· 1912 -1922 :Lip Seng Onn tells us about SMI
(Excerpt from "Valiant & True" - 100th Anniversary souvenir book available from St
Michael's office :05-2540418) )
From the notes kept by our
pioneer old boy LIP SENG ONN
who was destined in hs future years
to help shape the caring ethos of the
Michaelian fraternity)
In 1912, the school had 39 boys, and a headmaster
(Mr P.J.Morsingh) and two assistant masters.
The school was housed in an old Malay bungalow situated
in
the midst of a coconut grove, right in front of the present main
building.
·
As enrolment increased, attap
sheds were constructed
around the bungalow building to house additional
classes.
·
School started at 8 a.m
and ended at 4 p.m. There was an
hour’s break for lunch at noon.
·
It was not unusual for coconuts to fall on the roofs of the
attap huts. Fortunately, there are
no reports of injury to
pupils on that score.
·
A distinctive school uniform had not yet evolved; some of
the
early Michaelians wore sarongs to school!
·
The cheerful spirit of the pioneer pupils is reflected in the
following remark made by one of them:
“As coconuts
have eyes, they know where to fall !”
·
However, discipline was
strict under Mr Morsingh . Every
Monday was “black” because the boys had to
face a stern
headmaster who went round to inspect the weekly reports.
·
Games and sports were not
so well organized as today for
lack of playing fields and costly sports
materials, but a
period of 30 minutes was allotted daily in all classes for
physical training.
Football was about the only team-game regularly played,
but croquet, an old-fashioned French game, and
badminton, played with a
woolen ball instead of feather
shuttles, were occasionally indulged in, by
the bigger boys.
·
Hockey was started early
in 1919 - the first game was played on 25.2.1919. The football team
in 1919
was a good one; besides holding its own against the
Tamil Union, the Oriental Cinema Team and others, it beat
St. George’s, Taiping, in a memorable game on
15.7.1919
by 5-1, but lost to the formidable St. Xavier’s team on
26.8.1919
by a narrow margin of 2-1. Childish games such
as marbles and tops were most
popular and played,
according to seasons, even by the bigger boys.
· Under Bro. Paul Gallagher, punctuality was
a virtue of
the highest importance. Both teachers and students were
fined for latecoming!
· On 16th August 1920, the first Lasallian Brothers
arrived ,
giving a tremendous boost to the scholastic appeal of the
school. Together with Bro Paul Gallagher came
Brother
Hermanagild John from Singapore and Brother Finian
Loran from Penang.
|
Staff of 1921 with Brother Visitor James Byrne (seated centre) , Father JB Coppin (3rd from Left) and Mr PJ Morsingh (Headmaster) (Second from Right) |
· There was a clear Xavierian spirit among the growing staff
members
as most of them hailed from
St.Xavier’s
Institution Penang, the first Lasallian school in Malaya.
· (Among the students who were at school at this time were
the
Michaelian stalwarts who were to play a shining role as
teachers par excellence at their alma mater and at other
Lasallian schools.
This roll of honour includes Mr Tan Boon Kwee, Brother
Basil Voon and Mr Lip Seng Onn.) - Blogger Louis RD
· Lip Seng Onn's narrative continues.........
The 300-enrolment mark was crossed on 4th March 1919.
·
With the daily session continuing to
3.30pm, a half-holiday
in those days was a real delight.alf-holidays were
given on
certain feasts and in honour of visits by distinguished persons
and
success of teachers in the Normal Examinations and
those of boys in the
public examinations: they were also
earned by individual classes with
outstanding results in the
Terminal Examinations, 100% attendance in any one
month
and settlement of all school fees before the 10th of each
month: and lastly, if it rained at noon, the boys were let off
for the day at
1pm.
·
Founder’s
Day – June 24 – was always looked
forward to with eagerness, for on this day
a concert
would be held in honour of
the Reverend Manager.
Father Coppin was a stern-looking man, but his
sweets
made Founder’s Day worth waiting for.
·
As regards dress, the teachers in those
days came to
school fully clad in coat, trousers, hat and shoes r boots.
Straw hats and boots were as common as they are non-
existent today. More
stylish teachers donned open coat
and tie – this an exception rather that the
rule.
· The boys were dressed alike – all buttons
must be in place,
otherwise the teachers would consider it a breach of good
manners. Some Malay and Indian boys wore sarongs.
·
Most of the boys walked to school and
were bare-footed.
·
The only motor-car seen in school was
that of Father
Coppin – a very noisy machine . Mr Morsingh had a
motorcycle
with side-carriers. In 1919 he started using a
two-seater motor-car.
·
Bicycles were fairly common, but until
1920 there were
never more than 40 or 50 bicyles in the whole school.
|
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