WORLD-WIDE RED CROSS

Taranaki Daily News, 20 July 1929, Page 19

WORLD-WIDE RED CROSS

PACKAGE FROM CZECHO SLOVAKIA SENT TO VOGELTOWN SCHOOL. This week the pupils of the Vogeltown school received a package from a school in Liban, Czecho-Slovakia. It contains two letters from Liban children, a doll in national costume, a small cushion, a group of postcard view’s of Liban, two pieces of sugar (conical in shape and wrapped in paper), and a quantity of printed matter, including a calendar and a book of fairy tales. ■ The arrival of the parcel is due to the activities of the junior Red Cross circles, organised by the Red Cross Society in connection with the schools. The educational value of such exchanges is very great, as it stimulates a real interest in other parts of the world.

Though the printed matter is not easy to study owing to the language difficulty, translations of the letters have been enclosed and at present are in the possession of Sister Corkill, Red Cross nurse in charge of the junior organisation in New Plymouth. They read "as follows;—

“Dear Far-Away Friends, —We are very happy that we can correspond with you, through the medium of the Junior Red Cross. We are from Liban, a small, pretty’ town in southern Bohemia, in the Czecho-Slovak republic. In our town is a square, in the middle of which stands the statue of Master John Hus, our national martyr, -who was burned in Germany for his fight for the truth by a great church council in the 15th century. From the square a street leads to our elementary and higher elementary school. It is a twostorey building, and I wish that you could see how nicely we have furnished it inside. There are many pictures hung inside, and on the first floor on the wall are painted scenes from child life. The school inspector says that ours is the prettiest school in the district. At the back of our school is a garden, which the older students take care of. I am in the third class of the higher elementary _ school, and I love my school. lam very glad that I can write you something about it. I hope that you also will write us something about youi’ town and school and life in general. With friendly greetings,— 0.R.”

“Dear Friends, —I do not know who will receive this letter, but I ain sure I can address you as friends. lam a 13-year-old girl from one of the villages near the town of Liban, where I go to the higher elementary school. Czechoslovakia is a lovely fertile country, surrounded by forests and mountains. In our region there are hills and slopes, covered by gardens and woods. Through the valleys run rivers and small streams. It is very lovely in summer. Now we have winter, snowfalls and frosts. There are about 30 centimetres of snow on the ground, which is asleep under this, counterpane. Only the towns and villages are gay. Children and grown-ups ride on sleighs and skis, and °horses have little bells, which tingle (tinkle?) across the white fields. From the big cities tourists come for winter sports. I cannot write everything now, there is too much, and I do not know what will interest you. So I shall end, and send yon many greetings in the name of all our children, a sincere greeting from my country.--L.K.”