THE CHILD AND THE ANGEL

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 212, 26 November 1927, Page 29 (Supplement)

THE CHILD AND THE ANGEL

An angel, about to leave the world, saw a child sleeping- in some long grass. “What a lovely child!” exclaimed the angel. “Surely it must have been stolen from heaven.” And to make quite sure that the little one really belonged to the earth, and that its body was made o£ perishable stuff, the angel, with two fingers of its divine hand —lingers rosy with the beauty and tint of heaven, touched the baby cheeks. He touched them quite close to the mouth on either side of the lips, at the place w'liere ends the circle of smiles. Then, reassured, the angel said: "The child is really human after all,’’ and, leaving the little one still sleeping in the long grass, he flew away. But, where they had rested his lingers had left their prints, and to this day, when children smile, dimples appear in their cheeks.

THREE LITTLE WITCHES Three little witches Pranced in the garden, Three little witches Danced from the moon; One wore a wishing hat, One held a pussy-cat, One went a pitty-pat And whispered a tune. Out flew an owl Who glared at the kitten, Out flew an owl Who stared at the rest, Dancing, with haughty nose, Each on the other’s toes, Down past the pumpkin rows Under his nest. Three little witches Blew on their broomsticks. Three little witches Flew to their queen, Over the windy glen Into the night . . . But then They will be back again Sometime, I ween. HOPPITY Hoppity was a most unhappy elf, who lived under an old fern on the edge of a lake. Because of his queer feet the other elves called him “Hoppity.” He went hoppity-hop all day looking for tiny soft seeds to eat, and his face was even funnier than his feet. It’s bad enough being an ordinary dwarf, but a dwarf elf has a dreadful time, because elves aren’t half as kindhearted as people. When they play a trick they think it is a joke. For instance, they’d say: ‘‘This acorn is mouldy—give to to Hoppity,” and then they would laugh when Hoppity started to eat it. And when the Sky Princess, stepping out of the ra’ribow, said she had come to find the handsomest elf in existence to bo her husband, they said, sniggering behind their backs: “Oh, you’re sure to like Hoppity.” They dragged him, struggling, from his little hiding-place. He cried, because he knew how beautiful the princess was, and he didn’t want her to laugh at him. They took no notice of his tears, but laughed as they dragged him along. The princess was standing waiting, as lovely as the rainbow she lived in. She clasped her hands when she saw Hoppity, saying: ‘‘Oh, how beautiful he is.” And the other elves did get a surprise. They looked at Hoppity, and saw his oddities had disappeared, and he had grown taller than the tallest elves. The princess took his hand, and together they stepped into the rainbow, and went to the princess's home, where they lived happily ever after. Small Boy (looking forward to his birthday-party that evening): Oh, Mummy, what shall I do? Baby has torn the date off the calendar and made it to-morrow!