'Tommy and Tean'

I have been sent a set of pictures and some text to show a couple in the true sense of the word. In all seriousness, I can say that the Man was indeed a Man and was/is my Hero. I did not know his wife, though I had seen her on one occasion in the office at Humphry Davy, and anyone that can smile like that, gets my vote. I knew him only as T. Craske Rising, a stronger more fair man I have never met. His principles, his attention to detail, his ability to control his environment all rubbed off onto me. Like many of us, I had occasion to be on the receiving end of that physical reminder of order and discipline, the cane; It was he that introduced the concept of the recipient being offered a choice as to the instrument of application. Three canes of varying thickness. The wise chose the thick one. It also taught us to take it like a man, as any retraction of the palm only resulted in another swipe of the bamboo. It was extremely rare for it to be applied to the nether regions, but that generally was determined by the number of times it had been used on that student lately, as again Mr Rising was fair, ensuring only a sharp reminder and no injury. He obtained no joy from it, of that I am certain, he would read carefully the 'reasons' give, and assess, and then discuss with us the ethics of the case and what it meant. He occasionally discovered that the 'intruction' was the result of an overbearing teacher and an ill considered response, and the conduct marks were struck out of the book. I received the cane on three occasions, it would have been more if it were not for Mr Rising's diligence. As far as I am concerned it was a good thing to have as a last resort, and gave us all a good introduction to the discipline of life. But school was not all about the cane, and it was in that that Mr Rising excelled. They appear to have broken the mould when T. Craske Rising was made.