CHILDREN'S CORNER

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 3 January 1927, Page 7

CHILDREN'S CORNER

OUR STORY WHO KILLED dOCK ROBIN? It started one night when something went wrong with'the | electric light, and Elmiide School wag plunged into darkness! It was no use continuing prep., so Miss Dobson said the (girls might do as they liked till bedtime. The majority collected.in the gym., 3but Evelyn went to the rec to rea'd by "the light of one flickering candle. ' .... —Evelyn ; was fourteen, and she rejoiced in the nickname of Sherlock Holmes. There were no Becrcta in Elmside: which she could not have unearthed bud she given her mind to them. The previous term she Inid decided to find out .Miss Dobson'e age,' and, to the amwement of the school she had succeeded ! It is true that a few girls called' her Nosey Parker, but Evelyn was eitrbmely proud o? her defective abilities, I

A« shd sa» reading, she heard somebody ereep into the room, but she did not turn- her head. A hand was laid in her shoulder, and » voice whispered mysteriously: , ' "Who killed Cock Robin?"

! "What pa earth do,you mean, Polly?" . The other girl sprang back, and clapped heir,Hand over her mouth. ~ '"Evelyn!" she exclaimed in horror. "I thought it was—er—somebody else!" Polly "regained her usual calm in an instant, and tried to laugh the matter off. iVD'vipu know. I've had "Who Killed Cock Robin"? ringing in my brain all day,"'she giggled. "I just felt obliged to whisper it in your ear! What are you 1 reading?" ;As Evelyn spoke about her book her mind was "working rapidly. For whom had 'Polly mistaken her? She tried to picture herself sitting there' and wondered 'which girl ahe risembled. All the girls wore light grey frocks;in the evening, to, legs and heads were the only things bv which one could be distinguished, for another. Well, legs were out of the question because Evelyn was sitting op. hers. Head? only remained ! Evelyn had a mental vision of her own headr-vileek'and dark, closely cropped, resting on a long, white pillar of a neck. She was quite sure that it was a, long white pillar of a neck, but could any other 1 girl in.the school boast the like}? . . \T say, you need no longer art m darkness, because the light ha» returned," cried'Rosa, bursting into the room and switching oh the light. "Rosa, you've had your - hair cut short like mine-!" exclaimed Evelyn excitedly. "Copy cat!" Now Evelyn waa perfectly sure -that Folly had mistaken her for Rosa. But why should ehe whisper 'Who Killed Cock Robin V m .Ross's ear?

The whole of the next day she followed Roja :like : ; a shadow and strained both: ears ! to : catch every wowl that was

"WHO KILLED COCK ROBIN" /'Evelyn found it difficult to pay at;caji6o to 'ser work ttyft day."

addressed to her. Just before bod-time i.* #Mst mysterious thing happened: K#te, ope of the seniors, slipped a paper irjto. Rosa's hand, and Evgjyn had, thesatisfaction of seeing, that, Rosa looked lebevcd after she bad glanced through it. ' ■>•': , ..; .': '•.••.. r - ■. • '

•.A* they went to bed,' Evelyn distinctly saw Rosa, slip, something into the wasjbe-paper basket in the hall! True tp. her Sherlock Holmes, reputation, in the middle of. the night, when everyone was,a*l&ep,, she crept down-stairs and emptied ; the contents of the basket into *; towel. '' . - : r> ■> "' • '

-But she had few opportunities of examining the waste-paper,' because Polly slept' iii the next cubicle, and she bad eyes and ears sharp as needles. Every morning, as she dressed,' Evelyn took two or three crumpled papers from the bundle and, examined them.

: : ; ','X wish you -would 6top scrunching those papers," cried Polly ..one morning frohj the other side of the curtain's. "It get 3 on' my,nerves !" age.! ".scoffed Evelyn.;* Then she stopped, for, opening out a piece of paper she saw the words: "Who Killed Cock Robin?" !

• She found it difficult to pay attention to her work that day, because the words kept dancing before her eyes.' Kate had written.that note to Rosa, and everything was 'perfectly clear! It was "headed '.'Who Killed Cock Robin?", and ran thus:

•';,', All; O.K. Polly's stupid blunder has not roused' the suspicions of our Sherlock Holmes, so I' think we might meet as usual on Thursdays and' discuss the important question of Initiation. Tool shed, 8.20. Key "for the first arrival under, flower pot near third cabbage to right-of pear tree. Signed: Sparrow, Fly; Rook."'

Evelyn was delighted to find that once again fier instinct had been right; there certainly existed'in the school a secret society of which she knew nothing. The very word "'initiation" spokd of strange and peculiar happenings, and she could not make up her mind whether she would go to the tool shed before the others arrived, or burst in upon them when they y-ere in the middle of their discussion. "•Better go to the tool shed first," she decided at last, "and hide till they all come in. Wh« n they have settled down I 'will rise with dignity from behind the potting table and «ay in a, perfectly holJ6w voice, "I Killed Cock Robin.' Then we'll see what happens !" » * » a

At last- Thursday evening arrived; it was a dark nigfil, but quite fine, and Evelyn, creeping out unseen, mase her way to the pear tree. She had ascertained earlier in the day that the key was under the flower pot, and she had no difficulty in finding it and opening the door of the tool shed. In she crept, but she W 36 obliged to use her electric torch to see where to Hide. Good gracicue, there was a big sheet of paper pinned to the wall! Preparations, no doubt; perhaps rules. Jprelyn deter-

THE WENDY HUT

ANOTHER LONG STORY THIS WEEK

mined (6 read it. Listening breathlessly to. hear if anyone was coining, she went across the shed in \ho dark, flashed her torch on the paper, and.read:

A CURE FOR NOSEY PARKERS. Whisper in their cara, "WHO KILLED COCK ROBIN?' Tor once the biter has been bit, and our Sherlock Holmes has given us a good run for our trouble!

Then bursts of laughter rang from outside the' shed, and Evelyn walked away with as much dignity as she could muster in the circumstances;,

MAKING PICTURE CALENDARS THE LUCKY CAT , If you want to make nomething" really novel you should try the Lucky 1 Cat Calendar, shown in Fig. 1. It is not difficult to make, and it costs practically nothing because it is composed of ordinary cardboard. The only thing yoa will need to' buy is the calendar itself. On your card draw a aeries of equares as *howu in Fig. 2 enlarging them eo that the outline of the cat which, yon will draw will bo the size you desire—the best height is about six inches. Af-

ter drawing the squares, draw the outline of the cat, and then cut; the card to fchape; bend it over at the dotted line so that a tab is formed by which to stitch it to the-base.. Also'draw two legs, cut them to shape, and bend the ends over, where indicated by dotted lines, to make pasting tabs. Now mike a base as shown in outline in Fig..- 3., enlarging this as you enlarged; the outline of the cat'. Cut the ba*e card to shape, fold it along the dotted lines, and stick the corners together' with strong glue; add little tab pieces'to the inner sidjß across th« corner* to strengthen it. Paint the face of the cat, giving it bright green eyes and a red tongue; paint the body and legs black, and colour the base bright'orange, or any shade ycu fancy. When the paint is dry, attach the legs by sticking the, tabs one each side of the body of the cat in the position shown by a' black mark Fig. 2, and then.glue the whole to. the base at the points shown by'the black marks in Fig. 3. Stick a, few bristles on the cat'a face to represent whiskers, paste on the printed calendar, and the Lucky Cat is complete.

TINK'S CROSS WORD PUZZLES Solution of last week's "notice board" puzzle:— ..'■■■"■■', ACROSS i 1. First word of hidden' notice—(Private/ 6. Exclamation of surprise or joy—(Ha.) 7., A 'stick—(Rod) 8. Sometimes'used instead of "you"— (Ye) ' ■■;"./ • ' • 9. Second word, of hidden notice— (Beware) ■' . ' 11. To put down—(L*y) 13.' Greatest.amount—(Most)' '• ■'■ 15. Preposition—(To) 16. Because—(A4)„. .'■... 13. Moved quickly—(Rap) 18. To nhplore—Beg) *• ■ 20. Preposition—(At) , , 21.' Third 'word of hidden, notice—(The) 25.- • article—-(An) 24-. Used in.geography lessona—(Map) 26."0ne-i(U,nit) -' ; 28. Last word of hidden notice —(Cattle) DOWN 1. Another name for "father"—(Pa) 2. Anger—(lre) 3. A solemn promise—(Vow) 4. The first man—(Adam) , . 5. What you see with—(Eyes) 6".'Cease r marchin'g—(Halt) * t ', -9. Near—(-By) ..-■,,: 10. Flower—(Rose)' • ' 12. The largest artery in the body—- , ,' • j (Aorta) ■ - '• r• . . 14.' Preposition—(To) 16: Insect—(Ant) 18. Curved—(Bent) 19: Kind of door—(Gate) ' 20. Part of verb; to be—{Am) , 22. Where Wendy lives—(Hut) .-" 25. Police 'Constable-(abbrev.)—(P. 0.)

27.-! Frjjricb- ,for • . Here's an ,advertisement board. The gentleman and the dog both seem' very much amused at # the .advertisement; I expect there's a* joke' somewhere If the problem, you will find the announcement and'the-joke as • well.Clues-:. < v, • - •' '■- '' ' ACROSS 1. First word of hidden advertisement. 5. Second word of hidden advertisement.- , <:■'.,: 8. Web-footed bird. 10. Kind of monkey. * 11. Third word of hidden advertisement. 13.- Pronoun. ••■ » ■ ■ • - • • 14. A cereal plant: " ' ' '"' 15. Printer's measure . 16. Fourth word of hidden advertisement 17. Fifth.word of.hidden advertisement 19. French for "and" 21. Narrow rdads 23. Sixth word of hidden advertise-

ment. >. : . ~ ' 26. Used for chopping wood, etc. 27. Seventh word of hidden advertise

ment. 30. Last word of hidden advertisement. 31. You write it at school. DOWN 1. Tinkerbell girl (abbrev.) 2. Gown. 3. Pronoun. 4. Second letter of the Greek alphabet. 5. Used in a rowing boat 6. Not down 7. Twenty quires of paper. 9. A seat without a back 12. Famous B6ys' Scfcool 15. To observe (reversed) ' 18. A hot beverage 19. A playing card (reversed) 20. Horseless cab 22. Prefix meaning "before" 24. Used by fishermen 25. Bashful 28. Very (reversed) Chartered accountant (abbrev.) Solution and another puzzl* next we>k. ■ .... LoT6-fr6ra'Tink.