Net Loss.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21118, 27 February 1932, Page 4 (Supplement)

Net Loss.

I lost an hour the other day, An hour —and nothing left to show! Two children coaxed me out to play Because the fields were sweet with hay. " In vain I said a solemn No: —■ I lost an hour of work and play. A wondrous course those two did steer. Liko butterflies, from flower to flower, Wo rambled, laughing, far and near; The summer sky was blue and clear; I lost in work and pay an hour; I gained in happiness a year. From ELMA LEE. D.D.M.8.G.. Craigholm Hospital, llawera. (Copied). DEAK GIRLS AND BOYS: Here I am once more, tapping out a letter to you and thinking of the " Magic Carpet" on which I would liko to have taken you all with me on my trip to the Marlborough Sounds. I returned this week, after a delightful fortnight there, and as I don't suppose many of you have ever heaid much about the Sounds, much less been there, I hope you will place it on youi list of places for holiday-making in the years to come, when you are able to make longer trips, and see more of this beautiful country of ours. I have been so busy ever since I returned (I am writing this on Wednesday, and only got back yesterday) that I shall not be able to write anything for you about my trip this week, but you will find something I wrote, one beautiful moyung at St. Omer Bay, on the front page of our supplement to-day. There was a great pile of correspondence awaiting me, stories, poems, and all kinds of items, although I have a distinct remembrance that I asked you not to send anything but "Back to School etters Ah me! How you all love to take out your pens, square your elbows, and put your inspirations down in black and white as quickly as possible! I shall really have to arrange a special contest, sometime, with prizes for those who do as I ask, and refrain from sending in items. However, as you have kept me so busy with the Mail Bag, it means that you will have to wait another week for the prizewinning awards in the Painting Competition. There has been a splendid response, and some beautiful work is included in the big pile I have just glanced over. 1 hope I shall be able to announce the prizewinners next week. ' No more letters, stories, or poems until further orders, please, as we really must use up* those on hand. Love and best wishes to you all from

BACK TO SCHOOL.

Dear Missi Morion.—lt is with a joyful •mile that I greet the sun as it peeps, in through my open window on the morning v.e "so back to school." After a happy holiday at the seaside, camping or visitin" friends, it is jolly to come back home to go back to school to our friends and lessons. The thought of tennis and cricket make one quiver with excitement. My dear old friends—those thick volumes of mathematics, history and geography, etc. —must be disturbed from their sweet repose at the top of the bookshelf and carefully dusted and placed in my school-bag (Which has also been hanging idle behind the kitchen door for sis long weeks). With a light heart I set off to school with, a bunch of flowers for the school room and hit school-bag swinging on my arm. -I .walk briskly along the pretty lane to school, enjoying- the birds' merry twitterins in the tree-tops and busy bees dronin" songs as they gather honey from the pen'hv-roval ond other wild flowers growing on the wayside. As I turn the bend in the road I catch sight of a friend, and toeether we continue our .tourney to school, chatting about our holidays There is quite a crowd of school children at the village grocer's shop as we pass. Most of them nre carrying clean, new books and bright, shining, new 'pencils How some of them wish the school bell would ling lo enable them to use those now books and pencils. , At last "we reach the school gate, and as 2 pass through it, I feel ever so pleased to be back at school. for is it not tlirie that we spend the happiest days of child-hood-even if spellings are a nuisance, and the cane does sometimes hurt a bit. boon we are all busily engaged in choosing sides for a game of cricket, and before Ions; the cracking of the hard ball against the bat is heard, amid th* noisy cheering of the excited cirls and boys. All too soon, however, for the cricketers the ringing of the school bell is "chord on the breeze, and bats and ball arc hastily dropped, and off runs everyone into school. Yerv soon the scratching of pens and nil occasional muffled whisper is a sure sign that everyone is busv at lessons agfiin.— l remain, yours sincerely. Hazel Q'l't's Kniith (ar/- 14 years), Maungaturoto, Ivortn Auckland. n SETTLING DOWN. Dear Miss Morton,—We have been bark school for three weeks now and are t settling down to our new classes with i v lessons, teachers and games. On the first day vc march back we think - -h reluctance of the holidays we are leavbehind us. but are looking foruaid to • ■ i our new teachers and all our old friends, j q j n of ninkin*? new s. V.- e file into school to sit down lo desks tich are ne»'v varnished and gaze-round e room, looking for new faces A leacliei V ilks briskly in l " tho room—a teachr: ve -lo not know. We sigh, thinking of last rear's teacher. Hlie was n snort. even it i-he did give us plenty of lines to do. but we must start our work. At the in cn« nil the new nttpi's must be one=t-~ued and enrolled to <h» duties of school lite JTow we are be<rinnin*r to know our teacher and work, an'' are settling down lo ordinary school life.—From your sincere -e>-fncnd. Ada Brrtton, Bonny Glen, To hiuti (age 15 years). A VISIT TO THE NAHLIN. Dear Miss Morton. —J list _ over « ago 1 returned from a delightful holiday at the Bay of Islands. T left home <>n January 19. and met toy cousin, who was returning by car to Ohueawai t'om Auckland at Maungaturoto. The trip up was Fplendid, and 1 enk-ved it all the more bs it. was the first tinu 1 had been up N/>rfh. When Sunday arrived I packed no my things aga :, i and went to my aunt sat Pailiia. There I"had a wonderful time. It is such » bcnufiful and ever so many campers were there. We spent most of the time swimming, wandering about the beaches, or else we wont on pome long rambles. One very hot afternoon v.-e walked about three uo the road toward Ohaeawai to se" t-c Wa'tangi halls. A\o went across to too. One morning while there I climbed T) Inpslsiff llill. from the summit of which I could get a mag3iifirent view. "Wo wero also present at a huTe fancy dress da»ce there. Lady Yule's yacht, the >"nhlin, and the two sloon.s, H.M.S. Vrrt.'-ica and TI.M.S. Laburnum, were a'l at Pitssrll. At ni'dit when they were all lit up they looked sniendid. Once. or. twice they gave searchlight disolays, which were fascinating, yet so weird. One morning 1 saw nil over the Is'phlin. Needless to say, it is simply marTellous. All too soon the time came for me to .return home, but it will be a very long time before I forget my first stay at the Bay of Island®.—From your loving penfriend, Poppy H. Hill, Marohemo (age 1G years).

34 LETTERBOX CORNER CLOSED. & No further items to be sent until requested.