Children's Corner

Hutt News, Volume 3, Issue 1, 29 May 1930, Page 4

Children's Corner

THE SHAWL SELLER.

Up the street came the Shawl Seller. He was tall and strange 1 looking, his yellow hair was like thistledow silk^and his >green atommm^jfotf^Sß^. Sellm saw^her and ' ."Oh, he's cominl" whispered The Shawl Seller m^FVeneaph. her window, and snJLed up at her a lovely shimmering smiles "Do you want a shawl?"'he asked, and he lifted his arms, and the beautiful silk things rippled down from them like coloured waterfalls. ..* "Oh, what a lovely one!" cried. Bunty, pointing to a pink sha,wl with a fringe-of pink and silver shells hanging from it. "Would you like it?" said theJ Shawl Seller. .:^-.:'■",'\ "I've only got two sixpenc^.'V said Bunty shyly. * "Pooh! two sixpences wouldn't, buy this dream shawl," said" the Shawl Seller, waving it in the wind till it looked like a pink <*loud floating above his head. Then he dropped all his other shawls in a pool, of shinimering -colours at his long thin feet; and lifting his right arm he knotted the pink shawl to it, and it looked just like the sail of a ship fluttering f rorn_ a mast. "How-mueli is it ?" cried Bunty. "How much would you like to give for it?" laughed the Shawl, ■Seller, tossing it into her arms. "I want it more than anything else," whispered Bunty excitedly. "Little girl, the shawl is your," said the Shawl Seller, picking up his other shawls and wrapping them round and round his long thin arms, : t

'' Oh, thank you," cried Bunty, and she was going to throw him a big kiss when something pushed her roughly out of the way. . It was her Teddy Bear. Ancl before she could say a word her Noah ys Ark trundled along, then all her Polls came running, her .skipping rope, her hoop, and her nice new doll's pram, and they were off out of the window as fast as they could. * * Stop, stop!'' cried Bunty. But they didn't stop. You see Bunty had told the Shawl Seller that she wanted the shawl more than, anything else, and now v she was' not going to have anything else left.

How she cried as she saw the Shawl Seller striding away, way•v ing his long thin arms with their fluttering shawls, and all her toys going after him. Late that night she looked longingly out of her window, and saw far away over the tops of the houses and trees a thing dark figure with ail his gay shawls fluttering in the breeze and looking like butterflies in the moonlighty Then across the moon stole jljtifxti shadowy line. s^tioli, dear i" sobbed Bunty, ''fflrere go all my toys. I can see their shadows against the moon." Then she wrapped herself up in ~the dream shawl, and when she -work up there was no Shawl Seller, no shawl, and all her toys were tumbled about the nursery as untidily as 'ever.

But Bunty had learnt never to say one thing and meaji another.

"Would you mind giving me a wind-up before you go to sleep, Bruin?" he asked the friendly old Teddy Bear, \

Bruin fumbled with his clumpy paws to- find the little handle in the Tin Sailoit's back. '

•'' C-r-r-k, e-r-r-r-k, c-r-r^r-k!' * sounded in the nursery* as Bruin turned the handle..

"As tight as you can, please," whispered the Tin Sailor.

And when I>ruin had wound him up, he walked off in his funny little tick-tock manner across the floor. •:. ' - . :■'

Bruin turned away to hide a tear, because he felt sure the Tin Sailor was off at last. ' -;

And so. he was. / He felt dreadfully lonely as he walked through the deserte.4 town, then suddenly he came to a. stop, and wanted winding up again..- ---" Gli dear, ijkis is going to; be €he troiible,^

An old tramp was 'coming along So he called to liiiii r

"Would you please give me a wind^' -<X>: - 'i .^. " Certainly," said the tramp, aiid he.lifted ,the Tin.Sailor in his horny, hand and turned the key for him. * V . .

' 'As ti.ght as you can, please," beggo.cl the Tin Sailor.

Then he was off again. And so it. went''on, till at last he reached a big harbour where a Wig liner was just ready to sail.

He nearly broke his little clockwork heart to get up the gangway, and when he was half-way up, he stopped!

Someone knocked him over, and he; got kicked, by. the . hurrying feet, and it looked as if he would be sent tumbling down, into the sea.

Then a little girl, wi^p was going' aboard, stopped and picked 'Mm up.

''Oh! you darling' little thing,'' she said, "you- shall come on the ship with, me."

And when the. great ship sailed away, the Tin Sailor was safely aboard....

And now every day. he gets wound up, and off he goes walking the deck, and his little, tin heart is-tremendously happy.

He's got a few dents in him, and some oi' his paint is off, owing- to the knocking aboivt lie got on the gangway, but ho doesn't mind,: and. the little girl doesn >J mind either. She loves him just the same.

JPHE TIN SAILOR WHO WENT r to sea.

j % Everyone in the nursery Jiked the little Tin Sailor, but he never looked as if he meant to stay and settle down. For one thing, he always kept on his sailor's hat, and besides, he'd got a far-away look in his eyes.

And so one moonlight night, when he thought of the big, tumbling, blue waves, and the salty taste of sea-spray on his Jittle tin lips^ he decided to go.