Aunt Roberta’s Family

Manawatu Standard, Volume L, Issue 252, 19 September 1930, Page 10

Aunt Roberta’s Family

AUNT ROBERTA’S LETTER. My dear Girls and Boys, Three blackboya were playing- “dingo” a little distance from the camp. Tommy Tarpot, who was covered with a complete skin of the wild dog, and nosed around on his hands and knees, was the dingo; Koonal, who had birds* wings tied on liis arms, a bird’s tail at the back, and some feathers in his hair, was the brush pheasant; and Mundoon,, wi% the skin of a big goanna on his back, was the villain. The pheasant ■went) away through the long grass and made a nest. In it many eggs were placed. They were turtles eggs, dug out of the sand by the river; but that didn’t matter. . The right sort of eggs couldn’t always be found when it was time for the pheasant to lay. The goanna was meantime sneaking through the grass. Now and again he raised his head to look around, and poked his tongue out when he saw the dingo in the distance. Then he crouched down again, and fossicked about until he found the nest, with the pheasant sitting on the goanna made no sound, only poked his tongue out j but' the pheasant fluttered off towards a bushy tree about twenty yards away. She kept low in the covering grass till the tree was reached when she uttered a loud “quisshew,” which was the signal for the dingo to start on the trail. The goanna would eat all the eggs he could till he was discovered, and what .was left would be shared by the dingo and the pheasant. The villain commenced at once to eat the eggs, while, the agitated pheasant hopped about and mude a noise in the tree. If she indicated the position of the nest, she' forfeited her share of the eggs to the lizard. . . • The dingo, who had been lying asleep, quickened into an active tracker. He sniffed around in apparent excitement, and coughed at' times as though the scent of the goanna was overpowering. But un-' erringly ’he kept on the trail, and soon discovered the - villain. That robber didn t seem pleased' with his lot for the pheasant’s eggs had little turtles in them . On seeing the dingo, the goanna flcked his long tail and rushed off to a sapling, up which he scrambled spirally, with the pursuer sidling .round the. butt, and sniffing and panting in his eagerness to reach the quarry.- , , . Just then a swagman, who was making towards the river with a shaggy dog at his heels/ -suddenly spied the climbing voy andv.the menacing dingo underneath, partly hidden in the long Ho halted ' abruptly and stared. Then he dropped his swag and rushed excitedly towards the players, yelling as lie went, “Sool him, Blqcher! Sool him, boy ! Blucher leaped savageiy at the dingo, who screamed lustily for the pheasant and the goana to help him, until his hair was torn off. While the swagman and the dog paused in astonishment, . the goanna took his skin off, and slipping down,, hit the dog across the head with l *'A moment, afterwards the play was ended by the appearance of three excited gins, who chased the interfering swagman. Und his dog into the shrub with yamsticks. Your own, enrolment coupon. Cut out this coupon, fill it in, and post to “Aunt Roberta,” care “Standard.” My -Name is My Age is ••• My Address is My Birthday is —• I. read “Aunt Roberta’s Family” Page. Signature of Parent, Guardian or School Teacher ••••• ' Sent in by'.. 4UNT ROBERTA’S CHRISTMAS • - ■ : ■ FUND. Please send your spare pennies (stamps or postal note) to Aunt Roberta, arid help to -make some poor little child happy at Christmas time. The amounts so given will be forwarded to the Matron of the Children’s Home, Palmerston North, just before Christmas, who will be asked to buy small gifts for the children on behalf of Aunt Roberta s Family. The fund closes definitely by 15th November. Ruby Bailey ... . ,2s od ROLL CALL: Alison Hutton. OUR MAIL BAG. ANNA LEE: I think Palmerston North is a very pretty little city. My goodness, your “wains” are large! Lizzie sends her love. Thanks for the nice kj sses# 1 FUZZ BUZZ: I think you did very well in the examinations. Hope you enjoyed a pleasant holiday. Love and best wishes. DOROTHY WOODWARD: You are very welcome, and your name has been put on my roll. AETON: Yes, of course. You have 22 h.c. and c. marks to your credit. Love and best wishes. LITERARY CORNER. Favourite verses, short descriptive passages out of well-known books, end opinions of various books will be published in this comer each week. Wherever possible author’s name should be given. (More contributions are required). Sent by MIDGET, — CARGOES. (By John Masefield.) Quinquireme of Nineveh from distant Ophir, . Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine, With a cargo of ivory, And apes and peacocks, Sandalwood, cedarwood and sweet white wine. Stately Spanish galleon coming from the Isthmus, Dipping through the tropics by the palm-green shores, With, a cargo of diamonds, Emeralds, amethysts, , Topazes, and and cinnamon, and gold moidores. Dirty British coaster with a salt-caked smoke stack, ... Butting through the Channel in the mad March days, With a cargo of Tyne coal, Road-rail, pig-lead, Firewood, ironware, and cheap tin trays. THINGS TO MAKE. Marks will be awarded for suitable things to make—recipes, toys, fancy articles, etc. Contributions, are required. SALTED ALMONDS. (ETHEL HELSBY—I mark). Blanch some sweet almonds, dry them on a cloth, and fry them a golden brown in either butter or oil, and keep turning them about whilst cooking. Drain on soft paper, and sprinkle them at once with salt and cayenne pepper. Serve cold.

BROWN BETTY. V (WINDFLOWER —1 mark). One pound light brown sugar; 4 lb shelled walnuts; 6- tablespoons fresh milk; piece of butter size of an egg. Put all into a saucepan, except walnuts, and boil 10 minutes. Add nuts (slightly broken up) and boil ' for another five minutes. Take off fire, and beat for a few minutes till it thickens. Put in a buttered dish to set. GAMES. .Marks will be awarded for suitable Indoor or outdoor games. Contributions are required. NAMES.' (TOPPING—I mark). One .player goes out of the room and thinks of a boy's nanio and a girl’s name which will rhyme, say, “Bill and Jill”; then ho comes in, and says': “A little boy and his sister came to tea last night. The boy’s name was (here ho says the name chosen). What was the girl’s name?” ( The other players must then guess a girl’s name which rhymes with the boy’s name. It cannot be any other name than the one chosen, even though 'it may rhyme. 20th COMPETITIONS. CLOSING DATE, SATURDAY, 4th OCTOBER. ' (Competitors are asked to send in their entries promptly in order to avoid disappointment). 1 Each entry must -be on a separate sheet of paper, bearing the name, ago and address of the competitor. Each entry and envelope must be marked "20th Competitions.” Address :—Aunt Roberta, c/o “Manawatu Evening Standard,” Palmorston North. Senior Division—l2 years and up to 19 years. Junior Division—Under. 12 years. A SHORT STORY (Limit .1,000 words) —If competitors wish, their story may be based upon a true incident. Senior Division.—Prizb 4s. Junior Division.—Prize 2s 6d. VERSES —Subject “Stream.” 'Will competitors please give their verses a title: Verses must be the original idea and unaided effort of the competitor.- Juniors may bo helped a tiny bit. Senior Division.—Prize qs. Junior Division.—Prize 2s fid. RESULTS OF 17TII COMPETITIONS. Note. —The prize money will be posted from Wellington about the first week in October. Really, if this poor response to the competitions continues, I shall have to enlist the aid of Allen-a-Dale or other senior members, to infuse with enthusiasm. There is no excuse for anyone now that examinations and holidays are over for a while. A TRUE STORY. SENIOR DIVISION: 3s prize and 4 marks: AETON (14 years). Highly Commended: OYA, MOEROA, TOPPING, ANNA LEE, ELF LADY, ECHO, BILLIE BOY. JUNIOR DIVISION: Prize 2s fid and 4 marks : MARIGOLD (10 years). . Highly Commended: MERVYN and RONNIE DALEFIELD, BO PEEP, HAZEL COLLINS, LIGHTNING. A TELEGRAM* You were asked to see who could write the best telegram, beginning each word, including address and signature, with the letters-BE A TRUE NEW ZEALANDER. - . One or two competitors addressed their telegram just “William,” “Bert,” etc. The surname and address should have been included, of course. SENIOR DIVISION—Prize 2s fid—3 marks. ECHO: Bob Eaton, Aurora Terrace, Rotorua. Urgent econo'my needed everywhere. With zealous earnestness all luxuries abandon. Need dire. Ernest Ransom. Another good telegram comes from ROSEBUD, 2 marks: Bobby Elgar, Aslilea Terrace, Rotorua. Unless each new entrant works zealously every afternoon little auntie not delighted enough. Roberta. Highly Commendod: FUZZ BUZZ. Commended : TOPPING, AETON, JULIET, OYA, ANNA LEE, ARNOLD DALEFIELD. JUNIOR DIVISION: 2s 6d prize—3 marks, LIGHTNING: Bert Eaton, Auckland. The Rugby Union, Eltham, nominates extra winger Zurcher. Equals any leading Auckland nomination. D. Ellery, Referee. Commended : HAZEL COLLINS, MERVYN; and RONNIE DALEFIELD. A TRUE STORY. SENIOR DIVISION. PRIZE STOR'y. “THE :BITERS .BITTEN.” (By AETON, 14 years). It was a hot stifling day on the farm, a day when old pursuits loose- their interest, and one searches for something new to do in order to revive flagging enthusiasm. 1 1 My cousin -and I.had. betaken ourselves to the orchard, which was at least the most refreshing and coolest place we could find. We. feasted on cherry plums, and then . Well, it was then my cousin had his inspiration. Among the apple trees stood an old bee-box, the bees droning around lazily. . • ■ . “We’ll storm the bees,” he cried excitedly “there’s plenty of ammunition” ! And he gathered up a handful ,of windfalls. ‘ V , . , ' “Right-o!”, I said, nothing loth to enter the fray. So we commenced the assault,-and trie air became thick with flying apples and filled with shouts of glee. A royal time we were having, but,, alas, our joy - Was The air began to get filled with something else —enraged bees came forth, 'droning more loudly, flying more quickly than before. We realised our danger then, and, witri a jump, our flagging energy revived. We fled. But the bees were too quick for us, and ere we had reached the gate our heads were stinging and sore. As we counted the stings we . felt that the cost of new amusements was rather great. Perhaps the bees found . revenge sweeter than honey, but wo thereafter preferred to keep well out of their way, and to give them no cause for pursuing us. ' • • HIGHLY COMMENDED. ' “THE DOG OF THE ARGONNE.” (By OP A, 14 years). Some of the most wonderful deeds • of heroism have been performed by animals, and 'this is a perfectly true incident vouched for by the person who told it to me. It happened- in the Great War. The place was the Argonrie, and the World War was raging. A regiment was 1 cut off from its support—the telephone-

OUR MOTTO: “CHARACTER AND PERSEVERANCE ”

was knocked to pieces. In order to get aid it was necessary to send a message to the supporting column, out of sight over a low ridge, about three miles away. The cut-off regiment was surrounded by its foes, and could only hold out a few moments longer. No- human ruqner could hope to cross even the .smallest amount, of the -ground'that lay between them and help without being blown to bits or riddled with bullets. ‘ ' ' \ , A dispatch, telling of the regiment’s plight, was tied to the neck of a young collie, who was lifte'd over the top of the trench by the Colonel. The dog set .off, like a streak' of golden light, watched by every eye in the regiment. The enemy sharp-shooters blazed into' action at the first glimpse of' him,. all along that lino taking pot-shots at the collie. For two-thirds, of the distance He sped on, his. gold and white body whizzing through the shell-shaken -air at’ top speed. He cleared shell-craters ’in his stride; he hurdled groups of dead. He ran as unerringly straight towards that ridge as a crow could have flown. Bullets whizzed all round him. And still ho ran his glorious race with Death. When he was within five hundred yards of the ridge a groan went up from the whole fascinated regiment. The collie upon whom depended so many lives had leapt high into the air and come crashing to the ground in a huddled heap. But, on the instant, the groan changed, into a hysterical cheer. The dog was up again. Mortally wounded as he was he began to stagger onwards, still in a straight lino for the ridge. As he neared the summit, of the ridge he was outlined against the sky-line, and more than one bullet hit him. He collapsed and lay still. But presently he was lying still no longer. He could not stand at all now, for the last shot had hit him somewhere in the spine, but, by means of his forelegs, and splendid will power, lie wriggled his- way over the ridge. • ' ’* * He crawled up to the General to whom he had been sent —and diod as his nose touched the soldier’s outstretched hand. He had saved a whole regiment and ]ost( nothing, but his own life. HIGHLY COMMENDED. “THE BLUE BATH.” (By MOEROA). One very hot day, when we were small,' my sister Phyllis and I put on our bathing suits and jumped into the bath. Oh, we did have fun ! We poured cold water in and soaped the sides to make it slippery. I am sure our "chute” was as good and as slippery as any water chute 111 municipal baths. Then we had turns of sliding into the water head first. Of course we had to go carefully or else we would have banged our heads against the other side.;:; ; When we began to get cold I turned on the hot water till we could not bear it any hotter. The water became a deep blue, not such a pretty blue as that of the sea, but a deep navy-blue. We did not take much notice' of this until I happened to look at, Phyllis,' 'after she had had a “dive.” Gracious,, ; she was dyed blue! Her face was patchy, and her amis looked blue with .cold; but,, needless to say, she was not, for, as Thave mentioned, it was very hot water; ./ Then we both had a job to scrub ourselves clean. We let the water go and med the bath afresh, with cold water. We were in the nnclst of this when mother, who had been reading out on the lawn in the shade, came in to see why we were making such a noise. She wa& very angry, and told me to get dressed and come and see the result of our miss I got dressed and went into the hall. A great stream of blue water was gradually running down the hall-out of the front door. Fortunately it had missed the carpet. made me clean it up as a u.iishment—but I did not do it very well, so she dried it up lor me. HIGHLY COMMENDED. “ONE ‘EGG-CITING’ MOMENT.” (By TOPPING, 14 years): One day mother 'sent me for some eggs which were kept Jn a big tin in the panI try. She told fne that I would have to make two journeys, as she wanted a good number. 1 reached the tin—and went through the interesting process of seeing how many I could carry.- ; , I 'did not see the need for making 'tivo' journeys at all, and proceeded, my arms laden with eggs, back to the kitchen. I did not get far, however, before one egg, situated in a lofty position, became restless and slid gently to the floor, whero it landed with a delicious “Splosh !” Horrified, I gazed at the pool of yellow gracing the linoleum.

I took a step back towards the tin, intending to rid myself of somo of my burden. But a large brown egg rocked dangerously before it joined its fellow at my feet with the same interesting “Splosh !” This was terrible ’ Speech was impossible or I should have asked mother to come to my assistance. Eggs wore heaped up to my chin and I was almost afraid to breathe. Then to my joy mother, who had evidently heard the musical “splosh” of the second egg, came in. “What ?” she began, but stopped suddenly. Another egg was slipping ! With great presence of mind she darted over and took the eggs —falling one and all ! My one ‘egg-citing’ moment was over! HIGHLY COMMENDED. “MY ADVENTURE IN THE BUSH.” (By ECHO, 14 years’). We had been living in a mountainous district a few days only, when I decided to make a tour of inspection. After climbing several hills I caine upon a valley covered with native bush. As I walked through the beautiful glades I became aware that there was something unusual in the atmosphere. The trees stood side-by-side in a dense mass of undergrowth. The trunks were covered with creepers and clinging viries; wild clematis, with its abundance of starshaped flowers, was twisted and twined amongst the beautiful ferns and palms that helped to form that living paradise. The lianas hung in profusion over the tallest trees. There were also the mountain buttercups and daisies, which grew at the foot of the trees. The yellow kawhia was in full bloom, and the crimson rata sent forth its fragrant scent. So enchanted was I. with it! all that I did not notice that I had wandered further than I had intended. And when late in the afternoon I still found myself in the bush I began to grow alarmed. At sunset 1 was still at a loss how to get out, when I happened upon a stream, and decided to follow it. Just as darkness had enveloped the land I found I was on the outskirts of the bush. You can well imagine how I felt as I wended my way homewards. Never again, I decided, would I allow myself to get lost. JUNIOR DIVISION. “BINKY.” (By MARIGOLD, 10 years). When my grandparents were alive they had a fox terrier called Binky, whom they loved very much. Early one morning Binky disappeared, and grandpa was very upset, walked feebly from neighbour to neighbour all day long, but could hoar nothing of the dog. The next morning an advertisement was put-in the paper but no one answered it, and they became very anxious. A couple of days after, this grandpa was walking mournfully along the road a mile from his home when he saw a dog lying dead on the side of the road. Picking it up, he arrived home an hour later, and grandma was very shocked. A grave was then dug, and the dog buried, .while’they cried. They missed Binky more and more every day, then after a fortnight their son Harold, ■ who lived ten miles away, came to see them, and who should bound in with him—but Binky. Grandma and Grandpa could not believe their eyes foi a while, then they thought something uncanny had happened. Taking Harold into the garden they showed him the grave where they declared they had buried Binky. Taking a spade he began to dig and soon came upon the buried dog, which was so very like Binky. Harold at once saw the funny side of what had happened, and roared with laughter. Grandpa and Grandma laughed, too, as they were happy again. „ , , , „ Binky was never allowed to run about the roads anymore for fear he would get run over ■ by a motor car, like tho other poor dog. HIGHLY COMMENDED. A CLEVER CAT. (By RONNIE DALEFIELD, 8 years). A long time ago there lived a nice cat called Daisy. She had two little kittens, and was very fond of them. One day they and their mother were packed in a Box, and sent five miles away to another place. Daisy was very cross tvhen she found herself among strangers, and in the night she set- off for lie: old homo. Her kittens were too young to walk, and yet puss brought them safely back, though it took her many hours to do so. No- one 'saw Daisy carrying her babies,

and it was not known whether she took one of them a ' short distance, and then went back for the other one, until, in this way, she had got them safely home, or whether she just carried one kitty the five miles, and then returned and brought the other one. Daisy did not have all her trouble for nothing—she and her kittens were never sent away from their home again. HIGHLY COMMENDED WHEN ADA WENT TO SUNDAY SCHOOL. , (By HAZEL COLLINS, 7 years). Ada was a little girl who went to Sunday School overy Sunday afternoon. She, dressed in her best clothes, took her little bead bag, with her handkerchief and penny, and walked to Sunday School. Her mother told dier to be sure and put her penny in t’he’"little box, and, as Ada never brought her pennies home, her mother concluded they were given, up each Sunday. But one day Ada was asked “Did you put your penny in the box to-day ?” Ada hung her head, and said, “No.” Her mother asked her where it was, and she said: “Down the road, under a stone.” So together they went down the road, and there under a big stone in a drain they found quite a little heap of pennies. Ada was such a little girl that she could not reach the box at Sunday School, and,., as she knew she shouldn't take the pennies home again, she had hidden them under the stone. CRISPIES. Pat: “What would yer charge for a funeral notice in your paper?” Editor: “Half-a-crown an inch. Pat: “Good heavens, and me poor brother was six feet high.” A young lady was being shown over an engineering shop. “What is that? * she said to her guide, a young engineer. “Why,” he replied,- “that’s an engine boiler.” , “And why do they _ want to boil the engine ?” asked the guileless damsel. “Oh,” lie answered, “to make the engine tender 1” Stage Manager: “What do. you think of Miss Twinkle, who sings that ballad in the second act?” Critic: “A perfect little peach—but no Melba.” * * * * “It was terrible,” said Mrs Murphy. “There were twenty-seven English and an Irishman lost in the wreck.”, “Indade!” exclaimed Mrs' Grogan. “The poor man !” , * ._ * • Tommy was sent to. a boarding school. Three days after his arrival he wrote to his father: “Dear Dad, Life is short; let us spend it together.—Your beloved Tommy.” * * * * The flower show »liad been a great success, and the next morning Alderman Smith, who had performed the opening ceremoony, was reading the newspaper s report of it to his wife. ) Presently he stopped, and, snatching up his stick, rushed from the room. Amazed, his wife picked up the paper, and read : “As Mr Smith mounted the stage all eyes were fixed on the large red nose he displayed. Only -years of patient cultivation could have produced an object of such brilliance.” * * . . *• * Teacher: “What is a hyprocrite, Tommy?” Tommy : “A boy who comes to school with a smile on his face.” The *Chief Constable o*f a small town was also an expert veterinary surgeon. One night the telephone bell rang. “Is Mr Blank there?” said an agitated voice“Do you want my husband in his capacity- of veterinary surgeon or as Chiof Constable?” inquired the ..Chief Constable’s wife. “Both, madam,” came the reply. “We can’t get our new bulldog to open his mouth, and there’s a burglar in it:” A GOOD CATCH. Ask your chum if he can write “Sixty miles under the sea” in four words. It is more than likely he will say, “It is impossible.” “No, it’s not,” you answer, “It’s quite easy. And you show him how it is done, thus: — the sea sixty miles. DID YOU KNOW ? . That iron sinks, jam rolls, grass slopes, music stands,- time flies, sulphur springs, moonlight walks, rubber tyres, and the organ stop 3 ? SCHOOLBOY HOWLERS. A myth is a lady moth. An epistle is a feminine apostle. Captain Cook joined the navy and extinguished himself. A mandate is a kind of Chinaman. A fissure is a person who sells fish. Soviet is what is sometimes called a tablo napkin.