MY BROTHER HUGH Born 5th October 1920 died 9th May 2006
We would slip out and climb the cliffs by Beachy Head, visit dewponds and catch rabbits, and climb trees in the woods. I am now quite horrified to think of some of our tree climbing exploits and what we got up to such as sunbathing in rooks nests, and jumping from one tree’s branch to another to save coming back to the ground and up again. One day a branch broke when Smith tried to join me and he slipped and was carted off to Hospital. I was stuck up half way, practically naked as a crowd had formed to watch us. In trying to come down later I also slipped and crashed, fracturing a rib in the process, which was treated with ointments and bandages by the son of a doctor, and I have the scar to this day. I kept the whole incident secret and dared not report it. One summers evening, in an accident Smith knocked out the maid at bed time, and we hid her under the bed with an overhanging counterpane, whilst matron said goodnight. Once gone you could have seen six little bottoms sticking out in a row as we gave her first aid and loosened her bra, poured water on her and down the front of her dress. She recovered and we all swore to keep the incident quiet and I think she too was ashamed to ever mention it again. But after this we had the greatest respect for her and we all behaved perfectly as she now in effect was one of our gang.
It was while I was at Temple Grove that I learnt of the effect of a solar plexus punch and how it could flatten a much bigger boy, which however I only reserved for bullies or people who had forfeited their right to be dealt with by Queensberry rules. I also learnt to take a lot of good natured teasing which I enjoyed, but once it became malicious or unfair a fight would result. We all had a terrific sense of right and wrong, largely from the results of Waterfield’s teaching, but also from Father who would never do anything underhand. Anyone who was caught cheating or stealing in anyway was in for a tough time, and never ever trusted again. This code has been with me all my life.
Holidays to start with were spent in Lincolnshire with friends of Mother’s, the Rev. Langston Day. There I went quite wild, hunting rabbits, collecting eggs and once I even caught a full grown Barn Owl and took it back to the Rectory to his and his wife’s amazement. My Mother was horrified when she came to visit ,as the whole idea of an English Education was supposedly to civilize me from the wilds st stirring of a sexual desire when I was enchanted by their eldest daughter. I was far too shy to ever dare say anything but for years she was my ideal in my thoughts. But like so many children from Colonial families who were sent to England for their education, I became very self reliant and independent, staying in different homes and with different older people each of whom had something different and unique to teach a young person.
In 1933 aged 13 years I went to Bradfield College, near Reading set in the beautiful Berkshire of Ceylon, and yet here I was as wild an free and happy as ever. I had here in Lincolnshire the very fircountryside, and there I had no trouble in winning my weight at boxing and was soon in the school team where I represented the College for the next 5 years winning my weight in the Public Schools Quadrangular Matches. I certainly learnt how to fight at Bradfield and also to train others, about psychology, and the hard grind and dedication to constant training. In most school subjects I was a dismal failure, especially those that were abstract such as Latin, Maths etc. but I loved poetry and English. For friends I teamed up with the son of another Ceylon planter Billy Armstrong and Phillip Shelley a Grandson of the poet, who was also a nephew of Lord Iliffe of Yattendon nearby who had about 5,000 acres of magnificent shooting We all had one thing in common, a love of the countryside, shooting and seeing and