GISBORNE HIGH SCHOOL

Gisborne Times, Volume LXIII, Issue 10065, 1 August 1925, Page 9

GISBORNE HIGH SCHOOL

THIRTY YEARS OF -PROGRESS

Fifth Largest Secondary Institution in N.Z.

* There’s a breathless; hush on the close to-night ; Ten to make and a match to win. A bumping pitch, and a blinding light, An hour to play and the last man in. • , And it’s not. for the sake of a ribboned coat, Nor tlie selfish hope of a season’s fame, But his captain’s hand on his shoulder smote. Play up! Play up! and play the . game.

examination on her fourteenth birthday. In 1899 Miss Mills was. appointed assistant and on her resignation Miss Aitken, then in 1903 Mr Kinder was appointed to the position. RETIREMENT OF MR, E, 11. MANN

On September 30, 1906, after eighteen years service, Mr Mann severed his connection with the school, buying seen it started bumble beginnings to a position where it was established on a sound basis and had turned out many scholars have since made a- name for themseives in, many parts of the world. With the retirement of Mr Mann, Mr Kinder was appointed to the position and the school contiuucd on much the same lues as hicherto. Sports were hampered by the lack of playing fields but it is interesting to note that by this time the pupils. were gradually asserting themselves in the world or sport and in addition to sundry local football fixtures, there were occasional matches with the Napier . High School and the Napier-Main. Cricket was seldom heard of.. .Rifle shooting was popular with the hoys and frequent’ trips were made to the country. The greatest and most remembered event 3 however, was a trip to Christchurch. The girls also took a keen interest in tennis and hotkey. SCHOOL SHIFTED TO STANLEY ROAD. In the latter part of 1908, the Board (if Governors after several conferences, decided to establish an independent school and specialise in agriculture. Tlie venue of the school -,\”is then shifted to the present site in Stanley road and Mr A. R. Gatland was appointed headmaster or the institution. From then on the scope of the school’s activities widened. the new headmaster taking up both the outdoor and indoor work with characteristic enthusiasm and both in regard to scholastic attainment and on the field of sport gradually made a name for itself. Sports dav was an eagerly anticipated event while the Cadet Corps became a flourishing institution. Regular football matches were p’ayod under tlie auspices of the Union. The girls in hockey matches had a formidable team and won tlie ladies’ competition in 1911 and 1912. Scholastically the school quickly began to be successful and two .inn or national scholarships were gained during Mr Gat’and’s regime, the successful students being G. Redpatli (who Ins since clone meritorious service as a medical officer in the war) ancl A. M. Rhinesmith, who, after a brilliant University career, lost bis life at the war. It was during this tunc that Messrs F. J. Wi’kes and G. T. Maunder joined the staff

The old school. What a; host of happy recollections hover round its precincts. Friendships formed and strengthened that only death can sever; characters moulded and destinies shaped; boys and giiis fitted to “play the game” through life. Such a story can be told of many of the schools in the land and well to the fore among the secondary schools of New Zealand stands the Gisborne High School. Starting from very humble beginnings over 37 years ago, with 17 pupils, sharing a room m the Primary School with sixth standard pupils, it has grown to the massive structure of to-day, with a staff of 19 and a roll of 452 pupils. FORMATION OF THE SCHOOL Until the middle of the ‘eighties, there were no facilities for secondary education in this district Once boys or girls had passed through the seventh standard in the primary school there was little or no opportunity for them to advance any further in the district. There were certainly no opportunities for free education and the day of correspondence schools, in which it is possib'e for any boy or girl possessing the perseverance and ability to gain the requisite knowledge of most subjects had yet to come. Gisborne was isolated and to the large majority of the pupils to pass cut of the primary school with average honors was considered a sufficient education with which .to start the battle of life. This state of tilings was considered far from satisfactory by many of the far-seeing residents this district and continued agitation on their part resulted' in Parliament passing legislation entitled “Gisborne Hicrh School Act' 1885.” By tlie Act a Board of six was appointed—two members by the Governor and two each of the Borough Council and the Cook County Council. The first meeting was convened by the then Minister of Education. Sir Robert Stout, on December 12, ISBS. The members were: Bishop (then Archdeacon) Williams. chairman. Rev. John McArn. Messrs. J. Woodbine Johnstone. David Johnstone, Andrew Graham and C. A. de Lautour (lion, secretary). The only funds available for the Board were the amount of £274 cash hi hand and an annual income of £245. With this amount it- was found .impossible to establish an independent school, and. after careful investigation, the Board realised that their only alternative was to subsidise secondary classes in connection with the primary school.

Mil FOOTE APPOINTED RECTOR. In 1912 All- Gat land resigned from the position of Principal and Air I bote was appo.nt.ed. AJr. Gatland did not leave the school until the end of tlie first term in 1914, and those who remember him with Ins unfailing geniality and manliness, will recall him as one who lias helped greatly to mould the characters and shape the destinies of many of the pupils who passed through his hands. RE AI ARK ABLE INCREASE OF PUPILS. Under the control of Air Foote the school started on an era of progress and lias developed with almost nmaziu<r rapidity. When Air Foote tookcharge in i 913 tlie number of pupils on tlie roll was 93. and an indication of the rapid development can be taken from the following figures representing the average roll number each year up to the present: 1913, 93; 1914, 128; 1915, 157; 1916, 176; 1917 18,5; 1917, 185; 1918, 185; 1919, 227; 1920. 268; 1921, 292; 1922, 345; 1923. 395; 1824, 4.35; and the present year with a roll number oi 452, the’ largest secondary school in the Dominion outside the four centres. 5 The Rectory was estabj shcd in Mr Gatland’s term as principal and was accommodating a limited number of pupils, there being 12 buys there in 1913. It, is interest ng to note that among the successful pupils who matriculated that year wore the present secretary to the Board, Air C--H. Bull and Dr. H. Angcll, at present- practising Iris profession in Gisborne. Up to 1913 no movement bad been made to improve the grounds ancl during that year a start was made. Some three hundred trees and shrubs were planted and the grounds were properly fenced. .Annual swimming and athletic sports were held aiid°tlie school concerts given by the pnp’ls at the end of each term were eagerly anticipated hv all. At the beginning of 1914 tlie Board rented a building in Childers Road as a temporary hostel for the girls and this was under the control of Aliss Barr.

APPOINTMENT OF FIRST MASTER.

The District High School was then constituted and early in 188 S the Hawke’s Bay Education Board advertised for a secondary schoolmaster at a salary of £IBO per year. After considerable difficulty the Board obtained the services of Mr E. H. Mann, then a young man recently arrived from England with practically, no, recommendation for the position apart from the fact that he had had an Oxford education. Mr Mann even to this day can give no tangible reason as to wliy he accepted the post, as at the time he accepted it lie had three other positions offered him. The advice he received from a Wellington member. however, was not very favorable when lie was advised “Not to be a fool; Gisborne is a wretched place, notorious for typhoid, dust and lawyers!” Mr Mann’s reception on his arrival was not exactly cordial 'as nobody in the district would accept anv responsibility for him and, apart from the fact that he was granted a portion of a room in the Gisborno primary school he was given no further assistance in establishing the school. THE FIRST CLASS On February 28, ISBB. the first class was opened at one end of a long class room of the primary school without even a curtain separating them from tlio noisy scholars at the other end of the room., This state of affairs did not last for long, however, and after several weeks argument over the rent, tlie school was finally established in the Church of England hall (the building now occupied by the Gisborno Tyro Surgery). There, were seventeen scholars at tlie opening of the schools, their names, with tjie.r present addresses where known, being as follows: Frank Henderson (now accountant at Cave Bros.). Percy Matthews. James Poynter (sheepfarmer, • Manutnke), Edward O’Meara (secretary of ilio Hamilton Jockey C üb). James Young (now bolding a, responsible position in a largo commercial town in TT.S.xY.). Claude Stubbs. Jessie Hall (Mrs McKenzie), Mabel do Lautour (Mrs. Dr. Hughes), Edith Faram. (Gisborne!, Emma Dixon (Mrs Cant. Chrisp. Kaiti), Fanny Baker, Robert Scott (sheepfarmer Luba), Blanche Bouillon, Reginald Skipworth. Nellie Steele (Gisborne), John Grnhrm (sheep-former, Wnimatn), Harold Lysnar (dentist.. Auckland), and later in the year C a vide Morgan (sheepfarmer in Hawke’s Bay). Second year mipils included Messrs H. H. do Costa, and J. Peach, D. Watt (who In's since been all over the world), Colin Dunlop, Wc-llwood Reeves. Louie Sherriff, Hilton Lysnar. L’llv Witty nil .still remaining in the Gisborne district. In the early years of the school the so e aim of tlie pupds at school was to cram for exams, no provision being made for sport and, indeed, with tlie linrted number of scholars and the sma’l school grounds, tjiere was practically no opportunity o. indulging in the sports and pastimes enjoyed by the present day pupils. | “SWATS” FROM THE FIRST.

FIGHTING .FOR THE EMPIRE. This was the first year of the great war, on the be ds of which many of ex-students and masters of the school were to distinguish themselves and no less than 17 were to make the supreme sacrifice. The news convng to hand during one Christmas holidays that Lieutenant A. F. Castles a former master, had been killed in France, east quite a- gloom over the scho'firs, who will always remember him as a sport and one who, though lie always expected his. pupils to work, was ready and willing to understand the bovs under bis control. Poor old “Toby,” as bo was cal ed by the hoys, will ever be remembered bv all who knew him wjth affection and esteem. During 191-1 the school cadets made their last, appearance under Copt. Gotland, attending a review by Sir lan Hamilton at Hastings. The trip on the Monowri will bo remembered by all who made it and the fact remains und smited that No. 19 Gey. was the best Compnnv attending the review from this distr’et and there was only one or two that beat it among the many cadet com pa ires at the review, the foundation stone of the Girls’ Hostel was laid bv the late Hon. W. D. oMacDonald* in 1914 and ; t was opened, in tire last term of 1915. Hie seboo bv this tfnifi was deve oping rajhcnj and in all branches of its activities pupils were distinguishing themselves. TWO-STOREY ADDITION BEING built.

An indication of how the pupfls ’■‘swatted” may be taken from the fact that in the second year of the school’s existence seven pupils were entered for the matriculation exam and six were successful, rhe school was established, however, 1 and despite numerous setbacks in the way or limited finance, continued to prosper until in 1895 arrangement was made with the Education Board whereby an experiment was tried of runtime a separate school under the. control ol the school committee in the top storey of the present technical school on the Gisborne school grounds. The plan was doomed to fail, however, and after causing a large amount of friction, plans at the end of the year were made with the Education Board under which funds. wore made .available for carrying on as a District High School for ten years longer. Until the year 1899 tli'e school was under the "sole charge of Mr Mann and the pupils were more or less scientmoallv crammed with a stock of facts • sufficient- for. them i'Jio. pass, the , B mlyers’ty Entrance Examination. -One -pupil,' Jo ssie -Hal 1 i passed the mat ric:

During the whole of Mr Foote s .regime several scho’ars have passed through the school to bigl.liant University careers and it is interesting to note the increasing number ot pupils that are passing - each yea* through the school to the Univers ty centres. The social life, through the medium'of debnt'ng societies, camera clubs, school orchestras and various other activities, have tended greatly to add to the tone of the school and bv so combining work with plaY school life has been robbed of its drudgery and! will ever be looked hack oil by scholars with happy remembrances. During Mr Foote’s term of-office several alterations have been made to the school buildings and the trees and' shrubs growing up around +he well kept grounds are giving tlio •school quite a venerable appearance, a. fit place around which,-, centres tne memories of hundreds of: men>and Women in thewor’d. .to-day.-; The; tendance at the school now. has made

it necessary to erect further additions,_ as all the class-rooms are fully, ..occupied and it is becoming increasingly difficult to accommodate tlie pupils. A large two-storeyed addition is therefore being built to tlie north wing, which will contain six large class rooms built .on modem lines, the main feature being the large frame windows occupying most of the wall space and allowing plenty of sun to reach the class rooms. A portion of the contract for the''Memorial Baths has already been let and when they are completed they will lie an additional asset to help maintain the claim of all the students and ex-stud-ents that the school is second to none in tlie Dominion.

AVHERE ARE THEY ALL?

Doctors, clergymen, accountants, lawyers, farmers, engineers, commercial and insurance magnates, one and all manfully playing their part in the battle of life. W lie re are they all ? Scattered wide and far to the uttermost ends of the globe. Singapore, Canada, London, China, Argentine, all have representatives, boy or girl, of tlio old school, each ‘ ex-student holding within the sacred precincts of his nxind . the most cherished recollections of his school days. A glorious and noble record with ever increasing traditions that will lie revered and guarded by : her pupils till the end of their days. Yet, what has been dono to foster those cherished memories, those friendships formed and cemented by the common bond? Nothing, practically nothing. A sprit of apathy seems ' to have cast ‘a spell over her students. Tlie spell was only temporary, however, for the ev-er-increasing activity during tlio Inst few weeks towards reviving, the Old Students’ ’Association has made iij evident that tlie students have-not forgotten. They were niere'y awaiting some movement in which they could meet together under the common bond of tlie Gisborne High School and revive the happy recollections ol : the, past. The meeting next week promises to be tlie largest in the school’s history and it is confidently hoped that from it will emanate one of tlio strongest institutions of tlie distret. The movement is worthy of the attention of a 1! and no scholar worthv> of being called an ex-High S'choolite should fail to attend, even if at the risk of personal inconvenience.