‘Dear Richard,
I am delighted to receive a personal letter.
Sorry I took so long to reply, This time of the year I am completing my annual accounts. As often the case, I am stuck at the point where I appear to have banked three hundred pounds more than I appear to have earned. Note the use of the word:”appear” It serves the same purpose as the legal word “alleged”. Anyway, I have to get it right or the accountant will charge that much to do it for me..
Leonard Dawe. Of course.
In my defence I should point out that we had very litle time to get to know him. He passed away towards the end of our second year and his successor had the sort of presence which easily obliterates earlier memories.
Presence? Yes, the presence of Darth Vader springs to mind.
I well remember Joseph Cox’s first appearance at Strand.Neat, dapper, three piece suited much like the the actor David Suchet in his role of Hercule Poirot. The only difference in clothing being the absence of spats. What he would say about the slovenly BBC inspired habit of men presenting themselves tieless with shirt torn open almost to their navel I dread to think, even though I would agree with him.
Aside from his suit there were major differences, He did not posess a moustache but made up for it with a permanent four o’clock shadow.
I certainly remember the first sound he uttered having been introduced to us by Dr Toms. Describing it is another matter: On paper the word was: “Errrrrrrgh”, the sound brought to mind a giant clearing its throat, or the response of an Old Testament prophet to the news that his flock had once again defied The Lord.
During the introduction, the entire school had leaned foreward to catch his first words. Upon The Utterance, the school fell back as one, as though struck by a gale. I remember a few nervous titters and shuffling feet.
The contrast with Mr Dawe could not have been greater. In his case a gentle admonishment:: “Gentlemen, gentlemen” was sufficient to bring silence. With Coxy, his presence was sufficient to strike the school dumb. Following the hymn and Prayer for Forgiveness came his “Death List”, With the words: “Certain Individuals were caught causing a disturbance in the lower corridor yesterday. In this connection I wish th see the following outside my door (for a thrashing) immediatly after Assembly”. I was not the only one to notice his utter disregard to the spirit of the Prayer he had just offered. Here I learned the meaning of the word “Hypocrisy”
Part of his menace was due to his physical disability. From what I could see, he suffered mild spasticity, his face appeared to be pulled back, his eyes tended to swivel alarmingly to compensate for his rather stiff neck and his voice was gruff, assisted by Nigroids or similar pill which he appeared addicted to.
As I have already written, Mr Alnwick would have made a far better headmaster, from my point of view.
Must stop now, but there is much more. I will respond to requests.
Neil
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