Rhubarb

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13 St Edward’S rhubarb
OSE Memories
John Hayman, MB.BS., LMSSa
(c, 1938-1943)
I am a very OSE, tucked away in a beautiful
retirement village in a corner of New South
Wales, where I see lots to interest me in
how the School develops - particularly in
the quite extraordinary inclusion of females
in its ranks, and the very desirable inclusion
of music in their achievements - both
unheard of features of my life under the
guidance of my very dear Warden, Henry
E Kendall.
I had the good, good fortune to live in
our old Field House, under the warm and
fatherly housemastership of Bim Barff,
and am eternally grateful to LH (Bertie)
Ovenden (1924-1946), for his efforts at
engendering the love of music in me, “but of
course, dear boy, only as far as Schubert -
NOT that Brahms!,” although he did include
some Bruckner in his choir pieces, and I
often wonder about the nature of much of
that composition of his which never saw the
light of day. I was to learn piano and organ
from him, but never got nearer to the organ
than a surreptitious experimentation at night
when I was a sacristan. Whatever happened
to that grand old organ, which had been
converted from the old hand pump, to
wheezy electric action? I always thought it
had a lovely sound.
I should also record my gratitude to
Leslie Styler, of the lower Classical Sixth
who, when he noticed me misreading my
Plato crib, said it was about time I decided
what I really wanted to do in life, and was
instrumental in getting me transferred to
the ‘Science Side’.
The only time when I started to
appreciate that loathed ‘Rugger’, was
when the time came for House Matches,
when those inscrutable rules were largely
forgotten and it was a free for all. The
summer and walks across Port Meadow
to the boats were my favourite times for
games - yes, I did appreciate the team effort
of the ‘Eights’, but individualism in athletics
was otherwise my preference.
I’d be most interested to hear from any
surviving contemporaries, especially any
who have been discovered to be autistic.
I am very surprised to be still on my feet
at age 89, and still walk about three to four
km, and swim in a heated pool up to 200m,
daily, the year around.
alan richards (G, 1961-1966)
Alan has kindly written to the OSE Office,
detailing the school memories of his late
father richard M. richards (1929-1934),
which focus on several members of the MCR.
He remembered Bertie Ovenden was
one of the truly great violinists of the 20th
century, playing for Queen Victoria at the
age of six, and giving his first London recital
at the age of 11. He was asked by Ysaye, the
Belgian violinist to go as his accompanist on
a world tour at the age of 15, and retired at
the age of 19 on the outbreak of the First
World War. That information was given by
SW (Stan) Tackley, MCR 1930-1969.
Amongst the other characters of my
father’s time was GH Segar (1925-1953),
who was well known for his enthusiasm for
physical fitness. Amongst the stories that
went around the School was one that he
cycled up Boars Hill with the brakes on. It
wasn’t until my father was up at Oxford and
a friend was driving a group out to The Fox
for a drink, that he found out it was true!
The career of HGC Mallaby (1924-
1935) is well documented in the School’s
records, but there are one or two less
important items which are worth recording.
He was never one to think too much of
his own importance, announcing, when he
saw the Quad neatly cut and ready for a
Gaudy, ‘I haven’t had a roll for a long time’
and proceeded to lie down and roll on
the grass. He liked to digress from topic
during lessons, especially on the subject
of Wordsworth, on whom he was an
acknowledged expert but he would be
interrupted by the question ‘Is this in the
syllabus sir?’, ‘No’, ‘Then we don’t want
to hear about it’.
EP Hewetson (1926-1936) was no
great academic, but put on his application
that he could speak Spanish, assuming,
not unreasonably for those days, that
no one would want to take the subject.
Unfortunately somebody from Spain joined
the school, and so, along with another
pupil, was assigned to Hewetson’s care.
One day the Warden, Henry Kendall,
needed to speak to him, and on entering
the classroom, found Hughie and the other
boy being taught by the Spanish student.
What the outcome was my father could not
remember, but he suspected Kendall merely
laughed and the lessons were abandoned.
Books
Unsung
by MarcYoung
(E, 1972-1977)
“You have to
start a journey
somewhere and,
at its source, you
may not expect
very much.
Everything may just
remain in a pond nearby. But, what
if your waters nudge the bank and create
a new stream, slipping a seeping vein into
virgin soil, and carving out a fresh direction?
It may be a turbulent flow, muddy, curling,
curving and twisting but, somewhere in
amongst, it discovers purpose and direction.
It is vibrant, picking up a pebble as it passes
the silent swishing tails of sipping cows and
rides the current of Father Time’s gathering
speed. Make the most of the life force, before
enjoying the lazy meander as your journey
embraces the wide mouthed silver shine of
the vast reflecting ocean beyond. There, on
the beach, your pebble comes to rest. It forms
part of a beautiful view whilst its journey
there lies untold. Until this moment.” A long
forgotten old Cornish tale by Marc Young.
Human Nervous System:
Early Programming and
Behavioural Integration
by Gerald Nsugbe (G, 1974-1979)
As a scientist
manqué, Gerald
Nsugbe is pleased
to announce the
recent publication
of his book.
Amongst a wide
range of other
things, the book
postulates the
origin of human
brain waves –the
culmination of 23 years of alternate
writing and reappraisal summed up tersely
in the comments of a neuroscientist and
three medics.
f e a t u r e s