The Matron's Inspection

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viejoazul
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The Matron's Inspection

Post by viejoazul »

Umpteen years ago at Horsham in the juniors’ dormitory after the evening washing the juniors were all lined up and the matron summoned. She then inspected them – backs of hands, palms, arms, face, behind one ear, behind the other, foot on a settle. (This was a cast metal cuboid container, about 60 x 60 x 30 cm, with a hinged wooden lid, used for storing pyjamas and clothes. It was a relic from London’s CH, visible in 19 century prints of CH dormitories, with one per bed.) Then the leg was turned to allow inspection of the back part of the leg and knee and finally the other leg similarly. My matron treated this very seriously and one junior kept a tally in a particular note book that the matron brought with her. The result was, “Excellent” if no dirt was found or “Non Excellent”. The matron gave a prize to the top three juniors who had the greatest numbers of “Excellent” at the end of each term and her prizes were an article of official clothing. (I owned until recently a pair of prize “games socks”, blue knee high woollen socks for rugby, etc.)

There must have been a very similar nightly ritual in all houses. (But we were excused Inspection after films on a Saturday, when juniors went to bed later than usual – upstairs at 8 15 on weeknights and Sunday.) I presume the junior girls had something similar. But do such Inspections continue today?
Chris T
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by Chris T »

These inspections performed several functions. Ensuring cleanliness was of course the most obvious and important, but there were others. The matron had an opportunity to recognise some forms of illness, such as rashes, etc., and could act accordingly. It was also a social occasion in my house. The matron would chat and even discuss important things like impending house cup tie rugby matches, etc. Immediately before (or immediately after) our inspection the other house in the block was inspected by the matron who served both houses. Often at the second inspection juniors enquired about the other house’s results. Some sort of healthy and innocent inter house rivalry resulted. Finally both of my housemasters were bachelors and clearly enjoyed the company of small boys and so one of them would usually be present at each inspection, socialising with boys and matron alike. If for any reason the matron was absent, the senior housemaster would inspect.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by Martin »

Also present at these Matrons’ Inspections were junior monitors (numbers 5 and 6 in the hierarchy, since normally there were 6 monitors per house) who supervised the juniors when they went upstairs after evening house prayers. The two junior monitors were present while the juniors washed in the dormitory’s 2 ‘lav ends’, which each contained a long slab with cold taps and about 8 portable aluminium basins used for washing oneself. These very primitive, post second world war, washing facilities have long since been replaced. The ‘lav end’ also contained one bath, urinals and one flush toilet, forbidden for evening or night use except in emergency. The bowls were filled with hot water from the bath taps. Juniors rushed to undress and get a first bowl (there were about 12 juniors per ‘lav end’) and not to have to hang around to wash themselves. Each junior had a bath once a week, according to a rota drawn up. One monitor stayed for the inspection and remained after lights out, doing his own prep, till about 10 pm, when he would go down to the day room and join the others (and sometimes one of the housemasters) for coffee, hot chocolate or some other hot or cold drink and biscuits, before all the monitors went upstairs at 10 30.
time please
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by time please »

I seem to remember that in Barnes A late sixties that the inspection was at least for me some type of substitute Mum.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by michael scuffil »

Martin wrote:Also present at these Matrons’ Inspections were junior monitors (numbers 5 and 6 in the hierarchy, since normally there were 6 monitors per house) who supervised the juniors when they went upstairs after evening house prayers. The two junior monitors were present while the juniors washed in the dormitory’s 2 ‘lav ends’, which each contained a long slab with cold taps and about 8 portable aluminium basins used for washing oneself. These very primitive, post second world war, washing facilities have long since been replaced. The ‘lav end’ also contained one bath, urinals and one flush toilet, forbidden for evening or night use except in emergency. The bowls were filled with hot water from the bath taps. Juniors rushed to undress and get a first bowl (there were about 12 juniors per ‘lav end’) and not to have to hang around to wash themselves. Each junior had a bath once a week, according to a rota drawn up. One monitor stayed for the inspection and remained after lights out, doing his own prep, till about 10 pm, when he would go down to the day room and join the others (and sometimes one of the housemasters) for coffee, hot chocolate or some other hot or cold drink and biscuits, before all the monitors went upstairs at 10 30.
Corresponds roughly with my memories, except I don't remember any restriction on using the toilet. And most of our bowls were enamelled steel rather than aluminium. They were filled from the hot tap of the bath. As far as I recall, the cold taps above the trough only produced a trickle of water while you actually pressed them, and were used only for tooth-cleaning. The lav-ends were primitive even by 50s standards, and were regularly criticized by HMI. They were abolished during the rebuilding that took place in connexion with senior and junior houses in 1963/64.

Also always present at the Matron's Inspection was the duty housemaster.

Only one lav-end was used, because it was only the 'junior juniors' (years 1 + 2) who were inspected. (The senior juniors on the UF had second prep, and came upstairs only at 9.) There was a bath rota, and those whose turn it was to have a bath were excused inspection.

After the matron had gone, we had nose-blowing by numbers. This went on for another few years after I arrived, until in fact I was a junior dorm monitor. By chance the house captain we had imported from Col. B happened to be there when this ritual was happening. He laughed himself silly and abolished it on the spot.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by sejintenej »

I seem to remember nose blowing but I suspect it was in the prep. In Col A we had two types of inspection; general cleanliness as has been explained but there was a second which, in today's world, seems a bit unhygenic. This was for tinea pedis and tinea cruris where the relative parts of anatomy were pulled apaert and inspected for 'the smelly rot' - and it does stink!

Of course some boys had the condition and I am sure that the examining hands easily picked up the germs / bacteria and, such hands not being washed, donated a sample to the next few boys to be examined. With bare feet on the floors, especially lav-end wet floors and around the swimming pool I am amazed that the rot was relatively unusual.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by michael scuffil »

Hygiene in those days was poor to a degree that can only be described as appalling. My wife, listening to stories about CH, says she can approve of much of the Spartan outlook, but finds the fact that we could not (or at least did not) wash our private areas daily and thoroughly quite disgusting. (Ditto underwear changed once weekly.)

The Matron, of course, only checked hands, feet, knees and necks.
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alterblau
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by alterblau »

Martin wrote:Each junior had a bath once a week
One result of the unavailability of a daily bath, meant that it was a great privilege at CH. So when a monitor I (and very many others) indulged in a bath virtually every night. That’s something that has stayed with me for over 60 years. When convenient I still take a bath and not a shower, all because of CH.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by dsmg »

michael scuffil wrote:Hygiene in those days was poor to a degree that can only be described as appalling. My wife, listening to stories about CH, says she can approve of much of the Spartan outlook, but finds the fact that we could not (or at least did not) wash our private areas daily and thoroughly quite disgusting. (Ditto underwear changed once weekly.)

The Matron, of course, only checked hands, feet, knees and necks.
Crikey Michael, what percentage of the world's children does your wife think wash their private bits every day??? I don't think CH was much different then (or now) to any other children's institution.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by postwarblue »

In my day in Col B the housemaster, rather than Matron, conducted the tinea crucis inspection, quite separately. Which being AH Buck perhaps he did not find too onerous.
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by eucsgmrc »

According to legend, Kit once posted a notice to say that matron would inspect only the juniors for tinea, and it was the seniors' personal responsibility to inspect themselves for "tinea and pedia cruris".
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by sejintenej »

alterblau wrote:
Martin wrote:Each junior had a bath once a week
One result of the unavailability of a daily bath, meant that it was a great privilege at CH. So when a monitor I (and very many others) indulged in a bath virtually every night. That’s something that has stayed with me for over 60 years. When convenient I still take a bath and not a shower, all because of CH.
4 inches up to the line (when you are immersed in it) of tepid water with everyone else potentially measuring you up for whatever little boys do ...............

No thanks. I use a shower even now
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LongGone
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by LongGone »

sejintenej wrote:
alterblau wrote:
Martin wrote:Each junior had a bath once a week
One result of the unavailability of a daily bath, meant that it was a great privilege at CH. So when a monitor I (and very many others) indulged in a bath virtually every night. That’s something that has stayed with me for over 60 years. When convenient I still take a bath and not a shower, all because of CH.
4 inches up to the line (when you are immersed in it) of tepid water with everyone else potentially measuring you up for whatever little boys do ...............

No thanks. I use a shower even now

Reading some of the threads I notice that each house had its own customs: I had always assumed we all were the same. For us there was no limit on bath water, I don't remember any search for 'itches', we no house master at Matron's inspection etc. I wonder how much of the difference was due to the influence of the House Master; I have no real idea how much power they had to run their house as they saw fit.
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sejintenej
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by sejintenej »

sejintenej wrote:
alterblau wrote:
Martin wrote:Each junior had a bath once a week
4 inches up to the line (when you are immersed in it) of tepid water with everyone else potentially measuring you up for whatever little boys do ...............
Reading some of the threads I notice that each house had its own customs: I had always assumed we all were the same. For us there was no limit on bath water,
I'm sure that that was a hangover from the war years when resources - water, heating etc., were in short supply. The restriction ended during my time.

That said, you lie in the bath and all the muck, perspiration, grease, whatever comes out of and off you and forms an oil-like layer on the surface through which you have to rise, coating yourself anew. Then your towel gets far worse than necessary. Far better a shower which cleans it off you once and for all and uses one fifth of the water.

As for the relaxation factor, various types of yoga are just as good
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Re: The Matron's Inspection

Post by Richard »

A propos of baths, in the summer when the weather was warm, the bath was filled with cold water first thing in the morning and cold baths were a voluntary adjunct to our morning hygiene. The appropriate monitor was always responsible for supervising the cleaning of the lavend in the morning by one of the juniors, according to a schedule. I remember complaints from them that it was impossible to remove a tide mark on the bath, although a gritty detergent and a cleaning cloth were provided. (In those days the CH water was very hard. It probably still is.) My inevitable response was a challenge. If I could get it off, by hard scrubbing, then the junior would clean the bath daily for a whole week. After winning twice there were no such further problems. It now occurs to me that the previous night’s bather should have cleaned the bath. Why he didn’t I don’t know. Perhaps there was insufficient time available with the looming Matron’s inspection.
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