WAITAKI HIGH SCHOOLS.

North Otago Times, 8 December 1910, Page 4

WAITAKI HIGH SCHOOLS.

: -;>..;.■ ■.^■■—-+—-'■■■ :X.T ; ~-DISTRIBUTION'OF PRIZES.;- : : The anmial 'distribution of prl'M'sin connection with the Waitaki -■ I'jlgh; : Schools tcok place ■■last evening : An the Opera House, which was' filled; in ever part, including the stage, upon, which the pupils of the Girls' School ' were accommodated, In the absence of. the Chairman, Mr R. Mllllgan presided, and the other members of the Board of Governors preseat were Messrs Brown, Buckley and Mitchell. There were-also seated on the stage Mrs Buckley (who presented the prizes), Dr Higlrt (of Christchurch, who chief speaker), the Hon, T, Y. Uuncan and G. Jones, the Rovs. Mer,srs. Buckingham, Wright, Williams and Bartlett, the Hector of the Boys' School (Mr Mite)', the Lady Principal of tne Girls' School (Miss Ferguson) and the staffd of the two. echools, Mr Vennall (chairman of the Chamber of Commerce'); end Mr J. Scoon (chairman of the Technical School). ' Owing .to the length of the reports and prize lists we are com--pell&di to hold over reference to the speeches and other proceedings. -Lady Principal's Rcport.I am pleased td (report that the attendance this year -has constituted a record, 'being 7.1, 74 and 67 for the three terms respectively, The .nearest approach" to this was. in 1906, when the numbers were 74, !>8 and .16. Thirty-nine new pupils were enrolled this year, which is also a record number, The increase in numbers in the lower forms will not make itself felt in the upper forms for some time, but I hope in the near future to see the number of matriculation and scholarship candidates largely increased. One junior national and one junior Board schotahip holder have 'heon in regular attendance during the year,, whose conduct, ddllg*nce and progress have given every satisfaction.

Two candidates passed matriculation last year, and four junior civil service (two with credit); while M.ss Laura Fyfe was successful in gaining a junior University, scholarship. Among the successful candidates in the various University classes we note the names of several old Waitaki girls, viz,, Misses Fyfe, Duncan, G. Duncan, Macaulay, Gouldlng, Beattie, ami Copland, In the recent examinations five sat for matriculation, three for junior University scholarship, and five for senior scholarship. In the'ex'amination conducted by Dr Anderson and Mr Gill in October, fifteen recommended candidates passed, the inspectors expressing themselves favorably with regard to I the work of the sohool.

In accordance with the. decision of the Board of Governors, the Macandrew scholarship is to be allotted to. the pupi! making the highest aggregate of marks in Form 111. This proves to be Mjiss Thora Marwick, who average in each of the twelve subjects she has taken reaches the high percentage of 91. The dux meda! has been won by Miss Bessie M'Oulloch, whose faithful and conscientious work has given her teachers tha greatest satisfaction. Miss M'Oulloch has been an exemplary pupil during the five years she has spent with us, and will carry with her the good wishes 1 ; of all her teachers and schooUellaws when she leaves us to' pursue her further education at the University. We have also to bid farewell to other valued numbers of our VI Form-Miss Nancy Earl anil "Miss Molly Allnn-who have been not only diligent in their studies, but most active and helpful in all the social life of the' school. Others, too, will he lea\ing us, whom we would.fain have retained for -another year. The/ annual sports were carried out on Saturday, last under the active direction of Miss Mills, assisted by other members of the staff and by Mr M'Kinnon. The drawing exhibition was held in conjunction with the sports, and was viewed by a large number of parents and friends, who expressed their great admiration of the work displayed. This department of school work, under the able tuition of Miss M'Oaw, shows no diminution of popularity and success from year to year, but ratkr an increase.

Our staff has undergone somo changes since last year, Miss Mills, whom we welcomed as first assistant at the beginning- of the year, has proved an 'acquisition to the school, not only in the class-room, but on the tennis court and hockey field. Miss Reese entered upon her duties as thin 1 , assistant in April, and has «iven very valuable assistance, tafin-g up cheerfully a good Ideal of .'uninteresting work necessitated by the varied requirements of candidates, for different .examinations. To all the members of my staff I have to express my sincere thanks for the excellent work they have done throughout the year, and for the ungrudging assistance they have rendered ine on all occasions. 1' have to thank the Board of Governors for providing the dux gold medal, and for their continued kindness, ths secretary for his unremitting courtesy and attention to details in connection; with the schoof, and the many parents and friends who contributed so gnnerously to the prize and sports funds'.

-Rector's Rcport"l have the honor to present -my report on the general work of the school for the year 1910. It is firatifyiug to be able to emphasise, the fact that the popularity of the institution with-the general public, as evidenced by the widespread support accorded to the school, has toeen amply maintained during the current year. ''■' The Roll.—The Kotal enrolment •for the year comprises 229 boys', of whom 159 are boarders and 70 day boys. These figures are in excess of any previous Waitaki records. The number of boys in residence has averaged 146 for the three terms of the year, -As usual the boarding department is thoroughly representative of all partj of the Dominion from 'Auckland to the Bluff,- [The

pressure on 'our accommodation hao necessitated, tha- : reqjiiiaitioniug ; '■■ of Waita^i, Lodge, 'where (some twelve boarders arc 'lodged in „ supplemeitary boarding-house, .under the;v supervision o! a prefect; : ■Our' accommodation for next year will be. jogt as severely taxed, - : for. : application.] for admission are to hand from all the.., following '..-.■ places:' Auckland, Cambridge (Waikato), Gisbome, palmerston North, Pabiatua, Martinb'oroiigh, Hawera, Wangamui, Wellington, Nelson, Greymo'uth," Cheviot, Ohristchurch, Astoburton, .Rak,aia, Timnru, Oamaru, Palmerston South, Dunedin, Gore, Invercargill. it is also a .Pleasing feature about this, year's attendance to find stronger local support extended, to- the sohool, The day-boy roll has this year reached.record figures, and the contingent of new boys that has come to us from,the town comprises excellent, material for class-room training.

"3ch o oi Bqiuipment.-I wish to express loun hearty gratitude to the Board for taking in band so vigorously the beautificatlon of the immediate surroundings of the Bchool,The front portion of tk, ground has been completely metamorphosed from its former unsightly barbarism, and

under expert supervision has been laid down in-lawng, diversified with, flower gardens and gravelled walks. A toga amount,of planting ha3als o . been taken .in band, The unsightly lagoons at the back, which at times were a positive menace to the health of the school, -have now all ■been drained and filled. The extensive levelled area at the back has this year provided facilities .for. school football,' which were denied

us before the completion of the •ground-levelling scheme. Pari passu with this external improvement of the scihfool, large additions have been made to the already representative collection of productions of works of- art on the school walla., There -are now fully 500 oak-framed engravings and etchings of famous pictures on the waiUs of our classrooms. In addition toi this really educative array there are nearly 100 photographs of school teams and societies, and 200 portraits of famous authors, warriors, and statesmen, These productiojnsi have not been imported in any haphazard way, They have been specially chosen for their literary and historical sig-

nificance, and for their illustrative value in connection with classroom work. Moreover, -owing to their continuity,* and to the fact that they represent all periods and schools of art, they constitute a valuable adjunct 'by illustrating the development of pictorial art, through the ages, with all its varying local and national phases. I need hardly say that I also look upon this form of

beautifying the sohool as an important agency in refining the conditions under which our boys spend a most impressionable and considerable portion of their lives. From our walls is shed down upon their plastic minds all the priceless treasures of beauty and emotional appeal that even reproductions of great pictures possess in striking measure, "Agricultural Clasß.—This termh a s seen an important innovation in our curriculum in the form of a class for studying practically the princi-

ples of agriculture, A large number of boys came to us from various parts of New Zealand, but chiefly from ithe (farms and stations of Otago and Canterbury, who are destined t 0 pursue 'farming for their future vocations. The agricultural class has been instituted this year with a membership of some 40 boys in order to invest their training with more of , a vocational character. The work of the class under its instructors, Messrs G. H. Uttley and H. H. Allen, has fully justified its fr-

auguration. Mr Uttlay has been, personally responsible for the in* struction in agricultural chemistry, principles of agriculture, and physiology of farm animals, while Mr Allan has taken the class in a course of botany,' entomology, and meteorology, it must not he thought,..'however, that in providing directly for the needs of these hoys by this partial introduction of technical field work that we are forgetting the real ends of secondary education. All of the classes are required to take the ordinary courses in English, history, geography, mathematics, and chemistry. Consequently there is no danger of our turning them out oblivious of the humanities, • while we emphasise the purely vocational side of their training. A section in front uf the acho 0 l comprising four acres, has been Placed at the services of the class, and the whole of this is now under cultivation-one acre each in potatoes, mangels, and turnips, and th e rest in the boys'j private experimental plots. The whole of the first three acres is subdivided into J-acr-e sections, each treated with a special combination of manures with superphosphates as the basic ingredient. Our thanks are due to' Messrs Wright, Stephenson and Oo for , a liberal presentation 0 f some 12cwt of various manures for these experimental purposes, Mr G. Brownlee nas also.(presented the class with a representative assortment of grass seeds for the smaller plots. All the practical work ] m been ' done class under the masters' supervision The experiment is a test of the values of varied combinations of manures under the average condi-., tions of dry farming in North 1 Otago, and the results so far, although the drought has militated against proper growth, have 'been very interesting. The, toys sh'piw marked aptitude and keenness for the work, and I feel that special Praise should be accorded to Mr Uttley for 1 his indefatigable care and inspiring instruction. There can he no doubt that the class has come to, stay 'in our curriculum, atfd that hy teaching th e ,bo ys the scientific principles underlying the future work and hy stimulating i n them habits of scientific enquiry and experimentation it will do really valuable work in helping, towards the' application of science for the de-, velopment of our great primary industries. There has also been instituted as a supplement t 0 : the agricultural class a wool-sorting, class under the instruction of Mr Peebles the expert from the Oamaru Woollen Mills. Ahout 30 hoys have attended this class during the last two terms and they have shown keen interest in the work, "The Staff.-Mr M'Callum, M.Sc,, wh'o had been relieving Mr G, H. Uttley as Science Master, left us at the dose of last year to take up the medical course at Edinburgh University, where, we arc glad t 0 hear, nuiiked success has already attended him. Mr G. H. uttley was warmly welcomed hy the school on Ms return to the," .staff from to University, where he was successful in gaining his B.Sc. degree. Mr.G. H. Uttleyi again took up his work as Science Master immediately on bis return, while Mr D. S, Chisholm has taken up the post of Senior Mathematical MaGter, Mr G, T. Maunder, M.Sc, who was in charge of our preparatory department, accepted a position on the staff of the Auckland Grammar School at % close of the second term,., His place has been filled by the appointmtent of Mr W. M. Uttley, who has not only won the confidence of his keen little class, but has proved ft . valuable acquisition to the school athletics in general." (The Rector then detailed the successes- attained by the boys in the various public examinations at the close of last ■year, but, as'these have already been' made public and space Is needed -for;'., other report?, we omit, them, Reference was ; .Bj!b> made, to the success of H. K. Christie ■;■ and; Cyril King; in winning two out. of the, three. prizes for essay

coinpetition^aliotbod; by the British audi ■: ;Itoreign\* Sailors -^Society" : ;--for boys';Schodis;oi.this island; and to ;the„faet 'that;the whole ofi; the ;'ls' pupils ;.r'ecomm'ended\ for;;senior.; free platyj 'had been passed ; ;.the'. -de--. partmiintal ,Thei Eector also dwelt at'spine length with the; carriculuni, saying that there were now three main courses open to boys to the school—professional, commercial, and.agricultural. It was a pleasure to,note that the hoys .availed themselves o( the' options; and that the agricultural course was ■being-well.-supported.: He mentioned that the. departmental inspectorstVon their recent visit paid a special tribute to the oral work of the Eng : lbh forms. Thfj drawing), class under Miss M'Oaw had. done lent work, There were 20. boys in' the preparatory department, and a large proportion of them had q'uali-' fled for ; promotion. The athletic side of th 3 sch o ol always exhibited satis-' factory vitality, and the'rector was able to claim some meritorious performances in a variety 0 f branches. Reference'. was made to the various school institutions, and the statement 'was made that .the-school branch of the Navy League now

comprises fully 200 members, Thank's were -given' to the Otago Navy League Committee for their valuable set of prizes allotted in connection with the 1 Tecdnt essay competition, In conclusion the-Rector expressed thanks to the donors of .challenge cups-Messrs Walcott Wood, John Buckley, J. E, Hood, and L. B. Jordan—and the donors of special prizes. The following are. the prize; lists :- GIRLS' HIGH SOHOOL. Dux of School—Miss Elizabeth 0. M'Oulloch. Form, VL-English, Latin, French, Algebra, Scripture:, E, M'Oulloch, Botany, trigonometry, arithmetic, geometry, heat: 0. Earl. Script ire; M, Allan'.

Form V.-E)nglisb, R. Walls. Botany, R, Walls and M, Cairns (equal). Botany diagrams, M, Cairns. Arithmetic, R. Wallgy Geometry, R. Walls. Algebra, E. Burnard. Physiology, E, Burna'rd. Latin, iR. 1 Walls, French, R. Walls. ' , ' Form V'b.—English, M. M'Neil. Latin, M, M'Neil. French, M. M'Neil. Arithmetic, A. Buicki. Geometry, E. Webber. Algrcoira, M. McNeil. Botany, B, Webber- and M. M'Neil (equal). Botany diagrams, A, Buick and T. M'Kinnon (equal). Scripture, M. Carson, Form IV.—English, M. Finlay. and L. Stevens (equal);. French' l , E. Cameron. Arithmetic, G, Taylor, Geometry, I, Paton. Botany, E. Cameron. Botany diagrams, M. Paton. Algebra, A. Wood. Physiology, E. Cameron. Scripture, A. Wood. Reading, L. Stevens. Honors in te:; subjects : A. Wood.', Honors in

eight subjects: M, Finlay. Honors in seven subjects: L. Stevens, E. Cameron, I. Paton. Form lll—English, T, Marwick. Latin, T. Marwick. French, T. Marwick. tetany, A. Kent. Botany diagrams, A. Kent. Poetry, N. Cottrell.. Arithmetic, T., Marwick. Al' gebra, T, Marwick, Geometry, T.. Marwick. Physiology, L. Godfrey.. Reading, M. Hair and M. Yorke (equal). Scripture, N. Cot trell- Honors in 11 subjects: , T. Marwick, L..Godfrey, L. .Sinclair, A. Kent. Honors in 10 subjects: E. North. —Drawing.— Senior (examination model)-M. Kennady, Jrnior .(examination model)-T, Marwick'. Form V (year's work))-R.f Walls, M, Cairns,'K. M'Neil, T. M'Kinnon, Form IV (year's work)-E. Jones, E. Thomas, G. Yorke, Form 111 .(year's work —A. Kent, G. Scoular, N. Cottrell. -Drill,- , Form V-B, Marwick, Form IV.—A. Wood. . Form lII.—B. Taylor. Tennis - Championship-E. Taylor. Junior Handicap—R. Botting.

BOYS' HIGH SCHOOL. —Preparatory Department.— Standard IV.-T. Wright 1, G. A. Christie 2, Standard V.-W. G. Elliot 1, J. Stone 2, C. W. Gillies 3. -Form 111.First General Excellonce-Croy-don land (2nd English, 2nd arithmetic, 2nd mathematics, 4th history and geography), "Second General Excellence-S, M. Deans (Ist history and geography, 3rd mathematics, 4th English). Third Ger-tral Excellence~R. G. Porter.

Special Prizes.—Mathematics: N. C. N. Bums. Latin : C. H. Tait. -Form 1V.8....First General Exce,lence-Sroydon Lee (Ist English, Ist mathematics, Ist arithmetic,. 2nd Latin, Gth science). Second General Excellenoe.-O. H. Tait (Ist French,- Ist Latin, 2nd English, sth mathematics, sth arithmetics.) Third General Excellence—Ji. T. Martin (3rd English, 3rd Latin,. 2nd French), Special Prize-F. H. Burry. -Form IV,A-

First Genera 1 Excellence—T. S. Giliies (Ist English,- 2nd mathe•matlcs, Srd history, 4th arithmetic, 2nd chemistry, Ist agriculture, Ist botany). Second General Excellence—W« F. FaM-airn ,(lst mathematics, 2nd arithmetic, 2nd Latin, 2nd French). -Special Prizes.— Latin and Science-F. D. -Bell. English, History—O. N. M'Kenzie.

Arithrnetici-A. S.' Fleming. Senior Commercial-R. B, Haft. Junior Commercial—A. G. Mat-Mas. Physiology-J. R. Penn. French-D. G. George, -Form V.8.First General Excellence—A. J. Gearge (Ist English,' Ist history; 4th Latin). Second General Excellence—J. W. Nicolls' (Ist mathematics, 4th arithmetic, 3rd. English.) Special Prizes—Arithmetic; G. Malcolm.

—Form V.A.— First General Excellence-H. V. Christie (Ist English, Ist science, Ist history, 3rd Latin). Special Prizes-Mathematics: J, H. Massey; arithmetic, J. H. Ma3sey; physics and geometry, J. L. Hardy; special mathematics, C. H. Thomp' son; physiology, H. A. Se'arle; French, 0. W. Bamfield; Latin: and English, L. H. Beauchamp; special Latin, W, J, Baxter; chemistry, R. J. Gardiner; agriculture—T. S. Gillies 1, 0. E..M. d'Auver-gne 2. -Form V 1.8.Latin and En-glish-O. A. King. Kitbematlcs—L. H. Marshall.. Chen-istry—T. Williamson. ' -Form VI.A.First General Excellence-B. F. Aldred. (Ist Latin, Ist French, Ist English, Ist chemistry, 2nd heat, 2nd mathematics.-) , Second General Excellence—W. R. A. Sutherland (Ist .heat, Ist mathe: matics, 2nd chemistry, 2nd French, 2nd Latin, 3rd English). : Latin and J. !g. F. Amies. • '■ Special French—R; R. D. Milllgan. Science and Latin-Athol Hudson.

Navy League Prizes.—Preparatory: W. M. Lyons 1, J. Heady 2. : Form in: G, W, Hart and S. M; Deans (equal) 1. Form 1V.8.-Croydon Lte W. E.. Stevens 2. Form IV.A.Clutha E, Mackenzie lj'Stanley Wilkinson 2. Form. V.8.-A. J,; George 1, L. E, Barrett 2, Form "V.A.-D. W. M'Clurg.,l, H.K.Christie 2. Form VI.B-Cyrl A. King 1, TWilliamson''2. Form'Vl.A.-B. FAldred I,,R.R,'p.-Milllgan 2. Navy League' Medal (best ; . speech l )—. I P. l b.Stocker.v,;. ~. :■ i. . ,;■ /■'Nelson■■Memorial- Essay PHzc—B. p.'lAWrefl^>> ; /;''i;-;v;'-:-^.t : ;:;:r";: Dr Hight's hietory prize-rW. 0. N:'

■Reading '<>• School; Li H, Btauctfampy: Middle School j'AloisUhureli aiidE.'M. Lake (epal).' Pre; paratory:;W.rG. Elliot 1, .' G,. Ai OhriQtie %.■ ■ '. *, '■ '■: "'■ ■ "■:,' :v: and" A.' "(equal)! Junior: J. -Allan. Preparatory : 0; RT. Gillies.' " V ■■■>'. Drawing-I'./VS; Gilliea 1, G*~H. Massev ii.Hcf.orable mention—H. K, Christie, H, Ivaii Uardiner, 'J. H, Massey, P.-iH. P. itogsra, H. G.; de F, Garland,,JiW. Niiiolls. '.' Oral English: Form VI-B. F.-Al-dred. Forni V.'A.-T. W; Stringer 1, 1. P. D.'Stocker '2.'Form V.U-A, J. George. Form IV.A.-R.. Alan Church and R. L. G. Fleming (equal). Form . IV.B.—T. L. Burns., Form lII—N. "Ci % Burns. Preparatbry- ' W._P. Rogen. - ' Herbert Webb Encouragement Prlze-H. V. Searle. Miss Dawson's. , Encouragement ' Prize—W. N. Seth-Smith and 0. G. Robinson (eiiial/ J, W. P. Owen 2, —Scripture Seriior-D, W. M'Clurg, W. 0, N. Rout(&qual) 1,..J1. H. Keid 2. Honorable mention-J. L. Hardy, D, G. George, H. K. Christie, J. B. Liggins, A; J.' George.

Junior—l). E. Neave. Honorable mention-J. R..S. Hill, E. d; SomerviUe, Ingham Milncs. / . ■Maomillan Brown Prizes-Form VI-H. I). Tait 1, W. R. A. Sutherland 2. Form V.A.-O. H. Thompson. Form 1 V.8.-H. 0. Nolan. Form IV.A.-P.. M'Gimpsey 1, R. 0. Chapman 2, Form IV.B-T. L. Burns I, T. H. George-2. Form 111--N. O.N. Burns.' Freparatory-T. M,': Watson 1 ; , T. R. Wiight 2. Chamber ol Commerce Gold MedalH. V, Searle. Dux Medal-B.F. Aldred, Buckley Oup, for all round proficiency in Athletics—E. H. Sime.