Saltus Grammar School - Yearbook (Hamilton, Bermuda)

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Sea Scouts and Wolf Cubs Early in the year it almost seemed as though a cherished dream was about to be realised. We were told that some whalers had been bought for the Bermuda Sea Scouts, and were arriving here in June. On enquiry, however, we found that there were too few to allot one to each Sea Scout troop and that it was proposed to keep the boats as the property of the District, making two troops share the use of each. At the time of writing the boats are on the high seas, and it re- mains to be seen how far the plan will work. There are obvious difficulties and many inconveniences in the scheme. It is only too likely that a communal boat will be neglected, and that it will be nobody ' s business to give it the routine attention, while any damage done may be blamed on one ' s partner; and it is hard to see how these difficulties can be overcome while allowing each troop a fair share of the boat at a time of the year when good use can be made of it. Clearly we must spare no efforts to acquire a boat of our own. On the other hand, half a loaf is a great deal better than no bread to a starving man, and by taking all possible care of the boat while it is in our keeping and show- ing a sporting spirit in our dealings with our co-partners, we hope to show the authorities that we are fit persons to be trusted with a boat. We are doing our best to solve the difficulty for our- selves by holding a dance at the end of this term. If this is a success financially it mtay well be that we shall be in pos- session of sufficient funds to buy a boat. We are still restricted to Friday evenings for our meetings, but lately we have varied our indoor activities with a treasure hunt on the field at night with compass bearings for clues. If we are still meeting at night next year we may succeed in devising other similar diversions that will com- bine work and pleasure. For the rest, we have made two public appearances this term. The troop turned out a small but very smart contingent for the Empire Day Parade and for the parade 7

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and, mustering his forces, stormed out of his gates to over- come his rival. His advance on St. George ' s, however, was momentarily checked shortly after Devonshire Dock, when at 11 a.m., the enemy was sighted in small numbers. This did little to upset the grim determination of the Saltus men who deployed and continued in their ruthless advance. Whitney, fighting a staunch rearguard action in an endeavour to delay the Saltus Steam-roller until the arrival of their reinforce- ments, abandoned point after point and were driven back to- wards Devonshire Marshes. The action closed at about 12.30 when (with unaccountable heroism) the debilitated forces of Whitney decided that it would be base to retreat further and, holding their ground, succumbed to the final assault of Saltus, who sw ooped upon them with ferocity such as cannot have been seen since the Massacre of Glencoe. On the whole, the movements were carried out with efficiency, although there was at times a tendency to under- estimate the importance of presenting as small a target to the enemy as possible. The marching was good, and keenness was high throughout. Reward for exertion was found in the field cooker which arrived upon the scene at one o ' clock, a remarkable resuscitation rapidly being shown by all dead and v ounded. Drill has improved considerably this term, no doubt due to quite a large extent, to the opportunities that have been afforded for watching the precision of the Regulars on cere- monial parade. Saltus was well represented on the two occasions — the Coronation and the King ' s Birthday — when the Cadets were asked to turn out. Two parties of four went by invitation to visit the B. V. E. camp at St. David ' s earlier in the term, where their keenness was whetted by the inter- esting demonstrations and kind hospitality that were shown them. The Cadet Camp begins on July 1st. Many are looking forward to this and if it is as successful as it promises to be, we are justified in expecting an exceedingly good time. 6

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on the King ' s birthday, and now we have nothing else to look forward to this term except the summer camp The Wolf Cub Pack acquitted themselves well on tho several public parades which they attended this year, their turn-out on every occasion being smart and orderly. A flag presented to the Pack by Cub Sheppard was a welcome asset. Considerable activity in test-passing has taken place during the last two terms and Cubs Motyer IV, Covel, Cox, Tovey, Petty II, Tatem III, Gibbons II, have obtained their 2nd stars. The majority of 2nd Star Cubs have worked hard for and obtained at least one Proficiency Badge, and Sixers Motyer and Critchley in particular have kept the examiners busy. There was keen rivalry among Sixes during the Easter term in the construction of dens, and much ingenuity and hard work was shown. The Grey and White Sixes have held first places in the Efficiency Competition since its initiation, and it is hoped that next term other Sixes will successfully challenge their leadership. o Sport The past football season was on the whole quite suc- cessful, the lack of suitable opposition for the 1st XI being the chief obstacle. However, several enjoyable matches were played and the House Matches always created much interest. The House Shield was won by Butterfield House during the Christmas term and by Darrell House last term. During the Easter term, the B. S. S. A. inaugurated a football league for boys under 14 years. The School entered a team which was under 13 years of age and were success- ful in gaining the excellent trophy presented by Mr. Jas. W. Frith. This team made exceedingly good progress, and won all their matches with the exception of one, which was lost by one goal. Matches were also arranged for other XI ' s and even the 7th XI had some very keen games. 8