Mayfield Magazine 1962, Issue 24
From the Editorial by G. J. Larcombe: This year our swimming team failed for the first time in five years to qualify for the final of the Schoolboys’ Team Championship of England which we won last year. We congratulate our old rivals Arnot S.M. School, Liverpool who won the Barker Shield this year.
From the Headmaster’s Review by C. F. W. Hicks: A further series of School Journeys is being arranged for this session; to the Youth Hostel at Thaxted around Easter, a Fellowship Camp during Whit week, and to Austria and the Yorkshire moors during next summer vacation. The Choir and the School Band will be visiting the local hospitals during the Christmas season, and during March we are arranging a Musical Evening for parents and friends. This will be a joint function with the Girls’ School and will take place in their new hall.
Contribution List – Click on items shown as links to jump to the entry
The Forge by B. MacLennan
Homework by P. Wademan
The Montagu Motor Museum by T. Smith
Corfe Castle by D. Corfield
The Docks by J. Vincent
The New Forest by R. Arkinstall
Alone In The Cave by P. Vincent
The Rocket by David Barnes
The School Holiday, 1962 by R. J. Kerby
Bad Luck by N. Ingles
Ilford Schoolboys Camp, 1962 by T. Sutton
A Baby Sister by C. Reynoldson
Skill by Mr. Hickie
Chimborozo Cotapaxi by P. Tring
Potters Museum by M. Cottrell
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Corfe Castle by D. Corfield
Corfe Castle is situated centrally on the large and very hilly Purbeck Island, Dorsetshire. It stands on one of the highest and very steep hills, dominating the small hamlet of Corfe, which nestles at the foot of its grassy pedestal.
The tourist makes his way along the narrow, winding roads, which are peculiar to the county, until he reaches a part where the road sinks between two great hills, part of the Purbeck Hills. This line of hills runs through the centre of the island, dividing it into two nearly equal portions. The western half of these hills are the Nine Barrow Down, Challow Hill, Knowle Hill and Purbeck Hill; between Challow and Knowle there is a hollow, in which rises the isolated hill on which Corfe castle stands, or rather, precariously towers. At the foot of this very steep hill is a well positioned picturesque cafe, through the window of which, if one cranes one’s neck a perfect view of the castle, bordered by by the silver birch logs of the casement, can be seen. It is then that the tremendous height of the castle is noticeable; the tall, broken keep at the very top of the hill instantly triggers in the imagination a picture of long, slender fingers stretching out to the heavens.
The castle is over a thousand years old and had it not been undermined with the intention of blowing it up, it would be in incredibly good condition today. The castle when undermined sank nine feet but the towers remain to this day, a constant threat to the cafe owner, as they lean menacingly over, gradually sliding down the almost vertical grassy slope. The castle has remained for a thousand years as it can be seen now, so I do not suppose for one moment that the cafe proprietor is expecting any sudden avalanches of ancient masonry.
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The New Forest by R. Arkinstall
The New Forest covers 92,000 acres and is situated in south west Hampshire. Among the plants that grow on the heaths are bracken, gorse and loosestrife. The county is not all flat but is on average 420 feet above sea level. The forests are separated by heath and farmland.
There are several burial places in the New Forest that date back to the Bronze Age, such as Boltons Bench. There are very strict rules saying that should a man kill a deer, he would also be killed. People of the villages were allowed to collect fuel for their fires only within limits of the forest.
The animals in the forest include Exmoor ponies, fallow, red, roe and Japanese deer and in Boldrewood there are many badgers. The red squirrels of the New Forest are gradually getting wiped out by the American grey squirrels. In the old days, mastiffs were the only large dogs allowed in the forest to protect the deer.
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Ilford Schoolboys Camp, 1962 by T. Sutton
We set out, late one Wednesday evening in July, for a fortnight’s holiday under canvas. For some of us it was our first experience of camping. The journey by train was long and tedious, but we managed to cat-nap in our seats. We arrived at Penzance early on Thursday morning, all bleary eyed but full of eager anticipation for what was to come.
Our first glimpse of the camping site of Marazion revealed a field of long wet grass. Soon however, our tents sprang up and within an hour our tented city appeared.
The weather was not too good, it was rather cold. However we were able to leave camp every day. We managed to visit some of the more interesting places in Cornwall, such as St. Michael’s Mount, Penzance, St. Ives, Newlyn and Mousehole. On finer days we spent most of our time on the beach at Marazion, swimming in the sea and exploring among the rocks.
The Mayfield Group comprising eleven boys and one master, had to take their turn on orderly duty. On that day we had to cook the meals, wash up, and keep the camp generally tidy. Strange to say, we liked the dirty and tedious work and took it as fun rather than an unpleasant chore.
We arrived back from our camp early on Thursday morning two weeks later. We were all sorry it was all over.
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