NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY: The summer term saw the culmination of our year's work. After much collection and planting, the pond in front of the school was properly established with lilies and plants, stocked with a variety of fish and animals and is now a thing of beauty - and a source of much pleasure and interest to those interested in this branch of Natural History. We hope to see it used properly and - its creatures added to. There is room for plenty of new members who are interested in the studying of nature in this lovely country area.

Steve R. Corner

FENCING: The Fencing Club did not meet regularly during the Summer term but it is worth noting that the first match, against a team of four from the Ipswich Fencing club,was fought. This was lost by 13 fights to 3; but we had no reason to feel disgraced, fighting as we were against much more experienced fencers. We are hoping that other schools in the district will take up this fascinating sport so that more meetings can be arranged. Hordes of little boys have now taken up the struggle, and some of them no doubt will persevere long enough to become adequate swordsmen.

Leslie Johnston

SEA CADET NOTES: Much of the Unit activity during the Summer Term was directed to preparation for our first annual Admiralty Inspection which was carried out on July 21st by Dr. Luckett, D.S.C., R.N., the Midland Area Officer. The resulting Inspection Report was very favourable, the Inspecting Officer making particular mention of the smart appearance of the whole Unit and the "alert and cheerful" manner and bearing of the Cadets.

On Open Day, Cunningham and Cochrane classes gave a display, described elsewhere, of rigging sheer-legs, bends and hitches, and signals. The thanks for this very impressive display are entirely due to Mr. Matthews for his long and patient hours of work spent training the team.

In addition, four all-day Seamanship Training cruises were carried out on Sundays during the term. These cruises were not without incident - during the first, there was sufficient wind and sea in Harwich harbour to cause one or two stomachs to grow uneasy, and matters were not improved by an engine failure in the harbour. Thanks to the efforts of stalwarts in the whaler, who held the pinnace against the tide, the engine was restarted before we reached the North Sea and we were able to return to our moorings without much more trouble. The subsequent cruises were comparatively free from trouble, and were enjoyed by all.

During the summer holidays, the Unit sent a team, Guest, Ravenscroft and Moxham, to Bourne End, near Marlowe, to compete for the Smith "Yachting World Cadet" Sailing trophy. We had two "seconds" in heats but were unplaced in the final.

A whaler crew competed in the Area pulling Regatta at Raven's Ait, Surbiton. They were unfortunate to be drawn against the eventual winners, Luton, in the first heat, and lost by a fair margin.

This term, the Unit, now down to 45 enrolled cadets, welcomes Mr. H. Smith as an addition to our instructional staff. A new-entry class, Drake, has been enrolled on probation. This class is 20 strong and we are likely to exceed our establishment, 60, at the end of this term when Drake class is finally enrolled.

The Summer Postal Shooting competition was completed during the first month of term, with very satisfactory results, reported elsewhere. Unfortunately, shooting has had to be suspended for a time because of the difficulty of getting parties to and from the range during the afternoon activities period. However, the provision of a range on the premises is under active consideration, and it is hoped that within a short time we will be able to make use of many short periods of spare time for this activity.

The competition for the Zone 6 Athletics trophy was held at Ipswich on 30th October. In this, we were beaten by Ipswich Unit by 3 points; 29 to 32. The results are shown at the end of this article. The runners deserve congratulation for putting the Unit on the sporting map so definitely, and it is hoped that in subsequent years with more entries in Class C (16-18 years), the trophy will find a permanent home with us.

On the instructional side, the normal programme has continued,with additional whaler sailing on some weekdays and at week-ends. A start has been made with a specialist Wireless Telegraphy Class under the instruction of Mr. Evans. Cadets in Beatty and Benbow classes were examined for Able Seaman on 10th and 17th October, and the following Cadets were rated A.B. as from 17th October 1955:- Clarke, Newman, Glass (A.), Brown (G.), Dawson, Ravenscroft, Byrde, Fillery, MacMaster, Guest. Hughes, Munro, Tyrrell, Whittaker, Bauer, Hansell, Jones, Glanville, Marriott, Daniel. Examinations for Leading Seaman will be held early next term and it is hoped that all Anson Class will then qualify for that rate, so that we may have some Cadet Petty Officers next September, to assist the instructional staff.

By the time these notes appear again, the Unit will have lost the services of Mr. Matthews, who retires in December. He carries with him the thanks of everyone in the Unit for all he has done for us during the inevitably difficult first year of our existence, when he gave unstintingly of his time, energy and invaluable experience. May he and Mrs. Matthews enjoy a long and happy future.

Results of Zone 6 Athletics Class B (14-16 years):

100 yards: 1 House; 3 Dawson; 4 Moxham
200 yards: 1 Guest; 2 Marriott; 3 Dawson
440 yards: 1 House
880 yards: 1 MacMaster, 4 Munday
High jump: 1 Byrde; 2 Clarke; 4 Munro
Relay: 1 Woolverstone Hall (Byrde. Dawson, House, Munday) Class C (16-18 years):- 880 yards: 1 Gordon-Smith. One mile: 1 Gordon-Smith; 4 Hunton

Stanislaus Goetzee

SHOOTING

TEAM
PLAYED
WON
DRAWN
LOST
SCORE
PLACE
"A"
10
8
0
2
3,941
2
"B"
10
8
0
2
3,817
1

Again through the courtesy of the 4th Bn. The Suffolk Regt. (T.A.) we have been able to carry on with .22 rifle shooting for Anson Classes, and latterly for some members of Beatty and Benbow 'Classes. Two teams have been entered for the Sea Cadet Corps Summer Postal Shooting League, the "A" team being placed in Division 5, and the "B" team in Division 6. Although this has caused considerable panic at times to get the fortnightly rounds shot off by the date required, the sults have been most satisfactory and are as follows.

team "A" were beaten into second place in Division 5 by 127, as they finished equal on points with Harrogate;
team "B" had a clear win of two points in Division 6.

It has been most pleasing that members of the "B" Classes have been capable, after very little instruction, of coming into the teams at a moment's notice, and of doing so well. Five Cadets-A./L.S. Moss, O.S. Hardy, A./L.S. Hunton, O.S. Harrington and A./L.S. Glass (D.)-have reached the standard of 85 out of 100 required for the "Good Shooting Badge." When we have built the .22 range at school, as is under discussion at the present time, this number will be greatly increased, as will our shooting activities in general.

Malcolm A. R. Poole

SAILING: The Sailing Club has had another successful season from many points of view. While the old sailing dinghy "Syrian Prince" has been pensioned off after a long and useful career, "Sneezy" has joined the other Cadets, and "Snow White" was purchased during the summer term, giving us two Fireflies. It will now be possible to sail off the House matches on a four boat basis, and this will be a most satisfactory system, both from a competition and a training point of view.

The number of qualified helmsmen has risen rapidly during the season, and this, together with the large group of keen juniors coming along in the whalers, speaks well for the future vitality of the Club. It is clear that Woolverstone Hall has become "sailing-conscious," and that the river is exercising its inevitable fascinations on a large section of the boys. We sailed one match against Ipswich school in our boats during the summer term. They came with a strong team of race-hardened sailors, and the school side of Harrington, Gordon-Smith, M. Brown and Vizard did well to hold them to a draw at 91 points each. It was an inspiring sight, and no doubt a novel experience for our crews, to have Cadets planing in a fresh breeze. This will, we hope, be the first of many such meetings, and we are already promised matches with Ipswich school and Waldringfield Sailing Club for next year.

Two crews were entered for the annual "Keeling Cup" competitions organised by the R.H.Y.C. for schoolboys. In a large fleet of keen sailors our crews soon learned the elation and despair so common in hard-fought racing. Although finishing in 16th and 21st positions, we gained invaluable experience for the future, and already crews are in training for next year by taking part in the winter races with the R.H.Y.C. It is only by this kind of racing that the best of our helmsmen can be found, and when the time comes to choose next year's entrants, I am sure that places will be keenly disputed.

Sailing has, however, its less exacting side, and cruises to Ipswich and Harwich were organised during the summer; these were, at times, most exciting, and thoroughly enjoyed by the whole fleet. We have continued our activities as weather permitted during the autumn term, and we have been quite lucky in this respect. Capsizes have been frequent, and we are grateful for the new life-jackets which the Sea Cadet Corps have provided.

Finally a word of welcome and farewell. Mr. H. Smith has joined the Club, and his whaler experience is proving invaluable with our younger sailors. And Mr. Matthews is leaving us, after having inspired the sailing activities for so many years. His wisdom, his skill, and his love of the sea and of boats have always been readily available, and it is thanks to his enthusiasm and example that the Club has achieved its present thriving state.

Malcolm A. R. Poole