Scotch College

Lives of the Scotch Collegians

‘My father was David Swan. There was no second Christian name. He had five sisters who also had only the one Christian name. Their father was frugal.’ — Peter Robert Swan (1943), letter to Jim Mitchell.

‘When he arrived in London, “I found out which was the hottest night club in London, which happened to be a place called the Speakeasy.” Tait immediately got a job there, and was at once rubbing elbows with rock royalty – from the Beatles to The Who to Jimi Hendrix and everyone in between. “My very first night working, my first table were two of the Beatles, who I actually didn’t recognise at the time,” he admits with a smile. Working at the Speakeasy, Tait met a variety of up and coming artists, and was eventually asked to drive a van up to Leeds University and then help with the gear of one of the bands at the club. That band, which was unknown at the time, was the English supergroup Yes. Tait accepted, and began working steadily for the band …’ — Michael Bruce Tait (1962), autobiographical account.

John Donges (1950) invited Patricia Elvish ‘to dinner at the Ritz, a top Melbourne city restaurant. Delighted to have the opportunity to wear her new “Jacques Heim” Paris outfit, Patricia accepted, and off they went for a memorable evening of good food and conversation. Not unalike, particularly in colouring – both freckled, with goldie-coloured wavy hair … a slow courtship began, as John was a true “workaholic”. Contacting his girlfriend only every 3 weeks or so, they gradually realised they could succeed as a lifetime pair.’ — Trish Donges, widow.

‘On our way back to Melbourne we decided to go by quieter roads than the highway. Laurie was driving and we travelled very slowly so that he could pick out bird calls and even catch sight of the caller, hoping to find a new bird to add to his list – it was a very long day!’ – Alec Lyne, eulogy for John Laurie Provan (1934).

‘He excelled at introducing schoolboys to Latin. Who can forget his blackboard explanation of the overlapping meanings of “habeo = I hold or I have” - with a drawing of a diminutive man held in a great big fist? Equally plain was his exposition of Latin pronunciation, e.g. “causas = cow’s a’se”. Who will forget the error of his ways being impressed on him by a twist and elevation of the ear by the thumb and forefinger … ?’ — 1939 Form III 50-year reunion, encomium for Maynard Davidson Close, Junior School teacher 1940–45.

‘From that day we both did our share of war service, Jack making hundreds of model airplanes for the Air Force (he was presented with a special medal for his efforts) and I did Fire Drill at the local Fire Brigade every Friday Night, and once a fortnight on a roster from the S Australian Club visited the sick soldiers in the Camperdown Hospital. This was an exhausting experience necessitating four changes [of public transport] and two long walks pushing Malcolm’s pusher, during the first years, to leave him with my relative at Cremorne to mind. But it was very rewarding, and often very emotional, these young boys so badly wounded, their delight to have a visitor from home, complete with S.A. papers, cakes & goodies. Dozens of young men from other states made our home their home too, when they had a few days’ leave before embarking for the war. On several occasions I was the last non-army person in Australia to see them before they were killed.’ — Margaret Macnaughton, widow, life of John Duncan Macnaughton (1928).

‘I thought … that the recording of some incidents, inexplicably (?) omitted from the official history, might be of interest.’ — James Lewis Maitland Campbell (1907), ‘Some unedifying recollections of Eastern Hill’.

‘When I received your request for information about my father, I spoke with my sister and brother regarding how they would like Dad remembered. All that we had been told about my father’s infancy and childhood was collated and submitted to my siblings for approval in October last year, but it was my sister’s conviction that this was “the one chance to get it right” which left me unsatisfied that everything possible had been done to verify the accuracy of the stories we had grown up believing.’ — Claudia Cook, daughter of James Coop (1938).

‘My thirteenth year was the year of playing with secret codes. My heavily ink-stained Form 5D diary contains a numeric code-chart using even numbers, and it was a means of communicating with certain schoolmates in secret. My Christian name Ian would have appeared as 24 2 90.’ — Ian Harcourt Field (1947), ‘Bottled at Scotch’.

‘Although I never knew Fraser, his wartime escape story and heroic but tragic death a few years later in a factory accident were often referred to in the family.…’ Peter Sutherland, William Fraser Sutherland [1940]’s story.

‘I did the story on my computer but I am an 81 year old lady still trying to use my magic machine to its full potential. Son Christopher in Castlemaine has given me instructions per phone on how to send you the attachment. So here’s hoping.’ — Shirley Hosking, sister-in-law of William Winston Prince (1936).