Aymestrey Mag 72

8/8/2019 Aymestrey Mag 72

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The

Aymestrey Magazine

AUTUMN, 1972


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THE AYMESTREY MAGAZ INE AUTUMN, 1972

OLD AYMESTREY ASSOCIATION

The thir tieth Annual General Meeting was held in the Memorial Library at the Schoolon Saturday, 17th June, 1972.PRESENT :

In the Chair : Richard Tildesley

C. R. A. Leakey A. G. DuncanS. J. Dorrell N. Blair-OliphantJ. Perry J. C. Smith

N. A. J. Thornely D. M. KnoxA. Lane R. E. LaneB. W. Massey D. Henry

J. H. Chandler C. G. B. ScovellA. G. Powell R. J. ThomasonS. C. M. Blake J. H. Hughes

P. W. D. Davies E. R. LaneC. M. Foster C. W. Massey

Air Vice Marshal D. C. HughesD. N. K. Blair-Oliphant C. J. A. Gallimore

J. E. Coates

The Chairman, Richard Tildesley welcomed members to the meeting with a requestthat it be kept as b rief as possib le owing to the absence of Hugh Griffith, who was ill.

APOLOGIES were received from S. R. D. Coates, J. A. G. Coates, A. Powell, T. Bates andthe President, A. B. Aitken.

THE MINUTES of the last Annual General Meeting held on 19th June 1971 were taken asread, and signed.

THE ACCOUNTS were presented with some comments from the Treasurer whoreported a good response to the new Appeal Fund and indicated that the financial

position had improved on 1970/71. On a proposition from the Chair man it was agreedto put the appeal money into a building society account.Election of Officers 1972/73

Chairman: D. Hughes, who thanked the retir ing Chairman, R. Tildesley, for his servicesduring his year in office.

Committee Additions: N. Blair-Oliphant and N. A. J. Thornely.Honorary Secretary/ Treasurer: C. J. A. Gallimore was re-elected.School Correspondent: D. A.N. Asterley was re-elected.

Any Other Business

D. A. N. Asterley was anxious to find the meeting's reaction to the news letter that

was now being published. He also requested that more members wrote to him so thatmore material could be put into this news letter. The reaction from the meeting wasfavourable and members wished it every success.

The Secretary said that many addresses he had were now out of date and if anyattempt can be made by old boys to find addresses which were correct this would beappreciated.

There being no further business, the meeting having opened at 6.20 p.m. closed at 6.40p.m.

OLD BOY NEWS

Commander T. O. Holgate, who has for some years been on the staff of DurlstonCourt School, has paid two visits this summer. Of his brothers, W.E.M. is head of the

Royal Insurance Group in Aus tral ia, and J.K , is manager of Guest, Keen and Nettlefold inCardiff.Canon I. R. A. Leakey has had to leave his work in Burundi, being given 48 hours'

notice to quit the country.


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J. S. Pettigrew recently visited the school while in this country during a sabbaticalyear from his work as a don at Trent University, Ontario.

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A. F. Thornely is Export Manager of Permoglaze Paints.

N.J. Thornely is working with a shipping firm in Cardiff.

A. J. R. Turner is engaged to Miss N. P. Chellew and is to be married in September.

O. A. Mayfield visited us in July with his wife and two children, on leave from his work asan accountant in Nigeria.

A. R. Bomford has a daughter, born in June.

D. G. F. Banks is engaged to Miss J. Bannister. He has just been made a partner in the

family firm, specializing in the estate-management side of the business.

W. I. C. Clark was Captain of Shooting at Cambridge, and Leader of the Cambridge and

London Galapagos Islands Expedition.

At the O.A.A. Dinner an aeronautical conference developed between J. W. G. Perry, who

pilots a glider in the intervals of his architectural work, S. J. Dorrell, who is a member of the

Oxford University Air Squadron, and H. Thompson, who is a flying instructor as well as a

farmer. Dorrell's studies in Law at B.N.C. are guided by P. B. H. Birks.

J. A. Chandler was married in August to Miss Rosemary Mackinnon.

G. R. Tuthill was married in July to Miss I. Cormac. He has invented a machine for picking

up apples, which has been accepted by leading firms of cider-makers.

R. H. Collins, who was married a year ago, is working with the Eglise Protestante Methodiste

in Dahomey, training Africans in accountancy. W. H. Collins goes up to Durham University

in October.

C. M. Foster is working in a bank in Leominster.

A. N. K. Brown goes up to Aberdeen University this autumn. He has been doing

community service since leaving Malvern, helping to train the mentally handicapped.

M. J. Hughes and S. J. Twinberrow both took part in the Worcestershire Schools Athletics

Championships, in different age-groups, Hughes coming 3rd in the 800 metres andTwinberrow 4th in the 100 metres. Hughes also came 7th in the County Cross-Country

Championships, and was in the School Cross-Country team at Bromsgrove. At Malvern,

Twinberrow won the Second String 100 and 200 metres and javelin in his age-group.

S. J. Kingston was in the Under-14 Cricket XI at Sherborne.

Dr. R. B. Scholefield has a second son, born on August 12th.

PAUL BRINTON MEMORIAL

The Brinton Memorial prize for 1971 was won by R. J. S. Veal and for 1972 by C. D.

Samwells.

GIFTSWe are very grateful to the following for gifts to the School.

Mr. and Mrs.Twinberrow for a book on cars.

Mr. and Mrs. McLeod for a book called "The World of Cricket."

Major and Mrs. Kingston for a splendid cricket bag, big enough to hold all the kit for the XI

when going to away matches. Also for a most generous book prize to be awarded annually. This

year it went to N. R. P. Harris.

Mr. and Mrs. Veal for a contribution towards equipment for the Scouts and also another cheque

which has been spent on gym equipment.

Mr. and Mrs. Harris for a most generous cheque which has enabled us to buy 8 volumes of the

Oxford Junior Encyclopaedia for the library.

Mr. and Mrs. Hamer for a generous contribution towards sports equipment.Mr. and Mrs. Martineau for a contribution to the Gift Fund which we shall spend on further

musical equipment.


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Mr. and Mrs. Samwells for a very welcome addition to the library of the latest Stanley

Gibbons Stamp Catalogue.

BURSARY

We are deeply indebted to the parents of a leaving boy, who wish to remain anonymous,

for a most generous endowment for seven years, in order to help a boy come to Aymestrey who,

for financial reasons, would not otherwise be able to do so.

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If any Old Aymestrey Association parent wishes to apply for this Bursary will he please

contact D.H.G.

SCHOLARSHIP

Congratulations to P. M. Martineau who was awarded a Music Scholarship at

Cheltenham College for h is Piano, Organ and Trumpet p laying. His s inging and

Theory also helped, special mention being made of his all-round musicianship.

MUSIC

This year 32 boys have had instrumental music lessons with Mr. Reid. With the

exception of Martineau, who won the Atherton Music Cup for the second year running,

the standard was not very high. However Chaat (Piano), Lead W. (Trumpet) and McLeod

(French Horn) have all made good progress.

TOWNSEND WARNER HISTORY PRIZE

McCulloch N. and Davies J. entered for this competition which is open to all Prep.

Schools. McCulloch did well enough to qualify for Paper II in which he came 31st out

of more than 500 entrie s. He should do even better next year.

LEAVERS AND NEW BOYS

The following have left:S. J. Kingston. Came May 1967. Prefect. Leader of Blues. Rugger XV. Soccer XI.

Cricket XI. Cricket Cup, Fielding Cup. Athletics Colours. Choir. Patrol Leader.

(Sherborne).

R. Me ad. Ca me Se pt. 1966. P refe ct. S wimmi ng Col ours. Choir. (Reading).

C. J. Yarnold. Came Sept. 1969.

A. J . Bennett . Came Sept. 1970. Prefect . Rugger XV. Soccer XI. Pentathlon

White Badge. Colours for Gym, Swimming. Choir. (R.G.S. Worcester).M. D. Hamer. Came May 1968. Rugger XV. Soccer XI. Gym Colours. Choir.

(Rendcomb).

S. A. M. Hardy. Came Jan. 1968. Rugger XV. Soccer XI. Cricket XI. Gym Colours.

Choir. (Bryanston).

N. R. P. Harris. Came Sept. 1967. Prefect. Leader of Greens. Cricket XI. Soccer

XI. Choir. (Shrewsbury).

C. R. C. Jones. Came Sept. 1969. Rugger XV. (Lucton).

D. W. MacGregor. Came Sept. 1968. Prefect. Leader of Blues. Rugger XV. Soccer

XI. Cricket XI. Colours for Shooting, Swimming, Shooting Cup. Choir. Patrol Leader.

(Millfield).

P. M. Martineau. Came May 1967. Prefect. Rugger XV. Soccer XI. Cricket XI.Pentathlon White Badge. Swimming Colours. Music Scholarship. Choir. Patrol Leader.

(Cheltenham).


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R. J. Rosoman. Came Sept. 1967. Choir. (Wrekin).

C. D. Samwells. Came Sept. 1966. Rugger XV. Cricket XI. Brinton Prize. Choir.

(Malvern).

J. C. A. Tildesley. Prefect. Leader of Greys. Ogden Cup. Rugger XV. Soccer XI.

Cricket XI. Pentathlon White Badge. Colours for Gym, Shooting, Swimming. Choir. Patrol

Leader. (Uppingham).

R. J. Waine. Came Sept. 1971.

New Boys. Sept.: D. M. M. Bowen, D. G. N. Edwards, S. N. Fields, A. W. Fields,

I . M. Harvey, J. J . A . Hu ghes, J. K . Master s, J . P. Mu nn s, G. C. Paske, C.

Pongboriboon, R. J. Waine. Jan.: F. R. Miles, M. C. Packman, R. I. G. Tyler, G. E. J. S.

Wallace. April : A. P. Moore, E. T. Walker.

RUGGER

"Rugby?" said a lady visitor to one of the boys, in tones of horror; " isn't that ratherrough?" So it may be worth while to say that for us it is not a game of brute force.Toughness is important; but players learn courage

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because they love the game, not the other way round; and since we play it as a game of

skill, above all combined skill, with toughness as a valuable by-product, we are old-

fashioned enough to think that it is good for the players. Unlike so many things that

are good for you, it is also enormous fun; ask the boys.

The XV was one of the smallest successful ones we have ever had, but the combined

skill was of a high order - both the hidden skill of the tight forwards, which is apt to

go unappreciated except by the more expert spectators, and the handling skill in the

open, which was worth watching by anybody.

Things started on a high note with a seven-a-side tournament organized by the

Worcestershire Schools R.F.U. All the others were bigger schools and all had biggerboys; but we won our first round 20-0, won the semi-final 10-0, and drew the final 4-4,

both sides being too exhausted for extra time. It was a notable performance.

Of the matches proper we won 5, drew 1, and lost 2, scoring 130 points to 64. Former

players who remember greatly superior records must take account of the fact that the

standard of play in the district has risen considerably in the last seven years or so ; and

although we have had three or four definitely better sides, this year's was superior to some

in the past that had more impressive records on paper.

Our worst performance was the drawn match. It was a very wet day, which was all

against our methods, but we were sluggish in the first half and stupid throughout. The

two defeats were both due to lack of weight. One was close, and again with a little more

tactical sense we could have won, but it was a good game. In the other the oppositionwas enormously larger; but it produced some great tackling from us, and never once did

our opponents make a clean break, their six tries being all scored at close range.

The best game was against Winterfold at home. Their heavier forwards were very

good in the mauls and we were under long periods of pressure, during which two

clearances by Johnson and a tackle by Martineau stood out especially; and there was a

great deal of hard, disciplined defence when the Winterfold pack seemed camped for

ever on our line. We had a good share of the ball in the line-out, mainly through

MacGregor; Samwells was hooking well; and the rucking of the whole pack was

splendid. So we did plenty of attacking; but our opponents' defence was very good

indeed and we could only score three tries. One came from a scissors between Tildesley

at number eight and the scrum half, Kingston; one from a blind-side break by Hamer atfly-half and an inside pass to his partner; and the third from a move in which half-a-

dozen forwards handled before a sudden switch to the backs sent Martineau clear. At the


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end the referee, a stranger to both sides, called all the players together and congratulated

them on what he said was the best game he had taken for a long time.

Our two highest-scoring games were contrasted. Against Seaford we were able to

throw the ball about, and the fact that eleven tries were shared between nine different

players is evidence of the team-work involved. The best was perhaps the most copy-book

affair of the whole season; a scrummage inside our own half, a vast spin pass from

Kingston, slick handling by Hamer and Martineau, a classic break up to the full back byElt (the youngest man in the side), and an inside pass to Martineau for the run-in. Against

Hawford, our threequarters were well held by good tackling; so the forwards, though

giving away stones in weight, took matters in hand - literally, since their interpassing

was a delight - and forwards scored five of our seven tries, each half-back betting one.

Two scores s tood out ; once number e ight took the heel and broke close to the scrum, the

ball went to scrum half, back to number eight, back to scrum half, and the fly half came

inside him and side-stepped the rema ining defe nce; and once Hardy, McCulloch, Lea d,

Bennett and MacGregor - all forwards - handled in a move covering forty yards up

the touchline, and when at last they were checked they won the ruck, and Tildesley was

with Kingston for the scoring pass.

The front row were solid scrummagers , with Samwells a good hooker and an

intelligent all-round forward, MacGregor very useful in the l ine-out, and Bennett using his

speed well to get about the field. Lead and Jones

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scrummaged well in the second row, were always up, and always doing the right thing.

Of the f lankers, Hardy revel led in the open p lay and was a beau ti fu l passer,

McCulloch was a driving tackler, and both were adept at setting up rucks; while

Tildesley at number eight was perhaps the best all-round forward of all. At full back

Johnson had good hands and sound positional sense. The wings, Davies and Peters,

were young and lacked speed, but both did some good things and Davies' tackling wasoutstanding. The centres, Martineau and Elt, were strong and fast and knew where the

openings were, and Martineau was another splendid tackler. And finally the half-backs : not

perhaps quite the equal of Edwards and John, but there was a resemblance - Hamer,

minute but courageous, always turning up in unexpected places, and invariably able to

catch any pass he could touch; and Kingston, spidery and indestructible, always up to

something with his back row men, and sending out a spin-pass of prodigious length.

A good season. With their successors looking likely to be the youngest side we have

ever had, we must be prepared for our next report to be decidedly humble.

SOCCER

There was not much soccer talent in the school and the weather was so wet that for

most of the term we could not play at all. As it often was possible to play rugger, and we

played it bet ter, i t was with something like a sense of relief that we changed back again to it

in the second half of term.

Early in the season we played two 'Friendly' games ; first with the Downs, who were

just starting soccer, and then with Winterfold. In both games the two sides were mixed for

the second half, which was an interesting experience.

Hardy was the best player and he captained the side from centre-half. Davies J. was

the best forward and Elt showed promise on the wing. The strongest part of a weak side

was the defence where Harris and Bennett did well as full backs as did Johnson A. in goal.

CRICKET

Played 9, won 2, lost 5, drew 2. Not very distinguished figures for a not very

distinguished side.


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Considering that he had so few real cricketers in the side Tildesley managed the

captaincy with credit, made fairly good use of his limited bowling resources and batted

with a determination lacking in many of those higher up the order. In fact the tail-end

batting was perhaps the best feature of the season. There was a last wicket partnership

of 37 between McCulloch and Tildesley in the Fathers' Match and two good draws

were achieved ; one against Abberley, when Tildesley and McCulloch held out for twenty

minutes against good bowling, and one at Seaford where Burgoyne and McCulloch played verysensible straight bat stuff for six overs when all hope of winning had gone.

Hardy, who can hit the ball very hard, looked to be the best batsman but only twice

scored more than 20. Johnson A. has a good free style but lacks concentration. Harris

batted well at times but nearly always got out playing across the line. Jones C. and

MacGregor played straight . Burgoyne, Masters A. and Moore D. promise well for next year.

Fielding was patchy with Davies R., who only got into the side for the last match,

being the safest catcher. At their best Martineau, Johnson A. and MacGregor threw

well , McCul loch N. kept wicke t with rather more courage than skill.

Of the bowlers Hardy, Lead W., Johnson A., Burgoyne and Samwells C. can all bowl a

bit but none has much 'devil' and all were prone to have days when they could not bowl

at all. The best figures were :- Samwells 3 for 11 and Johnson A. 3 for 27 against theElms, Burgoyne 4 for 10 against Winterfold and Hardy 4 for 51 against Abberley.

Greys beat both Blues and Greens in the Colour Matches, Lead W. taking 5 for 19 in

each match and he was also top scorer with 27.

Other boys in the senior games who deserve a mention are Ridley, Munns, Samwells J.

and Twinberrow and of the juniors Hughes, Miles, MacLaren, Tyler, Harvey, Wallace and

Moore A. showed up well.

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GYM

The level of performance at the top was high. Colours were awarded to Hamer,Tildesley, Hardy, Bennett and Lead W., and others who did very well were Martineau,Johnson A. , Peters and Ridley. The cup was won by Greens, with Blues second.

SHOOTING

For the second year running the standard was poor, though improvement was madeand the level was a little higher than last year. The competition was won by Greys, theindiv idual cup by MacGregor, and he and Tildesley had their Colours.

CROSS COUNTRY

This was perhaps a little less good than in the last few years, but Hardy ran well forfirst place, the next two being Tildesley and Martineau. Blues won by a single pointfrom Greys. Younger boys who did well were Elt, Davies J., MacLaren, Fields S. andMasters J.

PENTATHLON

White Badges were won during the year by Bennett, Peters, Martineau and Lead W.;and with Tildesley holding his already, we had a record total of five at one time. Bluescame first, with Greens second.

SWIMMING

We started very late because of cold weather, but some boys a t least made good

progress, and the standard at the top was as good as it has ever been. The individual

cup was shared by Lead W. and Peters, and others who were awarded their Colours

were MacGregor, Bennett, McCulloch N., Munns, Tildesley and Martineau. Others who

did specially well in tests were McCulloch I., Miles, Elt, Jones C., Masters J., and

Edwards D. Greys won the swimming sports by a single point from Blues, but Blueswere a long way ahead in tests and won the cup. The results of the swimming sports

were :-


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SEN IO R Free Style 1. Peters 2. Lead W. 3. Martineau

Breast Stroke 1. Lead 2. Peters 3. Bennett

Back Stroke 1. Peters 2. Lead 3. MacGregor, Munns

Life Saving 1. McCulloch N. 2. Lead 3. MunnsUnderwater 1. Peters 2. Martineau 3. Lead

Diving 1. Lead 2. Peters 3. Bennett

JUN IO R Free Style 1. Edwards D. 2. Masters J. 3. RidleyBreast Stroke 1. Miles 2. Ridley 3. Waine

Back Stroke 1. Ridley 2. Edwards 3. Samwells J.

Diving 1. Ridley 2. Masters 3. Miles

REL AY 1. Greys 2. Blues

ATHLETICS

Competition between the three Colours was closer than usual, and very keen in thefinals, though more keenness might have been shown by Colour-leaders in encouragingand coaching their younger boys in Standards. This part of the competition was just won

by Greys, with Greens second; and in the end the order was the same, Greys getting mostof their points in Divs. I and IV, and Greens in II and III. Those who got all theirStandards were Elt, Ridley, Fields S., Waine, Godsall and Edwards D. - all in the two

junior divisions, which does not speak too well for the seniors.Sports Day itself was a complete washout, and the finals had to be decided on the

Monday. Partly, no doubt, because of the soft ground, performances were nearly allworse than last year; but the senior 440 provided a notable exception, Martineaugetting within 1.6 seconds of the record, which he might well have broken under betterconditions. He was easily the best

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all-rounder in 1; Johnson A. and Peters doing best in 11; Ridley, Moore D. and Elt in III;and Waine and Hughes in IV. Results :-

DIVISION I.440 yards 1. Martineau 2. Hardy 3. Tildesley 63.4 sec.100 yards 1. Martineau 2. Bennett 3. Tildesley 13.0 sec.

Hurdles 1. Martineau 2. Hamer 3. Bennett

High Jump 1 = Jones C., Lead W., Martineau 3ft. 11in.Long Jump 1. Martineau 2. Hamer 3. Bennett 13ft 5 in.

Cricket Ball 1. Hardy 2. Martineau 3. Lead 52 yds.

DIVISION II.220 yards 1. Peters 2. Johnson A. 3. Elt 32.2 sec.

100 yards 1. Peters 2. Masters A. 3. Johnson 14.0 sec.

Hurdles 1. Johnson 2. Peters 3. MastersHigh Jump 1 = Johnson, Masters, Peters 3ft. 11in.

Long Jump 1. Johnson 2. Leece 3. Peters 12ft. 2in.

Cricket Ball 1. Johnson 2. Munns 3. Masters 44 yds.

DIVISION III.

100 yards 1. Moore D. 2. Elt 3. Fields S. 14.2 sec.

Hurdles 1. Elt 2. Fields 3. RidleyHigh Jump 1. Jones M., Ridley 3. Elt 3ft. 11in.

Long Jump 1. Moore 2. Ridley 3. Fields 11 ft. 4in.

Cricket Ball 1. Ridley 2. Moore 3. Masters J. 43 yds.

DIVISION IV.

80 yards 1. Hughes 2. Edwards D. 3. Waine 11.8 sec.

Hurdles 1. Waine 2. Hughes 3. EdwardsHigh Jump 1. Edwards 2. Waine 3. Fields 3ft. 6 in.

Long Jump 1. Hughes 2. Godsall 3. Edwards J.W. 10ft. 11in.


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Thomas

Cricket Ball 1 . Waine 2. Moore A. 3. Edwards J .W. 34 yds.

RELAYS : Medley 1. Blues 2. Greys

Sprint 1. Greens 2. Greys

POINTS Greys 139, Greens 122, Blues 105.

CAMP

When the S.L. was a little boy, he had a model of a battleship of those days. (No, itwas notH.M.S. Victory). You shot at it with a sort of torpedo; and if you hit the vital spotamidships, you touched off a spring inside and the whole thing blew up; then you put ittogether again and had another go. This year's camp was rather like that. All would gowell for several hours, or even a day and a half, and then some mysterious spring would

be touched and either there would be a really disheartening incident or else the wholeshow would collapse with startling suddenness into a sort of caricature of bad camping- such as that ghastly meal when half the troop turned up with trailing bootlaces,stockings down, shirts hanging out, filthy hands and quarrelsome voices, to be fedwith tepid muddy water and black wafers mysteriously spotted here and there withwhite, which the cooks humourously called tea and fried eggs. That meal can, after aninterval, be laughed at; but one or two of the incidents involving selfishness, badmanners, and deceitful disobedience were not funny, and we don't want them again.

Now let's look at the bright side; because the camp as a whole was, unlike those eggs,mostly white, with only occasional black blotches; and, to carry the metaphor on a bit, Ithink we can say that the yolk was unbroken. Taking the troop members individually,twenty of the twenty-five can be said to have contributed more good than bad; and atleast a dozen were really first-rate scouts who would have been an asset in any campwe have ever had. These included several of the younger ones, and - very pleasingly -more than one of those who are not, shall we say, exactly famous for saintly behaviour atschool. Individual responsibilities were extremely well dealt with. Even allowing forMrs. Griffith's perfect organisation at base, Tildesley's management of the food stores wasabsol utely firs t-rate ; everyth ing was tidy, he knew without fail where everything was, andthere was not a fly or wasp to be seen

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in the food tent. Martineau too was excellent at the packing and management of thecooking and eating implements, and only someone who has seen how troublesome thisdepartment can be in less competent hands can appreciate how well he did his job. Hardywas very good with the tools, though of course it was his hat that did it; apparently the hatwas as essential as his hair was to Samson, since Hardy worked, played, ate, walked, andeven slept in it, and the fact that he didn't bathe in it no doubt accounted for his takingso long to get wet. Then there were the unofficial experts . Bennett, for instance,

became the Kindling King and could be relied on to produce as much kindling as all therest put together, in half the time. And Ridley became Chief Latrine Engineer. He andHarris were a strong combination : they worked a shift system - first Ridley dug andHarris supervised, and then Harris supervised and Ridley dug. Seriously though, thismay not be a romantic job but it is essential, and Ridley did it as well as I have ever seen itdone.

This subject leads on to a more general survey; for the latrine discipline as a wholewas one of the strong points, and everything was always spotlessly clean, offering noencouragement to flies or threat to health. Health in fact was excellent; one triflingindisposition and one scald were all that the S.L. had to deal with, and the inevitablescratches and blisters and so on were competently seen to by the scouts themselves.

Apart from one poor meal (which after all we could eat) and the fact that the troopas a whole was bad at the simple job of making tea, cooking was sound and s ometi mesvery good. The two lots of suet pudding for example were really excellent; 'fantastic'was the eaters' description, though to some imaginations a 'fantastic' pudding might seemto suggest something pale blue with writhing tentacles, coming out of a witch'scauldron. But perhaps the best culinary performance was the Peckers' breakfast of

porridge, kippers, tea and 'bread-and' produced in exactly 40 minutes from the momentthat the P.L. was woken up.

Peckers were, in fact, for most of the camp, the best patrol. Looking at the list beforewe started, one could be pardoned perhaps for expecting that they would be the worst;

but somehow or other they achieved that mysterious thing known as team-work, whichmakes a group of people stronger than any of the individuals in it. Credit must go toLead as P.L. and to Rosoman as his Second ; though it is doubtful if they have theslightest idea of how they managed it, since the main feature of team-work is that youcompletely forget the 'I' in your keenness on the 'we' and on the job in hand. Another


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example of their good work was the way in which the woodpile, previously on the ve rgeof failing to keep up with the fires, shot up in no time to a comforting height undertheir hands ; though it is fair to say that the other patrols were quick to realise thenwhat could be done, and we had no fuel-shortage afterwards.

Finding and choosing firewood is a skilled job, and not everyone realises that there is

much to be learnt about it. On the first day some stuff came in which would have foiled

Prometheus ' bes t efforts or put out the Fire of London; and though th is d id not

happen again, there is also skill in the selection by the cooks of the right size, andquality, and quantity of wood to be used at any particular time. In fact it is not too much

to say that the most important man in the cooking patrol is the chap who is looking after

the fires. For instance, that time when you were trying to fry bacon, and the fat was

spitting, and your eyes were smarting, and you couldn't get near the pan for heat, it was

because there was too fierce a fire underneath the boiler-plate; and o n the same occasion

maybe you were held up because the tea-billy wouldn't boil, and that was due to there

being only a glow and not a blaze in the open f ire. Each type of cooking needs the right

size of wood, of the right kind of dryness, put on at the right time. It needs learning.

right

And talking of learning, Cuckoos were best at this ; and MacGregor in particular

was the P.L. who showed most willingness to try and put into practice the advice given

him. Though indeed all the P.L's. did well in this respect; and perhaps this is the place

to give honourable mention to some others who not only worked hard but learnt -

McCulloch among the older hands, and Munns, Davies R., Davies J., Masters A., and

Fields, among the first-year men.

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An encouraging sign of the will to learn was that one or two boys were heard wishing

that it would rain; for we have had three dry camps running, and have no boys with

experience of how to cope with rain, and of the feeling of pride and triumph that comes

when you know you have got safely through something that might have beaten you,

uncomfortable though the battle may have been. Heat however brings i ts owndifficulties ; and one thing that it would be easy to forget to praise was the way

everybody not only remembered the chores of carrying water, bread, and milk, but

performed this decidedly hard work without grumbling or trying to get out of it. At

least . . . well, perhaps Johnson's water-can was heavier than all the others.

Free time was on the whole well spent. Besides the usual activities of playing on the

Castle, dam-building, hunting bull-heads and loaches, and so on, there were four or five

apprentice fly-fishers ; and even if we might be glad that we did not depend on them to

keep us from starvation, they can remember that many a notable angler has started

with salmon parr. Two enterprising juniors made a successful ascent of One Tree Hill;

and there was generally a considerable body of scientists hunting fossils.

This of course was one example of Mr. Chandler's influence ; not for nothing does

one have a B.Sc. in camp. He also demonstrated the principle of the displacement of

water, and every time he did a 'bomb' there was a flood in Llandrindod half an hour

later. This apart, the improvement in the use of the bathing pool noted last year was

continued. There were no fewer than eleven regular users of the diving rock, and most

people spent at least part of their bathe in discovering the pleasure of merely swimming,

with currents, lots of room, and lovely surroundings. Lead spent so long exploring the bed

of the river ten or twelve feet down that rescue parties were sometimes on the point of

setting out when he surfaced ; and he seemed so much more seal than human that one

expected to see him emerge from the depths with a salmon in his teeth.

Discipline? Well, even apart from the one or two things that are not to be jokedabout, it must be admitted that we had our little problems. Pigeons in fact had two little

problems, each of whom was to be seen occasionally standing in a certain magic


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circle ; one with a thunder-red face, ferocious scowl, pouting lower lip, and one foot

and knee sticking out sideways; and the other with black head hung down, hands

behind him, and shoulders swinging from s ide to s ide. Each however had his

decidedly good - and much happier - patc hes.

For the short hike we split into three groups this year. The moderates under Mr.

Chandler did the traditional course to Llandegley Rocks ; the tigers (eleven boys and one

Hat) covered a much more entertaining route to the same destination, walking andnavigating very well indeed ; and the rabbits, led by an elderly animal with grey hair,

performed a gentler amble, which nevertheless included a quite tough bit, and had a

memorable conversation with a delightful party of assorted dogs and their owner at

Cwm Brith. The long hike was carried out by nearly the same party of tigers, whom Mr.

Chandler led on a splendid journey over Radnor Forest, taking in the Wimble, the

summit, and Water-break-its neck; while the rabbits, some from choice and others

compelled by misfortune to be temporarily cunicular, plodded gently up the river to the

Severn Arms, an unenterprising journey enlivened by a bathe and some good views of

kingfishers and herons.

The service in Cefn Llys Church on Sunday was marked by a beautifully read lesson

by McCulloch, and a sermon by the Rector's son which, recalling a camp attended by him

in Scotland, summed up a large proportion of what the S.L. had been trying to teach

during the week. There were rather fewer visitors than usual, but most of them accepted

our tea, and no one asked to take little Albert home from this horrid camp.

The Collards and Mr. Lloyd were, as always, kindness itself ; and it is to be hoped

that the scouts have a true sense of gratitude both to them and to those at the School who

not only let them go but helped in so many ways. The S.L. himself is grateful for some

more happy memories, for the bad things you could have done and didn't, for the good

things that perhaps he failed to notice as well as those he did, and for the fact that no one

asked for extra Latin in free time.

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Aymestrey Mag 72