BIG BROTHER BILL and the BAIRNS

Evening Star, Issue 20316, 26 October 1929, Page 9

BIG BROTHER BILL and the BAIRNS

A WEEKLY TALK The wiuner of the last competition Las sent in his name without an address. Arthur Griffith is the name signed at the bottom of the letter, hat there is no address attached either to the letter or the competition answers. If Arthur will call at the ‘ Star ’ Office he may collect his prize. The direct answers are gull, caterpillar, bear, drone, lion, worm, rat’s tails, sheep, crow, wolf, ape lamb, mule, bee, ram, dogs. There is a little matter that Brother Bill wishes to remind the family about. You will remember that he has spoken at different times about the danger of crossing the road whilst traffic is ".speeding in either direction about its lawful business. Three times lately within the past week he ' has noticed small boys doing this very dangerous thing. Once a very small boy stopped deliberately in front of a large truck, as long as he dared, and then bolted like a rabbit -for the pathway. Suppose his foot bad slipped. Nothing could have saved him from dreadful injury. Each wheel of the lorry had huge double tyres, and what that small boy would have been like if they had passed over him it is dreadful to contemplate. Would you rather be underneath a little white stone in the cemetery of enioying the happiness of your own home? Samson slew a lion when a young man. and when an old man broke down the stone pillars of a temple, so the story says; but even Samson would come off badly battered if he tried to stop a modern motor lorry or car. Small boys are not Samsons' by any means—so there is nothing more to be said about it. There will always be foolish, headstrong children, but Rig Brother Bill would be glad to know there were none such in his family. Be careful crossing a road, and cross any road as little as possible. Tour always affectionate, BIG BROTHER BILL. THE COMPETITION Hero is a competition composed of jumbled letters. Each set of letters represents the name of a book. The first set of letters represents the name of the author of the books. This first, set of letters is, therefore, the key to the whole competition. Get the author’s name, and you will have gone a long way toward the solution, but remember that neatness of writing counts when yon write down your answers; — A CCDEEHIKLNRSS. ABCCEHIIKLLNNOSY. ARABBDEGURNY. ACDDDEEFIILOPPRY. ACCEEHITKPPPRSTWK. CDEHHITLOOOPRSSTTUY. AAACCEEEEHTKMNONDNRSSS. AACCHILMORRSST. ACEEEFHTILOOSTTTTW. ABDDEMNNOOSY, ADEHIMRST. ACEH lILMNRTTU W Z Z. MANY HAPPY RETURHS OF THE DAY Mina Mitchell, Otokia, had a birthday a iew days ago. Her big sister, Annie, was at the party, and the radio postie left parcels for each of them. James Caradus, 65 Jackson street, St. Hilda, was twelve > years old recently. The radio postie left a parcel in his bedroom. Ralph Pile, Como street, Maori Hill, was eight years old last Saturday. There were lots of his chums at tea with him, and-grandma and auntie as well. The radio postie left a parcel under the hall stand in the hall. Raymond Milley, Ravelston street, Tainui, was seven years old on October 16. The radio postie left two parcels for him, one under the chesterfield, the other on the sideboard. Eric Cassie, ID Meridan street, Port Chalmers, is a wee bairn just three ■ years old. .The radio postie called on his birthday and left a parcel in the gramopnone cabinet, Billy Page, .763 Cumberland street, Dunedin, had a birthday on October l’i>. The radio postie left a parcel in the greenhouse. | James David Wilson, 4 Rawhiti street, Sunshine, had a birthday on October 19. The radio postio left a football in Aunt Bella’s bookcase. | Jessie Francis Wilson, his sister, re- ; ceived a parcel also for her thoughtfulness in remembering Jim’s birthday. I Madge and Ray Barnes, 20 Argylo street, Morningtou, had a happy day : on October 19. It was wee Madge’s birthday, and Ray found the parcel left in the cot by the radio postie; there was one for Ray bn his bed. Phyllis Burt had a birthday last week. The radio postie left a parcel under the dining room sofa. George M‘Donald, Sutton, had a birthday on October 19. The radio postie called and left a parcel on i the book case. I Alan Lambert, 536 Anderson’s Bay road, had a perfectly stunning birthday party the other day. There was a parcel left on the radio cabinet. Rana Emily Russell, Otakou, had a birthday last week. The radio postie left a parcel in the radio cabinet. Edna Thomson, 15 Gotten street, South Dunedin, had a birthday on Saturday, October 19. The radio postie left a parcel on the hall stand and another under her pillow., Cecil Small, 43 Arthur street, had a birthday on October 23. The radio i postie called and left a paired on the j hall stand. | Bobbie Watson, Otakou, had a birthday last Wednesday. Many happy days to Bobble. < I Sadie 2 Duke street, Gore, had a birthday on October 24. Many happy days to Sadie. Gerald O’Brien, 65 Richardscn street, St. Hilda, had a birthday a few drys ago. The radio postie left a parcel behind the front door.Mollie Bishop,. 23 Scott street, St. Hilda, had a birthday on October 24. The radio postie left a parcel behind the radio cabinet and another untler her pillow. Enid Campbell, 377 South road, Cav-* ershani, had a birthday last Wednesday night, The radio postie left a parcel on the hall stand. , ■ i

Hello Everybody!

THE POSTIE’S BAG 506 Macandrew road. South Dunedin. Dear Big Brother Bill, —I have been wanting to join your happy, family for such a long time, so I thought I had better write or I would never be in your family. I am in Class IV. _at school, and my playmate is Maisie Wedlake, and we have great fun together. I have often had small kittens given to me, but they always seem to run away. I don’t know why. It was a lovely little one we bad last time. Never mind, perhaps we will | have better luck next time. I will close now.—Cherrio, Annie Stokes. [lf you get all your wants as easily and happily satisfied as the one to join Brother Bill’s family, Annie Stokes, you’ll be the luckiest girl in the world. All you have to do is write a letter to Big Brother Bill and ■ your wish is gratified. You have . written the letter, to which this is tlie answer, therefore nothing more is to ,be said or done in the matter. As : Christopher Robin’s little poem says: ] “That says John is that.” The dis--1 appearance of your kittens is quite j mysterious. Have you tried the 1 “buttered paw” experiment? Take , a little butter —by mother’s permission i of course—and rub the kitten’s paws. Kittie will then lick his paws and settle down contentedly. That is the j theory of the matter anyway, whether | it will work out right in practice is I another matter; you must try it and | let Big Brother Bill know. Glad to I have you in the family, and hope that you will write again soon.]

23 Scott street, St. Kilda

Dear Big Brother Bill, —I have not written to you for a long time. My mother is away to Hunter Valley for a holiday. I would have liked to go with her, but I did not want to leave school. I always wait for Saturday night’s ‘Star’ to read the bed-time tale, and I like it very much. My auntie at Musselburgh has a radio set, and 1 go over some nights to listen in to the children’s hour. Auntie has a little dog called Betty, who is very fond of chocolates. If you rustle a bit of paper she looks up into your face very wistfully as much as to say: “Haven’t you got any chocolates for me?” Auntie also has a lot of fowls and chickens. I have watched : the chickens coming out of the shell in the incubator. My birthday is on Thursday. I will be eleven years old I wonder if the radio postie will call on me. 1 am having a little party on Saturday afternoon, and a birthday cake with eleven candles on it. I liope I will get to your next party. Mother could not take me to the last one. Love and best wishes. —From Mollie Bishop. [Thank you for your letter,, Mollie Bishop. It is a very interesting one indeed, and has put your name in the Honour Square. Bet*y, ‘he wee dog, has very human _ ways, little sister, j Other people—bairns also —look expectant at the rustling of a chocolate bag. It seems rather a waste of good stuff to give chocolates to a weo dog, but, 'f Betty likes chocs., Brother Bill hopes there will be always a little one left in the corner of the bag. You will be having your birthday party when this letter appears in the ‘Star,’ Mollie. and Big Brother Bill hopes that you will bo having a perfectly scrumptious time. He would like to be at the party and help eat that perfectly lovely cake; but if he went to all the birthday parties to which he is invited, his life would be one giddy whirl of excitement, the buying of birthday presents, and the eating of cake. He would need to be as strong as Samrcn, with a pocket as deep as a millionaire’s, and a digestion like an ostrich. Brother Bill doesn’t mean that there is anything indigestible about birthday cake—perish the dread' ful thought—but cake isn’t good as a regular diet However, ho does get a great deal of happiness in her lug of the cnioymert of the bairns of his family. Thank you for your letter, and write again soon.] •

28 Bolton street, Petone, Wellington. Dear Big Brother Bill, —May I join your happy family and become mi 7 of your many sisters? Have you ever been to Petone? A lovely beach is ifbt far away from our house, and in the summer time thousands of people can be seen on it. We have a wireless, but as it is only a crystal set we do not : get Dunedin. I have just written to the girl in India, Shelagh Say. I am ten years of age, and my birthday 1 is on February 11. I am in Standard IY.A at school. My uncle sends np the ‘ Evening Star ’ every week. That is how I got to know about y< u. I have two brothers. Both me older than myself. There are over nine hundred children -going to tho school 1 go to, and there are other schools in the district. My mother and father are both Dunedhiites. Well, I think this is all I can write about this tine.—l remain, Evelyn Thomas. [Glad to get your 1 ‘.ter, Eielyn Thomas. You are quite welcome to our happy family. It seems to be increasing greatly every week, and a delightful thing about it is that it ‘■ouches bairns outside of Dunedin and Otago. They are all very, very welcome. Big Brother. Bill is ulad to see that you have written to Shelagh say 111 India. You would road about the minit people among whom she lives; Shelagh sent T h'otb r, r B>ll a nicturo of two of tm>m. They did look queer to be > 11-e. The mad and the woman in the picture were dressed very much alike, in long flowing robes wrapped about t eir bodies. They were dark '•'cbmed of, course. It must be strange for a little* white bairn to live among these folk, and a little bit lonelv. too, so Shelagh wifi be (Hmbted to gee your rotter. Bother Bill promises yon unite a treat when Sbela-Ai replies; she writes such hi tier ■"din" 'otters. Mother and dad. hei’vr a® you say. will tell vou of He 'ovp'v bepehes p'o IISVe ip our southern e’tv. fv-b-n, llrp+’i pr B‘l| byes on a h'"l’ VI overlookin'* bath tbfl h°’’ , 'r ) pj- Hp •ban.-.lvK* p f a pj’W T V"V''r , '>-r. r+, '• ofuepi-g op a day. The l ong wlv't’e li”e of St. Ei’dp and f?t. r** ,> Soepbos; p-leemiru in Ha -urd'H-' nr ,d the 'eim. long line of breakers like dehe" + e white lace. Yon . lay Have seen them, to be sure, and you v ill know how lovely they can be. Youi must write to Brother Bill again.] J

15 Millar Street, North-east Valley. Dear Big/Brother Bill, —Just a few lines to ask 1 ,, if 1 may join your happy band. 1 have never written before. I am in Standard V. at school, and seventeenth top. We had a jumble sale on Thursday, at 3.15. Alter all. we did well, as we took £4 os. I shall be twelve years old on December 2. I have neither a brother nor a sister. Every Saturday night I look forward to getting the ‘ Star,’ so that I may read your page. As ye have not a wireless, I cannot listen to your speeches. I must close now,—l remain, yours truly, Bertha Singleton. [You are cordially welcome to the family, Bertha Singleton, and your place is already set in the circle. Brother Bill hopes that you will climb still further toward the top of your class before the end of the year. Your jumble sale did not do so badly at all. VVas it for something in connection with your school? You. must let me know about your birthday later in the year, so that your name may appear hi the columns. Brother Bill is glad to be your big brother, especially as you have no other. You must be sure and write dgain.]

17 Park terrace, Dunedin. Dear Big Brother Bill, — resterday I went out in a motor car with' dad and mum to Waitati, where we stayed a little before returning to Dunedin. I was very' surprised to see my last letter published in the ‘Star,’ as on I my way to the letter box I lost it, and 1 would like through your columns, please, to thank the kind person who posted it. I would also like the address of the member of your family who lives in India, please, as I would like very much to write and I send photos to the oversea member. lAs my news box has run dry, I will 'close my conversation.—From one of ' the radio members, Allan Frame. [Brother Bill is printing your letter again this week, Alan Frame, for two reasons. The lirst is to give you an opportunity to thank the person who found youi letter and kindly posted it; tiie second to give you the name of the member of the family in India. There are good people in the world, 'little brother, who practise the oldfashioned arts of courtesy and considercration. _ Brother Bill adds his word of gratitude to yours, and hopes it will bo read by the person concerned. Shelagh M. Say is the name of our sister in India, and she lives at Wellington, Nilgris Hills. Our bairns columns travel a long way these days; in this week’s mail Brother Bill lias received a letter from France. An older member of the family, not too old to be a member, reads the ‘ Star ’ in that far-away country, and has written an interesting letter tolling of bairns and people there. The letter will bo published next week.]

18 Prince Albert road, Dunedin. Dear Big Brother Bill,—i have written once before to you, and i was very surprised and pleased to see my name in the Honour Square. I hope the little sick girl at Mornington liked the daffodils wiiich 1 sent. When we went to Weatherstone to see the daffodils, mother bought some, and we received two more bunches from a friend. After wo had been to see the daffodils we went to the house where I stayed for my term holidays. As 1 told you befoil* there are cows. 1 know you do not like cows, but these are well behaved ones. I must close now, as it is getting late. With lots of love to all the aunts and uncles, not forgetting yourself.—From your loving sister, Joyce Pearson.

[Thank you for your letter, Joyce Pearson, and for the daffodils that you left at the studio. They were very much enjoyed by the little sick bairn; she wishes me to thank tho giver. Some friends of Big Brother Bill’s went to Weatherstones this year, and were delighted by the acres of golden and white blooms. Brother Bill has not been at any time, but there will come a happy day when ho will see what other people talk so much about. Are there any well-behaved cows, Joyce? There must be, of course, somewhere. The difficulty is that Brother Bill’s experiences seem to have been with the rowdy, a little too energetic type. As ho has said before, the nicest kind of cow is* about a pound and a-lialf of under-cut steak, properly grilled, resting on a dish. It has no horns, and is perfectly trustworthy when in that condition. You must write to Brother Bill again.] A WOMAN AND HER HAT Till the early years of this century it was the custom of members of Parliament to wear their hats in the House of Commons, or at least to have them by their sides. They took them off when they rose to address the House, but there was a curious rule that when a diviVon had been called, and they wanted to raise what is called a noinf of ord n r, they must do so “seated and w>th their- hats on.” To-day few members have their hat with them, and anyone who wants tr raise a point of 'order has to horrou or seize tho nearest hat avaMable fo 1 the occasion, a nee"«sity which lends t> comical incidents. Now that there arc women members of Parliament (nine a present* some of tlmm always wear hat °ven when they are speaking, a rub they have onietly m n de for themselves others never wear bats, and do not bring them 'ut.o the House at all. The other day a ladv meinber who wauted to raise a point, of order was in a great difficulty. Tim re was • uof time to horror/ another lady’s hat. firm'v fixed on o'ac’a ''and and to po'”'' a map’s hat for Ho nnrncee wou'd haye bpav, r-a 1 a'-loirs. Ha poor Jativ triad fp lial°nen an O—*ar Pnr.a,. n .., |ipr }>ead aud failed. Tl->„ TT-nca 1-innrritv, hilt rpa V s *d a Tri-wards +ha+. the w’’o , e husinass was nn'tiafvpfipd, pnrl that UP one tjl.olll'l bp a-P-a-l +P flo ri' I, '"’'( , )US ffilpa-S of this l<i’-d. Po a week ’ater a mem her niretlv asked He Pn>nker if \rrvnrn mi"bt, be avensefl from ni/ J -‘ipa> p-i tar--ih sneh circumstances in future, and tbe Speaker agreed. ' No doubt, men members will be excused, too, before long. Thus quietly ‘aro great reforms achieved among us. ,

THE HONOUR SQUARE Annie Stokes, 506 Macandrev road, South Dunedin, is awarder' ■five marks for neat writing. Mollie Bishop, 23 Scott street St Kilda, is awarded five mark 1 for interesting letter. CLOUET SHAPES I walk along the seashore, And watch the clouds go bj ; There are such funny people, Up there in the sky A dragon and a witch’s cat, Nymphs and drvads too; And faurs and elfin goblin men, Drifting in the blue. They must have such a jolly time, Far from all earthly care; ■Tolicking and dancing by _ In the vastness of the air.. Original poem sent in by R. Wilkie, Junedin. THE WAYS OF A CRAB All humour is said to be traceable to seven original jokes, and all the plots of plays and novels are held to arise from such meagre sources. Creators of fiction, if they studied Nature, might greatly enrich their pages by an occasional reference to the realities of life. Who could imagine a more surprising turn ot events than this incident at Marseilles? A year ago burglars stole from a house there property whjch included shares in a cinematograph company which all the resources of the law failed to recover. Twelve month.- later an angler was fishing from the quayside at Marseilles when ho felt a “ bite ” of exceptional power. Hauling in his line, he brought to land a crab holding a largo packet in its claws, and to this packet several smaller crabs were clinging. The packet proved to_ contain the missing shares, thrown into the sea, wo must suppose,- by the thief as dangerous to their possessor. The story must seem almost impossible to those who know nothing of crab life and of the tenacity with which these creatures cling to anything in the water to which they may take a fancy.

Their instinct for gain, however, is exercised even when not in the water. Some time ago at the English seaside a watcher saw a crab scuttling along at a crab’s gallop over the beach carrying a sparrow in.one of its claws, raised like a fluttering ximbrella over its head Before the bird could be released its captor had plunged with it into the sea to drown and eat it at leisure.

Those whose privilege it is to witness the secret performances in the night watches in the insect house at the Zoo can tell talcs still stranger. Land crabs are kept there, and to their dons go mice and rats, emboldened by profit gained without risk to themselves elsewhere. A mouse touches a crab; instantly it is seized by eight terrible little claws, and there and then the career of the mouse ends. It is not hard to kill a mouse, but a rat is a different problem. Yet, as to the inannc- born the crab knows how to deal with it. One of the great claws seizes the animal and the other imposes an immediate and fatal grip on the back of the neck of the rat. No trained dog could more adroitly administer the death stroke.

There seems little that is impossible for crab's to perform. Some species which are sea-born live ashore, climb trees, and attack men on mountain sides They eat cocoanuts, they cat birds, they raid rabbit warrens, they gnaw the flesh of sleeping men. One of the most memorable and horrifying items in their record is in a report on the sinking of the German cruiser Emden on the Cocos Islands during the war The German wounded had to lie tin-’ tended on land for fifteen hours after the battle, and a tragic phrase hints at tlieir experience :“Tho land crabs are very ferocious there,” wo read. No novelist depicting the horrors of war ever imagined a scene more terrible than these words suggest. GETTING THE SACK A member of the family wrote to ask wnat is meant when wo say ,l Get the sack.” ’the use of the expression •‘get the sack” when we really mean ” to bo discharged ” originated through the impression made upon people when stories were,, brought to t.iie.ll ot the fashion in which the Sultan of Turkey disposed of members of ins harem of whom he had become tired. If ho wished to get rid of one of these unfortunate ladies ho was said to have had her put into a sack alive an thrown into the Bosphorus. This was in the bad old days, of course. People who heard this , story rpeated it to others, and became so used to telling the tale that they slipped qnitd naturally into the habit of saying “ to get the sack ” when they meant to be put out of a position suddenly. But the expression is a slang phrase, not used among 1 oik who like good English. CRUSOE'S ISLAND ITS PEOPLE AND ANIMALS The best boy’s story ever written was written by Daniel Defoe about the lonely life of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish sailor, on the island of Juan Fernandez. What do we know of Juan Fernandez now? The answer, for most ol us, is that we know very little ol it. But quite recently one ol the expert scientists of the line American Smithsonian institution, Dr Waldo Schmitt, has been living for some weeks on the island, studying its almost innumerable marine invertebrates, and he has brought back into the world at large its latest news Defoe placed his Crusoe’s island on the northern shore of South America, in the mouth of Orinoco River, but nobody is deceived by that. Alexander Selkirk was the man he had in his mind, and Juan Fernandez, named after, the Spanish captain who first discovered it, some 4UU-miles oil the ’oast if Chile, was the island of Crusoe. It has had “ a straiige, eventful history ” both betoic and after Alexander Selkirk was there, longing tor years, according to Cowper’s poem, to hear “the sound ol the church-going hell” of civilisation. It was Fernandez who stocked it with the gnats Crusoe iound there, which <=ti II a Found. Seam-'ii who deserted from ships which called there for water had lived on the island before Selkirk wrs left on its shore by his captain, till he was taken off by lo'.’-'rs, captain of a privateer, in 1703 The Spaniards annexed the island in 1750 and put-.a garrison on it.,and Chile took it over at the beginning of the

last century and made it a prison for criminals. A century later this use of it had ceased and it was said to have about twenty inhabitants. What of »t now? i)r Schmitt brings the news that Crusoe’s island 's naturally one of tiie easiest places «, exist in -hat can be found on the earth, a paradise for anyone who is content with an aimless life. About thirteen miles long and four miles wide, rising ruggedly to over 3,U()oft, with deep waters round it, it has green and wooded valleys, fresh streams, abundant regulation—lantantic in its exuberant growth, almost every vegetable (, either of native growth or introduced as the years have gone on), a fertile soil, all useful animals, but none wild except a remnant of the goats which Crusoe knew; and such an abundance of fish that fishing is its chief industry, lobsters being ex ported in exchange fot the tinned salmon and meats and baked beans ot America.

And what of its inhabitants? Where Crusoe once reigned alone are now somewhat fewer than 30u people, Span ish-speakers from the South American coast, with some French and German families, several of whom were shipwrecked there, and are content to stay. A simple, hospitable people they are All iiye on the eastern, rainy, and fertile side of the island.

The island is extremely healthy and has no doctor, but a wireless call can bo made to the mainland in an emergency. It has a church, to which a priest comes once a year for a service and to conduct baptismal and wedding ceremonies. Twice a month a vessel calls with supplies from Chile, and occasionally a passing vessel puts in for -water. But, in the strangest contrast with the silcnco and loneliness of Crusoe. a daily programme is broadcast to the island from the city of Valparaiso. If an aimless life of ease were all that man needs it could be found in this island of romance. THE PICTURE COW Got a splinter in my hand, And it hurt to beat the band, And got white around it, too; Then the first thing that 1 knew It was all swelled up, and Py, Said : “ There’s no us© fussing, Ma ; Just put on his coat and hat; Doctor Johnson must see that.” Ea said: “Take him, Ma,” and so I just knew I had to go. And the doctor looked and said: “It is very sore and red— Much too sore to touch at ail. See that picture on the wall, That one over yonder, son. With the old red cow upon?”! “ Once I owned a cow like that, Just as brown and big and fat, And one day 1 pulled her tail, And she kicked and knocked the pail Full of milk clean over me.” Then 1 looked up there to see His old cow above the couch, And right then 1 hollered “ OUCH.” “Son,” said he, “what’s wrong with yon; Did the old cow kick you, too?” And lie laughed, and Ma said: “ Son, Never mind now, it’s all done.” Pretty soon wo came away, And my hand’s all well to-day. But that’s first time that 1 knew Picture cows could kick at you. MU, THE FAITHFUL A BED-TIME TALE In the valley of the Rio not far from Buenos Aires, in South America, there was once a mother jaguar which had three little cubs, two of them females and one a male. They were beautiful little creatures, as playful as kittens and not much larger than an ordinary cat. The two female cubs were tan colour, with markings something like a leopard's; but the male cub had more uncommon colouring, with dark brown fur and black markings. The mother soon taught the cubs to be careful over their toilet, and their fur was beautifully kept and shone like silk. Mother jaguar was very fierce and protective of her children while they were young and helpless, but she was not very brave unless they were close at hand, and would run away from her smaller cousin the puma, and always avoid humans unless driven by hunger or necessity to fight. It happened that the male cub got separated from his family while still young. He was found roaming about alone, uttering plaintive cries, and, as he was not fully able to fend lor himself, he was in danger of starvation or of becoming the prey ot seme larger or fiercer animal. Ono day a man found the pretty little creature, weak from want of food and no fiercer than a strange cat. After being taken back to the man’s house and well fed the cub seemed more curious than fearful; so it was thought that ho had not before come into contact with human beings. In a few days, 'Onca. as they called him. become perfectly docile, and before many weeks had passed was tame enough to bo lot at liberty, and would follow the man and his family about. Ho quickly recovered from his starvodlo'oking appearance, and his coat regained the gloss of satin. The one drawback to him as a pet was die disturbance he made at night, when he roared a good deal, especially la-fore bad weather.

But this difficulty was overcome when the man moved to a station where the outbuildings were more distant from the house. There Onca was given a small loose box to himself, and in time even the native servants, who are not of the bravest, grew 'giue fond, of him. Ho was never allowed anything tut dead meat, and not much of that, and therefore was of a gentle and plavrul disposition, though he grew' at an enormous rate. He would bound to meet his human friends, playfully arching his back, and rubbing his head against them like a cat. The man had had Onca for nearly a jear, and the young cub had become a magnificent animal and a valued pet, when the cry went round one clay that the six-year-old daughter of a neighbour, was Missing. She had been seen at the end of the garden playing with Onca, to whom she was much*attached, and her lather at once assumed that the animal, to whom its master had gradually given more and more -liberty, and of whom ■iveryono had entirely lost fear, had 'urned on his little playmate iml s,t " naked her; v i In the greatest anguish he _ ncighbou 1 and Onca’s owner'rode the district for some trace of the little gn l. At last they saw the child’s solar topji lying on the outskirts <1 tho torest and they both dashed forward. To their horror they saw Onca come bounding out of the forest at the sound of their approach, rushing to meet thetr. in his iistin! n!nyf nl t 'sHon. hut with his jaw's dripping blood and with a scrap of a tiny muslin frock hanging from them I In a moment the girl’s father had drawn his revolver and shot the animal dead; and then they heard a

scream of sorrow. “ Or, daddy, you’ve hurt poor Onca!” And there was the little girl seated unharmed on’ the ground behind a clump of trees, and beyond her the dead body of a fullgrown female jaguar with which Onca had fought to the death in defence of his little playmate. ' THE LOUIE RECIPE Here is a good way to make lemon, honey, and raisin cubes. Take the juice of two lemons, two tablespoons of honey, and a cup of icing sugar. Be sure to dilute the lemon juice until it malms a cup full of liquor. Now boil these rapidly until the syrup will make a soft ’hall when dropped into cold •voter. Now add a quarter cup of minced raisins. Beat until cream-? and ‘urn into a small greased pan. When '■old cut into small cubes and press an almond on each cube. This is very nice to eat. and has the added virtue of being a health lollie as well. Cheerio everybody, BIG BROTHER BILL.