COUSIN BETTY’S LETTER.

Southland Times, Issue 20014, 30 October 1926, Page 22

COUSIN BETTY’S LETTER.

MY DEAREST COUSINS, Now what has happened to the weather again? Just when I thought everybody was being as good as good can be, here the hateful rain comes again, to tell me somebody has displeased the weather man, and he is punishing us. Cousins, Cousins, can't you be good for a few weeks on end, so that summer may come in attended by •unimer weather. I don't know about you, but I'm getting as tired as tired can be of this rain, wind, rain, wind, coming so incessantly. Could any of you give me the address of the weather-man so that I can write him ever such a jx)lire, ever such a gentle letter, asking him, if he wouldn’t mind very much we'd rather have, our summer weather now, while we’re expecting it, and when we’ve got all our last year’s rammer frocks out rfnd freshly washed and ironed, ready to greet the sun; we’d much rather have November really the first month in summer, and two other summer months to follow, even if autumn is a very cheerless autumn, and winter a very watery-eyed, growly winter. Have I your authority to ask him that, and to tell him our page would be ever so much and much, much better, if he’d only let us have some really, truly summer weather for a change, because having a change is so very important for everybody, especially for people who write stories and poems! Besides, if I tell him how expensive it is to have summer clothes, and then not wear them, and bow the moths get into them, and spoil them when they are not being used; and if I explain to him how we like to spend all our spare money on the little hospital children, and not on new frocks; perhaps then he’ll be sorry for us, and will send Mr Sun along at once to make summer weather for us. So I’ll just wait for one of you to send me in his address! I hope you’re remembering that the p’.ays you are writing have to be in by Monday, November B—that’s a week longer than you had originally, and I’m hoping to receive ever so many entries. If they’re good enough, of course, they will all be used, at some time or other—your very own plays! Already I've received one very good one, and I’m hoping to receive many more, being a very greedy big Cousin. The magazines should be out by the end of November—l’m hoping a little earlier, to catch the Christmas mails for Home. Most of you seem keen to have the crowning ceremonies on the day of the hospital celebration —on Christmas Eve Day, so unless anything happens to prevent it, we’ll have them on December 24, about 10.30 a.m. What do you think about that? And then Queen Elsie Stimpson can present the Birthday Fund money to the Matron to buy fruit for Christmas. I think that is the best plan. Gracious me —it’s started to rain again, and all my papers and books are getting so wet through the open window. I must run and shut it at once! Lots and lots, and lots of love, and please don’t forget about the weather-man’s address.