THE GOLD SEEKERS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21716, 3 February 1934, Page 4 (Supplement)

THE GOLD SEEKERS

By OLIVE SCANDLYN, 93 Portland Road, RemueXa, SE2. Bobbin was lying curled up on Margaret Betty's feet when suddenly ho rose and shook himself and said. " Margaret Betty, let's go and look for gold 1 So Margaret Betty and Bobbin set off down the garden path whero the pink and white Madonna lilies grow, pushing up their leafless stems through the hard ground. And away the two of them went across the wide road, with Margaret Betty holding fast to Bobbin's collar, till they came to a big ditch with water in it, and the water was running fast. " Oh," said Margaret Betty. " What shall wo do now, Bobbin?'' " Why," Bobbin replied, " we're great, big, ,strong people looking for gold. Let you and me swim across. You hold my collar and I'll guide." So Margaret Betty slipped down into the water and only said a little " oh," because it mado her wot and cold, and soon thov wore scrambling up the other bank. Bobbin laughed to seo Margaret Betty standing there with the water dripping from her clothes and he said: " Why dou't you shake yourself like 1 do?" But when Margaret Betty tried she only shook herself over and fell on the grass and then they both laughed till Bonbin started to look about him for gold. But there was not a bit of gold to bo seen anywhere, and even when Bobbin turned over some stones he found only a little wriggly worm who was very angry at being bothered. " Hurrah!" shouted Margaret Betty suddenly. "I've found some gold!" And she made a dive at something poised on the petal of a ilower. Bobbin reached her in time. " You are a silly 1" he cried. " That's not gold ! Why, it's only a bee covered over with pollen. You might have been stunged!" Margaret Betty began to cry. " I'm tired of looking for gold. I'm going home to mummie!" With Bobbin padding along behind her, she started off for homo. All fit once she stopped so suddenly that Bobbin bumped into her. "Look I Oh, look at all the gold!" And she pointed above her head. Bobbin looked, and nearly fell over with astonishment, for there, high up* on a tree, was gold—lovely, gleaming gold, peeping out among the pale green leaves. "Oh!" cried Margaret Betty again. " I'm going to climb up and get it. I'll throw the gold down to you and you put it in a nice heap." So Margaret Betty climbed and climbed till she reached the gold. "How funny!" she said. " It's growing just like the other leaves, so I'll have to pick it off'" She started, to collect the gold when suddenly the tree began to shake and shake. It shook so much that Margaret Betty slipped away dpwn the trunk till she found herself on the ground again. ] As she sat there looking up at the naughty tree, an angry voice said: "How dare you spoil my nice newdress 1 Don't you know I'm a willow tree, and that I change into a yellow dress for the autumn? You nearly tore my beautiful frock to ribbons. Run away or I'll skelp you!" Margaret Betty and Bobbin didn't know what " skelp " meant-, but they knew the tree was angry so they both ran away as fast as ever they could across the paddock, the ditch and the road till they came back to the garden path. Margaret Betty shut the gate, and turned to Bobbin and they looked at each other and laughed. " Aren't we silly?" Bobbin said. "We don't even know what real gold is. Never mind, Margaret Betty, let's go and ask mummie for somethin' to eat." So Margaret Botty took hold of Bobbin's collar and they marched round the corner of the house together. Which really is absurd, for Margaret Betty is only eight months old, with a tiny blue dog for a playmate.