SUNBEAMS' COLUMN

Maoriland Worker, Volume 13, Issue 30, 25 July 1923, Page 12

SUNBEAMS' COLUMN

Dear Sunbeams,—The editor of "My Magazine" has been telling his readers the kind of memorial Italy intends to raise to the soldiers who died for her in the Great War. He says:—■ "One of the happiest thoughts that has ever blossomed out of the sorrows of the war, one of the loveliest ideas that has ever come from a Minister of Education, is coming into being in Italy."

The question has been considered so often how best we can honour these men whose lives were sacrificed for us. and has been answered in so many ways, both beautiful and ugly, that it hardly, seemed as if there were any new ideas left. Italy's idea, however, is to plant a tree for each one of the. half-million men she lost in the war—a tree beariug each man's name, so that his life, vanished from the earth, shall be kept alive in spirit by the life (fainter and less responsive, but still beautiful and dignified) of a stately trunk that will tell his story to the generations coming. To each tree will be attached a tablet with the name and rank and other records of the man in whose memory it has been planted. In some places the memorial trees will make a little grove, in others a plantation or stately avenue. Towns and cities may grow from their sorrow proud parklands or even forests in which their children's children will walk in the distant future and think with reverence of the past.

"Is not this proposal," the writer goes on, "beautiful in its simplicity, its naturalness, its tender suggestion and Its power of carry'ng on a noble memory? We think we have fieen nothing quite so beautiful or so sublime as this idea of the Italian Minister of Education. It will graft the memory of the dead upon a perfect form of life, for the stately tree has an individuality not granted to the laboured monuments of men's hands unless they speak to us with the rare voice of genius. For ourselves we wish that in our country, too, and throughout the British lands beyond the seas, there could arise a memory so rare and sweet for every life struck down in the war that withered so much happiness."

I. too, think it s a beautiful idea, Sunbeams, for a tree is one of the loveliest things upon earth, and. apart from its beauty, it gives us shade from the fierce summer sun and shelter from the pitiless rain of winter. The cost, too, w r ould be very small as compared with the amount if money being spent in every country upon useless memorials while many of the disabled and crippled soldiers cannot get work or bread.

You know the little poem in all-the school books, Sunbeams, beginning "What does he do who plants a tree?" ft goes on to tell us of the cool, refreshing shade and all the other blessings bestowed upon the world by the man who plants a tree. So I think ■we will all agree that the Italian plan for a war memorial is (next to looking after the living .soldier.3 properly) the most beautiful that has been proposed so far. * * * *

THE GREEJIY ROY. Maurice loved sweets. Sometimes his mother bought some for him, but not often enough for his liking. Besides, so. that he should not make himself ill, she took care to hide them in her cupboard, and to dole them out to him from time to time. Now, Maurice was greedy. He would have liked a big bag of sweets, which he could eat one after another q-uickly, two or three at; a time even, if they were not very big ones. Only it was impossible to open the cupboard. It wus locked. One day, however, mother left the key in the door and went out of the room for a moment. Maurice did not lose a minute. He got up on a chair, opened the door, and searched everywhere. His hand knocked up against a pretty little round box, which he opened at once. Oh, joy! it was full of pretty silver sweets! As they were very small and mother was coming back Maurice put three into his mouth. He closed the cupboard door and jumped off the chair. He was just in time, for at that moment mother entered the room. Mjaurico crunched h's three sweets.

but all at once he made a? horrible ; grimace. The sweets were torrlbly bitter. ./'Why are you pulling faces?" asked mother. Matiriee confessed what he had done. "You wretched child," exclaimed his mother. "You have been swallowing pills.' I —"My Magazine."

.f? »#■«• » '...- "*'"' . MONJOiYS. ■■'' "■*•" Monkeys - are very funny animals, and they like to do what they see men doing if they can. Here is a little story the "Children's Encyclopedia" tells about them: — Once upon a time a man was walking in a forest in a very hot land... It was so hot that he lay down to rest. He had a large basket of red caps with him, which he was trying to Bell, so he put on one of the caps and h\y clown to sleep. - When he woke up all the little red caps had gone. The basket was emp£y. "What shall I do?" the poor man said to himself. He looked all round, but no red cap could he see. All at once he heard such a chatter, chatter, chatter, and he looked up. There, up in the trees overhead, were lots and lots of monkeys, each with a little red cap on its head. "Oh, dear," said the poor man; "how sha'l I get m y caps again?" Then he said to himself: "I ktiowwhat I will do." He tok off his'cap and threw it on the ground. And those funny little monkeys, who like to do what they see men do, took off their red. cans and threw them on the ground, too. The man pi eked them all up as quickly as he could and walked off. and the next time he lay down to rest he took care to cover up his basket. MUM.