Left-over Story.

Southland Times, Issue 21431, 27 June 1931, Page 18

Left-over Story.

BARBARA’S DREAM. —Highly Commended.— Barbara sat doing her homework. The sum she was doing was extremely difficult and the answer came different every time she worked it. She was resting her head, which was almost on the table, on her arm and was almost in tears when she heard a small voice near her saying, “What is wrong, little girl ?” “Oh, everything is topsy turvy and my sum won’t come right.” “Would you like to come to the land of Topsy Turvy with me?” “Oh! yes, I’d love to.” “Come along, then.” Soon Babs and the fairy, Light Wings, were floating gracefully through the air. They had to go backwards because they could not get to Topsy Turvy land if they did not.

At length, after many adventures they arrived at Topsy Turvy land. Babs thought she had never seen anything quite so funny in her life. First of all they went into a house, through the gate and round the path to the front door. In our ordinary places it would have been called the back door but you see this was Topsy Turvy Land. In the house they met a little boy named Jim. He walked on his feet and to all appearances looked like any ordinary little boy. His mother, brothers and sisters all walked on their hands like everyone else in Topsy Turvy Land. After a while they went into a school where the children wrote in the backs of their books upside down, just as the Chinese do. They wrote with their feet and sat in desks with the seats higher than the tables. Then Light Wings and Babs mounted a motor car which went backwards and set up a great spluttering and rattling. Babs did not like this mode of travelling, for it gave her a feeling as if she were on a scenic railway. The carts went in front of the horses, the poor old horse pushing the cart along. Soon Jim ran up to them and exclaimed excitedly, “Oh, she’s freed me of the spell!” What spell?” asked Light Wings. "Oh, yes, I know,” she said almost instantly. Then she told Babs the story of this strange little boy. “When a little baby Jim, or Mij as he was then called, had a queer misfortune. A wicked witch came to his home and cast a spell over him. When he grew up he was to walk on his feet, not on his hands and his name was to be changed round from Mij to Jim.” There was every reason for Mij, as we will now call him, to be excited, for it made him so tired walking on his feet. “Take us to see the witch,” whispered Barbara excitedly to Light Wings. In a few minutes the trio had arrived at the witch’s house. It was not a cave like ordinary witches lives in but a large mansion. In answer to Mij’s knock the witch herself appeared at the door. “Yes?” she questioned in a very refined voice.

“I just came to thank you for freeing this little boy from the spell which you cast upon him when a baby.” “Don’t mention it, the pleasure was mine, I assure you,” said the witch in her most gracious tones. “Good-bye,” said Babs, feeling that she had better be going home. “Good-bye,” said the witch. Then they bade Mij good-bye and rose into the air. • • • « • • « "Haven't you finished your lessons yet, Babs?” “I —I —Oh—,” she yawned. “I must have been dreaming, and Mummy, I went to Topsy Turvy Land.” “Never mind about that just now. Hop off to bed as quickly as you can and tell me in the morning.” So that was the end of Babs’ visit to Topsy Turvy Land, but she has not forgotten it and very often thinks of poor little Mij, the Topsy Turvy boy. —Cousin Nola Mitchell (13).