rumour has it that the needs of any members of staff and their families, who may be contemplating a foreign holiday, can be efficiently catered for now by a new agency in Stirling which, it is said, seems to be owned and managed by a recently departed member of staff whose face would not be unfamiliar to Wavell or first year boys. Finally we give our good wishes to Mrs Walters, who was in charge of the Dining Hall until a year ago, when she became ill. She is now retiring from the Civil Service. And to Mrs Baird, for an early and complete recovery from her serious and prolonged illness.

GOERS AND COMERS

On Grand Day more than thirty boys will, with a handshake from the Adjutant-General, be given their formal farewell, marking the end of their life at Queen Victoria School and the beginning of more advanced training for adult careers. Added to these are a number of boys who have already left, so that we have had an unusually large leaving list this year. As always, the range of intentions and aspirations covers University entrance, technical training, apprenticeships, and many professions and careers as varied as gamekeeping, hairdressing, police and banking. As is also, sadly, usual nowadays, only a minority are going into the Services as their fathers did, but it is still quite a substantial handful, whom the Services will welcome.
Because of the large turn-out the Selection Board, which sat in May, was able to offer a better than ordinary proportion of vacancies to applicants this year. Out of one hundred and eleven eligible applicants we were able to offer places to fifty-two, an exceptional intake. Each Service got roughly half its applicants in but in the case of the Navy, alas, this only meant one out of a total of two applicants !

OLD VICTORIAN ASSOCIATION

Because the Postal strike prevented communication we were forced to postpone the March Reunion, though we did manage to attract enough younger OVs to play the usual Rugby Match. So this year we reverted to a May Reunion again, which was attended mainly by the older generation, who seemed to enjoy themselves however, in spite of foul weather. I understand that at their Annual General Meeting the OVA decided to assume greater responsibility for the management of their own affairs, which should relieve the School of a considerable commitment without, I am sure, in any way weakening the close and cordial ties between the School and the OVA.

BUILDING

I mentioned the new Wing proposed for the Teaching Block in my last Notes. Experience has made us wary, not to say cynical, about "target dates" in respect of any Building project. However, after a good deal of departmental delay while the differences between the cost figures of the original estimate, the architects' estimate, the D of E estimate, and the amount of money likely to be actually approved, were batted about between Whitehall, Rosyth, HQ Scotland, D of E HQ in Edinburgh, and the School, it does at last seem that there is a real prospect of building beginning during the Christmas term. As it must, if there is to be any hope of the Wing being ready by the time it is required, which is September, 1972.

COLONEL A. C. T. WHITE
V.C., M.C., B.A.

Colonel Archie White, a widower, died suddenly in his home at Camberley on Friday, 21st May. He would have been 80 years of age in October of this year. His funeral was on the following Tuesday. By his own wish the ceremony was private and without flowers, so, respecting this, the School did not send the Wreath and the Piper and Bugler which otherwise we would have wished to do.
Of original Scots ancestry himself, with his family's roots in Caithness, he first joined the TA in 1909, a year after its formation, as a member of the 5th Bn West Yorkshire Regiment. He obtained his BA Degree at King's College, London, of which College he later became a Fellow. He was commissioned in the Green Howards in September, 1914, seeing active service first in Gallipoli, where he was wounded and Mentioned in Despatches. Later, on the Western Front, he was wounded again, being awarded the Military Cross. For outstanding and prolonged gallantry in the Battle of the Somme in 1916 he was awarded the highest military decoration, the Victoria Cross. After a period on the Staff Archie White went on fighting after the Armistice, being a member of the North Russian Relief Force which went to Murmansk to fight the Bolsheviks. While engaged in this campaign he was made a Brevet Major. Transferring to the Royal Army Educational Corps in 1920, on the formation of the Corps, he later became an Instructor at the RMC Sandhurst until 1924. From January, 1925, to August, 1929, he was Commandant of Queen Victoria School. Returning after this appointment to Sandhurst he became OC of a company of Cadets there. He retired in 1947 having held many important Corps and Staff appointments. Although fated to be a widower throughout the latter part of his life, and to live alone, his great range of interests, educational, military. Corps, Regimental, and his wide circle of