By Miss J. NICOLSON, M.A.
AS you may remember, I returned to Ingwenya in April of last year. It was very pleasant to see all the friends again, and to be welcomed back. Great improvements were made on our house while we were at home. It was rethatched and had a ceiling inserted. Mr. Tallach and Doctor MacDonald did all they could to make it comfortable and attractive.
Mr. Fraser kindly remained in school for ten days after I arrived. Taking charge of the school seemed a much more formidable task now, than it had done before. There were over 400 children on the roll and eight African teachers. There were many more big boys. School-work seemed to proceed at a much greater pace, and 45 minutes had been added to the school morning by order of the Dept. There was a flourishing school-garden with plots of cabbages, onions, tomatoes, beans, etc. It was very evident that Mr. Fraser had done his work with tremendous energy and success.
I took over the upper standards from Mr. Fraser. There were six pupils in Standard Six, all of whom passed the final examination last November. Three of them went to Hope Fountain Training School for Teachers, two are teaching in our out-schools at Elibeni and Shangani respectively and one girl is working in a Government Clinic recently opened at Shangani. I have already mentioned the girls’ garden. Gardening is now a compulsory subject in African schools. Last year each teacher took her own class for gardening. During the summer heat Mr. Tallach kindly supervised for me the work in the garden and continued to do so until the end of the year. Being in need of an additional teacher at the beginning of this year, Mr. Tallach engaged a young teacher Simon Moye, a member in this congregation. As he had an excellent training in agriculture at an American Mission School he was put in charge of the school garden and the boys’ acre plot. He has done splendid work. He first set the little boys to plant a rubber-plant hedge by the fence which surrounds the Mission. This plant grows very rapidly and should eventually strengthen the fence and prevent goats or other animals breaking through. The little boys did this with great enthusiasm and at Simon’s suggestion they were rewarded by a feast of stewed goat and bread. Simon Moye’s teaching day is legally over by 1.30 p.m. but he is on the Mission until dusk seeing that the vegetable plots and fruit trees are watered in the cool of the day. There are over forty small fruit trees, peaches, quavas, paw-paws, etc. Over a thousand tomatoes, most of which were eaten by the girls themselves, were raised on the girls’ plots, as well as quantities of peas, beans, etc. Simon has had many difficulties. In calm weather the windmill stops and there is no water to spare for the garden. The girls then carry the water from another well at least a quarter of a mile off, which occupies a great part of the afternoon. Sometimes the garden gate is left open and the cattle work havoc among the vegetables. In addition to the vegetable garden, Standard Two girls have an acre plot of sweet potatoes, beans and pumpkins, and the boys have an acre mealie plot. All of these have been successful.
While we were at home Mrs. Tallach and Mrs. MacDonald took full responsibility for the needlework, laundry and cookery classes. They spared no pains in teaching and helping the African teachers, and Miss Rudd, our Government Inspectress, highly commended all the work done. Mrs. MacDonald continues to take a needlework class daily and is a most enthusiastic teacher. We are also grateful to Doctor MacDonald for continuing to take his First Aid Class.
I cannot express how much we appreciate what the ladies of the church, over such a wide field, are doing for us. Vancouver children send their fine contribution each year. The ladies of Winnipeg Congregation with Miss McTaggart as Secretary have been sending most useful parcels and gifts of money. In Toronto we have a new group of friends, with Miss R. Campbell as Secretary, who have sent us an excellent parcel of materials and garments each month since October. From a few New York friends we received 150 yards of material. The friends at home are as warmly interested as ever. Mrs. Miller continues to send contributions from Edinburgh, London and other sources. The ladies of St. Jude’s, Glasgow, have been most generous in sending gifts of money, clothing and material.
Finally, it may interest the friends at home who so generously sent me contributions to bring out, to know how some of the money was spent. Twenty combined seats and desks were bought at £1 each, by Mr. Tallach, from a European School in Bulawayo which was refurnishing. These are doubly appreciated as so much adjusting has to be done with ever-increasing numbers that very often the available seat will not fit the available desk and vice versa!
Despite the fact that we received so much material from friends, since my return I have used £13 of the above-mentioned gift money on sewing materials and odd monies on garden seeds, etc. A special gift of £5 for prizes gave much pleasure at the end of the year when Zulu Bibles and Testaments were given in every class as Scripture prizes. By all these gifts we are constantly reminded of the loving share friends are taking in the work.
I hope no one will suppose that the spiritual aims of school instruction are lightly thought of because I have made so much of the secular side of school-work. I know Mr. Tallach will have something to say of these matters in his report. Mr. Tallach may not have mentioned that he prepared a translation of the Mothers’ Catechism for the Beginners’ Class. As all who are familiar with it know, the questions are of more value than the answers which are chiefly “Yes” and “No.” Mr. Tallach has also prepared a more advanced catechism for the older children. Standards V. and VI. are, for the first time, learning the Shorter Catechism in English, and most of them seem to grasp fairly well what they are taught.
Meanwhile we all await Mr. Beaton’s arrival, D.V., with the warmest anticipation.