BAIRNS

Evening Star, Issue 21079, 16 April 1932, Page 5

BAIRNS

SERVICE IS THE RENT WE PAY FOR OUR ROOM OH EARTH Master John Grant, care of Mrs Handle, 280 Highgato, Maori' Hill, is the winner of the last competition. Congratulations to John. THE HONOUR SQUARE Allan M'Cartney, Portobello, is awarded, five marks for neat writing. Jean Leslie, Spencer street, Milton, -is awarded five marks for interest. THE POSTIE'S BAG Portobello. Dear Big Brother Bill, —May I join your happy family? I am twelve years of age, and go to the Portobello School. I am in Standard VI. Mr McDonald is our head master. He was just appointed this year, and I like him very much. I attend a woodwork class at Port Chalmers every Thursday afternoon. We leave Portobello at 12.40, and travel by the ferry steamer Tarewai, arriving at Port Chalmers about 1 o’clock, and march up to the woodwork room. Mr Pasmore is our instructor, and he makes our work very interesting. We have to draw plans of the work we have to do on paper, and then get our tools and, make the different articles we have drawn. After we are finished each article we are awarded marks for our work. We leave Port again at ten minutes past 3, and arrive home about half-past 3. I am trying your grain competition, and hope to be successful. Wishing all the aunts and uncles and yourself good luck, —I remain, your loving brother, Allan M'Cartney. [Many thanks for your letter, Allan M'Cartney. You are very welcome to the family. Your name is in the Honour Square for neat writing. Brother Bill is glad to know that you like both school and schoolmaster. Your description of the woodwork class is quite good, and the little > ferry trip must make it quite interesting excepting on rough mornings. It wouldn’t do for Brother Bill. He is afraid that there would not be many straight lines drawn after he arrived at the class, following a choppy trip from Portobello to Port Chalmers. Seriously speaking, Brother Bill thinks that the modern idea of teaching boys to make things is excellent, and, teaching them _to draw the thing before they begin is better still. You see, Allan, it teaches you to plan a thing and then execute the plan carefuly, which is one of the most important things that folk can really learn. Starting on something without knowing where the end will be, or what it will be like when the end does come, is bad business always. The folk who begin a thing and do not finish it then start on something else and treat it in the same fashion, are always of this type; but Allan M'Cartney will be one of the men who first plan carefully, thc.i work courageously, and, at last, finish splendidly. Write again soon.]

939 Cumberland street.

Dear Big Brother Bill, —May 1 join your happy band? I listen in to your programme on Saturdays, and enjoy it very much; We have a wireless set which dad made. , This is my second year at the Otago Girls’ High School, and I am thirteen years of age. lam also in the 4th (Dunedin) Girl Guides, who went a picnic to Fraser’s Gully on Easter Saturday. I did not go because I went with my friends from school on Easter Saturday, and had a lovely time. We have a lovely big Persian cat called Prince. We used to have a white rabbit, but it was stolen. I am-entering for this week’s competition. We have a lot of ' cigarette cards at home, and my brother and I will send you some. Well, I must close now, and will write a longer letter next time.—Yours,, faithfully, Ray Scott. [Many thanks for your letter, Ray Scott. You are quite welcome to the family, and your name is now on the roll. Brother Bill is glad to know that you listen in as well as read the columns in the ‘ Evening Star.’ He is well pleased also in knowing that you enjoy them all. There are a great number of Guides and Brownies who are members of the family, and Brother Bill is always glad to hear from them. You will be looking forward to your special Guide Week in the month of May, and Brother Bill has arranged for a special Guide night on a Tuesday, when Wendy and Aunt Lenore take charge. It ought to be a very good programme on that night, especially attractive to the Guides and Brownies in the country places, don’t you think so? Your picnic to Fraser’s Gully must have been especially interesting and happy. Did you see the glow worms ? Of course, you would not, because they are to be seen only at night. Brother Bill received a letter from one small member of the family asking what glow worms feed on to make, them glow with the green light? It was rather a comical question, wasn’t it? The answer is, of course, that nobody knows. We don’t know all about the little pieces of loveliness with which Mother Nature decorates her bairns, which is all to the good, because, when we know all about everything the world will bo no longer full of interest. Brother Bill is glad to know about Prince. He must be a lovely pet. Write again soon.]

Spencer street, Milton,

Deal - Big Brother Bill, —I am trying the competition this week, but I don’t know whether I. will have any luck or not. I have often worked out the competitions, but I have never sent them in. At present wo are revising for term examination, so that means hard work. I am in Standard IV. at school this year, and our teacher is Mr Webster. 'We have a new head master, whose name is Mr Thomson. Mr Fawcett left at tho end of last year. He is in Dunedin now. Our school held a flower show last month and it was very good. Wo did not get prizes, as the money was wanted for tho school funds. It was good fun all the same. Standard VI. won tho most points, with Standard V. only 1 point less, and Standard IV* tiiird,, Standard XL

Hello Everybody!

Standard V. had a picnic next day to celebrate their win. It was hard for the rest of us to have to stay at school and work. I will be, sending in my collecting card soon, as I don’t think I can get much more. We would like to hear Uncle Pete and you sing ‘ Carry Me Back to Old Virginney,’ as we like very much to hear you sing that, and you have not sung it for a long time. — Love from yours truly, Jean Leslie. [Many thanks for your letter, Jean Leslie. Your name is in the Honour Square for interest. Revising for examinations is always hard work, but it is very necessary. You see, it fixes in one’s mind all the necessary facts and at the same time sets then in order in one’s memory, so when the examination questions come they can be taken out and used. One reads a book the first time for interest, the second time for knowledge, and the third time to make one’s knowledge sure. Your flower show seems to have been quite a success, and Brother Bill is glad to know that the school funds benefited. Thank you for the good work you are doing with your collecting card. It is going to take a good deal longer than Brother Bill anticipated to get enough money for the hospital radio, but this is one of the jobs that we must work at until it is done. It means so much to the folk who will benefit, and although this wretched unemployment and general distress will make the collecting' much more difficult, yet the time will come when we shall have enough and the sick folk _ be made happy. Many thanks again. Write again soon.] THE COMPETITION Here is another missing letter competition, but a rather unusual one. You must supply the necessary letters to make the complete story in the little jingle. It isn’t too hard, and the most neatly written correct answer will win the two shillings and sixpence prize. Send your answer to Big Brother Bill, care of ‘ Evening Star,’ Stuart street, Dunedin. Mark your envelopes “ Competition.’’ A BLANK RHYME STORY A little boy whom we shall c Adolphus Nicodemus H Wished he could hore into a w Ho tried at first a gimblet sm— Which pierced his thumb and made him sq— Though he was eight and rather t— ‘ He let the cruel gimlet f And tried a nail on which a sh— Had hung. That didn’t do at A carpenter, whose name was S Came by. Said he, with rustic dr—- “ Try this, my lad.” Adolphus H Cried “ Thank you!” and attacked the w Successfully with Saul’s brad— A TRANSFORMATION SCENE How very, very funny the Zoological would he. If a fairy came from Fairyland to have a little spree, And while the keepers slumbered she prepared them a surprise, By changing every creature to another creature’s size. And the elephant was smaller than an ordinary cat, And school children by dozens could go riding on a rat, And the camels Iked in hutches, while the hippo-pot-a-mus Could dine on half a dozen oats and never make a fuss. And the squirrel lad a ten-foot tail, a most uncommon sight, While an elephantine porcupine would give one quite a frjght. I think, at last, tha keepers would all tumble in a heap, Exclaiming, “Wakens quickly, we are walking in our sleep.” THE BLUE PIG WITH THE BLACK TAIL Once upon a time there were two kings who lived in their kingdoms side by side and were quite food neighbours. But after a few years of peace and happiness one of them took it into his royal head to write to the other thus: “ Send me a blue pi{ with a black tail, or ” ' That was all, and quite enough, too, as you will see! ! ( King No. 2 seized a foe goose quill and instantly wrote the! following repfy:—, i I haven’t got a blue pig with a black tail, and if I had— That was all, and a litle too much, as you will also see! ! Directly King No 1 reld the letter he turned crimson, and prdered out “ all the king’s horses aid all the king’s men,” and all thejking’s cannon, too. His neighbour xas as quick as he was, and fighting hetan. They fought and fought until theßrmics were so tired of banging each ither about and talcing each other’s hekls off that they had to stop for a while! The two kings came togaher to see if by any means they could patch up a peace. j Said No. 2: “ What did y<u mean by saying ‘Send me a blue" jig with a black tail, or ’ ?” 1 No. 1 smiled. “ "Why,” sad he, “ 1 meant, of course, ‘or any ither sort of pig.’ And what did you mean by writing back: ‘ I haven’t goti blue pig with a black tail, and if I hal ’?” No. 2 laughed outright. ‘(Well, all I mean was, royal brother, thffi if I had had that sort of pig 1 should, If course, have sent it to you.” 1 The two kings looked at efch other for a moment, and then they iurst out laughing and made friends, j Peace was proclaimed, and &ch went home to his own palace a ratler wiser man than when he left it. j There is a moral to this nte little quite improbable story; but f think that my readers can perhaps fill it out for themselves,, j

WHAT JOHNNY LIKES He’d rather hear a lion roar Than hear a linnet’s song, But likes to know-the bhrs between Are wonderfully strong. He’d rather hear a hurricane Than any gentle breeze, So long as he is safe at home And not upon the seas. He likes to see the frost and snow As much as summer bloom, ■ When'he can sit beside the fire Within a cosy room. He likes to hear the pouring rain Descending o’er his head— That is, when it’s a lullaby And he is warm in bed. A MONKEY'S TALE “Well, that old monkey seems to be very unhappy 7! I wonder what is the matter with him?” I looked up at the sound of the voice, and saw a dear fair-haired little boy looking at me compassionately with his blue eyes. Perhaps he reads this paper. I wonder if he does! Anyway, 1 will write my story, and shall hope it will come under his notice. I was born far away from this cold country of yours, in a land where the sun is always smiling out of a bright blue sky, where many coloured birds twitter happily among the boughs of the tall trees, and gay-coloured flowers scent the air. We lived in a large tree, the branches of which .were let off in flats to different' monkey families, and all we children had fine fun rollicking about the place. How lovely it was, climbing the trees and swinging from branch to branch, chattering the while as we pelted each other with dates, or nibbled bananas. There was a little stream which bubbled down through the wood, gurgling its songs about the big river into which it flowed, which in its turn joined the huge boundless ocean. What wonderful stories it used to tell about the strange sights in other lands! “ I am going to set out and see the world, ” I said one day to my chum, Longtails. “All right, I’ll come, too,” he answered; and we began to prepare for our journey. We got a largo bit of wood, and threw it into the middle of the stream, then I jumped on to it, and held out my hand to help Longtails. How happy we felt as we glided away. A little way further on the stream widened, arid our boat was suddenly dashed into a great seething mass of water, which splashed over and around us until our craft slipped away from under us, and we were left struggling alone in the water. Longtails clutched at me and nearly Eulled mo under, but I got away from im, and when I looked back he had vanished, so 1 suppose he was drowned. I managed to reach the shore, but as soon as my feet touched firm ground again I had no strength left, and 1 fainted away. When I came to myself I was in a tent, with six or seven strange white animals around me, like overgrown, hairless monkeys, dressed in queer stuff clothes. They were Englishmen out hunting, and they had found me and captured me as a great prize. They took me a long, long journey across the ocean, which 1 had so much wanted to see, and brought me to the Zoo. Now, here 1 am, doomed to captivity, all my life, with no chance of going back to my native land and the pleasant life in the tree-tops. Little hoy, with the fair hair, is it any wonder that I look sad? FAIRIES “ Are there fairies up in the sky, Mother, Are there fairies up in the sky?” 1 ‘ Of course, my dear, for they have to steer The clouds that go sailing by.” “ Are they busy the whole of the day, Mother, Are they busy the whole of the day?” “ Well, they have to dust all the stars, dear, So there isn’t much time for play.” ■ “ Do they sometimes work at night, Mother, Do they sometimes work at night?” “ When the mist and clouds are thick, dear, They polish the old moon bright.” “ And when it’s a showery day, Mother, And when it’s a showery day?” “ Oh, they stitch the sunbeams together, And fashion a rainbow gay.’ “ Have they anything else to do, Mother, Have they anything else to do?” “ Yes, they wake up the little birds, dear, That twitter to me and you.” , “ But while 1 am still in bed, Mother, Still fast asleep in bed?” “ Oh, they’re brushing the blue skycurtain, That hangs just above your head.” “ And when all their work is done, Mother, When the fairies’ work is done?” “ Then they ride on the swift windhorses, To the land of the Setting Sun.” THE JACK-IN-THE-BOX In the toy-shop there lived an ugly old Jack-in-the-Box. He had stickingup hair, a big nose, staring eyes, and a horrid laugh. Ho loved frightening the other toys, and was always ready to jump out at them. It was all right during the daytime, because then he had to stay in his box and keep quiet unless the shopkeeper undid the lid. Then he would spring right up into the air with a nasty squeak, and all the toys nearby would shiver with fright. But at night he used to get out of his box and jump about on the shelves. He hid behind the doll’s house and jumped out at the fairy doll. Ho frightened her so much that she ran straight into the fire engine and tore her lovely frock. . . • Then another time he hid in the

Noali’s Ark when all the animals had gone to take a stroll round the shop with Mr Noah. When they came back and Mrs Noah lifted up the lid for them to get into the ark again, Jack jumped right out on top of them, and all the animals ran away in fright. It took Mr Noah all the night to find them again, and in the end he couldn’t find the second bear, so there is one animal short in the ark now. The toys became very tired of the Jack-in-the-Box. They never knew when he would jump out at them, nor what he would do next. So one night, when he was for once asleep in his box, they held a meeting about him. “If only we could get him away from here!” said the fairy doll. “But how could we?” asked the biggest teddy bear. “ Pehaps the clockwork tram would take him right.away somewhere,” said the fairy doll. “ No, I wouldn’t,” said the tram. “ I’m not going to have anything to do with him. He jumped out at me last night and made me run off my rails and break a wheel.” “Well, that’t no good then!” said the fairy doll with a sigh. “ What about the motor, bus or the fire engine?” asked the golliwog. “ Wouldn’t they take him away somewhere and lose him?” “ Yes, but even if we did take him,” said the motor bus, “ how can we make him get out if he doesn’t want to? He’d just stay in his seat, and we’d have to bring him back again.” Then the aeroplane on the top shelf SP “ k ;i'don’t mind flying off with him,” it said. “ I can turn upside down when I’m flying, and I could tip him out and fly straight back here.” “ Oh, good!” said the toys. “ Well, how shall we manage it?”_ JL‘ I’ll give each of you rides to-mor-

row night,” said the aeroplane.' “ The Jack-in-the-Box is sure to want one, too, and as soon as he is safely in the seat I’ll fly out of the window!” So the 'next night all the toys took turns at having flights round the room in the aeroplane. It was great fun and they enjoyed it. Then suddenly the Jack-in-the-Box jumped out at. the golliwog and soared him so much that he fell into a howl of water and nearly got drowned. “ No, Jack-in-the-Box, stop your tricks and come and have a ride!” cried the aeroplane, landing just by Jack. Jack-in-the-Box wrapped Ins muffler round his neck and climbed into the pilot’s seat. The aeroplane rose into the air and flew straight out of the window!

All the toys cheered and clapped their hands when they saw the horrid Jack being taken away. They waited and waited for the aeroplane to come back, and when it did they crowded eagerly round it. “ What did you do with him?” they asked. „

“ Ha!” said the aeroplane. “ You’ll never guess! When I was flying over a witch’s cottage I turned upside down, and Jack dropped out and fell right down the chimney. The witch was sitting by the fire, and she jumped up in fright when she saw Jack coming down the chimney. “ She shouted some magic words at him and changed him into a mouse! 1 know, because I circled round and peeped through the window. When I saw what she had done I landed and waited till the mouse came running out, frightened of the witch. It jumped into the pilot’s seat, and I brought it hero!” “ What! You’ve brought Jack, that horrid Jack, back again!” cried the toys in horror-i

* “ Oh, he’s only a mouse now, very, much scared and full of shivers laughed the aeroplane. “Just look at’ him.”

The toys peeped into the pilot’s seat* There at the bottom, trying to hide* was a tiny mouse trembling and afraid.- “ Ha, now Jack knows what it is to be frightened!”_ said the toys* “ This is a good punishment for him!” The little mouse was taken out of the aeroplane, and he ,at once ran to hide himself in a corner. The toys were sorry for him, and took no more notice of him. But Cinders, the shop; cat, smelt him and was soon lying in wait for him round every corner. The poor mouse was always being pounced on, and 'only just managed each time to escape with his .life. Now, he knew how dreadful it was to be jumped at and frightened! How ha wished he hadn’t been unkind to the toys before! One night the mouse crept into hia old bos for shelter, and; fell asleep there. When he woke up—lo and behold, he was no longer a mouse ! He had changed back to his own shape* He was a Jack-in-the-Bos again! The toys were sorry and frightened when they saw what had happened* They were afraid that all their terrors would begin again. But. the Jack-in-the-Box had learnt his lesson. Be was gentle and kind, and never again did he jump out at any of the toys and scare them.

“You must forgive me for all my past unkindriessj” he said. “Do let me be friends with you.” _ So the toys • forgave him, _ and now they are alb as firendly as can be. And the only time that Jack ever leaps out; of his box' is when Cinders the cat comes by. She jumps in fright, and then Jack ■ laughs loudly. Ho hasn’t forgotten how she frightened him wheij he was changed into a, tiny '" “ i