No. 28.
March, 1908
Contents. EDITORIAL .
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PAGIY.
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" FRITILLARY " PRIZE COMPETITIONTHE EDUCATIONAL VALUE . OF HUMOUR • 437 ULYSSES : A SONNET. - 439 MORNING SOLILOQUY 439
/TO'
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tAft0-11."-
4
A SEEKER AFTER TRUTH
Atio.
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BALLADE IMPEACHMENT OF THE IRISH SECRETARY . PARODY CORRESPONDENCE. OXFORD STUDENTS' DEBAT. ING SOCIETY . OXFORD STUDENTS' HOCKEY .TEAM . • . •
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442 44 2 443 444 444 448
LADY MARGARET HALL • 448 SOMERVILLE COLLEGE . 449 ST. HUGH'S HALL. 450 ST. HILDA'S HALL - 451 HOME STUDENTS . A CORRECTION
0000; PRINTED FOR THE PROPRIETORS BY JAMES PARKER & CO., CROWN YARD.
• 452
Ebitor : Miss G. RICHARDSON EVANS, St. Hilda's Hall.,
treasurer : Miss GWYER, Lady Margaret Hall.
Committee : Miss Errs, Lady Margaret Hall. Miss DARBISHIRE, Somerville College. Miss HUGON, Miss L. DENEKE, St. Hugh's Hall. Miss KNOWLES, St. Hilda's Hall. Miss M. SPENCER, Home Students, 90 Southmoor Road.
MARCH.
No. 28. EbttortaI.
THE Prizes in the Competition, which was announced in the last number of the Fritillary, have been awarded as follows :— For the article on " The Educational value of Humour," to Miss Spencer (H.S.). For the Sonnet, to Miss R. E. D. Donaldson (S. H.). For the Parody, to Miss Gunn (S.C.). The Committee is glad to take the opportunity of expressing its gratitude to Mrs. Toynbee for her care in adjudging the Prizes. After providing for these Prizes, a sum of Z7 9s. 62d. still remained in the coffers of the Fritillary. It was _determined to keep .4-3 as an emergency fund, and two alternatives for the disposal of the rest were laid before subscribers either that it should be kept for further prizes in the future, or be divided up among the Hall Libraries in proportion to the number of subscribers in each. A large majority voted in favour of the latter plan, which has been adopted. The money has been divided in the following proportions :—
:
.4* s d.
Somerville College ... Lady Margaret Hall St. Hugh's Hall St. Hilda's Hall Home Students
I 13 9 2
o II o II o Io
6 3 3
There appears to be a generally felt opinion that this money should be spent on works of fiction, and this is perhaps an appropriate destination for the proceeds arising from the sale of a
1903.
Magazine which is devoted to more or less light literature. It remains only to be said that the Committee goes out of office, as it entered, bemoaning the difficulty of inducing people to write for this—our one literary effort.
"FRITILLARY" PRIZE COMPETITION. the Ebucational Value of 'Rumour. HUMOUR is a quality of the mind so subtle and complex that it has never yet been completely and satisfactorily defined in any single definition. It is perhaps of the essence of its nature that it is discerned intuitively rather than deduced by pure reason. Yet there are certain characteristics of humour which may be indicated, certain conditions to whicl it is seen to be subject. It is easiest perhaps to denote it by its effects or describe it by simile, than to define it. We speak, for instance, of the saving grace' of humour, and of the salt' of humour ; by which phrases we seek to express those wholesome, tonic, kindly quantities which are recognized to be among its essential characteristics. Humour has been called the laughter of the mind,' and that is a very suggestibe definition, because it involves that union of gravity and playfulness which distinguishes the humorous from the merely frivolous or mirthful temperament. The humorous teinperament is associated with a certain breadth of vision and a power of grasping the relation of things. It argues a substratum of gravity, and a sympathetic power of projecting oneself into other circumstances. '
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It is quietly and whimsically reflective, free from the bitterness of satire and from its sting. It unites rather than divides, being a broadly human, universal quality which establishes a common ground of fellowship among persons who may differ widely. Humour is among the most valuable of mental gifts, making the world a pleasanter and more tolerable place not only for its possessor, but for all those brought into contact with him, and its place in education is most important. Yet there is little doubt that teachers as a class are usually held to be lacking in the sense of humour. They are apt to take themselves with desperate seriousness, and their conferences and assemblies are heavy with the atmosphere of portentous solemnity which depresses the ordinary layman, and too often deepens in him his previous conviction that a schoolmaster is something not quite human; rather less than a man in fact. Dickens makes the boys of Dotheboys Hall laugh fearfully at their master's jokes for sheer terror of his cane. " They do but laugh because they must," if one may so say, " and not because they will." One remembers, too, Goldsmith's words about the village schoolmaster :" Full oft they laughed with counterfeited glee At all his jokes, for many a joke had he."
There you have it—they were poor things, the schoolmaster's jokes, and doubtless they had done duty many times, and had always lacked that rich, full-blooded humanity which marks real humour. The glee they roused was counterfeit only ; it was politic merely, hollow and unreal. And Charles Lamb, himself a prince of humourists—how he despised scholastic humour it is unnecessary to remind anyone. " The jests of a schoolmaster are coarse and thin," he says; "they do not tell out of school." " A schoolmaster must seize every occasion—the season of the year, the time of the day, a passing cloud, a rainbow, a wagon of hay, a regiment of soldiers going by, to inculcate something useful. He can receive no pleasure from a casual glimpse of Nature, but must catch at it as an object of instruction. Nothing comes to him unspoiled by the sophisticating medium of moral uses."
The ultra-didactic spirit is of course the natural temptation and besetting sin of the teacher, yet there is nothing so much opposed to the true spirit of education. The didactic person lays down the law and points the moral from superior heights of wisdom and excellence. The educator draws out from within the minds of his pupils the best that is there, and skilfully develops what lies hidden in germ. The one process is external and artificial, the other is natural, vita], fundamental. A sense of humour is valuable intellectually, morally, and socially. Hazlitt merely stated a simple psychological fact when he said, " You have no hold on the understanding of others but by their sympathy." The, first condition of teaching is the establishment of sympathetic relations between the teacher and the taught. Thring, of Uppingham, speaks of the duty of the teacher " to exhibit himself as a human being with human sympathies, not merely a mummified paste of Greek and Latin verbs." And humour is an essentially human quality, and one that unites men to their fellows. To have laughed together over a good joke, to have shared the subtle pleasure of a humorous view of an incident or fact, is at least one bond between people, and might conceivably prevent a rupture which should at some time threaten kindly relations. Moreover, it is well to remember that however lacking the schoolmaster may be in this quality, humour is never absent from the class - room, though it may have to hide itself away in caves like contraband goods. On the whole then it is wise to direct humour into legitimate channels, and it is better that your pupils should laugh with you than at you. Sometimes a touch of humour saves the situation as nothing else would, and clears the atmosphere, which may be becoming ominously charged with electricity. Besides humour is singularly illuminating, and it generates heat as well as light where it comes. Also the humorous presentment of a fact is a welcome relief from the dry recital of facts, and it is only the most finely tempered and disciplined
THE FRITILLARY. minds that can bear without strain " the dry white light of truth." And, further, life itself is humorous, and no devitalizing influence should find a place in the school-room. Thring it was, I believe, who defined education as " the communication of life from the living to the living." And there could scarcely be a more inspiring definition. Some subjects, of course, lend themselves more readily to humorous treatment than others. There is perhaps nothing intrinsically humorous about a conic section, but history and literature afford ample scope for the wise use of this educational ally. Of course it needs a strong teacher to be able to wield his instrument without fear of accidents. But the weaker brethren must not be allowed to keep back the strong everywhere. Again, a sense of humour usually carries with it a certain sense of proportion most valuable in teaching. It might save teachers, and especially women teachers, from laying too much stress on certain minutiae of conduct and manners, and from treating, let us say, a chance word in a corridor as if it were the breaking of the Decalogue. The power of detecting the incongruous is one of the marks of a humorous mind. It might well be put to moral uses, for the weightier matters of the moral law are apt to suffer from a too great worship of artificial conventions and regulations, multiplied unduly in the supposed interests of decorum and discipline. Women are sometimes accused of having only a very elementary sense of humour, and it is to be feared that even yet some of the methods and regulations to be found in some schools for girls point to that conclusion. A sense of humour, again, is the enemy of all pompousness and self-importance. It helps one to see things from " the other side of the street," so to speak, and this is a valuable intellectual gift apart from its use in matters of discipline. Self-criticism is, or should be, the outcome of the humorous spirit, and this can be utilised by the educator in his own interests as well as in those of his pupils. Again, a skilful and quite unmistakable rebuke can be quite well administered by a humorous word, at times when 2
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the more direct judicial method may be far less effective. Humour then may be the most valuable weapon in the hands of a skilful teacher. To return to the original starting-point, humour gains its broadly human qualities from the curious fact that in the deepest humour there is often the element of gravity and even sadness. The sources of tears and laughter lie very close together, it seems, in the human mind, and it is tears and laughter that unite mankind, drawing out those better human qualities which it is the highest aim of education to develope and confirm. 1. GC
27
Trtipsses: El Sonnet. the margin of the wine-dark sea, Where every footstep led -towards the land, And bleaching bones bestrewed the storm-lashed strand, The Sirens wove bewitching melody; And many a vessel's gallant company Forgot the homeward journey they had planned, Forgot the breezes which their white sails fanned, Forgot their lives, their loves, their liberty. UPON
But one there was who sealed his longing ears, Knowing himself by destiny designed To tread a path more noble if less sweet, Who at the last should homewards turn his feet, The home of all the love once left behind And slake long sorrow with warm human tears. " 4.1.XoptteL81/s.."
Morning Sottloqup. 0, woolly blankets with your soft embrace, 0, snowy sheets and flowery counterpane, 0, pillow on the which my rosy face Is like an Alpine flower ; calls in vain
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The rosy-fingered morn, the solemn voice Of conscience, and the clearer harsher sound With which at needless length the maids rejoice To break our ear-drums, and the very ground Re echoes to the bell—with blankets round me rolled I turn me over, for my nose is cold. " THE SLUGGARD."
Et Seeker after truth. I SEE it plainly now. It was all the fault of the Maker of Epigrams. She said to me in her incisive way, " My dear Miss —, do accustom yourself to the bracing atmosphere of certainty." I was young at the time, and not only felt the justice of the implied rebuke, but thought I saw the undoubted wisdom of the advice. But I know now that I was misled. I have learnt that intellectual progress is from the known to the unknown. Do not mistake me, I am not using the phrase dear to pedagogy, in the sense in which it is ordinarily understood. Progress I find is from the certain to the uncertain, from knowledge to a nice balancing of probabilities. The writer of the Early Victorian Primer was misled too. " Why is this little book put into your hand ?" asked he of the innocent young learner. "To make me wiser and better," was the prompt reply. " How will it make you wiser and better ?" continued the interrogator." " It will teach me many things which I never knew before." But the revised edition of 1903 would give a quite different answer to the second question. " How will it make you wiser and better ?" asks the teacher; and the pupil replies in a tone of ironic triumph, " It will teach me to doubt many things which I knew before." " Pray, then, what is bread made of?" says the
teacher in feverish haste, whereat the cautious pupil replies :—" There are many conflicting theories," and proceeds to give an exhaustive account of the same. But after all this is a comparatively new point of view. To err with Dr. Johnson may be as consoling to some minds as to share the orthodoxy of the last literary favourite. " Madam," said Dr. Johnson, severely, to an unhappy woman, "the things that you don't know would fill a very large book." Now Dr. Johnson, in his 18th-century simplicity, thought he was administering an undoubted snub, and I have no doubt that the lady shared his conviction. But we know now that he was really offering a favourable literary criticism, and that at the present time some of the books that are most sought after and highly regard ed are mainly filled, with a careful and detailed analysis of the things the author does not know, with elaborate reasons for his ignorance. Ignorance, in fact, has been reduced to a science, and if that is not a triumph of the scientific spirit, where indeed shall we look for it ? But it takes a long time to appreciate its victories fully. " Where shall I find the bracing atmosphere of certainty ?" said I. And in my simplicity I came to this University. " Go to, I will learn the truth about the manorial system," said I, as I took down from the shelf the weighty volume which my teachers with one voice had bid me read. But it was saddening work. When I sat down to read that book I could have defined ' The manor' with the best. I was perfectly at home with its oxgang, and its villeins, and its fish-ponds. But alas ! for my boasted knowledge. At the end of fifty pages it was but as a little heap of chaff, and as easily blown away by the wind of the new historic doctrine. " Courage !" said I, " I will read about the towns. There, surely, I shall find solid ground beneath my feet." But the opening sentence of the chapter shattered my fair young hopes. " Dark as is the origin of the manor,".it said, gloomily, " the origin of the borough is darker
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still." The book fell from my shaking hand, and hypotheses, once supposed to be facts. You see, no two persons agree about the facts, let alone I fled from the room with a cry of anguish. " Certainty is not in books," I said, " I will try the statistics," continued he hopefully. " I think I may say I have cut the ground from the feet lectures. Opinions at any rate I shall gather, and I will take them as my basis of fact." So of all the social reformers now. It took years, I listened breathlessly to theories of supremacy of course, but it was worth doing. But it was of Celt and Saxon in the early days in Britain. about History that you wished to consult me, " Having heard both weighed in the historic ba- I think. It is to that that my best years have been given. Twenty-five years ago," he went on lance, I shall now learn the judgment," thought I. proudly, " the liber homo ' was considered a fairly But how sadly was I disappointed. " Whichever theory you incline to," said the simple matter. He would be a very bold man lecturer, " it must be remembered that either of who should define him to-day." " Text-books," I murmured faintly. them bristles with difficulties :" with which words " Oh ! I grant you text-books," said he, " but of cheer and consolation he softly closed his book and walked from the room. then a text-book will say anything—and I admit," Even then I was not wholly daunted, and I said : he added relentingly, " that it is difficult to speak " I will talk with a learned man, face to face, and the truth in a small book." By this time I was getting rather desperate, he will tell me what he has learnt in his years of study, and at length I shall find myself in and consequently rude. " I don't see what is the the bracing atmosphere of certainty.' " good of all this research," said I, " if it doesn't " Oh, yes !" said the man in the street, whom end in any certainty." I happened to overtake just then, " you will easily " Ah ! but there you speak unadvisedly," said find the Professor; you will find him sitting on the Professor ; " there is a field of certainty growthe fence." Now the man in the street does ing daily wider. I am myself writing a book on know. Everybody agrees on that. He knew the that subject. It will be called ' The things that reason of the War in South Africa : the news- did not happen,' and it will be, I feel almost papers said so, and they always know too. So certain, of considerable interest." " Oh, yes," said I, with a tinge of bitterness. I found the Professor in the very place where " I know Alfred did not burn those cakes, nor I went to seek him. " I suppose when you came up here as an found University College ; and Pym did not say undergraduate," I began timidly, "you did not that he would never leave Strafford while his head was on his shoulders. Neither did John lose know much." " On the contrary, my dear young lady," said his things in the Wash, nor Offa build a dyke." the Professor eagerly, " I knew a great deal. " My book runs to one hundred pages," said Much more than I know now, I assure you. It the Professor, unperturbedly. " Those points you is difficult to make you understand how very mention are elementary, but there are very many much I did know at the age of twenty. I had others considered quite certain up to now which convictions too on a great variety of subjects. my book will undoubtedly unsettle." I groaned softly, but made a last feeble effort I was a socialist and an economic reformer for instance ;" and he shook his head sadly as he • to save something from the wreck. " Dates," said I, brokenly, " those you can't unsettleremembered his youthful weaknesses. Senlac, ro66 ; Magna Charta, 1215 j Waterloo, " And now ?" suggested I. The Professor looked pained. " You have not 1815. How about those ?" His brow clouded for a moment, as he said, read my book then," he said, sadly. " It shews conclusively, I think, what are the insuperable grudgingly, " Ye-es. I'm afraid there's not much difficulties in the way of all social reform, and advance to be made in that direction, though of how all the current schemes are based on pure course," he added, brightening a little, "it's some.
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times a question of new and old style, and that complicates things a little. But I find I must go ; it is 6.45, and I ought perhaps to dress for dinner, as I believe we dine at seven. But if at any future time I can be of use, I shall be very glad—a seeker after truth is always welcome." I thanked him for his kindness, and he stepped lightly off the fence and disappeared. As for me, I admit I was depressed. " There's nothing left for me now, I thought, but the man in the street and the daily papers." And yet—the Maker of Epigrams must have meant something when she gave me that advice. She always did.
Bailabe. "A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING." THE hat should be upon the head At lectures, and upon the feet Goloshes, which should not be spread, Where every eye they'll chance to greet. At home's the proper place to eat Milk chocolate ; if you want to race, Don't choose the most frequented street ; Everything has its proper place. To the Proscholium should be led The bicycle ; it is discreet To leave the copious tear unshed, When coaches fail to be quite sweet. The Goalkeeper must curb her head, Nor seek to emulate the pace Of forwards fugitive and fleet ; Everything has its proper place. Those History students should be fed With " dates " who for the palm compete, The Literature with " tongue " instead, Served up by N r W t and Skeat. The Radcliffe's scholarly retreat, To prove this truth in every case, Has a variety of seat; Everything has its proper place.
ENVOI. My hockey skirt, though not quite neat For sociables, the field doth grace. Learn you who deem it incomplete, Everything has its proper place, L. N.
3mpeacbment of the 3rtsb Secretarr, 3februars 30, 1903. By the end of December the indignation of the country at the coercive policy being pursued in Ireland had risen to such a pitch, that a majority in the House of Commons voted the impeachment of the Chief Secretary. Accordingly, on February 3rd, the prisoner was arraigned at the bar of the Upper House. The grandeur and solemnity of the scene on this historic occasion must ever remain indelibly impressed upon the minds of all who witnessed it. After the judges had taken their places, a breathless and expectant silence fell upon the Commons crowded at the lower end of the Hall—a silence at length broken by deafening Government cheers, as the prisoner, with firm step and countenance resigned though pallid, advanced up the Hall, preceded by the deputy-Serjeant-at-arms (the real one having unfortunately been mislaid), bearing aloft the sword of state. When the unfortunate Secretary had taken his seat before the bar, and the enthusiasm of his partizans had given place to a sympathetic silence, the Lord Chancellor called upon the Clerk of the House to read the articles of indictment, whereby George Wyndham (Miss Savill) stood accused of attempting to subvert the constitution, and to establish an arbitrary power. Forthwith Mr. Moor, the leading Manager of the impeachment, in dignified and well-balanced language, set the broad issues of the case before the House, calling upon the judges to preserve this time-honoured safeguard of the constitution which had been allowed to rust too long ; and
THE FRITILLARY. casting a look of inimitable scorn upon the prisoner, adjured them not to allow "this man " to escape the just penalty of his crime, though in his "panic " he had that very morning sought to undo some of the evil he had done. The personal sympathy, which had been aroused in all impartially by the pathos and dignity of the prisoner's bearing, yet could not withstand the force of Mr. Moor's appeal to their public spirit—not to set the individual before the State. Now. Wyndham, who had sat throughout this crushing .attack calm and unmoved, looking neither to right nor left, rose and stepped forward to the bar. In a speech which brought his audience to the verge of tears, he expressed his willingness to die if he could thereby serve the interests of his country, and referred in moving terms to the fate of many of his predecessors in his high office. He indignantly repudiated Mr. Moor's accusation of panic, claiming that the fact that he had already been able to remove the Proclamation from so many districts, was thehighest proof of the efficacy of his policy. When amid repeated applause, the prisoner had once more taken his seat, a ferocious debate ensued between his counsel and his accusers. Mr. Higgs and Mr. Lees, in their appeal to precedent, recalled the giant figures of the lawyers of the early seventeenth century, whilst the calm yet deferential assurance of Mr. Pope's demeanour, in the difficult position of questioning the ruling of the Lord Chancellor, was in marked contrast to the impassioned and eloquent enthusiasm of the fiery Mr. Wragge. Amongst the lawyers, Mr. Gunn spoke with the earnestness born of long study of Irish affairs (in the Camera), and thereby carried as much conviction as the witness (evidently an Irishman) who deposed to having seen acts of violence on the part of the police towards a typically peaceable Irish crowd (we wonder if this gentleman was one of those who, in his own phrase, "dragged the police from their horses !" ) On the subject of privilege of Parliament, the torrent of somewhat incoherent language poured forth by Mr. Macaulay was truly characteristic of that decidedly erratic politician .
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—and this, with the rural manners of some of the witnesses, combined to lend a touch of humour to the otherwise sombre ceremony. It was felt to be rather hard that this should evoke from the able tongue of Mr. Hadow so scathing and general a denunciation of the " flippancy " of his opponents. After the prisoner had summed up, the Lord Chancellor called upon the judges, who, during the proceedings had scarcely lifted their reverend heads from their pages of copious notes, to give their verdict. The first to rise was Lord Moinet. With an air of malicious triumph, we had almost said of flippant nonchalance, he placed his right hand upon his heart and pronounced the fatal words :—" Guilty, on mine honour ! " Then one by one the other judges arose—" Guilty ; " " Not guilty "—a sigh of relief from the tortured crowd —" Not guilty ; " Not guilty ; " " Not guilty ;" Guilty ; " " Not guilty." The long-drawn suspense was over, and the life which had been quivering in the balance was saved. Eager adherents, hoarse with cheering, sprang forward to grasp the prisoner by the hand, and finally raised the small figure, centre to-day of such vast issues, on to their stalwart shoulders, and bore him from the Hall, calm in triumph as in adversity. Painful as must the admission be to the feelings of their countrymen, it is currently reported that his enemies, sure of their triumph, had already been gloating over the details of his execution, and it is even said that men of his own political creed had discussed his place of burial, and made arrangements for a funeral feast. Whatever his views as to the culpability of the accused, every true-born Englishman must rejoice at the disappointment of such ravenous birds of prey.
Varobv. "ASK ME NO MORE." " Ask me no more : I cannot come to tea ; Though Boffin's be the cakes, and you persuade The whole XI. to break the vows it Made ; Believe me, I have answered finally; Ask me no more.
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Ask me no more ; what reason can I give ? I love not too much robin-roll and cake, And yet you know I'd eat them for your sake ; Ask me no more if you would have me live ; Ask me no more. Ask me no more, or else my fate is sealed ; I vowed that I would not accept again, 0 let me keep my stern resolve to train : No more my friend, for at a glimpse yield ; Ask me no more."
r
L. N.
Correspondence.
Should not the _Fritillary Committee co-opt some person of a well-balanced mind, who appreciates the ' Educational value of humour,' and who, in the face of the inevitable adverse criticism, would undertake this task for us—in short, one who would save us from ourselves. This is not an impossible suggestion, and simplicity is not the least of its recommendations. Believe me, Madam, To be, A CONSTANT READER OF THE Fritillary. [While commending the sentiments expressed in the above letter, the Committee feels that it is invested with no power to guide the decisions of Library Committees. It is, however, hoped that individual influence will be brought to bear in favour of fiction of a lighter kind.—En.]
[To the Editor of the " MADAM, During the last week, alternatives have been placed before the Halls concerning the disposal of the surplus funds of the Fritillary. Rumour says public opinion scorns the suggestion that prizes should be given for literary efforts, and clamours for additions to our Libraries. May I here make a plea for fiction ? Few of our Halls can boast of novels which were not within the ken of our grandmothers. Consequently the ignorance displayed by the average Oxford woman student of current fiction is both ignominious and lamentable. But the remedy is now within our reach. Should you make this your decision, Madam, as I feel assured you will, we must steer between Scylla and Charybdis. On the one side the Library committees will be eager to choose the books, and will endeavour to thrust upon us such standard works as are, or should be, in the possession of each one of us—of this we do not complain. It is but natural that long dealing with original authorities and other ponderous tomes should have annihilated their taste for aught but the monumental. On the other hand, were the students entrusted to choose for themselves, the works of Marie Corelli and Mr. Guy Boothby might be seen within our walls ! Who can tell?
Ogforb Stubents' ;Debating $ocietr. President. Miss SAVILL, S.C. Secretary. Miss WOODHOUSE, S.H.H. Treasurer. Miss GWYER, L.M.H. THE last debate of the Michaelmas Term was held in the Hall of the High School on Dec. 9th. Miss HADOW (S.C.) in the chair. Miss DONALDSON (S. Hilda's) proposed "that in the opinion of this House it is impossible to over - estimate the benefits derived from State pageants." Remembering the often recorded sentiments of the House, she took a strong line by immediately waiving the common-sense view of the matter and appealing to the idealists, the few who look below the surface.' She repudiated with scorn the charge of unproductive labour.' " Wealth is not the only worthy object of existence, we are not all, I am glad to say, economists." Even if all that the economists said was true, she still maintained that the counterbalancing advantages outweighed all such objections. Pageantry was in her eyes above all things the epitome of past history, a symbolic repre-
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sentation of a nation's greatness.' She then dwelt pageants ; apparently they were not State cereat length on the recent Coronation, prophesying monies and so had nothing to do with the disa crop of Perkin Warbecks and Oliver Cromwells cussion. We learnt that pageants were no more artistic (perhaps a few statesmen like the latter might find some work even now) as the results of than the gilded car in a circus procession, and ' private coronations." This led her to the edu- while as for the other excellences claimed by the cative effect of pageants on Royalty itself, now Proposer, the Opposer denied them every one. when romance was dying and anarchy rampant. She demonstrated historically that they were a mere Everything was becoming 'so matter-of-fact, al- farce regarded as a sign of triumph, popularity, most sordid, that pageantry, the poetry of the or prosperity. They were not the expression of State, was required to make the nation imagina- national feeling. They were unnatural, artificial, tive. She appealed to the ' picturesqueness ' of and they did not suit the English character. the House of Lords, and drew a glowing picture They were ridiculous, worse than childish. The of the effect pageantry might have on the House craving for the thrill of excitement was due to of Commons and its constituents. It had a real false sentimentality. They did not educate the effect on the outside nations who could thus imagination ; what was wanted was that all classes should develop a sense of political obligation and realize England's greatness. She emphasized the value of symbolic repre- socialism. As for symbolic representation of the consentation for the young : a pageant was a liberal education in itself., far more stimulating than the tinuity of the nation's greatness,' and the effect mere reading about heroic deeds. It incul- on the outside nations,' this amounted to an argucated great intellectual, artistic, and moral les- ment for self-advertisement, and it did not seem sons—witness the self-control learnt in the weary necessary to advertise the Empire after all. We learnt in public discussion from good authority waiting. Under the title of pageantry she included all that Miss Johnston's political economy was sound ; State-buildings and Cathedral Churches ; and her speech ought to have been convincing, but claimed it as the inspiration of much of the both speakers failed to bring out their points statuary of Greece, and of dramatic art of all owing to a monotonous delivery. Public disages and countries. In conclusion, she pointed cussion was not very fruitful. After the Proout that it would be suicidal and shortsighted to poser had summed up the motion was lost by take away from the national life all that fostered four votes. its noblest and most exalted side. Miss DONALDSON was very clear and very enAT the first meeting of this Society this term, thusiastic, but she seemed to argue that as pa- the motion before the House was :—" That the triotism inspired pageantry, therefore any out- progress of the people depends more on developbursts of patriotism was pageantry. ment of character than on legislation." Miss JOHNSTON (S. Hugh's Hall) gloried in The Hon. Proposer, Miss CLARENCE (L.M.H.), her position as an exponent of common sense. drew attention to the various problems of the day, She first disposed of the argument that the labour maintaining that in character lay their only posinvolved in pageants was `good for trade,' speak- sible solution. Drunkenness, housing, old age ing of the proverbial housemaid's broken jug, and pensions, unskilled labour, all these questions can the great dislocation of the labour market. She never be adequately met by legislation. She suggested that the wasted energy could have been observed also that S. Africa's future depended in better employed in the making of flannel petti- the same way on the character of its inhabitants coats, and the building of cathedrals or cottages.' more than on any laws which might be passed for A digression now occurred in her speech, and its welfare. Legislation, she asserted, is the outwe listened to the description of curious ancient come or product of character ; character is the ,
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only power which can put it into our hands as a polished tool, fit and ready for use. The Hon. Proposer went on to say, with perhaps some lack of consistency, that legislation's day was beginning to wane ; it had been the best instrument in the earlier periods of the world's history, but now should be made to take the second place; instance the work of Chalmers, who ' ran' a large and poor parish in Glasgow fer several years, with continuously decreasing application to Poor Law relief. The crux of the question is that " till the people care, legislation can do nothing lasting," and without character they will never care. The tremendous earnestness of the speaker seemed, as usual, to deprive her at times of her power of diction, but in this respect she has undoubtedly improved since she first addressed the House, while, as to the matter of her speech, she spoke with knowledge and sense ; nor could the most ardent C.O.S. Secretary have taken exception to a word. Miss WRAGGE (S.C.) opposed the motion in a maiden speech. She urged that legislation creates character. The Factory Acts, for instance, by raising the standard of comfort, cleared the path for development. Further, even measures which are the outcome of good character need the support of the State if they are to be effective. To solve the problems of the day without legislation would require abnormal will-power on the part of the masses, such as we have no right to expect. That the State has not done all things well is no argument for its incapacity to do so ; individual effort has as yet been equally ineffectual. The Hon. Proposer asserted that legislation was as 'potent a factor in the development of character as any individual effort, and lacked the risks which undoubtedly attend on the latter. Miss Wragge's speech was a good defence of legislation, and it was a pity that her hesitating manner somewhat detracted from its value. A fairly spirited debate followed, which naturally tended to take the form of chat. Miss JOWITT (S.C.) discoursed on the chicken-and-egg problem, i.e., does the national education make its character, or the national character its education ?
Among other noteworthy assertions was one made by Miss JOHNSTON (S.H.H.), in a tone of profound melancholy—that it behoves us to guard against the exaggerated desire for a ' personality,' which, she appeared to fear, was very prevalent among the submerged tenth. There also spoke MISS DENING (S.H.H.), Miss SANDERS (L.M.H.), Miss MITCHELL (L.M.H.), MISS SAUNDERS (S.C.), Miss HARRISON (S.C.), but the House having shewn a tendency to go off at such tangents as the cave dweller and his tomahawk (sic), the President hastily called on the Hon. Opposer to sum up. The motion was carried by 12 votes.
THE second motion before the House was :" That the spirit of the age precludes creative art, and leaves only criticism possible." Miss LOWE (H.S.) proposed the motion in a maiden speech. On the analogy of previous periods in the history of literature, she maintained that we are now at the close of a cycle of creative art, and pausing in the transition stage where the critic only may wield the pen. After a short digression on the subject of the duty of those who live in such an age, she went on to say that though art was indeed filtering downwards, and becoming more of an influence among the lower classes, new creations were impossible ; the sensitive artistic spirit is thwarted by the lack of discernment, the zeal for fault-finding, the materialist spirit and the busy complexity of modern life. The Hon. Proposer unjustly arraigned the march of scientific achievement with opposition to the artistic spirit, but rightly condemned the cheap and vulgar imitation of it with which so many are content at the present day. Miss Lowe's delivery was good, but her remarks somewhat didactic in tone. Miss HALES (S.H.H., last term introduced to the House with such eclat as Mr. Uriah Burtonshaw) opposed the motion, and urged on her audience the optimistic view that the artistic spirit exists in germ in every human being, however uneducated. We must study psychology, and bring the germ to maturity. There is a vast opportunity for creative art to-day ; the complexity of modern
THE FRITILLARY. life is no bar, and the artist must see ugly things if he is to appreciate beauty (!). An uninspiring age will rouse the real artist to special efforts, in order to effect the rescue of his fellow-man if nothing else, he will find expression in biting satire. Even the eighteenth century, continued the Hon. Member, with a charming naivete, is no argument for the proposer ; it was not the spirit of the age that made it so barren ; there were no artists then. ,In support of her statements the Hon. Member appealed frequently to Wordsworth; already at this stage of her speech the floor was thickly strewn with the poet's disjecta membra, and the pile was soon enriched by those of Byron and Coleridge. The Hon. Opposer fluently hurried on, but it must be confessed her zeal tended less to convince than to bewilder, though now and then an answering echo was awakened in the minds of her listeners, as, for instance, when certain thinkers of the day were described as " out of their depth," or the statement made that " there was a feeling of mystery abroad." However, when brought to a sudden standstill by the bell the Hon. Member sat down, it was amid loud and hearty applause. It was universally felt that her vigour and enthusiasm were a real gain to debate. We hope soon to hear her again on some subject in which she feels an equal interest. The discussion which followed was not very animated. Miss SPENCER (H.S.), MiSS DENING and Miss ASHE (S.H.H.), Miss JONES (S.C.), contested various points in the two opening speeches, but at no great length. The air was dark with quotations, and this perhaps dimmed the mental vision of the debaters, who showed a tendency to deal with the topic in a vague and indefinite manner. Even a Socratic appeal to the House from Miss JOWITT (S.C.), to base its discussion on an adequate definition of the terms, " spirit of the age," " creative art," met with no response. The House preferred to wander amid nebulous abstractions to the bitter end. The motion was finally lost by 4 votes. At the third meeting of the Society, Miss SANDERS (L.M.H.) proposed the motion that " The graces of life are extinct in the present
44
generation." She began by saying that she did not intend to pose as a " laudator temporis acti," and assert that grace to-day was impossible ; on the contrary, there had never been greater opportunities for it. Physical and mental culture ought to give that ease and strength which are the only real basis of grace ; and yet we have daily to deplore the common sight of slouching shoulders and uncouth movements. Fine needlework is extinct ; we dance the " Kitchen Lancer" and the " Washington Post," instead of the minuet ; the modern hostess, in spite of her greater opportunities for intercourse with every class of society, is an ungraceful, unmannerly person, who denies to herself and her guests any feeling of ease. We cannot speak without slang, we write all our communications on postcards, and finally, though we may wear pretty and graceful raiment outside, we are far from being like " the King's daughter." Of Miss Sanders' speech and its manner of delivery, we can only say it successfully overthrew the position it was designed to support. Miss JEFFRIES DAViS (St. Hilda's) opposed the motion, and contended that our ancestresses, though they had perhaps more rigid training in outward deportment, had less real ease and grace than ourselves. As for embroidery, we are occupied in other pursuits, which are more likely to produce the ideal of grace than any amount of sewing, though, as the Hon. Member pointed out, with surely unjustified optimism, the homemade blouse is none the less a monument of the desire for that ideal. She objected to the narrow sphere to which the Hon. Proposer had tended to restrict the " graces of life," and pointed out that, in its wider meaning, woman's life to-day as lived out in the hospital and the slum was full of true grace. She also defended the modern hostess, on the ground that the unpleasing picture drawn by the Hon. Proposer applied merely to the young and inexperienced. Girls grow up far more slowly than before, and are not ready to play their part in society nearly so soon as their grandmothers. Miss Jeffries Davis spoke very sensibly, but was, unfortunately, so nervous as to be almost inaudible.
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THE FRITILLARY.
Mrs. FISHER (S.C.), as holding the proud and unique position of the only member present in the House who had ever had a trousseau, vigorously contested certain of the Hon. Proposer's statements. In the region of embroidery and fine linen, she maintained that we were far from being behind our ancestresses. The modern hostess received another word of commendation from this member, who wound up her remarks by imploring some regard for the graces of life from those hockey players who ride past her house on their way to play. There also spoke Miss LUDWIG (S.H.H.), but the thought of the previous speaker's trousseau seemed to have awed the rest of the House into silence. Summing up, Miss SANDERS asked the House not to narrow down the motion to arbitrary rules concerning the length of hockey skirts, but to realise that the question is, the modern generation does not really feel any desire for grace. She then quoted " The Ethics of Shyness," which appeared in these, pages last December, as a worthy testimony to this lack of appreciation ; shyness is now-a-days considered a perfectly adequate excuse for every form of awkwardness and rudeness. The motion was carried by r r votes. It remains to be said that at the second meeting of the Society some important business was discussed with regard to the admission to it of students other than those who are working under the auspices of the A.E.W. Miss HADOW'S (S.C.) amendment to the original motion brought forward by Miss SAUNDERS (S.C.), viz. " that the Members of Cherwell Hall be admitted to Membership in the Society," was finally accepted. The amendment ran : " That Students who are working for the post graduate diploma in Oxford be admitted to the Society as Associates." The House sincerely welcomed the decision, and it is universally hoped that a large number of Associates will henceforward assist at our deliberations. Graduates of other Universities, who have already had experience in oratory, cannot fail to be a great acquisition to the Society.
Ogforb Stubents' lbockep team. THE United has played two matches this term : against the Western Counties—lost 0-2, and Bedfordshire—lost 3-5. Both were very strong teams, so the United need not be discouraged by the results, especially as the play is steadily improving. What the team lacks is combination among the backs and halves, also push and determination in the circle. In the three weeks which remain the team should improve very much in these respects, and look forward to a good match with Cambridge. Miss Court and Miss Wilmot in the forward line are both very good wings ; Miss Overton shoots well, and her play in the field is improving ; Miss Parker combines neatly with her wing. In the half line Miss Knox has played well in both matches, and Miss Peters is a very realiable centre-half ; Miss Keates' play is becoming quicker. Miss Moinet and Miss Moor at back are good and play well together ; Miss Waterfall is very good in goal. The team is still subject to alteration before the end of the term.
United Fixtures. v. Dartford Physical Training College, March 5th. v. Sussex, March 9th. v. Cambridge, March r7th, at Blackheath.
1Labv ilbatgaret bait. HOCKEY CLUB.—The hockey season has been good this year, without interruptions, save for the first week, from the weather. The teams have not changed much. Miss S. Alleyne is now centre half in the ist XI., and Miss Sanders left back. The matches have been as follows :—
First Eleven. v. Old Students, draw 2-2. v. Leicester, won 8-4. v. Wycombe Ladies, won 8-1. v. Somerville College, won 6—o.
THE FRITILLARY. Second Eleven. v. St. Hilda's Hall, won 3—i. v. St. Hugh's Hall, won 3—o. v. Etceteras II., won 3-2. Third Eleven. v. Old Cheltonians, lost 1-8. Both the and and 3rd XI's have yet to play Somerville II. and III.
SHARP PRACTICE (President, M. 0. DAvis).— The meetings of this Society have been cheerful and stormy. The Society is therefore fulfilling part of its aim—which is briefly to cheer the sad, and to arouse the average mind from lethargic torpor. As a training ground for the O.S.D.S., it has perhaps been less successful. Only four fresh speakers—Miss Freire - Marecco, Miss Haynes, Miss Neild, and Miss Court—have stepped forward, so that if rhetoricians came up with the freshers, they still, like the Tar-Baby, keep on saying nothing.' Other speakers have been Misses Sanders, Gwyer, Kelly, and Wilmot, whose elocutionary talents are too well known to need description. Yet the motions have not been such as would provoke silence, or rather, we should say, should invite nothing but chaotic mouthings. In accordance with the traditions of the Society, they have been simple and homely, with, where possible, a touch of the idiotic. For instance, that College Societies are an abomination,' that sailor hats have had their day, and that stiff collars are a relic of barbarism,' that ability wears away by use,' that amateur music is a social evil.' Surely the most taciturn creature could speak on these subjects. Yet it has to be owned, that now third and fourth speakers are not nominated, they do not rise. And here comes the explanation of the stormy scenes which are weekly enacted— the more pugnacious honourable proposers and honourable opposers' sit down amidst a burst of applause—there is a re-action of silence—which in time becomes painful—till some one rises to censure an honourable member or the President. In fact some one is butchered ' every
449
week to make a Roman holiday '—to the detriment of the subtle jest and the guily gibe which should be the characteristic of Sharp Practice. These are the criticisms which may be levelled at a Society which has the saving graces of forbearance, regular attendance, and unbounded cheerfulness. (Secretary, G. KEATE) have been much as usual this term. We have indulged in one Fancy Dress Dance, at which many of the costumes were most successful. We should like to take this opportunity of thanking Mrs. Toynbee, Miss Argles, and Miss Mack for so kindly consenting to act as a committee for awarding prizes to those whose attire she wed most originality. I am sure we all thoroughly agreed with their decision. SOCIABLES
Librarian wishes to thank the Fritillary Committee for the sum of 2s. 6d., which she has received for the Library Fund per the Representative. THE
New Student.
Hilda Morris, Melbourne, Australia.
Somerville College. HOCKEY CLUB
Captain, R. MOINET).
(Captain, M. F. MOOR ; ViceSecretary, A. E. M.
OYERTON ;
First Eleven. Goal: F. E. Ross. Backs A. E. M. Moinet, M. F. Moor. Halves : U. K. Hopkyns, S. L. Peters, M. L. Greg. Forwards: B. Smith, R. Overton, G. Laughton, A. M. Mullins, M. Robertson. Matches. v. Etc., drawn s—r. v. Lady Margaret Hall, lost o-5. v. Oxford High School, not yet played.
THE FRITILLARY.
450 Second Eleven.
Goal : M. Lenwood. Backs : E. Peacey, L. A. Cunliffe. _Halves : D. Hibgame, G. Hadow, N. Scott. Forwards: M. V. Taylor, E. R. Macaulay, E.
of the motions discussed were : " The end justifies the means ;" " Man is master of his fate ;" Members of Parliament would do their duty more effectively if they were paid." WOMEN'S UNIVERSITY SETTLEMENT
M. Harrison, C. C. Bowie, M. K. Higgs.
(Secretary,
Sunday evening, February r5th, Miss E. M. Sharpeley, of the Southwark Settlement, gave us an interesting and amusing address on the work done by residents and students who are being trained for social occupations at the Settlement. It was extremely interesting to hear about this from one of those actively engaged in one of the centres of Social Work, and we hope the lecture will have given a definite impetus to those whose inclinations already tended in that direction.
SOPHIE SMITH).—On
Matches.
v. Graduates, won 5—r. St. Hugh's, lost 1-6 v. St. Hilda's, lost 2 4. Etc., _ost, I V. znd XI. F. v. znd XL Lady Margaret Hall, not yet played. v. znd XI. Oxford High School, V.
—
)1
Third Eleven. Goal : A. Sergeant. Backs : E. Edmonds, R. Gunn. Halves : M. Reynolds, H. Gregory, C. Saunders. Forwards : F. Lorimer, D. C. Coldwell, E.
Brewer, A. Trethewy, E. Williams.
St. lbugb's
Matches. v. 3rd XI. Lady Margaret Hall, drawn r—r.
BOAT CLUB
tary, H.
(President, M. V. TAYLOR ; SecreTreasurer, W. BREAK-
DARBISHIRE ;
was a test for Captains and Halfcaptains on Feb. 9, and practising was carried on very vigorously beforehand. The result of the test was that the following were nominated :Captains : Class II. Misses Gregory and E. Lorimer. Half-captains : Class I. Misses Savill and Volkovsky. Class II. Misses Lees, Howell, Pearsall, Saunders, Wragge, Greg. Class III. Misses Cunliffe and F. Lorimer. Outrig Members : Misses Harrison, Hopkyns, Macaulay, M. Robertson, Gracey, Reynolds, Scott, M. Smith, R. B. Smith, Stevens, Fanshawe. WELL).—There
SHARP PRACTICE.—Meetings of this Society have been held every week this term and have been fairly well attended. When the motions were congenial there was a good deal of discussion, but more motions are badly needed. Some
HOCKEY CLUB (Captain, H. C. HUNTER).— We made a good start with the practices this term, but owing to Torpids and Influenza our numbers grew gradually fewer. In a Hall match, " The World" was unable to withstand the vehemence of " History," and was severely beaten. We were greatly disappointed at not playing King's College znd XI., who had to scratch at the last minute. The results of our other matches are :— v. Somerville College znd XI., won 6-1. v. L.M.H. 2nd XI., lost o-3. v. St. Hilda's Hall, drawn 4-4. v. Graduates, lost 2-5. v. Etceteras znd XI., won 7-1..
TENNIS CLUB (Secretary, M. N. WEBB).—We have not had much tennis this term ; several of the freshers, however, promise to make good players, and the play has gone on more briskly this last fortnight owing to the excitement of " Ties." We are looking forward to having an American tournament next term.
BOAT
CLUB ( Captain,
M. E.
WIGG).—The
THE FRITILLARY. Boats have not been out quite as much as usual this term owing to weather and hockey. It is hoped, however, that several members will be qualified before the Vacation, although the winter test for steering is not appreciated. Mr. Townsend has very kindly again taken out some crews to coach. Those who have not yet passed the swimming test are asked it possible to do so before next term, as the Boat Club is still rather small, and more qualified members are needed both for sculling and punting.
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a reputation for its flourishing condition, and, to judge from the number of members, it is keeping it up this term. Members are to be congratulated on the rendering of their parts, into which they have entered with sympathy, or thrown themselves with keenness and vigour. The Society will not soon forget certain scenes at Alexandria between Antony and Cleopatra, which were read with something of dramatic power. (President, L. C. Secretary, J. JOHNSTON). —There have been no expeditions this term as yet, but Mr. Carlyle has promised to conduct one next week. We have had two very successful meetings. At the first a paper was read by Miss Hales on Renaissance Architecture. At the second meeting Miss Jourdain described the remains of Byzantine Architecture in Italy and Sicily, and illustrated her very suggestive remarks by photographs and paintings. ARCHITECTURAL SOCIETY
DENEKE ;
SHARP PRACTICE (President, C. M. ADY).— Owing to rival attractions on Saturday evenings in the shape of the theatre and lectures, Sharp Practice has not been so well attended as usual this term. The discussions, have, however, been keen and on the whole to the point. The House in the earlier part of the term was characterised by its rigid conservatism and sound common-sense. Such "advanced" motions as : "That the social evils of the present day are mainly the result of Competition," and " That character is mainly the result of circumstances," were rejected with the scorn that they deserved. Latterly, however, a relapse has set in. The House has expressed its opinion not only that " accuracy and neatness are unpardonable defects," but that " the practice of donning Sunday clothes is an unworthy relic of barbarism."
BROWNING SOCIETY (President, N. DENING). —This Society has been spending pleasant Sunday afternoons this term in the performance of mental gymnastics. In other words it has been reading "Sordello." It finds therein much to impose a severe strain on what it is pleased to call its mind, but it is tackling its subject manfully, and the poem seems already to be growing a little simpler. It is comforted and encouraged to discover that its not infrequent conclusion, that Browning did not himself know what he meant, is corroborated by so great an authority as Dean Farrar.
(President, L. C. Society has by now established
SHAKESPEARE SOCIETY DENEKE).—The
(Secretaries, A. M. WILSON and E. being our Jubilee term we celebrated the event by an unusually large Sociable just before Lent, to which we were very glad to welcome many friends. It was a great success, and we varied our usual programme by a little acting. We hope to have our next Sociable on the last Saturday of term, and in all probability it will be Fancy Dress. SOCIABLES
SNOWDON). — This
St. ibilDa's HOCKEY CLUB (Captain, E. D. NALDER ; ViceCaptain, G. SOWELS ; Secretary, E. W. STIFF).— The Hockey Club practises regularly on the ground at Iffley, and its condition is, upon the whole, quite satisfactory. Several matches have been played this term, with the following results :v. Lady Margaret Hall 2nd, lost 1-3. v. Somerville znd, won 4-2. v. St. Hugh's Hall, drawn 4-4. v. Etceteras 2nd, lost 4-8. v. The Isis,' won ti—t.
THE FRITILLARY.
452
SOCIALS.—On Saturday, March 14th, the first Social of this year was held. Some quaint songs, " Comin' through the Rye," " Matrimonee," and " Old King Cole," were illustrated by tableaux, which began with sentiment and ended with humour. The pleasure afforded by these scenes predisposed the audience to a kindly reception of the two duologues which followed. The evening was concluded by dancing. Our thanks are due to Miss Stiff and Miss Knowles fo'r general management and their artistic arrangement of the tableaux. DEBATING SOCIETY
ALDSON ;
Secretary, G.
(President, R. E. D.
DON-
RICHARDSON EVANS).—
Two debates have taken place this term, and a third is impending. We have decided that " Consistency is not a necessary qualification for a great character;" and in Sharp Practice, in spite of a graceful and practical demonstration on the part of one member, the House declared that it does not lament the " decay in the art of swooning." At the next meeting the question whether it "is better to lose wealth like a spendthrift, or waste it like a miser," will be argued. Library Committee gratefully acknowledges Mrs. Wells' kind gift of several volumes of Thackeray, also some works on history, theology, and missions. It is also indebted to the kindness of Mrs. Richardson Evans in making an addition to the " Novel " department of the Library. The Committee gratefully acknowledges the receipt of the sum of I is. 3d. from the Fritillary funds, which it intends to spend in the purchase of some of the works of George Meredith.
BROWNING SOCIETY (Secretary, N. E. MAC Society has begun on the " Ring and the Book," which seems likely to give it food for thought for some time to come. The members are very constant in their attendance. MGNN).—This
New Students.
LIBRARY.—The
bone Stut)ents. COMMON ROOM (Secretary, R. F. BUTLER). — This institution continues an uneventful but pro'sperous course. Members seem at last to be realising its capabilities as a club for social intercourse. Efforts are also being made by means of it to draw old students closer to the Society.
A FEATURE of this term was the At Home given by Mrs. Johnson and the Home Students' Association in Taphouse's rooms. About 160 guests assembled, and music and theatricals were provided for their entertainment. Miss Walton played the violin, and Miss Ballard sang three songs, while bygone and modern feminine society were represented, the latter by a scene called " The Browning Society," from Sir A. Conan Doyle's book, " A Duet ; " and the former by a " Cranford Tea-Party," at which Miss Bowditch danced a minuet, and Miss Ivy Williams as Miss Jessie Brown sang " Jock o' Hazeldean." The adaptations in both cases were made by Miss Lowe. The Committee deserve great praise for the excellence of their arrangements, and the actresses for their charming and spirited performance.
.
Violet Butler, Home tuition and High Wycombe School. Agnes M. Hawkins, Rewley House, Oxford. J. M. Lyon, Home tuition and Queen's College, Ballaarat, Victoria. M. Moseley, Oxford High School. Mary E. Powell, Ladies' College, Cheltenham.
Zi Correction. the short-notice of the late Mrs. J. A. SIMON (Ethel Venables) in the last number of the Fritillary there was a slight error. Miss Venables did not give up her work for the Oxford Home Students when she became Vice - Principal of St. Hugh's, but continued to be Secretary to Mrs. Johnson, Principal of the Oxford Home Students, and to interest herself actively in that Society till just before her marriage in May, 1899. An interesting account of her, by her Aunt, Mrs. J. R. Green, may be seen in the St. Hugh's Club Paper, January, 1903. IN
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