After admitting me to the 4th standard and infant dormitory. my paternal uncle headmaster of Poonewa Vernacular school left. I felt lonely and a gush of tears came to my eyes. However due to the affectionate welcome by my young colleagues and kindly guidance by the boarding mistress Mrs Werkmiester my. tears dried up and I got assimilated to the environment to make St. John's my home for eight and a half years from 1929. We were disciplined on liberal democratic lines and not on an authoritarian dictatorship. Though the boundary wall was only three feet high no one jumped over the wall to get to Bastiampillai boutique. We obtained permission from the boarding master or in his absence from a prefect or a monitor who had delegated powers to grant permission for boys to go out of the college premises.

System of appointing monitors and prefects on the lines of English Public Schools led to the training of boys to be future leaders. They were responsible for guiding their younger colleagues. Whilst on the subject of boarding life one should not forget those courteous members of the culinary staff clad in verty tucked up bare bodied, who turned out delicious meals which were on the tables of our Principal Rev. Henry Peto and teacher Mr Evans who were English men. The menu had fish, mutton and vegetable with Thosai regularly for breakfast. Though the college was established and managed by English clergymen who were used to eating beef, no beef was brought to kitchen of the boarding thus showing respect to the Hindu culture of Jaffna. During this period there was a fair sprinkling of Sinhala boys in the college. They were all boarders and Buddhists. Our Principal Rev. Henry Peto not only gave permission but advised us go to the Buddhist Temple in Jaffna town on the Vesak Poya day. I had to go to the temple regularly to learn Sinhala language which was a subject offered by me for the London Matriculation examination in 1936. 1 might mention that I was the only student from St. John's Jaffna to have passed the London Matric with Sinhala as a subject. I think I was the only Sinhala student to have passed the Matric exam from St. John's and entered the University College - Colombo then an affiliate of the London University.

In the early thirties there were only two Scout Troops in the whole of Jaffna district, ours was one and the other was the Central College Troop. Our two troops had to participate in the festivities organized when Lord Baden Powell. founder of the movement visited Ceylon in 1932 (?). There was a pageant in which every district had to depict a historical event. Jaffna district had as its item the arrival of Yalpadi.. Yalpadi the blind musician with his harp was carried in a decorated palanquin with music and dance from the State Council end of the Galle face green to the hotel end, quite a distance for four small Scouts to carry, choice of the Scout to play the part of Yalpadi depended on his weight. It might be a surprise at this period of time to learn that I played the role, of Yalpadi. Our Scout master then was Mr T.M. Mathai. Our camping out in Mandativu island used to be educative, pleasant and unforgettable.

During that era we had a junior and a senior platoon of the Ceylon Cadet Battalion. Mr V.C. Canagaratnam was the Lieutenant in charge. Apart from camps at Diyatalawa for the senior platoon and at Colombo for the junior platoon we had to participate at the parade held on king's birthday, June 3rd (King George V). Cadets, Scouts and Police marched in formation and the Government Agent Northen Province Mr.E,T. Dyson a good friend of our Principal took the salute. It was a coincidence and my good fortune that this same Mr Dyson was the Government Agent Central Province - Kandy when I was posted to Kandy for training as a Divisional Revenue Officer. At the early stage of intake into. this service two of my colleagues from St. Johns were Messers Sabaratnam and Sabapathipillai.

There used to be an annual athletic meet at which the four houses competed . Swimming was introduced at one stage. There was no swimming pool in any part of Jaffna then. Our training and competition was held in the lagoon. Two boats were anchored demarcating the distance and we swam that distance. From junior, through intermediate to senior groups there were three of us competing every year. They were Torn Vanden Driesen (Handy House), Balasingharn from V.V.T. (Thompson House) and myself from (Johnstone House). All three of us contributed points to our respective houses. At the senior level I was able to come first and contributed 5 points to my house. Three of us also once did a daredevil act by swimming across the lagoon to Sirutivu island and returning unaccompanied by any boats to rescue us if we got into trouble.

In the thirties St. John's was the unbeaten champions in cricket and football among all colleges in Jaffna peninsula. There were two. good captains .L R.Gnanapragasam and C.T.E. Mills. Mills was also the captain of Johnstone House. There were Sinhala boys playing in the college cricket team. Some of them were Beligodapitiya. Kapuwatte and Karunaratne. Before I entered college there was the legendary figure of J .A. H .Banda who it was said had hit a sixer over the clock-tower near the Central college grounds. I did not reach the standard required to play in the college team. However I was able to play in the house teams both cricket and football. That training in playing football made me eligible to play in the university college football team. Standard of football in Colombo was much lower than that of Jaffna at that time. Football was the most popular game in Jaffna.

I must mention with respect and gratitude the teachers who moulded my life. They were Rev. Henry Peto. who gave me an excellent character certificate when I sat the DRO's exam. Messers Arulanantham brothers, elder had not been ordained a priest then, the three Mathais, Messers EM. Ponnudurai. S.J. Gunasekaram, V .C .Canagaratnam. Charles. Jansen and Nesiah, the historian, Gandhian disciple and a patron of the cooperative movement in Jaffna. A few years before his passing away I had an opportunity of meeting Nesiah who recalled pleasant memories. Mv regret is I have not been able to help the college materially. However I am happy to state that 1 conducted myself in public life to be of credit to the institution that shaped my life. The general tone and tenor of this piece of writing would indicate, 1 have been focusing attention on cordiality and friendship that existed between students of the past irrespective of caste, creed or race. Let now be an occasion to once again for us to rise to that happy state.

May loving kindness prevail and all be happy.