SPARKS

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21866, 20 August 1936, Page 8 (Supplement)

SPARKS

Imagine: a yapping, roly-poly ball cf to, a small good-tempered foxterrier, and you have a good deKription of Sparks.. He was a very inquisitive pup, In fact equal in that respect to young Master Rodney. The two were never separated—young Rodney would rush off to the little school with Sparks at his heels; a very impatient Sparks would hunt ratrih the wood during lessons, and a joyful bounding Sparks would follow him home, afterwards. Every fine Saturday the two went off , into the woods —the golden gorise, the wattle and tall gum frete/so common, .near the sheep station. These trips were either just for rambling or to pass away the; time ratting. . It was one fine summer day. They to go out: ratting, or shunting, as imaginative Roddy *roaid;sßy: Reddy, look out for thb -Oakes to-day,” called out Jim, the arm-hand. “They have been very lively lately. because of the heat.” me warning was lost on Roddy—he had seen very few snakes ever, and he had they had .squirmed *way very fast, so he got the silly jPPrwsion that all snakes would get away as soon as he came near. «rf theory is correct, unless the wake is annoyed in any way. iThey were soon lost to sight and .Jpoy continued on until, they came wtme -of their, favourite hunting grounds. - was soon digging excitwy, making a miniature eruption J**tween his hind legs, Roddy seiz-

(By Geoff. Mai thus)

ing a long stick and poking it into a hole. The infuriated rat rushed out—there was a brief scuffle,’ and the rat was held between Spark’s teeth. This happened five times in quick succession, and then Roddy, weary of the sport, lay down to rest by some rushes. Five minutes later the rushes parted and the deadly triangular head of a tiger-snake, most venomous of the Tasmanian snakes, came into view. Its darting forked tongue, its glassy eyes, followed by a five-foot length of scaly reptile, rushed over the ground towards the boy, reclining on his back, half asleep. Sparks was off ratting by himself, in one of his own grounds, and at the present moment was engaged in digging. The scaly head hovered over the boy's face —it swayed to strike, and Sparks came dashing into the clearing, with a rat hanging from his mouth. His hair rose mepacingly along his spine; he dropped the rat, and growled. The snake left the sleeping boy and poised threateningly before the dog. It struck like a flash, as quickly, indeed, as a whip lash flicked through the air. But the dog jumped back. The snake struck in lightning succession, the dog never in the same place. Then his chance came and he took it. The snake was tiring visibly—it struck less frequently, until at last it made a dash for safety. Sparks sprang on to it, seized it by the neck and bit deep- Its tail lashed frenziedly, and in one of its mad lashings struck the sleeping‘Roddy on his

face. He sat up with a jerk, and sat as though paralysed. Then he rose to -his feet and seized a long branch. The snake had got loose, and was striking madly at Sparks, blood spattering from its wounds. He whirled up ; the branch and brought it down on the snake’s body. A quiver passed through it, and then it was still. Reddy knelt down by Sparks and spoke to him. Sparks gave a joyous bark, seized the snake by the head, and they dragged it homewards, Roddy still white-faced and trembling, and Sparks bloodstained and joyful. The story was told at home, but the truth was never found out. One of the men found a small nest of young tiger-snakes near the scene; this was most likely the reason for the snake’s attack. Sparks received a great amount of attention, but took no notice of it, until the snake’s skin was nailed to his kennel, so that he could chew and worry it to his heart’s content. Prince Edward Island Wanda Dennis, Prince Edward Island, Canada, has written an interesting letter to a reader of “The Press Junior.” Here is her account of the history of the island:—lt was called Abegweit—resting on the wave—by its Indian inhabitants before the white man came. It was discovered by Jacques Cartier on his first voyage to Canada in 1534. He called it a fair land and a goodly. The French settled here during the eighteenth century, but records are few. They called it Isle St. Jean, and the English called it that after it was given over, with the rest of Canada, to England in 1763. The t

British quickly surveyed the island and divided it into lots. I think that each contained 200,000 acres, and there were 67. They were given, by lot, to men in England to whom the Government wished to show a favour. These men were supposed to send out settlers, but few cared for their property across the Atlantic. Affairs were in a muddle for years. It was named Prince Edward Island in honour of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (father of Queen Victoria) in 1798. The three counties of Prince Edward Island are named, going from east to west, kings, queens and prince. The capitals are Georgetown, named after George 111., and Charlottetown, after Queen Charlotte. Princetown was planned as capital of Prince, but it never became a town; and the main town in this county is Summerside, with a population of 4000. It is called the centre of the silver fox industry, and is growing steadily. Charlottetown has a population of 12,000. I have yet to hear it boasted of, but I love it. It is simply a mixture of fine old homes, cosy new ones, dull tenement houses, churches, schools, places of business, and public buildings, put together in the most disorderly way imaginable. The air is always full of smoke, although Charlottetown is not a manufacturing city. It is not very beautiful, but somehow it has a pleasing personalitv. Of course you know about the unique red soil of Prince Edward Island. It is said that the grass is greener than anywhere else in the world, except in Ireland. You can imagine what a vivid landscape it all makes, especially on a very clear day, when sky and water are almost as deep in colour as a sapphire.