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Ts "THE LIBERAL. Richmond Hill, onggrio, Thursday, Feb. 20th, 1964 When Elephants, Snakes, Tigers Shared His Backyard . In those days, he explained to this reporter, the Union Jack flew over Fort Dufferin and the 89th Punjabis and a company of British troops help- ‘gd keep Mandalay the pleasant place it was. f Contrary to one American author, Mandalay is not an an- cient city and could never com- are with the splendid cities of he Mozul emperors. Mr. Baker. who knew it well. explains. MODERN CITY Mr. Baker said that thous- ands have sung Kipling‘s "Road to Mandalay" but it's surpris- ing how few can say where that romantic city lies on the world's map. It was founded in 1857 by the iast but one of the Burmese rulers. King Mim Doon Mm. Former Burma Forester Remembers: -' But L. H. Baker, a new resident of Richmond ZHill who spent 25.years in Burma. notes that al- ;.though Kipling spent many years in India he did .not visit Mandalay in neighbouring Burma. ' Exactly 60 years ago, Mr. and was built almost entirel‘ Baker first stood in the palace of teak wood. The king’s palac of the last kings of Burma and the monasteries were decor there. Returning from the Boer ated with highly ornate carvinl ',War, where he had served with and in the case of the forme the Welsh Mounted Brigade, crimson lacquer and gold lea he was offered a job in the teak were used freely. forests of Upper Burma. King Mim Doon Min decidei By MARY DAWSON Rudyard Kipling wrote a song “On the road to Mandalay, where the flying fishes play”, destined to become the favourite concert piece of male so- loists for several decades. . r ~~~1â€"â€"~-= --- ~- \v-u: AV» a cheque.) And. a Royal_ TgRMPLAN LOAN can often save you bng money In Interest. Be money- wnseâ€"bank at your nearby Royal Bank Branch. Royal Bank services can help you manage your chequing, borrowing and other personal finances in a businesslike way at lowest cost. Our TWO-ACCOUNT PLAN keeps you from “eating into“ your savings; simplifies bill-paying with I special Personal C equi'ng Account. (Only 10¢ - ..L--.._\ A~l , n Mom Cgsh Your Cheque At King Mim Doon Min decided on this new'clty and as a res- ult decreed that 150,000 people should evacuate their homes in the old capital city of Ava, mov- ing about 10 miles east, still on the east bank of the Irrawady. to Mandalay. A point of interest to Canad- ians is the fact that the Marquis of Dufferin and Ava. former Governor-General took as a part of his title the name of a city once the capital of the kings of Burma. Climatically Mandalay has little to commend it. Situated in the dry zone of Burma. its annual rainfall is and was built almost entirely of teak wood. The king’s palace and the monasteries were decor- ated with highly ornate carving and in the case of the former crimson lacquer and gold leaf were used freely. The city, most beloved by the Burmese, with its tall Arakan Pagoda and the huge Hpoongyi population drew thousands of pilgrims to its shrines. Richmond Hill Branch: W. W. Sleeman, Manager Concord, Keele 8: Highway No. 7 Branch: L. R. Ashton, Manager to the British and went into exile at Rutnagiro on the west coast of India. ROYAL VISIT For Mr. and Mrs. Baker. the brightest memory of Mandalay was the visit in 1920 of the Duke of Windsor, then Prince of Wales. about eight inches and its mid- summer temperature 120 de- grees in the shade. It was no stranger to plague. Mr. Baker recalls. H The city remained the capi- tal of the Burmese kings until 1885 when King Thebaw and his Queen Supaya surrendered Attending a dinner Early Morning Bath in his Referring again to Kipling‘s song, Mr. Baker said that de- spite 25 years' service in beau- tiful Burma. he had never heard a Burmese girl saying, "Come you back, y0u British soldier, come you back to Man- dalay." In spite of the exemp- lary behaviour of Mr. Thomas Atkins. the Burmese. female variety, were always rather frightened of him and his lack of the language would not be helpful. Mandalay was described by Mr. Baker as a sort of Clapham Junction, situated on the Irra- waddy River about half way be- tween Upper and Lower Bur- It was a great meeting place for officials on leave or trans- fer. There was not a single hotel in the city and business other than teak and rice had passed it by. FORESTS OF KALEWA For Mr. Baker, Mandalay was just a port of call enroute to the forests of Kalewa, where he supervised the cutting of teak. The delightful city of the Bakers’ youth will soon pass out of living memory. for teak wood burns well and the flames which devoured Thebaw’s pal- ace, years ago, must have made a wonderful sight for the watch- ers on the great plateau to the east. One hundred and fifty eleph- ants were the “lumberjacks” of the teak forests. These great beasts, ranging up to five tons, worked throughout the rainy‘ season but rested during the summer's oppressive heat. They carried the logs to the rivers, which in spate in the rainy season were used to transport them, and dextrously broke up log jams. “The Lovable One” ° B h Tigers did not cause the Bakers much concern, although they w e r e numerous, b u t honour. they were deugmca by leopards were a different story- the remarkable dances of many "They are mean and vicious tribes from different sections of Beasts." reported Mr. Baker. the country. They also recall and we lost three dogs to them. it was reported at the time the I actually saw the leopard take mm‘h-harasspd Drince enioyed our thlrd dog," he sald. it was reported at the time the much-harassed prince enjoyed his short stay in Mandalay more than any occasion of his entire Indian tour. 1300 Students Are Offered Summer School Courses Fifteen to twenty foot pythons were common but the cobra was rare. Mrs. Baker told a native story that when Buddha visited Burma he walked around a cobra lying in the pathway and in gratitude the serpent promised not to bother the people of that country. Mr. Baker interjected that Buddha also never was in Burma. had killed three men before being added to this work force, but Mrs. Baker rode her pony fearlessly among the elephants with impunity. However. Mr. Baker remembers having to shoot a "rogue" elephant, a task he accomplished with one shot. Instead. York Central District High School Board will offer} area students a chance to make up for lost grades in a six weeks' summer school coursei here. Kalewa Japanese The Bak Richmond won‘t close mer. Recommendation for the course was contained in a reâ€" port to the board Monday night by its management committee. A budget of $5.000 was sug- gested for inclusion in the 1964 board budget expected to be struck by the end of Febr- uary. Superintendent S. L.G. Chapman said possibly up to 300 students might be attracted. Conditions for the course are that registrations be $25 per student if in York Central area and $35 if outside the sy- stem; salaries for staff will be $750 for the six weeks and $800 for the principal; students will include those in grades 9.10.11 and 12 and no enrichment courses will be offered. The committee said that in general, the course will be for those who have failed academic subjects in their year but that commercial option and possib- ly industrial arts may be of- fered at grade 9,10 or 11 level. Registration and other details will be determined by Mr. Chapman. YONGE ST. NORTH 8. LEVENDALE ROAD RICHMOND HILL, ONTARIO RICHMOND HEIGHTS CENTRE Bakers‘ was C during Hill its d( overrun by the 12 World War II. forest bungalow ill High doors th DRAW WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE CENTRE SAT., FEB; 29th 4 PM. this School 5 sum- and the government rest house were the only buildings of their kind there. and undoubtedly at: were used by the Japanese staff. Malaria, leeches and hordes of insect life must have made this theatre of war a nightmare of suffering for these brave lads, said Mr. Baker, who had travelled the same ground in comfort with his four transport elephants and servants to tend to every need. The Bakers had left the area 20 years before the invasion but were most sympathetic to the British troops who fought there in all kinds of weather over rugged terrain. The Bakers have a fund of stories of life in Burma. includ- ing tales of a tribe of head hunters who lived not far from the teak forest. We hope to bring some of these stories to our readers in the future. Finalists in the Catholic Women’s League-sponsored public speaking contest for Our Lady Queen of the World parish schools are shown above with their trophies. Four finalists were chosen from each school in the parish. Back row (left to right), all from St. Joseph’s Separate School, are: Wayne Cornack, Sheila O’Brien, Marilyn Webb, Guy Deslauriers. Front row (left to right), all from Our Lady Help of Christians, are: Alistair Resâ€" wick, Ross Tierney, Eleanor Stelling,_Lauretta Atkins. 1 h. n. u- ‘1 1 ,,L ,1- LLA _.:_‘1.. VVILK‘, *uuuu LluLAAvJ’ unvwnnv; v ....... D, a“..-â€"--.. __-- _-._v Ross Tierney was judged the best boy orator, and Eleanor Stelling the best of the girls. They hold the trophies won. They also hold the special trophy donated last year by the C.W.L. for the school from which the winners come. Since both winners are from the same school this year the trophy will remain for the full year at Our Lady Help of Christians School. “‘1. -1: 1.1.- n-..:,... n “I T yuan. uuc hLUyuj “All Lpununu LVL DLAV J-I-‘IJL va Judges were Mrs. Sam Cook, Mrs. William Henderson, parst president’of the Region C.W.L. and Mr. James McArthur, president of the parish Holy Name Society. I The two winners will go on to compete in the regional finals to be held February 23 In St. Mary Immaculate on Trayborn Road. ‘1 V“- ....~.._, ..v. V- -.,,_~, Public Speaking Contest Winners WINNER TAKE ALl Mandalay's Gate, Bridge, Moat HOME TOWN BUYING HOME TOWN SAVING When you shop at home you support local taxpayers, you employ many of your friends and neighbours and you enjoy that personal interest in your purchase Means