THE WENDY HUT

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIII, 3 August 1929, Page 10

THE WENDY HUT

BILLIKINS DOES A LITTLE GARDENING

I’m weary of digging, and hoeing, and raking! Can’t think why the soil’s so determined on “caking.” There’s a. great big clod here— Must be broken, Unit’s clear— Biff! Bang! Now my spade’s bent— P’raps it’s high time that I went Away to my own Hut to dodge a good shaking!

I chanted my dreary little dirge, and -slunk away to the Villakins to avoid the wrath of our Wendy lady. • Hates bent tools, does the Wendy lady! Did you know she had. gone clean crazy over a queer-looking wooden thing she fondly calls a “pergola?” A lot of little tree trunks nailed on top, and a few stray bits stuck on here and there. I thought it Mas some new kind of gymnasium- idea that we were meant to climb and do “stunts” on. .So I climbed. And I swung about like a real acrobat, until Tink saw me. She yelled like mad to “come down, else Wendv-will be furious.” And I came doMm—ever so quickly, upside down, into a bed of Wendy’s favourite plants! Horrid mess I made of them, too! And, honestly, I u r as awfully sorry, because I know it must be aggravating to have your pet garden-bed spoiled bv someone sitting on it! To punish myself, I volunteered to dig and hoe and rake any patch of garden Wendy liked to say. She gave me the very hardest bit she could find —just like a girl!—and said if I had it all broken up* and raked by teatime, she would sa.V no. more about the ruined plant bed. I worked hard, boys—really hard. But you know how tired you get when people set you to do the dirty work while they get on with the “pretty-pretty” jobs like taking off dead leaves, tying up stray stems, and generally pottering about!’ So I sang my sad little song, bid my bad little spade, and crept silently away—hoping things wouldn’t be noticed. But Wendy has just been looking at ■her pergola; now she’s going to the patch she set me-to dig—now she’s coming here—help! WENDY’S LITTLE DRESSMAKERS One Wendy lady has asked for instructions for making m-001 flowers, and another wants a pretty new trimming for a liat she had last year. We thought it would be nice to combine the two requests this n - eek, and answer them both at once. What eoulcl be prettier than a wreath of gay flowers to cheer up a plain straw or felt hat, with a posy of similar flowers to wear f!i your buttonhole? We’ll start with Die big daisies on the first hat, shall we? These are made of loops of yellow' wool, seivu on to a linen button which serves as a foundation. First eover the button with a wee scrap of orange ribbon, then thread a big-eyed needle with yellow wool, and work a series of loops about an inch long all round the foundation, as shown in diagram B. When you’ve gone all round the button, the flower will be finished and should look like diagram A. When you have made enough daisies to wreathe your hat, sew them in posi-

tion round the crown, and sew some green wool stitches directly on to the straw, here and there, to suggest leaves. If you want to make a buttonhole of similar daisies, you must go over the under side of the foundation buttons with green wool to hide the stitches,

and you can make the stems of wire, covered with the same green wool. Now for the other posy. To make each wee blossom, take a strand of green wool, about 0 inches long, and double it. Now thread a needle with wool in the colour you want the flower to be, and work four or five loops round the doubled end of the green wool,' as shown in diagram E. Make a tiny centre to each flower with yellow wool, and it will look like diagram D. Tie up the blossoms daintily—you’ll want quite :10 to make a good bunch—arid the posy is ready for stitching to the side of your hat, or pinning to your buttonhole. Flowers in shades of yellow, orange, and brown will look pretty on a beige hat; pink, blue, and mauve •blossoms would be sweet for a grey hat—but, of course, you’ll use colours to suit your clothes. Diagram C shows vou-what the finished bunch ought to look like. Don’t you just long to begin ! —Wendy’s Dressmaker. THE PRINCESS AND HER RESCUERS There was once a captive princess who made friends with a cherry tree which grew outside her prison window. She would talk to it for hours, and it would whisper back and make lovely picture*- for her to look at. First she would see it decked out in white blossoms; then in its robe of green; then spangled with red cherries; and, lastly, all black like the veins in a butterfly’s wing against the sky. In the spring, the princess used to give strands of her golden hair to the tree, for. the very end of its branches could just reach her hand stretched through the prison bars. The golden hair was passed on to the birds, who built their nests with it. When the sun shone, it was a wonderful sight to see those golden nests in the cherry tree!

Now there was a prince who used to go hunting not far from the prison. On certain days when he passed along that road lie noticed something bright flashing from an old cherry tree leaning against the prison wall. At last he rode Up to see what it was. “Nests of golden hair!” he exclaimed.

So amazed was he that he looked through the prison bars arid beheld the princess, whom he determined to rescue. This took some time, but at last he cut through the bars, and carried the princess off to' his castle. She was overcome with delight, but she never know whom she should thank most for her wonderful escape: tlpj cherry tree, the birds, the sun, or the prince ? “One could have done nothing without the others,” she laughed, “so i thank you all, and I hope you also will live happy ever after” OUR SWEET-MAKING CORNER CHOCOLATE DROPS To,, three tablespoonsful of castor sugar add two of unsweetened, grated chocolate, and mix to a smooth paste with a very little milk. The paste should be quite thick and very well mixed. Put the saucepan over a low-turned gas ring, and cook the mixture for five minutes, stirring all the time. Remove the saucepan from the heat, drop sinall quantities of chocolate from the spoon on to a greased paper, and allow to set. You can cover almonds, ginger cubes, or seedless raisins witli this mixture if you like, instead of making plain chocolate drops. Place the almonds, etc., on a greased tin, and drop the chocolate carefully .over them. TINK’S CROSS-WORD PUZZLE How did my tinies get on with last week’s puzzle? You remember I gave you quite a simple one, to encourage you to try! Here is the solution, from which you will sec that, tire hidden place-name was Sandgate. If you studied the picture, you noticed there was an S and a gate. S and gate make Sandgate—see.

ACROSS I. Make glossy. (Polish) 5. Tree. (Fir) (i. Not in. (Out) 7. Conjunction. (Or) 10. Exclamation of sorrow. (Alas) 13. Hidden name. (Sandgate) 10. Pronoun. TThy) .17. Sorrow. (Woe), 18. Pronoun. (Us), 20. Answers. (Responds) ■ DOWN

1. Deep hole. (Pit). 2. Same as 7 across. (Or). 3. Therefore. (So). 4. The Wendy (Hut). 7. Not, young. (Old). 8. Tatter., (Rag). 1). A flower. (Aster). lb. Some. (Any). 11. A cutting tool. (Saw). 12. Scoffs. (Jeers). 14. Exclamation. (Ah). 15. Preposition. • (To). 18. Not down. (Up). 10. Same as 3 down. (So). Now look at this week’s picture. Two boys are dividing sweets, but there is one over! This one might be called—the word you will find in the puzzle! Clues:— ACROSS 1. South American Republic. 5. Employed. 9. On top. 10. Dried up (leaves, etc). 11. Compass point, 12. Animal. , 13. “Thanks.” 14. Meadow. 17. French for “and.” 18. Hidden word. 10. Pronoun. 21. Small bay or creek. 22. Therefore. 23. Evergreen climbing plant. 25. Plaything. 2G. Manner or appearance. 28. Small burrowing animal. 20. Besides. 30. Sown in gardens. DOWN 1. Favourite entertainment. 2. A volcano. 3. Small deer. 4. Not down. 5. Pronoun. 0. Ocean. 7. Gaelic dialect. 8. Deinblishcd'. 14. Bixt,y-fiVe (Roman numerals). 15. Famous English hoys’ school. 10. Part of verb ‘to he.’ 20. Wicked. 22. Flat fish. 24. Affirmative. 25. Part of the foot. 27. Compass point. 28. Manuscript (abbreviated). ■\ ? • , . " The Billy Boy’s frick corner will be found on the next page.