NEW ZEALAND VERSE.

Auckland Star, Volume 246, Issue 246, 16 October 1926, Page 40

NEW ZEALAND VERSE.

THE SWAGGER. I'll pack my swag and hump It on the trail, And take the road that leads to anywhere ; With merry swing I'll foot It thro' each dale, With supple muscle clamber up each hiU; I'll leave all cares, and take a joyous heart I'll take no troubles .where no troubles are— So that with Nature I'll claim kin in part; By shady trees I'll boil my billy old ; A couch of titree make mc for the night, 'Neath some great kauri's strong, protecting arms; By sweet tuis wakened, rise at daybreak. To hump my swag along the high road more. —Miss SI. Hutton Whltelaw, Aldred Road, Remuera. A PEBBLE IS A TINY THING. I tossed a pebble in the brook, Whose tranquil surface tempted me— A tiny ripple grew anil grew Until in its immensity It touched the bank on either side I dropped some careless, thoughtless >vord, Within a calm and peaceful life, And set in force a powerful wave Of bitter and unending strife — I saw a dear friend crucified. And then, what time my grief was spent, I saw some little kindly deed That I might do—the fairest tree Doth spring from such a tiny seed— From that one kindly deed of mine Has sprung a kindliness divine. —WINIFRED M. FONDER. Auckland, N.Z. "MISS NEW ZEALAND." Ah, lovely fair, where-e'er she be, So she be fair for tbe world to see— &he shall be Beauty's Queen, 1 ween No fairer maiden shall be seen Than She. She shall be gipsy-brown or lily-white, Or like a red rose, flushed and sweet (But grace shall adorn her from head to feet). Her eyes shall be black as the brooding night, Or brown as a velvet bee, or bright As a rain-washed bluebell, brimmed with light, But they shall be lit, And exquisite With glances swift as the stars in flight. She shall be wistful or grave or gay, Or shy in a tender, modest way, But truth Divine In her eyes shall shine, And her face be frank as the open day. Her hair shall be gold as the tasseled corn. Or dark as a cloud of the midnight bom, But her locks shall hold In their wealth of gold. Or their shadowy darkness manifoia A sheen as bright as the rays of morn. She shall be supple and slim and tall, Or curved in beauty, or dainty-small, But she shall be fairest among them all for the world to see. She shall be crowned with loveliness, She shall be clothed In Beauty's dress. And her lovely face will her soul confess.

She shall hold our hearts in fee. She shall he Beauty's Queen

I ween, A lovelier lady shall not be seen Than r=he. — ISABEL MAUD rEACOCKU.

Remuera.

UNION,

The winds now whisper to mc. As the leaves sweep rustlingly. And there comes from o'er the sea A waft that ne'er will die; 'Tis the breath of peace to be. When the woes of war go by.

We who live on South Sea shores Hear a voice from the northern lands, And it o'er and o'er outpours The tale from those distant strands That our mind in mem'ry stores To engross our hearts and hands.

For we share their soul and brain. From the days our kindred sailed In their quest across the main For the bright new home they hailed, And our love shall e'er remain For our race, and ne'er has failed.

The manuka bloom spread wild By our Waitemata stream; The pohutukawa smiled In a splendid crimson dream ; They have lost their sway so mild In our age of speed and steam.

The rose, the Hl* In a strange soil grew That thoy had never known. And lent their beauty to a region new. And loved it like their own ; The onk and pine sensed milder winds that blew. In gentler climate sown— Now step by step the North Is nearer brought. To greet the South in amity and love: Though Destiny has fixed divergent thought With constellations e'er unlike above. Yet more and more our world shall soon be taught The wisdom of uniting hand and glove. —Maurice, R. Keesing. 30/9/26.