DIOCESAN HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 13050, 15 December 1905, Page 7

DIOCESAN HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS.

; PRIZES" PRESENTED BY LADY .-.',•; PLUNKET. ■■''-::. : 'INTERESTING SPEECHES. , The first speech day of the Auckland Diocesan High School for Girls was held at the school, Epsom, yesterday. :: Lady "Plunket and the Hon. Kathleen Plunket were present, and were received on arrival at the school by the Anglican Bishop of Auckland (Dr. .Neligan), Hon. K. Mitehelson (chairman), Messrs. H. Gilfillan, E. Horton, C. J. Tunics, and Dr. Itoberton (members of council)., 1 There was a very large attendance of ladies and gentlemen -present, the new large gymnasium being well rilled.

j , THE REPORT. , Miss Pulling, the headmistress, read her annual' report, in which she stated that the number of pupils had increased during the year from 35 to 70. The chief advance 1 had been the thorough establishment, both in numbers and organisation, of the schoolhouse. There were now eight house girls the limit of present accommodation. Next year the house would be almosUentirely set free for boarding purposes by the addition of a new wing of classrooms. This addition would enable the principle of distinct management of house and school to be more completely carried out—the principle upon which the school was founded, the principle which obtained at Cheltenham Ladies' College, and all English high schools. The staff had been increased by the addition of Misses Bagnall and Miss Temple (Worcester), and Miss Hey wood. . A good deal of foundation work had been done in the school during the year, teaching the girls how to write, speak, work, and think in an intelligent, orderly, and accurate way. The school was acquiring a life and character of its own, and although this was far from the standard aimed at, it was, as fa? as it' went, true, wholesome, and high-minded, and every child was being taught to read her Bible intelligently, and to know the essentials of the faith into which she was baptised. The credit of such progress was due in the first place to the children, upon whose wills the character of the school depended, and the school was now becoming a public school in the good old sense of the word. The school only existed through the faith, courage, and public spirit of the gentlemen composing the council, and she did not know of any high school in the Empire in which the council had been so unflinching in their determination to spare nothing that was necessary for the highest standard of education, and so -clear in their policy of considering moral before material advantage. Miss Pulling also acknowledged the co-operation and sympathy of parents of the pupils. -■„/■ ,• , ;y

THE FINANCIAL ASPECT. Tho Hon. E. Mitehelson said the school was tho result of a resolution of the Diocesan Synod,, but that body while making the suggestion for its foundation had omitted to point out how the money for the school was to be raised. But the council of the school believed that it .was urgently necessary, and started the;institution with the object of making it the best in Australasia. The school property was fought for £4000, £250 of which had been paid off, the balance remaining on mortgage at 5 per cent. But a good deal of money was required to make the building suitable for a school and to equip it, and £800 was raised from friends for that purpose. The council had decided to raise £7000 by debenture? of £25 each, free of interest for the first two years, but afterwards paying 5 pe;- cent. In this wav it was hoped to pay off the £3750 mortgage and provide for -necessary additions. Not only had the school done good, but it had not, as Home members of the Anglican communion feared, done harm to existing similar institutions — the contrary, it had put them on their mettle. There was already a very marked improvement in the children who attended the school. There was, too, a need for the highest class of teachers that could be provided, and parents would respond readily enough, realising that anything that was good was worth paying for. He thought the school had done splendidly fov tho short time—l 6 or 17 monthsthat it had been established.

ENTHUSIASM FOR EDUCATION. Dr. McDowell, as a member of the Senate of the University of New Zealand, said there was* a great lack in the colony of enthusiasm for education. Enthusiasm was the chief-characteristic of the school, which he had visited with very great pleasure and interest,' and he thought that the enthusiasm which was so conspicuously associated with its inception and direction would spread throughout the length and breadth'of the colony. Dr. McDowell expressed himself much impressed with the attention given to physical culture in the school, also with the system of classification, and the liberality of the curriculum. There was, too, about the school an atmosphere clearly attributable to v.ho religious instruction imparted, ; which lid not make for the children becoming premature theologians or for the inculcation of a false sentimentality. RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION. Bishop Neligan spoke on the position which the school held in regard to religious teaching. Definite knowledge, he said, normally given was the necessary corollary of the unity of life. It had been said that a child should not be perplexed with dogma, but a child understood nothing else, .and it was educationally as impossible to teach religion in the abstract as it was to teach any of the ordinary school subjects in the abstract. Character was the be-all and endall of education, and definite religious instruction involved the relationship between the soul of the. teacher and the soul of the child, which was so admirably expressed in the school motto, " Ut serviainus." He exhorted the girls to make tradition and not to follow it, so that the character of adiocesan school girl could be known, recognised and honoured. Lady Plunket having presented the school ( certificates and-prizes, expressed the very great pleasure she felt as an,old Cheltenham Collego girl in acceding to Sliss Pulling's wish to bo present. She rejoiced to see the . manifest esprit de corps of the' school. , ~ .. Cheers were given 'for Lady Plunket, and the National Anthem was sung as she left the hall. : Refreshments were served to the visitors on the lawn. * THE PRIZE LIST. The following is the prize list: — Form Prizes.—Form IV.: A. Can-, 0. Cole, M. Earl. G. Newell. Form III: D. Butler, E. Earl, M. Ward. Form II.: M. Charter. I. Clayton. B. Qrierson, R. Walker. Form I.: M. Baehelder. I. Charter, D. Foster, G. Marrincr. ;.-..', Divinity Frizes.— IV.: Q. Cole. Form III.: J. Robertson. Form II.: CJ. Clayton, B. Qrierson. Form I.: M. Baehelder, C. Marriner. Improvement Prizes.—Form III.: M. Foster. Form 11. T. Norton. Form 1.: Guy Marriner, I. Robertson. Form II.: E. Foster. Literature Prizes.—Form IV.: A. Carr, G. Cole, M. Earl. History Prizes.—Form III.: H. Bloomfield, D. Stewart. Drilling Prizes.—Form 11. R. Walker. Needlework Prizes.—A. Carr, H. Craig, D. Nolan, N. Thomas. Form II.: R. Walker. Best-kept Schoolbooks.—Form III.: M. Pollen. MOUNT EDEN DISTRICT SCHOOL. The prizes won by pupils of the Mount Eden District School were presented yesterday afternoon by Mr. W. Cole (a member of the-School Committee), who gave an appropriate address. A large number of parents were present. ■ The following is the prize list: — Standard VI. A.—Dux. Hazel Lindsay; second ' girl, Marjorie Lindsay; first boy, Charlie Courtney; second boy, Robert McFarland; general . excellence, Dorothy Wright; attendance, diligence, and conduct, Gretta Hungerford; attendance, Charlie Courtney; special, Edna Mackie. Standard VI. B.— Aggregate marks: First girl, Florrie Davis; second girls, Mabel Crocombe, Dorothy Parker; first hoy, David Burton; second boy, Hylton Mciltle; third boy, Alfred Brown. Sewing: Annie Henry, Greta Itimmer, Barbara Miller. Attendance: Muriel Bethune, Alfred Brown. Noel Cole. Diligence and conduct: Laura Grudge, Marion Taylor. Standard V.—Aggregate M:.rks: Girls, Dorothy Burrow 1, Mabel Burrow 2, Ha:'.el Neal 3; boys, Henry Johnson 1, Siivey Delivers 2, Allen. Player 3. Sewing: Naomi Russell, Alicia Kelso, Hazel Neal, Irene Walker. Attendance and good work: Ray Preston, Walter Grierson. Oral work: Gladys Barker, Silvey Denvers. Flat tinting: Allen Player 1, Hubert French 2. Good work: Ernest Nicholson. Cadets.—Col.-Sergt. B. Jacob", Buglers M. Abel and N. Da*, ; es. Drummers A. Player and W. Gorrie. Shooting: P. Anderson, Sergt. 0. Newman. ■ Cricket Trophies.--Bat, for. best batsman, James Alexander; cricket ball, Fred. Gummer; silver pendant, gold' centre, David Burton. Standard IV.—Aggregate marks: Boys, Warwick Smeeton 1, Wilfrid Barker 2, Roy Ellvett 3; girls, Doris Gaze i, Josephine Bertrand 2, Ida Pitkethley 3. Attendance: Atkinson Jeffries, Leslie Taylor, Harold Wilson, Doris Gaze. Special (arithmetic): Phyllis Lindsay. Diligence and improvement: Ed- j ward Rowlliugs, Marion Olsen. Conduct: j Doris Gaze, Hazel Clemens, Enid Hawk, ?•£■«' I Hill. Florence Irving. .Composition: Harry; Chilton. Sewing: Leoni Crocombe, Alice j Baker, Lilian Bond, Rebecca Kneebone. I Standard 111 ■-Aggregate 'narkst Boys, fcfr» • j ■>yn Alexander 1. Gordon Favdyim 2. Alfred. 1 Crocombe 3; -.sfWa. toons Cunningham 1. Grace Stevens 2, -Mary Stoddard ,J. Sewing: Violet Rimmer. "ay Chilton. 9pe:'ial .or oral answering: Arthur MeiUla. Diligesioa j a.nd conduct: li«M'»rt- W\..":*t?r, Roy wiiUe, j Charles Hieatt; '/V-i:-: fif,'.>crso„ Ka'« Leo.:-, ■. Elsie Harris. Lfnd;, Cox,'-AttftiMlur.yf,' first- | class: Jean Oarrte. Doris V,cl*od, A via | Woo'" : • ,„--'• ' ,- ; -,-,, ,v ; v>: : -;.v : : v : •->v-;v ~, •■

' Standard 11.-Aggregate marks: Boys, Connab Kobb 1, John Burton V Willie Cowan. 3; girls, Edna Pitkethley 1. Edna Stevenson 2, Beatrice Tomalin 3. Diligence and conduct: Willie Holden. Jack Alexander, Graham Lindsay, Nellie Clarke, Myrtle Welch, Clara Grayson, Dulcie Shepherd, Kenneth ;Gorrie, Clive Auger. Attendance: Norman Hawkeswood, Wilfred Gladding. Sewing: vera. totter. Maud Wilson. Writing: Vera hotter. Special for geography and spelling: Clitrora Nicholson. , „. ,„ Standard ;. 1.-Aggregate , - marks: Girls, Mavis Mahon 1. Doris Levy 2, Alison Johnston 3; boys. George Woods 1, Edgar Bartlett 2, Kenneth Baker 3. Sewing: Louisa Gray. Attendance: Sybil Crombie. Diligence and conduct: Margaret Worsley. Eleanor Knight, Muriel Child. Phyllis Grayson. Eric prince, Dolph Crocombe, Hilda Weir. Special: Albert Hurley. ... - ' ... A number of attendance certificates and the prizes in the primer classes were also presented. .-.. '..,' ..■.;. ".::.. -. ■' : . SCRIPTURE GIFT BOOKS. Four schools of the Scripture Gift Association celebrated their usual break-up gatherings yesterday and Wednesday, namely. Archhill (Mrs. Collins), Eden Terrace (Miss Clarke), Franklin- Road (Miss R. Clarke), and Stanley Bay (Miss Hazard). The progress made by the children was evidenced by correct repetitions given in poetry, and. in Holy Scripture, as also in specimens exhibited in writing, drawing, etc. The'four schools represented an attendance of 120. A number of parents and friends were present, and expressed their pleasure! at the results attained. Prize books and other gifts were, awarded to all, and the proceedings ended with the distribution of refreshments supplied by numerous friends.