78 



Bird Notes and News 



by the children, and tea, an admirable 

 addiess, with lantern slides, was given by 

 the Rev. D. A. Scott ; and finally there was 

 a grand Christmas tree in the library, from 

 which each child received a present. 



No county had a more enthusiastic and 

 stimulating Festival than that which cele- 

 brated the winning by Ridge of the Hamp- 

 shire Shield, thanks to the unfailing and 

 untiring kindness of Mrs. Suckling, who 

 not only gave extra prizes, but undertook 

 the whole arrangements and expenses. A 

 crowded and influential gathering in Romsey 

 Town Hall on November 20th included 

 members of some half-dozen teams from the 

 neighbourhood, and was throughout of a 

 most enthusiastic character. The Vicar 

 (Rev. H. Martin Tapper) presided, the Shield 

 and other awards were presented by Mrs. 

 Chichester, essays were read, and addresses 

 were given by the Mayor of Romsey, the 

 Director of Education (Mr. Cowan), Admiral 

 Sir John Hopkins, Mr. Keith Henderson 

 (representing the R.S.P.B.), and the Rev. 

 J. E. Kelsall. Mr. Cowan said the victory 

 of a small country school must be a glorious 

 encouragement to others. The greatest pro- 

 tection birds could have, greater than any 

 official Order, was to get children to study 

 them, and the value of the essays lay in their 

 direct observation of nature. Nature study 

 in various forms had been introduced into 

 schools, but no form of it surpassed or even 

 approached the standard attained in the 

 Bird-and-Tree Essays. The teams were 

 entertained to tea at the Temperance Hall 

 by Mrs. Suckling, and next day the Ridge 

 cadets had a festival and tree-planting at 

 their own school. 



Hampshire's Champion Team, the Sholestg 

 Girls' School, winners of the Shield 1909-11 

 and again heading the list this year, also had 

 a very successful Festival, organised by 

 Miss Minns. The prizes were presented by 

 Mrs. J. N. Campbell, and the Director of 

 Education presided. Tribute was paid to 

 the training given by the headmistress, and 

 by Miss Hinder, who was formerly teacher 

 at Long Ashton, when that school carried 

 off the Somerset honours. Six trees, pre- 

 sented by friendly donors, were planted. 



The Somerset Shield-winners, Cleeve 

 School (headmistress. Miss Hockey), had a 

 pleasant time on December 20th. A flower- 



ing acacia was formally planted in the 

 churchyard and the planting hymn sung, 

 after which the Vicar entertained the 

 members of the Team, parents, and teachers 

 to tea at the Vicarage. A crowded meeting 

 in the schoohoom followed, when Mrs. 

 Gibson presented the awards, essays were 

 read, and songs and recitations given. The 

 Vicar, who presided, urged the duty of 

 kindness to animals, and protested especially 

 against the use of the bearing-rein. 



Arbor Day at Mancetter also passed off 

 in a happy and successful manner. The 

 Warwickshire Shield was handed over to 

 the School's care by the Vicar (Rev. T. H. 

 Evans), Miss Heming gave the Team prizes, 

 and a number of local residents attended 

 and took great interest in the proceedings. 

 Colonel Heming (who has a bird sanctuary 

 among the osiers on his estate) entertained 

 the young folk with fascinating stories of 

 birds and trees of other lands, and in con- 

 gratulating the Team and the headmistress, 

 Mrs. Ingram, said that the greatest honour 

 lay, not in the prizes, but in the kind, 

 humane and sympathetic feeling which he 

 hoped would adorn the character of each 

 child through life. The programmes were 

 prettily painted with pictures of birds by 

 the children, and the items rendered included 

 country and morris dances. 



At Princes Risborough (Bucks.) C.E. 

 School two trees were planted, and the 

 feature of the indoor meeting was an in- 

 teresting lecture " Eyes and no eyes," by 

 the headmaster, Mr. S. H. Dyer, with 

 lantern illustrations. 



At St. Peter's Girls School, Bournemouth 

 (Second Prize, Hampshire), the Festival was 

 one of the most successful and largely 

 attended yet held. After a tea, a long 

 programme of plays, songs, and lantern 

 lecture (by Mr. A. W. WiUis) delighted the 

 numerous audience. There were also ani- 

 mated waxworks, including the story of a 

 nest-robbing boy stopped in his career by 

 cadets of the R.S.P.B. Mrs. Ibbett, wife 

 of the Director of Education for the Borough, 

 presented the prizes, and special prizes were 

 given by the school managers and by the 

 headmistress, Miss Firbank. The Rev. Edge- 

 combe Leachman presided. 



At Cargo ^ Cumberland) Miss Donald gave 

 an interesting lantern lecture on Bird-Life, 



