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Preface
Contents
Chapter I
Chapter II
Chapter III
Chapter IV
Chapter V
Chapter VI
Chapter VII
Chapter VIII
Chapter IX
Chapter X
Chapter XI
Chapter XII
Chapter XIII
Appendix

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Contents

The boys still continued to work in the farm and garden, though the length of time for such employment was gradually curtailed. At times they were very useful, but when work had to be provided for them all the year round it was sometimes difficult to find suitable employment, and subsequent experience has proved that more satisfactory results can be obtained without their assistance than with it; sometimes the careless work of one day cost more than the value of a boy’s work for the whole year, To give an example - a boy was once set to weed a bed of asparagus, but not paying sufficient attention to the instructions given him, he rooted out the asparagus, which was in its second year of growth, and left the weeds to flourish. This story reminds us of an old man who often worked at the school farm, and who was once set to cover with straw two hives of bees for the winter. In the spring, when the other bees were busily at work amongst the flowers, it was noticed that there was no signs of life about those hives. His examination it was found that their mouths were plastered up with clay, consequently smothering the poor bees. When the man was brought to task he simply replied “Why, they would have tenged me if I hadn’t fastened ‘em up’.”

In 1882 a minute was passed that girls should no longer be employed in scrubbing floors, but only in the lighter household duties, and early the next year the boys were entirely withdrawn from the farm and garden.

The river Leven running through the school estate adds greatly to the beauty of the grounds, but it is at times so much swollen as to cause considerable damage; this was especially the case in 1886, when, after the melting of the snow, the waters came down in a torrent, and carried away the rustic foot-bridge which served for access to the play field. A new iron bridge supplied by Hopkins, Gilkes & Co., was substituted; it is a light but firm structure, and will in all probability be strong enough to resist the floods of future years.

To watch the water from this bridge as it rushes down the two artificial falls after a storm, is an imposing sight, which many an old scholar has enjoyed. It is amusing to notice the trout in their attempts to leap up these falls, when they frequent the smaller streams for the purpose of spawning. On the steps or somewhere near them, the dipper with its dark brown coat and white breast may often be seen, and occasionally the beautiful kingfisher, the gayest of all our home birds, may be observed skimming over the surface of the water. Ornithology has always been a favourite study in the school, especially the collecting and mounting of eggs, and many a tale might be told of the adventures of boys who were suddenly surprised by the gamekeepers when searching for nests. In one of their walks they secured a young jackdaw, which became very tame and would follow them into the dining-room and Meeting House. It once had the audacity to perch on the open window of the Meeting House and address the company assembled, and was with difficulty removed; we need hardly say that after this performance it was caught and caged before meeting time. Some of the teachers have acquired an excellent knowledge of the birds of the district, and have become noted for their love of natural history in other parts of the world. The high trees in the “school wood” about this time, attracted the attention of some rooks in the neighbourhood and after much prospecting a small colony was formed, which soon settled into a rookery; here as regularly as February comes round, the rooks are found repairing the breaches of their former habitation; now about 50 nests are tenanted.

Along the banks of the Leven the otter was sometimes found. A pack of otter-hounds was at one time kept in the neighbourhood. The stuffed specimen belonging to the school was caught at Hutton Rudby. Badgers are occasionally met with on the side of the hills. A gentleman living at Stokesley, the late Colonel Hildyard, bagged one of these creatures when he was hunting. Turning it into the stable for the night, he found it had escaped by burrowing under the foundation of the building. On recapturing it he brought it to the school, where it was quickly despatched and being stuffed by John Heaviside, was added to the happy family in the museum. The small seal which accompanies these two local celebrities was shot at the Tees mouth. A weary stork, in its migratory flight, happening to alight on a Scotch fir at the lower end of the village, was secured by the tanner and also placed in the museum. One evening a young man brought a peculiar creature to the school to see if its name could be ascertained. “Its length of tail behind, with triple claw disjoined” proved it to be a chameleon. It was a fine specimen. The eyes of this creature stood so prominently forward that it could see in every direction, And the correspondent who sent the account to the Natural History Journal suggested that it would make a good “master on duty.” It was discovered in the hedge on the Stokesley road, but how it got there nobody could find out.

A great many applications for boys having been received, the committee agreed to increase the number from 36 to 44, and in order to accommodate them, two small bed rooms, formerly used as spare ones, were fitted up; these boys were chiefly those who had no commotion with Friends, but whose parents were willing to pay the highest charge so as to secure a guarded and religious training for their children.

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