Page 69 - The Diary of A. H. W. Behrens

29
1872 – 1873
Behr took over the school. I was assistant teacher and still had Greek lessons and started with Hebrew. I was the top achiever of the school and Saturday mornings I had to learn the gospel of the coming Sunday in German, English, Latin and Greek,
as many verses as I could, and then had to write them down off by heart. I also had to teach in the lower grades. Behr implemented many changes, in German style.
Then the school revolution took place. Lice were found in
the bed and suitcase of one boer son and Behr ordered that
all boxes and suitcases of all the boys should be opened and inspected. The big English scholars refused to unlock their suitcases and said it was an insult to demand this because they had no lice. Behr stuck to his demands and they stood by their refusal. The commotion rose and during the night it became tumultuous, the school bells were rung, straw bags on the second floor were torn open, the straw was set on fire and then extinguished with water. Bedsets were piled on top of each other, much noise was made and who knows what and the next morning, very early, the big boys left on foot to their parents in Pietermaritzburg. The whole story ended up in the newspapers and caused a lot of dust. None of the learners returned and no new ones joined and the name of the school was ruined. The learners were sent to Hilton College that started flourishing from then onwards. Also, the school of Teacher Müller in Panmure established a name.