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o'clock. Whenever I bumped into him years after leaving school he was always most interested in my progress in Medical School and especially my cricket performance. A very good teacher and a fine decent human being.
Mr Griff Price
Nobody in his Latin class could possibly fail this subject in CWB and such was his cunning (a favourite word of his) that every question in our final exams had been anticipated (and the answers honed to perfection) even to picking the exact paragraphs of "De Bello Gallico" and "Aeneid" that were selected for translation. I think that half the class got "Very Good", the new term to replace distinction?? Like many others I can still recall to mind great chunks of our set books, so well were they chiselled into our minds.
Mr John Williams
I was not taught French by this master, as French or Latin was the only choice. I was the only student in Form 2 to choose Latin, mainly, I must concede, due to the irreversible command of my father (fortunate in light of my eventual career). This choice was the subject of some ridicule among my peers but they did not have to answer to my father. However "Colonel" was my Form Master in Form 2 and my House Master throughout my stay in school. He also taught me RI much to the amusement of my father who, although he liked John Williams, did not consider him an expert on religion. "If he attended my Sunday Services a little more frequently" he said, " he might in time qualify." John was a very decent man and a good teacher. He organised Form Spelling Bees, which were great fun, and he allowed a great deal of leniency in these more light-hearted sessions. However, he could be strict when necessary and was not averse to wielding a mean "belting" with a Gym shoe on the backside.
Mr Douglas Ingles
"Tiger" to the boys. A difficult man but a brilliant teacher. Scathingly sarcastic he could be inspirational and terrifying all in one minute. I remember asking him for advice about a paper I was preparing on a religious reformist. This paper was to be read in the evening guild of our chapel and did not concern the school in any way. He looked over my work to that point and directed me to a great deal more information from his private books which he was pleased to loan me. He seemed delighted that I was prepared to spend a fair amount of time on historical research and asked to read the final paper. He gave it his "imprimatur" but questioned my choice of subject: he was not enamoured of Welsh history.
I fell foul of Tiger only once when in Form 3. This Form was the only classroom in the basement, other than the woodwork room. It had a long table at the back of the room on which we often played table tennis. This room was the least supervised in the whole school. On this particular day Mr Ingles was late, unusual for him, and I was mucking about at the table when he strode in. He was furious and dispatched me to the Headmaster's study for punishment. I duly presented myself outside Jake's door, knocked and went in. "Oh, Alun" said Jake, "I wanted to see you. Would you mind taking this letter to your father?" "Is that all sir?" I said. "Yes, I think so. You may go." So I did. He didn't ask me why I was at his door so I didn't tell him. I banked that Tiger would not ask Jake what transpired for they were not the best of friends.
When the results of the CWB exams were published, Llew and I had managed only a Pass. Neither of us could understand this as we both felt we had done well. When Mr Inglis met us he said, "My swans turned into geese".
Mr John Sutherland
Mr John Sutherland taught me chemistry from Form 2 to Form 6 and Physics in Form 6. He was undoubtedly the most outstanding teacher I ever encountered and a patient and understanding man. He inculcated in me a fascination for and a love of science that directed me towards my final career decision. We were all forever indebted to him for his efforts on our behalf. Sadly, we sometimes repaid him cruelly. For example, while studying Physics in Form 6, Lyn Roberts and I were conducting an experiment that involved heating a liquid to a fairly high temperature and required a very special and expensive glass flask with an outer sheath of copper. John warned us to be very careful, as it was not possible to see the liquid in the flask and was liable to run dry. Well, we were talking and distracted but there was no excuse; we let it run dry; the flask shattered. The cost of replacing it would probably have taken half his very limited allowance for the whole year but he didn't lose his temper. He simply organised us todo the experiment in another way, which we did successfully. That was typical of the man.
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