Glebe Collegiate Institute - Lux Glebana Yearbook (Ottawa, Ontario Canada)

Page 46 text:

finely-pounded ice on the foreshore, and the lolly surface of the dark, oily sea just before it freezes into sish ? Each islander is a Professor Higgins in himself, able, like the leading character in Shaw's Pygmalion , to tell by the dialect from which cove the speaker comes. It is natural in a country whose greatest industry is connected with life on the sea, that nautical terms should have invaded life on the land. If someone tells you that Mrs. Jones is sitting on her bridge that does not mean that she is perched above a brook, but merely that she is enjoying the evening breeze on her verandah. When her small son wanders from the path through a marsh, he is said to have gone ashore . As the visitor to Newfoundland is approach- ing Port-aux-Basques by train to leave the island, he undulates to port and star- board down his carriage's length, and watches the line of railway cars going into the station stern -not bow-first , for even trains are nautical in Newfoundland. Not only is the language intriguing but the soft tone in which it is spoken delights the ear of the visitor. Thus their speech provides yet another bond between the mellowness of the Old Land and the rugged life of this New-found-land. vkifvk A Glebite ln bpalestine Blyth Young OT SO long ago, Mr Atkinson told us in the assembly hall of a former Glebe student, Michael R. Read, who was awarded the Military Cross for gallant and distinguished conduct in Palestine. Michael Read completed his studies at Glebe in 1933. He was well known among Glebe skiers. He attended the Royal Mili- tary College in Sandhurst, and in 1935 was gazetted as a second lieutenant in the Que-en's Own Royal West Kent Regiment, and proceeded to Palestine with his bat- talion. The following year he was pro- moted to lieutenant, and was twice mention- ed in despatches after distinguishing him- self in action at Tamra in May, and at Kh-Umm-Ad-Daraj, in November. We received a letter from Lieutenant Page 44 Read just in time for LUX publication. Unfortunately he says nothing about the M.C., but he does tell us some of his recent activities. He writes: Dear Editor: Many thanks for your letter, and my humble apologies for being so long in re- plying. My excuse, quite genuine, is that your letter arrived in Palestine after we had left those 'quiet' shores for Malta. As their is no air mail service between Palestine and Malta, it took a long time to double back on its tracks. I must say that I wouldn't have missed Palestine for anything. It certainly was a great experience. It gave me a slight idea, but only very slight, of what the real thing will be. The Arabs, thank good- ness, are extremely bad shots. As a battalion we were fortunate to be stationed in Haifa. One could get a bit of relaxation after coming in from detach- ment or a three-day trek through the hills. Most battalions were stationed in large Arab towns where there was absolutely no outside amusement-very trying indeed for the men. Our work consisted mostly in keeping order in Haifa, especially after the numerous bomb outrages, drives across large areas of country in conjunction with other bat- talions, cordon and searching of Arab villages for arms, and going on detachment. The latter was the most amusing: as a subaltern one ran one's own little show, completely cut off from the rest of the battalion, with the exception of wireless, of com'se. These detachments were usually situated near an Arab village, the idea being that one controlled by patrolling and ambushing at night a certain area and hoped that one might beat the bands away. The times we went out chasing the ever- elusive Arab gang have been too numerous to mentiong the number of times we bumped them was actually quite small. An Arab usually pounces on one, when one least expects it, pours in a few volleys, and then melts into the landscape. Malta is not without its excitement. We are just getting over the Albanian flop. We quite expected to be bombed off the island last Sunday or Monday by our little pal Musso . Many thanks for your letter. Yours sincerely, Michael Read. LUX GLEBANA

Page 45 text:

On the whole, the last leg home was un- eventful and we soon anchored out in the St. Lawrence, at Quebec. The tug-boat captains seem to resent having to warp in a Canadian National Steamship, for the poor Colborne nearly bellowed her heart out before a tug decided to take pity on us and snorted up to take our line. We unloaded all that night and got away the next morning, headed for Montreal. We made that port, too. ' Montreal, being the home port, we signed off. The men go into the purser's office on the starboard side, get their discharge sheets, collect their pay at the purser's cage, go over to the second purser's table, sign on again and back to their berths. I went in the starboard side, signed off, collected my pay, did not go to the second purser's table. did not sign on again, went out the door on the port side and back to Glebe. NCWFOUIIAIBIICI NUBIICCS Frances Parker EWFOUNDLAND! The name itself is euphonious, expressive, as are all names on the Island. They were be- stowed by settlers of the sixteenth century who, according to the practice of that day called them after the sentiment aroused by the spot or after a characteristic of it. Thus we find Cornerbrook, Misery Point, Bona- vista Bay, Random Island, Paradise, Paddle Pond, and the lonely little hamlets of Come- By-Chance and Seldom-Come-By. Not only is the inHuence of these pioneers evident in place-names, but also in the every- day speech of the people. Almost complete isolation from the world has retained the expressions of their forefathers long after they have disappeared from common use in the Mother Country. One hears empt , the verb for empty which Chaucer used, futter , probably from faitour , an idler or wastrel which was familiar to both him and Spenser, jannies meaning mum- mers , a corruption of Shakespeare's zan- nies . Bang up , first class style, and cuffer , a friendly meeting of seamen to LUX GLEBANA I swap yarns , were brought out not only to Newfoundland but, by the Pilgrim Fath- ers, to New England. French has added its piquant touch. Bete de la mer has been elided to produce bedlamer , a young seal. The origin of vandu , a sale or auction, and maugre , in spite of, is easily apparent. Incidentally, in Newfoundland a girl is not kissed-she is bazzed , a verb derived from the French baisser . Even Latin is present. Talqual is used of good and middling fish taken at the same price talis qualis , such as they are. The picturesque tongues of Devon and Ireland embellish the language. Chimbly instead of chimney, and Chucklehead for a stupid person, are used by many inhabit- ants of Devon origin. In other districts, one comes across lashin's for plenty of, spiflicated applied to a man slightly the worse for liquor, and the Gaelic words scrimshanking and shinanigin both meaning hesitancy, or the plea he put the townie on me when an Irish emigrant has been rebuked for treating a stranger to un- usual hospitality because he claimed to have come from the same town in the Old Country. In addition to words and idioms, the New- foundland people have given Words well- known to us a peculiar twist. For example, from conversation one learns that a fine day is civil or wonderful , a handsome man is clever and his valuable cow like- wise, a mosquito is a nipper , fish may be scatter few or scatter big , a thunder- struck person is comical struck , any time after twelve noon is evening, and Chere is food for thoughtj an idle boy is mis- chievous! Phrases are expressive. Who can deny the emphasis of to storm the kettle as opposed to boiling it hurriedly , give us the breeze instead of we are getting mar- ried , heave the stomach , whose inference is clear, or the practical touch revealed by the statement It's a jacket colder to- night ? Imitative harmony has been utilized in coining new words. On the king of the barnyard who graces the table on Thanks- giving Day is conferred the proud title, bubbly-jock . The chattering of teeth in shaking from cold is well described in bibber . Can you not feel a dry tickling cough in the word tissic , or see sish , Page 43

Page 47 text:

Michael's brother, Monty Read, who left Glebe around 1931, was at one time with the Cameron Highlanders in Ottawa. He later went to the R.A.F. college at Cranwell. Two years afterwards he was posted as a pilot officer in the British air force. Subsequently he became a flight lieutenant. Just as the LUX was about to go to press it was learned that he had been promoted to squadron leader With head- quarters at Aden, Arabia. vlffklk Paradise ln French by John Jenness HE French Colony lies deep in the , heart of the Laurentians, about 80 miles north of Montreal and only a short distance from two of Quebec's most famous winter and summer resorts, Ste. Agathe and Ste. Marguerite. To reach the Colony we travelled into Ste. Agathe, thence over a narrow and exceedingly bumpy, gravel road, past summer cottages half-hidden behind towering pines, past dirty farm-houses contrasting strangely with the tiny, dark green lakes which we came upon unexpectedly at every turn, past hills and valleys and streams, steadily ascending, until We suddenly rounded a bend and saw Lac Ouareau, our destination, lying wide and serene before us. A jovial, elderly woman welcomed us to the camp and showed us over the grounds and through the various buildings. There were six log cabins, all quite large. The building on the extreme right contained the central dining-room and kitchen, the next, divided into six spacious bedchambers, was the home of the older women. Beside it stood another, almost identical in structure, occupied by the younger women. The fourth, a veritable cottage, and actually called the Chalet, marked the central meeting-place of the community. The down stairs contained a comfortable sitting-room, a study, and two bedrooms at the rear. Outside the sitting-room stood a large, sunny verandah overlooking the lake, where we received instructions in French except, of course, during rainy Weather. The next cabin was the home of the married couples, and our cabin, la maison des celebre- taires , as we called it, stood at the extreme left, overlooking the lake. LUX GLEBANA The camp stood near one end of Ouareaug behind us rose the highest mountain in the immediate district, heavily blanketed with magnificent pines and birches. Ahead lay the lake, surrounded on all sides by hills, hazy and purple, rising majestically towards the blue heaven. Numerous islands, some small sandy ones, others large and deep- clad in pines, dotted the lake. The shore- line was marked everywhere with golden sandbarsg the lake water sparkled a dark green, and crystal clear as only lake Water can be-seven square miles of paradise. The regular routine followed by the camp proved very successful. A gong awakened us at eight, and we had breakfast served a half hour later. We gathered on the ver- andah of the Chalet at 9.30, where one of the three instructors delivered a forty- minute lecture in French. We were not expected to understand everything, but gradually our ears became more and more accustomed to hearing and comprehending the French. Following the lecture we di- vided into three groups, according to our knowledge of the language, and held another forty minute discussion with one of the three group instructors, all of whom were or- iginally Parisians. We had the remainder of the morning free to do as we wished, and also the entire afternoon and the evening until nine o'clock, when we assembled in the Chalet again, to participate in any one of a number of programmes. One evening we stammered through Char- ades, played in French, anotheriwe devoted entirely to music, and another to short skits which we found in a little book and enacted ourselves. These programmes last- ed just as long as our interest lasted,but we always had such uproarious fun that the party seldom broke up before eleven-thirty. An unlimited number of attractions busied us during our free hours. Behind the camp, at the end of a brisk walk to the top of the mountain, stood a ninety-foot ranger's tower which afforded a magnificent view deep into all the surrounding valleys, and far out over the tops of the Laurentians. The camp left several canoes and a small sail-boat at our disposal, and kept a tennis-court and croquet-lawn in good condition, so that we often spent the greater part of the day pad- dling, or playing tennis or croquet. For those who found no pleasure in violent ex- ercise, shady paths wandered in and out through the woods surrounding the camp, and occasionally burst forth unexpectedly upon some magnificent sandy beach where we might lie and bask in the sun for hours at a time. Page .45