WENDY HUT LETTERBOX.

Taranaki Daily News, 27 January 1934, Page 20 (Supplement)

WENDY HUT LETTERBOX.

LETTERS to be Addressed: “WENDY,” Care Taranaki Daily News, Box 119, NEW PLYMOUTH.

Ronnie Winstanle vakino: Yes; Billikins has . for a number of swims this season, too. He says he likes it in the breakers best for it is always such fun diving through them, and shpoting in towards' the beach with them, and tumbling about, in the foam.

William Skedgwell, Te Roti: The sparrows at the Hut are chirping a welcome to you this morning, Tink. t There is quite a colony of them at the back of the Hut and it was very funny at the beginning of the season watching the fat little young ones being taught to fly. Would you like the name of Frim for your kitten ?

Marjorie Blanchard, Waitara: I’m afraid we have not heard of anyone who buys the white butterflies, Tink, but if we do hear we shall let you know. You must have lots of fun these days spinning along the roads on your. bicycle. We suppose you are going to ride it to school when the holidays are over. “Two Red Roses,” Mahaka: Next time you write to us, Tinks, will you please tell us when your birthdays are and then Tinker' Bell will write them into her book so that we can remember them. We do not like to think of missing out any Tinks in our “Many Happy Returns” corner. Thank you for the poetry and jokes. “Brownie of the Glen,” Tatu: Have you decided what thing you are going to draw yet, Olive ? Good luck to it, whatever it is, and to the painting, too! Baby Margaret has been busy drawing flowers this morning on a large sheet of paper, and she says she is going to make it into a sheet of wall-paper for her dolls’ house. “Faith in New Zealand,” Ohangai: We welcome you as another of our Tinks, Eileen, and the Hut folk are clustering round to hear what you have to say. They are wondering if you have a garden of your very own and if you are proudly watching the different flowers as they come out day by day.

Joan' Petersen, Ahititi: We wish we could have peeped in at the little concert you had that night. It was good of you to write out the programme for us, for now we can imagine just what it must have been like. Did you make a stage and perform on it? “Fay,” Te Popo: Yes; it does seem too early for mushrooms yet. The few that you saw must have pushed their way up to see what the world was like so that they could tell the rest of the little mushrooms under the ground all about it! The Hut folk, will all be very glad when, mushroom time does come along.

Eileen Burkitt, Uruti: I hope the calves that got into the garden did not eat up your lovely pansies. That would be a very sad happening. Hut gardener is very proud of some .of the pansies he has in the garden this year, and we often see him stooping to pick off dead leaves just as you do with yours. Maureen Mullin, Eltham: We like the name of Spats for your kitten; it must suit him very well. Billikins wants, to know if he and Sandy play well together. I expect they chase each other and roll over and over together! don’t they ? And then I expect you pick them up and cuddle them !

Frank Willcox, Rahotu: Did you go round hitting, at everything when you first had your boxing gloves ? I think if Billikins had a pair he would be sure to give Cookie a few friendly punches. He and Cookie are very good friends really, but he does love to tease her sometimes! , ■ • i’

“Bunch of Ribbons,” Stratford: We think we can guess who is staying with you—another Tink whose pen-name begins with F. Are we right ? The Hut folk all love playing guessing games, and whenever they guess anything right they get quite excited about it. Very often, though, the things they guess turn out to be quite wrong.

“Tinker,” Westown: Did you read on our page last Saturday what happened when Billikins tried to help Cookie in the kitchen? Well, after Tinker Bell had bandaged his finger there was a terrible fuss and poor Billikins felt very sorry for himself. But suddenly he forgot all about it for Hut gardener came in from the orchard with his hands full of juicy ripe plums. Dene McMillan, Mokau: What does your poor cat do when your seven dogs are feeling playful ? Does its back arch up and its hair stick out, or does it play with them quite happily ? Billikins says he wishes he could see your back yard at feeding time. “Betty Blue,” Opaku: You have-seen something that the Hut folk have never seen, Betty. They have read about water-spouts in books but they have never seen a real one. Billikins says he thinks it would 'be a horrible thing to' meet if you were out at sea in a little boat!

“Brown Owl,” Koru: Yes; lavender always seems to have such a fresh cool scent. Baby Margaret has little bags of it in amongst her handkerchiefs, and she also puts some in with the.rose petals when she makes pot-pourri. We expect your carnations are looking very nice now in your garden. Jimmie Mouat, Te wera: Welcome, Jimmie. ..Billikins is grinning at ys* from the verandah of the Hut and that means he is very pleased you have joined our family. It will not be long now before school begins and then we expect you will have a lot of fun. You will be going for the first time, won’t you ? “Black Cat,” Mangahume: I can hear the train whistling in the distance as it puffs along. Whenever the Twins hear it they say they would love to be in it and be going on a.long, long journey for miles and miles and miles. I think they would be very sad little people, though, if it took them very far away from the Hut.

“Nikau,” Kiore: Baby Margaret is still very well and happy, and is very much interested to hear about your pretty new frock. I think I told one of our Tinks last week about the bundle of scraps Dressmaker has given her' for dolls’ clothes. She is trying to make a little green dress at present.

John Jones, Otakeho: We are very sorry, Tink, but someone else already has “Grasshopper” for a name. Tinker Bell has suggested “Merrilegs” for you, so I wonder if you would like that instead ? How excited you- must have been when you found that something under the sofa ! . Was it a very big surprise ?

Lucy Mouat, Te Wera: Baby Margaret is wondering what colour the new dress for your doll is going to be. There are some pretty blue cornflowers out in the Hut garden now and she says the next dress she makes for her doll will be of cornflour blue. Do you think that would be pretty ?

Cliffy Cox, Te Kiri: Isn’t Billikins funny! He says he does not want to have his photograph in the paper. They might get a shock,” he says. So I am afraid you will just have to. imagine his happy, cheeky face, and his eyes that have always a sparkle of fun in them. He is busy helping Hut gardener, clear away weeds to-day. “Eidelweiss,” Stratford: We were all so pleased when we found your letter in Postie’s bag, and we are glad you are well enough to write to us once more. There are still some pretty, flowers in the garden at the Hut.and. Hut gardener is always busy keeping ’them free of weeds. How easy gardening would be if it were not for the weeds, he thinks! “Waratah,” Tirimoana: Baby Margaret chuckled when we read your piece of poetry to her, Tink. We shall try and find room for it in our column one of these days. Yes; Tinker Bell likes gathering shells on the beach, but there are very few of them to be found on the beaches here so she has not a very large collection. “Weeping Willow,” Kiore: No; we have not found any mushrooms yet, but several Tinks have written and told us they have seen one or two. It looks as though the season might be beginning soon, doesn’t it. “Hope so,” say Billikins and the Twins, for they love going out with their baskets in the mornings. “Boy Blue,” Kiore: Do you climb the apple trees and get the nice ones from the top ? That .is what the Hut folk do. There is one big tree in the orchard that has lovely apples on it and Billikins has had so much practice that he can climb up it now “like smoke,” as the others say. ! “Leonie,” Fraser Road: Do the ponies let you ride on them, or are they too small still ? There used to be one near the Hut that the Twins were allowed to ride but there was no saddle for it so they had to ride bare-back, and one day when it began to trot they bumped up and down for a little while but then slipped right off on to the ground. “Gwen,” Matau: Have you.learnt that long piece of poetry by heart ? It is a nice piece, isn’t it, but I am afraid it is going to be too long for our column, little Tink. We shall put your riddle in instead, though. We hope your leg will be quite better by school time. 1 Nellie Walsdorf, Qkaiawa: I wonder if you 'will have another certificate for more than fifty yards by the end of the season, Tink. You probably will after all the swims you have been having lately. Tinker Bell wants to know how your puppy is, and Billikins is wondering if you have taught it any tricks. “Linnet," Normanby: Yes; everyone at the Hut just loves ice-creams, and Billikins has decided that he is always going to buy penny ones with his money for he says-you get more by buying, three single penny ones than you do in one threepenny one. Perhaps you discovered that as well if you are as fond of them as Billikins is. “Woody,” Mangamingi: I think they will be keeping you in the team for good, you know, ftex, for. you have played with them several times now, haven’t you? Billikins thinks you must be “awfully” good.. Yes; ( it will soon be school time again and Billikins is not at all pleased about it. “The Three Kittens,” Brixton: We expect you are all enjoying your holiday by now and we are looking forward to your next letter to hear all about it. I hope there will still be some apples on your trees when you get home again, and do you think your cats will 'still remember you ?

Alec Close, Rawhitiroa! It was good of you to send us the piece of poetry, Tink, but I am very much afraid we have had it in our column before, so we cannot use it this time. Perhaps you will send us something else when you write again. Are you glad that school time is nearly here once more ? “Mother’s Fairy,” Uruti: Yours was the fattest letter in Postie’s bag to-day and it was such an interesting one t to read. The Twins love to hear about all the mustering you do, and Billikins says will you please write again when you have been after wild pigs. He would love to hear all about it. Iris McCoard, Matau: It was raining for a little while at the Hut to-day but now it has. stopped and the sun is shining quite ‘brightly. It has made the flowers look very fresh and clean and lots of them are still’* holding the raindrops on their leaves. Thank you for the Limerick you wrote out for us this time.

“Golden Daffodils,” Awatuna: That is a good game that you sent us, Tink. Billikins has it now and he is giving one question to everyone in the Hut to see who can find the answer first. Cookie is puzzling over “A good drink, and it is such an easy one, isn’t it! Thank you, too, for the little piece of poetry. “Chrysanthemum,” Tirimoana: Baby Margaret saw those wee ducks, too, for we took her to the park one day last week. She loved watching them swimming along behind their mothers, and when they came near the edge of the lake she threw - crumbs in to them. She says she wishes there was a lake like that in the Hut garden.

Kathleen Slater, Mata: There is a queer looking nest high up in one of the trees at the Hut, but it is just too far along the branch for, any of the Hut folk to reach it even When they climb the tree. I think the bird was very cunning to build it there, don’t you ?

Violet Closed Rawhitiroa: “Teddy Bear at School” is a very nice little poem and we should like to have it on our page, but I think you must have missed out a little bit at the end when 'you were copying it out for it does not seem to end quite properly. Perhaps you could send us the last verse next time you write.