DLA095-0124  Transcription

‘Speech Day at Midland’s Schools. Rugby Headmaster and India’s Claims’, Birmingham Post, 23 June 1924

Speech Day at Rugby School on Saturday attracted many visitors to the town. The speeches were delivered in the Temple Speech Room, which was filled to excess.

The Headmaster (Mr. W. W. Vaughan) said sometimes speech day was made an occasion for the defence of the public school system, and sometimes for a declaration of policy, but he would of use it for either purpose. The honours gained by the school during the year were noteworthy because of their extraordinary variety, covering as they did almost the whole of the human life of the globe. Rugbeians were active everywhere, and to the welfare of the people they were living amongst. It was rather sad, however, that they had to congratulate only one Old Rugbeian upon entering the Indian Civil Service. There were days when many Old Rugbeians were proud every year to take up these great duties, but it was a little difficult to persuade soul or parents to this now. They should consider, however, whether it was not still the duty of England to send out her very best, as she had done in the past, to the task that India could present to an ambitious man. It was a very difficult task just now, much more difficult, probably, than it bad been for a hundred years, but there was no need to challenge them to difficult tasks, and he hoped some would come forward to prevent failure in India, because failure must come unless Englishmen were ready still to guide—perhaps not quite in the same way as they bad guided in the past—the destinies of India until she was more able than at present to guide her own.

PRINCIPAL PRIZE WINNERS.

D. W. Lucas was awarded the King’s Medal for a recitation on Walpole, and other recitations were …; and two scenes from Moliere’s “Le Médecin Malgré Lui" were acted by A. H. St. M. Dickie, F. K. Roberts, P. L. de Laszlo, K. W. Symington, and E. G. Compton.