Notes on Past Students

From Oxford we have received news of A. F. Meldrum, the 1916 Rhodes Scholar, who went into residence at New College last October. He writes exuberantly of Oxford and its colleges. He is at New College, which is one of the oldest colleges, and which was founded by William of Wickham about 1475. A great many of the present students had been serving at the war, and the military spirit was thus very pronounced. On arriving at Oxford he entered for the B.C.L. degree, and at the end of the session was highly commended by the examiners for his first College examination. He had also been taking an interest in the various athletic clubs in Oxford. He played football for his College, and had journeyed with the team to play at Cheltenham and at Wellington College, Reading, and had played against King's College, Cambridge. He spent some time at boxing, and was elected junior treasurer of the club. During his first term he won the middleweight novices competition, open to all who had not won an Oxford University competition. In March he represented Oxford in the inter-'Varsity boxing competitions which were held at Cambridge, and thus gained his half-blue. After the bouts all the competitors were presented with medals by Prince Albert. While at Cambridge he saw several of our old College students, including P. Burbidge, A. McNab, and Cocker.

He was spending the vacation at Kincaple, St. Andrews, after some time spent at Bournemouth, London, and the English Lake District.

Miss C. C. Braddock, M.A., having completed a year's postgraduate course at Cambridge, has been offered a scholarship in page 34 Philosophy at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. Cornell is famed for its large laboratory of experimental psychology, of which Professor E. B. Tichener is the head, and while there Miss Braddock will continue her research work in this subject.

Mr. A. B. Fitt, an old student of this College, is at present doing valuable consulting work in psychology at Auckland University College.

The latest news from Hugo MacKenzie told of the many interesting nations represented at the Sorbonne, also of pleasant jaunts round Paris, ancient and modern. Notre Dame, with its recollections of Victor Hugo, seemed to have a special fascination. Vacation was just about due at the Sorbonne, and projects for further visits to Central Europe were among his plans.

Miss Dorothy McLean was in Grenoble when last heard of "as it is too hot in Paris during July and August. The surrounding country is very beautiful, but I must confess that sometimes I just long to return to Paris. Every Saturday the University arranges excursions, one on foot and one in auto. The first Saturday I went with the motor excursion to La Grande Chartreuse. The drive was absolutely beautiful, and it was very interesting seeing over the monastery. We returned to Grenoble by another route, so saw quite a lot of the country. Last week I took the walking tour; we climbed up to a cascade, and were rewarded by a very pretty view of the valley below. I have just started to take lessons in Italian. I am very taken with the Italians—I always seem to like them better than the other students. I think New Zealanders are far more like Italians than like English people. I find it so interesting talking to people from so many different centres. In my conversation class there is a Greek, a Czeco-Slovac, an Italian, a Swiss, a Dane, and myself."

He will fight for opinions and search the whole town
To buttress a tenet that's sure to come down,
But when he has conquered his fear's but begun:
He's not very sure that the right side has won.

H.M.

page 35

Mr. A. E. Caddick forwarded us the following extracts from the diary of the late Captain Clachan dealing with his African experience just prior to his joining the King's African Rifles on loan from the Middlesex Regiment.

Extracts from letter dated August, 1917:—

"There are only two Rhodesian trains a week. At Salisbury we went for an hour's drive round the suburbs, &c. The soil is of a red brick colour. Left Salisbury and ran south to Umtali, on Portuguese East African border, which place we reached at dusk. Next arrived at Beira the following morning. The scenery in early morning was very beautiful and tropical. Beira is interesting in this way—the streets are of heavy sand. Result: the only mode of locomotion is by a system of small narrow trench tramways, which run criss-cross everywhere. Every resident in Beira owns a chair on four wheels, which is placed on the lines and pushed along by two boys. There are no horses, &c., as they cannot live in the climate.

"Three of us embarked on the Union Castle coastal boat "Ipu" for Chinde. The ship also carried 00 of the 2nd Batt. Cape Corps— all half-castes from Cape Colony. "Chinde," at the mouth of the Zambesi, is rather a dull place, with the same system of tram lines as at Beira. Transhipped on to a Zambesi river boat, "Princess," belonging to the African Lakes Co. Reached 'Chinde,' 110 miles up—every evening tying up to the bank until daybreak. By day we had great fun shooting crocodiles; my word, their tails do lash. The hippos and rhinos also kept us amused. At one very interesting mission station we visited Mary Moffat's (David Livingstone's wife's) grave.

"We left Chinde by train, and travelling through gorgeous scenery passed into Nyasaland. and arrived at Limbi, the railhead. Thence 45 miles by army motor lorry to Zomba.

"From Durban to Zomba we crossed Natal, Transvaal, Bechuanaland, Southern Rhodesia, Portuguese East Africa twice, and then into Nyasaland—also several smaller places like Maiabele and Mashana lands.

"Everyone we came in contact with struck us as being very capable. University men were very common—all more or less forgotten by the home authorities, but still carrying on"

Extracts from letter dated September—from Zomba.

"Am now in command of the Training Company here, about 220 Askaris. They are all trained soldiers, and we are just putting the finishing touches to them. They are chiefly from the Yoo tribe, and are very intelligent. In fact, they are a hundred times keener than the recruits we were getting in England—very smart at their drill, and it is quite a pleasure to see them getting on. Twenty-five per cent, of the company are marksmen. They leave the European absolutely standing. Off parade they are like so many children. Intellectually they are children, and one has to treat them as such. They like their officers to know and settle all their little troubles, family and otherwise. An hour or more a day I sit and answer, to me silly questions, but to them life and death affairs. A man steals another man's wife—so then he has got to pay the original hubby 30/- for her, and so on. This case does not occur every day, but every now and then it crops up. The men all have their wives and kids in the lines with them, so page 36 frequently you have a wife (umkazii in native lingo) run in before you for some minor offence. They come in with a cloth round the hips, usually a kid slung round their shoulders by another cloth. Every now and then one bumps up against a native custom, all very interesting, like the tribal markings on their faces. In my present company I also have some Anzonies—they are descendants of the Zulus who have wandered away north from the south. The men average out about 5ft. 5in., and are mostly powerfully built. They are paid £1 1s. 4d. a month, and are very keen on their pay. For instance, a man might be in hospital one pay day, so the next month he draws his two months' pay. All the other men will then want the same amount. This is another example of their childishness and trying-on capers. One thing, he does not brood over anything—punish him, he knows he has done wrong, the next day he is cheery again.

"This country is full of interest, and essentially a man's show. The wily Hun, cut off from the sea, has put up a great show with his native levies, but sooner or later his days will be numbered. The great trouble is the food and ammunition supply—Africa being a country of miles—not yards. Again, the grass, &c., is so high that it is quite easy for two opposing forces to miss one another. Our Askaris, after the shock of the first action or two, stick like glue to one. They think a lot of the white people. As the first aeroplane they had ever seen flew over them, all the natives of both sexes dropped their work and ran backwards looking at it. They would fall over a stone or log, and get up and repeat. Now they take no notice, and simply say, 'White Man.' "