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We supply Party requirements to suit individual tastes and orders are executed, freshly each day.

We carry a wide range of Continental and Oriental foods and delicacies as well as a selection of cooked meats, salads and home baked bread, and a variety of cakes and pastries freshly made each day on the premises.

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T H E

July

B A T T L E

Editorial This year we were very pleased to welcome Miss Parker as our new Headmistress, and hope that she will have a long and enjoyable career at the Abbey. Also we would like to thank her for agreeing to write an article for the magazine. Miss Parker is very interested in drama, and has been gradually working it into our school curriculum with much success, especially in the lower school. Now she plans to build an outdoor theatre in place of the Junior Gardens, so if you lazy lot are thinking, "Good that'll save us a bit of work keeping gardens," you are wrong, because you may be asked to help dig the foundations. Also on behalf of the school we would like to say how sorry we will be to say "Good-bye" to Miss Guinaud, who has been with us for many years, and become an integral part of the school. Her absence will be a great loss, not only to us, but also to the old girls who come to visit the school. May we congratulate Miss Scott on becoming our new Deputy Headmistress, and welcome Miss Fentum as Head of Staff next year. This year the magazine Committee decided to abolish form reports, and replace them by a general "Newsletter," and "Who's Who". We hope you are in favour. We have had requests for more photographs to be printed, but your response to our request to provide them was so weak that we were unable to oblige. However, we are very grate­ful to all contributors, especially Miss Fentum for her expert coun­selling in the production of a magazine, and hope that they, and every­one else will enjoy browsing through the pages that follow.

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% A

A B B E Y S C H O O L

Foreword by the Headmistress Now that my first year at Battle Abbey is nearly over I should like to convey my sincere thanks to all, both Staff and Girls, who have given me so much help and support. It has been a fairly eventful year which we can look back on remembering not only its frustrations but its joys and successes. It was a great shock to us all at the beginning of the Spring term to hear of the sudden death of Mrs. Langlands, and I should like to place on record here our tribute to her work with the girls and to her warm­hearted and generous personality which had won her the affection of all and has made her greatly missed at the Abbey. In any undertaking which draws people together in their work, there must be a common purpose. What is it that together we are seeking? In order to answer this question I should like to remind you of what I said at our Open Day in the Autumn Term. "Unfortunately, the real issues are not always clear. Children do not go to school to-day simply to learn, they go to school to make a collection of 'O' levels, the winners being those with the greatest number of certificates. They do not stay on to go through that once prized and enjoyable process of maturing known as being a Sixth-Former, they stay on to get 'A' levels - or else they don't stay on! What has happened to education ? What has happened to our priorities in life? The trouble is that we have been dragged by the ears into an age of 'O' levels and 'A' levels and have come to regard these as the criteria of education. In the last war we needed identity discs to prove who we were, now we need G. C. E. ' s to give us identity and tend more and more to regard life without them as being as certain of failure or starvation as it would have been then without a ration card.

Of course these a re desirable assets - as a token of the academic level reached at the end of a course of study, or as a passport to a parti­cular career, but let us remember that these a re but stepping stones from the guided education of school life to the wider fuller unguided education which the outside world thrusts upon the newly emerged adult.

What then is needed also? For there is no question but that we must all agree that this academic achievement alone is not education.

Here, in this school we are very much aware of the necessity of examinations but added to this, and hand-in-hand with the sense of values drawn from home life, we hope to aid our pupils in becoming wise, tolerant citizens of the world, of the new, ever-changing and exciting world, in which they are living their most impressionable years . And how splendid a background for laying such foundations we have in this school, where girls of many nationalities live together in

K

happiness and harmony. The very atmosphere of the place engenders independence, a sense of pride and of the value of traditions, and a concept of the universal brotherhood of man. With such an all-embracing view of our objective we may perhaps have our ardour dampened by the realists who remind us of our limit­ations. We may look at some of our brother or sister schools and, momentarily perhaps, feel envious. We may look at the State Compre­hensive Schools with their vast resources and the comparison is frightening. A kind of panic sets in. We must have all this too, or we perish. This is the point at which to pause and take stock of what we have and to make sure of what we really want, before we go out wildly to r e ­plenish our larder. We all know that one of the main advantages of the comprehensive school is its economic feasibility. It is cheaper to feed a large family than a small one. Were we, however, to set out to make this school a large one what priceless qualities we should tread underfoot In the process. There are few schools where you find a body of people such as we have here, all bound together with a common bond of love for the school and of whom one can only say, 'The Abbey comes first ' . Surely, in this we are unique. The reasons, some of which are already becoming apparent to me, are too complex to embark on here, but are undoubtedly linked with another of our unique qualities, that we are housed in one of the most ancient and historic buildings in the land. We have much to offer. Let us cherish and use it to its fullest potential. And I have not yet mentioned its greatest potential - the children them­selves. Wise leadership, an energetic and dedicated staff, suitable buildings and good equipment, all these are necessary adjuncts to the school, but the real material is the children themselves and the best that the school can be is the best that they can offer in themselves. Any school is the children In it. What parents put into the school is all they can hope to take out of it. They put into our hands the most sensitive, responsive living material. We borrow this material for a time and like gardeners with hot-house plants, we nurture, tend, clip and prune where necessary to help the plant produce its choicest blooms, - but the nature of the plant we cannot change.

Since its inception in 1912 countless girls have passed through this school and have played their part in making it the fine and famous school it is to-day. Good traditions and high standards have been built up so that the name of Battle Abbey rings with a sense of pride and of well-being. These qualities we would nurture and hand on to futur gen­erations of schoolgirls, and these solid foundations on which the sehool is built offer possibilities of new developments as time goes on - for anything that lives must grow, and in growing, change, too.

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It is because I can see in the girls who are in this school to-day the qualities which will make them, like their predecessors, builders for the future, that I have such high hopes for the years ahead for Battle Abbey - qualities which we hope will so develop here that they will go forth into the world as ambassadors of peace and harmony, of tolerance and endurance, and that they will strive for the highest things in life. For us who work here together, it is of paramount importance that we keep in mind the threefold nature of man, of body, mind and spirit and that we strive to develop this tri-unity towards a whole and inte­grated being."

June E.R. Parker

Newsletter AUTUMN T E R M

In the Autumn Term we welcomed Miss Parker as our new headmis­t ress . We hope that she will be very happy here. As usual Bonfire night was a great success, and we were pleased to see some old girls who came down to make us jealous. IVth Form won the Activities Cup for their excellent display of presents for the orphans. Vth form went carol singing, much to the dismay of the inhabitants of Battle, and managed to raise a substantial sum for charity. Unfortunately during our annual carol-service there was a power cut, but all went smoothly. Miss Parker organised a very successful entertainment, "Christmas through the Ages", which was enjoyed by all.

S P R I N G T E R M As always, the spring term was a busy one and this one turned out to be even more exciting than most. Unfortunately we had two epidemics, one of 'flu' and one of chicken-pox. We had great success at the Hastings Festival. The choir came first, thanks to the hard work of Miss Clark, and the Guides also won. As everyone knows, we had a fire during the term, but luckily little damage was done. The high­light of the term for Vth form was their dance with Tunbridge College, and the less said about that the better!

ii

SUMMER T E R M This being the 'O' Level term, Vth have retired from the limelight. This is the sporting term, with tennis tournaments galore, sports day, and the swimming gala. We all look forward to our form outings at the end of term.

Mrs. Langlands The staff and girls would like to take this opportunity to express their deep regret at losing Mrs. Langlands who died during the Christmas Holidays. She was a tremendous help to us all in our new Modern Maths syllabus, for she always showed us such tolerance and under­standing.

HEADS O F HOUSES St. Mary's St. Martin's St. Etheldreda's St. Patrick's

S. Crowther S. Sears E. Yates K. Longman

Bronzes and stars at the end of the Easter Term, 1969. B R O N Z E S

J. Brankier S. Brown S. Crowther A. Farnsworth N. Ferguson-Innes G. Harris

M. Hollingsworth V. Hoot on S. Mackinney K. Matters K. Skinner A. Walenta

S T A R S A. Burns A. Butcher J . Chan B. Clegg C. Cory P. Dewhurst C. Fooks C. Hannam C. Hobson C. Maude F. Robertson

S. Shubber S. Sparrow D. Spence A. Steele J . Steele A. Street F. Tan E. Walman C. Woodage A. Yap

to

G.C.E Examination Results-Number of Subjects Passed SUMMER 1968 "A" Levels.

O. Grant-Duprez; English, French, History. Accepted Edinburgh University.

"O" Levels. A. Atkinson-6; S. B o y e s - 4 ; P. Caufield-Stoker - 6; R. Cory - 3 ; G. Co t ton -7 ; S. Dewhur s t -5 ; I. Duncan-Miller - 2; O. Dunlop-4 ; C. F i t zge ra ld -4 ; G. H a r c o u r t - 5 ; K. Helean - 6; F . H e w e t t - 3 ; N. Hjornevik - 4; S. Johns -Powell - 6; P . K i n g - 5 ; S. Longman-6 ; A. Marchant - 5; S. M a s o n - 7 ; S. Mothio - 3; P. P a i n e - 8 ; D. Pearce - 7; L. Sands - 3; S. Sears - 3; W. S h a r p - 6 ; R. Su t ton-4- S. W i l s o n - 5 ; R. Woodroffe - 5; M. Worsley - 8; E. Yates - 5; M. Cotter - 1; H. Masset - 1 ; K. Matters - 1; A. Farnsworth - 1; H. Nelson - 1; M. Reid - 1.

AUTUMN 1968 S. Brown - 1 ; A. B u r n s - 1 ; A. Butcher - 2; C. C o r b a s s o n - 1 ; M. C o t t e r - 1 ; S. Crowther - 3; A. Farnsworth - 2; C. F o o k s - 1 ; E. God ing -1 ; C. Hannam - 2; M. HoUingsworth - 2; V. Hooton-2; S. Mackinney - 2; S. S e a r s - 1 ; S. S p a r r o w - 1 ; A. S t e e l e - 1 ;

Hastings Festival SINGING Merit

G. Harris 16-18 yrs . M. Hollingsworth 15-18 yrs . M. Hollingsworth 14-16 yrs . M. Hollingsworth \ _ . N. Walenta ) u u a

SA- Mas set , A. Silver /

1st Prize S. Masset

Honours M. Hollingsworth Unaccompanied

Choirs Guides Campfire - Challenge Cup School Choir - Silver Shield

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The Games Report Last year saw us changing from Lacrosse to hockey. Unfortunately, in the Easter term, owing to the shocking conditions of the pitch as a result of wet weather, our Christmas term practice was wasted, and all the arranged hockey matches had to be cancelled. However, we made up for this by practising hard at netball and showing pleasing results in all our matches. The Summer Term has brought us some very good weather and the whole school is showing much enthusiasm for Tennis; the teams especially, who are all working hard for the arranged matches this term. We also have a good deal of school events lined up for the end of term including Sports day and the modern dance for Old Girls Day. We would like to thank Miss Richards very much for all the work she has done for us this year and we shall all be very sorry to see her go at the end of this term.

School Netball Teams 1st VII u. 16. vn

S. Crisp, G.K. S. Crisp, I). Wilkins, G.D. D. Wilkins, N. Ferguson-Innes (Capt.) W.D. P. Dewhurst (Capt) S. Sears, C N. Christensen, P. Dewhurst, W.A. A. Farnsworth, A . Street, G.A. A. Street, c. Horton, G.S. C. Horton, A. Farnsworth. RES.

U. 14. VII

B. Hodge.

G.K. Y. Hayderi G.D. N . Christensen, W.D. J . Courage, C D. Haddon-Cave (Capt.) W.A. w. Horton, G.A. J . Fooks, G.S. L. Lee-Warner, RES. C. Stopford.

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U. 13. VII D. Barr, F . Whittam, C. Dumenil, W. Horton (Capt.) B. Hartley, L. Lee-Warner, R. Denny, S. Findlay.

U. 12. VII G.K. J. Findlay, G.D. S. Hollingsworth, W.D. C. Leversedge, c. S. Hayes-Fisher, W.A. E. Stark, G.A. L. Lee-Warner (Capt) G.S. G. Specterman, RES. J . Styles.

School Tennis Teams 1st VI

1st Couple 2nd Couple 3rd Couple

U. 15. VI 1st Couple 2nd Couple 3rd Couple

S. Sears - A. Butcher. A. Farnsworth (Capt.) - N. Ferguson-Innes. A. Street - C. Dumenil

A. Street (Capt.) - C. Dumenil. J . Courage - S. Clarke. D. Heddon-Cave - B. Hodge.

HOUSE GAMES G A P T A I N S St. Mary's St. Martin's St. Etheldreda's St. Patrick's

A. Farnsworth P. Dewhurst E. Dugdale N. Ferguson-Innes

A. Street (Games Secretary)

Health Education Under 'Personal Health' 3. Make-Up. Before using any make up, it is a good idea to get 'CONFESSIONAL* advice. The Guides are going to see a film on accidents and the kiss of love.

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L o N B T l H C f \ c O

Semx>U.ce.

Long Time Ago I remember long time ago, 'Twas in December long time ago, Saw a white stallion Prancing through the snow In the forest where the wind did blow, Carrying a lady white from head to toe I remember long time ago. I remember long time ago, In the forest long time ago The beautiful stallion trotting to and fro Did my eyes deceive me Til never know, Such a sight that made all aglow I remember long time ago. Little did I realize, how could I know For that couple, white from head to toe Were only a vision, they betrayed me so, As they were my sweetheart and her stallion too. Though they both died a long time ago Still their spirits haunt that same snow.

First Form !•!

Night Darkness falls, eerie shadows rise, and fall away, The churchyard's black, and grim, foreboding. Doors creak, muffled footsteps come my way, They stop, outside my door, then gradually recede away. There is silence, then an owl hoots, Scampering rats , eyes of fire, Vampire bats. A tree scrapes my window, or is it death's cold fingers? From the inky black sky, we hear squeaking of bats.

Clare Leversedge, Form I

Autumn Autumn leaves are falling down, Swishing, swirling,. Twisting, twirling, Falling, curling, Hundreds and thousands all about. We run through them, Play through them, Laugh and shout. The bonfires are burning bright, Bowing and dancing, Flaming and prancing, Quite entrancing, Red and yellow, green and blue, We dance round them, Play round them, This gorgeous hue.

Giselle Swoffer, Form I

A Benedictine Monk I was killed during the reign of Henry VHI. I fled from the Abbey when our bishop was taken prisoner and accused of High Treason against the king. When I was trying to escape, I was crossing an open field, and not realising it was being watched by the king's men, I ran half way across only to be met by an arrow. It hit me on the side of my head, and I died almost instantly.

15

My ghost wandered back to the ruins of the Abbey, and watched the large manor house being built from the stones of the Abbey. When the house was built, I took up my abode in the huge front hall. I watched the ages go by, the change of dress, and how women's dresses became more dainty and shorter. In 1968 the school that was in the Abbey was having a Carol Service. When the day came, I went and sat quietly by the door leading to the library, and listened with wonder to the noise everybody was making in that holy hall. When the headmistress came and read a prayer, I was so surprised that a woman should read prayers. The singing was not at all like the singing we sang, it was high, sweet and had more tune in it. The crib was very well done for girls - but boys could do better -Jesus, Mary and Joseph really looked happy. At the end a great noise rang through the building, and I moved into the dining room to see everybody laughing and eating. I felt sad as I remembered the happy days in the monastery before Henry VIII came to reign. I then turned and walked slowly up to the chapel, to give thanks to God that happiness is still in the old Abbey.

Ann Troup, Form I

Snow Falling softly, slowly, gently, Like a white blanket from the sky -Calm and still. I sit by the fireside and watch it falling, Reflecting the light and hurting my eyes -Quiet as night. I am warm in my cosy arm-chair; I think of the children with nowhere to sleep -Cold and tired.

Sarah Lusty, Form n

i «

Snow Snow came softly down over the roof-tops Covering the ground with its clean white sheen. Down, Down, Down it came and The poor man in his shack, lit his humble fire, The rich man in his mansion turned up his central heating. And all around the snow kept falling. The old man in his cottage cursed and grumbled at it; The children in their gardens gleefully played with it. Praising its icy, crisp, feeling against their booted feet. The park quiet and mysterious Was like a salt white wonderland. The deer leapt and pranced in it The wind danced a minuet with it. But there were no people to be seen in it Against the whiteness of the self-illumined snow.

Jo Silver, Form n

Who Cares? I thought I would go up on to the heath to walk off my anger. What for? - Who cares ? The day was not warm but icy with clouds galore and thunder in the sky. The wind was cold - sharp enough to cut through me but who cares ? At least I wouldn't see this beastly world again. The path was strewn with stones, dry and wind-swept bracken, gorse, heather. Who cares what it was? No doubt evil, and another part of this cruel world. Suddenly there was a rumble in the sky but I plodded on. The rain came, I loved it - I tried to eat i t . Occasionally I would grab a branch and claw at it. Brambles would scratch my wet, sore legs, naturally another enemy trying to get rid of me.

I then came to a quarry place, pretty ugly. I think it used to be a litter dump. I lay for a few moments on the edge of this deathly plunge and wished whole-heartedly that everyone in the world were lined up and I could just push them in and listen to their fading screams and then look down to see the mangled flesh, torn to pieces. I thought I wouldn't care but suddenly I was being pushed, I yelled, yelled, loud enough to waken the dead, so my little sister told me when I finally recovered from my nightmare. Perhaps, I think I do care now!

Judy Courage, Form m 17

\ bfiVpfwy

/pufFfaouri Story of Tiny

I introduce you to tiny, The Fat little tharewell Pony, He thinks he's a bucking bronco Winning the fight in the rodeo. He's in a show Jumping Competition Oh he must pay more attention, Gosh, he's a chump! He has refused the jump.

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Tiny is trotting through the town, look he has collapsed on the ground, you can see his little heart pound he's stepping quite sound I

Alyson Denny, Form HI

The Fire We were told not to panic, To keep quiet and controUed Not to get up to any antics, We couldn't, we were frightened and cold. It was most terribly alarming — To see smoke ooze out of the door. And then rather scaring To see it crawl up a floor. Suddenly the siren blared -Which made most of us jump. It had caught us unprepared, Then there came a bump; The firemen were forcing the window The bang was tremendously loud, It was the battle of good and evil. The evil was being shoved into its shroud The attics were terribly smoky, It appeared as though they were afire, The smoke was nasty and choky, The place looked like a funeral pyre. Eventually we went to the gym;

19

Where the warmth was a great relief, We tried desperately not to be grim So we yelled beyond belief. Then - after about an hour We ran out into the freezing cold. To watch T.V. we were allowed, Battle Abbey looked just as old.

Judy Courage, Form HI

After ih, fire

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Moon Shot! Blast Off i 1. The rocket soared into the morning sky,

The crowd cheered As the astronauts Entered the space monster.

2. Modern Knights in armour, Brave crusaders of the world, To fly into the heavens.

3. The depressed relations, Watching, anxious, hoping, Will they see them again? After months of planning, This will be the climax!

S. Hollingsworth, Form m

School French Dictation, History of the Nation, Foreign Federation, Aggressive Declaration, Latin Prep Translation, All this information To learn in preparation For the school examination We've strong determination To pass with sensation And whole-hearted acclamation From the Staff.

Lilian Lee-Warner, Form HI

The Wind Whistles The wind whistled through the trees skeletons as the dog slunk away from the farm, a freshly killed chicken hanging limply from its mouth. The blood left a trail in the crisp white snow, between the clearly defined paw prints of the dog. Suddenly a gun shot pierced the silence and echoed between the hills. The dog paused for an instant its paw held mid-air. Then dropping its kill the dog pushed its way through a bush and fled across the glistening snow and into the woods.

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The dog was a large Alsatian, resembling a wolf as it stood in the shadows of the t rees . Its coat was clean and glossy and its ears sharply pointed. Outside the small Russian farmhouse, the farmer was standing, shot­gun in hand, looking out over the white snow. "Tomorrow I'm going to get that dog, once and for all". He turned and slamming the door behind him went back to bed. Next morning he went out with his two dogs, his shotgun over his arm. The dogs soon picked up the trail of the Alsatian and began baying loudly and the farmer set them free. Soon there was another sound, that of the Alsatian. Running after them he found the dogs standing at the entrance to a cave, the Alsatian inside snarling viciously. The farmer stood watching the dog, deciding whether or not to kill this beautiful creature. The Russian called off his dogs and the Alsatian stood quietly, its ears cocked, waiting. Raising his gun again the farmer decided to shoot, it was his duty. He aimed carefully, but before he fired the dog had fled, quick as lightning.

The dog never stole any more chickens, the farmer never saw it again. Yet on a quiet night across the snow clad field the same Alsatian howled. Once again the wind whistled through the t rees skeletons as the dog slunk away from the farm, a freshly killed chicken hanging limply from its mouth. It wasn't the same dog though. It was a younger and a more agile dog, but the farmer didn't hear. It was the Alsatian's son.

Caroline Maude, Form IV.

People Caring The feeling of involvement Happiness and People caring of everything and everyone The freedom and being trusted Kept our faces smiling But when our smiles disappeared They didn't ignore When problems arose people cared Cared what was in our minds Not only our outer thoughts Or how many school books we've read But what our inner thoughts were Inside our minds

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Our hopes, dreams and inner desires The Caring brought our happiness But leaving spilled another drop of sadness from our eyes.

Blaire Pierce, Form IV

Meru If you go to the town of Meru now you probably would not recognise it as I remember it. My father was the District Commissioner of the area, or "boma" as we called it. It was hardly a town and the word 'village' would describe it better. All the shops were rather dirty in appearance but what they sold was quite reasonable because it mostly came from Nairobi. Nearly aU the shop owners were Asian and spoke English or Swahili with their typical 'Hindu' accent. There used to be several other British families there with their children so we were never short of playmates. There used to be a beautiful golf course there, but unfortunately it was cut in half by a road. It was very colonial and all the British families used to meet there for golf or tennis. There were always willing African 'totos' (children) to act as caddies and they were always well rewarded after a game.

Unfortunately no swimming pool existed in Meru so most week-ends we drove over to the pool at Isiolo. It was only about twenty miles but the road was dusty and punctures frequent. The nearest school was ninety-four miles away and we had to make the journey each term. When I was there, there were no Africans but today there are no Europeans. Meru is on the equator but it is not as hot as one imagines because it has a high altitude. The typical Kenya scenery is something one never forgets, coarse, dry grass with low bushes and thorn trees. We also had a marvellous view of Mount Kenya. We lived in a large house built of wood. The garden was lovely with rather coarse grass, flowers and enormous Bougainvillaeas. It was kept up by our 'shamba' boy (gardener) and we also paid a house boy and cook to work for us. We kept ducks and hens, a rabbit, a dog and a cat. I was never bored because I had plenty to explore or I could play marbles or dinkies (cars) in the dusty pathway. Today Meru has only African families. The Asian shop-owners will have made way for Africans. The roads are covered by tarmac and the shops slightly modernized. We used to have our own inefficient

23

generator, our only source of electricity, which had to be started up each time. I hope they will have a more efficient form of electricity by now. All the milk and water had to be boiled because of the germs. Meru is a beautiful place and has certain unique characteristics, which everyone who went there, loved. It was sad saying goodbye and making the three hundred odd miles drive up to Nairobi; but perhaps it would be sadder still to go back and see the changes made to our Meru.

Barbara Hodge, Form IV

Nothing What can I write? I have no brain. My mind is numbed by the cold and rain. To write a poem, she said, for prep. Not done in time, I begin to fret, I sit and think, but nothing comes. I cannot write, I'm all fingers and thumbs. King's College Service, someone suggested! It would have to be good. I can't be expected To write something as good as Wordsworth. Maybe something with a bit of mirth! I'll write about school, when we get out and about. Like going to Wembley, when we can shout And scream, and yell, and have some fun, It 's not yet though - must get this done. What can I write about? I'm getting dim Half-term, I thought, what a whim! I could not tell you what I did with them, You'd have a fit - so many men! So what can I write - must say something Write a poem on writing nothing!

Anne Sedgwick, Form IV

Battle Abbians Win World-wide Contest!

Two weeks ago 4th and 5th formers of Battle Abbey School won the contest which has competitors everywhere on earth; the famous "Let 's Cry Harder" contest.

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This contest - won last year by the employees of a New York onion factory when an electric onion chopper went berserk - consists of seeing where in the world there is a group of people who can all find something to cry about together and sit and sob, bawl, and sniff about it for an hour or longer. Well, this year, this periodical is happy and proud to be the first to announce that the 4th and 5th formers of Battle Abbey have won this contest. They won the contest after receiving permission to watch a late film on television, entitled "How Green Was My Valley." This film, produced about ten years ago, was about the life of a family in a small mining town. It appears to have been quite sad, for tears were noticed in the watchers' eyes within thirty minutes after it began, and by the time the ninety-minute film had reached its end, the tearful eyes had burst into loud sniffs, sobs, and whines. According to our BA reporter, there was not one 4th or 5th former without red eyes at prayers the following morning.

We send our sincere congratulations to Battle Abbey school on win­ning this famous contest, and our sympathy that their "We Cry Hardest shield was lost in a fire which took place at their school.

D. Parr ish, Form IV

The River Deep in the bowels of the mountains lay an underground spring. Wel­ling up it formed a cold black lake which forced its way from under a sunbaked rock. Warming itself in the golden haze of the sun it sparkled down the mountainside, now cascading, now forming pools of sapphire blue. Each rapid or fall threw up a spume of spray which caught the sun in a rainbow of colours that glittered like the many facets of a diamond. Falling finally down an endless gorge, the river hung Timeless and then plunged to the pool below. The last stage of the river is as a placid blue-green expanse of water, flowing gently past gracious mansions with their sweeping lawns and willows mirrored in the water's face. Finally the town, barges and refuse bobbing on the surface borne gently out to the warm gulf where the river loses its identity in the salty expanse.

Diana Spence, Form IV 25

Hunted They chased me through the woods. I ran And as I ran I heard them behind me. I had left my home, my children, My heart was beating fast. I heard the horn And wild shouts Closer, drawing nearer. Where shall I go? I had heard of others Killed by them. It was my turn now And I was afraid. On and on. I dare not look behind. Through thorny brambles Tearing at my skin. I was wounded. I limped. Pain gripped me. They were on my tail.

I had to find a sanctuary, But where? In the bracken, yes the bracken. With my last source or energy I leapt And lay crouching, sweating With fear. They passed me, Even those damnable dogs. I had fooled them. I heard cries of dismay, Cracking of whips, The dying sound of horses hooves. Rest at last And then Back to my den, My cubs. They must be fed. A chicken, yes a chicken. I must hunt and kill A chicken.

F . Robertson, Form TV

Pain and Peace He hung there in all His Pride and Glory, While the thorns were hung on his head, While the clothing was viciously torn from his back, And he was nailed to the Cross of Death. The blood ran slowly down his breast , His body pained but his face was calm As he called for the help of His own dear Lord Crying "Eli, E l i , " Oh help me Lord! The people, they mocked and scorned him so, But never a tear did he shed, He bore all the mocking with patience, Until at last his time had come.

26

The heavens opened to receive Him In ter ror , the people fled, And slowly and peacefully he ascended Up to what he had left.

Angela Street, Form IV 27

Plan cf Open hr Theatre

28

Whispering Leaves Slowly And deliberately. Each step Like a thousand Limbs Not feeling Part of the body But belonging to another. No pain, flinging around, Making All else oblivious To rest, Like a Heaven on earth, The end of a torment. Peace, Lying on the ground; Relief Followed by sleep.

then The pain Knowing again But reassurance Listening To the whispering leaves, Quietly in one's ear; "Keep going, keep going". They say; And I know I will.

Shirley Crowther, Form V

(Highly commended, Independent Schools' Competition)

29

PILGRIM'S REST (Early 14th Century)

adjacent BATTLE ABBEY LICENSED

Morning Coffee : Luncheons : Teas Wedding Receptions : Parties

arranged Home made Fudge. Jam and Cakes.

Telephone Battle 2314 Major and Mrs. MacKeleken

Wm. C. TILL Ltd. 19 HIGH STREET, BATTLE

Telephone Battle 2104 BUILDERS & HARDWARE

MERCHANTS IRONMONGERS

China and Glass Stainless Steel Large Car Park for Customers' Use

Call at the delightful Eleventh Century Restaurant

%\\t #atetoap for

MORNING COFFEE - LUNCHEON AFTERNOON TEA

Party room for Private Functions Lovely Tea Garden — see the Gateway Doves.

78 HIGH STREET, BATTLE

(Opposite the Post Office & Car Park)

Telephone: Battle 2856

D. & E. WINTER The TOY Shop

Airfix • Models • Etc.

TOBACCONISTS

67 HIGH ST. BATTLE • 2416

12 Champion Awards Smithfield Cattle Show for Pork and

Southdown Mutton

A. Holland & Son (BUTCHERS and GRAZIERS)

BATTLE Telephone 2119

AND SON

THE OLD PHARMACY, BATTLE Tel. No. 2069

Leading Cosmetic and Perfume Agencies, including ELIZABETH ARDEN, WORTH, CARVEN, LE GALION, BRONNLEY, YARDLEY, MAX FACTOR and RIMMEL.

Also Films - Developing and Printing

<f

SPRINGFIELDS (Battle)

THE FLORIST & FRUITERER.

CHAS DOUCH

76 High Street. * J ° 18 High Street,

Battle 2366 Battle.

FL OWERS AN YWHERE A N YTIME.

CLOSED OPEN WEDNESDAY I p.m. SATURDAY

RUTH. V. SELMES Needlework, Wools & Tapestries

D.M.C. & Clarks Stranded Cottons etc.

POST ORDERS RECEIVE PERSONAL ATTENTION

67A HIGH STREET, BATTLE,

SUSSEX.

Telephone 2908