at the moment is about as dark as it has ever been." Proposing the toast of "Mr Milner, and the School," Dr. A. J. ilarrop said that the schools of New Zealand were engaged in a very wholesome rivalry. "I think I may, without undue pride say that Waitaki is among the leaders in the race. Have we not in our genial chairman to-night an example of the results of Waitaki's training! Coming to England with his LL.M. and a Ehodes Scholarship, he qualifies for his Oxford doctorate and strokes his college boat almost simultaneously. Not content with this, he proposes to spend his third year at Oxford not in legitimate ease iti that city of dreaming spires and lo«,t causes, but in adding to his honours the degree of Bachelor of , Common Lntv*,. (Applau.se.) I feel that the very fact that Old Boys in England meet together to preserve their connexion with the school is in itself an eloquent tribute. The school is carrying on in good style in Mr Milner's absence, undor the able guidance of Mr McCulloeh. Victories at Rugby against Christchurch and Timaru send a thrill through us, even at this distance. Of Mr Milner himself it is unnecessary for me to say a : great deal. The. reception he has had in this> country is adequate proof of < the reputation he has won for Wai- : taki and for himself."' (Applause.) Meeting the First Bector. Mr Milner said: "It is a very fine tribute to the school that you are able to keep this institution going so < far away from New Zealand. It forms a social" agency wherein Old Boys can . fraternise, and. by keeping in touch with the school, gather in intensified measure the fruits of that collegiate spirit which is growing with the years. : From n huge mass of 75 letters from boys which I had by a recent mail, 1 gather that my absence has caused, if anything, an accentuation of vitality in the life of Waitaki. (Laughter.) 'T want to tell you how I came recently to meet Mr John Harkness, the first Rector of Waitaki. Blundell was playing cricket for Cambridge at Cheltenham, when a gentleman approached him and said that he had heard that he was a New Zealander. He asked if Blundell knew Oamaru, and when he replied that he had been educated at Waitaki, Mr Harkness, for it was h> . remarked: "That is a pleasant surprise. I was the first Eector there.'" there.' " Mr Milner then described bow he had located Mr Harkness at Cheltenham with Mr Eobert Milligan's aid, and had had a long talk with him on the early days of the school—the more t important, because some of the early records had been destroyed. Mr Harkness had promised to write down his reminiscences for publication in the official history which would appear at the time of the school's jubilee in 1933. The original plan of Waitaki had been too closelv on the lines of Eton for colonial conditions, and by insisting on the school's national character the governors had to some extent alienated loral Bvmpathy. "As a result," Mr Milner said, "Mr Harkness went through a somewhat purgatorial experipneo. but I can Fay that, after listening to him. my respect for him is unbounded. Very few men would think of prospects such as he relinquished in going to New Zealand without the iron entering into their soul. The Queen's Interest. Mr Milner referred briefly to his andience with the Prince of Wales, and added that when he was presented to the Queen at Buckingham Palace she said: "My two sons have both told me of Waitaki. Why didn't we see it when we were there?" Three Important Conferences. Referring to three world conferences he had attended as a representative of New Zealand, Mr Milner said that the conference of education societies _ at Geneva bad been very loosely organised but he had met there distinguished people from all over the world and was impressed with the atmosphere of international sympathy which prevailed. At the conference on new ideals in education at Elsinore he had learned a great deal of present day movements towards the development of the whole personality of the individual. Finally, he had i attended the W.E.A. Conference at Cambridge, and he had heard many fine scholars. "After attending these conferences." Mr Milner went on, "I am convinced that the real hope of democracy lies in enriching the life of the rising generation. The future of civilisation is menaced if the future citizens are not better equipped to face the complex demands which the new civilisation makes. Unless the necessary expenditure is facpd, not only will there be much genius missed, but the possibilities of the various 'isms' which batten on the ignorance of the masses, will be greatly enhanced." ' "After a journey of Srtnn miles in Oreat Britain. I can see that this country is determined to keep in advance of the progressive movements in education. She feels that her people have a right to a richer and fuller life. What do the great things of the spirit which the generations have left behind mean to millions of people who are defrauded of their heritage!

Appreciation of Cathedrals. "I have seen something of England in my recent travels, and I can now really understand why England is to us on the fringes of the world our spiritual home. The natural beauty of England was to me a revelation, whether in the rich greenery of the spring or in the scarlet and gold finery of autumn. The cathedrals, too, are the greatest witness and vindication in England of the adamantine spiritual basis of English life. Of all of them perhaps I would place first York Minster, by the glory of its windows, not overlaid as in Westminster Abbey by a superfluity of decoration. I gazed at the fan tracery at Gloucester and marvelled at the long devotion by which such wonderful work had been produced. In Winchester Cathedral I was impressed as deeply as ever I have been. As we gazed on the great beams and the lovely reredos screen, a choral service was breaking out in the choirs. The flute-like boyish voices seemed to send a shaft of song against the very gates of Heaven. "At Liverpool I saw that skill in cathedral architecture still exists, and at Edinburgh Castle, built on the living rock, I saw the wonderful war memorial fashioned by the genius of the late Sir Robert Lorimer which is expressive of the whole glory of the nation's exploits by land and sea. "All my travels on the Continent and in this country go towards enhancing mv respect for what England stands fo"r. Everywhere I find a regard for the beautiful things of life and a new devotion to education. To me the most heroic thing of all is the way in which England is facing all her troubles. In these days she is as great as she has ever been in the past, evincing as she does a grim tenacity and a determination to see things through. England is the champion and the standard-bearer of the great principles of justice and equity." (Applause.) Mr Hasiam expressed the pleasure of the Association that Mr E. P. Lee, chairman of the Board of Governors, had been able to attend the two reunions during the year. Mr Lee, in replying, said that in his opinion anyone in New Zealand who was in control of education in any way should visit England at the request of the State. He could not believe that anybody who had not left the Dominion could possibly keep abreast of educational progress. On the motion of Dr. Harrop it was decided to elect Mr Harkness an honorary member of the Association, and to send him a message of greeting and thanks for his work for the School in its earliest days. The following officers were elected: President, Lord Strathspey; conmittee: Messrs A. L. Hasiam (chairman), R. F. de Vries (hon. secretary), L. C. Webb, Dr. R. R. Macintosh, Dr. B. C. Rennie, and Dr. A. J. Harrop. On the motion of Mr Robert Milligan, a hearty vote of thanks was passed to Mr de Tries for his excellent work during the year. "After listening to Mr Milner's "great speech," Mr Milligan said, "I am not in the least surprised at the way in which the Old Boys of Waitaki keep together."