ECCLES GRAMMAR SCHOOL

(OPTIMA PETIMUS)

HEADMASTER

R. K. McEWAN, M.A. (Oxon.)

EDITORS

Patricia Moors, Helen Barclay, Christine Lane, Lynda Hill, A. P. Harris, Margaret Haynes, Kathleen Howard, A. Draper, Jane Hiller, M. Parr.

Spring 1967

Vo1. III No. 7

SCHOOL OFFICIALS

HOUSE CAPTAINS

EDITORIAL

At last, this long-awaited collection of literary gems, hair-raising sports reports and other miscellaneous articles of undoubted (?) merit, has reached you, the public. Doubtless you have all been wonder­ing why this edition is so late, and we, the editors, will attempt to justify ourselves by saying that the task of selecting suitable articles from the highly varied material which has been submitted, has been a prodigious one. (We have had to obtain legal advice to ensure that some of the articles will not incur libel suits or incite revolution.)

Now we come to the enigma of the mystery building in the boys' yard, which has dumbfounded us (that is, those who have noticed it!) There have been various suggestions — both wild and hopeful — as to its purpose, for example: "Is it a greengrocery store for one of the members of staff?" or "Could it be a bowling alley?" or "Have they discovered gold under the floor?". The presence of the "workmen" was announced one morning by a stream of colourful abuse and invective, which was partially drowned by the cacophonous strains of the Third Programme! ? ! But now it is rumoured that this appendage to the Mc­Ewan Academy, measuring 15 feet by 7 (including the greasy pole), is merely intended to accommodate 250 hypothetical students of a hypothetical Sixth Form College.

STAFF CHANGES

Last year saw many new members of staff, both part-time and full­time. First of all, we were very pleased to welcome Mrs. Nall. as Senior Mistress. As well as holding this important position, Mrs. Nall also teaches Biology, having obtained a B.Sc. degree and a Diploma in Education at Manchester University. She has taught in several Grammar Schools throughout the country, and came to us from Hinckley Grammar School, Leicestershire, where she was Senior Mistress.

We also welcomed Mr. A. H. Charlton (B.A.), who had been teach­ing at Darwen Grammar before he came here in January of last year. He has taken over from Mrs. Niddrie. as Head of the French Department. Mrs. E. M. Young. from Kesteven College of Education, Lincolnshire, teaches Maths. Mrs. Eaves teaches Domestic Science, having already taught at Lymm Secondary School and at Indianapolis High School, U.S.A. Mrs. Boireau (B.A.) studied at Leeds University, where she obtained her degree in English, French and Russian. She gained also a Diploma in Education at Westminster College, London.

Last September, Mr. Laws (M.A.), came to teach P.E. and games, having taught at Darlington Primary School for two years. He took his degree at Edinburgh University in Russian and German, and obtained further qualifications at Carnegie College of Physical Education. Mr. G. Barrett teaches Technical Drawing, and has taught already at Man­chester College of Building. Mr. J. S. Palliser took a B.A. degree in French and German at Oxford University and is now a French teacher. Mr. D. R. Worsley (B.A.) read for his degree in Modern History at Oxford University and was also awarded his Cricket Blue. He has joined the English staff. Mrs. J. Coan (B.A.) has taken over from Mr. Farrimond, to teach French and German. She obtained a degree in German at Manchester University, and further qualifications at Didsbury College of Education, having taught at Congleton Grammar School before com­ing here. Mrs. M. McLucas has come from I. M. Marsh College of P.E., Liverpool, and has widened our scope considerably in gym and games. Miss M. R. Thomas (B.A.) read for her degree in Medieval and Modern History at Manchester University and obtained a Diploma in Education at Birmingham University.

Members of staff who have come to teach part-time are Mrs. J. A. Penny, from Manchester Regional College of Art. Mr. P. Doyle also teaches Art, and has come from Ambrose Barlow School, Swinton. Mrs. Clegg is helping with needlework; she taught at Ellesmere Park Secondary Modern before she came here.

We were sorry to lose the following members of staff last July: Mr. Farrimond has gone to Marple Grammar to teach French and German. Mr. Turner is now teaching at Cowley Grammar School. Mr. Williams has left the Art Department to lecture in Art at Mather College of Education. Mr. Smith, who used to teach woodwork, is now lecturing at Alsager College of Education. Miss Baxendall is teaching temporarily at Lady Lumley's School, Pickering. Miss Green is training to be a Missionary for the Church of England. Miss Kerfoot has retired from teaching Art. Mrs. Ravenscroft, Mrs. Rutland and Mrs. Wright have left in order to answer Domestic Duties.

We wish all these members of staff the best of luck in the future, and thank them for the help they have given us.

MEMENTOTE!

SPEECH DAY

As last year, the annual speech day took on a slightly different aspect. The headmaster opened the proceedings with his report, in which he divided school life into three stages.

In the first of these, from the 1st to the 3rd forms, he stated his intention of ending "streaming", and then continued this policy in the 4th and 5th years by discouraging specialisation. Even in the last two years at school from 16 to 18 he proposed a wider curriculum of major subjects taken to 'A' level and at the same time several minor subjects might be studied to give the students a wider culture without prejudicing their chances at university.

The headmaster was particularly pleased with the numbers in the 6th form (130), saying that, while they sometimes created difficulties owing to shortage of staff, as in the Geography department, he liked to see the willingness of young people to continue their education, especially those from other schools who were "keen and determined."

His report ended with a note on the extensions already made to the school, of a pottery room and photographic dark room and of the 6th form conference room, which was to be ready by Christmas. Mr. McEwan took this opportunity of telling parents of the proposed 6th Form College, the beginnings of the "comprehensive system" in Eccles, in which he believed the staff should have some say in the design of laboratories, to avoid any expensive construction mistakes.

After a varied programme by the choir, the chairman, Mr. J. P. McDougall, M.M., J.P., introduced the guest speaker, the Rev. E. Gordon Rupp, M.A., D.D., with his customary wit, adding that the school buildings had been inadequate for years. Having distributed the prizes and certificates, Professor Rupp delivered an entertaining address on his ex­periences in the South Seas, and his views on possible developments in education.

The evening was rounded off by two more songs from the choir and a vote of thanks from the Head Boy, seconded by the Head Girl, who presented Professor Rupp with a book. So ended a most entertaining evening.

MYSTERY AND IMAGINATION

On the line between Brighton and Lewes on June 6th, 1851, engine number 82 (built by Sharp, Roberts and Co., 1847-48) was running down an incline between Falmer and Lewes with a passenger train. At a point where a high brick bridge, known as the Newmarket Arch, carries the line over a road, No. 82 struck a sleeper which was lying across the outside rail and became derailed. The engine and two coaches fell into the road below killing three passengers and the fireman and mortally injuring the driver. The question arose as to how the sleeper got there. There were a number of sleepers on the line side because relaying was in progress. The men working on the line denied leaving the sleeper on the line and it was alleged that it was a wilful prank on the part of a ten-year-old boy called Jimmy Boakes who lived near the line. Despite the fact that he was questioned, nobody was able to trap him into making an admission.

Now comes the strange sequel. Exactly a year later, on the same day of the same month, at the same spot that the accident happened, Jimmy Boakes was struck by lightning and killed. Doubtless the incident was quoted with relish from local pulpits as an awful example of the visitation of divine retribution.

J. Simpson, 4L

RAILWAY SOCIETY

During the past year, the society has had enjoyable meetings with an average attendance of 17. Slides of steam locomotives have been shown by several of the members and Mr. Coles, who also brought records and tape recordings of various steam engines working, while other members brought photographs.

In October, a trip was made by 35 members to the West Riding of Yorkshire, one of the few areas where steam engines are still predom­inant. As well as seeing B.R.'s locos, we saw two privately preserved engines: the K4 2-6-0 No. 3442 "The Great Marquess" owned by Lord Garnock, and the other N7 0-6-2T No. 69621 owned by Dr. R. F. Youell.

On March 6th, twelve of our members were amongst the 500 on a special trip, organised by William Deacon's Bank to Crewe and Derby works. The train was hauled by the A4 4-6-2 Pacific No. 60019 "Bittern," which was brought down from Scotland specially for this trip. Interesting leaflets were issued to us all at Derby works, giving details of the history of the works, and its present activities.

We also ran a private trip to Crewe in April, where in the works we saw "Coronation" class 4-6-2 Pacific No. 46235 "City of Birmingham," which has since been presented to the Birmingham Science Museum by B.R.

All members would like to thank Mr. Coles for his help and sup­port, both at weekly meetings and on the outings.

R. Peters, 6L Sc.

CRICKET REPORT, 1966

The results this season were variable and matches were often lost by a few runs. In general our batting was at fault and we usually found runs very hard to make. Bowling, on the other hand, showed a lot of promise and we "skittled" teams out for less than 50 on many occasions. Fielding showed a marked improvement on previous seasons, and was a very pleasing feature of our play.

The 1st XI was mainly inspired by their captain, Oakes, who fin­ished top of both the bowling and batting averages. Finch and Ruleman, the opening batsmen, made a good start to the innings, but usually runs were hard to make. The team benefited by McCulloch's hard­hitting; he was a new member of the team and often made quick runs, so valuable in our class of cricket. Draper, another new member, bowled well and intelligently and was a valuable asset to the team. Stubbs, Maw and Booth also showed promise that we hope will benefit the team in the next two or three seasons.

R. Britton and G. Cunningham shared the captaincy of the 2nd XI and both worked hard for the team.

Both teams would like to thank Mr. Machin for his valuable coaching and enthusiasm. Our thanks must also go to the scorers and the girls who provided refreshments throughout the season.

Colours: Re-award . . . Gould

J. B. Gould

WAR

Susan Lee, 5M

"THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME"

S. Dolan, 6LSc.

THE UNION REPORT

This year the Union is offering a wider field of activities. There has already been a visit to the Library Theatre, to see "As You Like It", which was very successful, and we shall arrange more.

Besides these visits to the theatre there will be debates, lectures and music appreciations. Two lectures have already taken place: one was given by Miss Robson, whose subject was "Child Care" and the other by Dr. Lees of Manchester University, whose topic was “Can a Scientist be a Christian and be Honest?” The Committee hopes to be able to arrange unusual activities for Easter.

Although the Union is meant primarily for the fifth and sixth forms, members of the Lower school will occasionally be invited to join us.

The Union is a School society: it was not created for the sole amusement of the Committee. A great deal of time and effort is being spent in trying to infuse new life into the Union and to provide some­thing for each sector of the senior forms. If we are to be successful we need your support.

If anyone has any constructive ideas which he and she feels would be useful to the Union, don't hide them — bring them to us!

S. A. Twigg, 6UA, N. Knight, 6LA.

DEBATES AND YOU

If you want to join into the debating society you have to be able to express and punctuate your speech so as they can understand you and it is quiet clear what you meant for to mean this is needed if you is too win any debates what you enter I now that because I has been in several bedates but as yet am not won any I does not know why because I think I am quiet good at intelectuel speeching and me mum agrees with me.

R. Sandercock, 4Sc.

JUNIOR DEBATING SOCIETY REPORT

At the Annual General Meeting B. Jones was elected chairman of the Junior Debating Society and fourth form representative J. Rayner was appointed vice-chairman. P. Reed was appointed secretary and third form representative. A. Davies was appointed vice-secretary and P. Jones and S. Higginbotham were appointed second form representatives.

During the year, the committee met with enthusiasm not only from pupils, but also from members of staff. In February a "Teachers' Debate" was held. Mr. Chapman and Mr. Coles proposed the motion: "This house believes that teachers should wear school uniforms", and Mr. Thomas (geography) and Mrs. Boireau proposed the motion: "This house believes that Eccles needs brightening up".

The motions were opposed in these debates by members of the third and fourth forms. The attendance at this meeting reached 114, which is a record attendance for a debate at this school. Other debates included a "Brain of Eccles" contest, which was won by A. Lingard 5A, interhouse debates and a "One-Minute Please" in November, which was so popular that another one was held in February. In a "Top of the Form" competition IS proved themselves to be the "top form" in general knowledge. A balloon debate in September proved George Bernard Shaw (B. Jones) to be the most popular character.

The committee was sorry to lose Penny Reed when she left and wish to thank her for her service and also the catering department for giving their time. Last but not least we thank Mr. Riley for his guidance.

This year so far we have already had five meetings, which have been well attended. During the term we are to hold a Staff v Pupils debate, a "Top of the Form" contest and a series to discover the "Brain of Eccles".

A. D.

MUSICAL HOLIDAY

This summer, we spent a very enjoyable week at a school orchestra course, which was held at Downe House School, situated in the beautiful countryside of Berkshire, a few miles from Newbury. We arrived there amid a confusion of luggage and instruments after a long and tiring journey, which included the intricacies of the London underground.

There were about two hundred and fifty young musicians present, all of school age, whose ability and talent ranged from the potential Royal Academy standard to mediocre ability. However, one of the things which impressed us most was the common love of music and spirit of enthusiasm which pervaded the atmosphere for, even though the weather remained glorious throughout the week, many chose to spend their afternoons making use of the private practice rooms, or playing chamber music together, with obvious enjoyment.

On the first day, we were assembled into four orchestras, and sent off to rehearse with our respective conductors. We were quite alarmed at first to discover that we were expected to be able to sight-read through a symphony! There were three rehearsals per day, but we had the afternoons and evenings free.

There was plenty of entertainment provided for the evenings in the form of film shows, concerts and dancing. It was interesting to observe the same people who had been playing classical music with such verve during the day, dancing to pop records in the evening with equal enthusiasm.

At the end of the week, the orchestras gave their separate concerts, consisting of the works which had been rehearsed, and that brought an unusual and unforgettable holiday to an end.

Kathleen Howard and Tim Reed

THE SCHOOL PLAY

This year's experiment of three one-act plays was not entirely suc­cessful. Admittedly, opportunities were given for the members of the lower school to act, for a contrast of material within the programme and for entertainment to be provided for all age-groups. However, the continuity of the evening was destroyed by introduction of different subjects and I should welcome a return to the former presentation of a single several-act play.

"The Monkey's Paw' by W. W. Jacobs. Dramatic with occasional touches of humour. Little fault to be found either with the production or acting. Jennifer Cooke and Barry Jones were particularly good.

"Toad of Toad Hall" by A. A. Milne provided entertainment for the younger members of the audience. Promising performances from Lilian Brockbank, Judith Lockett, Gaynor Powell and Philip Jones. There was a tendency for the actors to speak too quietly, and the muffling of their voices was increased by the otherwise excellent animal heads.

"The Ass and the Philosophers" by G. Jones. Undoubtedly the best play because of the experience of the actors and the strength of the plot. Good performances from all the cast. Highlight of the play was the romantic scene between Vivienne Nuttall and Adrian Powell, which succeeded in being both amusing and moving.

Finally, our thanks must go to the staff and pupils who have worked behind the scenes and also to the actors themselves.

Sandra Twigg, 6UA.

THE STRATFORD TRIP

The weather had been unusually good all week but, inevitably, on the day of the trip to Stratford, the heavens opened. It was hardly a propitious beginning, but undeterred we set off at 8-30 a.m. (after all ­ we had paid!)

After four hours travelling our first action in Stratford was to go in search of food. Then, suitably refreshed, we made our way to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre to see "Henry V."

The performance was good, if somewhat uninspired; the battle scenes were excellent, as was the staging of the whole play.

A scene between Katherine, the daughter of the King of France, and Alice, a lady in waiting, was delightfully played to its greatest capacity of comedy, although it merely consisted of a completely irrelevant and nonsensical conversation. The love scene, in which Henry proposed to Katherine, was also played with the emphasis on comedy. These scenes were by far the most memorable and most enjoyable. However, for myself, the outstanding part of the play was the death of Corporal Nym. Here there was a swift and unexpected change from comedy to tragedy, with the sudden murder of this appeal­ing, comic character.

As to individual performances they were good, professional but not tinged with inspiration. Ian Holm gave a competent, if somewhat lacklustre, portrayal of Henry. He was unfortunately rather small for the part and had neither the presence nor the dignity associated with leaders of men. Tony Church was outstanding as the Archbishop of Canterbury, complete with Irish brogue straight from the peat bogs. The audience was completely bewildered as he unsuccessfully unravelled Henry's family tree, enmeshing his listeners in a tangle of names. Richard Moore was a very amusing Pistol, while David Waller, equipped with a North Wales lilt, gave a riotously successful portrayal of the Monmouth Captain, Fluellen. Patrick Stewart turned in a credible performance as the thoroughly repulsive Dauphin, while Sarah Hyle and Frances de la Tour were excellent as Katherine and Alice. However, the most im­pressive performance was given by Ian Richardson as the Chorus, who stole every feminine heart with his saturnine good looks and imposing presence. The part was tailor-made for him.

The trip was rounded off in the traditional manner, Mrs. Borieau and Mr. Machin aiding us with their delightful, if rather unusual harmony.

S. Twigg, 6UA

A LIMERICK

H. Grayson, 4S

SAXON HOUSE REPORT

The year began well, not with a sporting event, but with the victory in the debating contest, admirably led by Lunness. In contrast, the house suffered defeats in cricket and football, but the junior girls played well and were victorious, being placed first in netball and second in hockey, with the senior netball a very unlucky third and a sad defeat in hockey. Although the badminton team was a close third there are higher hopes of victory this year. The traditionally high standard of athletics was maintained with many notable individual efforts, and until the last events, a draw for first was ominous, but we were narrowly pushed into second place by Normans.

Although results were not as good as hoped, promise for the future has been shown in the junior half of the house this year. We therefore look forward to regaining our overall success of previous years.

I.F., V.N.

NORMAN HOUSE REPORT

This has been a very successful year for the Norman House, in both academic and athletic fields, and we deservedly gained an overall victory. As a result of great efforts and splendid team work, Sports Day saw us victorious after being the runners-up for several years. Congratulations go to Anna Puzylo, Barbara Dolan and Mary Edwards, who managed to gain the junior, middle and senior championships respectively.

Unfortunately, our efforts were not great enough at Badminton and the House Debate, where a lot more support is needed.

The boys did very well for us, winning the Cross Country Championship and the Junior Football, and reaching the finals of the House Cricket, in which they were unfortunately defeated by Tudors. Some credit must also go to the girls, who came first in the House Netball last term and were runners-up in last year's House Hockey.

1967 promises to be another successful year for our house, and, if we can retain the team spirit which is now prevalent, we should manage to remain at the top where we belong.

L.H.

STUART HOUSE REPORT

Games, as usual, were not Stuarts' strong point and results in House Netball, Cricket, Cross Country and on Sports Day were not as good as we had hoped. However, the girls won the Senior House Hockey and we had hopes, too, of the Senior Football, which was, unfortunately, cancelled. Stuarts also won the House Badminton. In the House Points Competition Stuarts' did well, coming first on two occasions, but this success was not repeated in the House Debates when we were knocked out in the first round.

We should like to thank all those who took part in any activity on behalf of Stuarts last year and to wish everyone the best of luck in the future.

H.B., A.P.

TUDOR HOUSE

On the whole, 1966 was a disappointing year for Tudors.

The new system of House Points was the major reason for our downfall, but luckily this has been abolished. It did show, however, a general indifference to school work, which will have to be improved if we want to see Tudor House at the top.

We hope to keep up the enthusiasm which was shown in last year's House Debates, Tudors coming second to Saxons in the finals.

As far as House Matches are concerned, the Tudor teams did very well; we came second in House Badminton, and first in House Cricket. Just before Christmas, our Junior Hockey Team came first, and the Senior Hockey and Netball teams both came second. Tudors also won the Junior House Soccer before Christmas.

Athletics were not our strong point, and Sports Day proved rather a disappointment for Tudors. However, we should like to thank all those people who took part in House activities, and hope that everyone will do their best to raise the standard this year.

C.L.

ECCLES

(Prize-winning essay for the Eccles Journal)

When writing about Eccles, it is very hard for me as one of the younger generation to be unbiased.

To anyone living in a built-up area, it is most important that that area should be well supplied with shops which have both a wide range of articles and a wide range of quality. Eccles has this range, but if you want a fair number of articles, it is not improbable that you will have to walk a mile or more to purchase these items.

Another problem affecting Eccles shoppers is the heavy through traffic in the centre. This could be solved by cutting the centre of Eccles off completely from cars and lorries. Obviously, if this were done, a by­pass would have to be built and the present plans do not solve this to many people's satisfaction. Surely it would be possible to widen and strengthen the existing perimeter road instead of blasting a motorway through the only large playing fields in the areaand several hundred houses.

Anybody living in Eccles is very fortunate to have such good connections with the many surrounding large towns. In fact, the area is historically famous for its connection with transport. It has also many old buildings and legends. James Nasmyth has made Eccles famous with his steam hammer and other inventions, and the Bridgewater Canal and Manchester to Liverpool railway, over the bog were, in their time, great advances in engineering.

More recent history has, however, left us with some very drab Victorian houses, and I believe that the new skyscraper flats now replacing them are a step in the right direction.

The smokeless zone system, now partly in force, is also a good measure which needed taking.

Eccles has some very beautiful places around it, a good example being Worsley Woods, but other areas, particularly Barton Moss, are being ruined by the ribbon development which is taking place.

While many other buildings are being erected, the continuation of Alderman Grindle's work for the old people is not being forgotten. Moreover, the pensioners are being very well catered for.

For the middle-aged, the only facilities appear to be countless bingo clubs and three cinemas. A new amateur theatre would attract many members and an "Over-30s club" would be welcomed. Need for a hospital, which is up-to-date, efficient, and general, is enormous.

In this essay I have tried to put forward my views on what could be done to improve Eccles and by following some of the lines I have indicated I think that many of the grumblers would be made proud of their town.

A. J. Britton, 5Sc.

FOOTBALL REPORT

For the first few games, the 1st XI of 1965-66 carried on the good work of the previous year's highly successful team. This, however, couldn't last long, for several members of last year's illustrious team had left, and so the team was comparatively inexperienced. The season's record reflected this, though the newcomers played extremely well, and towards the latter part of the season the team settled down to play well and win some games. This was due to the intensive fitness training, and all members co-operated in this, even to the extent of training in the holidays.

Final record: Played 19, Won 8, Drawn 2, Lost 9.

In the Chorlton "6 a-side" competition, the team was unluckily knocked out in the second round; they did not lose by goals, but by corners.

First XI leading appearances: Mortimer 19, Draper 19, Rowles 19, Dutton 18, Hamblett 18, Quigley 18, Thornley 17, Finch 17, Oakes, Crossley 16, Wignall 10, Stubbs 6.

Colours: Mortimer, Rowles and Draper.

The Second XI started the season very poorly, losing the first 3 games heavily. They improved a. little towards the end of the season, but, like the 1st XI, they had an inexperienced team, and so the record was quite an achievement and it promises well for next season.

Record: Played 19, Won 7, Drawn 1, Lost 11.

The U15 XI promised to do well, since many of the side had played the previous season, but they were disappointing and lost many matches that they should have won.

The U14 XI played very well, and finished 2nd in the Eccles Schools U14 League, and narrowly missed finishing on top; this promises well for future years.

This season, 1966-67, the 1st XI began rather abysmally, losing their first three games by quite wide margins. The turning point came, however, in the fourth game against Wythenshawe. Here, a heavy defeat was anticipated, since Wythenshawe normally produces an outstanding team, but after a heroic display by our 1st XI, the game ended in a 2-2 draw, a praiseworthy effort indeed! After this draw, the 1st XI has only suffered one defeat up to the time of writing, and this was against the very strong Wigan side. From half term to the Christmas holidays, the team won five consecutive games, and this feat was even more outstanding, for during this period two key men, Mortimer and Dutton were injured. In this winning run, the newcomers, replacing the injured players, performed well, and were ably led by the temporary captain, Quigley. After the early defeats, the goal average is evening out well; here is the record so far:

Played 12, Won 6, Drawn 2, Lost 4, Goals for 29, Goals against 31.

A.D. and R.C.

THE FOG

Ian Andrews, 1N

TOWN AFTER DARK

A distant chiming clock hails the hour of eleven. The few cinema­goers disperse quickly or seek shelter from the rain until the last bus arrives. A flurry of wind scatters several fish and chip papers across the near-deserted road, as the traffic lights stand like sentinels, still repeating the crimson-amber-emerald code.

The early evening drizzle has now progressed to steady-falling rain, and the leaves of the boulevard trees are hung heavy with blobs of icy water; the cold, gushing spray of the fountain gleams gold on reflection by the sodium lighting and seems to whisper silence; a neon sign ­- 'Undertakers: Night and Day Service,' flashes like splintered steel, heralding the darkness of death.

Yet from amongst this chill and desolation comes a certain warmth, accompanied by the gay chatter of young people in a cafe whose doors are open until the early hours. This is a place with character, where youths and their girlfriends sit idly at the small tables sipping hot coffee and listening to a guitar-playing folk-singer.

The singer adds his own brand of sincerity to the music. He asks whether war or persecution of the helpless is necessary, or tells of the injustices of present day society.

Outside, further down the street, large posters on the library wall are illuminated by bright mercury lights.

"The Army is the Career for You!"

"Christian Aid Week."

More pitiful still is the picture of a starving child who begs: "Give to Oxfam!"

The dying strains of the cafe folk-singer inspires hope and drowns the melancholy "We shall overcome some day."

S. Barlow, 6L.Sc.

C.E.M. CONFERENCE, 1966

Sixth formers from the North-West arrived at the Free Trade Hall on July 12th at 10-30 a.m. for the beginning of our conference, which was entitled "Who Cares?" Soon a uniformed official bade us stand while the chairman of the conference, Rev. Peter Hardman, the Lord Mayor of Manchester, and two of our three speakers, Miss White and Ald. Lever, M.P. entered. The third speaker, Rev. Don Van Voorhis had been seized with a violent attack of migraine during the night but, fortunately for us, he was able to join us later.

After the Lord Mayor had welcomed us, speaking about the need for young people to care about others, we were then addressed by Ald. Lever, who spoke about the welfare state. His speech was followed by that of Miss White, who holds a position as secretary in one of the branches of the Voluntary Service Unit and who spoke on the place of voluntary services in society.

Such was the interest in the last speech, which was that of Rev. Don Van Voorhis, who spoke on idealism, that it made us late for dinner.

For the afternoon session, which took the form of visits to state and voluntary organisations, people were divided into groups. We were shown round their premises, their work was explained and we were able to ask questions.

After this everyone once more converged on the Free Trade Hall for the final session which consisted of folk songs and readings.

Thanks must be expressed to Mr. Else for arranging for us to go to the conference, which we all enjoyed.

Susan A. Stuart, Rosalyn M. Tong, 6UA

INTRODUCTION TO SCIENCE FICTION

Science Fiction is the modern magic-story. As we are now too sophisticated to believe in witches and wizards, we believe in telepaths, spacecraft, interplanetary travel, extraterrestrial beings, and time­machines instead. Science Fiction is so-called, as it is usually based on probable scientific developments in science parallel to some stories written long ago.

Jules Verne foresaw submarines, airships and diving suits. His stories, once extravagant fantasies, are now classic tales, quite acceptable to the modern generation. H. G. Wells prophesied atom bombs, gas tur­bines, vast improvements in medical sciences and man-made textiles. He also thought of Martian invaders and time-machines, now com­monly employed to enmesh our imaginations. He wrote about moving pavements, helicopters, growth hormones, skyscraper cities, advertising jargons (e.g. 'Beanz Meanz Heinz'), and germ warfare, all of which, though mere dreams in his era, are now accepted as facts. Arthur C. Clarke, the most famous modern Science Fiction writer, designed a communications satellite in detail, for a boys' paper twenty years ago. Because he did not patent it, he did not receive royalties from Early Bird!

There are several classes of science fiction:

The seven-headed purple monster and the damsel in distress model of story, is most widely recognised as Science Fiction among non­readers; unfortunately, this is worth reading only for amusement. Clifford Simak is one of the leading writers of the completely incredible: e.g., he wrote a story about bowlingballs and sewing machines going for a walk, directed by a wonder dog and a pink blob of jelly.

More serious writers use one or two fantastic details and build a completely acceptable story of human reactions upon them. Given that the galaxies are so enormous that the possibility of other inhabited planets is undoubted, then the stories about them are no more incredible than the tales of exploration in darkest Africa, written by Rider Haggard.

A favourite theme is telepathy, portrayed excellently by Naomi Hitchison in "Stories of the people" — a book about a colony of tele­paths and the difficulties they encounter trying to lead a normal life.

Another favourite is the aftermath of an atomic war, ranging from immediate survival stories to results of long term mutations.

A good example of the latter is John Wyndham's "The Chrysalids," a book which combines this theme with telepathy. Nevil Shute's "On the Beach" is probably the most thought-provoking of these stories.

Life on Mars, or any other planet, possibly gives most scope for detailed stories about social organisation on planets whose meteorological conditions may be extremely different from ours.

Something out of control on Earth poses more questions for the skilful Science Fiction writer to answer. John Wyndham has written three interesting books on the subject.

The best vehicle for Science Fiction is the short story, in which there is no need for a detailed background, leaving the intricate human behaviour patterns to be driven home. Short stories cover the whole field, and some more besides. Edmund Crispin's collections, "Best S.F. 1, 2, etc." are probably the best introduction to Science Fiction for a new reader. Ray Bradbury's fantasies, Arthur C. Clarke's more down-to­earth and often humorous collections ('Tales of Ten Worlds'), James Blish's lack of faith in humanity, Daphne du Maurier's "The Birds," recently filmed, Brian Aldiss, Bertram Chandler, Fred Hoyle, H. G. Wells and Clifford Simak all demonstrate their mastery of this form of writing.

Pleas for social reform can be disguised in Science Fiction, either as straightforward Utopias or satires, cunningly concealed in excellent stories. George Orwell's "1984," H. G. Wells' "Modern Utopia," Ray Bradbury's "Fahrenheit 451," James Blish's "A Case of Conscience," and many others point a finger at faults in our present society.

Science Fiction is a serious form of writing, the best exponents of the art undoubtedly ranking above writers in other fields. As in all classes of fiction, however, the wheat and the chaff need sorting. It can be an extremely rewarding field of reading, certainly not as escapism, as it is often made out to be, with plenty of wry human comment, satire and serious character-portrayal, to colour the many volumes, of which most are well worth reading.

A. J. Britton, 5 Science

BADMINTON REPORT, 1966-7

Last season the team enjoyed mixed success, the losses being against Urmston and Heywood only. Good wins were against Urmston Boys (Doubles) and Salford Technical High; the rest were won as expected.

The House Badminton took place in March with Stuarts being the eventual winners of a closely contested struggle with Saxons.

This season the team has continued to improve and to date has only lost one match. Our thanks must go to all who stayed behind to help with refreshments and the members of staff who have helped to improve our game.

A.P. and M.P.

STAFF MATCH

The big question, as the hour of the match drew nigh, was could the experienced, cunning staff team finally beat the School 1st XI which was comparatively inexperienced, and not used to the electric atmosphere of big games?

It was rumoured that the staff had been secretly training, but this was quashed when the team stumbled onto the pitch. The School looked superbly fit, and even took the liberty of putting right-back and skipper, Rowles, into goal, and goalkeeper Finch into the centre-forward position.

Unfortunately Mr. Barnes was missing from the staff team, having suffered a severe blow on the arm in the last staff match, and had not yet recovered. Mr. MiIler was another notable omission, for he was thought to be quite promising after showing up well on many mountain runs.

The game started, and the school soon took the lead, with Finch laying on a superb opportunity for Crossley, who neatly netted, hitting the ball crisply past the nonplussed custodian Jackson, deputising for Mr. Thomas. The Staff fought back well, but were soon another goal in arrears; this time Hamblett scored with the Staff team thoroughly per­plexed. The School sat back on their early lead, and the Staff came back into the game a little with Mr. Smith working industriously in mid­field, and Mr. Charlton let fly with a fierce shot, which flew narrowly past the corner flag. The half-time whistle blew, and all the players took their well-earned refreshments of half an orange.

The Staff now looked refreshed, and began the second half back­pedalling keenly. The School had now sensed the Staff's renewed enthusiasm, and put Finch back in goal and moved Rowles upfield. The School eventually worked themselves right on top, when suddenly a defensive lapse left Mr. Williams with a splendid opportunity to make a name for himself; however, he managed to kick the air, the grass and one of his own players, but unfortunately not the ball, and the Staff had lost their chance to stage a comeback.

In the later stages Wignall managed to miss several excellent chances, superbly schemed by Thornley, but nevertheless, the School coasted to a 2-0 win.

The Staff were defeated, but not downhearted, and fervently hope to reverse the result next time. Well, we'll see!

A. Draper, 6LA

THE FIELD WEEK, 1966 (BIOLOGY)

This year's Field Trip took us to Whitby in Yorkshire during the Easter holidays. Maintaining order amongst the biologists were Miss Longworth and Mr. Barnes. Mr. Miller, Mr. Hardman, Mr. B. Thomas exercised their authority over the geographers and geologists.

We all resided in the Abbey House, commanding a delightful view, but rather inconveniently situated on the crest of a hill, a mere one hundred and ninety-nine steps removed from the town below.

Our first trip out was to Westonby Moor, to study the low-lying vegetation of the bogs. Our studies were hindered, much to our frustration, by a mild blizzard. Nevertheless, we were thrilled to find the beautiful polytrichum commune — a moss. The rest of the day was spent fossil-hunting on Whitby beach and even the non-geologists tried their hand at this sport and were successful.

On the following day we all went to Flamborough — the biologists to make a survey on quantitative ecology, that is — the percentage fre­quency of different plants. This took place actually on the Head. Freezing weather conditions and an R.A.F. rescue operation could not deter us from our absorbing research, and, having thrown our quadrats innumerable times, we came to the conclusion that Wild Carrot was the commonest plant on that chalky ground, with grass coming second.

The East Yorkshire coast is renowned for its fossils and the Pannett Museum in Whitby has an excellent Natural History section, with the emphasis on fossils. Ammonites on show ranged from one inch to six feet in diameter. We spent the morning here trying to answer the questions which Miss Longworth put to us. The afternoon was our own, and for this well-deserved break we were all grateful, for it enabled us to see some of Whitby's fine sights; the ruined Abbey, for example, Captain Cook's abode, the ancient Town Hall and the Amusement Arcade complete with Bingo.

All evenings were spent diligently in the Common Room -- the only place of refuge from the cold, but there was always time for relaxation in the town below, before going to bed in the early hours.

Our next trip to was Sandsend, about three miles up the coast. We picked the wild flowers of the wayside and hedgerow, of woodland and riverbank. Back at the Guest House we identified these plants by means of taxonomy — a long and arduous task.

The sun appeared on our last day. The coach took us to Robin Hood's Bay, where we examined the different zones of the beach at low-tide. Specimens vary in these zones. We found in the rock-pools starfish, sponges, seaanemones, hermit crabs and ragworms. Three large brilliantly-coloured lump sucker fish caught our attention in one pool. The red one, evidently devoid of natural instinct, allowed us to drag it on to dry land, and did not resist even when having its photo­graph taken. Higher up shore were the inevitable fossils.

This was, in my opinion, the most enjoyable trip, because we saw so many things which we had heard about but never before seen.

Christine Lane, 6 LA

GEOLOGY FIELD WEEK, 1966

For those geologists in the Lower Sixth Form, the week spent at Whitby at Easter provided an ideal introduction to field geology. Snow fell on the North Yorkshire Moors, and the wind at Flamborough Head produced a violent sea which seemed to fit perfectly the eroded chalk cliffs on which we walked, yet the weather never became a hindrance to our work.

Robin Hood's Bay became familiar to us during three visits — it was here that we had our first opportunity to search for fossils. Ravenscar, the headland to the south of the bay, was visited by a small party which found its way to the bottom, and then, in the first sunshine of the week, climbed back to the top. We were not surprised to see Mr. Thomas run most of the way.

To the South we saw the chalk cliffs of Flamborough Head, and looked on with disbelief as the biologists muttered incantations over squares of rough grass. The chalk provided us with the inevitable climb to the top of a scarp slope which geographers seem to relish.

The job af organising the innumerable visits by geologists, biologists and geographers alike, was done by Mr. Miller, Mr. Hardman and Mr. Thomas who, at the end of the week, even brought us all back.

G. Cunningham

PHOBOPH ENGINEERING INCORPORATED

During the past 20 years, Eph Phoboph has continued to produce machines of outstanding quality. Main advances were the syncrocrunch single-speed gearbox and the introduction of 'Posi-Phorce' lubrication using a mixture of paraffin and axle grease (stolen from the Japanese). This idea was first tried out by the factory rider Bert Throbnostle on the 102½ cc. 1½ cylinder 3 stroke racing 'Phoboph Pheeble' and proved to be an utter failure.

Remarked Bert, 'It's no laughing matter when you seize solid at 7 m.p.h.!

Undaunted by his failure Bert had a brilliant idea. He thought that fitting a 'high-compression headlamp bulb' would aid cooling, and what do you know — It worked!

I was given the opportunity of taking the Pheeble out on a test run and was surprised to negotiate Worsley Hill two up. Next week I hope to go up the hill on the Pheeble.

Along with the Pheeble, the Phuple and the Pharce has been exported to the Pojab Police Force. Their chief Umdinga was very impressed with their ability to adapt themselves to the difference in climate.

From a recent report the Phobophs are proved to be a popular machine and most of the riders are unanimous in their decisions.

'It can out-accelerate any milk float,' writes Claude Hobnopper from Chipping Sodbury.

'The brakes are fantastic — I once stopped in 100 yards from 25 m.p.h. without even trailing my feet!' writes an enthusiast from Little Lever.

Petrol consumption has greatly increased from 3 miles per pint to a creditable 24 miles per gallon. For racing, the Phobophs run on a mix­ture of nitro-glycerine and water. The use of a wooden piston increases the compression ratio and adds to extra lightness.

For the road user who would like to improve the performance of his Phoboph, pedals are fitted to the machine for a small fee.

With such added luxuries as mudguards, seat, tank, and lights, I can see why the Phoboph is such a popular machine and a real credit to its founder, Eph Phoboph, now in his 98th year.

Stuart C. Nelson

CAMERA CLUB REPORT

During the past year members of the camera club have had lectures illustrated with slides, print criticism sessions, and also cine films have been shown. A practical session for 'flash' was also included amongst these meetings, kindly arranged by Mr. Natt. Unfortunately, there has been a poor response from members of the school to most of these meetings.

This year has seen a really good step forward for the photographers of the school. Work has been going on for some time on a darkroom for the school. This now has all the necessities and basic equipment and is thus operational. It still lacks the refinements which facilitate print making but these are as yet luxuries.

The darkroom is for the use of anyone wishing to make prints for any purpose by arrangement with Mr. Natt, who supplies much of the equipment. It is hoped that the darkroom will be a success, and enable many people, who would have otherwise been unable, to try their hand at print making.

CROSS COUNTRY REPORT, 1965-6

During this season, teams were sent to Longford Park for the series of Stretford Schools' Races, to the Eccles Schools' Championships and to Liverpool for the Lancashire Schools' Championships.

At Stretford, in the U-14 races, J. Britton had 1 win and 2 seconds, while K. Wiggans was 3rd several times. In the Eccles Schools' Championships, R. Britton won the U-17 race, while K. Wiggans was 4th in the U-15 event.

In our own School Cross Country Championships Normans made a clean sweep of the team events. In the junior event M. Waugh came out top after a hard struggle. In the Middle event, J. Britton held off K. Wiggans and last year's winner N. Jackson to win in record time. In the senior event, R. Britton led all the way, although the race was marred by R. Wiggans spraining his ankle while in second place.

Thanks are due to Mr. Barnes, who, despite some poor attendances, kept the Cross Country Club on its feet throughout the winter.

A. J. Britton, 5Sc.

THE MAN WHO CAME BACK

Wainwright pushed the lever to bring his ship into normal space, and, as the stars reappeared, started to look for the familiar solar system on his astro-screen.

Twenty long years ago he had disappeared beyond radio contact with the universe, on this first manned voyage to the stars — now, back to Earth, with the saddening news that nowhere, not about any of the stars he had visited — the Alpha Centauri, Vega, Orion, Sirius, or any of the other dozen or so — was there a planet capable of supporting more than a fractional number of Earth's teeming billions. By now, he re­flected, the number would be nearly doubled since he left — fervently, he hoped that the next journey would be successful. If it was not — ­what then?

He made a routine check of the coordinates; yes, everything appeared to be all right in the solar system, viewed from this distance, far outside the orbit of Pluto. Then he realised something — the radio which, when he had left, had been alive with the crackling of the many stations in the solar system, was silent — not even the callsigns of the interplanetary beacons, made up of a radioactive core, which should never die out, broke the silence!

First, he checked the set, tried the laser receiver, the deep-space radiotelescope — yet he could find nothing to reassure him. Something dreadful had happened!

He then switched to transmit, for the first time in twenty years, and sent out his call sign, agreed upon before he left the orbit round the moon, where the ship, never designed to go into the earth's atmosphere, had been built specially for the one and only trip it would make. No reply penetrated the eerie silence of the cabin and he began to be a little worried. Still, in a matter of days, his ship would be in orbit round the Earth, waiting for a service craft to come and take him home, and to check his tiny, one-man interstellar probe with the equipment on board that had taken years of research and the finest brains on Earth to develop. This equipment had worked perfectly, generating the field that had carried him on a grand cruise to the nearer parts of the Milky Way. Without developing any noticeable faults, it had brought him home­ — to what? He did not know and dared not guess.

A few hours later, he shot past silent Pluto, freezing under its eternal blanket of solid hydrogen, and headed inwards, still receiving no replies to his urgent signals. Soon, he should find out what had happened.

Uranus, Neptune, Saturn, Jupiter — all appeared now uninhabited, as if the small exploratory stations had been withdrawn and their dwell­ings left to decay.

The asteroids were the same, hardly depleted at all yet, by the mining operations necessitated by the growing need for the metals they contained. His ship had been built from most of one of the smaller ones, XK 657, he remembered. He did not check very closely, because he was still worried about the continued radio silence from all sources.

Deeply worried now, he turned up the power on his radio trans­mitter, and explored the moon with the searching fingers of the electron telescope — no sign of man appeared at all, and the moon seemed sud­denly larger, and less pockmarked with craters than it had been before.

Then he went cold all over, as he realised that the Apennine range, cut through in many places over the years of increasing colonisation, was completely whole — not a mark of the work of centuries appeared!

Now with a real sense of urgency he accelerated down towards the Earth. Surely he must find something — his telescope would show him everything more than a hundred yards across, on the earth. What would it reveal?

Settling into orbit just outside the atmosphere he subjected Europe to an intense scrutiny. Where were the City of Britain and the European Community. Only rolling hills and ubiquitous forests mets his gaze.

All over the world it was the same — forests covering all the land, with the polar caps shrunken and thin. The continents, too, were out of place — somehow bunched together and mis-shapen.

Then his numbed mind realised that there would be no service ship to take him home. Wainwright burst into insane laughter as it came home to him — he must starve and die there, stranded on the fringes of the atmosphere in his twenty-fifth century starship, above the primeval Earth.

R. H. Britton, 6USc. I

SCHOOL CAMP, 1966

Do you know Borrowdale, the wettest area of the British Isles? We can now state that this fact is true. Miss Green and Miss Boulton bravely assumed command over seven misguided fifth and sixth formers, and took us to camp at Grange-in-Borrowdale from the 8th to the 15th of August, and we would like to thank (?) them for doing so.

We soon discovered that the quickest way to enlist help, concerning such complicated mano’euvres as erecting tents and lighting primus stoves, was to stand about looking pathetic, and wait for more experienced campers to offer their services.

Throughout the week we enjoyed such things as hikes, swimming in the River Derwent (for the hardy ones only!) and drinking coffee in the cafe at Grange. Most of the days ended with a sing-song and supper (biscuits and hot chocolate, drinking chocolate) in the large tent.

Saturday night was most exciting. Borrowdale's worst storm in living memory occurred that night, leaving a trail of destruction throughout the valley. The nine of us huddled together in the large tent, singing to keep out the thunder and endeavouring to mop up the stream that was flowing through the tent.

The rain finally gave way to beautiful sunshine on the day that we came home.

We did enjoy ourselves. Honestly!

J. and N.

SCHOOL "MOCK" ELECTION

Perhaps the most notable result of the traditional school mock election was not the romping victory of the Labour candidate, Mr. David Stubbings, but the large gain in popularity of the Liberal candidate, Miss Wendy Jones.

Opinion polls, before the election, gave Stubbings a commanding lead over all opponents, but the poll, too, led us to believe that a safe second place for the Conservative candidate, Miss Twigg, was inevitable. However, the 7 per cent. total for the Liberal in the first week's opinion poll, steadily grew with her increasing popularity, until E.G.S.O.P. finally showed an overall difference of 17¾ per cent, between the Conservative party and the Liberal party, the former holding the lead.

Election day was eagerly awaited, and a record electorate of over 80 per cent. was recorded. 3-30 p.m. of the 30th of March found the assembly rooms packed to capacity, all awaiting the announcement of the returning officer, Mr. H. Miller, B.Sc.

The decisive victory of the Labour candidate was cheered loudly, but Conservative supporters gasped as their candidate held on to second place by only 10 votes. Miss Jones had gained convincingly to be only 2 per cent. short of defeating Miss Twigg into second place.

The final results were as follows:

I. D. Finch, 6LA

TENNIS REPORT, 1966

The season began with the usual close match against our old rivals, Worsley Wardley. The first VI were successful and scored a decisive victory showing great promise for the rest of the season.

During the season only two of the seven matches arranged were cancelled due to rain. From the five remaining matches, Eccles won four and lost only one, thus continuing the success of the previous VI.

The Second VI and Junior VI each played three matches and lost two of them.

WRESTLERS

R. Dean, 6LSc.

MONTREUX, SWITZERLAND, 1966

We set off from Eccles on the morning of Tuesday, 23rd August, and arrived at Folkestone in time for the boat to Calais. After a calm crossing we caught the train from Calais to Montreux, via Basle. With eight in a compartment, we had a somewhat sleepless night but we enjoyed the wonderful experience of travelling through France in the dark!

We arrived at Montreux the next morning and made our way to the hotel (Le Cheval Blanc) where we were instantly greeted with a wholesome breakfast of bread and coffee, a meal which, for the next week we persevered with, and eventually began to enjoy.

We quickly found the various places of interest. We could swim in Lake Geneva, or in the outdoor swimming pool attached to the Casino, visit the Chateau de Chillon, go boating on the lake or even try our hand (or rather feet) at water-skiing. Mr. Hardman quickly found us a crazy-golf course! If we wanted to rest, we could sunbathe on the hotel verandah overlooking Lake Geneva and the Alps.

Trips were arranged for us to visit Geneva and the United Nations Building; Chamonix (where a cable-car ascent gave us a good view of Mt. Blanc); via mountain railway to Rochers de Naye (the highest mountain garden in Europe). We also crossed Lake Geneva to visit the French town of Evians.

The older members of the party were pleased at receiving their "O" level results in the middle of the holiday, and we had ample facilities for celebration.

Much to our regret, we started back on August 31st. arriving in Eccles late next day.

Most of us came home with healthy sun tans, empty pockets and memories of a most enjoyable holiday. We are most grateful to the teachers accompanying us, without whose organisation the trip would not have been possible.

I. Garner, 6LSc.

BOYS' ATHLETICS, 1966

On 18th June several boys below the age of 18 were entered in the Lancashire Schools Athletic championships. However, only 3 reached the finals, Jackson finishing 7th in the 2,000 metres steeplechase, Wiggans finishing 12th in the 1 mile and Finch coming 4th in the 110yds. hurdles.

Just over 3 weeks later, the annual Eccles and Irlam Schools Athletic meeting was held at Eccles C. of E. School. Once again the school took top honours, particularly good results coming from the 4th year, where Jackson and Boardman had two firsts each. Thanks to another 1st from Critch in the 110yds. hurdles, the boys' 4th year section finished ahead of all the other schools. The overall total was enough to give us victory, although by a margin of only 7pts.

The following; week, the School Sports were held, and, on a dismal day, few records were broken, although Finch did equal that of the Senior 110yds. hurdles, finishing in a time of 15.5 secs. In the events preceding Sports day, however, 3 new records were set up: Jackson sliced seconds off the middle school 1 mile record, returning 5min. 4secs. Also in the middle school section, Smith put the shot a record 37ft. 5ins., whilst in the corresponding event in the junior section Rigby put the shot a record 20ft. 2½ins.

An interested crowd saw Normans snatch victory at the end by virtue of being well placed in all the relay races.

Individual championship honours went to Hodson in the junior section. Finch was the Senior Rex Ludorum, whilst Boardman and Messer shared the Middle School Championship.

GIRLS' ATHLETIC REPORTS, 1966>

On Wednesday, 6th July, 1966, the Inter-Schools' Athletics meeting was held at the Eccles Church of England School.

The 2nd year did extremely well and brought back the 2nd year Team Trophy as a result of their fine efforts. A. Puzylo won the individual 2nd year Trophy and C. Etheridge won the Individual 3rd year Trophy.

At the Lancashire Women's A.A.A. Meeting, Sandra Moody, Irene Francis, Jennifer Cochran, Denise Smith, Kathleen Harris, Mary Edwards and Carole Etheridge were entered. Carole Etheridge did exceptionally well in the Junior Long Jump to be placed 3rd and awarded a bronze medal.

At the Lancashire Schools' Athletic Meeting on June 18th at Farnworth, girls from Eccles Grammar School were selected to represent Eccles and Irlam. Carole Etheridge came 2nd in the Junior Long Jump, Sandra Moody came 4th in the Senior Discus and Susan Hadfield came 6th in the Intermediate Shot.

The Annual Sports day held on July 13th produced 5 new records. In the Middle School Carole Etheridge jumped 16ft. 3½in. in the long jump to beat the old record by 11½ ins. and B. Dolan claimed three records for herself when she threw the javelin 81ft. 9ins. and the discus 76ft. 2ins. and putt the shot 28ft. 8 ins. In the Senior School Mary Edwards clipped 0.7 of a second off the 80 yards hurdles to win in 11.6 secs. A. Puzylo won the junior individual trophy and M. Edwards and S. Moody were joint Reginae Ludorum.

Denise Smith, 5 Language I

THE TRIALS OF MAKING A GLIDER

One miserable October Saturday, after receiving a set of plans for my first glider, I set off with a friend to the Model Shop in Eccles to buy the wood with which to start. My first shock was when I was told the price of the wood. After choosing a couple of wafer thin sheets of balsa and about five other strips, I nearly collapsed when the girl behind the counter said:

"That will be ten shillings and sevenpence, please." I told her I thought it was robbery, but she convinced me that it was correct by presenting me with a price list. This was only the start (I still hadn't bought any glue). With this wood I just about finished the fuselage.

After finding my family strongly uncooperative, I had to dig deeper into my pocket and set off once more for Eccles. This time the wings had to be constructed. This is a very delicate job which needs much more concentration and a very steady hand.

I cut out twenty-two wing ribs which all had to be exactly the same. The trick is that you hold them all at the same time and sand paper them to the same shape. On doing this, our dog (she is a St. Bernard of nearly twelve stones) gave my chair a hefty whack and all twenty ribs went flying all over the room. I recovered eighteen but four got away.

After completing this, the task of covering with tissue was next in line. This job was soon done and I sat back and admired my masterpiece. I left it for a few minutes to get some shrinking dope only to return to find the kitten lying along it with its four dangling paws through the tissue covering (there is now a large patch covering this part.) The cellulose dope nearly choked me but it did the job well. Assembling was then my last task.

One month, seven tubes of balsa cement and £1-3-0 later, I relaxed and looked at my beautifully streamlined glider completed. That morning I proudly marched down the road with my 45" wing span plane tucked neatly under my arm. Once on the field a small crowd of interested people gathered around to watch the "GRAND LAUNCH." On one end of the towline was my glider and on the other end was myself running something like a four-minute mile. Up it went and turned a full circle in the air. After doing this slight amount of aerobatics it nose-dived at an angle of approximately 80 degrees.

My glider is now back on the construction line!

C. Orr, 4Sc.

THE SCHOOL TRIP TO NORTH WALES

On a warm spring morning the first and second form party began the journey to three castles in North Wales: Beaumaris, Caernarvon and Conway.

First we arrived at Caernarvon, where we ate lunch, and then proceeded to the cast1e where the organized parties soon broke up.

The castle is in relatively good condition, but the walls that used to divide the castle are now gone. The "Eagle Tower' is interesting since at the top there are some stone eagles mounted on the battlements ­hence the name. The tower was also the birthplace of the first "Prince of Wales."

The castle and the old town are surrounded by walls and used to have a moat in the form of the River Cadant, now either underground or dry.

Next we came to Beaumaris and after crossing the great bridge over the Menaii Straits and a winding journey through twisting lanes we reached the castle. It was the last of Edward I's Welsh castles and it never reached completion. A large stretch of land has been reclaimed from the sea, and it is difficult to imagine the castle ever having a harbour, though a pool, once the harbour, still remains, as part of the wet moat. We were all able to walk right round the wall and get lost in the eerie passages echoing with cruel laughter.

The stay at Beaumaris was quite short and we were soon off to Conway. This castle looks as dark inside as outside, grim ruins of the giant castle with its chapel and roofless hall. The suspension bridge could easily be seen, and many good photographs were taken. A great centre of interest was the ninety foot well that looked very menacing. Lastly, thanks to all staff concerned for an enjoyable time.

J. Hardman, 2S

CHRISTMAS QUIZ RESULTS

Over 700 copies were sold. 3A purchased most — 48. Nearly 200 attempts were submitted, of which about 100 were of a high standard.

Results:

J.R

The following proceeded to FURTHER EDUCATION Summer 1966:

NEWS OF OLD ESSIANS