Kiwi Opens the Mail

Dominion, Volume 22, Issue 264, 3 August 1929, Page 26

Kiwi Opens the Mail

Dear Scribes,—Lists of pen-names are still coming in, »o I shall not ht vou know the three best till next week. There were «o many joyful letters about the show, and every one was interesting.—KlWl.

LETTERS FROM LEAGUE MEMBERS

Sunbeam begins a long letter with a little verse:

“The sun has started his rounds again, And the birds begin to sing, While the wattle gold, With scents untold, Waves a dusty arm to Spring.”

‘■The wattles must be plentiful in Australia now. We were over there in the winter of 1926. It rained and rained for a week or so, and then the sun shone. We went for a trip up the Blue Mountains; they are very beautiful. The zoo in Sydney is a delightful place, with its elephants and bears. The seals have a large pond for themselves where they dive for fish. Australia is very beautiful, but it was nice in manv ways to get back to dear New Zealand without all the bustle and rush and with its lovely ferns and equally lovely towns.” Thank you for the enclosed entry, Sunbeam. Are Berle and Peter real, or did you invent them? What a mischievous pair they sound. I hope they didn’t really make you fall into that soapy water. It is rather cold for out-of-door bathing, isn’t it?

“Did you go to the show?” asks Margery Empson. “I went with the Te Horo school children, and as there were not enough carriages for us we went as far as Paekakariki in the guard s van. We all had a lovely time at the show. Just before we left we went to the circus, where’some tiny clever white dogs and two little girls did some marvellous things. There is a huge gully that runs through our form, and into the hills at the back. It is about fifty feet wide and twenty feet deep, with very steep sides—-too steep in places to ride a horse down. From the top one can see it stretching far back into the hills, looking just like a huge snake winding this way and that. We spend many a happy hour down in the gully, sometimes catching crawfish in the creek which flows along at its bottom or playing or gathering ferns. We can’t climb the sides without pulling ourselves up by trees or shrubs, as it is too steep. The earth is loose, and if we lose our footing we go sliding down in company with stones, leaves, and dirt.”

What fun you must have when there’s no schoolwork to do. Gullies are very mysterious places, full of wonderful corners to play in and to explore. I hope Tommy did not hurt himself when he had the fall you told me about.

Nine-year-old Snowball writes: "I am going to tell you all about the trees in spring, when the new leaves come. The Chinese quince is very pretty. It has tiny leaves and little pink flowers. In the summer it has funny little green fruit, while in autumn the fruit grows large and yellow. The tree is bare in winter, but it is not long before the leaves begin to grow.” What a large number of things little eyes see. How is that small garden of yours. Snowball? I have never seen a Chinese quince, but I will watch carefully for the little pink flowers.

“The signs of spring are gradually growing as the days go by,” begins Doris Court “The willow trees in some places are growing tiny buds which will soon unfold. In the fields little calves are growing quite common sights, and best of all Kiwi, the other day I saw a boy feeding a tiny lamb. Soon buttercups and daisies will make carpets of yellow and white. It is lovely to see spring flowers peep from among their green leaves. Violets, primroses, bulbs, and even pansies are up out here. I think everybody is longing for the warm summer days to come.”

Thank you for the pen-names, Doris. Summer will soon be sweeping the

snows away from those mountain tops. I am glad you discovered an old friend through the exchange circle.

Primrose, writes: “The day I went to . the Winter Show, began with a heavy frost, but the sun shone afterwards. I liked the train journey very much, and all the time I seemed to be passing through valleys of bush, where gentle streams made everything look cool and fresh. At the show were some beautifully embroidered doileya. Some were all in white and some in colours. I also saw some Angora rabbits. These were white with very long fine fur. A bonnet which had been made of the fur was on view.” I wonder why white rabbits have pink eyes 1 I think there is a story to be made about that. Don’t you think it must have been uncomfortable for the rabbits to be displayed next to the bonnet made from the coat of a brother? I hope there will be another letter soon. Bill is a big half-Persian cat, who belongs to Joan Phillips. She says: “He is grey and white. One night when we went into the sitting room we found Bill sitting on the wood and paper for the fire. We laughed and father said that he was letting us know it was cold and he wanted the Are lit. On wet mornings Bill sits in the garden and watches the birds. Sometimes he will come inside with a poor little bird in his mouth. Bill makes me very angry sometimes, but still he's a nice cat.”

The answers you sent for the puzzles were correct, Joan. Bill sounds a very intelligent member of the family. Wouldn’t it be queer to hear him speak some time, like Puss in Boots? He would have some exciting adventures to tell about, I guess. BRIEF REPLIES Tiptoes.—l can imagine how queer the world looked when you first began the ride on the wheel. No wonder grandmother was anxious. I don t suppose they had wheels at shows when she was young, because it would be very awkward to climb and cling in a crinoline. Did you win the sweet-box all by yourself?

Yobkshibb Lassie. —I agree with your thoughts about war. I, too, am interested in the League of Nations, but war seems a hard thing to prevent. Those who have known it once, never want it again, but as the years paw and new men and women grow up, they forget its horrors in their anger. Your entry was quite different from the others, Yorkshire Lassie. It was a good idea to make your story about animals.

Billie. —How interesting-to find a spider’s nest. Isn’t that soft silken bag wonderfully spun by the little spider mother. You drew It nicely for me. I’d love to give you another badge, Billie, but so many children have lost them that I wouldn't have enough for everybody. Never mind, you are still a faithful league member, aren’t you?

Leslie Chbibtian. —I think you can write very much better, Leslie, but it’s good to be a tryer isn’t it? Glowworms are wonderful little creatures, and I’m sure there must be many of them at the gorge. It is true that if you rub a glowworm on your hand, and go into a dark room, your hand will be Illuminated. It is almost the sanje substance as that which glows In the night sometimes.

Laughing Water.—Thank you for “Rain.” I like It very much and hope we shall see some more verses by this poet. Jum is such a quaint name for a canary. How did he get it? Someone else has Minnehaha for a pen

name. Did you know that it meant “Laughing Water”? Brown Owl. —Still perching in that tree? I hope you are not the noisy morepork that called in trees by my window every night last summer. The tinies will love to read about Gip. How funny to see a dog in a red flannel coat. He would look like a mascot for somebody’s football team wouldn’t he? Sylvia Napier. — Nearly all the league members like painting competitions, and are always asking for them, so we must have another soon. The ponies, Pixie, Sclpper and Swankey are cunning to hide when you go to catch them. Someone has just asked for Laughing Water. Would you like Silver Shoes? Thelma Bbickell. —Two names to choose! Well, how would you like Peachblossom for yourself and Jazz or Peter for the puppy? Yes, there are many sweet-scented spring flowers in my garden now. I like the freezlas best. Be sure to take the new puppy to the seaside when summer comes. He will love the sand and the waves. Periwinkle.—You will love the island if you go in the summer. It was at Kawhu that Sir George Grey lived, and his house is still there. The bush walks are beautiful, and if you go in the summer you will find the bays blue and sparkling with white pictureyachts upon them. It is the loveliest place. Letters and puzzles were also received from: Twinkletoes, Fairy Dewdrop, Myra and Marjorie Slight, Marjorie Millar, Jessie Wood, Gwen Phillips, Olga Hartley, Dorothy Mist, Nancy Brown, Molly Skeat, Jessie and Annie Baghurst, Avis Death, George and Laura Cotter, Elsa O'Loughlin. Doris Last, A. Compton, Betty Wallace, Ivy Smith.