JOY OF THE CHILDREN

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18706, 12 May 1924, Page 10

JOY OF THE CHILDREN

INSPECTION OF WARSHIPS. PRIVILEGED' VISITORS. EAGER TO SEE AND LEARN. The children wftre "the privileged visitors to H.M.S. Hood and H.M.S. Repulse on Saturday. . During the afternoon nearly 6000 boys and girls from city and country schools, with their teachers, visited the two battle cruisers, and it is not too much' to say that of all the thousands, of people who watched the ,- arrival / of ',-,.&»% mighty ; vessels that morning and who later gazed ; open ; their clean smooth decks ■, and. polished- turrets from ; closer vantage points, none -were more ; thrilled than - ; these inquisitive, open-eyed:. youngsters. , ■ - . »; -. It was truly a memorable ; day for the children, some- of whom rarely enjoy opportunity -of even seeing; the;sea and its ships .■:* The- little visitors from -the country, - from towns; and, farming - settlements along the Cambridge and Frankton lines, were / obviously ■ excited and awe- r struck at first,- until; personal inspection of the " inside" and the "works of the - great "battle ij cruisers 1 dissipated ■■? any initial nervousness. -•'#■ It is probable- chat no amount of history and i general knowledge in the schools ;'; could; so ,| effectively, impress ; the children > with the might and glory of Britain's Navy as this fleeting visit to -two of the : greatest ships yafloatBook knowledge : may 5> be forgotten, an-; intentionally or conveniently, but rit j will be impossible , for i. all those .enthusiastic,, delighted voungsters "ever to forget the day they" visited H.M.S. Hood and -MS. Repulse, and their? love and regard for Britain's fighting ships and-the men. who , man them will be a firmer, mora intimate thing, for the day's. experience. Animated Scenes. t ..• ; i ; An animated scene -? presented r itself on board the two battleship* from; 2.30 to S p.m. .* H.M.S. Hood was; visited by ;about 2600 ' children,; principally .country children, during ;. that time, while 2300 children were s conveyed ' by- ferry steamer to .." the ' Repulse, which was . lying at anchor in the stream. Well-nigh every nook and cranny, in the mighty ;ye3ielß - was inspected by some inquiring s mind or other. It might fc?_ imagined 'that officers and men would resent the wild invasion into some, of ' the; vessels' ■ quarters, generally regarded >as • 'sanctuaries !/:;from: the - intruding step of /:.; the landsman, but if *so'-*' they did not } show it, and good-natured smiles followed the scrambles of the children on : deck ;, and, below. Only. when some enterprises boys climbed * pre- ' cariously •' into A the \ fighting ? top of the Hood was anything isaid; fa. That summit of the ship's i superstructure v-;isi- ; evidently "taboo" to the visitor. ;-.j There may have been , a polite censure, too, when some irrepressible 1 boys "clambered; on to, the top of one of the 15in. gun I :turrets and unblushingly /announced their intention of fitting .H astride h the ; huge guns. These turrets r are highly polished with an expensive v gtey enamel," ? and,; those responsible ? for keeping them in • this condition are naturally 5 ' jealous of ' their handiwork. -■. - - . — -.', < . ■■■• * The Children and the Pet Kangaroo. One of the first objects to meet the eye oh stepping on board': the ; Hood was . the ship's pet kangaroo, a baby animal presented to s the ship '; by ? the i Mayor of Perth. ■• «So intense was ■ the concern displayed in this: "find" * that, the excitement became * too much ' for the poor animal, and :it was spirited away; by a considerate sailor to comfortable quarters free . ; from the- disturbing * commotion on deck. , v , , j To .the,; spectator who preferred to stand by aha 'watch rather than 'join the frenzy,/ the scene was rich /in . incident and ' amusement. <« Narrow companionways and countless short flights ; of? steps that lead from. one deck to ■■>. another are not the • easiest obstacles to negotiate ;incrowds, : and ;; at' times the endeavours of one -procession 'of youngsters to ascend, and the:■: equally Idetermined'; efforts of another section to descend, would result •in a tangled ? crush on." ijhe ; stairs ( reseml»ling the-• Bacchanalian scene in "Cairo.' Parents "who had i accompanied l their offspring; from ■ the country -had |an "/' anxious ] time to, keep up; with the'excited children. ' "*' Oh, Lindsay " gasped , one .perturbed mother, ; as/she;; beheld ; her; son a head pop down through ' a round ' hole; in. the deck? with the surprising quickness of a Jack-in-the-box. Lindsay seemed to have disappeared /for good ; into the dimly-lit depths, v and 'where.; he = would show up ' next : was ; more than anyone could inform the; deserted parent. . Heroes j and. Autograph > Books." "... So eager were ,- the young visitors.... to know and:see everything, ' that,,; petty ; officers and sailors had their time fully occupied in l J conducting the children over the ships -and answering all ' their-: questions. ..:'«.These 1 -men:-.', were v; regular heroes to ; the \ youngsters, and ; their i /move-;; ments ' were ;> watched «•/with mingled curiosity ;and awe.Two little girls who had; remembered ;to L bring their : 'autograph; books?had them ]nearly filled with; names ; befor© -; the \ . afternoon' was thereby earning the envy, if not jealousy, -of their> less-thoughtful companion's. '-'"■'■ Will j you■? please put something in my' autograph f book ?'*' was J about- all - theyj had to say..the whole day, unless it was the graceful " Thank you," "with .which;they received their books 3 back C from the' indulgent and smiling, sailors. . • '"-■ ?t ; .' /;In suite of the great interest. and? curiosity , displayed -in - thesa ' men- of %■■ ie sea. they bore through, the-ordeal: with impressive : : < equanimity, s -Whether they were indulging 1 in/the ''luxury kof afternoon tea In ■<•the /mess/room, .reading ; and'/writing letters, * having r their / hair cut jm 'i tn> barber's 'shop,'/'- of ' ' f.lnyin'V//' shove penny," they carried on with their re-', spective perfectly blind to the score or so of curious eyes fixed upon them. With a - genial ?.. smile > they ; Bhow<d - willingness at all fames to, enlighten the little visitors on 1 -ny matter that puzzled them,- ;? displaying equal ' readiness to de ■- tnenstrate the intricacies of a 6.5 in. . gun or n' permit little v girls -to look through their telescopes. ~ To the boy?, the en-gine-rooms were sourc33-of ■ mingled joy and wonder. . The amazing array of small polished handles, clock ' dials, and little brass /; levers ? which control' and govern : ; the stupendous mechanism of the .vessel nw?'(]. irresistibly, fascinating to the youthful 'mind. ;'//. The End ; of., a Memorable Day.. . When five o'clock came : and -all visitors ,were ordered off the ships it was a supremely happy, if tired, /crowd of children who wended ./.their way home. The country,; l children had- the , heaviest day. Two trains brought 1600' of them to Auckland, one leaving Cambridge in the morning, and the other /leaving Ham ilton, ,r carriages containing additional quotas i of„ passengers being ; added at; each station on the ; line .as; far as/Whahga-;' marino/ On arrival; 'they were supplied with ,ri: refreshments in the sheds '-at the Prince's •-' Wharf, and /all returned by special , train /in ; the ; even ing. -;,!•;■;' Many ,of them had been up from r, 6. a. m,, and - did not : get back ■ to, their Waikato homes until nearly midnight, so that their outinir was ; long %nd tiring, as well 1 as'an eventful- one. lhe Railwav'i Department found it impossible to .j .bring' the Rotorua children |on Saturday, and their places:. were consequently token by children from city and suburban schools. Naturally ■ the/ difficulties experienced-' in- handling > so large a number of children were not.slight. Adequate arrangements had ;j been/ made t: by the Education Board authorities, lender..; the,;direction of Mr. : R. M. George, though some delaywas experienced in getting all* the children on board owing to the concentration' of - too many at - the wharf.. sheds (at • one' time. * As ; the children:' could'. «aW over .the \ gangway;* only two by ? two, at, was" necessary ,~ to / delay,; the / admittance /.'of /a'" large number,/ to ; the ; wharf :. until 'the front.queues had got safely aboard. The. Hood will* besclosed' to visitors to/ day,'; but the Repulse v will be / open" to Bchool; children from 10 a.m. to noon; and to the general public from 1.30 to 5 p.m. ..:;^;::^:':s , .ij'-:;-^-??'^::S.:ftssifis{^;