OUR POETRY

Taranaki Daily News, 17 September 1932, Page 18 (Supplement)

OUR POETRY

THE DANCING SEA. (Sent by Rex Hohaia.) I am standing in the dancing sea, Not very far from land, The little wavelets run to me, And tumble on the sand. . And do you know what I should wish, If somebody said, “Suppose”? I’d love a tiny silver fish, To swim between my toes.

SEA-SIDE (PLAY.

(Sent by Edna Gane.)

Two little 'boys all neat and clean, Came down upon the shore. They did not know old Ocean’s ways; They’d never seen him 'before. So quietly they sat them down, To build a fort of sand. Their backs were turned upon the sea, Their faces toward the land. They had just built a famous fort— The handkerchief flag was spread— When up there came a stealthy wave, And turned them heels over head.

SWEETPEAS.

(Sent by Joan Jarvis.) Here are sweet-peas, On tip-toe for a flight. With wings of gentle Flush o’er delicate white; • And taper fingers Catching at all things, To bind them all About with tiny rings..

BE A MAN.

('Sent by Bernice Hickey.) If you don’t want to do a thing 'be

a man; Never say you can't if you know you

Get it over quickly, and don’t make

a fuss, Sitting down and crying never helped

to catch a bus. If you don't want to eat your food, be a little sport; •Stuff it down and keep it down, toecause you know you ought. Crying over porridge sort of makes you small, Sitting down and moping never (helped to climb a wall.

If you don’t want to go to bed when the time comes round, , Gather up your playthings and don’t make a sound. Don’t start plleading—it isn’t playing fair. Sitting down and waiting never gets you anywhere! So don’t say you can’t and don’t boast you can. Get along and do the things and show that you’re a man. Things are never easy that arc very much worth while, But sitting down and crying never helped to cross a stile. DAY-BREAK. (Sent by Marjorie Borland.) A wind came up out of the sea, And said, “0 mists, make room for me.” It hailed the ships and cried, ‘‘Sail on, Ye mariners, the night has gone.” And hurried landward, far away, Crying, “Awake, it is the day.” It said unto the forest “Shout! Hang all your leafy banners out.” It touched the woodbird’s folded wing And. said, “0 'bird, awake and sing, And o’er the farms, O chanticleer, Your clarion blow, the day is near.” It whispered to the fields of corn, “Bow down and hail the coming morn.” It shouted through the belfry tower, “Awake, 0 (bell, proclaim the hour.” It crossed t'he churchyard with a sigh, And said, “Not yet in quiet lie.” THE DANDELION. (Sent : by Ken Borland.) Dainty little dandelion, Smiling on the lawn, Sleeping through fJlie dewy night 'Waking with the dawn. Fairy little dandelion, In her misty shroud, Passes from our sight away, Like a summer cloud. THE 'TEASE. (Sent by Margaret Watson.) You’re a nuisance, I declare; You tease me so, it isn’t fair. You pounce on me from everywhere, And seize my hat, and clutch my hair, And tie my clothes in knots, and tear The leaves and blossom from the pear. I wish that I could set a snare To /catch you—but I shouldn’t dare, For, though ybu tease me, I declare, 0 wind, if you were never there,' I don’t think I could manage, quite, To sail my boat or fly my kite. SPRING-TIME FAIRIES. (Sent by Joan Feakins.) The spring time fairies dance and sing, They are so 'blithe and gay. Sweet garlands made of flowers they ■bring, And teach the lambs to play. The bunnies dance and skip about, To hear the birdies sing, And all the pretty flowers come out, So glad 'because it’s spring. Dear spring-time fairies, how I long, When spring-time flowers are out, To join you in your happy song, And dance and laugh and shout! A BUTTERFLY. (Sent by Rex Woodley.) 'Sometimes a butterfly to me, ' Looks like a little ship at sea, A chip with pretty sails all set, Of white or gold or violet, Soft sailing, sailing, fleet and fair, The wide blue ocean of the. air. , No freight it has, no pilot knows, No chart can make the way it goes, The summer winds, 'by field and hill, It rides like running waves, until It lowers sail at twilight hour And anchors softly in a flower. MR. THRUSH. (Sent by Bessie Cole.) “I am little speckled-breast, On lawns I love to roam; Tn garden nooks I build my nest; The haunts of men, my home. I spy fat snails on ivied walls, And early worms just out; But there’s just one thing me appalls To see a cat about. GOOD THINGS. ’ (Sent by Marie Coupe.) I like apples, I like pears; I like ginger, cut in squares; I like marmalade on toast, And chestnuts at the fire to roast. I like peaches, I like prunes; I like melons, round as moons; I like strawberry jam for tea And golden honey from the bee. I like cherries, I like cheese, I. like roast lamb with green peas; I like pineapple in slices, Chocolate and vanilla ices.

LONG AGO STORIES.

ELFRIDA AND THE RAVEN Efrida walked with four other little girls, all tied together with a rope. In front of them were rough carts full of furniture, jewels and arms, and behind them were flocks of sheep and goats. They had been taken prisoners by the Danes, and were on their way to a great Danish ship called The Raven. King Alfred was a wander like Elfrida’s father, and Elfrida had been captured when the tower in which she had been placed for safety had fallen. Elfrida was thirteen years old, but •she had never known what it was to live in. peace because the Saxons had fought the Danes ever since she could remember. She was annoyed when some of the other girls began to cry, and told them to wait till they had something to cry for. “Isn’t this enough?” sobbed Bertha. “To be made slaves on a Danish ship?” “Certainly not,” replied Elfrida. “They have promised us food when we reach the ship, and what more does anybody want? I am glad to go aboard The

Raven. I hate that ship! Ever since I saw the flag with the black raven embroidered upon it, I knew it was a terrible ship. But still X wish to board her.”

When they reached the great' ship, all the girls screamed except Elfrida, The Danes cut the rope which bound them together, told them to sit in a corner of the deck, and gave them bread to eat. Presently a tame raven came towards them, and Elfrida threw it some crumbs. It hopped on to her hand, and the girl’s eyes glittered as she whispered: “This is the spirit of the ship. For months I have watched this raven flying over the sails, and I know it brings victory to the Danes. I am going to tie it up in my gown, put, it on the back of my neck, jump overboard, and swim away. If you all tie bundles on your necks and follow me, the Danes will not know which of us carries the raven. Look, there is not a soul on the shore! We can get a good start.” Had there been .time to think, perhaps those five Saxon girls would not have dared to do so dangerous a thing. But the idea of taking victory from the Danes by capturing their raven made them fearless. They were well away before the Danes saw them, and they reached the shore safely and ran into the dense wood. Hundreds of Danes searched for them, but never found them.

When the five girls came upon a Saxon camp, the people were so inspired by Elfrida that they made her their queen. She was called The Raven Queen, and she and her beautiful raven and her brave soldiers were the terror of the Danes for many years. JUST A LOT OF GAS. Let’s talk about gas for a while, shall we? The kind of gas that we turn on to light some of our houses, cook some of our meals, and heat some of our rooms. Coal-gas was first demonstrated as a medium for illumination by Dr. John Clayton, dean of Kildare. Some time before the year 1691, he fitted bladders with inflammable gas, obtained by the distillation of coal, and showed that when the bladders were pricked the escaping gas burnt with a bright flame as soon as a light was applied to it. Dr. Clayton’s demonstration was not received very well by the people of that day, and it was not until William Murdoch made experiments between the years 1792 and 1802 that folk began to realise that would prove a blessing to mankind. Lord Dundonald’s hall at Culross was, it is supposed, the first private 'house to be lighted by gas, for the noble lord himself experimented on a large scale. Then a Frenchman named Philippe took the Lyceum theatre in London and gave demonstrations of lighting and even heating by gas. Later on he formed a company, and in less than twenty years many towns, numerous houses and a large number of factories were lighted by coal gas. All this pioneer work was not left in the hands of the Frenchman, however, for many learned English scientists worked twenty hours out of every twenty-four to perfect the use of coalgas. SHIPS THAT PASS. It is general knowledge that when vessels are sighted at sea the ensign of each vessel is lowed in salutation, but how many know of the conversations carried on between passing ships? “What is your name?” signals the warship. “Where are you going? What cargo are you carrying? Have you had good weather? Bon voyage!” are typical messages sent out, and suitable replies are invariably received. A complete record of all signals passing between warships and the mercantile marine is kept, and details are forwarded to the Admiralty, who publish the result periodically.

THE MAGIC FLOWER OF SUMATRA.

If the world had not been full of wonders there would have been no fairy tales.

Wonder-wonder is the name given by the Battaks to a huge scarlet flower, which is three feet wide. The enormous petals are covered with yellow spots, and the nectary at their base forms a cup which will hold 24 tumblersful of water. The surprising thing about this miraculous flower is that it has very little root or stem. Rafflesia arnoldia is its modern name, and our correspondent believes it was named after Mr. Arnold, who discovered it. ‘

Its European name is not so unromantic as it might seem, for the first word reminds us that in all probability the flower was known to Sir Samford Raffles the founder of the port of Singapore and of the London Zoo, who made a vast collection of East Indian flowers. What better memorial of this great man could there be than that one of the most wonderful flowers in the world should bear his namn?

ONE OF NATURE’S MYSTERIES.

PLATYPUS WILL NOT LEAVE HOME.

Once more the men who go about the world collecting animals have tried to do the apparently impossible. Once more they have tried in vain to bring a platypus out of its home in Australia and keep it alive. It, was tried for America; now it has been tried.- for Europe; but it cannot be done. The little platypus will not leave its home alive. Those who would bring it from Australia must bring it dead. Even in Australia it has been impossible tot keep a platypus in captivity. It dies for no apparent reason. Only once has a platypus been seen alive outside Australasia for any time at all. Just ten years ago a New York dealer left Australia with five specimens, but four died during the voyage to San Francascoc. The most elaborate arrangements were made for transporting the sole survivor to New York. The jolting of the train spilled the water out of the tank in which the platypus travelled, and requests for fresh water were telegraphed ahead to every stopping-place across the continent. The platypus arrived safely in New York, but it lived only about a fortnight. The latest attempt was made on behalf of the London Zoo. In the second week of May there sailed from Port Melbourne, on board the Mongolia, a little band of Australian natives. They had no cabins and they had booked no berths, and if, as th® boat went down the bay to the ocean, they wanted to call goodbye to their homeland they had no words. For this little band numbered birds and beasts whose home was the Australian bush and whose destinations were London and Whipsnade. Little, they cared where they were going as they settled down in the tarpaulin tent erected for them, circus-fashion, on the upper deck.

They were a strange mixed company, and some of them met for the first time in their lives. The Tasmanian devils and the Queensland bower birds had never met before, and they had to rely on their keeper, Mr. Webb, for an introduction. Mr. Cecil S. Webb, a member of the Zoological Society of London, has been in Australia for the last four months gathering Australian animals and birds from all States, and has just come home. He obtained not only one platypus, but two, with four Tasmanian devils, two porcupine ant-eaters, wombats, albino wallabies, opossums and bower birds, and from Tasmania, where he spent seven weeks, he gathered plover, honey-eateis, rosella parrots, fire-tailed finches, parakeets, white goshawks and Wild ducks, while from Victoria he obtained two kinds of venomous snakes.

Of all these the platypus is the most interesting, for the platypus has never been kept alive for any length of time in captivity. There was a platypus called Percy who lived for several months in the Melbourne Zoo,, and so established a world record for captivity. Then he perished, and his successors have all been short-lived. At present there is no platypus in London. \ Experts told Mr. Webb that he would not keep the pllatypus alive in London; they went and said that he would not keep them alive on the voyage. Mr. Webb could only hope for the best. He gave them a special shipboard diet of earthworms kept on' ice. That is something their bush brothers have never had.

The honey-eaters, too, were given luxury meals at sea, for they like sweet arid dainty food, and they will eat sponge cakes and condensed milk. The snakes, perhaps with the idea of slimming to look their best in London reptile society, worild drink only water. One meal before they left Australia was sufficient for the voyage. Alas! Mr. Webb arrived at the London Docks a disappointed man, for his most precious cargo had gone the way of every other platypus that ever left Australia. Both the little creatures died on the voyage, and though they are at last in London Town they are not alive' but dead, sad little witnesses to one of Nature’s mysteries. '■ The platypus is a link between three form of life—reptiles, birds and mammals. It lays eggs like a bird or a reptile, but it suckles its young. Its bill is like that of a duck and its feet are webbed, but it has strong claws. THE DRAGON’S DEN. 1 Mr. Perrigrew’s rosy face popped over the garden fence, a cheery face adorned with an old, floppy straw hat. “Good morning!” he said, beaming at Bob and Biddy over his glasses, “And how’s the land?” “Oh, we’re getting along fine,” answeied Biddy; “those paints you gave us make all the difference. Look!” Mr. Perrigrew’s face disappeared as he said, “One moment!! Let me,get ihy stool —better view—not so painful leaning over,” and his voice tailed away .as his feet pattered up the path. Bob and Biddy bent again to their task, eager with finishing touches before Mr. Perrigrew returned, for what they, were doing was Mr. Perrigrew’s idea. This corner of their garden had been an untidy jumble of bits of brick, and stone dug out of the rest, of the garden, odds and ends of builder’s rubbish that had been trampled into the ground, lumps of wood, broken tiles, pipes and scraps of other material' Bob and Biddy often played among the stones, building forts and houses and shops, and Mr. Perrigrew often popped his head over the fence, and offered suggestions. .' Then one day Mr. Perrigrew had said, “Why not make those bricks into a castle, with a drawbridge arid turrets and. all the things a real castle ought to have?” a So the castle was made, and its wonbly parts were stuck together with cement kindly supplied by Mr. Peirigrew. The next idea was to make a road from the castle, a “Road to Fortune (Mr. Perrigrew said), with adventures all along it” Gradually irom this idea the stony corner grew into Fairyland; the Road to Fortune wound through Haunted Glens, by Witches’ Houses, over Dead Man’s Gulch, round the Goblin’s Tree, and near a cave that was a Dragon s Den. Mr. Perrigrew’s face popped up again, higher this time, for he had brought his stool. He leaned over the fence and surveyed the kingdom, . “Wonderful! Wonderful!” he said, and his whiskers widened in a happy smile; “but there’s just one thing lacking,” he added. “What is that?” asked Bob and Biddy together. ' . “Dragons!” replied Mr. Perrigrew with a hiss, and he handed over a cardboard box which Biddy' took. Bob looked over her shoulder, and they both read, the label which said, Dragons, with Care, “Put it beside the Dragon’s Den and open it,” said Mr. Perrigrew, “with carc! ,> They knelt down and slowly undid one end. Out came two large armoured beetles! Biddy dropped the box, Mr. Perrigrew shouted “Hooray!” and slipped off his stool, while the two dragons, . alarmed at the hubbub, scurried into the den, and lived there happy ever after.