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Otago Witness, Issue 2855, 2 December 1908, Page 85

Up until 2 o'clock in the morning. Our examination was about a fortnight ago, and after that we got our spring holidays, which -are all over now There was a picnic here m the King's Birthday. We are busy Christmas c.caning just now, but have not tot it all Aorjb yet. The gardens are looking i-">veiy now, with all the roses and other »• >rly summer flowers. We have a gocd lot ' fruit this year. The strawberries are bet .nning to get ripe now. and there are a ,ew fruit carts carting them to Edievale. With love to Ivory Qu-sen, Maid of Lkng-allen, Crimson Butterfly, and yourself, — Yours truly, PEGGY PERKINS. Dear Dot, — This is my first letter to your page, and I hope you will lecept me as one of your members. I am 13 years old, and am in the Fifth Standard. The farmars about here ai« starting to sow turnips. We axe milking two cows. We have had good v weather lately. Our examination is on Mondayv, and I hope to pass I am ff»id of leading, especially books about sdventure-3. I am reading " Robbery Ucd^r Arms." I have a dcg. The grass i» growing lately, and the crops e-re looking fairly well. — Yours truly, DAN KELLY. CYaur norn de> plume comes from tie book you are .reading, doesn't it. Dan? How are you enjoying the book? — DOT.] Dear Dot, — This is my firfit letter to the D.L.F. Page, and I hope that you will have .me as one of your Little Folk. I have little to tell you to-night. My sister lias a cat and a dog and a caw. — Yours truly, i DOT'S MATE. IThie i« quite-* .little letter! dear ; but perhaps some day you wifl-.be -abl«.to write me * -big interesting one — when, you are older. I •am glad that you have become one of my , little D.L.F.— DOT.] } Dear Dot, — There are a lot of young birds about now; end the other day when I was - rambling through -ttbe bush the tuis were very plentiful, so; I - examined one. and I will give you a description ojj, it and its nest.. In colour the tui is greenish black, -with white on the back and a small patch, on the wing. It has also two white tufts ■under its neck, and it is from these tufts that it very often gets its name of " paxson bird." Its eyes are round «nbf of a dark brown; the legs «re long, and not very stout, and always end in three tees in front and one behind. The bill is long and curved, * «.nd its tongue is brush-tipped, for sipping the nectar from the flowers. , Its food consists of berries and nectar, which its gets mostly from the wild % fuchsi» end the rata. The tui builds <a .large shallow nest'of moss, twigs, leaves, and grass. It generally lays iaur eggs, white with brown spots. The tui 33 among the last of the birds to retire to i--ost. and is one of the first to begin to tjg in the morning. It is a, beautifnl tinger, -and may be heard for long distances. ".V'hen the wild fuchsia is iri flower toe ttju j.e very numerous about the edge of the bush, xhe tui is a little larger than a- blackbird. 'Then it is singing you generally see it . erohed on the top of a -high tree, and it ■Jlies in the same way as a. spa-rrow. It is i..-so a good fighter, and when it hears a cuckoo it will chase it for miles; but the cuckoo generally escapes, because it can fly iaster than the tui. Dear Dot. could you kindly tell me how to rear voiii.£ goldfinches »nd what to feed them cm, and do you think if I were to catch a full-gTown goldfinch and put it in a cage it would live? Also, couid you tell me how to rear young linnets, and what to feed them on? Would an old linnet live if it were caught and put in a cage?— Yours truly, LARRIKIN TOM. [I am sorry I c*nnot' tell you anything about the rearing or feeding of young birds, Tom. But don't you think "it a very great pity to t«ke these birds — unless, of courEe, they have lpet their parents or have met with «i accident— away from their wild, free happy lives, and imprison them in a cage?' I think you have really too much sympathy for the birds to do anything of the sort.— J^OT.} Dear Dot,— l am very pleased to see the page increasing, but I like the Old Writers' letters best, although the younger ones do^ the best they can. I am changing niv N.D.P. to Flower of the South, as I did "not like my former name. I have 42 post-cs.rds. all of which are pretty. I am reading a book - called " The Storm of Life. ' I have read >everal others, including " Seven Little Australians," The Family at Misrule." " Miss Bobby," "Three Little Maidens," "The Little Duchess," " Mother's Little Girl," and " The Little Larrikin. There is to be a wedding heTe on the 3rd of December, &o 'people are busy buying presents for the happy couple. The schoolmaster is leaving, and is going to bs * teacher in the Normal School in Dunedin. He is such a nice teacher. — I'our truljfc FLOWER, OF THE SOUTH. Dear Dot, — You will be thinking that I have foTgctten you, but such is not the case. "We have been very busy since we came here, and I have not had much time to write. We have shifted from Otago to Southland, and on our way down we stayed in Ducedin eight weeks. I enjoyed myself very much feeing the sights. I saw the first test football match between Britain and New ZeaT.rid on the Carisbrook Ground. al=o the • ■ atch between Otago and Britain, in which -g. wen. I also saw through the Central o Brigade fetation, and the way e"ervug was work&d there, and saw them iui'n it .& several fires while I was in tour. I went to the Botanical Gardens and to .'.''ullers', to see Tom Burrow*, the c übswinger, and had a very good time On the w*y down in the train we saw the Taieri floods, which were » great sight. It waa July when we oame down, and the weather ■was pretty cold. We like our n-erw place very much. It is five miles out of Wyndharu and one mile from Glenham Railway Station. We milk cows, keep sheep, and do a, little cropping. The school is not far from our place, and we can get home for dinner and in time to milk the cows in the evening. We do a little rabbit-tra-pping and poisoning in our spare time, and 1 I look after the sheep, and we have three pet lambs. I must itow draw to a close, as it is milking time. Wishing you a merry Christmas.— Yours **«!▼. THE SCOTCH LAD. [I have been wondering when I was going to hear from you and Mistress Jean again, and am glad now to get news of you and your new home. Do you think you will like it better tiian the old? It sounds as if you will. — DOT ] Dear Dot.— l don't think I have anvthiaovery interesting to tell you to-night; "but I must just wxite a short letter to let you «cc that my interest in the page does not flag. We have been having very windy weather here lately; but there has been very little rain, and that is what is needed. I am afraid the crops will be suffering somewhat if we are not favoured with a nice "wet" shower, soon, and I hope it cornea quickly, if only to save the farmers' wrath The Dunedin and Invercargill D.L.F. Liteiary and Debating Clubs are progress r« splendidly, arc they not. Dot? I often wibii that I lived near enough to town to attend some of their meetings. Ihe reports are generally so interesting that it makes me wish I could join their number too. I read with interest the accounts of the Dunedin and

inveicargill D.L.F picnics, which were held on the 9th of November, and although it was such a stormy d«y, I think everyone, especially toe Invercargill D.L.F.. seemed to have succeeded in making a very p.easant picnic party on a very unp^asant picnic day. The Invercargill D.L F appear to be a very energetic party of workers, when the work concerns D.L.F.-dom anyway. Of course I couldn't attempt to answer for anything e!se. as I am only judging by what I leftd in the D.L.F. Page. The Dunedin Club seems to be making gocd headway lately. It seems much belter than it was some time ago; don't you think so. Dot? Dear Dot, I met one of the LF. up this way some time ago. She used -to write under the name of Chum, but as another girl started to write as A Chum, she changed her name to Chump, the change being made, as you will &cc. by the addition of the letier •• p." Now. dear Dot, after reading the latter part of this letter over f see that it is, a kind of a rhyme, but it was done unintentionally, and it will be a change, eh, Dot ? I was pleased to see a letter m the page from T_»eila last week. She is a writer whose letters I always -take a delight in reading, for, although they are not what one could call "newsy"' letters, yet they have a simple interest about them which must appeal to any who may read them. I had the pleasure of meeting Leila about two years ago, at the opening of the Clyde railway; but «s I have changed my N.D.P. since then she will not know me by nry present name. The annual races . w« r « held here on November 7, but as a bitter cold wind blew all . day, they did noi prove to be very enjoyable. I think sports are far before races for tbe general public, don't you, Dot? We had a social in aid of the Presbyterian Sunday School funds here some time ago, and then we had another social on the occasion of the prizes being given to the children. Both entertainments proved to be « greatf success. At the second social we had a visiting minister, the Rev. A. Watson, from Roxburgh, with us. and he did a great deal towards the evening's enjoyment by rendering in an .exceedingly amusing and very capable manner two splendid Scotch readings, which the audience greeted with enthusiasm. I see a large numbei of the D.L.F. have started telling you about some of the books they have read, so here are a few of the best that I have read— 'Uncle Tom's Cabin." "Eric, or Little by Little" "The Better Part." "The Lamphghter." "Ivanhoe," "Westward Ho!" "The Discipline- of Emmeline Hope," "St. Veda's," "Cobwebs and Cables." "The Head of the House," and many others too numerous to mention. The second book mentioned is a capital story of boys' school life, and is "founded on fact." It commences where the hero. Eric Williams, is just about to start school life, and it is a story which inu6t keep one's attention and interest all .through. The many pranks which the lads indulge in *re very amusing to read; but very often one finds that pathetic air about them which in a sensitive nature would very readily cause the tears to flow. Eric is soon led into many evil ways, such as gambling, drinking, smoking, and practising such deceit as becomes necessary to shield oneself, from the consequences of the others. Through all his troubles, he has several friends, but there is one of the number, Edwin Russell, who to poor Eric "sticketn closer than a brother." Edwin never reproves Eric, but by his gentle, lovable ways comforts his fallen friend in his distress. And then comes the day when Eric, Jidwin, and another friend are on The Stack, and are cut off by the '-ide. T kf7 jump and the other two boys reach the shore in safety, but Edwin Russell stumbles, falls into the sea, and only gains his hold on the rocks by a mighty effort. Then Eric Williams does a noble thing. Telling the other lad to run to the school an<i tell what has befallen them, he Jiakes a plunge and reaches The Stack, on to wmen he scrambles, and there he sits, nursing his friend all through that ternb.e =U3im, which raged for hours and hours. At .asi, they are rescued, bat poor Edwin never lecovers, and soon he is laid to rest in the graveyard close by the old school wheie we Las spent =o many happy days But trie is left to face the world as<* ul Many and Utter are his expene.-.ces and at last, on being accused of s-uja.mg of which charge he was innocent he iuiii away home, and there a iew uicuiths later die=. 1 think sdl who have not yet read this story shcu.d take the nrst opportunity to do s=o. It is very pathetic, and a good book to show young lads the error of their ways. Now. dear Dot, I hope you will lorgne me for writing such a long letter, but i have been writin" on, forgettul of tue length ot it. With love to Shabta,— Yours truly, HAWEA-ITE.

[It seems a little sad. this book of yours, Hawea-ite; is it V Still, I suppose Eric had done his share of fifehtiug. and had won a soldier's res-t. — DOT.]

Dear Dot— l am very glad that toe ejections are o\er, for I Jsiure that, although I did not have a vote. I was nearly as muth excited as any voter. I suppose ycu know that Mr Brown and Mr Fraser were standing for the Napier seat. Of course, I was a • Brownite," as we were called, and we gave the "Fraserites" a great doing. I vv«s up in Mr Brawn's committee room about 8 oc-Jock waiting for the results of the election i»i the ■■ulyurLi Ibe excitement was nign, ,s, s Mr iJroni/- total giaduury began to get b.^ger aa-d bigger About 10 o'c.ock 1 weut do-.\n to the ne-.\sp&l-«r ofhee wheie they had a mjg.c lantern up^iair- a..d a sheet on the oWJu'-ite side ot the ruad and as so<jii as they ri-ceived a re=ul* it »« reflected on the ?heet. The cheering »45 proloi.^d when Mr Brown's total wei.t on the sneet, and when people &aw he h.-.J uou by a i-.iijo-rity of 1010, they neaily weiii iudd <^f cource. some looked lather downhearted. There was also much excitement when the result of the Hawke's Bay seat was put up. Well, dear Dot v,e have had continuance voted here, although I tee they have nolicense and reduct.on in a good few towns. There was si rumour about town that \\ ellingfccn had no-liten^e but the press contradicted it. I waited m town till 1-2^o am. and when nearly all the lesuits had come through I made my way home, footsore and weary. I suppose you will be glad to know I have written to Vera in Fiji I sent her a photo of myself,- but ha\e had no reply yet. lam also sending you a photo of myself; it is on a post-card, and I suppose you will just about get it the same ?ime as you get this letter I have asked Ahuriri to send you a photo of himself. and he said he would. Dot will you let n.e know if there are any D.L.F m or near A'apier, for if there are Ahunri and I might know them. There was a great friend of ours down at our place for the evening, and my brother and myself were talking about the page, when he chipped in aud sSid he was an old D.L.F.. but he had forgotten his norn de plume. W hen 1 see him again I will ask him to write for Old Writers' Week. I suppose any norn de plume will do him. We have been having some ram the last day or two. but I don't think there ha« been enough to do any good. To-day l 3 simply a "scorcher." We had some gocd fun here on November 9. I had to work, but I got off at aoon. I

then went out to Napier Park, » place about three or four uiies from here, and although it was pretty slow, 1 took care to have a good time. We ■are having new swimming Daths erected here, and they are also altering the breakwater; it is looking all right now. I have read nearly all the books Young Wolf had in his letter of the 11th, and 1 can agree with him in saying they are very good books. Dear Dot, 1 felt sorry for poor Cowslip when I read her very sad letter, and although I do not know her, I fully sympathise with her. as we all know that " Home is no home without a mother." Well, Dot, I don't think I have any more to say. so I will close with kindest regards to all D.L.F. — Yours truly, CONNECTICUT. [There is one family of D.L.F. in Napier, but I am sorry to say I have forgotten their noms de plume. Wear your badge constantly, and you will come across them. — UOT.J Dear Dot, — Christmas is drawing very near now, and then we will have holidays. We are milking three cows, and we have four pigs, one calf, and two pet lambs at present. I went for a, long ride to-day ; it was a distance of about 14 miles each way. and I enjoyed it very much. I les about 9.30 a.m., and reached my destination about 11.5 a.m., and then I got a cup of tea, which I enjoyed, and went for a walk through the bush with my three brothers. When we got back to the house it was well on in the afternoon, and then we had our dinner. After that it was nearly time for me to go and get my pony saddled, for it was by this time 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and I had to get away as quick «s possible, as my journey was not a very short one. I am very fond of riding; are you. Dot? I can ride eitner a. bicycle or a pony; my father is going to get me « bicycle after Christmas. Most of the farmers are sowing their early turnips just now. The school picnic is to the Lakes this year, I think; if ii is. I am going, as I have never been at the La.kes yet, and it is a place I would exceedingly like to go and see. Are you fond of reading. Dot ? I like reading ; when I get a good and interesting book I will not leave it until I have finished reading it. The page is growing larger aJid iarger every week. Some of the letters are very interesting, and I like reading them very much. I know Bonnie Jean, but I don't think she knows who I am. — Yours truly, NOBODY'S LOVER. [You must have been very stiff the next day, dear; but I suppose you count the enjoyment of the Tide well worth it. So should I, I think.— DOT.] DeaT Dot, — It is a long time sine© I last wrote to you. We have been having very bad weather lately. Most of the farmers about here are sowing turnips. We have two pet lambs, but one of them looks as if it were going to die. I know a lot of D.L.F. about here. In one of the paddocks the grass is so long that if I lie down in it I can hide. With love to Robin Hood, — Yours truly, WHITE HEATH. [And when you lie> down in the long grass it locks so much taller, doesn't if? Think what a forest it must seem, to the_ tiny insects thait live in among its roots! — DOT.] AUTOS AND POST CARDS. Biddy O'Toote, care of Napoleon Butchery, Clifton street. Ahaura, is willing to exchange post-cards with Venetia Corona, Dishcloth, Gravel, and any D.L.F. who are willing. Prompt replies. Maid of the South, Post Office, Clinton, wishes to exchange autos or post-cards with N.Z. Fern, Femdale, Snowie, and any other D.L.F. willing. Cotton, care of Mr J. Campbell, Pukepito, Batclutha. would like to exchange autos with Cornstalk. Queen Bess 11, Crab, and any otiier D.L.F. willing ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. Pbadella. — The editor has very kindly procured for us the rules of rounders rs played by the girls in most of the schools in and about Dunedin, and we shall publish them in this page next week. There is, unfortunately not time to publish them this week, as a little diagram has to be prepared ; but look out for them next week, and you will gee them. Princess Mabel. — I have not yet had an answer from the gentleman "fo whom I submitted your fern, but I shall no doubt be able to supply you with the name of it next week. Jcne Rose. — I have sent you the 25 autocards, and shall be glad to hear if they reach you safely this time. I hope they do, R. E. W. — Thank you for the little box of good luck you sent me. dear. I ought with nearly" a dozen five-leaved clovers bepide me, to be very fortunate for a> long time to come. AoreßE. — I have copied out the verses for you, but I am soTry to say I cannot find your address anywhere, and I am afraid the one I have in my memory is* insufficient. Will you let me have, it, and then I shall send them on to you. D.LF. BADGES. Badges sent to:— Flukey, Vidocq, St. Konald, Nikau, Bullock Puncher. ANSWERS TO RIDDLES PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 25. 1 Because he is easily converted into a. fon 1 , 'J Because it hangs by a thread 3 When it is sat m.