Evening News, London, 23 November 1948

'No More Caning'

Five Smarting Girls Sang a Hit Song

Brentwood, Essex, Tuesday.

MOLLY and Freda, Kathleen, Edna and Sylvia - "the Herongate girls" - are on strike from school and they say, nothing short of forgiveness and the promise of no more caning will get them back again.

All of them have played truant, with their parents' consent, for almost a week, and every day, instead of catching the special bus that should take them from their homes at Herongate to the Brentwood Senior School, three miles away, they wave to their school friends as the bus goes by.

Molly Abbott, aged 12, and Freda, aged 14, are sisters who live in a council house on the Ingrave-road. Kathleen Turner, nearly 15, lives next door. Edna Lee, aged 13, and Sylvia Austin, aged 13, both live about half a mile away.

Nearly three weeks ago the "Herongate Girls", with most of the girls on the special bus, were singing "Roll Out the Barrel" and "Run, Rabbit, Run" and other songs on their way home.

The bus conductor and the driver joined in and enjoyed the sing-song. "But Dawn Bloomfield, our prefect, reported us," said Molly to me to-day.

"Two days afterwards Miss James, the headmistress, sent for seven or eight of us and gave us the cane. Dawn was not at school that day, but when she came back three of us - including me - hit her. I pulled her hair for being a tell-tale.

"Her sister went to the school and told Miss James. Then eight of us were put on the stage in the hall and Miss James caned us in front of all the other girls in the school. We ran home and I haven't been back to school since."

Mrs. Abbott, Molly's mother, said: "I don't think it's fair that the headmistress should cane the girls for such a simple thing as singing on the bus." Mrs. Turner, Kathleen's mother, told me that her girl had only six weeks or so to remain at school, before she was due to leave.

"I would have taken her back to school to-day but her cousin told me yesterday that Miss James has paraded the whole school and from the stage told them that she had not finished with the Herongate Girls yet.

"According to Kathleen's cousin, Miss James said that when they go back they will either be expelled or caned again. Kathleen won't go back now."

At the school Miss James was "not present" when I called, but had left a message that she did not wish to make any comment.

Follow-up: 1 December 1948 - Letters: Don't Spare the Rod