OUR YOUNG FOLKS' COLUMN.

Mataura Ensign, Issue 1273, 31 December 1903, Page 5

OUR YOUNG FOLKS' COLUMN.

[Edited by Uncle Phil.]

RULES. j 1. All letters for the week's publication should reach the office not later than Monday afternoon. 2. Correspondents should write on only one side of the paper. 3. All correspondents mast send their real names, not necessarily for publication. All letters should be addressed thuß : Press M.SS. UNCIiE PHIL, Ensign Office, Gore. OUR MOTTO : Whatsoever thy h:ind fircdeth to do, do it with ail ihy might.

Dear Boys and Girls, — The year is dying in the night. Once more we have swung our way round the sun, and to-night we start again. How many journeys this globe of ours has made is a secret, guarded so safely that men state their differences of opinion in regard to the matter, in thousands of millions of years, and our minds are incapable of forming any idea of what such periods of time mean. Nations have risen and fallen ; countless millions of human beings have been borne along on its track, men of like passions to our own ; they have ceased to be and soon we shall follow ; but this persistent procession of the years goes on, silent irresistible. How insignificant we are—we creatures of a few years! How old is Old King Time ?

The girls at Lome Farm received a large number of dolls, provided by the money which a correspondent sent to Mr Day. The dolls being bought, Miss Day, with a number of lady friends, set to work to supply the necessary dresses and milinery. In addition Mr Day obtained about a pound for the purpose of providing some Christmas gifts for the boys at the Farm. When these boys and girls grow up, they will doubtless remember their benefactors, and in the meantime the hearts of the givers are warmed by the thought of having done a worthy deed. I must thank all those who so kindly remembered me by sending some Christmas token. And now as the old year goes out I wish all my correspondents A Happy New Yeak. Uncle Phil. Dear Uncle Phil, —Here I am again to bother you with more of my scribbles. I was very pleased to see my last letter in print. I was not at the Gore show owing to the bad weather. I was at Gore last Tuesday and I saw two U.P.N's. whom I did not know, and I also saw Pat Murphy but I did not speak to her. Dear Uncle, what sort of weather are you having ? We have been having very disagreeable weather lately, almost every day there is thunder and lightning, and as I have- heard of so many accidents lately it makes me afraid to be out in it. In spite of it all the fruit is beginning to ripen. The birds up here are a pest; they seem to eat the currants as quickly as they ripen. \Y> hav? in:en talking about starting to make- jam, but as we have the shearers we never seem to have time. Have you ever been in a shed when mev are shearing ? 1 was in yesterday my word the noise was something awful. What with lambs bk, i.ing and their mothers answering bum. and dogs barking, you couldn't hear yourself speak. I can assure you, Uncle, I didn't stay long. I aiii sure I don't know how the men stand it all day. What nice letters Lady Arne and v. rile. I wish I could write like them, but somehow whenever I sit down to write a letter everything vanishes. How do you intend to spend Christmas, Uncle? I intend to go to a picnic if it is fine and lam well. Isn't Gore a quiet place on Christmas day ? I spent last Christmas in Gore and I can assure you Uncle I don't want to spend another. Well I think I will draw this to a close. Wishing you and all the U.P.N's. a merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Gingek. Otamita. P.S. I would very much like to change autos with But.—G. [lf you wish to send out any more autos you should get- some auto forms. If you send me a stamped addressed envelope I shall post you half-a-dozen forms. You neglected to send a stamped unaddressed envelope l'or me to send the auto to But. I think you write a very good letter, and if you practise you may expect to be as good as Lady Arne and But when you are as old. Yes, I ha\ s been in Knapdale shed at shearing time. It i: ; a noisy time right enough.—U.P.]

Dear Uncle Phil,—l thought I would write you a few lines before this year was out. We have had some bad weather lately but to-day is just lovely. We have all got whooping cough and it is not very nice I can tell you. It won't be long before Santa Claus comes round with his great bun-lie of toys. What a jolly morning Christmas morning is when we get up and find our stockings full of lollies and biscuits. Dear Uncle, are you going anywhere for your holidays this year'? I think you richly deserve a week or two away from your hard work. I think I might be up to Gore in the holidays and I will try to come and see you. Now Uncle, I think I will draw to a close, wishing my cousins and yourself a happy Christmas and a merry New Year. I remain yours sincerely. Stockman. Tokonui.

[I got your private note and I have done with the enclosure as you direct. You are a thoughtful boy. Please accept my best thanks yourself for your kind deed and also thank your sisters. I hope your own Christmas was a good time as you have tried to do so much for other boys who are less loved than you are. Write regularly in the new year and may it be a happy one.— U.P.]

Dear Uncle Phil,—l enjoyed myself very much on Christmas Day. The day after Christmas I was going to Jiataura, but it was too wet in the morning. On Christmas ev» ' went down the street ind it was crowded with people. I pot a nice ;uj? ,'--»ll for a present. On Ne^ r Year'- Ihy lam going to the bush fcr a picnic ii it is a nice day. Wishing you a Happy New Year, I remain, j mis truiy, Vu> K-sa No. 2. Gore. t-'' [I hope to-m. rr rJ will k a fine day bo that you may . njoy y jurself at V '

the bush. A doll is a very nice pre- j sent for a girl. Write regularly in 1894.—C.P.]

Dear Uncle Phil, —I sstid in my last letter I would tell you all about my work. Well, I work at a place where skins and wool are worked up. The first thing we do to the wool is to class it into different lots—namely, merino, quarterbred, halfbred, crossbred and several others. These fleeces are all opened up and rolled nicely again. Then they are pressed into bales, numbered, branded and sent home to England and sold. All the pieces and locks are then scoured white with hot water and soap. Then it is washed in cold water ; after that it is dried in a wringer. The wringer is a round piece of machinery driven with steam, and it goes round faster than the fly-wheel of an engine. When it is dried well it is sent away. After the v.-.'" l is .finished with, the skins are | taken I:i !i:iml. If they are dry skins they soaked in wuta - for two or three day, then they are wrung, sorted over and painted. This point is made of lime-water and chemicals. They are left over one night, and the wool is pulled off next day. When the wool is off, the skin is called a pelt. The pelts are put into lime-pits for 24 hours; after that they are fleshed and skudded and washed in very clean water and thrown into a box of pickles. This pickle is composed of water, salt, and sulphuric acid. This acid is to whiten the pelts and the salt to cure them. Now, Uncle, I think I have given you a rough idea of my work, so I will stop. Thanking you for the pretty card, I remain, yours truly, WoOL-CLASSER. Gore.

[I should like to see you at work, or rather to see the processes you have described. So you see your letter has made me wish for more information on the subject. I shall be glad to hear from you often.—-U.P.]

Dear Uncle Phil, —As I saw my last letter lying on the table in the paper, I just thought 1 would sit down and let you know again how I am getting on. Since I last wrote I have been down in Gore seeing my parents and my friends. My auntie and I were in Gore for three weeks, so when I came back here again I felt very lonely after the bustle of the town. It has not been the best of weather since we came home, it has either been very windy or pouring with rain, just like to-day. It is a terrible drawback to the country up here that this time of the year is so wet. The shepherds c;m't get their sheep in ; the mustering is their busiest time in the year, and shearing time. Well Uncle, before I go any further, I will tell you of a small yet great misfortune I had. The other night I was out having a look in the garden when I saw some black currants ripe. Well I thought I would pick some, and as it was getting cold went inside and ate them. I picked about four and came into the kitchen to cat them. As I was eating my second one I felt something hard in my mouth. What was this ? When I took it out it was my tooth, and one quite near the front. When I went into the front room to tell them my misfortune they only laughed, and said that I looked quite funny with a tooth out, but I could not realise it wns out at all. T must tell you about my liadge now. Wi-il then, in the answer to my last letter, you said that very likely I would it by the time I would see the letter, well no, I did not get it then, but wlifn I was down in Gore one of the !:>»n went for the mail and got it. I iin. t thank you very much for sending i:. so carefully up here to me. Did you get the card 1 sent you '? I had to send it before the time as we never know when we will get the mail away up here, so it was better to be s:ire ; as the saying is, " Better late than never, but better never late." Auntie and I have made an appointment with some friend who live at Elfin Bay to go for a picnic to Rere Lake on Boxing day if all is well. I wish you were up here then Uncle, we would be only too glad of your company at the picnic. This is a very busy clay up here so Snowdrop's mate said he had no time to write, but wait till I see him not busy and I will get him to write another letter. My uncle is away to the West Coast and I wish I was with him. I believe it is a lovely place. A friend of mine who lives there brought me some ferns that were growing on the Coast, and some of them were growing at Milford Sound. It seems quite funny up here to see them making their own bread and butter. Do you like drinking buttermilk, Uncle ? Some people are very fond of it, so I always think when I see such a lot of it how those who like it would relish it. There is no church up here, Uncle ; we just have church ourselves in the house, we sing hymns nearly all the time ; we were singing one last night, and I took a great fancy to it; it is in Sankey's hymn book, the number is 418. I think it is time I was drawing this long letter to a close. Love to all the nephews and nieces, not forgetting yourself, also wishing you all a merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Yours very truly,

Snowdrop No. 1. Glenorchy. [A very nicely worded letter, and the best writing you have ever sent in. I think you did wisely to go back to Glenorchy, and I hope you will soon be strong and well. The weather has been changeable here too, and shearing has been hindered. I though once of going to the head of the lake for a trip and if I go, I shall invite myself to your house, but it is very doubtful whether I shall get away. You will just have to visit the dentist and get in a nice artificial tooth. You arc quite right to keep Sunday as it ouqht to be kept. I hope you will write often. Could you improve on the quality of the writing sent this time ? U.P.I

Dear Uncle Phil, —It is over a year since I last wrote to you. I have written three or four letters but somehow I never posted them. You must have nearly 500 correspondents, for there are always some new writers. I am trying to get my brother to write to you, for you do not seem to have many boy writers. I believe that you had a very good social this year. I was not there for I was not very well. Dear Uncle have you had the mumps ? I have not and I don't want to have them either. You have Daisy Primrose ancLßaronia writing to you now. They have been writing to the Witness for years. Yon ought to persuade

Daisy to tell yon some of her experiences when she was going to school. There has not been a letter from Pandora for a long time. Have you read Wee MacGregor ? I read part of it but I did not care for it very much. It was so Scotch that I could hardly make sense out of it. lam a Scotch colonial, but broad Scotch is like Greek to me for I don't understand it. I don't think I will go away for any holidays at Christmas this year. Last year I went to Dunedin for a few weeks and I enjoyed myself splendidly. Dear Uncle I am going to change my penname as I do not think my former one suitable. I will have to close now with best wishes for the New Year. I remain yours sincere!}-, A.V.I.R.E.G. Gore. [I shall be glad to hear from your brother. No, I have not had mumps, and like you, can get on well enough without them. Yes, I read " Wee MacGreegor," and some parts I enjoyed very much. I know the type of people whom it pourtrays. Write soon again.—U.P.]

Dear Uncle Phil, —I wish you and the cousins the compliments of the season, Our school broke up on the 18th for five weeks' holiday. I got a prize, and the name of it is " Fiftytwo Sunday Stories for Boys and Girls." It is a big one, and has more than 400 pages. I attended school until the third week, when I lost six days with the mumps, and so lost my attendance prize. Mumps are not very pleasant things, I can tell you. Have you had them, Uncle ? Are you fond of reading? I read every spare minute I can get. I like Ballantyne's bonks best. Who is your favorite author, Uncle ? You have a great many nieces and nephews now, and I find most of their letters very interesting. I have heard people say that they do not know how Uncle Phil has the patience to correct such an amount of letters. But never mind.

Patience is a virtue, Try it if you can ; Seldom in a woman, Never in a man. You are an exception to the last line, I think. I was riding a horse the other day, and was sitting sideways on a man's saddle, when the horse started to trot, and I slipped backwards off the saddle. I clung round the horse's neck for a while, but fell under its feet. You may be sure I jumped up as quickly as possible. Fortunately for me, the horse was a quiet one, and did not kick, but stood quietly till I got on again. I ought to be thankful that I escaped with no further injuries than a skinned elbow. I will write a longer letter next time, as I have to hurry up and get this one posted. With love to yourself, Wild Rose, and Coffeepot, and wishing you prosperous new year.—l remain, yours, etc., Lady Douglas. Rivcrsdale. [I am sure you were very fortunate to get off so well; you might have been seriously injured, or even killed. Mumps caused a great many boys and girls to lose their good attendance certificates. But we can learn to bear cheerfully with disappointments, and that is a valuable lesson to learn in the great school of life. I cannot tell you who my favorite author is. In prose, it might be Sir Walter Scott; in verse, Shakespeare and Tennyson. Write soon again.—U.P.]

Dear Uncle Phil, —This being the last month of the year, I take the pleasure of writing to you ere it closes. Some of us, perhaps, are apt to view the past with feelings of disappointment, but that should not be so, as there are many privileges we have enjoyed, in the year that is waning, which we have every reason to be thankful 4or. In the first place we ought to be grateful that we are living in a free land, enjoying all its benefits, and also for the health and strength we possess, which, I think, is the greatest boon of all. Our minister preached last Sunday from the text " Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." And in the course of his remarks, he went on to say how thankful to God we all ought to be for such a beautiful world, with all its pleasures and joys. That even in the midst of sorrow, there were many blessings we received, which we ought to be grateful for. But there is no use repining over the past, Uncle, that is gone, and that we can't recall. Let us all go in with a strong determination to do better in the coming year than we have done in the past, and that it may be a year of prosperity and success to each one of us. I am glad to see the page is always increasing. I also was glad to see A Mother in Israel writing again ; I hope she is fully restored to health and strength, and that she may always find it convenient to write to the page. Christmas is past, Uncle, with all its joys. To me it did not seem like Christmas at all, as I seldom go anywhere at holiday time, except to a picnic. I went to one on Christmas day. Before

I close I thank you Uncle for your kind remarks. I will close now, with best love to Mr Dick and Long Barney, wishing them, yourself, and all the rest of the U.P.N.'s a happy and prosperous New Year. Yours truly, Pilgrim. P.S. —I posted a photo to Clare, Palmerston South. I wonder if she got it ? —P. Waikaia.

[Thank you for your letter, and write often in 1904. We have much to be thankful for. When one remembers (he lives lived in the big manufacturing towns of the old land, and thinks of our lives of freedom and (quality, then we sue how thankful we ousfht to bo. Many who work from (i a.m. till 6 p.m. can hardly earn enough to live on well. The food may be sufficient in quantity, but the quality is often poor enough. I remember on one occasion seeing a hungry street boy looking into a shop window. The shopkeeper being asked why the street boy looked so well on the little food he got, replied that he got plenty of time to digest what he got. This is a thing called hunger at Home. There is not much of it in our beloved New Zealand.—U.P.]

I Dear Uncle Phil, —Just a few lines , to tell you what a pleasant surprise : your Christmas card gave me, and : also to thank you for it. I never i thought that you wduld remember me, i =QCi n g I've only written to you once, and that is what I think makes it so I pleasant. This is Boxing Day, and such a horrid day. I was going to a I *