BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL

Evening Star, Issue 21903, 14 December 1934, Page 7

BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL

IMPORTANT YEAR CONCLUDED HI! HOWIE STEWART AT BREAK-UP Enumerating . the vital. activities ot the Otago Boys’ High School during the past year, Dr G. E. Thompson (chairman of the Board of Governors), at ‘ the break-up ceremony in the town ' Hall last night, said that the period had again been'a most important one. '' ‘lt had been, he said, the first year tor ‘ the new rector (Mr H. RKidson). who had earned , golden opinions ( ™ m J” branches of the community. Ijbe year had also brought the Government s con- ■ sent to the adoption of a new son or daughter (it was difficult to say which) ■ in the form of a new school at South Dunedin. A time came in the growth • of a school when the building was no longer amenable. The old school had ■ grown too small for the accommodation 5f- all its pupils, and for years the . Board of Governors had been forced to give serious consideration to the prob- ■ lem of accommodation or to look toward to the -future with some misgiv- > ™ The board had placed before the Government many representations beseech- - ing it to provide more accommodation •to satisfy the ever-growing numbers ot scholars. Architecturally so fine, the . old school, building unfortunately eouW , not be extended, and in at least one respect was immune from any renova- . tion.. To cope with the problem the Government had indicated its consent . to the erection of the new school, which, .... it was expected, would be ready to open at. the beginning of 1936. MR DOWNIE STEWART’S ADDRESS. ... ‘‘Borne day L may write a hook en- ' titled ‘ The Romance of the Old Boys, dealing with those men who.have passed througk the school and travelled to (Jo great service in out-of-the-way, corners ■ of the earth—and most certainly J i should mention that the most famous old boy throughout the Empire is the ; speaker of to-night,” said,Dr Thompson when calling upon Mr W. Do "’"’ e e ' art M.P.. to address the gathenng. ; ' —Mr Stewart said that he would begin by saying what might seem something very trite and, obvious, and that was that many changes had taken place the school since, he was there.- That was hardly surprising when he told them, that his attendance at the school took place in the last decade or the illustrious reign of Queen Victoria. Among these many changes there was ' one that would, he believed, commend itself to the present boys of. the school, and that was, that the speeches at the break-up ceremony had. become shorter, “ while the prize list had grown longer. If fact, if the prizes had been as numerous in his day as they now were he ‘ might have got one himself. —(Laughter.) But so far as the shortness of ; the speech was concerned, he did not ■ wish to raise their hopes unduly, because in Parliament they often thought themselves fortunate if a member stopped speaking at the end oI an hour. He would; however, try on this occasion -' to temper the. wind to the shorn lamb, though they might hardly recognise " themselves as lambs. He would say, rather, that he would temper the wind to the impatience of youth, remembering that break-up day was primarily their day, and only incidentally the day of proud parents and masters.. At ’ “least he hoped the masters were proud of them. If they were, that was. perhaps another change since he was at school.r—(Laughter.) The fact was that oven at school he thought the speech that took place on, break-up day should be given at the beginning and not at the end of the year, because when . some speaker painted a glowing .picture of how easy it was to be top of the class if one worked ' hard and with indefatigable energy and -untiring zeal, he was seized with a desire, to rush off at once to his school hooks and put this advice to the test, hut, alas, the year had gone and seven weeks’ holiday in the country effaced from his memory this simple method of winning - prizes, and so next year started like its predecessor.—(Laughter.) If the speech , had been given on the day school resumed, it would have inspired him to work, besides serving the useful purpose of filling in time and cutting short one day’s drudgery. There was one respect, however, in which, he ventured to think the school had not changed. The boys were much the same as they always had been. They were not’ yet quite angels, nor were they,-on the other hand, complete ... rascals. /He supposed it was safe to say that the boys were still a judicious mixture of good and bad. They had often been, told, Mr Stewart added, that their school days were the happiest of their lives. He did not agree with that view- 11 1 think,” he continued, “that Mark Twain, who was a philosopher as well as a humorist, was right when he said that we only think our school days were the happiest —that it is an illusion due to the fact that the human mind is so constituted

that viewing things in retrospect we tend only to remember tho pleasant things, and forget the unpleasant. Of course, it is foolish to dogmatise, as so much -depends on each case. But 1 don’t want you to accept tho view that when your school days are past the happiest days of your life are gone. On the contrary, unless fate deals very harshly with you, I think you will find that life becomes more interesting,

‘more thrilling, more adventurous, and more satisfying the further you travel along the highway of experience. For one reason, while you are at school you are- like snips in a harbour—sheltered and protected—which is safe but monotonous. But when, you put out to sea there is certainly more danger and peril, but there is more adventure. You have to measure your strength and brains against the many problems with which life will face you. And if you have the right attitude towards Hie—if you have found the secret of happiness, you will find life gets richer and more satisfying as you go on. “ If you ask me what is the right attitude and what is the secret of hap-

piness I cannot help you much there, - because each man must discover that for himself. But it will help you to > find the secret if yor carry out the •principles your masters are more qualified to teach you than I am. That is to say, it will help if you keep physically fit and healthy by sports or exercise, and that is almost unnecessary advice to New Zealand boys. But you must also discipline yourself to put up with drudgery , and, hard work, and I assume you have' already done that. You ! must have what I call a positive attitude to life and not a negative, a plus and not a minus attitude. By that. I mean you must see the best in your fellow men and not the worst. Shun as you would the devil men who are cynical, sarcastic, censorious, and always belittling other people. They will make you grow hard and cold. If you want to get the best out of people you must see the best there is in them, and the finest characters and the happiest are those who maintain their faith an human nature in spite of occasional disappointments!

“ The world that you are entering on is a much more difficult, much more complex, world than my .generation had to face. In fact, it is in a sad/ tangle. We went out'from schbol into a world where all was normal. It was a prosperous and busy world, where every newcomer was welcome, where prices were steadily rising, where opportunities abounded, and it was still not unusual for the office boy or the message boy to become a great industrial or financial magnate or a wealthy sheepfarmer. But you are coming out on a world that is in a state of transition — that is, in a .ferment. It seems to me one of those periods that history shows us come at long intervals. Humanity is on the march’. The air .is full, of change; old ideas have been laid aside; all our old institutions —Parliament democracy and social standards arid customs —are under challenge. In short, it is a complex and puzzling world that your generation is coming to grapple with, but it is also a fascinating ono filled with infinite possibilities in every branch of life. The best brains in every country are working to solve the problems that face us, and as they are gradually solved, 1 believe, you will see unfold a world more maryellous and more, mysteriously beautiful and entrancing than anything, your fathers thought possible.” (Applause.) In moving into this new era, the speaker continued, the obligation would be on the boys whom he was addressing to play a great part. ’ They were the produce of one of the groat publio schools—a school already rich in traditions, with a fine record.’ Its sons were to be found in positions of importance and responsibility in all parts of the world, in the north, south, east, and west, in civilised and uncivilised countries, and the burden and privilege was.

kid upon his audience because of the fine training and opportunities they had had to become the leaders of the nation in. all walks of life, in business, in the professions, in farming, in the churches, and in.public.affairs., To cope with the problems that would face them xn, all these spheres they would need cool heads and warm hearts—cool heads so that they might ; not be carried away by every emotional demagogue or visionary who put forward, some panacea,,And warm hearts in order that they might keep alive warm human sympathy for those less fortunate than themselves. When he was at the war he met a British “Tommy” in France,\a regular army soldier, who had fought in' many countries and on many frontiers. He said to the soldier: “That’s a very young officer you have-; —he looks a mere schoolboy.” The soldier replied: “ Yes, sir, he’s only a lad, but he’ll do us—he’s game—he’s a gentleman—he’s ,an English public schoolboy, and he won’t let us down.” “I hope,” Mr Stewart concluded, “that such a tribute will always be paid to boys of my old school when they are called on to lead their fellowmen through the, tangled maze of our present-day industrial, social, and political problems. They will have to.qualify for these tasks, of course. But the foundations should be already sound if you begin with the standards of conduct and work that your rector and masters are teaching you. I now wish you all a happy Christmas, a splendid holiday, and each and all success and good fortune in your future careers.” (Loud applause. 1 MR F. H. CAMPBELL HONOURED. During the course of the ceremony many tributes were paid to .the fiftytwo years’ service (now terminated) of Mr F. H. Campbell, principal master and head'of the rectory. Dr Thompson said that a further reason why the past year had been a memorable one was that the school was losing Mr Campbell; It was not easy, he said, to speak adequately on that subject, but he asked leave to read the minute which the Board of Governors had unanimously passed in appreciation of the services Mr Campbell had performed- during his long term at the school. After reading the minute (previously published), Dr Thompson an-, nounced that it had been decided to rename the present rectory' Campbell House, in order that the rector’s house, might be given its proper name and that there would be no further confusion. (Loud applause.) Mr Campbell s successor as head of the house would be Mr O. J. Begg. “ We are sarry to say good-bye to our distinguished and loyal friend, ‘ Barney ’ Campbell,” said Mr L. A. Rhodes (president of the Old Boys’. So 7. ciety). He added that Mr .Campbell’s influence had been felt during his long term of devoted service, and his name was mentioned with pride and respect wherever old boys met in all parts of the Empire. As Mr Downie Stewart had remarked at the Old Boys’ Society’s farewell a week previously, Mr Camphell’s name would always be remembered in the annals of the school’s history.

“ Mr Campbell has built in the school a monument more lasting than bronze,” said the Rector. Mr was the recipient of a copy of the board’s minute of appreciation, illuminated and bound in morocco, and upon his accepting the token the old boys present. performed the school haka, and the present schoolboys gave three cheers; MR CAMPBELL REPLIES. “ I could not be anything but a proud man to know my work has been appreciated,” Mr Campbell said in reply. The work had been there, he continued, and he had not laid any special claim to it. He had always been interested in the boys, not so much in school—where they had had to do their work, and most of them had done it willingly—but it had been outside the school where he had been able to judge their true character. He found pleasure in the fact that most of the boys who had been in his charge were now his personal friends. ‘ He thanked everyone for the many tributes bestowed upon

him, and- gave the assurance that as long as he was spared his interests would always be with the Otago Boys High School. Further hakas and cheers were given.

PRIZES DISTRIBUTED. Introducing Miss Stewart, Dr Thompson said that it was the first time in many years—within his meinory—that the prize winners were to receive their prizes not from the hard, toil-worn hand of a man, but from the gracious fingers of a woman, and what was more significant, an ex-scholar of the school hsister institution, the Girls’ Hig! School. .. ,f On behalf of the school a pupil pre seated Miss Stewart with a bouquet. ’ Distribution of special prizes was then carried out by Miss Stew’art, who latei also handed out the form prizes, Chamber of Commerce prizes were presented by Mr C. J. Darracott (vicepresident), who said that the Chamber of Commerce always interested itself in the work of the school, and was prom of the .many fine, men who had passe< through its ranks. He congratulate collectively the boys who had been successful in winning the prizes donated by the chamber, and wished them every success in whatever occupation they decided to fallow upon leaving school. DUX PRESENTED. Presenting the dux (William Gordon Davidson), the Rector said that Davidson had come from the St. Clan School, which also had provided the four,..previous duxes, and whose , head master (Mr T W R. Coombs) was an old hoy of the High School. Davidson had been a consistent, prize winner, was captain of the third eleven, a keen membei ot the Dramatic Society, a good debater, an efficient n.c.o. in the Cadets, and was the bass drummer in the school orchestra. He was a boy of sound character, was entirely reliable, and , had plenty of enterprise. It gave the. staff and be great- satisfaction and P'easiuo to introduce Davidson as, the winner of that very high distinction. , ’ The dux received from Miss Stewart the Board of Governors’ gold medal and the Dux Association’s book prize. thanks to board ,and staff. Moving a vote of thanks ' to ■ the Board’of Governors, the-.rector, and the Staff, Mr ’ Rhocfes said dhat the affairs of the school were being administered in.a competent, satisfactory T.nd businesslike mannei. Ihe hoys, their parents, the staff, the people of Dimec&i; in fact, the of Nen Zealand, perhaps unknown ■■. to them owed a deep debt of gratitude to the Board of Governors .for giving voluntarily their services m the furtherance of secondary school education in Otago Mr Kidson had-: already made himself at home, and his tact and thoughtful endeavours' as rector had done much to foster a spirit of goodwill among the boys, tho staff, and Tiimself. Ho had realised the wonderful traditions that surrounded the old school. Mr W. J. Morrell and previous rectors had set a high - standard which Mr Kidson fully appreciated. He was” .the right . ma, l in the right place. The speaker claimed that without exaggeration the school had a'staff of which it and ail associated with it could bb rightly proud. Tho masters were capable and ,mterested in their, duties, and were always willing,. apart from ordinary routine requirements, to assist the boys. . Their professional ability was of a very high standard, and they took their part in the outside activities of the school. But unfortunately the, time was drawing nigh when the Staff must suffer a “break.”' When the new school opened many, vacancies would occur at both schools on that account. Some of tho old school’s masters , would be appointed to staff the new school; they honesty deserved the promotion, and all would wish them well when the opportunity arose. The vote of thanks was carried by acclamation. , RECTOR’S REPLY. The Rector thanked Mr Rhodes for his message of goodwill, and also the Board of Governors, on the first occasion that ho had been able, to do so publicly, for appointing him head of the school. He realised to the full that it was a great honour, and that his position was one of great responsibility. Thanking Mr_ Downie Stewart for his address, Mr Kidson said that he felt they could have had none better to speak to the boys, and he personally wished to have no other. Mr Stewart stood steadfastly for the foursquare. principles that those in the schools strived to impart, and he asked the boys to remember what he had said. The staff comprised an able, hard-working group of masters, who had been loyal to him during his first year at the school, and they had done their utmost to make natters easy for him. The impending disintegration of, the staff, with Mr Campbell’s retirement and the vacancies that would be caused by the opening of the new school, was looked upon by him with a feeling of regret, and he' would be glad when the school settled down again to rebuild its fine standard. To the boys who were leaving the school he said that they were metaphorically ships that were beginning a journey. They were setting forth with white sails, and the school had tried to teach. ,fhem some of the places where the richest cargo- might be found. He hoped that their journey through life would be a pleasant ’ one. He wished the other boys a happy holiday, and advised them to see as much of the open country as they could,- so that they might return to school- next year refreshed and ready to resume their study with renewed vigour. Accompanied by the school orchestra,, making its first public appearance,' tho scholars sang 1 Otago High ’ and ‘ The Otago High School Song ’ during the evening. A vote of thanks to Mr John Haggitt (an old hoy) for training the hoys in the singing and to Air C. Roy Spackman for conducting the orchestra was carried by acclamation. , -