COUSINS’ CORRESPONDENCE.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLII, Issue 16, 21 April 1909, Page 70

COUSINS’ CORRESPONDENCE.

YOUNGER COUSINS’ LETTERS. <*'|"'\ EAR Cousin Kate,—lt is a long I ■ time since I have written to <A J you. I suppose you think I Z have forgotten all about J on, but I haven’t. I have been up in tlie country for five months, at a place called Juuee; I was going to -end you a letter from there, but had forgotten your address. I was staying ■with my uncle, and lie has a big farm and orchard—he has several hundred unit trees, and some'peaches tha if you give them even a touch they will run with juice. \\ e alb. went down whenever we liked and got grapes, plums, peaches and apples; then we would go down to the house, get the broom and sweep away the dirt, make a shop and we would have lovely fun. Uncle lias lots of cattle and sheep and horses. .While I wa- up there 1 learnt to milk a cow. Uncle gave me a little calf, but I could hot bring it down with inc to {Sydney. I went to Manly last. Sunday, end went into the breakers. It was lovely. My father and sister went in 100, ami mother sat on the beach with a lady friend, watching us. It was very low tide, and when I went right out it was not so deep as it was close to the lieach. 1 went down to Kerosene Bay ©u Saturday, which is only a short distance from our home through the bush. 1 went down with my sister Jean and Borne other girls. We played and paddled in the water, and gathered perri,Winkles; then we came home, and boiled them. On Sunday we went down again; this time we gathered some oysters and broke them with stones and ate them. lWe got some “Graphics*’ sent us with pictures of the Penguin wreck. What an awfully sad affair it was? My father is in the Union Company, and he-knew Borne of the men that were drowned. I (would not like to live in New Zealand near those volcanoes that blow up smoke and tire and stones and lava ; we do not Slave any near Sydney. Since I wrote to you last we have moved to Bay-road, find have a lovely view of Sydney and the harbour; from our front verandah Me can watch the steamers come in and go out. When we see a big red funnelled ■boat we always think it is a New Zealand boat. 1 hope you are well. Cousin Kate. Aly sister Jean and 1 are both well, and so are mother and father.— JVith love from DOROTHY. [Dear Cousin Dorothy,— Not only did I think you had forgotten me, but 1 bad nearly forgotten you, so it was just Mrs well you wrote, wa-n't. it? Were you so delighted with the country,.that you wanted to live there always, or were you quite pleased-1 q be back in Sydney ? p.’hat orchard would tempt most people out of town, but unfortunately the fruit doesn’t last all the year, and farm life in winter would be very dreary 1 think, don’t you? 1 am afraid that the calf would have been too much of a handful M a pel iu town, though 1 expect you

were sorry to leave it behind. Some friends of-mine have just come back from Sydney, and they said they spent all their spare time bathing in the surf at Manly, they loved it so. The eyuption has not affected us at all, in fact 1 had forgotten all about it. You would not feel at all afraid if you were here, but the wreck of the Penguin was too awful .for words.—Cousin Kate.] * * * Dear Cousin Kate,- —I have not written to you for a Iqng time, so I will make it. up now'. It has not been very fine to-day; -I think winter has set in because it is so wet and stormy. We are going to have our path asphalted round the 'house, so it should keep the house a bit cleaner this winter. Dad got a ‘‘Graphic” -stereoscope when he paid his subscription last month, and 1 like looking at the “Graphic” views through it. My doll’s name is Madge; it has brown eyes and fair hair. Some mornings T play with it in bed. ,1 have cooking classes at -school, where I get taught tocook. We have three,cows.; their names are Brindle, Nell and Judy. Brindle and Nell have two calves, called MoHy and Blossom. 1 must say good-night now.— I remain, your affectionate Cousin DORIS. | Dear Cousin Doris, —It is a very long time since I heard from you, but.you are not the only one. I think this hot,' muggy weather must be affecting all the cousins, because scarcely any of them have been writing regularly lately. I am afraid the wet weather will come before you get your paths done, and then, they won’t set hard all the winter. What will you do then? —tar is harder to get off then mud, isn’t it? I always love it when the roads are being asphaffed because 1 love the smell of tar. I think Madge must be a beauty. I admire people with fair hair and brown eyes more than any others. .What kinds of things can you cook now? If you can cook at all well you are cleverer than I am, because I can’t even cook a joint properly—l always cook it up to a cinder, my sister says, but that’s the way I like it done. Who milks those three cows; you don’t do you? —Cousin Kate.] 4- 4- 4Dear Cousin Kate, —You will never think I am going to write to you. I do not know when my turn will come to go for a trip. We did not go down to see the fire at Campbell’s Point. I have been learning to take photos, since I wrote to you last, and I have taken some to-day. I was sorry for the. people at Birkenhead, too, when they were short of water, but they have plenty now, and the place, does not look so dry as it did before. We are not having much fine weather now. Nellie arrived back in Auckland last Sunday morning by the s.s. Marama from Dunedin, and she was not it bit glad to get back, she likes Dunedin the best. Bast Monday night we went down to the wharf to see a gentleman Nellie knew, on board -the Marama, and I think the boat is just lovely.—With love from HAZEL. | Dear Cousin Hazel, —Your turn to go visiting will come, you see if it doesn't and just when you least expect it, and you will have a good time, I am sure, when it cornea. Photography ia awful-

ly interesting isn’t, it. I tried it once, and some of my efforts were too funny for words, the funniest of all being a huge daisy bush walking round on a pair of trousered legs, and another of five headless people having afternoon tea out of doors. In spite of these failures 1 think it is a lovely amusement, and I mean to try again. I think Nellie ought to be smacked for liking any town better than her own, don't you? Send her back to stay all the winter there and see how she likes it then. The Marama is a lovely boat, isn’t she; but don’t think travelling by sea would appeal to me, even in that boat.—Cousin Kate.] 4- 4- 4? Dear Cousin Kate, —-I have not written to . you for ages, but it is not quite my fault, because I scalded any hand rather badly and could not. write. I was pouring some boiling water in a basin arid poured it over my hand instead, it sounds so silly but it’was nope 'the less painful on that aeouiit. I had a. lovely, time at Christmas, but H is so long, ago that I have almost forgotten what I did and these holidays Kitty and I are going to' stay at the Lake with" Aunt Minnie again. We love staying over there, and some of the girls I know are coming over on Saturday for a picnic, so we ought to have some.fun. I love picnics, don’t you Cousin Kate. Mother has been ill for a fortnight, but she is much better again now, and she and father are going to Te Aroha.— Cousin ELSIE. [Dear Cousin Elsie. —I am so sorry about your hand, scalds are so frightfully' painful; very much the same thing happened to me once, only somebody bumped my elbow and it went over any foot, and I had to lie about for over a fortnight before I could bear a stocking on, let alone a slide. Such crowds of people are. going out of town for Easter, we went down to the train on Thursday morning and the train was crowded and it was such a long train too, and lots of people have tried to reserve seats for to-night. I am very' fond of picnics but I like small ones best, about six or eight of your friends that you like l»est iaKuy idea of a perfect picnic. I was so sorry to hear about your mother. I hope a trip to Te Arolia will set her up again. Your family seem to have been in the wars; it was baby last time.—Cousin Kate.] 4- 4- 4Dear Cousin Kate,r—l am very sorry I did not write before. On the first of April, we'are going to a farm near Humansdorp. There is a river with a boat on it. At Easter Daddy is coming up. I hope you and all the other cousins had a happy Christmas and a happy New Year. I am seven years old. Our music teacher, Mrs Hutton, has eight little chicks, they are such dear little things. Our little kitten is getting quite big now.—From Cousin MINNIE. [Dear. Cousin Minnie,—l . don’t see how you can write very often, when it takes so long to get any answer, but I am always so pleased to hear from you. Do you like staying at farms. I am not at all sure that I do. but I would enjoy the river and the boat. I wonder if you will go out in it much.

1 v*pect Daddy will take you out on the river when he comes, won’t het Thank you, I think we all had a good time at" Christmas and I hope you did too. How is the music getting on, I should think your hands would be rather small yet-for you to begin to play much, • aren’t they. Most of our chicks are grown up now and the others are at their ugly Stage when all .the .fluff is. gone and the feathers have-not coine;- they look so. bare and unhappy, poor things.—Cousin Kate.] 4- 4* 4Dea.- Cousin Kate, —Just a little letter to .let you see 1 have not forgotten you. We have just had a nice fall of rain, after six weeks’ drought. I dressed a dear dolly for th- Inglewood Show. I made the dress of [link nuu’s-veilirig, amt 1 got a first prize. We found four little kittens, one yellow, one black, and twO yellow and white ones. We have, jolly times at school now, playing all sorts of games. We went to a picnic at Sentry Hill, ami we enjoyed ourselves so mueh. We Went to hear the Kilties’ Band, and the music was lovely. With love to all of the Cousins and yourself, from OLIVE (Sentry Hill). A riddle: What is it that goes from New Plymouth to Waitara without moving?— O.H. , f . . ; : . ; IDear Cousin Olive, —You would not think that just weeks without rain .would make such a difference, would.you? We were rather longer without it here, but of course, it doesn’t affect us so mueh m town. To-day it looks as if it wanted to rain, but couldn’t; and 1 for Ghc' wish it would, because it might cool the air; the heat is awful. 1 am glad you got first prize for your doll. I am sure it must havg looked very nice indeed. What will you do with all those kittens. 1 am always looking for a pure black kitten because I love them, and they are supposed to bring luck. So be sure to keep your black one. What sort of games do you play at school? Two of my little chums arc wildly excited because they have improved so mueh with their tennis that quite big girls will play with them. As for that riddle the only answer 1 can think of is the railway lines. Is that right?—-Cousin Katc-.l 4-4-4 ' Deftr .Cousin Kate/.— We take the “ Graphic ”. every week, and I often read it. 1 am eleven, and am in '.hr filth standard. If you like I will aske one of my friends to join the Cousins’ Pages. Dually of the children write stories? If they do I will write one next time. Will you send me a badge? What colours are they?—Cousin MARJORIE. . ■ I Dear Co.lisin Marjorie;-—I am always glad to have new cousins, but I only want them to join if they wish to. lam sending you a red badge, there are only two colours, red and dark blue, but they are both pretty, I think, and show up the gold lettering very well. Yes. some of the Cousins write stories, and if they are good ones we ar e always glad to print them, but of course the editor has to read them and decide if they are good enough, So be sure you write a very, good one indeed.—Cousin Kate.] 4- 4- 4Dear Cousin Kate. —May I become on of your many Cousins? 1 would like to see my letter in print; 1 would like a black badge, please, if you have one to spare. I go. to school, and I am in the third standard. There are only four white girls in the school. The name, of the school is Maraetaha, We have a cat called Nigger. She had four kittens; we gave three away. We have a farm called Puninga, and my brother looks after the sheep on it. I must say good night to you and the Cousins. —I remain, yourd truly, RITA.

IDear Cousin Rita,—l shall be very pleased to have you for a Cousin, and you shall have your wish by seeing your letter printed. I am always frightened to look at my letters after 1 have written them, because when I read them over they; only seem fit for the. waste-paper basket. I am sorry to say we haven’t any black badges; we only have red and bide ones. Sb I have sent you the next best, and that is a dark blue one.. I hope you will like it. Bow far are you from the town, and is >t a new place? I was staying down in Gisborne some time ago, and I don't remember hearing the name Maraetaha at all: It is up the line, 1 suppose. Did you call your cat Nigger because he was black? What colour is the kitten you kept, and wirat have you called itf-■ Cousin Kate.l . ... ... >, -