Cheers to the Cubs!
The Cubs from NTPS, 1960
We thank SK Ong for the above picture. Perhaps some of you out there are in this picture; looking smart in your Cubs uniform and cap 
I remember being part of the Red Crescent Society – it took me a while to learn the RIGHT WAY to tie an arm sling! But learning some basic First Aid was quite fun.
Speaking of school clubs, which club/society did YOU join?
I joined the Boys’ Brigade (2nd Ipoh Wesley Company, ACS Ipoh) when I was in school and rose to the rang of Staff-Sargent when I was in Form Six. When I started teaching, I joined back the company as a Warren Officer, then rose to Leftenant and late Acting Captain. Even till lately, I still conduct courses for the same company.
In addition to the Boys’ Brigade, I joined the Methodist Youth Fellowship, too.
In school we were all members of the Literary and Debating Society as it was then part of the time-table. I joined the Industrial Art Club where we learn to do crafts, some carpentry and metalwork. I was also active in the Geographical Society and the Music and Drama Society. I was also a school Prefect. I played hockey for my house and in the Inter-school Sixth Form Games and took part in school sports. I played softball when I was with the MYF (American Missionaries introducted this to us) and when I started working I was made aa school softball coach, Central Perak District Sports Council Softball Chairman (then no MSSPK yet and Perak was divided into 3 Districts for the purpose of sports) and later I bacame Kinta District Technical Chairman for Softball (when schools in Perak followed the districts in the stae under the Majlis Sukan Sekolah Perak) and state coaach for the Girls’ team of Perak Schools Sports Council for Softball, State Softball Umpire and National Softball Umpire. I only gave up my position here in Softball when I became a Principal and was posted out of Kinta District to Kuala Kangsar District. I was also the State Softball Association’s Secretary for many years.
Woosh! What a long resume! When you start narrating, it just goes on and on. Actually, in those days we play outdoor games so much compared to children of today (they are most of the time playing computer games with some exceptions). In my neighbourhood I also played football, cricket, go cycling, fishing, hiking, camping, etc. We used to cook over an open fire in the belukar (secondary forest). Of course catching spiders, fighting fish and crickets (the insect) to fight was a favourite craze of many young boys and some young girls too.
War games were played not with pallet-guns in special camps and playland but with water-guns made from bamboo, or blowgun shooting green peas (also made from bamboo) or rubberband and to add to the pain, ‘bullets’ made from rolled paper that were bent and shot with rubberbands held between the thumb and the forefinger! They really pack a sting if you are hit.
In one of my episodes on Schooling in Ipoh, I will write about the use of a simple old tennis ball for playing with by pupils! Till then, let us hear from you and the games you created. There are lots more but I will let you have your say first.
Like Valiant Knight, I too was a Boys Brigader till the rank of Lieutenant, though I enjoyed myself tremendously in the Scouts for 2 years.
Hi UV. yes, children these days seem more familiar with computer games (especially those violent ones like ‘War Craft’). sadly, playing outdoor games like ‘gasing’/ marbles/ hopscotch..etc. are seen as ‘boring’ – compared to the likes of Play Stations
am looking forward to your next Episode
Thanks Ipohworld for posting this picture as this was send to me
by Oon Eng Hock ( he is in the picture ), the 1967 School Captain from Anderson School.
Well Choong ( your posting in Ipoh World on Dec 9, 2010 ), this could be your closest picture in NTPS-JPP as you were in Std 5 in 1959.
Do you know Oon Eng Hock or any other persons in this Cub picture ?
Wishing all our Chinese a Happy Gong Xi Fa Cai in the year of the Rabbit and Happy Happy Chinese New Year Holidays.
Cheers
Going from the comments posted above, the Boys Brigade which is aligned to the Methodist Church has a more elaborate rank structure, viz.
Private
Lance Corporal
Corporal
Sergeant
Staff Sergeant
Warrant Officer
Lieutenant
Captain
which broadly mirrors the British Army system. Very alluringly, most of the company units have
some semblance of a military type band.
In contrast, the Scouts organization adopts a flatter (less assuming ?) system with this simplified ranking :-
Scout
Assistant Patrol Leader
Patrol Leader
Troop Leader
Assistant Scout Master
Scout Master
Note that each school-based unit is only designated as a troop, not a company as in the case of
the Boys Brigade. In army parlance, a troop is of course a smaller unit than a company. Very interestingly, the scouts in each school have a Court of Honour made up of the Troop Leader and Patrol Leaders to discuss matters related to the running of the troop. They have a system of badges
award to recognize various skills attained and the highest honour for any scout is to win the King’s Scout Award.
As for the cubs, they are a junior unit to the scouts. Looking at the strapping Sikh boy in the middle of the back row, one might be led to think that the cubs’ origin was aligned to lion cubs. No, not really, they were patterned on wolf cubs
Isn’t it appropriate that the backdrop to this photograph was formed by low buildings and mountain range at the back designating that the cubs movement (and indeed the scouts movement) is more aligned to the countryside and nature? In contrast, the BB is more town based.
Hi LMS136. that’s an interesting observation!
thanks for giving us a brief account of the rankings too, and also about the origin of the Cubs.
LMS136 you forgot the lowest rank in the BB, the recruit! LOL.
By town based aare you implying that he BB do not go out into the country side? If so you are wrong. We have activities like the scouts too and wayfaring is one! We go hiking and camping too. Like the scouts we have to earn various badges (made of chrome) and I have a bunch of them.
Our greatest honour is to get the ‘Founder’s Badge’ like your Queen/King Scout.
I was able to visit the founder’s hometown in Scotland when I was there!
Hi UV@Valiant Knight ,
Yes, of course, there must be recruits – very essential to replenishing the manpower pool as the older BB members leave as and when they complete their education. But “recruits” is merely a classification and form of address but never a rank.
When I first started out as an Officer Trainee (a glorified form of address for a rookie/recruit with a bit more of schooling), my Mat Salleh boss bluntly put it to me that I was the lowest form of life – no rank, no privilege, no standing, totally a “L” (lembu) learner, hence totally non productive. My only role was either to shape up or ship out in the shortest of time, i.e. I had to prove that I was good enough to be taken on permanently and given a rank. That was a sobering reminder and I must agree that he was right.
On the other point you raised, the Boys Brigade like the regular infantry are very much town based in town garrisons. Your staff sergeants wear tunics and ties, your warrant officers, lieutenants and captains wear ties. The scouts and scout leaders wear shirts and scarfs as it is in their nature like scouts/rangers units to be closer to the field and indeed to be fieldsmen.
But that aside, of course, the regular infantry units operate both in towns as well as in the countryside but home is in the towns. This is likewise with the Boys Brigade
I still have my BB badges
Best years of my life!
Why not send us good photographs of the badges Aaron and we can then include them with the others we have on our database archive.
The name of the teacher with the turban is Mr Bhagwan Singh