A Patriotic Schoolgirl

by Angela Brazil

  CHAPTER XII

  The School Union

  The last few days of the term were passing quickly. The examinationswere over, though the lists were not yet out. To both Marjorie and Donathey had been somewhat of an ordeal, for the Brackenfield standard washigh. When confronted with sets of questions the girls felt previousslackness in work become painfully evident. It was horrible to have tosit and look at a problem without the least idea of how to solve it; orto find that the dates and facts which ought to have been at theirfinger-ends had departed to distant and un-get-at-able realms of theirmemory.

  "I can think of the wretched things afterwards," mourned Dona, "but atthe time I'm so flustered, everything I want to remember goes utterlyout of my head. I really knew the boundaries of Germany, only I drewthem wrong on the map; and in the Literature paper I mixed up Pope andDryden, and I put that Sheridan wrote _She Stoops to Conquer_, insteadof Goldsmith."

  "I'm sure I failed in Chemistry," groused Marjorie. "And the Latin wasthe most awful paper I've ever seen in my life. It would take a B.A. todo that piece of unseen translation. As for the General Knowledge paper,I got utterly stumped. How should I know what are the duties of a HighSheriff and an Archdeacon, or how many men must be on a jury? EvenMollie Simpson said it was stiff, and she's good at all that kind ofinformation. I wonder they didn't ask us how many currants there are ina Christmas pudding!"

  "There won't be many this year," laughed Dona. "Auntie was sayingcurrants and raisins are very scarce. Probably we shan't get any mincepies. But I don't care. It'll be lovely to be at home again, even if theGermans sink every food ship and only leave us porridge for Christmas."

  The last day of the term was somewhat in the nature of a ceremony atBrackenfield. Lessons proceeded as usual until twelve, when the wholeschool assembled for the reading of the examination lists. Marjoriequaked when it came to the turn of IVa. As she expected, she had failedin Chemistry, though she had just scraped through in Latin, Mathematics,and General Knowledge. Her record could only be considered fair, and toan ambitious girl like Marjorie it was humiliating to find herself loweron the lists than others who were younger than herself.

  "I'll brace up next term and do better," she thought, as Mrs. Morrisoncongratulated Mollie Simpson, Laura Norris, and Enid Young on theirexcellent work, and deplored the low standard of at least half of theform.

  Dona, greatly to her surprise, had done less badly than she expected,and instead of finding herself the very last, was sixth from the bottom,and actually above Mona Kenworthy--a circumstance which made herliterally gasp with surprise.

  The afternoon was devoted to packing. Each girl found her box in her owncubicle, and started to the joyful task of turning out her drawers. Itwas a jolly, merry proceeding, even though Miss Norton and several otherteachers were hovering about to keep order and ensure that the girlswere really filling their trunks, instead of racing in and out of thedormitories and talking, as would certainly have been the case if theyhad been left to their own devices. By dint of good generalship on thepart of the House Mistress and her staff, St. Elgiva's completed itsarrangements twenty minutes before the other hostels, and had thereforethe credit of being visited first by the janitor and the gardener, whoseduty it was to carry down the luggage. The large boxes were taken awaythat evening in carts to the station, and duly dispatched, each girlkeeping her necessaries for the night, which she would take home withher in a hand-bag.

  "No prep. after tea to-day, thank goodness!" said Betty Moore,collecting her books and stowing them away in her locker. "I don't wantto see this wretched old history again for a month. I'm sick ofimproving my mind. I'm not going to read a single line during theholidays, not even stories. I'll go out riding every day, even if it'swet. Mother says my pony's quite well again, and wants exercising. He'llget it, bless him, while I'm at home."

  "What do we do this evening instead of prep.?" asked Marjorie. "Games, Isuppose, or dancing?"

  "Why, no, child, it's the School Union," returned Betty, slamming thedoor of her locker.

  "What's that?"

  "Great Minerva! don't you know? You're painfully new even yet, MarjorieAnderson. There, don't get raggy; I'll tell you. On the last evening ofevery term the whole school meets in the big hall--just the girls,without any of the teachers. The prefects sit on the platform, and thehead girl reads a kind of report about all that's happened during theterm--the games and that sort of thing, and what she and the prefectshave noticed, and what the Societies have done, and news of old girls,and all the rest of it. Then anybody who likes can make comments, orsuggestions for next term, or air grievances. It's a kind of SchoolCouncil meeting, and things are often put to the vote. It gets quiteexciting. We don't have supper till 8.30, so as to give us plenty oftime. We all eat an extra big tea, so as to carry us on."

  "I'm glad you warned me," laughed Marjorie. "Do they bring in morebread-and-butter?"

  "Yes, loads more, and potted meat, and honey and jam. We have a goodtuck-out, and then only cocoa and buns later on. It's not formal supper.You see, we've packed our white dresses, and can't change this evening.We've only our serges left here. The meeting's rather a stunt. We have ajinky time as a rule."

  By five o'clock every girl in the school had assembled in the big hall.Though no mistresses were present, the proceedings were neverthelessperfectly orderly, and good discipline prevailed. On the platform satthe prefects, the chair being taken by Winifrede Mason, the head girl.Winifrede was a striking personality at Brackenfield, and filled herpost with dignity. She was eighteen and a half, tall, and finely built,with brown eyes and smooth, dark hair. She had a firm, clever face, anda quiet, authoritative manner that carried weight in the school, andcrushed any symptoms of incipient turbulence amongst Juniors. Many ofthe girls would almost rather have got into trouble with Mrs. Morrisonthan incur the displeasure of Winifrede, and a word of praise from herlips was esteemed a high favour. She did not believe in what she termed"making herself too cheap", and did not encourage the prefects to mix atall freely with Intermediates or Juniors, so that to most of the girlsshe seemed on a kind of pedestal--a member of the school, indeed, andyet raised above the others. She was just, however, and on the whole agreat favourite, for, though she kept her dignity, she never lost touchwith the school, and always voiced the general sentiments. She stood upnow on the platform and began what might be termed a presidentialspeech.

  "Girls, we've come to the end of the first term in another school year.Some of you, like myself, are old Brackenfielders, and others havejoined us lately, and are only just beginning to shake down into ourways. It's for the sake of these that I want just briefly torecapitulate some of the standards of this school. We've always heldvery lofty ideals here, and we who are prefects want to make sure thatduring our time they are kept, and that we hand them on unsullied tothose who come after us. What is the great object that we set ourselvesto aim at? Perhaps some of you will say, 'To do well at our lessons', or'To win at games'. Well, that's all a part of it. The main thing thatwe're really striving for is the formation of character. There's nothingfiner in all the world. And character can only be formed by overcomingdifficulties. Every hard lesson you master, or every game you win, helpsyou to win it. There are plenty of difficulties at school. Nobody findsit plain sailing. When you're cooped up with so many other girls yousoon find you can't have all your own way, and it must be agive-and-take system if you're to live peaceably with your fellows. Whenthis great war broke out, people had begun to say that our young men ofBritain had grown soft and ease-loving, and thought of nothing exceptpleasure. Yet at the nation's call they flung up all they had andflocked to enlist, and proved by their magnificent courage the grit thatwas in them after all. Our women, too--Society women who had been,perhaps justly, branded as 'mere butterflies'--put their shoulders tothe wheel, and have shown how they, too, could face dangers anddifficulties and privations. As nurses, ambulance drivers, canteenworkers, telephone operators, some have played their part in the fieldof war; and their s
isters at home have worked with equal courage tomake munitions, and supply the places left vacant by the men. Now, Idon't suppose there is a girl in this room who does not call herselfpatriotic. Let her stop for a moment to consider what she means. Itisn't only waving the Union Jack, and singing 'God Save the King', andknitting socks for soldiers. That's the mere outside of it. There's afar deeper part than that. We're only schoolgirls now, but in a fewyears we shall become a part of the women of the nation. In the futureBritain will have to depend largely on her women. Let them see that theyfit themselves for the burden! We used to be told that the Battle ofWaterloo was won on the playing-fields of our great public schools.Well, I believe that many future struggles are being decided by the lifein our girls' schools of to-day. Though we mayn't realize it, we're allplaying our part in history, and though our names may never go down toposterity, our influence will. The watchwords of all patriotic women atpresent are 'Service and Sacrifice'. In the few years that we are hereat school let us try to prepare ourselves to be an asset to the nationafterwards. Aim for the highest--in work, games, and character. As theold American said: 'Hitch your wagon to a star', because it's better toattempt big things, even if you fail, than to be satisfied with a lowideal.

  "It is encouraging for us Brackenfielders to know what good work some ofour old girls are doing to help their country. I'm going to read you thelatest news about them.

  "Mary Walker has been nursing for fifteen months at a hospital in Cairo,and is now at the Halton Military Hospital, hoping to be sent out toFrance after six months' further training. She enjoyed her work inEgypt, and found many opportunities for interesting expeditions in heroff-duty time. She went for camel rides to visit the tombs in thedesert, had moonlight journeys to the Pyramids, and sailed up the Nile.

  "Emily Roberts is assistant cook at the Brendon Hospital, which has twohundred beds. She says they make daily about twelve gallons of milkpudding, soup, porridge, &c., and about five gallons of sauce. The hoursare 6.30 to 1.30, then either 1.30 to 5, or 5 till 9 p.m. She has losther brother at the front. He obtained very urgent and importantinformation, and conveyed it safely back. While telephoning it he washit by a sniper's bullet, but before he passed away he managed to givethe most important part of the message.

  "Gladys Mellor has just had a well-earned holiday after very strenuouswork at the Admiralty. She not only does difficult translation work, buthas learnt typewriting for important special work.

  "Alison Heatley (nee Robson) is in Oxford with her two tiny boys. Shelost her husband in the summer. At the time he was hit he was commandinga company; they had advanced six miles, and were fighting in a Germantrench, when he was shot through the lungs and in the back. He was takento hospital and at first improved, but then had a relapse. Alison waswith him when he died. He is buried in a lovely spot overlooking thesea, with a pine wood at the back. He had been mentioned in dispatchestwice and had won the Military Cross.

  "Evelyn Scott has been transferred from Leabury Red Cross Hospital toKing's Hospital, London. She says she spends the whole of her time inthe ward kitchen, except for bed-making and washing patients. Everythingis of white enamel, and she has to scrub an endless supply of this andhelp to cook countless meals. Evelyn has just lost her fiance. He waskilled by a German shell while on sentry duty. He warned the rest of hiscomrades of the danger, and they were unhurt, but he was killedinstantly.

  "Hester Strong and Doris Hartley were sent to a kindergarten summerschool in Herefordshire, each in charge of three children, to whosephysical comfort and education they had to attend. They lived in littlecottages, and Hester taught geography and botany, and Doris farm study,and they took the children for botanical expeditions.

  "Lilian Roy has finished her motoring course at a training-school forthe R.A.C. driving certificate, and is gaining her six months' generalpractice by driving for a Hendy's Stores. She had her van in the Cityduring the last raid, and took refuge in a cellar. She hopes soon to beready for ambulance work.

  "Annie Barclay is acting quartermaster for their Red Cross Hospital. Sheis always on duty, and has charge of the kit, linen, and stores.

  "You see," continued Winifrede, "what splendid work our oldBrackenfielders are doing in the world. Now I want to turn to some ofour own activities, and I will call upon our games captain and thesecretaries of the various societies to read their reports."

  Stella Pearson, the games captain, at once rose.

  "I think we're getting on fairly well at hockey," she announced. "Allthree teams are satisfactory. The match with Silverton was played inglorious weather. The game was hard and very fast, but there was a greatdeal of fouling on both sides. We scored three goals during the firsthalf, and though our forwards pressed hard, our fourth and last goal wasnot gained till just before the end. We should probably have scored morehad not the forwards been 'offside' so often. At the beginning of thesecond half Silverton pressed our defence hard, and, getting away withthe ball, shot two goals, one after another. Both sides played hard, andthe game was well contested. It was only spoilt by the fouling. When thewhistle went for 'time', the score was 4-2 in our favour, and we foundthat the unexpected had happened and that we had actually beatenSilverton.

  "The match with Penley Club, as you know, we lost, and the match withSiddercombe was a draw, so we may consider ourselves to be just abouteven this term. Next term we must brace up and show we can do better. Wemustn't be satisfied till Brackenfield has beaten her record."

  Reports followed next from the various societies, showing what work hadbeen done in "The General Reading Competition", "The PhotographicSociety", "The Natural History Association", "The Art Union" and "TheHandicrafts Club". Specimens of the work of these various activities hadbeen laid out on tables, and as soon as the reports had been read thegirls were asked to walk round and look at them. Marjorie, in companywith Mollie Simpson, made a tour of inspection. The show was really verygood. The enlarging apparatus, lately acquired by the PhotographicSociety, had proved a great success, and several girls exhibitedbeautiful views of the school. Moths, butterflies, fossils, shells, andseaweeds formed an interesting group for the Natural HistoryAssociation, and the Handicrafts Club had turned out a wonderfulselection of toys that were to be sent to the Soldiers' and Sailors'Orphanage. "The Golden Rule Society" had quite a respectable pile ofsocks ready to be forwarded to the front.

  Marjorie said very little as she went the round of the tables, but shethought much. She had not realized until that evening all thatBrackenfield stood for. She began to feel that it was worth while to bea member of such a community. She meant to try really hard next term,and some day--who knew?--perhaps her name might be read out as that ofone who, in doing useful service to her country, was carrying out thetraditions of the school.