UNWILLINGLY TO SCHOOL

Was I unwilling? Not really.
Willing? Well…….
The simple fact is that I was told I was going to school, and that was the end of it!

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By the summer of 1929 one of my mother’s sisters had gained a BSc degree and completed her teacher training. University graduates at that time were experiencing difficulty in finding work, and by August on the following year she was still unemployed.




However, a local post of infants teacher came up and she accepted it, not realising that her first class of new starts would include her nephew - me!!!

Of course I was well warned that I was to call her Miss Hardie, and not Aunt Cissie. I can assure you I was the best behaved pupil, not only in her class, but through all my time in that school, because I knew that any misdemeanour on my part would eventually be reported to my mother.
We soon learned to sit up straight with folded arms, and - most important of all - to keep quiet.

Behaviour in that school was generally pretty good. Of course there was always the strap as a deterrent, and it was used frequently for children caught talking, not paying attention or producing unsatisfactory work.

On one occasion, when I would be about 10 years old, there was an important event which hadn’t happened before. The headmaster visited our class. Now, I’ve no idea what he spoke to us about for, like the rest of the class, I was sitting shaking in fear of this great man.

When he finished talking, he turned to the pupils in the back row and asked the first one, “How long is the River Clyde?”
There was silence! We were horrified when he produced his strap and belted the boy.
He directed the same question to the next pupil, and again, when no answer was forthcoming, he used his strap.
And so he continued along the row, gradually getting nearer to where I sat, trying to appear invisible.
No one knew the answer and the punishments continued till it was my turn.

But - wonder of wonders! He didn’t ask me. Instead he told us the answer, and chided us for not having paid attention to his little talk.

And that’s the story of how I nearly got the strap at primary school!

And how long is the River Clyde?
I’ve just done a Google search, and the answer is about 106 miles.

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I suppose it was around that time when we began having PE from a visiting teacher.

Up until then, the boys of 2 classes were taken by the janitor for football on the hard concrete surface of the playground. (I suppose the girls were knitting or sewing during our game.)
Can you imagine 30/40 boys running around playing football? Most of the time, I didn’t know what side I was on.
My mother used to recall the day I came home from school and proudly announced that I had managed to get a kick at the ball!!!

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In Primary Seven “The Burial of Sir John Moore” was my favourite poem, probably because our teacher Johnny Maclennan gave us such a vivid picture of the circumstances surrounding the Battle of Corunna, and the conditions under which the soldiers fought.

THE BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE by Charles Wolfe 1791-1823, an Irish poet

Not a drum was heard, not a funeral note, as his corse to the rampart we hurried;
Not a soldier discharged his farewell shot o'er the grave where our hero we buried.
We buried him darkly at dead of night, the sods with our bayonets turning,
By the struggling moonbeam's misty light and the lanthorn dimly burning.

No useless coffin enclosed his breast, not in sheet nor in shroud we wound him;
But he lay like a warrior taking his rest with his martial cloak around him.
Few and short were the prayers we said, and we spoke not a word of sorrow;
But we steadfastly gazed on the face that was dead, and we bitterly thought of the morrow.

We thought, as we hollowed his narrow bed and smoothed down his lonely pillow,
That the foe and the stranger would tread o'er his head, and we far away on the billow!
Lightly they'll talk of the spirit that 's gone, and o'er his cold ashes upbraid him,
But little he'll reck, if they let him sleep on in the grave where a Briton has laid him.

But half of our heavy task was done when the clock struck the hour for retiring;
And we heard the distant and random gun that the foe was sullenly firing.
Slowly and sadly we laid him down, from the field of his fame fresh and gory;
We carved not a line, and we raised not a stone, but we left him alone with his glory.

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One further memory of primary school -

Every class at one time or another was taught the song “Nymphs and Shepherds”, and I don’t think a week passed without hearing it coming from different rooms.
Those nymphs and shepherds followed me to me secondary school, and there too, their music, perhaps sung more confidently, filled the air.

With words by Thomas Shadwell 1642-1692 and music by Henry Purcell 1658/9-1695, the song had become popular by a record made in 1929 by the Manchester Schools Choir, conducted by Hamilton (later Sir Hamilton) Harty.

This is a short extract. There is a 20 second delay before the music starts.





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Finally, a cheery thought for those of us who are EIGHTY PLUS -

One of the good things about getting older is you find you're more interesting than most of the people you meet. (Lee Marvin)


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Following last week’s paragraph about top hats, my sister e-mailed me to tell me about John Hetherington, the man who is said to have invented them.

Apparently he caused a riot when he wore it on the streets of London in 1797. I looked into the story, and found that folks were terrified, women were fainting and a message boy had his arm broken in the panic.

Hetherington was arrested and appeared before the Lord Mayor, charged with wearing a “tall structure having a shining lustre calculated to frighten timid people”. One report says that he was fined £50 - quite a tidy sum in those days.

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My inbox this week contained a message from an old school friend who had some very complimentary things to say about “EIGHTY PLUS“. However, he seemed surprised that, although I had mentioned Jack Payne, my piece about broadcasting in the 1930s included no reference to Henry Hall.

Jack Payne had been the leader of the first BBC Dance Band and, when he left in 1932, Henry Hall took over with a completely new group of musicians. It was at my grandparents’ house that I used to hear the BBC Dance Orchestra’s 5pm broadcasts and I was completely hooked on their type of music. And so was born my desire to play dance music……..

There’s a very detailed article about Henry Hall at

http://www.jabw.demon.co.uk/hhall01.htm


This clip from 1932 will bring back memories. I believe Cyril Stapleton is one of the violinists. An interesting addition to the usual dance band line-up is the oboe played by 16 year old Richard Matthews sitting at the front.




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THE FRONT ROOM

Till 1937 we lived in a tenement flat - one up, comprising a good-sized hallway, kitchen, bedroom, box room, a small toilet and the “front room”.

The front room/best room/big room was rarely used, being kept for special occasions, which seemed to be a common practice for tenement dwellers. The only time there was heating in that room was when we had visitors; the coal fire had to be lit in the afternoon, so that the problems encountered getting it started and the resulting smoke coming down the chimney could be solved before our guests arrived.

The front room became used regularly when we got a piano. My sister and I had to practise half-an-hour every day with our mother sitting beside us, not because she knew anything about music, but simply to make sure we did our proper practice and occasionally to tap out the beat with her knitting needle. I can well remember that in the winter months it was pretty cold in that room. (I suppose that was good training for us, because many years later both of us would be practising on pipe organs in bitter cold churches.)

One poignant memory of the “front room” sticks in my mind. In the 1930s there was an outbreak of scarlet fever in our area. I fell victim to it, and, after I had recovered, my sister, just a few weeks short of her 5th birthday, caught it. I can remember the day she was taken away in the “fever van”. After it had left I couldn't find my mother and I searched the house. And then I discovered her - in the front room, hiding behind the door, crying.....

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I've always liked the paintings of Jan Vermeer and THE MUSIC LESSON is one of my favourites.

























Vermeer 1632-1675 was a prolific Dutch painter who excelled in depicting scenes from ordinary life.

Probably he is best known for “The Girl with the Pearl Earring”, the painting which inspired Tracy Chevalier to write the 1999 novel with that title. Then in 2003 the film of the same name created further interest in the artist and his work.


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PARTY PIECE

When I was about 8-9 years old, “Early One Morning” was the song that I would sing at Sunday School parties, etc. A couple of years later, the song would be Hoagy Carmichael’s “Little Old Lady”, with my own piano accompaniment.

Early one morning,
Just as the sun was rising,
I heard a maid sing,
In the valley below.
CHORUS:
Oh, don't deceive me,
Oh, never leave me,
How could you use
A poor maiden so?

Remember the vows,
That you made to your Mary,
Remember the bower,
Where you vowed to be true,
CHORUS: Oh, don't deceive.......

Gay is the garland,
And fresh are the roses,
I've culled from the garden,
To place upon thy brow.
CHORUS: Oh, don't deceive.......

Thus sang the poor maiden,
Her sorrows bewailing,
Thus sang the poor maid,
In the valley below.
CHORUS: Oh, don't deceive.......


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Finally, a thought for today -

I am an old man and have known many troubles, but most of them never happened. (Mark Twain)

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This is one of the earliest photos that I have of myself - probably aged 4 then. I wonder if they had trouble persuading me to wear that on my head?
Top hats were worn by men throughout the 19th and the early 20th centuries. There had been quite a bit of opposition to them in the beginning, but this disappeared when Prince Albert set the fashion around 1850. By the end of the First World War, they had almost died out, although in Scotland in the 1930s many of the clergy still wore them on Sundays and at funerals, weddings, etc
One of our daughters, when in her late teens, acquired one and used to wear it regularly, until someone grabbed it off her head and escaped with her prized possession.

Top hats of course are still worn at Royal Ascot and other formal occasions, and I was shocked to learn that the prices at one supplier’s start at £425. And here was I, thinking of buying one………..

THE PRAYER by William-Adolphe Bouguereau
























Bouguereau 1825-1905 was a French painter whose popularity was eventually overtaken by the Impressionists. My tastes in paintings are always changing, but just now I rate his pictures very highly.

And finally here’s another quote for all those who are EIGHTY PLUS -

I don’t feel 80. In fact I don’t feel anything till noon. Then it’s time for my nap. (Bob Hope)

This Indian poem is a favourite of mine. Someday I must take it personally.

This day is a special day, it is yours.
Yesterday slipped away, it cannot be filled anymore with meaning.
About tomorrow nothing is known.
But this day, today, is yours, make use of it.
Today you can make someone happy.
Today you can help another.
This day is a special day, it is yours.


EIGHTY PLUS YEARS AGO

I have in my possession a newspaper published on the day I was born in 1925. Of course the news items and advertisements are of great interest, but I am particularly drawn to the radio programmes being broadcast by 2LO, the forerunner of the BBC, and especially the “Radio Military Tattoo” from the studio at 9.30 pm. Taking part were the Wireless Military Band, the Wireless Choir, the Pipes, Drums and Fifes of the Scots Guards, and the Trumpeters of the Royal Horse Guards. An “Artillery Musical Drive” introducing tanks, Anti-Aircraft batteries and aeroplanes was promised. Pretty good for a broadcast from the studio! To quote the newspaper - “The presence of other troops and their evolutions (?) will be suggested by sound effects, and indications of what is happening will be given by the dialogue between two persons supposed to be watching the performance.”
During the day the Royal Air Force Band were billed to give four short programmes and the reason for all this military emphasis was the fact that the following day was Armistice Day.


Now, apart from the Royal Air Force Band, what other entertainment was available in 1925?

Jack Payne was probably the first of a long line of dance band leaders who would fill a great part of broadcasting schedules for many years.
Outside broadcasts from hotels were frequent, and the first UK performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue came from the London Savoy Hotel on 15th June.

Among the top recording artistes were the Irish tenor John McCormack and Paul Whiteman the American Band leader.

In the London theatre, three musicals were outstanding - Rose Marie which ran for 851 performances; No, No, Nanette 665 performances; The Vagabond King 511 performances.

1925 saw a large number of popular songs published, among them - Dinah, Tea for Two, Don’t bring Lulu, Show me the Way to go Home, and Always, which Irving Berlin wrote as a wedding gift to his wife

The first popular song I ever heard was Alexander’s Ragtime Band (another Irving Berlin hit) sung by my mother as she did her housework. I wonder where she learned that!!!


When I was a small boy, the main street of our town had very little traffic and people could safely walk on the road rather than on the pavements.
There were plenty of vans around - milk, fruit and veg., fish, baker, coal, but all horse-driven. The ice-cream van was a small 2-wheel affair driven by a cute little pony. (The owner, an Italian who had lived for many years here was interned when Italy came into World War Two on Germany’s side.)
There was an exciting time each day around 5 o’clock when all the vans would be returning to the depot. The horses of course knew that their day’s work was done, and would gallop through the town with a great clattering of hooves, taking the right-hand turn to the stables at what seemed to us a dangerous speed.
Keen gardeners were always on the alert for the sound of horses’ hooves on the street, and were ready with pail and shovel to collect what the horses left behind. I was never asked to do that, but I remember an occasion much later on, when my father had a whole cartload of manure deposited on the pavement, and I had to help carry it in to the garden. Not a pleasant job!!!


Here’s a thought for all those who are EIGHTY PLUS -

Father Time is not always a hard parent, and, though he tarries for none of his children, often lays his hand lightly upon those who have used him well; making them old men and women inexorably enough, but leaving their hearts and spirits young and in full vigour. With such people the grey head is but the impression of the old fellow's hand in giving them his blessing, and every wrinkle but a notch in the quiet calendar of a well-spent life. (Charles Dickens)

EIGHTY PLUS - A MISNOMER?
Apparently I’m only 69.
Recently I’ve been coerced into taking part in Wii games - 10-pin bowling, snowboarding, baseball, golf, boxing, and tennis.
When you finish playing, the computer assesses your skill, ability, etc. and relates this to your theoretical age.
The only game I found really exhausting was tennis. Here, my daughter and I played in Mixed Doubles against 2 cyber players. I used up a great deal of energy dashing here and there attempting to return the services. Then I realised that my daughter’s feet were firmly planted on the floor, and only her batting arm moved.
Nevertheless my age is 69, I insist.
My daughter’s age? 23 according to the Wii, but her real age is actually CENSORED

THE OREGON TRAIL by Albert Beirstadt














Albert Beirstadt 1830 - 1902 was a German-American landscape painter, famous for his numerous huge canvases of the American West.

THE LILY by William Blake (1757-1827), English poet/painter

The modest Rose puts forth a thorn,
The humble Sheep a threatening horn,
While the Lily white shall in Love delight,
Nor a thorn, nor a threat stain her beauty bright.

MAKE THIS VIDEO GO AROUND THE WORLD



MY HAIKU

The Japanese haiku poets very often found inspiration in moon-viewing.
This is one of mine -

a full moon tonight -
we poets need you, so why
must you come and go?