Aymestrey Magazine 1976

T HE AYMESTREY MAGAZI NE

AUTUMN 1976

MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE OLD AYMESTREY ASSOCIATION HELD AT AYMESTREY SCHOOL ON SATURDAY, 12th JUNE, 1976 Present : The Chairman, Edward Lane, and Messrs. R. H. M. Tildesley, W. B. Stallard, A. G. Duncan, N. P. D. Green-Price, S. J. Coley, N. J. Goodwin, C. M. Foster, R. J. Thomason, J. B. Hughes, D. Hickman, N. J. K. BlairOliphant, D. C. A. Hughes, C. J. A. Gallimore, R. J. S. Hughes. J. H. Phipps, D. H. Griffith, J. N. F. Edwards, E. F. Weaving, C. G. B. Scovell and P. Davies. 1. The Notice convening the Meeting was taken as read. 2. Apologies were received from Christopher Blake, Andrew Powell, Brian Massey, Doctor Thomason, Nigel Blair-Oliphant senior, and John Eyton Coates. 3. The Minutes of the A.G.M. held on the 14th June, 1975, having been circulated in the magazine, were taken as read and were approved.

4. The President : The Meeting noted with regret the resignation of Alan Aitken from the Presidency, a position which he had held since 1964. Further reference was to be made to Alan Aitken's valuable contribution to the Association at the Association's Dinner which followed the Meeting. It was unanimously resolved that John Hughes be appointed President. 5. Election of Officers : Chairman : John Phipps. Vice-Chairman: Nigel J. K. Blair-Oliphant. Honorary Secretary / Treasurer: Bill Stallard. School Correspondent: D. A. N. Asterley. Committee:

Richard Tildesley and Edward Weaving were elected additional Committee members to serve with Messrs. G. Tuthill, D. R. MacLeod, J. Coley and F. Tuthill.

6. ANY OTHER BUSINESS The Secretary reported that Counsel's opinion on the formation of a proposed Charitable Trust to mark the contribution of the Asterley Family to the school had not been favourable and that a Trust with Charitable status could only be formed for the limited purpose of an open scholarship. There followed a general discussion upon an alternative appeal and the meeting resolved that a sub-Committee be formed of the following members, namely : Edward Lane, John Hughes. Hugh Griffith, Andrew Duncan, Bill Stallard and John Phipps, and that the sub-Committee be empowered to launch an appeal subject only to the full Committee's approval of the form thereof and of the proposed allocation of the funds contributed. 7. The Meeting expressed its thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Griffith and their staff for the hospitality given at the school during the afternoon. The Annual Dinner was held at the Union and County Club in Worcester and was much enjoyed., though attendance was down on the previous year. A tribute was given to Alan Aitken for his valuable services to the Association since its inception in 1936 and those present subscribed their signatures to a framed photograph of the school which was to be presented to Alan Aitken. 2

OLD AYMESTREY ASSOCIATION Balance Sheet for the Year ended 31st March, 1976 £ p Balance brought forward from 31st March, Balances, in hand 1975 ... ... ... ... ... 432 - 87 Lloyds Bank Ltd. Excess of Income over Expenditure ... ... 4-15 Savings Account ... ... Deposit Account ... ... Abbey National Building Society ... 3

... 8 3 - 5 2 ... 4 0 - 6 8 39 - 10

463 -30 Less overdrawn Current Account ... 26 - 28 437 - 02 £437 – 02

£437 - 02

Income and Expenditure Account for the Year ended 31st March, 1976 £ p £ p D. H. Griffiths 1 issue of Magazine … 2 - 50 Annual Dinner Receipts ... ... ... ... 94 - 80 Special contribution 92 @ 0.25 ... 23 -00 Magazine Appeal Subscription s ... ... 1 4 - 0 5 __________ 25 - 50 Bank Interest ... ... ... ... ... 8-60 Annual Dinner ... 100-00 Abbey National Building Society Interest ... 21 - 0 4 Inland Revenue ... ... ... 5 - 84 W r e a t h . . . ... ... ... 3 -00 Excess of Income over Expenditure ... 4 - 15 Honorary Secretary and Treasurer. £138-49

£138 - 49

3

LEAVERS AND NEW BOYS The following have left : December P. Jeavons — Prefect, Rugger XV, Boxing Colours. A. R. Milward — September 1972. March A. W. Fields — September 1971. Shooting Colours. July J. W. F. Edwards — September 1970. Prefect, Rugger XV, Soccer XI, Cricket XI. M. B. D. Godsall — April 1971. Prefect, Rugger XV, Soccer XI, Cricket XI; Shooting Colours, Patrol Leader. S. N. Goodwin — April 1971. Exhibition to Wycliffe. J. J. A. Hughes — September 1971. Prefect, Rugger XV, Soccer XI, Cricket Capt.; Colours for Gym, Shooting, Boxing, Athletics; All-Rounder Shield, Brinton Prize, Patrol Leader. R. Johnson January 1971. Rugger XV, Cricket XI; Colours for Boxing, Shooting. N. J. Lead April 1971. M. A. L'Estrange — January 1971. Swimming Colours. C. P. Maiden — January 1973. Rugger XV, Soccer XI. I. McCulloch — September 1970. Prefect, Rugger Capt., Soccer Capt., Cricket XI; Patrol Leader. S. L. Mee — April 1974. Rugger XV, Soccer XI. M. L. Stephens — September 1973. W. N. Tudge — September 1972. New Boys: September — B. Candy, R. Paske, J. G. Puffer, R. Tudge. January — A. M. Perryman. April — R. J. G. Pember. OLD BOY NEWS N. R. Bomford, at present a Housemaster at Wellington, has been appointed Head Master of Monmouth. J. Pettigrew has written a book on Browning, published by Penguin. S. J. Dorrell has been adopted as prospective Conservative candidate for Loughborough. D. G. F. Banks was married last Autumn to the Hon. Caroline Boyne. Dr. W. I. C. Clark was married in August to Miss L. J. Callander. C. P. R. MacRae is engaged to Miss Jill Lloyd Owen. M. J. Hughes is Captain of Rugby at Wye Agricultural College. J. B. C. Jones, after passing out as the best over-all cadet of his year, is doing his sea training in a container ship, S.S. California Star. W. J. Lead had his senior colts Colours for rugger at All Hallows last Winter. J. C. A. Tildesley got five O levels at Uppingham last year, played the bass trombone in the orchestra, and was in the second game for rugger. N. A. McCulloch has passed eight O levels at Shrewsbury, including 6 A's. He played in the under-16 XV, and rowed in the under-16 squad. A. J. Masters played for the under-15 XV at Rendcomb. S. J. Kingston has left Belmont Abbey, where he got two A levels and played for the second XV, and is doing a year's practical work at a research station before going to an agricultural college. A. J. Yeoward left Shrewsbury with an A, B and C at A level and is now at Bristol University reading civil engineering. He was President of the Maths Society at School. M. C. L. Harris is enjoying Cambridge. He is in his last year in the Nat. Youth Orchestra and had the formidable task of opening a Promenade Concert solo on a borrowed Euphonium. He is director of the Orchestra at Emmanuel and has been awarded a choral scholarship. Neil Harris is a House Monitor at Shrewsbury and does his A' levels next Summer.

M. W. West works for an Estate Agent in Kidderminster and hopes to qualify next year. 4

J. C. Peters is much enjoying the Modern Pentathlon at Millfield. M. C. Ashford is at Art College in Brighton. P. D. Hickman won a Scholarship from Leighton Park to read Geography at University in Ontario. M. S. Rosoman is at Cardiff University. His brother, Richard, is in his last year at Wrekin College and recently helped sail the Winston Churchill home from America. B. J. Gaskell went out to Ecuador as a member of a scientific expedition. He was assistant to the scientist studying bats. He kindly came over to Aymestrey and lectured about his experiences and showed some of the marvellous collection of coloured slides that he had made himself. M. Jeavons has left Lucton with 6 O levels and is now at King's Worcester doing A's.

M. Godsall is keeping goal for the Ferrets at Malvern and doing well in class. P. Martineau has done A level Music and also gained an L.T.C.L. He has further A's to do in Maths and Science next year. He has played in the Ist XV, but, as yet, has not won a regular place. PROFESSOR C. H. WADDINGTON It is unlikely that the School will ever have a boy destined to make such an enduring mark in the world as Con Waddington. His vers atilit y a nd power s of conce ntr atio n were no tice abl e ev en in hi s Aymestrey days, and his contemporaries may recall how he could be seen, oblivious to the hurly-burly around him, his fair head buried in a book on some obscure subject, since already all sorts of unusual things were of interest to him. Nor were his tastes only academic; and at Clifton, where he won a scholarship in 1919, he performed ably on the rugger field and distinguished himself as a middle-distance runner. Going to Cambridge with a scholarship at Sidney, Sussex, he took a First in both parts of the Natural Science Tripos, finding time also to come second in the quarter-mile at the Seniors' Sports, and then stayed on with a Research Scholarship. His versatility took him from Geology to Philosophy and then, after winning the Gerstenberg Prize in 1927, to Biology. He became a prolific writer, his books ranging from Genetics and Embryology to Ethics and the Influence of Science on Art and Poetry; and since he was deeply concerned with the relation between Science and Society, he broadcast and wrote a good deal in the best sort of popular vein, having the gift of making abstruse things intelligible to the layman without being facile and inaccurate. Further honours included the Brachet Prize in 1936, Fellowship of the Royal Society in 1947, and the C.B.E. in 1958. He held various honorary doctorates and fellowships, belonged to scientific bodies in America and Finland, was President of the International Union of Biological Sciences, and was a founder member of the Pugwash Conference and the Club of Rome. He was not simply a fine scientist and an important popularizer, but had a profound influence on both biologists and others throughout the world, and it has been said of him that he was a thinker ahead of his time. J. COATES Joseph Coates was another member of the distinguished group of boys at the School during the First World War. He won a scholarship from Aymestrey to Clifton, and went on to the Royal School of Mines, from which he passed out brilliantly. From then till the Second World War he worked for an oil company as a Petroleum Geologist; and afterwards spent some years in the service of the United Nations in Greece, Israel, and Uganda. He was a gifted musician and was for a short time organist at Delhi Cathedral. Though of a retiring disposition he was excellent company, and his sense of humour and powers of drily brilliant comment made him doubly welcome at the O.A.A. Dinners which he attended.

N. J. GOODWIN Nicholas Goodwin, who died in August, came to Aymestrey in 1949 and went on to Wycliffe College in 1953. He was a Prefect, and played for the School at rugger, soccer, and cricket, distinguishing himself especially at rugger, in which he was a player of notable courage. 5

Courage was the outstanding quality he displayed in his long illness, and those in touch with him recently could not fail to be deeply impressed by the way in which he faced a malady which he knew to be incurable. RETIREMENT OF A. B. AITKEN Alan Aitken's retirement from the Presidency of the Old Aymestrey Association has already been mentioned, but the occasion should not be allowed to pass without placing on record the fact that it is to him that the Association owes its existence. It was his idea in the first place, and his were the drive and energy which got together the first committee, drafted the constitution, and established the Association as a going concern. He continued to work for it tirelessly for 40 years, and he and Gladys, whom we shall miss equally, were unfailing in their attendance at meetings. It is a notable record of service, for which the School and many generations of Old Boys must be sincerely grateful. The following letter was recently received from him. September 1976. Dear Members, I am at a loss to express adequately my thanks to you all for the wonderful and acceptable photograph of the School that you have given me. It has always been a pleasure to do what I could for our Old Boys and I wish my successor best wishes for the future. Yours sincerely, Alan Aitken. GIFTS We are very grateful to the following for their presents to the School Simon Kingston, a tenor horn. Mr. and Mrs. Tainton, a microscope and a skimming net for the pool. Mr. and Mrs. McLeod, a microscope. Miss Davies, the A.A. Touring Book of Great Britain with maps. Mr. Brandram-Jones for half a ton of potatoes when they were in very short supply. Mr. and Mrs. Godsall for supplying year after year the excellent potatoes we enjoy on Bonfire night. Many parents who make us welcome gifts of fruit and vegetables, especially Mr. Coley for his strawberries. MONSIEUR MARC M. Marc de Wismes spent a year in the School learning English and helping us to speak French. He made a very special place for himself here and we hope to see him again before long. His brother, Olivier, who is a leading singer in a Parisian Choir called Les Petits Chansents de Passy, was visiting England with the Choir and singing in both Worcester and Malvern, so we invited them to tea and to spend the afternoon relaxing in the grounds. Afterwards they sang to us in the hall and we were very impressed by their skill and discipline. Some of the boys were only ten but this is an amateur choir with a professional touch and we hope they will come again. EXHIBITION Congratulations to S. N. Goodwin on his award at Wycliffe.

MUSIC William Boughton has run the Music now for two years and taken the Choir to sing in Malvern Abbey. Many boys have attended his concerts either to see him conduct or listen to his marvellous 'cello playing. Mr. and Mrs. Kitto, who taught Brass and Woodwinds have sadly found us too far away from Birmingham for them to continue and have handed over to Mr. Emery, Woodwind, and Mr. Morison, Brass. MacLaren passed Grade IV trombone with Merit and Coley and Kimpton Grade III trumpet. Other instrumentalists play piano, recorder, clarinet, flute, tenor horn and guitar. 6

ART Malvern College held an Art Exhibition in March and invited local Preparatory Schools to send contributions. The display, which included examples of the work of Wallace G., Wallace P., Perryman, Goodwin S. F., Jefferson-Brown, Brandram-Jones, Fields A., Thomas C. and Johnson R., was splendidly staged. Two parties of staff and boys visited the Exhibition. FETE St. Thomas' Church, which once stood in the Aymestrey grounds, was built in 1876 and as part of the centenary celebrations we held a Fete in aid of Guide Dogs for the Blind. Despite the heat, it was one of the hottest days of the Summer, it was much enjoyed by boys and their parents and also visitors from the village. £231 was handed over to the Association's representative, Mr. Bagby, who brought his Alsation guide-dog, Mizzi, with him. Many parents and staff gave most welcome support, in particular Mr. and Mrs. Tainton, who ran the bottle stall; Mrs. Packman, the bookstall; Mrs. Paske, who brought a huge variety of home-made cakes and bread and then helped to sell them; Mr. and Mrs. Coley who produced a vast quantity of top class strawberries. A popular stall, run by eight members of the club under Mr. Asterley, supplied much excellent tea, made by a mysterious method known only to Old Boys who have attended Camp. The most profitable stall was the one for produce run by Mr. and Mrs. Beard, Mrs. Wood and Mrs. Smith, to which parents and friends had given most generously. The boys manned about a dozen stalls including Goodwin's Ghost-house; Johnson's Walk-thePlank; Edmonds' 'Guess the Plant'; Godsall's Hit-a-Tin; Moore's Bowling Competition, won by his own father; and a Houdini Act Competition devised by Mr. Cash. According to the Treasurer this last one made a loss but no-one knew how, or, for that matter, minded. It was a happy day and after meeting Mr. and Mrs. Bagby we all felt it was effort well spent in aid of such an admirable cause. THE BIG POOL Some Old Boys will remember the netting of the Big Pool. The Severn-Trent River Authority came to have a look, at the height of the drought, and decided the fish were in urgent need of rescue. Despite the water-lilies they managed to net part of the pool and they took away many hundreds of small fish. They have promised to come again in the Winter, do the whole pool and give us some bigger fish in exchange. The whole School watched the procedure with admiration not least because of the skill and humour of the excellent team of men who did the job, RUGGER The XV had a frustrating but in the end satisfying season. We have never had so much petty injury and illness, and only in the first match and the last were we at full strength. But it was good to see the gradual build up of team spirit and combined skill, until by the end we were a very competent side for our size. So many teams entered for the Sevens that the day was run on a pool system with no outright

winner. Our A team, playing against bigger schools' B sides, won all its matches and showed determination but little skill, partly because of a narrow pitch. Our B team had one win, one draw, and one loss; and in our only game on a bigger pitch they put up our most skilful show in beating Abberley B. The best measure of the XV's progress is a comparison of scores. We drew our first match 8 - 8; against the same opponents on their ground later on we won 34 - 10. Another early game was won 8 - 4, the return 50 - 0. A score like this is, of course, not a good thing for either side; but it did show how far we had come, and the XV, free at last from injury, took its chance to play some beautiful rugby. Our three defeats, only one of which was a poor show, were all at the hands of much heavier sides when we wore two or three key men short; but when we won we could fairly claim that it was through real skill. The five tight forwards were the side's greatest strength. McCulloch was probably the best loosehead prop we have had, a short but powerful scrummager, a formidable battering ram in the loose, winner of much ball at the front of the 7

line-out, and a Captain whose influence was badly missed when he was away. Bearcroft at tight-head was almost as strong and aggressive, and between them they disrupted some opposing front rows altogether, while Manning hooked well and was combative all round. Tyler and Jeavons at lock played a valuable part in all phases. Maiden at No. 8 did little tackling but was good in attack; and the Hankers, Godsall and Mee, though too slow to destroy opposing backs, tackled well at short range and won much good ball at the breakdown, Godsall also catching well at the end of the line-out. At scrum half Johnson was quick, with excellent tactical sense and well-timed breaks; and outside him GreenPrice passed accurately, kicked well, and was very good in support play. It was note- worthy that combination between the halves and No. 8 produced over half our tries. The centres, Edwards and Hughes, were far better together than either on his own, Edwards' straightening of the line, neat little breaks, and well-timed passing setting Hughes up for the swerving runs which he could not make room for by himself. Jefferson-Brown and Simpson, running with power and deter mination on the wings, seldom failed to make ground, and the former's tackling was splendid. At full back Wallace, much hampered by illness, nevertheless did some good things, especially in counter-attack. The best try of the season in the coach's eyes drew its quality from not being organised at all; the ball was snapped up after a tackle, and a lock, then a back, a prop, the other lock, and finally another back all had a hand in an outstanding bit of quick thinking and backing up. There were also two beauties by the wings, one from a movement involving two loose forwards and five of the backs, and the other from a classic break by the centres from inside their own 25. Tyler and Green-Price were useful place-kickers by the end. Edmonds played well as a substitute in a number of positions; others who , showed to advantage were Tudge S., Coley, Phelps, Milward, Kimpton, MacLaren, Stallard and Pulfer; and for thee second year running the standard of the senior game as a whole was high. Blues won the colour-matches narrowly from Greys, and Greens won the kicking cup. McCulloch, Hughes, Bearcroft, Maiden, and Godsall played for the County Prep. Schools XV in one or more Christmas matches.

SOCCER Played 8 Won 5 Lost 3 The best figures and the best team we have had for a long time. At the beginning of the season they gave no hint of the team they were to become and put up a dismal display against Winterfold

2nd XI at home. Then three things happened that made all the difference. McCulloch, captaining the side from centre, half, began to make his influence felt. Lacking natural football skill he is nevertheless a dogged player who never gives up and the others began to follow his example so that there was a remarkable gain in confidence. At the same, time Coley, outside left, began to do what he had done for the cricket team last year, and show that results will come if you apply basic principles. Despite being slow, and almost completely onefooted, he showed two great virtues : he watches the ball all the time and he goes on 'going on' so that a stream of good crosses began to come over from the left. Thirdly, Godsall, in goal, became not only a very reliable defender, making many courageous and excellent saves and never, well only once, letting in a `soft' goal, but also a genuine attacking force. Many of our attacks were launched from his long and accurate clearances to the wings. On the foundation of these three things an entirely new looking team began to appear. GreenPrice and Phelps, who had always looked the most skilful players in terms of ball control, began to play constructively and take the trouble to make accurate passes. Tudge S. showed that most valuable knack of centre forwards of being able to snap up half chances and turn them into goals so that a muddle in front of the enemy's goal was always a real scoring chance. Stallard came in at left back, and, despite his lack of years and inches, was cool and strong. He bas a good kick and is a fearless tackler with a natural sense of position. Maiden, Hughes, Edwards J. W., and Mee were improving with every game and the side put up its best performance in the very last match, against Moor Park 2nd XI away. In bright sunshine, but on a very muddy and slippery pitch, they played quite beautifully to win 5 - 1. Hughes, who had 8

struggled all season, at last came into his own and attacked very well on the right wing and this got everybody else going. Tudge S. scored two very neat goals, once with a little nod of the head when coming up at full speed. Green-Price got a real beauty with a first time half-volley from a high cross by Maiden, but these were only the highlights of a good performance by the whole team. During the term there was a marked improvement in heading, particularly by Edwards J. W., in defence. Other boys who played well in practice games were : Johnson, Tudge W., Edmonds, JeffersonBrown, Pulfer, Tyler R.,, and Wallace P. Collis and Tudge R. show promise among the juniors. McCulloch, Godsall, Hughes, Green-Price and Coley were awarded their colours. CRICKET 1975 was our best season for many years but 1976 was better still : Played 7, Won 4, Lost 2, Drew 1. Four of the matches were very close finishes : victories by 1 run against Winterfold and by 1 wicket against (Moor Park 2nd XI. In the return we drew with Moor Park with only 1 wicket in it and we lost to Abberley by 3 runs. Our worst performance was in the Moffats game but even then they only won by 3 wickets. The other two matches were both fairly comfortable victories. We managed several good steady opening stands which is most helpful in giving confidence to the rest of the batsmen. Godsall was responsible for most of this and he was well supported by Johnson and later on by Manning. Hughes and Moore made a formidable partnership in opening the attack. Both are fast enough to be hostile and Moore is very straight, the majority of his wickets being clean bowled. Hughes is less consistent but he has a fine action and at his best bowled quite beautifully. Everyone made his contribution to this side which, by the end, became a real team. Hughes was the best all-rounder and his captaincy improved. Apart from his bowling he also batted well at times, making an excellent 55 not out against Moor Park. Green Price has a keen eye, not only for the ball but also for the tactics of the game; a promising sign in next year's captain. He

showed a touch of class against the Abberley fast bowler by playing him with confidence and time to spare. His catching and throwing at cover-point are first-rate. Godsall's batting improved with every match : he is particularly strong off the back foot square on the off. He fielded well and caught a scorcher in the gully at Abberley. Johnson batted with concentration and determination and was also an excellent attacking wicket keeper. By the end of the season he was able to stand-up to the fast bowlers. This was partly due to the support he received from McCulloch, at slip, who was always alert. He anticipates well and once took a marvellous catch on the leg side. Moore can bat as well as bowl and he hit some very hard sixes over square leg. Coley took rather a long time to get going but made some good scores in the later matches. Edwards had little chance to bowl his slow off-breaks but did well against Moffats. Phelps and Tudge S. batted with courage and are both quick in the field. Colours were awarded to Hughes, Green-Price, Godsall, Johnson and Moore. Wallace P. and Maiden played in some matches. Six of the team will still be here next year so prospects are bright. Boys who showed up well in practice games were Colyer, Edmonds, Wallace G., Partridge, Packman M. and Ratcliffe. It was most unfortunate that, in this good season of hard dry wickets, the Fathers' Match was rained off. The colour matches were won by Greys with Greens second. WINTER ACTIVITIES Gym went well, eight boys reaching the Expert level, which is more than for some time. Kimpton was the best, Bearcroft made the most notable progress, and these two and Hughes had their Colours. Shooting was not altogether satisfactory. Johnson and Godsall shared the Cup and Colours were awarded to them and to Hughes and Fields, but even 9

these four were too inconsistent to be really good; and below them the level dropped off sharply, and Blues were unable even to raise a team for the colour competition, which was won by Greys. Boxing was reasonably good, the best performers being Johnson, Simpson, and Hughes, followed by Edwards J. W., Moore, Tudge S. and Phelps. In CrossCountry running there was not much to choose between Maiden and Green-Price, Hughes and Wallace G. generally came next, and Tudge S. was the pick of the juniors, with Wallace P. and Candy showing promise. PENTATHLON This is not going well. Thomas C. won his white badge, which was creditable since he was hardly considered to be in the running a year ago; but on the whole far too little progress was made. SWIMMING Performance at the top was below our recent high level, and no Colours were given; but the number of competent swimmers just short of the front rank was higher than for some time, and by the end everyone could swim. Greens won the Cup, being top in both tests and races; and individually Tudge W. did best of the seniors in swimming sports, with L'Estrange second, and Thomas C. third; while of the juniors Tudge, S. came first, followed by Puffer and Collis. Johnson was outstanding in the way of

progress. ATHLETICS Practice was hampered by the heat, since it seemed inadvisable to work boys too hard, but on Sports Day itself the weather was perfect. Those who passed all their Standards were Hughes, Bearcroft, Wallace G., Simpson, Tudge S., Wallace P., and Phelps; and Hughes also won every event in Div. I and was awarded his Colours. The standard in Div. II was relatively higher, and Wallace G. was outstanding, followed by Green-Price, Simpson and Bearcroft. In Div. III Tudge S., with Kimpton and Wallace P., also doing well; and in Div. IV Blair-Oliphant did best, though the standard here was below average. Greys won the Cup by a wide margin, coming first both in standards and in the finals, and winning both the Relays. OUTDOOR CLUB A mixed year. In the sphere of progress in skills and knowledge Hughes was outstanding; he passed all the elementary tests and three advanced ones, and was equipped to live sensibly in the country and to go about noticing, understanding, and above all enjoying a great deal of wild life and his surroundings generally. Edwards came next with all the easy tests, ability to complete physical jobs reliably, and some knowledge of trees. Manning, McCulloch, Johnson, Green-Price, Kimpton, and Coley completed their elementary stage and passed the jobs test. Eight others just managed the elementary part, some under considerable pressure. The other sixteen original members did not even finish the first stage, a thing that could be done in a couple of months by anyone with the will be a pretty unimpressive performance. Part of the blame rests with the leaders. Hughes and Manning were by no means perfect, but on the whole did their loyal best both to teach and encourage the younger ones and to help with preparations for camp. The other three leaders who were tried varied from lake-warm to stone-cold useless. Next year's leaders will have to do a lot better if the Club is to justify its existence. Two or three short Sunday expeditions were made each term, one to Wyre Forest, one to the Severn estuary, one to a gallery in Wales, and the others to Radnor Forest. There is not time for real walking, but it gets us into different types of country, and generally introduces something new in the way of birds and other creatures. Mention should be made of Goodwin N.'s excellent work at weather-recording, through which he developed considerable insight into the subject. 10

CAMP Apart from boys whose store of energy is exhausted by the act of joining the club and who do nothing further, and those who think camp is provided on the National Health and do not a hand's turn towards getting it ready, there is a third class whom we do not welcome, namely those who disobey any order on principle as soon as no-one is looking. So only nineteen in the end set out for camp. Nineteen came back too, which was something. We began very well, having all tents pitched in just over two hours. And a good thing too,, because the rain started as soon as we had finished; and as it came down so did our standard, time being wasted putting right things that should not have gone wrong. This dependence on the weather was a weakness for some time, and it was not till late in the camp that you could feel anywhere near sure that things would be well done rain or no. Still, though we were nearly an hour late getting finished, the essentials were there by nightfall, and we turned in, safe so far, if not covered with glory. Wednesday was lovely, and so — more or less — were we; and by evening the camp was looking respectable and its inhabitants were doing their stuff sufficiently well to make a casual observer

think they were pretty good. He would have been wrong though. The next day was wet, and as soon as there were difficulties it was clear that few boys yet did the right thing from habit or were prepared to think. Mere picnickers, not campers. The first heavy rain focussed anxious eyes on the tents. In the Autumn we had sent these battlescarred veterans to be reconditioned, but the firm concerned had labour troubles and the tents came back untouched in April. We took advice and bought some stuff to put on them. Wrong stuff. Took it back and got another kind. Eventually Mr. Tyler most kindly gave up a Sunday afternoon to putting it on for us with a spray-gun; and he also took the shelter home, remodelled it, and made a ridgepole. The design was a great improvement, but the fabric proved too far gone to stand a real downpour, though it was still very useful in light rain. The tent treatment however was successful, though one developed curious little holes as if the Pigeons inside had been pecking it; and when the S.M. could be seen making constant visits with zinc-oxide plaster, it was the tent he was first-aiding, not the inhabitants. This was effective, and next year we shall house the patrol in a new tent made of Elastoplast and cut up the red one for bandages. The rain thinned out that night and with the wind veering we decided next morning to stick to our plans for a hike. Our weather-forecasting was right and it was a glorious day. A complicated shuttle service with the cars got the whole party to a point a mile east of Llandegley, where we split up. The larger and tougher lot under Hugo made a wide loop over the highest plateau of Radnor Forest, lunching at 2,000 ft. (put it into metres yourself if you must), and coming back by Pennybont and home along the lanes. They had a remarkable close-up of two young buzzards, and covered about 25km. : this time we've done the sum for you because it looks more impressive that way. The aged and infirm visited the gulls at Llanwefr Pool and then climbed Llandegley Rocks, though they were unable to stand on the summit cairn because it was owned by a swarm of bees who made it clear that they would Prosecute Trespassers in their own way. We then followed a devious route back to camp, a journey enlivened by the S.M.'s falling off a fence, unfortunately without breaking any bones, which would have been exciting. This lot covered about 12 miles quite creditably, but the best thing they did was to relight the fires on their own when they got back and have everything possible ready for the others' tea. Good, that was, and a credit especially to Tyler who organised it. Saturday was good too. The weather was perfect, and every single job was well done, with improved organization. There was no need for Bearcroft to remember where his hat was, Edwards' shirt stayed in for several minutes, Moore only scowled three times, and Maiden was digging and therefore of some use. The whole place looked really smart and efficient, and it was lucky that a very nice party of Scouts from Bewdley chose that day to have a look at the site for their own camp in August. We just failed to score full marks, a couple of little slacknesses at bed-time spoiling things; but it was our best whole day. Sunday was visitors' day, and after we had got everything ready and washed Tudge's face we went up to Cefn Llys Church in the afternoon, where the 11

building was so full that some people had to sit on the floor. Then we gave tea to about fifty guests, and the camp looked quite presentable, and we let them, watch us bathe, and nobody was drowned, and up to a point it all went well. But parents are odd creatures. Only a few really looked into things and asked questions and it is doubtful if many know much about us. You do? O.K. where is the first-aid box kept? What happens to all the rubbish you didn't see lying about? Where are the latrines and what is the system? Where in the tent does the leader sleep, and why? What are those logs in the tents for? (You see? You didn't even notice them.) How is the washing up organized? If you can answer all those, you are a model parent who really takes an interest. The day finished badly. Boys who had had visitors straggled back and stood about while the others did the work; Jupiter, or whoever it is, was disgusted and turned on the rain; various mistakes were made; and we drooped off to bed early in comparatively poor form.

Rain continued for most of the next twenty-four hours, but on the whole we did better, and most of Monday was spent out of camp. The main body did a five-hour hike and performed sensibly, and a bird-watching party drove to the headwaters of the Tywi to look for kites. They didn't see any, but wheatears and stonechats were new to some; and the best bit was that a fox spent half an hour just messing about within 200 yards of the car at lunch-time. Our last day, fine again, went well; and though rain early next morning meant that tents had to be spread out to dry when we got back, and striking camp was a shade on the slow side, we managed all right on the whole, and perhaps did the final putting away at School a little better than usual. Food was purposely simplified a bit in case the heat-wave went on, which luckily it didn't. As always it was perfectly organized at the School end, and Godsall managed it quite well, with only a couple of minor panics. Cooking was never bad and sometimes very good, and not once, did the milk or other perishables go off, a successful dairy having been established in deep shade at the river's edge. The only illness was one boy's feeling sick for a few hours, there were no major injuries, and fewer minor ones than usual, well dealt with by the boys themselves. We are grateful once more to Mr. and Mrs. Collard for all their generosity and kindness, to Mr. Tyler for his work on the tents, to Mrs. Green-Price for transport, and to Mr. and Mrs. Griffith for making the whole thing possible at all; and again there was Hugo Tuthill, giving up a week of his time, lending a lorry, and propping up all the weakest points, including the S.M. Cuckoos were the best patrol, just. They did not reach great heights but they seldom slipped badly, they were more of a team than the others, and you had that comforting feeling that they were still reliable when out of sight. Pigeons were very nearly as good, were the best cooks, and much the neatest. Peckers were slow and occasionally muddled, but always conscientious and hard-working. Eagles made the worst mistakes and were the untidiest; but they had high spots, such as the excellently organized dinner on the last day, and they set a remarkable standard in the digging jobs. Johnson deserves individual mention for his packing and care of tools. One or two comments from outsiders may be passed on. The Bewdley scooters were heard to say, "Look at that; I wonder where they learn to use their axes". The man in the cottage across the river admired the care with which tidying up was done at the end. And a total stranger remarked, "Pity there aren't more like that : those boys do what they're told". Right. You've had your pats on the back; now for a kick in the pants. Granted that there are dozens of things which you do so well that they're never mentioned. Granted that our camps are a sight better than most; so they should be. Granted that you do what you're told. Why do you have to be told! Why do you have to be driven to do your learning in the year leading up to camp? Why isn't it automatic by this time to do what you were told six months ago? When hundreds of things, great and small, have become habits that you don't have to think about them at all; when you have the guts always to get done first what you most dislike doing; when you can look ahead and plan; when you are so used to things being done well that you notice when they aren't, and hate it; then perhaps you can begin to think you're some good. 12