Saltus Grammar School - Yearbook (Hamilton, Bermuda)

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6 muda register. This war crippled the industry, and the War of 1812 finally wiped it out. Bermudians then turned to the cultivation of arrowroot, in some demand for drugs and medicines; this flourished for a time, but eventu- ally bowed to competition from St. Vincent. The export of vegetables was the next mainstay of Bermuda ' s economy. When the United States provided a market, Bermuda used to ship from thirty to fifty thousand crates of vegetables a week, worth to her perhaps one and a half million pounds a year; but a tariff of a hundred per cent imposed by the States virtually killed this trade. But once again Bermuda found a means of survival, this time in the industry which is still her principal one .... the Tourist Trade, which began about 1908. He wished to impress upon them the fact that this trade had been built up by the initiative and efforts of Ber- mudians themselves. He could not say what the future had in store, but no doubt it held problems which would once more tax the adaptiveness and initiative of Bermudians, — of themselves. In facing such problems, let them remem- ber the example set by their predecessors. There was yet another aspect of their life which demanded emphasis on Empire Day .... the fact that, in belonging to the colony of Bermuda, they formed part of the far-fiung Commonwealth of Nations, whose members were accorded the greatest measure of political freedom in the world. Within its framework people of all kinds were en- couraged to develop self-governing institutions. Bermuda itself had the oldest parliament in the Commonwealth outside Britain, and had made its own laws since 1620. These principles of political freedom had been gradually worked out through the centuries in England and then extended throughout the English-speaking world. In conclusion, Sir Stanley said that the original grant of Bermuda by the Virginia Company was made to the Gentlemen Adventurers of the Plantation of Bermuda . Successive generations had lived up to that title, and he asked them to bear it in mind when their ;um came to go out into the world: they should remember that they were the Gentlemen Adventurers of Bermuda. X

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5 Empire Day Celebrations at Saltus Grammar School To celebrate Empire Day at Saltus Grammar School, a short service was held in the School Hall, attended by Mrs. Edmund Gibbons as official representative of the I.O.D.E., and by Sir Stanley Spurling, who spoke to the School. Sir Stanley Spurling spoke to them as members of a school, which, for the past seventy years, had been training the men who had been very largely responsible for making the laws and carrying on the work of government in Bermuda. The men of the past had built up traditions; the present boys of the school were the men of tomorrow, and to them it would fall to carry on the traditions. What had their predecessors built up? A Bermuda in which the standard of living was in every way much higher than it had been a hundred years ago, and in which a very high degree of freedom was enjoyed. But they had not achieved these things without a struggle. The history of Bermuda was largely the story of a people adapting themselves to changing conditions, which from time to time threatened disaster. In the early days of the colony the island economy was based on tobacco, the staple crop. Deterioration in the leaf brought prices tumbling, and ruined the industry. Berm uda adapted herself to the changed conditions. She turned to ships . . . the building of little ships made from the cedar trees. History did not relate who it was who invented the Bermuda rig, but it was this which enabled the little Bermuda ships to outsail all others and made them famous throughout the world. Bermuda was, he be- lieved, the only colony which built, manned and fought its own ships in the Royal Navy. Eermudians sailed their little ships far and wide in search of trade. Much of this trade was built up on the foundation of the salt pans of Turks Islands. Bermudians cut out the salt pans there, and then traded the salt for salt cod in Newfoundland; then they traded the codfish for cornmeal and other things in the American colonies, and for rum, sugar and molasses from the West Indies; and some of these things they then traded for manufactured goods from England. Another disaster loomed up. When the American War of Inde- pendence broke out, there were over four hundred ships on the Ber-

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7 The Debating Society The past season has yielded its full quota of entertaining debates, but for sheer popularity the palm should perhaps be awarded to the Mock Trial held on March 4th. The cause celebre was that of Leghorn White (S. A. Williams) v Dauberman Pincher (H. G. F. Pierce), before His Lordship, Sir Jeremiah Beak (J. M. Berridge). The case revolved around a dog and six bantams. The plaintiff sought damages for loss sustained on the morning of February 12th, when the defendant ' s dog, it was alleged, did wilfully and with full malice aforethought make a forcible entry into his chicken run and kill four of his prize bantams — Willy, Nilly, Dilly, and Dally. De- fendant denied the charge, and submitted that his dog was of blameless character; he had reared it as a strict vegetarian, and it was in fact so tame that it wouldn ' t bite its own fleas. Counsel for the plain|tSff was Sir Joshua Grill (Mr. M. R. Stevens), and the defendant was represented by Sir Archibald Blister (Mr. J. A. Stubbs). Mr. Toby Scratcher (F. R. Snape) was Clerk of the Court. Three witnesses appeared for the plaintiff: Mr. Leroy Lamb (J. H. Tucker) testified as to the dog ' s bad reputation: his own chickens had been mauled by it. Mr. Jas. Natter (W. Fish), a near neighbour of the plaintiff, had heard the commotion on the morning in question, and had seen a dog making off festooned with feathers. Miss Polly Prim (R. W. Kempe) was employed as maid at the house of the plaintiff. Hearing the pandemonium she went out to investigate, but at the sight of the slaughter she fainted. The defence also produced three witnesses: Dr. Whinny Baric (F. I. B. Williams), veterinary surgeon, had psycho-analysed the dog and tested it for radio-activity; as a result he was able to testify that the dog was temperamentally incapable of killing chickens. Mr. Peck N. Pay (H. E. OuterbrMge) was a neighbour of the defendant, and knew his dog well. At the time of the attack on the bantams the dog was on his property; he recalled the occasion quite well he- cause their cat had been chased up a tree and imprisoned there for a considerable length of time by the dog. Mr. Early Moo (A. W. Hollis), milk deliveryman for the defendant ' s district, knew the dog well; he had once seen it being chased by a rooster. When the witnesses had been thoroughly grilled and blistered, Counsel addressed the Court. His Lordship gave a few directions to the Jury before they withdrew to consider their verdict. After a brief retirement the Foreman of the Jury (J. ' Smith) returned a verdict for the plaintiff. Sir Jeremiah then delivered judgement: he awarded