PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND THE WAR.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 30, Issue 26, 5 April 1918, Page 3

PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND THE WAR.

SIR W. ROBERTSON'S TRIBUTE. General Sir William Robertson, exChief of the Imperial General Staff, recently wrote to the headmaster of Bradford College apologising for his inability to attend the celebration of St. Andrews Day at the college, and asking that his letter be read to the school. The letter runs:— “We have entered the fourth year of a war which has imposed upon this nation a severer test than any it has been called upon to bear in past history. Up to the present time it has stood the test magnificently. This result is due to the inherent qualities of the race, and more especially to the quality of leadership, without which no country, however patriotic and devoted, can hope to survive. The majority of men are not leaders, but are influenced by the few who know what they want and mean to get it, and have acquired self-reliance through perseverance, training and knowledge. These qualities are hard to acquire, but having been acquired, there is no limit to what they can accomplish. Comparatively few men are called to a position of great responsibility. In a war such as this it involves greater effort and strain than others in a humbler position have to bear, and very often there is no reward} the work has to be done, and little credit is given to the doer of it. I think it may more truly be said of the public schools than of any other community in this country that they are the great silent service. In this age of advertisement it is difficult to imagine any higher testimonial than that. Nobody thinks of appealing to the public schools; it would be an insult. Their services and sacrifices in this war have, I believe, attracted less notice than any other, and yet nobody has ever heard a complaint or a murmur from them. Such a thing is unthinkable.

“I hope that neither the boys themselves nor the parents will regret this, however natural it may seem to do so. It should be a subject Of pride. The army knows what it owes to the public schools, the men in the trenches bettor than anyone else, and when the time comes to appraise the nation’s effort in this war full justice will be done to them. In the meantime they have the privilege and glory of setting an example to others. And until this war is over I feel sure that, however great the load they and all those connected with them have to carry, they will continue to display a high standard of duty, self-sacrifice, and fortitude.”