A GARDEN LETTER.

Waikato Times, Volume 118, Issue 19663, 24 August 1935, Page 16 (Supplement)

A GARDEN LETTER.

Dear Peter Pan,—Hasn’t the weather been wet lately? My garden is all washed away with the rain and wind. Mother planted some bulbs In the garden very late and they have Just started to bud. I have seeir a number of lambs this year; they look lovely playing In the paddocks, don’t they, Peter? We have six baby calves and I help to feed them when It Is fine. Our wattle Is out in bloom now and It makes a lovely show. My rockery Is growing lovely now and In it I have pansies and black-eyed Susie. I have no more news this time, so I will close with love rrom Peach (12), Te Kowhal. Yes, the weather has been shocking, hasn’t It, Peach? The rockery must be lovely with pansies out. The wattle has been beautiful, hasn’t It, with Its lovely golden fluffy balls or flowers.—Peter Pan. OVERSEAB PEN-FRIENDS. Dear Peter Pan,—l was so glad to see that the Pets’ Page was such A success, an'd I hope that you will have similar special pages In the near future. I thought I would write and tell you about my overseas pen-friends. I have two, one In Canada and another in Ceylon, and I find them most interesting because their lives are so different from mine. Both, are girls of my own age. The one in Ceylon lives In the beautirul city of Kandy and her mother owns three coconut ,and two rubber estates. Hers is not such a big family, but they have ten servants! During the drought last summer a man* was employed to cart water for them from a spring with oxen. This was necessary because they used about 500 gallons a day. Tbe girl is an educated Singhalese and learns much the same as New Zealanders do at High School. She knows both English and Singhalese, but they usually speak the latter language among themselves. She writes Very good English. Her pet Is a nice fox terrier. She wears the “sair,” a long white garment that reaches right down' to the ankles; that Is also the dress of the Indian women. The one in Saskatchewan lives in a logcabin and goes to school with her two sisters In a sleigh drawn by dogs. Her father Is a wheat-grower, but be milks cows as well to make their own butter. The cows, of course, have to be housed ip the winter time. She tells me all about the birds and animals there are In her country, and tbe songs she sings. Her favourite pastime is skating or tobogannlng down the snow-clad slopes. My sister also has a pen-friend who lives beside Lake Erie, In U.S.A. She writes all about the fun l she has at a Girl Scout camp. She has a rabbit and a dear little dog for pets. She has sent three very nice photographs, one of which shows her in skating costume. I really think it Is a pity that so few boys and girls have taken up the unusually interesting and educational hobby of writing to children hr other parts of tbe world. Before I close I must tell you that I passed my first music exam (junior division) with honours.—So-and-So (15), Patetonga. Peter was delighted that you did so splendidly In the exam., So-and-So. Yes. the pen-friends are very interesting, Peter thinks, especially having them in’ different countries. Do tell us more about them —Peter Pan.

SPRING. Dear Peter Pan, —Just a Tew lines to thank you for putting my name on the Honours Board. The Weather Man has been so unkin’d lately, hasn’t he, Peter? It’s a wonder how the little lambs and calves live. My brother brought home a little kid about a week ago, and we have been feeding It with milk. When we go outside anywhere It follows us, and no place will do It except right under our feet. Spring would be really and truly here ir the weather would only, clear up. The bulbs in my garden have been making a lovely display. I have -eight tulips up, hut unfortunately only one is going to flower. All my ranunculi are in bud, and there are even one or two out In flower. Don’t you think the weeping willows look pretty now they are all out In leaf? Why, it doesn’t seem so long ago that they were all clothed In golden tinted leaves. Our peach trees are In bloom, but we have no plum trees blooming yet. Well, Peter, this Is not a very long letter, but I will write a longer one next time.—Golden Arrow (14), Karamu. Such an interesting letter, Golden Arrow. How early the ranunculi are; they must look lovely and gay. The kid must be a darling. Peter was simply delighted with the wonderful box or flowers. When he took the lid off the scent Just poured out, and there they were, not one bit crushed. Thank you so much.—Peter Pan. RAGS AGAIN I Dear Peter Pan, —I have weeded my garden, Peter. Yesterday I went to have a look at it to see ir It could boast a flower or two, and to my surprise It could. There were about half a dozen Jonquils, and lots of blue grape hyacinth buds, so I took some tools and pulled all the weeds out and dug about till It looked respectable again. ‘ Dear me, Peter, my animals are always getting into trouble. This time It is Rags. For three night running we shut him up In his shed, and In the morning he was out with the door flrmly shut. Tho next night I shut him up about S o'clock, and Dad came home and told me to sibut Rags up. I told him I had, but Just as I said that he came hounding inside. So I tied him up again, and five minutes later he was at the door again, so I took a torch and crawled about tbe shed and couldn’t find a hole anywhere, so I shut him up again When I got Inside Dad told me to go and see ir he had broken the window, so I went out, and sure enough, about a quarter of a glass window was broken, so I took him out or that shed and put him Iri another. In the morning I went to have a look at the window, and was surprised to find that lie could have got out of such a tiny hole. It must have taken a good deal of courage, because the bottom or tho window Is about eight feet from tho ground and the bole was at the top; and besides that there were rolls of barbed wire and a box or two scattered about. And Peter, when I went to let him out of the other shed I found he had' eaten a hole about six Inches long and two Inches high out or the door. isn’t he a mischief-maker?—Fiffen (14), Hamilton. Rags Is a real tease, Isn’t he, Fiffen? Who would have Imagined him getting out that way? The garden must look a pic-, ture now, Peter thinks.—Peter Pan.