Dot's Little Folk

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24255, 25 March 1940, Page 13

Dot's Little Folk

THE WEEK’S POEM The poem I have chosen for you this week, children, gives a picture of the Interior of a room on an autumn evening, with the poet lying dn an old red sofa so happy and comfortable that she has no wish to be anywhere else, but Is content to watch the shadows and listen to the sparrows. DOT ••-v. AUTUMN EVENING The shadows flickering, the daylight dying. And I upon the old red sofa lying. The great brown shadows leaping up the The sparrows twittering: and that Is all 1 thought to send my soul to far-off lands, Where fairies scamper on the windy sands. Or where the autumn rain comes drumming down On huddled roofs In an enchanted town But O my sleepy soul, It will not roam, It is too happy and too warm at home; With lust the shadows leaping up the wall, The sparrows twittering: and that is all. —Frances Cornford. TO ALL Dear Little Folk,—Easter has come round ■gain, and 1 hope you are all having a verv happy holiday, and making the most of the opportunities it affords of getting all the fresh air and sunshine you can before the winter sets in, for the Easter holidays with us mark practically the end of the summer season. Of course, we may, and it is to be hoped we will, get a few more weeks of mild sunny weather, but the days are drawing in rapidly, and with the approach of the long winter evenings indoor pursuits and hobbies Will have to occupy a large part of our time. In the northern hemisphere the reverse of this is the case, for. although , Easter is. as you all know first and foremost a religious festival, being the anniversary of the resurrection of our Lord, there it has another significance also, for it marks the advent of spring and the beginning of the holiday season. It seems peculiarly appropriate that the anniversary of Christ’s resurrectionshould be celebrated at a time when all Nature too, IS bursting into new life. In the east the festival was called the Paschal Feast, because it was kept at the ; same time as

th* Pascha for Jewish passover. and In some measure succeeded it. Our own name—Easter—is generally thought to be derived from "Eostre,” the name of a i Saxon diety, whose feast was celebrated 1 every year in the spring about the same < time as the Christian festival, the name I being retained when the character of the ( feast was changed. Some authorities think, j however, that the name is derived from 1 “ Oster,” which means rising, and if this i is correct, then Easter is in name as well i as in reality the feast of the resurrection. ; Although there has never been any ■ difference of opinion as to why Easter is : kept, there has been a good deal as to when it ought to be kept. It is one of i the movable feasts'—that is, it is not fixed , to one particular day, but moves back--wards and forwards according to the date . on which the March full moon occurs, the rule being that Easter Day is the first Sunday after the full moon which happens ! upon or next after the 21st day of March. It, therefore, cannot be earlier than March. 22. nor cannot it be later than April 25. Sometimes, however, as has happened this year, it falls on the actual . day of the full moon. You will, there- . fore, see that it was lust about as early . as it could be. falling as it did on March , 24 Many attempts have been made to set : a fixed date for Easter, but, so far, these have not been successful, and in the minds of most people there is consequently always a doubt as to when the next Easter will occur, although there Is a table by , which it is possible to calculate Its exact date in any particular year. ■An early ■] Easter means longer hours of sunshine and milder weather for us, but in me northern hemisphere the opposite is the j ease, and’ those who regard it as an opportunity for holiday-making would i probably prefer it to come late in April. Hoping to get lots of letters from you telling me how you have spent your holiday.—Your loving ooi LETTERS FROM LITTLE FOLK Motto. We write for the benefit of others, not for ourselves. FIRST LETTERS Dear Dot,—Would you please let me . Join your band of Little Folk? I am 13 years of age. We have one lamb and a dog called Rock. I went for my holidays to my sister’s place at Shag Point. My two brothers are up working at , Timarm and my other brother. Douglas, is having a holiday down at Shag Point, because he has been ill. Mother’s Working Girl is ray sister. With fondest love to you and the Little Folk, especially Rata Blossom. MISS SUNSHINE (Dunback). [I am very pleased to welcome you to the page, Miss Sunshine, and hope you will write regularly and tell me about your school and what hobbies you have. Your badge has been posted to you. -DOT.] BEST LETTERS JUNIOR SECTION (14 years and under). Dear Dot,—l have received my badge, and I think it is very nice To-day lam going to write about the .school spoits. held on Thursday last in the recreation ground. It was an exceedingly hot day. but all enjoyed themselves very much—at least I did. Most of those from the neighbouring schools came in the train. At 11.10 a.m. the first race began, as well as the high Jumps. There were races jumping, and basketball goallng until 12.15, and then we had an hour off for lunch. In the afternoon all the finals—the potato, sack, relay, and novelty races

Ineaioumted Juli; 16,1886. 0. by th.e OTAGO WITNESS DOT Invites letters of not more than 300 words In length from her young friends throughout the Dominion on any matters In Which they are Interested. New members must enclose their name and address. These will not be published, and are for registration purposes only. Little Folk should write on one side of the paper only, and In Ink, and should address their letters " Dot, care of Editor, Otago Dally Times.” Every letter must state the age of the writer for Dot's private Information. The retiring age Is 21. after which Little Folk become Old Writers Dot’s Little Folk’s Badge, with pin, for use as a hrooch, is obtainable on application to Dot, Price 2s 6d. In stamps or postal notes.

were run. In the novelty race the competitors carried blocks of wood on their heads. This made it much more difficult to run. There were also skipping races. I was not in anything, but I enjoyed watching the races, especially the relays It was surprising how quickly the ground cleared when the sports were over. The ice cream shops did a great trade that day, because of the heat. They were all nearly empty by the time we went down the street after the sports. I shall have to close now, with kind regards to everyone in the band, including yourself. HIGHLAND MAID’S DAUGHTER (Owaka) [I am glad the school sports were so successful, Highland Maid’s Daughter. You were fortunate to get such a fine day for them—DOT,] * * * Dear Dot,—l was so very pleased when 1 saw my first letter in print, and now must keep my promise and tell you about our farm and animals. We have only a small farm of about 20 acres, so have not much stock on It. Nearly all the 20 acres is cleared and in grass, and dad has fenced It off. into five paddocks We have only five cows. Four are milking and the other will be in for the winter. Three of the calves we kept, and they have grown and are doing well. We have only one horse and one pig. Dad killed two pigs about a' fortnight ago, and is going to get two more wee ones. Our hens are moulting just now, so we don’t get many eggs. We have only six hens, and they kept us in eggs until they started to moult. Our house is a little bungalow, with all conveniences, and as we have always lived at a sawmill, we like this place very much. Dad still works at a sawmill, so mum and Jack do the milking in the morning, and dad helps at night. He is away to work at 6 in the morning, so it is too dark to help to milk the cows before that. I received my badge, and am very proud of it, and could I through the page say many thanks to the Old Writer who was kind enough to send it? Now, Dot, I shall close, with love and all good wishes to yourself and all other writers ZARONI’S ONLY DAUGHTER (Tuatapere), [Thank you for your interesting letter. Zaronl’s Only Daughter, giving such a good description of your farm and animals. Write again soon and tell me more about yourself.—DOT.].

Dear Dot.—l am going to tell you about < the tea tramp we went. First of all, we ; had to meet at 5 o’colck. Then we walked i in twos and threes to the river, where 1 we all set about making fires to cook i our tea. I took two eggs, but I ] broke one, so only had one to 1 cook, but my friend and X couldn’t get our fire to bum, as the wood was t wet, so the captain came and got it i going for- us. and at last we got our ' tea. After that we played fbr a while, i and then marched back to the hall, where we learned to tie knots, and then had ( a game of hockey, which was good fun, j Then at 8.30 we left for home, after j a happy time. On Saturday we went for a picnic to Foxton Beach, and had a lovely time. We went by bus from Shannon, leaving at 10 o’colck and getting back at 6 o’clock, so we had a nice long day. The beach Is 14 miles from Shannon. Well, Dot. I shall close now With love to you and all the Little Folk. BETTY JOE (Shannon, NX). , [Thank you, Betty Joe. for telling me about the tea tramp, and also the picnic to the beach. I am glad you enjoyed them both so much. Now that you are a Girl Guide, you will have many out- > ings of a similar kind, and I hope to hear about them, too. —DOT.] Dear Dot,—l shall continue my letter : about the Kelso Dairy Factory. After c the milk is pasteurised and again cooled it goes Into a vat. The starter is then put in—three ounces to six gallons—and also rennet—three ounces to 100 gallons. If the cheese is for local use, colour called “ Annato,” made from the roots of trees found at Eltham, North Island, is added—three ounces to 100 gallons. This is left to set. and, then cut into squares with knives. While it is being cooked to 100, degrees big hands are stirring it up. The whey is run off and separated, the cream being sent away, while the Whey is pumped to a big outer tank, where the farmers collect it for their pigs. The curd is again cut up and set in solid blocks. The vat is then covered up to keep the curd warm. At 2.30 p.m. the curd is put through a machine called a mill. When it comes through t is in long square-ended strips. It is left for one hour, during which it is turned many times by the manager and his assistant The salt is put in one hour after milling--12 J pounds to 500 gallons of milk. The salt is added gradually, the cheese being turned many times, while the whey trickles out. About 4 p.m the strips of cheese are lifted in buckets and packed in hoops lined with cheesecloth. Each hoop is then turned on its side and pressure is applied. Next boiling water is poured over the hoops, and more whey oozes out, which allows more pressure to be applied. Later the cheeses are made even sizes. They are returned to the hoops and left under pressure all night. Kelso cheese is exported from Bluff. BLUE-EYED BOOKWORM (Kelso) [You have given a very clear account of the different processes in the manufacture of cheese. Blue-eyed Bookworm, and have evidently made good use of the opportunities afforded you of watching the operations of the Kelso factory. DOT.I * * Dear Dot,—This time 1 am going to tell you about our trip to Kaka Point. A; was very warm and sunny, and the spray was dashing up against the rocks, which were mostly covered with mussels. We stopped at the playground and had a swing and a slide. After that we went down on to the sand and gathered shells. Father traced my name and a man s face on the sand. I am now going to give you another of my poems. It is called “ The Garden."

Trees are bare in the snow, But in summer the roses glow; When the leaves are green The busy bees glean Honey from the flowers. A stream runs past the garden, And the ripe nuts harden, The king-cups flower, But not in the hour Of the dark, starry night. Love to you and the Little Folk. HONEY BUNCH (Benhar). [What a lovely time you must have had at Kaka Point, Honey Bunch! It is a splendid place for a picnic, is it not? I like “The Garden” very much, and hope you will send me more of your poems.—DOT.] * ¥ * Dear Dot,—lt Is still very hot over here. The time is now 2 o’clock p.m., and the temperature is 104 degrees in the shade. This Is very hot and unusual for the month of March. On Thursday it was 103 degrees in the shade. The grass on the plain is getting so dry that it breaks up under foot like small twigs. We have had several fires in and around Maidstone. One fire yesterday burnt an

old lady’s paling fence. The bush and grass fires are raging all through the country, and causing considerable damage to the farmers and sawmill owners. Two old people were burnt to death down in Glppsland while trying , to save their homes. The white butterflies have been very bad over here this summer, and have destroyed all our cabbages. They are still flitting about In thousands all iver the place. They are worse than the snails and slaters combined. I am pleased to see other letters in the page from the Old Writers’ children, such as Grand Rapid’s Girlie, and Zaronl’s Only Daughter, and others. T shall now close, with love to all. HARRY FARRAR'S GIRL (Maidstone, Victoria). [You must have been having a very trying time, Harry Farrar’s Girl, with the intense heat and the danger of fires, but I hope that by now this is all over and cooler weather will have set in. The children of Old Writers are always specially welcome to the page.—DOT.] BEST LETTERS SENIOR SECTION (14 and under 21 years). Dear Dot, —In this age we are usually much too busy rushing- here and hurrying there to pause and merely think. Most of us consider that our time is being wasted if we are not either studying furiously in order to pass certain examinations, or doing, hard physical work, or strenuously playing games for recreation. Whereas, If we could only lay aside all this activity, bodily and mental, and quietly think, we would probably derive a great deal of pleasure and benefit from it. In the words of W. H. Davis:—“A poor life this if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare.” There are such numbers of things in this world of ours that are so very woith while staring at, that it is a great pity if we are too busy even to notice them in passing. Of course, it is not always our fault that we are too much occupied “to stand and stare.” In some way or other we have to earn a living for ourselves, and, unfortunately, if we were to permit ourselves the pleasure of merely staring and thinking too often, our means of earning wages might be forcibly taken from us by a wrathful employer. If, however, instead of rushing off to the nearest dance hall or picture theatre we were occasionally to get away by ourselves and stare or think, I think we would gain more ultimate satisfaction. It seems that we of to-day are afraid of facing ourselves quietly and calmly, but must always go where there are crowds of people, and plenty to keep us amused, to prevent us from falling back on ourselves. After all, what are we worth if vve have not enough within ourselves to keep our minds alert and occupied? Must we forever be dependent on other people, films, and books to fill in all our spare moments? Finally, let me add the caption, “ Some people sit and think, others merely sit.” ALLEGRO (Dunedin) [We certainly live in an age of hurry and bustle, Allegro, and seem to have lost the art of keeping still. Till we recapture this, we shall never acquire that poise and tranquillity of spirit which add so much to the richness and beauty of life—DOT.] * » •¥ Dear Dot, —As I mentioned before, termites are blind. However, they have a way of talking by stroking each other One kind of termite sows seeds and rears crops, as if they were farmers Some bring grass into their nests They nevet go Into the open air, so In order to get grass they build galleries up to it and gnaw it off inside. 'More wonderful still, they sow the seeds of a special kind of tiny fungus in cells specially made for it. The fungus, like mushrooms, grows

best In the dark, and when it Is ready they eat It. The chief food of all termites is dead wood. This does not mean only rotten wood, but any dead wood. The wooden posts of a shed or our best chair are only food to a termite! That is what makes them so terribly destructive in the tropics, but if they did not exist the dead trees in, the vast forests would not rot away soon enough for new ones to grow up quickly. They are particularly fond of the wooden posts of houses or sheds, because they are so easily got at. All they have to do is to make galleries from their nests to the part of the post that is underground. Then they begin to eat the Inside. They never touch the outside, because they never come through into the light. The post looks perfect, but one day you press it and your fingers go right in. You will find the termites have eaten the inside out, and only left a shell as thin as paper. A chair or cupboard Is eaten in the same way if it Is left sitting on a mud floor. It is not even safe if the floor is brick. The termites cannot burrow up through bricks, but they somehow seem to know that there is wood waiting above to be eaten. Well, Dot, I shall have to continue this next week, If I may, as my limit is up. Love to my pen-friends and yourself. A COWBOY LASS (Otekura).

[The Information you give about termites and their habits, A Cowboy Lass, is very interesting, and their intelligence is almost uncanny. I shall be glad to hear more about them.—DOT.] * * * Dear Dot, —Here 1 am again. Since I last wrote to you I had my birthday on February 26. I was 16, and I got a lovely lot of -presents. I received a very nice one from Lady Canterbury Bell in Dunedin. I have three brothers and five sisters. Three of my sisters are married. We have had the whooping cough. I shall close now, with love to Lady Canterbury Bell, and all the Little Folk, and your own dear self. MOTHER’S WORKING GIRL (Dunback). [lt must be jolly to have so many brothers and sisters, Mother’s Working Girl. I hope the whooping cough has quite disappeared. It is a very trying and redlous complaint.—DOT.] LETTER FROM EDINBURGH Dear Dot, —I wonder if you could possibly spare a small space in your Club page to print this request of mine? Here it is: Would any members or readers of this page care to send me a bundle of New Zealand or Australian pictorial stamps, as I am a very keen stamp collector, and I should be very grateful Indeed. And in return for their trouble and kindness I will gladly- send newspapers, magazines, picture postcards, pictures of the Royal Family, film stars’ photos, Scotch heather, stamps of this country, or anything preferred. I have a large selection of duplicate moyle stars’ photos. I should love to have pen-pals in New Zealand, Australia. Tasmania, South Sea Islands, U.S.A., Canada, Africa, and 8.W.1 who ar- Interested in stamp collecting. Hoping I get lots of replies to my “ plea.” Don’t disappoint me 1 With best wishes from Scotland. (Miss) MORAG MORRISON (age 16). “ Hamilton House.” 3 Priestfield road, Edinburgh, Scotland. NEW MEMBERS Dot extends a special welcome to the following Little Folk who have written to the page for the first time this week:— Miss Sunshine. OLD WRITERS’ NOTES Members of the Old Writers’ Association extend a hearty welcome to presentday writers and friends at the first social of the year, which will be held on Friday, 29th inst. We have also booked hall for socials on April 19 and May 17. Keep these dates free. All these are to be held in Wilson Hall, King street. Admission: Ladies, Is 6d; gentlemen, 2s Annual subscriptions are now due. The next meeting will be held on April 4 at 8 p.m. in the library of Otago Daily Times. CLARA. Hon. Secretary, 128 Union street, Dunedin. BREAKING BOUNDS By K. L. Wynn. Ding-dong! Ding-dong! It was 8.30 ' by the big clock in the main hall at Harley Grammar School. All was silent except for the dying sound of the “ lights out ’’ bell; around the corner of the second floor corridor came Mr Wallace, the vinegary old house-master. He opened the door of each dormitory to see if the lights had been extinguished, then retired to his own quarters on the same floor. Slowly Podgy raised himself into, a sitting position and surveyed the dark i dormitory. The long arms of Morpheus ; had hugged the boys tightly that night.

for they were all sleeping soundly. Quickly, but noiselessly, Podgy dressed himself and opened a window. A waft of cold air met him in the face: he shivered, secured a length of rope to the window ledge, steadied himself, then slid down the rope to land with a thud on the hard earth below. Swiftly he worked his way through the many shrubs until he came to the brick wall. On one of the bricks there was a peculiar mark, and this brick came out quite easily, providing Podgy with easy access to the road beyond. Fifteen minutes later Podgy arrived at Harley village, and immediately made his way to the domain where Binks Brothers’ Circus was being held. Slightly late, Podgy paid his admission and Was shown to a good seat, from which he viewed with great enjoyment the remainder of the show. He laughed at the antics of Micky, the clown, was thrilled at the daring of the lion tamer, clenched his hands while trapeze artists flew through the air, and was delighted to see cpmtcal monkeys riding white horses round the ring. At last the grand finale was presented, and everybody turned towards the exits greatly pleased with the excellent show. Once outside, Podgy entered a piecart and served himself with a pie, peas and potatoes. Back at Harley Grammar School all were asleep and unaware of the adventures of Podgy. At about 11 o'clock the principal was about to retire when he heard a loud explosion from the basement, He rushed down the stairs to investigate, but he was only halfway down when he was bowled over by the rushing form of Mr Wallace. “ Sir, what Is the meaning of this? exclaimed the digusted head, “ You must be mad rushing about at this time of night!” " I am mad, er-hum, f mean—ura, well, to come to the point Dr Chittletoe, the house is on fire—the basement is a mass of flames!” panted the exhausted master. '* Eoo-oh-oow!" The doctor nearly had a fit. He Jumped around in a convulsive like manner like a cat on hot bricks. ” The place on fire?” he screeched, on, my poor white mice, they were in the basement for the night. O-oh-hl Ring the fire bell—don’t, stand there like a gaping hyenal" , . . ... Mr Wallace was so astonished at me doctor’s vocabulary that he leapt down the stairs three at a time. Having telephoned the Harley Fire Brigade, he ran up to the bell room. , .. All the boys were still unaware of the thrilling exploit below them until the loud notes of the fire bell rang through the night air. The light sleepers who were awakened first awoke the others, and they all ran in lines out on to the front lawn. In a short time Dr Chittletoe arrived muttering an epitaph for his poor white mice. The school roll was being taken when the fire brigade arrived, and directed their hoses Into the basement. At that moment Mr Wallace hurried over. "Dr Chittletoe. there’s a boy missing! "What, a boy missing—Who?” "Master Mitchell in dormitory three. “ Hurry up and see if he’s in there. He miffht have been incinerated!” Mr Wallace hurried away accompanied by a fireman, to return in a few minutes. " Well?” asked the doctor. Mr Wallace hesitated a moment, then blurted out: "He’s not there!” , “ Not there?” exclaimed the head. Podgy, after having a grand night out, was at this moment climbing over the wall. Of course, he knew when within a half-mile of the school that something was wrong, so he observed every caution. After landing on the school side he surveyed the scene before him. He knew that sooner or later they would discover he was missing, if they had not done so already. He, therefore, decided that the best thing to do was to climb back up the rope, change Into his pyjamas, and run out of the building. This he did, and just as he was going to run for u he saw the doctor’s white mice. He grabbed the cage and scampered outside, Dr Chittletoe was so delighted at seeing his white mice once again that he forgot all about seeking an explanation from Podgy, who was virtually the hero foi days to come. , Next day Podgy was called to the heads study. " Mitchell, my boy, to express my appreciation of your gallant act I am going to reward you." , „ , „, uIA Podgy thought of all things possible, but what came next nearly stunned him. Said the head: " I have reserved your seat for Himes Brothers’ Circus to-night, and I hope that you enjoy it!” (The End.)