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

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25 A Little Rabbit I have a rabbit His fur is nice and white, He plays all day And sleeps at night. CATHERINE Nizwcoivisn, Grade I The King's Weakness Once upon a time, far, far away, there lived a king. His name was King Motteran and very wicked he was. Any time the king went walking, which was very often, the people of the town would run into their houses and shut and bolt the doors for fear he would cut off their heads. The king had reigned now for two years and the population of the town had been reduced from seven thousand, eight hundred and eighty' two, to six thousand, seven hundred and eighty' one. The townspeople were becoming tired of always running away, so they gathered together one dark night to decide what they could do about it. They were talking and debating when a very elderly man said, The King must have a weakness, everybody has. But, what could it be? said one. What do most wicked kings hate? said another. I have it, said a third. Flowers! But how can we be sure? said another. Well, he seems to hate anything nice, so let's try the nicest thing there is, said the elderly man. We can ask the kitchen maids to decorate all the plates with flowers. We will ask them to put flowers in every vase in the castle, said the leader. We shall make him sneeze so much that he will be glad to be a pleasant king, great for his kindness, said one. And so they began. Everybody wore flowers. They put flowers in their houses. Flowers were planted everywhere. In the castle the king was sneezing and becoming quite furious, until almost in a split second it happened. His eyes got bigger and the frown turned to a smile. He stopped sneezing and it was as if a spell had come over him. Then he said, Everybody celebrate! I feel so happy. Everybody did celebrate and they too were very happy. From that time on the king had a new weakness-seeing that his subjects were always happy. MARGOT BROWN, Grade VI My Trees I walked along a tree filled lane, I smiled a happy smile, I thought of how l'd grown those trees That stretch from mile to mile. I walked along a treeless lane, A tear was in my eye, I thought of how the iire destroyed My trees that towered so high. MARGARET ARNo'rr, Grade VI The Bold Bad Pirate The bold, bad pirate of Huckerdydee Was a mean and fearless man, He killed many men while on the sea, With a cutlass in his hand. He had a ship called the Dragondondee, And a rough and scurvy crew, One night, while on the stormy sea, His ship was sunk in the blue. GWEN SIEMENS, Grade VI - GIFTS TO THE SCHOOL We are pleased to acknowledge many interest' ing and useful gifts to the school this past year and are also grateful to the parents and friends of Balmoral Hall who have contributed to the Prize and Scholarship Fund and to the Bursary Fund. We gratefully acknowledge the following gifts: Encyclopaedia Ganadiana - for Senior School Library. Encyclopaedia Ganadiana - for junior School Library. Filing Cabinet for Music. A very much needed new flag. Books for Junior and Senior Libraries. Subscription to Metropolitan Seminars in Art. Record holder for junior School Library. Rug for the Boarders' SittingfRoom. Playground Equipment - the gift of the Mothers' Auxiliary and Graduates of l954fl956. Special Shield for recording names of School Captains - gift of Graduates of 1957.

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24 The Big, Bold Pirate The big bold pirates of the seven seas Started their voyage when the sails caught the breeze. In search of great treasures a boat they sank, They saved the women, but the men walked the plank. The frightened women for ransom they sold In exchange for a shipload full of gold. After several days they sighted land Where gold was said to be at handg They docked at port, their shovels were unloaded, And to save some work, dynamite was exploded. For several days they dug in ditches, And as a reward they struck many riches. They pulled up the anchor and sailed off again To End other riches on the old Spanish Main. IRBNB BROWN, Grade VI The Voyage of the Hernandos Have you ever had a real adventure? I have. Would you like to hear about it? We left Spain with a cargo of valuable jewels and were bound for England. The ship we were sailing was called the Hernandos. We had only four cannons to protect the cargo and there were pirates roaming these waters. For two days everything went well. Then a strong west wind came up and blew us far off our course. Out here there were no friendly ships to help us should we need help. We did! Our ship had sprung a small leak, but however small, the leak was serious enough. We managed to patch it, but that was not to be the end of our troubles. Our sails were torn by the wind, and we drifted with no one on board knowing where we were. Three days passed and we drifted to shore. It was a strange shore, but at least it gave us a chance to mend our sails. Then, suddenly, a horde of strange people came rushing at us. They had dark skins and only a small piece of cloth about their middles. They were Indians, and they were wild! Quickly we sailed to safety. We were now short of supplies, but we saw a ship in the distance. It looked like a familiar ship, and it was. We sailed up beside it to ask if they would give us some supplies as we were in great need. We were terrified to find that it was manned by pirates. We were all captured and were forced to join the ship's original crew in the hold where they were all tied. There was hardly enough rope, so we were not tied very securely, and several of us managed to get free and untie the rest. Now we had two crews and could easily overpower the pirates. The only problem was the door. It was locked, but with so many of us, it was soon opened. Then began the battle. We secured weapons and started fighting. Soon we had the pirates in the hold tied securely. The pirates who had taken over the Hernandos surrendered when they saw what had happened. Both ships sailed to England and the pirates were placed in prison and the jewels were delivered safely. Our adventure did not end so tragically after all. IRBNB Hunnnivr, Grade VI Swimming I love to go swimming In a big, big pool, When the water is warm And not very cool. For if it was cool, I would shiver and shake, I must obey rules Or I'll get tummy ache. JEAN RILEY, Grade III Over the Hill Over the hill once lived a wicked Witch who was always sad. She never could cast a spell on the princess. So she stopped and decided to catch her. But how? She decided to disguise herself. She dressed like the Duchess of Ireland. She got to the palace and knocked at the door and walked in. The usher took her to the princess's bedroom and she caught the princess and took her to the cave over the hill. The cave was dark and it was cold, and the princess soon started to shiver. She wanted to go home because she was scared. The witch was ugly, her nose was long and fat. She had on a tall black hat. O, how the princess wished she could see her mother and father. At the palace they decided to surround the witch and get the princess. So the guards took their guns and set off for the cave. They attacked the cave and got the princess. They rode over the hill to the palace. They lived happily ever after. DIANNB Guin, Grade III

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26 'wsu il n I 49 . ig: v - I V 6 : 7 5 . ml. ri. Lf 'V 1 as Singing at Balmoral Hall Great emphasis is placed on singing at Balmoral Hall and greater enthusiasm than ever before has been indicated this year by the waiting list for a position in the School Choir and by the formation of a Choral Group. The Choir has had a busy year, beginning in November when they joined the Choir of St. Johns College for their Commemoration Service at the Cathedral. Special preparation for the Christmas Service was very worthwhile and the carols created the musical background for the acting and reading of the Christmas Story. Outf standing was the effort made by the Choir on that occasion. At intervals during the year they have sung anthems including, Awake Thou Wintry Earth , a Dutch carol of the seventeenth century, O Sacred Head , a Bach Chorale, and Doubt Not Thy Fatherls Care , by Elgar. The Choral Group was a new venture. A group of sixteen senior girls meets with Mrs. Birse each Tuesday after school for sightfreading and special singing. This group sang Lo How a Rose at the Carol Service and since then has had great fun preparing, among many others, The Glenlyon Lament and Little David, Play on Your Harp for the May Recital. This has been an exciting year for all who were fortunate enough to be in the Choir or who joined the Choral Group. Weekly singing classes continue, with emphasis being placed on diction, colour and shape. What a Choir Balmoral Hall will have some day, and we say a very real thank you to Mrs. Birse who, we think, has performed miracles. PAMELA MACCHARLBS, Grade X The Carol Service The gymnasium was quiet, lighted only by the Christmas trees on the walls, and in the air there was a faint trace of incense. It was December 18, and the scene was set for the Carol Service. Each girl in the choir carried a candle as they led the school in procession singing Once in Royal David's City and Harkl The Herald Angels Sing. After a short opening prayer by the Reverend G. F. Dyker, the story of the Nativity was pref sented in the traditional way. The Carol Service has become the heart of Balmoral Hall's observation of Christmas, and it is a muchfcoveted privilege to he one of the small group of senior girls who have an active part, either as a reader, or in one of the simple but moving tableaux through which the Christmas story is unfolded. The singing of the Choir and the School, which links the episodes in the story and reflects their moods, added greatly to the beauty of the service, and as the school and the choir left the gymnasium during the recessional, The First Nowelln, every' one felt once more the wonder and joy of Christmas. BETTY MCRAE The Celebrity Concerts During the winter we have enjoyed tastes of many varied forms of musical art. There was the spirited dancing of the American Ballet Theatre, the thrilling performance of Carmen by the Wagner Grand Opera Company, and in contrast, a relaxing evening of singing by Thomas L. Thomas. Among the solo instrumentalists, some of us preferred Berl Senofsky, the violinist, others especially liked Jose Iturbi, but we were all ex' tremely impressed by Glenn Gould's masterly per' formance of Bach's Goldberg Variations for which Mr. Gould has become justly noted. One of the highlights of the season was the concert by the Obenkirchen Children's Choir. Their singing of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was particularly captivating, and their departure with The Happy Wanderer made a delightful ending. The last concert was the Roger Wagner Chorale performance of Oklahoma This was in a decidedly lighter vein, but made a very popular conclusion to a season of good music. SHIRLEY DONALDSON, Grade X