Page 34 - 1931

32 IITHE GLEANER"
CADETS
The clash of rifles, the hoarse ex- plosions from the throats of hard- boiled N.C.O.'s who are about as much at sea as the rest of them~ the thudding of drums, the wig-wag of signal flags, the wide-eyed admira- tion of thrilled girl friends. What is it? Why, spring is here! The cadets are out!
For three or four weeks around Easter every year the walls of the' C.C.I. resound to the tramp, tramp of .saua.ds of khaki clad school boys and the gurgling r·attle from the throats of barking officers.
After the first week,· the platoons begin to know how to stand straight, the end of the second week usually sees the zig-zag lines beginning to unbend, after three weeks the ranks think they are ready for ice-cream.
Section Inspection follows and the winning section proudly tramp to Coates' lee-Cream Parlor for the feast. A few days later comes the Platoon Inspection with Mr. Staple- ton's usual speech: "There is not much choice as to which is the worst platoon. But we have graded them in the order they stand. No. 1 is first; No. 2 is second and the Signallers will wash the dishes."
The Cadet A t Home and Dance follows, when all the budding privat- es and haughty officers gather for an evening of fun in the school audi- torium.
"There was sound of revelry by night And Belgium's Capital had gathered
her beauty and her chivalry."
*****
Tramp, tramp, tramp. The long col- umn swings down Hume Street to· wards Exhibition Park. Inspection Day is here. Buttons are shined, hair is brushed and slicked, faces are scrubbed as they never were scrub- bed before. Even ears are pink with rubbing!
The corps line in two long ranks, the front rank envying the back rank, the back rank, feeling ~rJ:iy for th€ front rank. Br'esently, the Inspecting officer appears. The lines jump to "Shun," the rifle.s click to "Presen~ Arms" and the drums roll. Inspection is on. Woe to the poor fel- low who gets out of step, woe to the officer who forgets which is right and which is left, woe to the signal- ler who takes an "a" for a "z". How- ever, it can't last forever and at last the weary platoons are again drawn up to hear the Inspecting Officer's speech.
Tramp, tramp. tramp, back to the school goes the column and another Inspection day is past.
-Walter G. Rice.
OFFICERS AND N.C.O.'S OF 1930 CORPS
Cadet Inst.-L. J. Stapleton, B.A. Cadet Captain-Hubert Lee. Cadet Lieut.-Ronald Sandell. Cadet Lieut.-Jack Kenney.
Cadet Lieut.-Harry Sproule. Com. Sergt. Major-Bill Newby. Sergeants - D. McDermid. G.
Trotter, N. Arthur. Corporals-N. Livingstone, Robt.
Storey, H. Sproule, T. Davidson, K. Guilfoyle, A. Mitchell.
OFFICERS OF 1931 CORPS (';ar'let Inst.-L.•T. Stapleton, B.A. Cadet Captain-Jack Kenney. Cadet Lieut.-Gordon Trotter. Cadet Lieut.-Don. McDermid. Ca.,det Lieut.-Alex. Mitchell.
SHOOTING
Each winter the members of the C.C.I. cadet corps take part in a tar- get shooting contest held by the Do- minion Rifle Association. A medal is offered for the highest aggregate score in the school. After a very hard contest early last spring the medal was finally won by Alex. Irvine.