•
a I
tEBRUAR~
194Q
2
MATILDA
February. 1940.
LONES' PAGE LONES ASSOCIATION. 'rhose of you who are lucky enough to haye an efficiently working Local ARsociation know the tower of strength and boon they are to eyery Commis sio'ner and District. You will therefore appreciate my anxi ety to gh'e on e to the Lones. In October last year I sent a letter to every Commissioner in Victoria asking for co-operation and in t erest in getting this scheme working. I asked f or one membel' from their own Association to become a financial member of ours, who would interest her!O'elf and help in any way with the Lones in her district. I have received several answers to my appeal, und seyeral names (and postal notes!) of will-be membe,'s. For these I am ve,'y gTateful. Their interest has been yery encouraging. Yet there are many who hm'e not yet answered. As I a)n anxious to have "orne concrete 'cherne fOI'med 'co report at my next Guidel's' meeting, I \yould be very grateful if anyone contemplating' answering could do so soon. I plan to draw the executive from p~ople living in Melboul'ne. who are not .3.lready worked off their feet-(are there any?)-;;o in l'eplying if there is a hope of any who wouiLl be willing io do this extra work, will you tell me? l\Iee~ngs ,,-ould not be necessary more th3.n once every two month",. so the worl, "'oulL1 not he very arduous. Here is hoping!
-l\r. FLiJ'_-\lTIB.\ITIi\".
:0:- - - -
LONES. Dear Lones,'Veil Christmas with all its l'ejoicing and fun has passed once lHore. The holidays are almost over and another year confronts us with all the things we intended doing in the first flush of our New Year resolutions. I wonder how many we shall a chieve, Someone said to me "New Ycar resolutions are only made to be broken." I am afraid mine have e\-en now almo~t reached that ;;tage. Of the three I made I have broken one already, the second I have ignored, saying to myself ther~ is l)lenty of time left to fulfil it, and
the third was only a safeguard. e\'el' intended to break it,
I don't think I
I hope it hasn't been the same with you!
All the samE' I do think an occasion'll c3.reful re\-ision of ourselves isn't a bad scheme. And ,,'hat better time than the New Year to do it? Or our special Guide Thinking D::ty, which is almoRt upon us? \\hat clo YOU intend doing on Thinking Day? Not merely a spcchl good deed which will make you glow with coml1lacancy lI.nd self-righteousness. no\. something that when it is ove,' it is ended, and you feel nothing' more is required of you until next February 22nd '? Let it be something which Sends out roots. Roots which not only strengthen the tree but gather the goodness of the I'oil around so that ill time they can enrich it. In strengthening ourselves only can we be of use to those around us.
T::tlking of trees this is the month when our great heritage-the gum-comes into its own. They may be shaggy, untidy, irreglllar, despised by lovers of the imported varietie;;. yet none can deny the breath-taking beauty of a gum in flower. Red, pink, peach, cream, white, they are ours for the cultivating. As I write thel'e is one below me, a mass of creamy blossom, the bees making :.t lazy droning as they search for its honey. Ha\:e you e\' er s melt the whole' orne scent of gums after rain? Has their shape, dark against a summer sUllset, neyer thrilled you? Or the ('olonr of freshly peeled bark and new gt'Owth of lea\'es gladdened you? Because they are so familiar I think we 9.l"e apt to accept them casually, and not appreciate them as they deserve. I'Ve strive hard to reach the stars that "'e often miss the more precious things that are ours for the gT3.sping. I "'ould like to see them in every garden, and joy to the passer-by just as much as to the ownel¡.
"0
Here again we Lones have the advantag'e over our city- friends. To us in particular has been given the heritage of gums in their natur9.1 setting; surely then the responsibility of cherishing and fostering them should ren with us! How about making one of our particular ta~ks for Thinking Day the planting of a flowering gum?
Printed by the Hilton Press Ltd., 223-25 Moray Street, South Melbourne, S.C,5,
-M.R.F.
"Matilda" An Official Treasure Balr of Guidera' Information for Guidera of Victoria, Australia. Price: 3/- Per Year; 4/- Posted. Sinlrle Copie., 6d. each. Editor: E. H. PURNELL, 10 Hermitage Road, Geelong. Contributions should reach the Editor not later than the 18th of each month,
VOL. XVI.
FEBRUARY, 1940.
THINKING DAY. The 22nd February has been instituted as one day in the yea!' on which to put aside our absorption in routine affairs and to devote our minds to THINKING, LOOK BACK, LOOK AROUND, LOOK FORWARD. The Chief Scout.
-------000------MEETING OF GUIDERS' OOMMITl'EE.
Held at Headquarters, 19/1/'40. Present.--Mrs. Knight (chair). Mrs. Thomas, Misses Lucas, Young, Broadhurst, Oxley, Weickhardt, Niquet, Harrison and Watson. Main business was further discussion of plans for 1940 Conference, which is to be residential. It is hoped that it will be possible to hold it; at the Guide House. So that members may be known as accurately as possible, Divisional Commisioners are reminded that a nswers to the circular sent by the Committee in December are requested by the first week in February. Preliminary discussion in r egard to the formulating of Rules or By-laws for the Committee took place. The next meeting will be held on 9th February at 7.45 p.m.
-------000------CALLING ALL GUIDES. TID'; Q EEN VISITS IMPF.RIAT.J
HEADQUARTERS, "Knitter's Badge-I expect a lot of those are being, earn ed these days!" Her Majesty the Queen paused at the centre pages of the Novembel' 9th "Guide," and looked up with a smile that was, d efi nitely, mischievous. She was standing in th e library at Imperial Headquarters, a nd our papeJ' h ad just been pl'e -
NO. 8.
sented to h er. Know it? Of course she knew it! Her Majesty, you must remember, was a District Commissioner-a keen and practical Guider, before h er marriage--and the Princesses have "The Guide" sent to them every week. 1 'watched her holding our funny little warshortened magazine, looking at it with the close attention she brings to everything which inte rests her, and I wished so much that every one of you could have seen her, too. She was looking very lov ely, as y<>u can see from the pictul¡es. Her velvet coat and her hat wel'e of a rich, warm ' purple, that was like violets in the shadow, and d ee p plum colour in the light. Against it her silver Guide badge shone like a little star. Before she arrived on that bright autumn afternoon, we had all been very busy, preparing Imp erial Headquarters to receive her, and arranging th e great sheafs of chrysanthemums :;ent up from Foxlease, for the occasion. We we re all excited, and some of us a little shy. (One do es not, after all, meet the Queen every day.) But from the moment she entered the building, all sense of shyness vanished. How can one be shy of a Queen, who exclaims, happily, as she passes through the ranks of a gual'd of honour, drawn up to receive her"Oh, don't they look nice? They all look so pretty." One young L<>ne Guider, who had been detailed to show specimen Lone Letters to Her Majesty, put the matter in a nutshell when she :;aid"I just forgot I was talking to a Queen. She might have been a new recruit to the - Lones, she was just as easy to talk to!" No one was more impl'esed by this happy informality, impossible in almost any other country in the wOl'ld, than Madame Malkowska, the Chief Guide of Poland. We, in England, . do achieve, in a funny way, impressive moments, that do not depend on any ceremony whatever, but simply on the real feeling behind th e m. Such a moment came in the Council Cham bel', when HeI' Majesty in:vested
MATILDA Madame with the Bronze Cross. I have often told those of you who have not seen it fOl' yourselves, about that beautiful, oak-pannelled room, where the great Councils of our Association a r e held. I told you how, at the beginning of war, we took down the portraits of OUI' Chiefs, to store them in safety. Well, for the c'eremoiiy on November th e 14th, those Her portraits were brought out again. Majesty was facing the portrait of the Chief Scout, throughout the presentation, and that kindly, wise face smiled down upon us again, watching one of the most historic scenes that has ever taken place in our Movement, when a Queen of England, herself a Guide, and a mother of Guides, presented the highest possible award for bravery to th e leader of Guiding in a heroic, allied Nation, in recognition of the courage displayed by Guides of all ages during a terrible testing time. "I give you this Cross for the Guides of Poland-No one has earned it more than you," the Queen said gravely, as she pinned th e V.C. of the Guid es to the grey Po lish uniform . (The Bronze Cross is very, very rarely given. It ranks highet¡ than the Silver Cross, which, as you all know, has b een presented this year for acts of quite remarkable courage and endurance. As far as I know, it has never before been given to a Guide of a foreign country). After the prese ntation, the Queen made an extensive tour of the building. She was shown the diffe rent departme nts at work, and was specially pleased when, in registrations, she was told that 178 new Companies had been registered among the evacuees since the outbreak o f war. She was also interested in the blanket, made from knitte d squares, which two members of the staff were busily sewing up in their offduty time. She remarked on the amount of work in it- a comment many of you can vouch for as t r ue these days! In th e library a display of photographs showed Hel' Majesty what you al'e all doing. She saw you filling sandbags, carrying messages, cooking in an infirmary, minding babies, meeting evacuees, keeping school for the tinies -in fact, hard at work on all the hundred and o~e odd jobs that have come your way since the outbreak of wal'. She approved of it all, and remarked that the spirit behind it was exactly what is neede(l at this time. After having tea in th e restaul'3.nt and going
February, 1940.
ove r the air raid shelters and first aid station, th e Queen spent some tim e in the shop, where she bo~ght a who le selection of toys and woollies, made by Extension Guides. When at last, the visit was at an e nd, and she had to leave us, she c ongt'atulate d those in charge on the work of the whole Movement. "It is splendid-and I know they will keep it up," she said. The Guides must catTy on, what evel' happe ns." The cheel's that echo ed as she drove away, must h ave told her by th eir heartiness, that we mean to. Those of us who were there, were cheering for all of you, everywheretown Guides, country Guides, Lones, Extensions-because we know what your answer to such a chall e nge would be.-J:o~rom every corner of the Empire at this moment, we answer the Qu een-Empl'ess who wears our badge"Whateve r h appens- th e Guides will CatTY on!"
-From "The Guide."
- - - 000,- - - -
A LETTER FROM THE CHIEF GUIDE I am writing this to you a ll in September, from ou r littl e hom e in Kenya, where the sun is a lways shining, but wh ere mai\s al'e now few a nd far between. Up to this moment of writing, I have had no news ft'om England, apart from a cab le [t'o m Headquarters, since the middle of August, and am therefore completely in the d a t'k as to how you are all faring, and details of what you are doing, although I know that OUI' Movement has I'esponded well to the call to service. Our thoughts a r e constantly with you, though for once I 9.m strangely cut off from you all and feel deep pangs of anxiety a t not being alongside you in this time of stress. Th e ea l' ly days of August saw us both away In camp in the Masai Reserve enjoying a wonder ful holiday in the midst of that grand country abo unding in wild game of all sorts. Our safal'i ove t¡, we retul'ned to civilisation and mails a nd mid-August brought us a specially fine spate of inte resting good news of Scouting and Guiding. Though living all this tim e away from active pal'ticipation in YOUl' doings, the Chief and I d e light as fully as ever In all th e progress a nd success of Scouts and (}uides eve rywh e r e. DUI'ing this last yea I' too,
MATILDA
February, 1940.
things seemed to be so definitely on the upgrade, The Chief and I were so revelling in this good news of present happenings, and were rejoicing over the many good plans for the future as well. In South Africa, arrangements were afoot for the "Ndaba Nkulu" for Guides and Wayfarer-Guides from all over the Union; New Zealand was to celebrate its centenary with a vel'y special Camp and Exhibition fOl' as many Guides as possible; a Wolf Cub Conference was to take place in Poland in 1940; the World Guide Conference was fixed to be held in France next year; and over and above all these things, for us personally, 1940 was to be rather special as we were ,planning to retul'n to England to have a great re-union in our own home of our children and our gl'andchildren who would be on leave then from Rhodesia, and I was looking forward to attending some Guide Rallies in our home-land once more after so long an absence,
,
It seems well nigh impossible to believe that
this was but a short month ago, and that in a flash we should see our country whirled by necessity into the misery of war, Having been in England through the crisis of September, 1938, we clung for days to the hope that it might again be averted and that sanity and justice would win through and overwhelm the forces of evil, hatred and cruelty, Everything that we have in us of courage and determination must now be harnessed into facing this war-and the ultimate winning of it- so that the shadow of feal' and anxious insecurity that was beginning to dominate Europe shall be for ever flnished, Looking far into the future one can visualise and hope that in due course the wave of supernationalism that had flooded Europe, as reaction to that very fear, will then die down once more and 'be replaced by a new spirit of tolerance and international goodwill. This will be for the time when the conflict is over and one hopes a new Cl'a may dawn bl'inging peace throughout the world, In the meantime, every Guide and Guider will, I am sure be doing all she can to help wherever her help is most needed, and all will be giving of their splendid best to King and Country, In thinking continually about our Movement and all its members, my first rc-action was a
6
great anxiety for the safe continuance of the many Companies who will be left leaderless with a high proportion of our trained Guiders otherwise engaged "for the duration." But my second thoughts have been optimistic, for I feel that we may somehow manage to "gain on the swings what we lose on the roundabouts" and that numbers of women will be stirred to help the Guides to carryon and to act as understudies to those who have taken up other most urgent war work, A lso can we not feel confident that many of our oldel' Patrol Leaders will rise to the occasion and keep theil' companies going, and even probably raise them in strength through recruiting into our ranks more young girls who will wish to "do their bit" in our Movement which is so universally known to be worth while, and so truly pledged for service to the country, This time ahead of us will be an acid test of the stability of Guiding and those who go from our ranks to othel' ol'ganisations will carry with them the good name of the Guides and the good will of all their fellow Guides in the many exacting tasks that they will be called on to tackle, , We know that the stl'Uggle will be a hard one with the toll of anxiety and worry and sorrow and suffering as the terrible penalties of war, and all these heavy weights upon us will call fOl' as much courage and fortitude llS even the hal'dships to , be endured by the fighting forces, As a Movement, our flrst great sorrow comes with the news of the heavy losses suffered by the Polish Guides, I remembel' so well the reception that they gave us on the Baltic C l'uise and the high standard of their Guiding, The Chief and I know that they will have met the terrible tt'ials of war with the same steadfast spirit that inspired all their work, Throughout our own Empire I believe that the lessons of Guidership will help us aU in the dark days, The courage that has been needed in your Guide work, the self-sacrifice, the patience, the endurance and the faith in your aUotted task. will all st rengthen you in what yOU have to do, May God help us, as we strive more than ever at this moment to fulfill our Guide Prom ise to the utmost, OLA VE BADEN -POWELL, -Front "The Guider."
MATILDA GUIDE WAR WORK.
Situation Vacant. WANTED.-A Secretary, young, enthusiastic, with initiative, e nergy and a sense of humour; must be an opener of purses, drive hel' own tl'uck, be a movel' of bales and boxes, take an intelligent interest in other peop les' children, supply her own biscuits and rubber. Hours: 9.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. wages, appreciation. -M.L.
---000--NURSING OVERSEAS. It is interesting to note that at least three of the Nursing staff chosen to accompany th e 2nd A.I.F. on service overseas w e re at one time Guides in 1st Geelong Company, they are Sisters Tisdall and Vines and Miss Duigan, Masseuse. These three are amongst the 4.2 chosen from hundreds of applicants. Another one-time Guide in 1st Gee long, Shi rl ey Bechervaise, is a lready in l'I'ance with the B.E.F. she, too, is nursing. -S.H.I.
-------000------GUIDES IN FRANCE. Having read in the "Gu id ers" of th e service English Guides are giv ing in war-time it is fitting that we should j<now a lso what work our fellow-Guides in France are doing. The fo llowing is taken from an article in a September number of "Vu," which was written by Mademoise ll e Mouchon, Assistant )lational Commissioner of the French l!'ed eration of i.
Eclai reuses."
In l~rance, Scouting and Guiding both work in two sections, the Protestant, call ed the "Eclaireurs" a nd the "Eclaireuses" respectively and the Roman Catholi c, the " Sco uts" and the '~Guides." The re is a joint Committee for liaison between the Guide Associations. 'l'hroughout France, Scouts and Eclaireurs have been put a t the disposal of the Department of Agricultul'e to gather in the harvest and the Guides and Eclaireuses, und e r the Minister of Public Health, to h elp, in a ny way any anywhere, with fam ili es and ch ildren evacuated from their homes. ' The evacuation question in France is com¡ plicated by the fact that it conce rns not on ly moth e rs and children from Paris, but a lso the wom e n and ch ildren from Alsace and Lorraine as these' a l'e no w military areas . . Having been
February, 1940.
under German rule from 1870 to 1919 the manners, customs a nd speech a re different, they realised this and it all added to their distress in their lon g journey across France. They asked such questions as, how will they we lcome us in the new place? Will we look after the cows thel'e? Th e friendliness of the Guides and the welcome they received at the various junctions r eassul'ed them and they tool{ heart again. National Service for the Guides lltarted on 25th August when, at the Gare de L'Est farewelling Roumanian Guides who had camped \vith them, they saw arriving, from the Eastern frontier women burdened with children and hand baggage; the Guides stayed with them, h e lping them in every way possible until the ned C ross people a rriv e d. At all the Paris stations so cial service workers are no\\" in chal'ge, Guiders and Guides work undel' their direction, in several cases the social workel' he l'self is a Commissioner. Th e people alTiving are checked by the social workers; sick children are looked afte r; later the Guides meet th e families, take their baggage and see them into th e ir pl'oper trains and carriages. One small cUI'ly-haired boy was discovered weeping, centre of a gl'OUP of young so ldi e rs, the Guide l' comfo rte d him and led him thl'ough th e station, until a weeping woman flung herself on the Guider and smothered with kisses both ch ild and rescuel¡. In a suburb of Paris the mayor appealed to the Ec laireuses and theil' Guiders for help as the social workers were overwhelmed in the wOl'k of evacuation. Each Guider organised a group; the lead er, from 5 a.m., cycled through the area visiting each house, seeing that a ll were ready and their belongings securely tied up , others of the group followed took the women a nd ch il dren to th e station a nd handed them over to those responsible for taking them to their new destination. At the beginning of September many con, voys of school children were sent away from Paris undel' the charge of their teachers; these \\" el'e not sufficient for the numbers and in many eases Guides were added as helpel's. After a 15 or 20-houl' joumey the group wou ld an'ive at a village school, perhaps only partly prepared for them very ofte n with not enough beds an d often w ith inadequate sanitation. 1"01' a Guider used to camping it was a simple matter to improvise wash p laces, palliases and places for drying towe ls. Aftel' that she col lected the c hil d I'en , played scoutin g games,
February, 1940. gave them country dancing, while the teacher faced the other problems of settling in. Many Guiders, who are chemists by pro fession, are working in a National Defence team for the detection of poisonous gases. Others will be responsible for the general atmosphere of confidence during the hours passed in air raid shellers. Another Guidel', a doctor, has been appointed to equip and arrange an important 1st Aid Post. A young Guider, in a big town in the military zone writes of her experience. All the mothers and children were being evacuated from this area, there was no room at the Station where they might rest while waiting perhaps many hours for their trains. This Guider, just graduated from her social service course, and a young companion went direct to the Prefect and explained the need for a social centre at the station. The same day a hut was provided, the next day the rest of the equipment arrived; they then had an infol'mation bureau, rooms for a creche, a kindergarten, a place of rest for the mothers, anothel' for oldel' children where they could obtain milk, bread and chocolates. This article was written for the public and Mdlle. Mouchon ends it by giving the aims of Guid ing and Scouting and says "We do not lose sight of the fact that, in time of trouble as in time of peace, our role is to train the youth of to -morrow and that we sho~ld develop and strengthen their characters by helping them to forget themselves completely in service (01' others. We wish to keep to the [ore amongst the young generation this cult of true spiritual values. It takes form for us in the first part of our Promise, duty to God or to a selfless idea. Translated by M.M.
----000, - - - -
GUIDING IN INDIA. The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh are much the same size as Victol'ia; and with thc exception of one district in China it is the most densely populated region in the world. Most of the people live on the land; they work in the fields a ll day, and at nig'ht sleep in villages in houses made of dried mud. There are not many schools for girls in the
M AT I LD A
7
villages, but there are a few, and in these we are just beginning to have Guides. It is not eaÂťy to be a Guider in a village. Just imagine you readers of Matilda, what you, who have known books since- your childhood would feel like if you were suddenly put down to run a company of Guides, and there was no possible way of finding out how to do it. There may be a Company in the next village; but if this is so the Guider cannot go to see them, this is not possible yet, and probably the Guidel' cannot read, or if she can how can she buy books when a farm labourer's wage is 3d. per day? Until recently the Guide boo\5.s werc published in English, the village Guider may speak a couple of languages but Bnglish would not be one them. There is no Indian language. Two schools in the same street may often do all their work ill" different languages. ,T he village Guider looks forwal'd to the visit of the Trainer who comes perhaps once a year to see the Guides. The Trainer cannot speak any of the languages, she must do all hel' wOl'k through an interpreter; she is a foreigner, she wears shoes, short dresses, and walks bareheaded through the streets unashamed, a thing that no respectable Indian does. The childl'en are thrilled, but the Guider is shocked and shy and it looks at first as if the visit is not to be a success. Presently the vistor produces balls and plays a game with the children. This is fun; she mixes her tenses, she sayÂť "he" when she means "she," some of the words that she pronounces so badly do not sound like any language at a ll-"Memsahib's Hindustani" the children call it. The ice is broken and soon the Guider is telling her troubles. The Bluebirds have, had their nice blu,e saris for two years and now they know all that the Guider can teach them-all that she learned when she was a Guide at the 'l'raining sehool hersel L How do they get enrolled? Wou ld the Miss Sahib enrol them? Yes, of course she would, now th is minute. But, where do badges come from'l They are here, the Trainer always has a stock. The Bluebirds are enrolled. Solemnly they stand with one hand ~n the Bluebird tree their eyes cast modestly down as they have been taught little Indians girls shou ld; a.nd happily they join in the "Buria
8
February, 1940.
MATILDA
Salaam"-the Grand Salute before they fly to their nests. "Now you must go to camp" says the Trainer firmly, and a discussion follows on ways and means. Camp (a training week) costs Rs 3/8
01'
5 shillings in Australian money for 12 days,
and this is generally beyond the means of the Guiders, and the L.A., or if there isn't one the Province must help. Whel'e do we get our money? Just the same ways that you do, and the Government helps by giving a grant, while the Education Department gives the teachers leave to attend camps during school time. OUl' camps do not expect to pay their way; but on the other hand our expenses are very mueh lower than yours in spite of the fact that we must have several sel'vants to do the work that in Australia the Guiders do themselves. There is no water laid on, no nice clean taps that you can drink from. The patient oxen work all day lifting watel' from a well; it is carried in the skin of buffaloes by men whose forefat hel's were water carriers before the dawn of history. Indian girls are very sheltered; at first it takes all a Guider's courage to attend a camp and leave her husband and babies at home. Sometimes her husband 01' brother comes too and lodges in the village near the camp; he is alway very polite to the Trainet' when he comes to call, and he is always most appreciative of all that is done for her comforthis wife's comfort I mean. It says mueh for Guiding that many a Guider comes to camp because her husband has encouraged her to come and learn many useful things; this a few years ago would have been out of the question. Even to-day Indian girls do not go away from home often, so that when she arrives in the camp and finds that the Trianer is the only person she has ever met before she feels tenibly strange, and she clings to the hand of this person from another land who cannot Ilpeak to her, who can never eat her food, whose touch would pollute hers, and who offends the Indian sense of modesty in a dozen ways. Gradually they sort themselves out. We mix Communities in patrols, and a llow them to eat and sleep together.
Hindus, if orthodox, may not eat with others, they do not eat meat, fish or eggs. Befol'e a meal they must bathe and put on clean clothes. Their food is cooked for them by a Brahman cook who lives and cooks in a little hut which is "clean" in a religious sense to the Hindus. No foot may go inside it, and if even a shadow ' falls upon it the food is thrown away. The shadow does no harm, but it means that a person has necessarily passed too close. 'l"'he early Hindu teachers made hygiene a pal¡t of theil' religion; and it is owing to the strict adhel'ence to these rules that the Hindus have continued as a race in spite of all the times that they hav.e been conquel¡ed. The sessions are much the same as in Aus tralia. More time is spent in Bluebird work because we have fewel' children who go to school after the age of 10. We have Bluebirds instead of Brownies in India because, although there are fairies in some parts of India they differ very much, and in some pal'ts are so unpleasant that no child would wish to have anything to do with them. TO BE CONTINUED.
-------000------A LONG MIRROR IN CAMP. TO THE EDITOR. Dea.r Edilor,Summer camps have once more brought . many unbecoming unifol'ms with them, proving again that evidently vel'y few Guiders and Rangers have a dress rehearsal at home before packing up, otherwise, why are the most unlovely and largest legs so often briefly covered by the most unbecoming style of shorts? The additional freedom gained, I imagine, is negligible and the discomfort considerable both for the wearers and the onlookel's. I suggest that we now add to our equipment-one long mirror, to be placed in a prominent p lace on the camp site-and feel sure that after one cam p many Guiders will decide to leave shorts to the very young and slendel" Yours, etc. J.P.
February, 1940.
MATILDA
TESTS. In the Sign Post page of the January "Matilda," you will have read of New Year resolutions, and I would like this month to give you some suggestions which may be helpful in carrying out these resolutions. Gu id es will return to Company meetings ell.ger to learn and do; the second class people in particular will be thinking of Badge work. In making a start with Proficiency Badges, it is wise, helpful and encouraging to suggest working for at least one Badge which is needed tor the first class test. When Guides are choosing the Badges, do let them s tudy the requirements in the latest P.O. and R.; practical alterations have been made to various Badges in recent years, e.g., it is not always realised that it is not sufficient just to have articles ready for the Needlewoman Badge, two sections of the test must be d emonstrated before the examiner, and the Guide should be prepared for this; the same applies to the Knitters' Badge . Th e work for these two Badges should be finished before e ntering or so nearly finished that the Guide is sure that she will be ready in time. Guiders are not expected to prepare Guides for all the various Badges, but they should see that they are helped when necessary and are really ready for the test when it is arranged. I hop e a gl'cat many Guides will obtain their First Class Badge this year: this means solid individual work. You can be shown what to do, but the rest d epends on how you pl'actise. For instance, the hike-what is expected is put very clearly in P.O. and R., but I do not think it is always realised just how much the test implies, Can you amuse and instruct two companions without thinking and planning how best to use the' time at your disposal ? Will you be able to organise, cool, and serve an adequate meal without a great deal of PI'aCtice? For a beginning, a small group can worl< on their own at a Company hike and late I', if local conditions permit, P.L. can take h er two companions for a practice hike, a backyard can be very useful for cooking a meal. The First Class Badge ranks as a Proficiency Badge, and the Guidel' neither tests nor al'ranges directly herself for the testing of the Guide. This should be done in the first place through the Commissioner. Once the Commissionel' knows she may 'wish th e Guider to
9
get in touch with the tester. We hope some day to have at least one First Class tester in each Division. Guides here have not had the same opportunities for National Service as in England and France, but at least we can prepare Qurselves to be of use and by working steadily at Test and Badge work we are going the best way about it, and will be ready for any opportunities that may come our way. -M. MOORE. ------~0 00-------
Editor: ELSIE SYDES.
Cam ping days h ave come and gone, and brought with th e m many opportunities of studying' Nature, 01' pel'haps it would be better Lo sa~' of seeing Nature at home. The following notes are from the Ballarat Camp at Ocean Grove.
Feathered Friends. The ti-tree was a fine home for the birds. I saW' the Yellow Robin feeding his young one and anothe r day heard a clear, single note repeated several times, very sweet and strong, and it was my friend the Robin. I had forgotten this note was his. Do you know it? Goldfinches Wflre pl entiful. Blue Wrens, Kool<abllrras laughing in the distance, Seagulls on the shore, Swallows ever pl'esent in the sky above. There were many other birds, but the ones I want to mention specially are the Little Thornbill, because he is common and you ought to see him somewhere or other in your (ravels and also because he is sucb a sweet little bird; rather hard to obsel've because ' he is a fidg'et; no distinctiveness about him, except perhaps his smalln ess and his small shal'p beal" H e seems to live in a small flock unless he had his family with him and moves unceasingly amongst the leaves, sea l'ching them thoroughly and picking off small insects too small for us to see. LeacJ1. has his l ength at 3.5, a ll I know is that he is
'10
MAT I L D A
very small. My notes taken from a friendly one who sat on the shower pipe, describe him as browny colour, yellowy sides and yellowish looking underneath. Actually he is a dull olive shade above with a browny gray tail. but I didn't know just quite how to describe the olive brown shade that he is. He is a noisy little fellow and keeps up a loud "Tiz, tiz, tiz," which is louder when he sees an enemy in the form of a human. He also has a loud sweet single note and maybe other notes which as yet I haven't learnt. We have these little birds in our garden in Ballarat, and I saw them, up at the Guide House, too. Black or Fork-tailed Kite.-I wrote of this remarkable bird two years ago when' l had the g ood fortune to watch one in the. Western Dist r ict. This time I saw it at Ocean Gro,:"e down by. the sea, and at. first could hardly believe it to be a bird-it re'!lained motionless for so lon g. However, I walked nearer to it and pres ently it- changed its position. I then timed how long it remained in the one spot with just t he slightest movement of the tail and wing tips to maintain its balance, and it remained like this for one minute at least, then it gave a fluttering of its wings and hung for anothel' minute in the same spot. These remarkable birds feed on insects, and are therefore very valuable, and on no account should they be d es troyed. -Cranky Fan or Grey Fantail.-I mention him because he is such a friendly and amusing little fellow-performing all sorts of evolutions. flying Into one's face and altogether earning his name of "cranky fan." He was a daily visitor at our cookhouse. Rufous Whistler and Wife.-Both these visited our site. The male is such a gay fellow with his b lack head and distinct chest band separating his white throat from his beautiful rufou s breast that you don't expect the plain gray looking bird with the streaked breast to be his wife; she is so entirely different. Mr. and Mrs. Scarlet Robin.-We saw these a lso, and here again noticed the difference in the two birds-the male gay with colour and the female a modest p lain little bird. Butcher Birds.-Before changing over to the in sects we saw, I must mention the glol'ious s inging of these birds, full and rich and beautifu l. Do you know them by thei r voices? THE SEA E I JEP HANT (not the on e you are thlnJdng ot).
February, 1940. One day at camp we went for a ramble on
the rocks, and it being low tide we' found many shells and interestingi creatures.
The most in-
tel'esting of all was the jet black creature we found underneath a small roclc
Covering pal·t
of his back was a small flat shell.
Around this
shell 'l.nd covering him all over was a blacl, "skirt." When undisturbed the "skit·t" covered the shell completely, but when we stroked him gently the "skirt" divided and Slipped apart showing the shell. It also lifted up and from under it he produced a short trunk at the end of which :was a mouth or at least a round hole which we supposed to be a: mouth. Two long horns like snail's horns also appeared on either side of this trunk. Above! the trunl, and beneath the "skirt" there was a hole which lead into a cavity between the lower pal·t of the creature and the "skirty" part. The sea elephant slithered along the rock like a large slug, and clung like a limpet. PARAGRYLLACRIS. We found two of these fearsome-looking creatures, or rather they found us, for the lantern light attracted one of them. The Guides found the other one in their tent in the daytime, but perhaps the light brought it there in the night. This ereatul'e was remarkable fOI' two long feelers about four inches long and brown in COIOUl', a fat striped body of a greenIsh colour, the stripes being brown; a beautiful egg placer; four wings folded against the body. but very pretty when unfolded and held erect: a fearsome-looking head like a mantis's in shape and with two very powerful jaws-you should have heard the noise when he bit the point of my propelling pencil-I treated him with respect and not. a little alarm after that; the head also had four tiny little feet near the jaws, used like feelers . I let one go to. the titree. and it was most interesting to watch his method of climbing-he put out his front pail' of legs and grasped the distant twig, then getting a firm hold brought up the middle pair of legs. finally releasing the third pair of legs which had been holding to the last twig. -M. FINDLOW (loth Ballarat).
-------000------FORTHCOMING EVENTS. February 22nd: Thinking Day.
February, 1940.
MATILDA
11
(Editor: Margaret Haseltine.)
'l'he key to s uccessful education is not so much to teach the pupil as to get }Iim to learn for himself. -The Chief Scout. BREVITIES. If you are r eall y interested in Guides a nd Brownies everywhere, your Pack will catch something of the spirit of Thinking Day.
Does your Pack seize every opportunity to meet outdoors? Nature from a hall is only second-hand. When you use other people's ideas for you I' Pack, adopt tho details to suit your own Brownies. Every month fOI' the com ing year the Brownie Page will publish a programme for a Pack meeting suitable for that month. W e start off with one suitable for both Thinking Day a.nd Australia togethel'.
----000,- - - A PROGRA)DfE FOR FEBRÂŁ: ARY.
"Do you know that there are lots of Brownies in t h e world who haven't any idea what Austmlia is lik e?" asks Brown Owl, and works the discussion rounel to the idea that it would he fun to magie some of them to OUI' meeting. so Lh('y cou ld sec for themselves Ho\\¡-"Well. first, arc we a ll tidy?" 1 NSPF.CTTON. 'I'l1<'n let's mal,e 0111' Ring which is the shape of th e world, too, and say a magic charm. If ('ach Six says one lin e, it's easy to remember, then Fairy Ring because all Bl'owilies h ave that, so our visitors will feel at home.
FATl'tY lUNG. (Tune: "We're the Brownies.") Brownies all around the world We think of you to-day. We wish you could be h e l'c with us To share our work and play. SUBRCRIPTIONS. Bl'own Owl puts a big map of Austmlia in the middle of the Ring and we point out where we are and tell why we have a kangaroo and seven pointed star on our new pennies, which we throw on the map, se eing on which State they land. Our visitors are Burprised that it is so warm because It Is icy cold in the north at this time of the year, so let's all go to the beach and collect she1ls. GAME-SHEUJ GATHERING. Shells or othel' small objects are scattered along by a fence, wall or path. One Six are waveR and th ey wash along In front of this, tl'ying to touch the shell gatherers. They try to get shells by running and picking them up between waves; anyone touched before she has a shell or while still bending is wet, and must go and change (take off tie and put on again pl'op<?rly) before she can play again . When a Six has gathered eight shells, they change places with' the waves. S'l'ORY. The littlc blacl, boy Yundi was showing off to his sister Pabeeda. "When I gl'Ow up," he said, "I shall be a great tracker, greater than our father Lagoomi. Even now I can read on the earth who has passed o \'e I ' it. See! Hel'e is the track of old 'VVaugani. There is the white man going to fetch his cow and here he follows it home. I shall be a mighty hunter-
12
MATILDA
the sun and the stars shall show me my way, and the earth shall tell me where the kangaroos and emus are, and I shall hunt them with my spear and boomerang." "Can I, too?" asked Pabeeda. "You! No, you'll only be a lubra when I am a warrior. You can only hunt for yams and grubs: but when I bring meat you shall cook ill in hot sand and ashes. Now I go and practise throwing spcars." Pabecda wishcd she 'were a boy, too. She had l;een eyes lil,e her fathel' and brothershe, too, would read thingR in the dust. There was the track of the white child going away from her home all alone, where and why was she going, the tmck should tell. Sure enough there was a broken piece of billy button; she was picking flowers. Only the faint crushing of the grass, freshly broken sticks and footprints on bare patches marked the trail, but Pabeeda was able to follow, on and on, and notice, too, that the sun was sinkin/li fal' away to her left. s;oon the track became muddled where the child had turned bacl, , crossed 'and re-crossed her own track and wandered off. The footmarks were deeper and the track twisty now with many dropped flowers. "Little white girl lost and frightened, she run and not know way. Pabeeda find her and take her home," she thought, calling "Cooee" as loudly as she could till fal' away to hel' right she heard an answer, and soon she could see the blue dl'css of Susie, the little white girl. "Pabeeda tal{e you home," she told Susie, whose face and hands were scratched and streaked with tears and dirt. "We follow tJ'acks back again!" But Susie was tired, and it was getting so dark that even Pabeeda's sharp eyes couldn't see the signs. Yungi had told her stories of Bunyips who came out of creel,s at night-perhaps she wouldn't be able to find the way home, perhaps they'd meet a Bunyip. "I'm so tired and thirsty; T wish I had a drink!" said Susie. Not far away Pabeeda saw a line oC trees and scrub, watel' perhaps, but snal<es went there to drink at night and there might be Bunyips. "You wait here, I get dl'ink in hat," she said, and crept through the bushes expecting something to grab her any minute. Into the wate r went Susie's hat, anu she carried it full and dripping to where Susie waited. Aftm'
February, 1940.
a good drinl; they both felt better and the stars were coming out, "The sun and stars sball show me my way," Yungi had said, and the sun had been on hel' left most of the time, so now the stars shaped 1i1;e a white boy's kite wel'c pointing the way home. Taking Susie's hand sbe went boldly forward, and soon they heard shouts and saw lights, and there were their fathers come to find them. Lagoomi had followcd the track by torch light. "Pabeeda wasn't a hit fl'ightened, and 1 wasn't vel'y, after she found me," said Susie. ¡ "But how <lid you find her and how did you know the way back?" asked Susie's father. "My father is a great tracker, my brother is learning to be a gl'eat tracket" and I, too, can "ead things in the eal'th and in the stars," said Pabeeda. GAME. Now we show OUI' visitors with stones the gl'OUP of stars, called the E''Outhern CI'OSS, which Pabeeda knew pointed to the South Pole. There's a gl'oup of stars near the North Pole called the Great Bear-let's playa game about them, Nortb and South.
In the south south sky on a cleal' hl'ight nig-ht. Our Southern Cross is shining bright, But the cold north sky has a st.aI'l'Y beal' Who'll ehase us home if we go up there. One Brownie is the heal' and stands to the north of the others with hel' back turned, They creep up singing the I'hyme to "John Peel," till she tUl'ns and chases them. First caught becomes bear. HA1'I-nICRAFT.
Make something Australian eithel' drawn on bark or papcr, scratched on the ground made of nuts, cones and sticks or of flour and salt paste. Brown Owl, Tawny and Pack Leader produce some things from other countries, such as our visitors might have made. CI,oSING. "Brownies who have been with us In fancy for a while, Tal<e home from us all round the world A great big Brownie smile," -H.G.
February, 1940.
MAT I
AN IDEA FOR THINKING DAY. 'l'wo Very Different Packs Picnic '.fogethm'. One Brownie from each Pack has written an accoun t of this, our second combined picnic. At the first, a year before, the Brownies had mingled so happily that we decided to do it again; and Saturdays being unsuitable, as one Pack is J'ewish, we chose the day after the schools broke up. First, we went into town by tram. Then we caught the ferry boat down to the Botanical Gardens. When we were in the Botanical Gardens, Margaret look ed down and saw that hel' badge was missing. She went back, but could not find it. Then we had our dinnel' and had a couple of games. After this we went to feed the ducks. When we wel'e there, Elaine's hat blew off and went in the water. Brown Owl went to a find a gardener. Later on the gal'dener found a palm leaf with its branch and got the hat out of the water. Then we went through the hot house and went home. FloI'ence Benn (aged 9), Richmond Pack.
~
DA
13
hind the shop. Once there we played guessing games and tig. Then we went to feed the ducks. There was rather a strong wind, and Elaine's hat blew off int.o the water, too far from the bank fot' anyone to reach it, so wc waitcd for it to float to the other side of the lake. \Ve all !'an to the othel' side and waitcd for the hat to come, but it seemed to have stuck, for it went to the bottom and kept I'obbing up and down like a jack-in-the-box. So we sought out the gardener, and he went <Jnd brought a bl't\nch of a tree shaped lik e a large spoon at the end amI with it fished out the h at. We were all gbd to get going again, so we went to the hot hous(' where we saw some lovely flowers. When we came out again the Richmond Brownie Pack went down one path and we went down another. Th('n Brown Owl thought we'd lik e to see the Shrine and we received this suggestion with delight. We spent about an hour there looldng at all the different things and then took the tram and a ll went home. Ruth Freedman (aged 10), 4th St. Kilda I aclc
For the breal(-up, the 4th St. Kilda BI'ownie Pack decided to take lun ch and tea to thc Botanical Ga.rdens and have a picnic. Wc thought it would be nice to tal,e the Richmond Brownie Pack with us. The two Pacl<s were to meet at the ferry, for we were going to the gardens in one. While waiting for ou I' feny, we sat in a large boat called the Mississipi, and when our's caTTle it moved alongside
the one we were already in, and we stepped from it into our boat. We a ll laughed and chatted as the boat churned its way through the waters of the River Yarra. When the driver came to collect the fare, which was l~d .. I found I had only silver money, so I gave the driver a threepcnny bit, and asked him for thc change. But h e said I ought to let him keep it for a Christmas present, but after I told him that I thought he'd get more valu ab le presents than a mere thre epence, h e said he'd forgive me this tim e , and gavc me the change. On arriving at the Botanical Gardens, we look ed for a nicc spot to have our lunch . We found a quiet place under some trees, not far from the shop. Here we spread OUI' ground sheets, and ate our sandwiches. Th en someone suggested going to the !'thop, to we ran down and bought sweets, lemonade and other things. Th e n, bad tuck-down came the rain! \Ve had to pack up and go to the shelter be-
Editor: Joan Alston.
THE 1940 EXTENSION GUIDE CAMP The Extension Guides had their camp at the Guide House Cottage from 31st December to 7th J'anuary. It was a far more successful one than last year when we were forced to leave aftet' only three days because of the bush fires. Forty-five Guides and Guiders filled the Cottage (described in the "Age" as "one of the out-houses"!) and tents arranged in horseshoe formation. The less active Guides were housed in the Cottage, and with the "twos" and "threes" in the tents, all made very happy families-not forgetting the Rabbits, a tL'io of the youngest Guides who had a ll the "ins and
14
MATILDA
outs" and "ups and downs" that all the BEST families have! After staff breal<fast, the Guides were all given theirs in bed-an excellent idea, saving little legs for a busy day ahead. Then the 1st Alders (one an English Guide from Birmingham, and a student of elocution (?) in hel' lighter moments!) and the three massage students-Shirley Vines, Joan Buckley and Joy Dickson-got the less active children up, helped by the Guides' Captains, and by 10.30 all were ready for Prayel's and Colours in a horseshoe composed of wheelchairs, a pram, cl'utches and VERY sandtlY-bitten legs! Then to orderly jobs-gadget making, etc.-lunch, and rest hour. Swimming from 3 to 4 p.m. was the most popular item. Off with calipers, splints and crutches, and into the pool to show off all their trlcks-"Mirrabooka, look at me floating?"-"Abra, watch me; aren't I good?" All Guiders had aboriginal names and the Guider helpers attached to each Patrol were known as Brolgas (native companions). What sort of an aborigine" Abra" was (Abracadabra in full) we just didn't Imow-and neither did the ownel'( Then regretfully out of the coo l water and back t.o camp to fill in time (and ourselves) with afternoon tea. After that came time for tests and such-like doings - then evening tea. After tea came camp-fire with songs and tunes that set the old Kookabul'ras laughing themselves nearly siel<! Then baths and washes (one disconsolate Rabbit remarldng as she was firmly tal<en bathwal'ds "I've NEVER been so clean"!), and all in bed by 9.30 p.m.-S.30 by ordinary time, we were using daylight saving' so as to save any um;teady feet falling in the darl<. Lady Dugan paid the camp a visit-she saw us at lunch time, and we hope we gave a good impression! Charades at camp fire one night gave a gl'eat thrill to the Guides actin g in them (all the Icss active ones). and a "stitch" from laughtcl' to the othl'r's! The actors, or rather, aetl'esses, put head and soul into their "d,'essing up" from an Tndian with a blanket which threatened to envelop her, wheelchair and all, and a Turk with a tUI'han VERY like Wook Wool,'s bath towel, and a Chinese lady with a replica of Mirrabooka's out-size in Chinese hats. The English 1st Aider"s outburst of poetic eloquence on the suhject of a too-thin .
February, 1940.
baby and a bath plug wiII NEVER be forgotten! f;wimming sports, a jaunt (the only wOl'd for it) to Yar'ra Junction with Dolly and cart and six Guides (finishing up with 10, we don't 'luite Imow how!), and short hikes all combined to tllling a happy week. A very pleasant wind-up was the camp fire on the last evening. It was raining, so it was in the Cottage, and we were ab le to have a real fire! Many kindnesses made the Camp possibleoffers of cars with their drivers for transport; the loan of the Upper Goulburn Division's car fOI' the weel,: the Victorian Society for Crippled Children'S ambulance; and very many donations of all sorts of things, including money, jam and uniforms. Though fOI' the staff the Camp was perhaps more arduous than that of an active Guide Company's, it made us all realiso afl'esh how truly worth while is Extension Guiding.-B.H.
-------000------THANK YOU. The Extension Branch wants to say a vory big "thank you" to all the Dish'icts and Companies who, all through 1939, sent us their second-hand uniforms. Extensions do not wear their uniforms very often and it is a needless expense for them to have new ones, so we are always grateful fOI' any number of old ones. Thank you! And-will you continue the good work? -J.A.
-------000------"THANKING DAY" At camp fi"e one evening, Captain said: "It's our Company birthday next month. What do wo do on birthdays?" "Eat cake, Captain." "Yes, but do you eat it all your'self, Ot¡ do you think of anybody olso on your birthday?" "You ask your friends to a party." "Oh, could we ask some GUIDES this year?" "Lot's askWangaratta, theY'l'e the nearest." "They're 25 miles away, but we'll writo and seo what they say. Who else do we think of on our Company birthday?" "I know. It's Thanl,ing Day." "Don't bo silly-you mean Thinl,ing Day. That.'s the Chief's birthday." "I don't. I m('an the Thanking Fund." "Betty is right, only we call it 'The Thank You Fund."
'.
February, 1940.
15
MA 1'ILDA
"And we try to . save up half a crown. Do you I'emember who we send it to?" "Oh yes, the sicl, Guides." "It all goes towards posting their Company letters to them as they have their Company meetings by post because they can't walk That's right, isn't it, Cap.?" "Yes, it is our way of saying 'Thank you' to God for our own health." "Could we pay the money out of Company funds?" "It really ·should be money you get by selfdenial, shouldn't it?" "Well, let's count how many are w0--20. That's Hd. each. And we've got three weeks to our birthday." "I get 6d. pocket money." "I get 1d." "I don't get any, but I could earn it somehow." "That's the spil'it! Then that's settled." "What about the cal{e, though?" "Well, would you like to each ask mother if you could bring 20z. of something for it? Lucy's mother will give her the recipe, so you can pass it round, and ticl, off each item as you give it to her. Then the Leaders can bring all the ingredients out to my house next Satut·day afternon and mal{e the cal'e." "O-o-h! Goodie!" And so it came about that 26 Guides from Wangaratta drove down to the Benalla Gardens one Saturday evening. As they arrived, each P.L. and her Patrol collected a P.L. and Patrol from the visiting Company, and away they went to make a home for themselves complete with Patrol flag-pole and gadgets; and here they had tea. Meanwhile the two Captains and Lieutenants came round and awarded points for the "Homes." After a close contest the g'aleahs and nightingales were judged the winners. In the twilight the Guides formed a horseshoe, and seven Guides were enrolled by Miss Syme, our Divisional Commissioner, who also pt'esented Miss McDonagh with her Lieutenant's Warrant Badge. The Guides then made a presentation to their other Lieutenant, Miss Carter, who was leaving the Company. After which, Proficiency Badges and Service E:tat·s wore presented. Then followed camp fire Singing round a beautiful camp fire madE for us by the Rangers. Finally, when it was quite dark, the two youngest Guides in each Company lit the candles on the bit'thday ('ake. And in the
candle light each Leader came forward and handed her Patrol's "Thank You Money" to Captain. After everyone had had a piece of cal,e, we stood and sang "Taps." Then farewelled our Wangaratta friends, with many thanks to their Commissioners who drove them. Thus ended our "Thanl{ing Day." We hope that. other Companies may have as happy a day for theirs. Of course, if you are in the city, YOIl might be able to ask a really truly Extension Guide to your party. -Y.B., Benalla.
-------:0:-------
BOOKS WANTED. The Guide House Librarian aclmowledges with regret that she has done nothing to rouse interest in filling the empty bookshelves at the Ho'use and Cottage. Now she appeals to everyone to help her fill them with books of interest to all agesBrownies, Guides, Rangers and Guiders. Have you ever noticed in the "Guider" the list of Guiders who sometimes give presents to Wad dow and Foxlease, and how often this present is a book? This is such an individual way of showing one's interest in one's home, don't you think, and rather a good lead to follow? If any books are sent to the Librarian, c/o the Guide Office, she will be delighted to acknowledge them and place them on the bookshelves. -So H. IRVING.
------000.-----WARRANTS AND REGISTRATIONS. District Secretary. Caulfield: Miss M. McDonald, 46 Snowden Ave., S.E.8. Lieutenants. 1st Heidelberg: Miss M. Coillet and Miss J. Preece. 1st Sale: Miss N. Cartledge.
Company. 4a Carlton.
Change of Name. Mildura Division will in future be 1m own as Sunraysia. CltllCeUII tions. Miss J. White (Captain), 1st Euroa; Miss A. McQueen (Captain), 1st Moulamein; Mrs. Rodda (Captain), 1st Nhill.
16
MATILDA
February, 1940.
THE RANGERS' PAGE We are sorry to lose Miss Boyes from our midst owing to her departure for Tasmania and thank her for a ll she has done for the Ranger Branch. \Ve welcome our new Commissioner, Mrs. F. W. Faull n er, and look forward to mu ch good Rang'el'ing' under her g"uidan ce.
-F.E .B.
Ranger Fixtures. The first fixture for the year will be the moonlight river trip on Thinking Day, 22nd February. Full details are not yet available, but Compani es will receive a circular giving full details early in the month. We hope that th e clouds will be ldnd to us and not stick too close to the moon, and that we have a good mustcr fl'om all Compani es and Crews. The other fixtl1l'es for the year are as follows:April.-Field Day and Swimming Sports. May.-Ranger Dinner. Guide Conference at June.-Weel<-end House. July.--Combin e d Mystery Hike. Septembel'.-Visit to Sir Colin McKenzie Sanctuary, Heal esvill e. Novcmbel¡.-Rports and Conference. B. HORSI..EY, Hon. See.
The Ranger Camp-December 26th to January 2nd. "'rh e Hills wel'e so lovely. \Ve wanted to stay Up at th e Guide Houf'e. Down Britannia Creek way." This was the wish of the forty-two braves who, with Grâ&#x201A;Ź'at Chief Eagle Eye, spent one g'lorious week und er canvas. The Camp was rUll as far as possible on Red Indi an lin es. Patrol names being Forest, Mountain. \Vate r, Bea\'er and Hiawatl1u . Instead of the usual Wood and \Vater, Mess, etc., the patrol duties were Flood and Fire, Ceremonial Medicine Lodge and Big Feast. The main object of the Camp was to practise the test", for the Hiker and Pioneer badges. Sessions were held each day, with the r esult that some tests were passed. By the end of Camp the Braves were detel'miend to lea rn as mu ch
Woodcraft as possible and so gain these coveted badges. In spite of the heat we were very energetic. As well as swimming, scouting games proved very popular. One party of Bushrangers with the Medicine Man carrying a huge pot of gold succe"'sfully evaded Settlers, Police and all the "Forces of Nature." 'Ve were fortunate to have with us one brave who entertained us with appropriate songs of The Border and Old Mexico (complete with actions). She made it so real that we could see "the picture in old Spanish lace" and hear the Mission bells warning the false lover that "he must not stay." One night we had an Indian Camp-fire and an Indian Pipe of Peace was p~ssed around to each brave. Two Indian braves took magic photographs with only a teaspoon. OUI' Medicine Man (Dr'. Ross) gave us a special treat one nig ht by arranging a Xmas Nativity Play which was held in the stable. After some adventures her family arrived safely and we a r e very grateful to them for the evening, which will never be forgotten by any who were present. ''Ie will always be inspired by the memory of the beautiful pictuI'e made by Mary, Joseph =d~&~~llillie~g~oo~lliu~k
Later in the week the braves left the camp in Indian files to hike around the mountain. What glorious scenes we saw-"The vision of the smiling world that opened out below, the green paddocks th~t stretched far away until they seemed to touch the sky." It really was a case of "Tall gum trees glistening in the sun." It gave us the thrill of the heights "where" a man can think no mean thing'." The wild flowers were lovely, tall stately hollyhocks and tiny wild violets nestling in fairy glens. On Sunday evening we had a very enjoyable and inspiring r:'angers Own around the Campfire. Gl'tlat Chief Eagle Eye spoke about "Taking your soul on a spiritual hike" and used the Hikel' Badge tests as illustrations. '.rhis will be one of our luveliest memories of Camp. During our last Camp-fire we heard how OUI' Chief B.P. was made "Chief Spotted Eagle" of the Sarcee Indians in Canada, because he had proved himself worthy to bear the name of their gTeatly honored Chief. ''Ie felt proud to think that our Movement h~d been honored by such a fine race.
February, 1940.
MATILDA
We had an exciting rush to catch th e train on Tuesday, stopping occasionally to rescue luggage. As the train was drawing out. one bundle was found reposing on the station barrow. Amid war whoops of encouragement from the train windows one remaining brave raced the train to it and threw it wildly at the Guard who unfortunately missed. Amid cries of "'We'll send it to- , morrow" the braves reluctantly departed and so ended the Indian Camp.-Ho! -G,T, --------:0:--------
17
of their mugs and come at the double to get some. Up we go, up the higher slopes where timber is more s parse, and the giant male and female tree ferns stand like guardians sheltering the more fragile plants that otherw is e must surely wither in the hot sun. Again we cross the stream a nd go up a steeper inc line, along a bit, and then-we find Arcadia. Of this spot we might truly say: "Earth hath not anyth in g lo show more fair. Dull would he be of soul who cou ld pass by A sighl so touching in its majesty."
RANGER CAMP MEMORIES. Camp Fire. Camp-fire is over. vVe've had some good songs; and now we al'e to be allowed to wait to see the moon rise. At present there's just the faintest light piercing the darkn ess of the sky. Slowly it grows whiter, and the stark stems of the burnt trees on the mountain top are for a time made beautiful by outlines of golc1. Th ere is no sound save the intermitte nt call of some night bird, and an almost imperceptible rustle of the trees. A golden rim touches the horizon, then with striking suddenness, up s hoots the globe, to rest as it were upon the tip of the range before it sets out on its nightly journey. And between the moon and the earth the blackened trees form a network, a grim reminder of the power and ruthlessness of fire. A great s tal' twinkles. We sing Taps and go off to our baths.
The Hike. Shrubs are everywhere, and nearby in the undergrowth we hear the soft swish of the swiftly flowing mountain stream. As the path widens we come to a giant tree which has fallen on its side, and lies with its roots e ntangl ed in the branches of the surrounding trees. Reaching the old timber track, we climb between a lane of beautiful ferns; king ferns, lace ferns, maidenhair, staghorn, fishbone, and coral fel'n; while furtber in tree ferns lift stately soft green arms to a canopy of sunspeckled leaves, far All the while cicadas keep up a above them. shrill whir, and birds of the tit and wren variety hop from twig to twig. They seem more timid than our bush birds. The call of the bell bird is heard at regular intervals, and now and then we see a grey and white fantail. At the first mill we stop for a rest. Under the bridge the :stl'eam runs s teadi Iy; the ferns are perfect. As for thp water, I'm sure that if the Lotus Eaters knew about it, they'd tip their nectar out
It is impossible to describe the s imple beauty of this little nook that lay at ou I' disposal in the heart of the mountains, but the very silence le nt to it a pure dignity that seemed to penetrate the individual who looked upon it for the firf;t time, and to render expression futile. Having chosen a RPOt where our fires would not blemish even the smallest plant, we prepal'e for lun c h. Some people are roasting eggs. It's quite an interestin g process to watch. You scoop a hole in your hot ashes, poke a hole in the egg. a nd sit it in the ashes, perforation uppel'most. You see, that's the safety valve. When you see very substantial clouds forming on top of the hole in the egg, you pick it up, forgetting that it is hot, promptly drop it, count ten or twenty, according to the size and severity of the burn, and using indirect contact, put your egg back in its phce, 'cause tho' it felt cooked, it's raw. Eventually it 1I0es cook, and then you eat it ruthlessly, remembering the way it treated you. Have you ever' walked throu g h th e bU" h just as the sun goes down, feeling almost at peace w ith the world? Would you like to com e back along the road to camp with us, Ring in g as we go. We won't miss a nythin g. It';; a g lori ous road. Sometimes there is something that com. pels silence, the Jiving blue g lint of the sun orChid, the gay flax lily, and the soft h eliotrope of the fringed violet, while yet nearer the earth the tiny wild violet nods, fragile, yet in it" own s mall way, commanding attentio n. White everlastings are folding th eir satiny petals for the night, milkwort's p ink flow ers are closed, and the violets are tucking their heads low er. Vie reach the shelving bend just as the last long sh[\.dows are creeping down the slopes, and looking' out over miles of folds a.nd valleys, we rea'lise that we should be eternally grateful for such a view. Perhaps we are given these opportunities that we might realise OUI' definite relationship with the Infinite.
-N.P.
18
MATILDA
February, 1940.
CAMPING and TRAINING Five shillings deposit and train fare (if required ) must be sent with application. Deposit will not be refunded if withdrawal is made after 9th March. Applications should be sent to the Hon. Camping Secretary, Miss V. Harrison, 126 High Street, Glen Iris, S.E.6, not later than 21st February.
Open Week-ends at Guide House. Did you all read last month about the open weelt-ends that are being planned at the Guide House? If not, please read it now, in this page of the January "Matilda." The week-end planned for 16th February is already full, some weeks before the closing date. The next dates are 1st and 15th March, and 19th April. Applications must be sent in a fortnight beforehand. Don't forget to look up last month's "Matilda" for details of fees, fares, etc. Applications must be sent to the Hon. Camping Secretary, Miss V. Hanison, 126 High Street, Glen I r is, S.E.6.
Life-Savers. It has become apparent during this swimming season that there is a dearth of qualified life-savers among our Guiders and Rangel's. Many among us have let our certificates lapse and not kept them up to date, It has been p r oposed to have a drive this year for more life-savers, and to arrange classes for training in work required for the bronze medallion, etc. Any mcmbers of the Movement over 17 years ' of age would be eligible to attend. Guiders please take note of this and tell your Guides and Rangers about It. Anyone who is intel'ested is asked to send her name to Miss Hanison, 126 High Street, Glen Iris, S.E.6., and classes will be arranged as required.
Training Classes. Classes w ill commence at Headquarters as fo llows:-Brownie Guiders, on Thursday evenings, commencing 29th February at 8 p.m. ; Guider-in-Charge, Miss D. Holtz. Guide Guiders on Tuesday evenings at 8 p.m., commencing 27th February; Guider-in-Charge, Miss S. MacLeod. These trainings are arranged for new and inexperienced Guiders, uniform will be worn and Guidel's should bring sandshoes, notebook and pencil. ThE' fee is threepence per class. Guidel's axe asked to be punctual, as we are obliged to leave the building at 9.30 p .m . In connection
with the Coul'se for Guide Training, there will ue three Field Afternoons on 9th March, 13th and 27th Apl'il. These outdoor sessions are absolutely essential in the training of a Guider, and all those attending the COUI'SC are specially asked to kcep the dates frcc.
Guiders' Campcraft Training. If applications warrant it, a Guiders' Campcl'aft Week will be held at Easter, in the Wimmera Division. The site of the Camp will be at Rosebl'oolc, via Wartook, at· the foot of the Grampians. The purpose of the Camp is to give general Campcraft Training. A certain numbel' of GuidE'l's nominated by their Commissioners will be tested for the Campers' Licence. This Camp is being arranged primarily for Guiders belonging ·to Wimmera and Western Wimmera Divisions, but Guiders from E'lsewhere will be very welcome. The Camp will take place from Thursday, 21st March, to Tuesday, 26th March, inclusive. The fee will be not more than £1, plus fares, d e p ending on the numbel' of Guiders attending. The Guider-in-Charge will be Miss E. Moran. Applications, accompanied by a deposit of 5/-, should "each Miss Ling, 25 Bowden 9I:reet, Horsham, not later than 21st February, 1940. Deposits will not be refunded if withdrawal is made after 9th March. Nomination forms for the Camp~r's Licence may be obtain ed from the Hon. Camping Secretal'y, Miss Harrison, 126 High Street, Glen Iris, S.E.6.
Patrcl Leaders' Camp. Full details of this Camp were published in J'anual'Y. Th e Camp will be held if thel'e are sufficient applications, at the Guide House, undcr canvas, fl'om 21st March to 26th March inclusive. Patrol Leaders will tl'avel to Camp on the evening train and return on the evening train. The fee will be J 5/-, plus fares (return mil Melbourne-Wesbul'll: 3/10, und er 16; 5/9, 16 and over; 1/3 return bus). Patrol Leadcl's should hold the second class badge at the date of application. There is no special age limit, but if too many apply preference will be given to the youngel' ones, who have longer leadership ahead of them. Applications must be made by Captains with wl'itten permission of the CommisSioner. 'rhe
Supplement to "Matilda" ~ February 1940 ~
A 'ield Day tor First Class work will be held on SaturdaYj Maroh 9 "
Full deta'ii15 will be pl'inted ill March "Matllda
Guiders s intel'ested 9 ere urged to keep that day free they possibly can ,
~
0
All
It
and eome if
If¡ Numbers warrant it~ Senior First Aid and Nursing Classes will be arranged to start as soon as possibleo They will probably be held at Guide H c ~ ~ ~ as this should be the most central for all o Gu1d. e~ oS ~ Rangers f and members or Local Associations are asked to send t :.eir names to Miss 110 Moore F 44 Parlington St ~ E " 7 " straight awayp stating whioh nights are oonvenient for themo 0
110 Moore "
February, 1940.
19
MATILDA
following d,~tails must be sent with applicaiions: Applicant's name, age, Company, Patrol, date enrolled, date' passed second class, <late appointed P.L., proficiency or first class tests passed with dates, and any suggestions for inclusion in the programme (please re-read January "Matilda").
First Class Training. Classes in first class subjects will commence at Headquarters in April. Details will be announced in March "Matilda." Guiders who hope to attend are asked to notify the Commissioner for Training and to mention which subjects they would specially appreciate. -ELAINE' MORAN.
CAMPCRAFT WEEK. From 26th December till 4th January, a Campcraft Week was held on the upper site at the Guide House. Miss Bro3.dhurst was in charge, and a number of Guiders were doing their Licence or C.A.'s Test. The camp was planned differently this year -all written papers being completed at home before camp. This allowed more free time at camp for sessions, gadgets, tests, swimming, etc., and was voted a great success. The camp boasted four grease-pits, three varieties of lats. and roofing (oh, those lats.!). SONG (to be sung with feeling). Tune: "We Pushed the Dampers In." Oh, we put the seating in, And we took the seating out, 'L'hen Q.M. would have us put it in againJust for her. Just for her. And Q.M. WQuid have us put it in again. Tents went up and down at an alarming rate, as people were tested. Most of the cooking was done in the hay-hole, which relieved the cook patrol a good deal. I fear the weather forecasts by CaITlperS were a trifle varied. It certainly rained one night, and we also had a gale (possibly as a result of the mixed forecasts)' and through the night could¡ be heard the smack of mallet meeting pâ&#x201A;Ź'g. One camper chnckled as she lay snugly in a hike tent, no bothering guys for her! She saved her conscience next morning by retrieving the camp plates, dixies, etc., from round the camp site. Patrols took i,t in turns to do an overnight hike, travelling light weight. They all returned safely, though I heard of one Guider so overcome with the view that she fell down the
slope! We had a visit from Lady Dugan one day. How the camp smartened up! The pl'ess also paid us a visit, and had people posing gracefully by gadgets and in life-lil,8 gronps round the camp. Taken all round the camp was voted a great success, and evel'yone decided that mOI'e ,,'as learned by actually doing things than by mere-. Iy having sessions about them. - M.V.
-------000-------
BALLARAT GUIDE CAMP NOTES. On Saturday, 6th January, representatives from three of the Ballarat Guide Companies, numbering 26 in the party, travelled by tl'ain and bus to spend a week under canvas on the beautiful site if BungalTa, at Ocean Grove. We were met at the gate by thc advance party, members of which had become quite used to pitching tents. The rest of the day was rather a scramble for most of us, involYing sorting luggage, afternoon tea (very welcome), allotment of tents, exploration of th e C::Lmp site, tea, a wall;: to the sea and back again to bed. SUNTYA Y.-Up betimes. And weren't the beds hard? After a. hearty breakfast, the four Patrols, who soon named themselves Blue Wrens, Ti-tree, Possum and is-eagulls, set about theil' orderly duties. Later came tent and personal inspection. No red ribbons. given for an exce ll ent tent, were awar<led that day! Tilen followed church, dinner, canteen, rest hour, during which "'e wrote home to tell of OUI' safe alTival, and OllJ' first dip in the rolling deep. That night our beds did not seem quite so hard. MONDA Y. - And all of us feeling fresh. prepared for anything. During the morning, we len rnt more about the orderly jobs, about our tents, and about gadgets. Few of us bad been to camp before, so we had a lot to learn. In the afternoon, our second swim, fl'om "which we retllJ'ned refreshed, happy and HUNGRY. Sing-song and so to bed. TUESDA Y.-After prayers, we hoisted the World Flag, and sang the Polish International Song. After tea, we took part in a Stunt Night. The hours between had been well filled. WETJlNESDA Y morning followed the usual programme, put after rest hour we walked to the beach, taking our tea with us. As it was 10'" tide, we were able to ramble over the rocl(s, and found many interesting specimens,
20
l\1A TILDA
i_O_ tl _ O_U _ t'_tl _tl _ll _ t' _ t'_ " _ U~_ '_ ('!
which were put to good u~ " the next evening when we decorated the tea table in honour of a birthday in camp. 'l'HURSDAY.-,As we were tired, the hil{e we had planned was postponed, and we had a restful dllY, which ended in a second Stunt Night, evne more enjoyable than the first had been. FRIDAY.-We made things spick and span as quicldy as possible so il1at we could have dinner early. The hikers planned to go to BaT,,'on H eads, and wore eage r to start. They decided to take only afternoon tea, and to come back along the beach to where the rest of us were swimming. ']'hey lil,ed Barwon fJ eads. " no enjoyed the hike. We finished the day with a real camp fire, where we sang all our old favourites, and learnt some new rounds. Cheers rang out, too, for all the good people who had worked to make OUI' first camp a success. Supper, and so to bert. SATURDAY, though our last day, was "as usual," except for the packing. We fitted in :.l walk to the township before OUl' bus came at 4 o'clocl\. After tea in Geelong, we had a very pleasant journey to Ballarat, and so home to tell our families all about it. -MOLLIE FINDLOW (10th Ballarat).
\ Are You Doing I Anything About It? I
girls dream about 'meney,' M OST and of how useful it would be, if they had a larger shal'e of it, but not evcryOi.~e takes steps to make her dream a reality. The most practical thing to do is to start saving. For the one who saves, far and away the best help is a passbook issued by-
THE
State Savings Bank OF
Vi(toria .1. 1"IWl"lItOIL .Io·lIes, Of lPral JIal1age1'. Heae! Office: Elizabeth 't ... ·:l1eluounte.
February, 1940.
1
I1 Evan Evans l o
. .
,
J~Y. LTU
680-8 ELIZABETH ST., UEUt, C.1.
1 1
Official Canvas Goods House to the Girl Guides' Association. Special Ooncessions off List I'riccs To all Gi 1'1 Guide Organisations 'Vrite for Particulars to Your Headquarters. aT Direct to U~.
o
i
1 0
:
I i' i
--
TE);"TS and FLYS, CAMPING GOODS. HUGS, CAMP BEDS, SLEEPING BAGS,
o
-
,
ii -0'
I i '
,I
-
,.
. •
1
•
,
t
•
tt
i
GROUNDSHEETS, FLAGS, TRAVEL WATERPROOFS. MATTRESSES.
t
! f
---
SPORTING GOODS 'Ve have arranged to allow Concessions on all Sporting Goods. Write to us for Our List, Prices and Particu lars. Tennis, Golf, Crlcl(et, Baseball, Basketball and Indoor Games.
• 0
SUPPOTIT THE FffilU WHO SUPPORT YOU
L_(I_jl_II_O_" ~_~(I_(I_(~o-(~_""""
r,,-n_,_o_--n_,,_n_n__,_n_u_,_,.
I, I
THE MUTUAL STORE features Kew Valul's from the Special
I! !
COLLEGE WEAR DEPT.
~ls' Doctor Fla~nel
SCHOOL BLAZERS
I
ideal Blazer for School or College wear. Super quality Doctor Flannel in Navy. Finished with Silk Ribbon Binding. Specially Priced
I I t
The
211-
! , I , t~3~nE 8~ ~~'~0~5~.' ;~·O RE , , I
1 20in.
Tailored Fuji Silk SKIRT BLOUSES.
to 27in., 7/11; 30in. to 33in,. 8/6; 36in.
Flin.lers S+.e<>+
t j
M .. lbourne
L I MITEO
#I_I_ O _II_I_II_U_"_II~_ ' ~ I_ " _"_ ' _
"