Leslie as a young boy

continued

On one occasion when one horse stopped to graze on the roadside I road alongside, on my pint-sized pony, and swiped him with a switch. The Clydesdale retorted by a frisky buck and an iron-shod hoof, as big as a dinner plate, went past my ear. I have since learned that there is a Deity that looks after adventurous boys. Had that hoof connected on target I would not be recording these memories!

 

Before World War 1, about 1912 or 1913, the old No. 1 bridge at Whitiora was replaced and a temporary bridge was built upstream. Golfers transport was by horse-drawn coach from the stables of Dalgleash and MacDonald. My father had fitted me up with his old bicycle so, being adventurous and in need of pocket money, I cycled over the rough sandy road until I reached a gate at the end of Varden Road.

 

I offered my services as caddy to the first two golfers whom I found, Mr Harry Gillies and Mr Fred Bond. Mr Gillies said "Well, Fred, it looks as if we have got our first caddy" and promptly loaded me with their clubs. A few instructions re clubs, where to stand and how to hold the flag by the hole, started me on my duties.

 

Every Saturday during that season I reported to either Mr Gillies or Mr Bond. When we moved to our new home (now the Winstone spread) I found it more profitable to take my father's gundog to the golf course on Sundays and school holidays to hunt for golf balls in the fern and undergrowth along the river bank. That sagacious old retriever-spaniel soon caught on and was worth his weight in gold; and the enterprise paid much better than the shilling per round as a caddy.

 

 

I always had the idea that some day I would like to play golf but circumstances never permitted until I was about 63, when Mr Len Cubis, an old veteran, invited me to try at the Narrows Golf Course. Age and some minor infirmities soon showed that I was too old a dog to learn new tricks and I could get more joy and frustration on the Claudelands Bowling Green, where I have been a member since 1949"

 

When the family moved to Te Rapa, Mildred transferred from Hamilton West to Te Rapa Primary School on 13th December 1913. Leslie continued to attend Hamilton West till the end of 1914 and then went on to have one year at Hamilton High School. His form mistress was T.D.Tompkins M.A. and headmaster Eben Wilson M.A. His reports show him to have been quite a good student.

 

Leslie's first job after leaving school was as a junior clerk to the William Goodfellow. But life as a penpusher had no appeal, even though in later life writing was to become a most rewarding hobby, so he was apprenticed to his father who was a builder at Te Rapa. Building work was scarce about 1916 and young Leslie kicked over the traces and got himself a position as a shepherd on a King Country farm. He really enjoyed the horses, dogs and the usual run of station life until his father purchased a 100 acre farm at Tuhikaramea, where Leslie joined him. For the next 7 years life was one hard slog. In order to develop the farm as a dairy unit it was necessary to take on outside work and Leslie soon became a Contractor, doing anything that was offering around the district including carting cream to the Frankton Butter Factory. (His sister) Mildred was also employed on the farm. Rising early to help with the milking as well as other farm chores.

 

 

3. MARRIAGE - NEW CONNECTIONS

 

Mildred married first at St Georges Church in Frankton on 14th April 1925 to Garth Hall, a dairy farmer from Koromatua. The had a family of three sons, Tony, Gary and Philip, and a daughter, Patricia and the farm remained in the Hall family till 1992.

 

Leslie married Florence Myfanwy Jones at Mt. Eden Presbyterian Church in Auckland on 16th July 1925. Myfanwy (as she was known) was the eldest daughter of Gomer Owen and Annie Maria (nee O'Dell) Jones of Auckland. The couple had met when Myfanwy was invited to stay on the farm at Tuhikaramea by Mildred, who she had become friendly with when Mildred was staying with neighbours of the Jones's in Auckland. Granddad, Owen Jones was a Welshman who had a great love of music. He was an accomplished singer and was choirmaster of numerous church choirs during his life. Myfanwy was born at "Hazel View", St. Neots Road, Sandy. Bedfordshire, England on 22nd September 1903. She had a brother, Owen Glynne born 1st July 1905 and a sister, Ellaline Juanita born on 2nd September 1907. The family came to New Zealand aboard the CORINTHIC in 1915 and some other members of Owen's family were already in New Zealand.

 

Before her marriage, Myfanwy was employed as a milliner. She had taken piano lessons in England and had played the "Poet and Peasant Overture" at a boat concert on their voyage to New Zealand. She was quite an accomplished pianist and also had a lovely singing voice. These two pastimes were to give her much pleasure for the rest of her life. No matter where she lived over the years, she was always involved in musical activities, singing in church choirs, playing the organ or playing the piano for the many organisations she was to belong to.