DISTRICT SCHOOL.

Waipukurau Press, Volume XXII, Issue 146, 21 December 1927, Page 7

DISTRICT SCHOOL.

PRIZE-GIVING CEREMONY. POPULAR ANNUAL EVENT. TRIBUTES TO TEACHING STAFF. The annual prize-giving ceremony in connection with the year’s attendance and work at the Waipukurau District High School, took place yesterday afternoon, in the presence of hundreds of healthy-looking, welldressed, and happy scholars —the unsuccessful joining in laudable expressions of congratulation as applied to their more fortunate confreres —as well as a considerable number of parents. The popularity of this annual fixture showns no signs of abatebent, and under the guidance of the Headmaster (Mr F. B. Curd) and members of the teaching staff, was carried through with characteristic orderliness as well as considerable promptitude. The Chairman of the School Committee (Mr W. G. Bryce) addressed the scholars, and referred to the occasion as the most important of the school year. To those who were successful it was, of course, especially so —but all could join in the proceedings by congratulating their fellows. There was opportunity for all to do their best for themselves as well as the school, and those not included in the prize list this time could look forward to success in future years. The work of the school had been greatly handicapped by the series of epidemics—the worst in his experience as chairman —but good results had been achieved. As usual, there had been many staff changes, and now four members were leaving for new spheres of activity, viz., Misses McCormick, N. Williams, Wharmby, and Shorland. The former was leaving for Suva (Fiji), and the latter the Dunedin Teachers’ Training College. Miss McCormick had been with them for many years, and on behalf of the Committee, also parents, he desired to pay her a warm tribute of appreciation for the very valuable services rendered and the great interest taken in the scholars under her care. (Loud applause.) To the younger teachers he also extended hearty thanks and good wishes for a successful career. (Further applause.)' The attendance in the Secondary Department had at one stage of recent times fallen to 31, and there was then a danger of losing the second teacher, but matters had so improved lately that an average of 50 had been reached. If the Standard VI. scholars of to-day go forward in sufficient numbers, then a third teacher should be warranted. In this case the commercial course, considered by some parents to be important, could be provided. He wished, in conclusion, to heartily thank Mr Curd and the staff for their co-operation, and extend to them best wishes for a “Happy ’Xmas and prosperous New Year.” (Loud applause.) Mrs Bryce then presented the prizes to the successful pupils, each meeting with rounds of applause as he or she stepped forward, smiling faces being the order of the procession to and from the table, bedecked with a fine collection of books. The Dux of the School —George Brasell—received an ovation as Mrs Bryce pinned the medal to his breast. In addition, each of the scholars in the infant classes received a special ’Xmas gift book.

This ceremony over, the presentation of prizes to the athletic championship winners took place. The Headmaster briefly addressed the scholars, and observed, at the outset, that favouritism had much to do with the success achieved by some boys and girls—they were blessed by Providence with a good headpiece, good legs or health. It was no disgrace for the “trier” to fail in the attempt to win a prize. They could show their calibre by rejoicing with those who 'were more fortunate, and as the Chairman of the Committee had remarked, determine to be, winners next year. He advised the Standard VI. scholars to continue their education at the Secondary Department ,and better prepare for life’s battle, or if necessary to leave —this applied to the present, secondary department, also scholars — to enter upon employment, then to wait until the right kind of work became available. It was very desirable that they should seek a job that would lead to something better than the immediate value of the occupation offered. It was not wise to seek the easy positions, because usually the harder work was more constructively valuable. To rush to the professions and clerical occupations was a mistake —a better puipose could often be served in other walks of life. Mr Curd concluded amidst rounds of very hearty applause, wishing the .scholars a very happy Christmas and

bright New Year. On behalf of the parents assembled Mr A. C. Holms said that it had fallen to his lot to propose the sentiment of “The Headmaster and Staff,” in the form of three especially hearty cheers, in which both parents and scholars could participate. He commended to the earnest attention pf the boys and girls the timely advice tendered by Mr Curd. Obviously the call was for loyally carrying out their duties in any useful vocation followed, and playing the game as citizens. In the latter respect, parents owed the teachers a debt of gratitude for the part played in character-building, also care and attention paid to the children during the greater part of the latter’s daily activities. The cheers called for were right royally given, and the singing of the National Anthem ended a very pleasing function.

PRIZE DIST.

PRIMER 4. Boys.—Don Brathwaite 1, Bill Le Bas 2, Allan Guy 3. Girls. —Phyllis Tappin 1, Valda Renner 2, Lorraine Woodward 3. PRIMER 3. Boys.—Bruce Nicholson 1, Dick Waddington 2. Girls. —Margaret Holms 1. ATTENDANCE PRIZES. P 4., Boys. —Allan Dunlop. P 4., Girls. —Valda Renner, Marjorie Urquhart. The other scholars in the Primer division received a Christmas present. PRIMER 2. Boys.—Dick Mackie 1, Stewart Leitch 2. Girls. —Belle Davey 1, Beth Harper 2. Special for Spelling.—Jean Blair. PRIMER 2a. Boys.—Basil Sargison 1, Basil Kinghorn 2. Girls. —Betty McLean 1, Hilda Robertson 2. PRIMER 1. Boys.—Hylton Sharpin 1, Eric Rowlands 2. Girls. —Peggy Ashley 1, Molly Gibson 2. STANDARD 1. Boys.—Basil Hanies 1, Willie Eden 2, John Wood 3. Girls. —Ngaire Staines 1, Ida Sharpin 2, Margaret Monteith. Attendance. —Eric Sargison, Tom Brasell, Trevor James, Basil Hames. Special Progress.—Jimmy Jamieson. Sewing.—Molly Black. STANDARD 11. Girls.—Patty Chisholm 1, Wynne Malkin 2, Fay Hall 3. Boys.—Jim Hunt 1, Dennis Bliss 2, Douglas Taylor 3. Attendance. —Jim Hall, Ivan Renner, Arthur Oliver, Patty Chisholm, Joy Faithful, June Hewitt, Ethel Stowe. Sewing.—June Hewitt. STANDARD 111. Boys, Proficiency—Douglas Rapley 1, Stewart McConchie 2, Patrick Sharpin 3, Vincent Rice 4. Girls, Proficiency.—Doris Thomson 1, Jean Fowler 2, Norma White 3, Betty Stoddart 4. Full Attendance. —Alex. Morris, Mervyn Kirby, Marion Smales, Doris Thompson, Fred Lee, Joyce Moffatt, Patty Hindman. Sewing Prize. — Std. 111., Mrs Wharmby’s special: Joyce Grantham. Std. IV., Mrs Wharmby’s special: Esther Ganderton. Best-kept Workbook. — Teacher’s special: Phyllis Watson, and Ivan Walker.

STANDARD IV. Girls. —Esther Ganderton 1, Jessie Doube 2, Dorothy Marfell 3. Boys.—Vernon Richards 1, Bruce Gibson 2, Stanley Thomson 3. Attendance Prizes. —Esther Ganderton, Stanley Thomson, Arthur Chappel, Sinclair Brasell, Allan Moore, Allan Fryer. STANDARD V. (Proficiency in Class Work) Boys.—John Doube 1, Austin Kirby 2, David Sweeney 3, Douglas Cochrane 4. Girls. —Jessie McKenzie 1, Dove Harris 2, Lorna Haswell 3. Attendance Awards.—David Sweeney, Lance Chisholm, Lorna Haswell, Jessie McKenzie, Enid Paget. STANDARD VI. Boys.—G. Brasell (dux) 1, H. Monteith (Mr Leigh’s special) 2, J. Staines 3. ’ Girls. —M. Gibson 1, M. Leach 2, J.-Moffat 3. Attendance Prizes. — Boys: G. Brasell, S. Barnes, H. Monteith, P. Lee, W. Sargison, S. Smales, J. Pike. SECONDARY DEPARTMENT. Form s—Joan Hall 1, W. Staines 2 Form i. —M. Pike 1, R. McLauchlan 2. Form’3.—-L. Staines 1, I. Shaw 2, T. Leigh 3, J. Monteith 4, D. Rutherford 5, J. Lee 6. Special for French. —M. Nicholson. THE PROMOTIONS. To Primer 2—Jack Annand, Frank Collins, Kenneth Cookson, Raymond Coughlan, Maurice Guy, Keith Fryer, Robert McVicar, Roy Hames, Keith Morton, Frank Papprill, Leslie Ren-

die, Haydn Thompson, Reggie Waters, Billie Wilson, Peggy Ashley, Molly Gibson, Pearl Grey, Sonia Rice, Auarey Taylor, Nancy Ward, Olga Bowley. To Primer 3. —Douglas Black, lan Dunlop, Russell de Lacey, Irving Ebbett, Alastair Jones, Basil Kinghorn, Bill Parsons, Eric Rowlands, Hyltpn Sharpin, Arthur Rusher, Basil Sargison, Jack Stoddart, Jack Welsh, Lindsay Waters, Gladys Anderson, Dawne Bousfield, Beryl Cochrane, Enid Hanson, Morva Howland, Phoebe Lucas, Betty McLean, Hilda Robertson, Gladys Ross, Hazel Rutherford, Audrey Tappin, Jane Renall. To Primer 4. —Selwyn Abrahams, Roy Bendeich, Ronald Ferguson, Gordon Goodeve, Alan Lee, Stewart Leitch, Maurice Mason, Fred Price, Robert Saunders, Keith Waldrom, James Waters, Edgar Walsh, Tom Wood, Betty Bevin, Jean Blair, Kathleen Dillon, Peggy Ferguson, Ida Harper, Dulcie Moffat, Lottie Peddle, Peggy Hartland, Jean Rayner, Corinne Renner, Joan Tinney, Elsie Burgess. To Standard I. —Girls: Barbaia Burgess, Mavis Cook, Ruth Chiistensen, Joyce Cameron, Lily Dreaneen, Rose Dreaneen, Dorothy Lourie, Betty Malkin, Betty Mann, Elizabeth MacLennan, Lynette Parsons, Valda Renner, Phyllis Tappin, Marjorie Urquhart, Lorraine Woodward, Elizabeth Wall, Dorothy Paprill, Margaret Holms, Jean Smyrk, Beth Harper, Belle Davey, Joan le Bas, Betty Keir. Boys: Bruce Bowley, Allan Dunlop, Douglas Gibson, Jack Green, Alan Guy, James Harris, William le Bas, Douglas Leigh, Andrew Leitch, Aubrey Lucas, Douglas Ross, Ray Sargison, Lewis Taylor, Robert Walker, Rex Winter, Nelson Abrahams, Don Brathwaite, Robert Dong Gee, Moray Eden, Walter Ganderton, Leslie Giddens, Laurie Rusher, Dick Waddington, Bruce Nicholson, Errol Blair, Haydn Denne, Jackson McLennan, Dick Mackie. To Standard IT. —Boys: William Annand, Arthur Black, Thomas Brasell, Seymour Bryce, Len Chapman, Cyril Dreaneen, Willie Eden, Bernard Fletcher, Elwyn Gardner, Basil Hames, Norman Hewitt, Trevor James, Janies Jamieson, Maurice Lee, John Mackie, Don Parker, John Ross, Douglas Rowlands, Arthur Rickey, .Reg. Rapley, Eric Sargison, James Sargison, Bobbie Walker, John Wood. Girls: Betty Bates, Nellie Bell, Mollie Black, Betty Dunbar, Nola Frost, Gladys Fairweather, Janet Giddens, Maisie Mitchell, Margaret Monteith, Marjory Paget, May Peddle, Millie Price, Beris Renall, Frances Rusher, Ida Sharpin, Ngaire Staines, Joan Stoddart, Joan Thompson.

To Standard 111. —Girls: Patricia Chisholm, Marjorie Giddens, Fay Hall, Wynne Malkin, Lilian Rayner, Ethel Stowe, Joy Faithful, Greta Grover, June Hewitt, Joan Parsons, Florence Ross, Joan Walker. Boys: Douglas Bell, Gregor Burgess, Leslie Chapman, Edwin Cochrane, Douglas Drower, Reginald Green, James Hall, Cyril Johnson, Robert Mitchell, Arthur Oliver, Ivan Renner, Jeffrey Renall, Douglas Taylor, Raymond White, Dennis Bliss, William Caskie, Robert Christensen, Malcolm Coughlan, Athol Fryer, Bernard Guilliard, Leslie Hammond, William Mason, Lawrence Morton, Walter Raymond, Henry Rendle, John Spackman, Thomas Walker, James Hunt. To Standard IV. —Boys: Tom Bendeich, Charles Black, Harry Ewen, Roderick Gardner, Herbert Drower, Bruce Haswell, Fred Lee, Leslie Marfell, Sidney Monteith, Raymond Rapley, Vincent Rice, lan Walker, Dennis Tinney, Tom Christensen, Maxwell Chapman, Garnett Goodger, George Harris, George Harvey, Mervyn Kirby, Heath Mason, Stewart McConchie, Douglas Rapley, Cuthbert Raymond, Patrick Sharpin, Douglas Wall. Girls: Hilda Brasell, Sheila Cuthbert, Jean Fowler, Eva Grantham, Patty Hindman, Joyce Moffatt, Meta Rayner, Betty Stoddart, Nancy Turner, Phyllis Wood, Adelaide Welsh, Linda Cochrane, Xenia Christensen, Joan Fowler, Doris Harrison, Muriel Johnson, Jean Parker, Marion Smales, Doris Thomson, rhyllis Watson, Norma White, Verna Blair. To Standard V.—Boys: Alfred Anderson, Sinclair Brasell, Arthur Chappel, Harry Chappel, Robert Fairweather, Alan Fryer, Bruce Gibson, Harold Green, Max Green, Robt. Holms, Ray Kinghorn, Allan Moore, Jack Morton, Vernon Richards, Errol Robertson, Noble Ross, Walter Sargison, Stanley Thomson, Tom Denne, Eric Ferguson. Girls: Florence Blair, Gladys Coughlan, Jessie Doube, Myrtle Drower, Esether Ganderton, Peggy Hall, Margaret Kinghorn, Sheila Lee, Eunice Maclean, Dorothy Marfell, Nola Mitchell, Florence Smith, Nancy White. To Standard VI. —Boys: *Lance Chisholm, Douglas Cochrane, John Doube, Dexter Fox, Frank Grover, Leonard Hammond, Henry Hanson, Tom Harvey, lan Holms, Arawata Harris, Austin Kirby, Kenneth Hales, Raymond Mitchell, Lawrence Noedl, Lloyd Nicholson, Gordon Staines, Donald Stowe, Arnold Svenson, David Sweeney, Frank Sainsbury, Raymond Taylor, William Twomey, Noel Thompson, Billy Walker, Eric Watson, Riga Blair, Ralph Smart, Jack Denne, Thomas Ferguson. Girls: Betty Bryce, Anna Burgess, Helen Cochrane, Maurine Coughlan, Francis Ebbett, Muriel Goodeve, Dove Harris, Lorna Haswell, Betty Holms, Mavis King, Dorothy Kirkpatrick, Winnie Lourie, Olga Manning, Helen Monteith, Jessie McKenzie, Sheila McLauchlan, Enid Paget, Adeline Papprill, Beatrice Rayner, Mana Ross, Edna Wood. Passed Standard VI. —Boys: Selwyn Barnes, George Brasell, Jack Bryce, James Duckworth, George Duncan, Graham Goodger, Clifford Harris, Leslie Hall, Philip James, Pryor Lee, Harry Monteith, John Pike, Vincent Richards, Wilfred Sargison, Sidney Smales, Joffre Staines, Clifford Wood. Girls: Doris Bell, Margaret Cochrane, Mavis Gibson, Sylvia Harrison, Helen Johnstone, Mary Leach, Florence Malkin, Thelma Mitchell, Gertrude Moffatt, Beryl Pike, Mary Rice, Mary Ross, Rita Shorland, Gladys Wiggins, Blanche Tinney, mgaire Thompson, Una Walker, Lucy Nicholson.

A novel letter-box has been constructed at Leipzig. The letter is placed in an opening and then coins of the value of the stamps required arc placed in slots provided for them. Thereupon the envelope is automatically stamped and the letter falls into the box.