“BE AMBITIOUS”

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 988, 3 June 1930, Page 16

“BE AMBITIOUS”

SOME RULES FOR GOOD CITIZENSHIP LORD BLEDISLOE’S ADVICE “Having seen the school motto, I would like to add a last precept, ‘Be ambitious.’ It is wrong to be content with second place if one thinks one has qualifications for first place.” In these terms the Governor-General, Lord Bledisloe, addressed the boys of the Auckland Grammar School yesterday. Accompanied by Lady Bledisloe, his Excellency paid a visit to the school. The cadet corps was drawn up in review order to receive the visitors, and, after presenting arms, marched past in column of route. The cadets then assembled in the drill hall, and their Excellencies were introduced by Professor A. P. W. Thomas, chairman of the board of governors. “The exterior of the school is quite familiar to me,” said Lord Bledisloe. “In the first place, it bears a remarkable resemblance to a building at Riverside, in California. Secondly, I have been accustomed to take a stroll up Mount Eden each day for exercise. I walk past the school, and if I am late for lunch run past it on the other side! GOOD CITIZENSHIP “Pupils from such schools as the Auckland Grammar are expected to take their part in shaping the future of the Dominion. There are three rules for good citizenship—be keen, be clean, and do not be mean. Being clean does not mean only physical cleanness; it means having a clean outlook on life. “Do not be mean. You should be generous, not necessarily in money matters, but in thought, word, and deed. You should not look down on manual labour, for intelligent work of the hands is a thing to be proud of. I am glad I have spent the greater part of my life working on my farm. You young New Zealanders should be particularly generous in thought to the people of the great Maori race.” At Lord Bledi sloe’s request, the school was granted a half-holida3'. “The traditions of the Auckland Grammar School are founded on the realisation that nothing can be done without hard work,” said the headmaster, Mr. H. J. D. Mahon, in thanking his Excellency for the address. “The pupils also realise the principle of service before self.”