OUR POETRY

Taranaki Daily News, 25 July 1931, Page 20 (Supplement)

OUR POETRY

MY LITTLE BOAT. (Sent by Jean Taylor.) Aly bed is a boat, And in it I. float Away o’er the summer sea; When 1. shut both my eyes, Then the soft breezes rise And away goes my wee boat wlu me. THE LITTLE STREAM. (Sent by Phyllis Spranger.) Away its waters flow, in the sun See them glow with its sheen, As they glide through banks of green. Flowers of blue, red end old rose Mingled with ferns exposed To the sun, wind and the terrible heavy rain; They are burnt and drenched again and again. The river of stopping hasn’t a notion Until it reaches the blue ocean. There in its mother’s arms it will sleep Rocked by its mother's motion, the Deep. Once I said to a river, “Have you an end ?” But it never answered, nor its friend. It was filled with woe. So on and on did its waters flow. GOING TO GRANNIE’S. (Sent by Valerie Voitrekovsky.) I like to go to grannie’s, I'm fond of staying there; I like to sit and rock a bit In grandpa’s rocking chair. I like the jam that granny makes, Her little currant cakes; I like the days when grandpa plays, The funny jokes he makes. I like their cosy kitchen And their sampler on the wall. But Granny White and Grandpa White. I like them best of all. PIXIE COTS. (Sent by Flossie Voitrekovsky.) Take a little walnut shell Down into a dingle-dell: Leave it there and go away. Come back later in the day, You will find the shell has gone, Smoothed the grass it rested on. Pixie folk have got the shell. With gossamer they’ve lined it well; Made a hood and curtains, too, Trimmed with ribbon pink and blue; And in the shell, all softly spread, Are cosy blankets for a bed. If beside the bed you creep A baby pixie’s fast asleep— A chubby mite with dimpled chin, All rosebud pink—tucked safely in, A baby fay and doing well, Warm cradled in your walnut shell. In the Pixie nursery,

Every Baby fay ( Is cradled in a walnut shell, Rocking gently, tucked up well, In a cosy fairy bed, Petalled blankets overspread. SNOW FLAKES. (Sent by Gwen Pittams.) Snow fairies light, Snow fairies bright, Where is your cold white home? “Far, far away ” Snow fairies say, “Where all the big clouds roam. “Sometimes, we dance, ■ _ Sometimes we prance, Sometimes we float and we fly. But if the sun Sees all our fun, Quickly we fade and die!” RAINBOW DAYS. . (Sent by Rex Woodley.) Monday is a white day, Fresh and pure as snow, A new beginning for the week: I try to keep it so. Tuesday is a red day, Rich as any rose, Full of loving promises, From sunrise to its close. Wednesday is a blue day, Like a summer sky; I try to think of happy things, And make the clouds pass by. Thursday is. a green day, Full of hope and cheer; Like the friendly ivy leaves Growing all the year. Friday is a violet day, When, with love unseen, All the little fragrant deeds Flower amongst the green. Saturday is an orange day, Like a sunset sky, Telling us the week has gone, With its smile or sigh. Sunday is a golden day, In the old-time blest, And its light of love and joy Gives us peace and rest. AT ELFIN HILL. (Sent by Merle Druce.) At Elfin Hill on fairy nights Are seen the most engaging sights; If children knew, I’m sure they’d ruu To find that hill and ehare the fun. And many an elf with gay balloon They’d watch ascend to seethe moon; And many a sprite from Moonbeam Town By gay balloon come twilkling down. And if a fairy passing by, Should ask, ‘‘Are you, too, for the eky ?” I’m sure they would disguise themselves And make believe they, too, were elves. THEN. (Sent by Jim Sharpe.) Twenty, forty, sixty, eighty, A hundred years ago, All through the night with lantern bright The watch trudged to and fro. And little boys tucked snug abed, Would wake from dreams to hear “Two o’ the morning by the clock And the stare ashining clear.” Or when across the chimney tops Screamed shrill a north-east gale, A faint and shaken voice would shout, “Three! and a storm of hail!” THE LITTLE FURRY RABBITS. (Sent by Lance Hohaia.) The little furry rabbits Keep very, very still, And peep at me across the grass As 1 walk up the hill. But if I venture nearer, To join them in their play, A flash of white and they are gone, Not one of them will stay. THE COW. (Sent by Rex Hohaia.) The friendly cow all red and white I love with all my heart. She gives me cream with all her might To ©at with apple tart.

SO GREAT-AUNT SAYS. (Sent by Mavis Gibbs.) Just think of that? Aly great-aunt Anne When she was small, was oh! so good. She never screamed or tore her dress, Or grumbled at her food. But p'r'aps you'll wonder how I know? Well, great-aunt Anne, she told me so. THE KING'S CAKE. (Sent 'by Nancy Slater.) King Alfred he could sing a song As sweet as any man’s; King Alfred he could fight a throng, And think out battle plans. King Alfred from his heart so true The English laws could make, But one thing Alfred couldn’t do— He couldn’t bake a cake. THE DRAGON. (Sent by Mardle Howell.) A dragon with a velvet skin Slumbers under thorn and whin. If you stroke him he'll not wake From his slumber for your sake. Should he gape, don’t cry with awe When the dragon drops his jaw, For the Pixies of the heath Drug him well and draw his teeth. POOR DAISY. (Original by Mavis Stanton.) Poor little Daisy has got the ’flu, And her mother doesn’t know what to do When she coughs and she sneezes And she wails and she wheezes. And so she called the doctor in, Just wasn’t there a terrible din; Daisy wouldn’t stay in bed, And Daisy won’t by a spoon be fed. So up she got and went to school, And when she came home' she felt hot and then cool, And her mother discovered she had a fever. Friends called to see her, but they had to leave her. And now Miss Daisy will stay in bed, If it’s only for ’flu or a pain in her head. NEGLECT. ■ (Sent by Horace Kettle.) One day I bought two little birds — Such pretty things they were— Their backs were black and yellow, And their heads were very gay. I called one Jack, the other Jill, And fed them every day. ’Twas great to see them eat. One day, on going to the cage, Poor Jill looked somewhat ill, Two little feathers sticking up, Around her dainty bill. She lingered for a day or two, To make her well I tried; But as the sun sank in the West, Poor little Jill had died. I’d quite forgot to give her grit, Poor helpless little thing; And now poor Jack sits all day long, His head beneath his wing. RIDDLES. Why is grass like a mouse ?—'Because the cat-tie eat it. Why i's money like a secret? —Because it is hard to keep. What person does not talk? —A statue. Why is a bird always worried?—Because it always carries a bill. What is the difference between a hill and a pill?—A hill is hard to get up and a pill is hard to get down. (Sent by Jim Sharpe.) What is it that walks upstairs on its head ?—A nail in your shoe. Why is the figure 9 like a peacock?— Because without its tail it is nothing. When is a boat like a heap of snow? —when it is a-drift. Why cannot a rolling pin sing very well? —Because it cannot raise its voice beyond doh (dough). (Sent by Jean Taylor.)

Why did the penny stamp? —Because the threepenny bit. Why did the razor-bill raise her bill? —To let the sea-urchin see her chin. What is a cure for a mind depressed? —Deep rest. (Sent by Bernard Mellor.) One day when I was walking along the road I saw a little man with a white frock and a red hat; What was it? —A match. Where is the sea without water?— In a map. Why did the hen pick the dish?— Because it could not lick it. What stands on one leg all day?— A cabbage, • I (Sent by June Piper.) What happened to the man who swallowed a spoon? —He couldn’t stir. What animal comes from the clouds? —Why, the reindeer. • Where did Noah strike the first nail in the ark?—On the head. What is the difference between a woman’s tongue and an umbrella? —One you can shut -up, and the other you can’t. Who had the first entrance into a theatre? —Joseph, when he was taken from the family circle and put ip the pit. i Why is a dog’s tail dike the heart of a tree? —Because it is farthest from the bark. (Sent by Edna Whiting.) STUNG! Henry: Do you know a grasshopper can jump one hundred times its own length ? Harry: That’s nothing. I once saw a wasp lift a 14 stone man three feet in the air. HE DIDN’T KNOW. Inspector; Where is the Mediterranean ? Pupil: Please, S-S-Sir, I have not seen it. J-Jone.s is monitor. (Sent by Bernard Mellor.) First Tramp: How are you getting along now, Al? Second Tramp: Oh, I just tried No. 45 last week, but I’m not going there any more. First Tramp: ’Fraid ,on account of the dog, I suppose? Second Tramp: My trousers are. First Tramp: Your trousers are? Second Tramp; Frayed on account of the dog. “Is your sister in?” asked the nervous but boring young man. “No,” replied the small boy at once; “she has gone out.” “Ah,” the stricken one sighed, “I am like the man who went to the cage when the bird had flown.” “No you aren’t.” replied, the boy. “You’re like the month of June.” “Why is that?” “Because every time you come May goes out.” Diner: Waiter, there’s a button in this soup. Waiter (retired compositor): Printer’s error, sir. Should be mutton. Patient: Is this medicine for local application only? Doctor: Dear me, no; yo . can use it anywhere you happen to be. Why are you always holding your wife’s hands? To keep them out of my pockets. "The modern girl seems frightened of honest soap,” says the doctor. “It is the only substance that will make her turn pale.” (Sent by Horie Franklin.)