Balmoral Hall School - Optima Anni Yearbook (Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada)

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2 waning: ,hmm ...X - .f.. CRAIG GOWAN-J. Gladstone, Head BACK ROW-A. Rice, C. Young, J. Patton. FIRST ROW-C. Gustafson, B. A. Harris, M. Travers, N. A. Richards, R. Robertson. SECOND ROW-D. Grindley, M. Tuckwell, M. Gossling, L. Masson. THIRD ROW-S. F1 d J. Smith, M. G ' J. B .tl L. C . D. S 'h oo , 3ll', onnycas e, ousens, mit . FOURTH ROW-D. Smith, B. Sidgwick, E. Echols, W. Bracken, C. A. Fields. FRONT ROW-B. Head, P. Neal, A. Palk. ABSENT-J. Sheppard, A. Jennings, H. Bonnycastle. GRAIG GUWAN HOUSE Craig Gowan House has had an interesting and eventful year. The Track and Field Meet in the Fall was the first House Competition. Cathy Young was the Senior Individual Champion and contributed many points to the House. The House volleyball series came later in the year and pro- vided good sport and excitement for all partici- pants. We were lucky enough to win this series. Thanks are due to all the team members who came out so faithfully to practices and games, making our success possible. Another athletic event of the year was the skating races. Here, credit is due to nearly all the House members from Grade III right up to Grade XI. House points were awarded for entering the races and even those who were not too adept at skating made the effort and entered an event to help our House. Individuals who contributed the most House points in this event were Mavis Gossling and Barbara Head. The House Gymnastics Competition was well supported. Separate competitions were held for the juniors and seniors, and enthusiasm was high in both classes. The Ping Pong Tournament was another event open to all House Members. Here too, points were given for entry and of course the semi-finalists and winners received additional points. Our Sport's Captain, Ann Jennings, worked hard all year and deserves much credit for the good showing Craig Gowan made in athletics this year. Academically speaking too, Craig Gowan had a good year. Each girl contributed House points for school work in proportion to her work aver- age. This proved to be an incentive for the girls, as good marks not only give satisfaction to the individual but also they help the House. A Penny Race always seems to receive enthusi- astic support and this was so in the two Races held this year. The results in both cases were very satisfactory. The four Houses contributed 560.20 to the Red Cross in one Race and 361.56 to the Community Chest in the other. Next term our big House effort will be the Lilac-Mission Tea which we hope will be as successful as the one held last year. We are all very proud of Cathy Young, our Head Girl, who has brought great honour to our House. Our thanks goes to her and to joan Shep- pard, our prefect, for their help during the year. Our House officers, Ada Rice, the secretary, and

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I8 CHURCHILL tClass Essay! Winston Churchill, of English and American parentage, was born prematurely on November 50, 1874, and was thereupon dubbed Young Man in a Hurryf' As a child and through later life, he hated mathematics and Latin, but loved English and French. At the age of seven, he was sent to St. james School. Once in Latin class, his headmaster ordered him to learn to decline mensa. Winnie, in distaste looked at the var- ious cases, until he came to the vocative-mensa- O, table. Not understanding this, he asked the meaning of it. The reply was, that here was the expression that he must use when addressing a table. Young Winston replied that he was not in the habit of addressing tables. The master, wishing to discipline him, caned him. The enraged Winston then snatched the man's hat, and kicked it to pieces. This brought on another caning. A little later, he was expelled from school. Although he could never do mathematics or Latin, he could read a stanza of poetry once or twice, and it was fixed in his memory for ever! For a few years, he was given private lessons. Then he was sent to Harrow, where he just managed to squeeze through the entry exams. At the end of the year, his marks were the lowest in the school. His father, a pacifist, was even more disappointed in him, when he announced his desire to go to Sandhurst, a military college. Win- ston's plans were to become a soldier, and later a politician. His third attempt at the entry exams here brought success, but by only a lucky chance. Once in Sandhurst, he enjoyed himself very much, for he did not need algebra to become a daredevil in a saddle, and he ended up eighth in a class of one hundred and fifty. He then got a commission in the Fourth Hussars, Then his father died. His father had been Chancellor of the Exchequer, and he had died because of the strong opposition he had plus his weak health. From then on, Win- ston Churchill knew his life-work-to 'light against England's enemies within and without. With the Fourth Hussars, he went to India. In one of their battles with the Mamuds, a tribe utterly pestilential in their cruelty, one of his comrades fell as they were retreating down a slope. Churchill leapt down from his horse and tried to carry his friend off. Finding himself surrounded, he took out his revolver. It balked. He snatched an abandoned rifle lying on the ground and fired, twenty, thirty, forty rounds. In the end, Churchill walked down the deserted hill, carrying his friend! He seemed to have a charmed life, as his friends commented, and this charm carried him through several other campaigns in India, in the Soudan, South Africa, and every- where else. Where the thickest fighting was, there was Churchill. During the Boer war, he was captured but later escaped. But, he also knew his worth, for once, as a war correspondent, he wrote a glowing account about- the courage and resolution of Lieutenant Winston Churchill, of the Fourth Hussarsf' When war was over he tried for Parliament. His second attempt got him in, and to raise money, he toured Canada and the United States, giving talks on his adventures. He tried out several of the parties, Liberal, Conservative, Whig, Tory, Labour-he did not care which, as long as he was doing something for England. In 1905, he became Under-Secretary for the Colonies and in this position he won the liking of men of all colour and creeds. In 1908, at the age of 54 he was married and quoting his own words, he mar- ried and lived happily ever after. In 1911 he became first Lord of the Admiralty. He saw the need of making more ships and supplies, for he saw the approaching war. But England's pacifisfts had their way, and though England's navy was pretty well prepared at the outbreak of the war, her army wasn't. In 1915, he was discharged, and so he joined the army again. During the years between the wars, he was rather unpopular. In this time, he wrote and painted and led rather a leisurely life dreaming happily of the day when he would come back. H. G. Wells once wrote of him- Mr, Churchill believes quite naively that he belongs to a peculiar- ly gifted and privileged class of beings -but this was rather unfair, because, although he had his share of egotism, his chief interest was in the welfare of England. Before World 'War II began, as early as 1952, Churchill saw Hi-tler's threat to Europe, and he warned England of it. But, England slept and called him, A fire-eater, doesn't know what he's thinking of, while Hitler went on making his plans to conquer Europe. And, in 1939, England turned panic-stricken to Churchill. With him leading, England followed, and in him, Hitler had met his master. We all know what Churchill accomplished in World War II. But, in the elections after the war, Churchill lost out to Labour. Now he is back there lighting. Mark Twain once called him the perfect man in jest, but this turned out to be a prophecy, for he has come pretty close to being a perfect man. He brought England through the war years, and if anyone is to bring England out of the rut where the Labour Government has put her, it will surely be Winston Churchill! joan Sheppard, Grade XI.

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ZOO . . .ce Carla Gustafson, the uniform inonitress, also de- serve credit for their efforts this year. Then, our staff members have a special vote of thanks. Miss Boreham and Miss Arnold have given much en- couragement and help this year. Lastly, credit is due to all of you in Craig Gowan House who have contributed something to your House, for however big or small that contribution may have been it evidenced House spirit and was greatly appre- ciated. Thank you everyone for an unforgettable year, and best of luck Craig Gowan in the years to come! jane Gladstone. VIOLIN MAGIC Maria's mother took in washing. Maria's bro-ther worked in the mines. Maria grew up from babyhood in a two-room flat, barely furnished, but spotlessly clean. She played in the dirty street below. One could often view the little girl, at five years of age, carting laundry to her mother, or returning it, clean and sparkling to the owner. One day as she skipped along in the sunlight, she suddenly stopped, and listened in rapture. She heard beautiful music coming from an open base- ment window. Creeping to it, she saw an old teacher and, playing a violin, a young lad. Both looked poor, but happy. She saw them place the violin in its case, and watched them as they left the building. The flame of the desire for music had been kindled in Maria's heart. On her home- ward way, she couldnyt resist entering the build- ing. Going down the stairs, she found the door of the room ajar. Impulsively she scampered to the cupboard where she had seen the precious instrument being placed. Carefully she took it from its case. She drew the bow across the strings. She was producing music which thrilled he:. Sud- denly she turned around, to see the old man watching her! Maria jumped, but the old man placed his hand upon her shoulder, and said, Now my wee one, don't be frightened, but tell me who you are. The man, realizing she was gifted, promised her the use of the violin each day. She made good use of this privilege, the joy of the moments spent with the instrument and the old Italian teacher remaining with her all day, This went on for two years. While attending school with white children and those of her own race, she was happy. Yet few knew from what source this happiness sprang. One rainy, dismal day, as she approached the old building she found joe, sitting on the bench outside the old Italian's door. He was the boy whom Maria had first seen through the window with the master. Through the intervening years they had studied together. joe's voice came slowly and bitterly to Maria, He's gone, Maria. He's deadf' At this point her life changed. She began to do errands tor the ladies across the tracks, who paid her very little. How she missed the old italian and the pleasant evenings spent with joe and the violin! She did not see joe again for over a year, when she met him as she came to the tenement door. In his outstretched arms was the violin. He gave it to her, whispering that his family was moving away. With Good luck, Ma- ria,', he fled and was gone. Life was hard for a. Negro in those days. One must live where one could find a job. At fourteen years of age Maria stopped school, becoming a seamstress' assistant. She earned enough money to pay for intermittent violin lessons. One teacher told her, You can never be a real violinist. Wi-th unconquered spirit she went to another teacher who arranged a concert for her. He was a man of influence and invited his great musician friends to attend. When they accepted, the society people bought tickets, declaring that the girl, although black, might have something to offer. Maria played superbly. The girl, dressed in white, who never before had had an audience, played as if she and her instrument, Qstill the identical violinj, were one. The huge audience applauded. More applause came after many encores. Maria sat quietly backs-tage as she heard the thrilled people leaving. She recognized this man, pushing his way behind stage toward her, as the discouraging former teacher. Maria, he said, I am a fool. I thought that, because your skin was dark, you could never be a public success. I admit that for that reason I tried to get rid of you. I am sorry. Forgive me, Maria! Only God can do that, sir, broke in the voice of a handsome young man of Maria's race. She turned to him. joe ! she exclaimed. It was lovely, Maria! he said. They left the Concert Hall late that night. Only then, did Maria learn that the old Italian's music and violin had been left to her, that joe had entered the house of the greedy relatives of the Italian, who had taken her little inheritance. He had taken the violin for her. The night he gave it to her he had been taken by the police and imprisoned. Upon release he had got a job, and had paid for Maria's violin. Maria looked as lovely in her white wedding dress as she had in white on the concert stage, the fifth birthday gift, which the little daughter of Maria and Joe received, was a beautiful, old lolm' Elaine Protheroe, Grade IX. V