Children's Column.

Digger (Invercargill RSA), Issue 12, 4 June 1920, Page 12

Children's Column.

Dear children, this is a little stoiy sent_ in by an Invercargill girl aged 13. We are publishing it just as we received it and think it very good. Mater would be very pleased to receive little stories from children, so see what you can do and address your letter to "Mater," care Editor "Digger,"Box 310, Invercargill. HOW BETTY'S WISH WAS GRANTED. ' 'Oh ! nurse dear, if I could only see the Prince ! I would never be cross and tiresome to you again," sighed little Betty, an inmate of the children's ward of one of our large hospitals. "If only one of the good f airies you told ma,. about, would just whisper in his ear, that there was a sick little girl (who had lost her dear daddy in that dreadful war), just longing to see him."

"Well, dear," said the kind nui'se, smoothing her pillow, "fairies quite often grant good children their wishes." So Betty, thinking of the Prince and the fairies, fell asleep, and while she slept she dreamed she saw the Prince enter the ward and walk about among the cots. At last he came and stood beside her's, and, taking her hand in his, said, "Dear little girl, I' have come from his Majesty the King, to thank you for the great sacrifice your dear father made, in laying down his life for his King and country." With the sound of sweet band music, ; Betty awoke to find that her dream was true, and that the Prince was really standing beside her cot-, smiling down at her, and saying kind words about her daddy. The nurse, knowing the child's great wish, unknown to Betty, had placed at the head of the cot a card with the words, "The child of one of our fallen heroes," written on it. So Betty's wish was granted, and she evermore believes in fairies. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT. MARY CONTRAIRY. Miss Mary Contrairy, so story-books say, would live in the garden the whole of , the day; with silver-bell flowers, and cockle-shells fine; and pretty maid blossoms all standing in line! But Mary Contrairy — poor darling, thereV more to hear of the reason she lived out-of-door. She dared not go into the cottage, not she; for there she was treated, oh, so cruelly ! Poor Mary Contrairy! When she was quite wee, an old witch had picked her up under a tree had taken her home and treated her so, that Mary's short life had been quite filled with woe ! The Witch had four daughters, Amelia and Ann, Ophelia and Delia. "And do what I can," poor Mary would sob, "yet I can't please those girls ; they shont at me so, that my poor head quite whirls !

"They call me Contrairy; they call me a goose ; tliey call me a silly ! Sp what is the use of staying indoors, where I cry till I'm blind ? I'll go to the garden; the flowers are kind!" So out in the garden -poor Mary would stay the most of the night and the whole of the day. She'd talk to the flowers, and water them, too, and dig them and hoe them, and see that they grew. And so, though OpheKa, Amelia, and Ann, and Delia did all that such nasty girls can do to make the child's life just as hard as they could, yet plants were her friends, and that did Mary good ! But oh! one sad morning when Mary came round to talk to her flowers and dig up the ground, she' saw the earth hard and the wind blew so chill; and all of her darlings looked drooping and ill. "Dear Mary," they sobbed out, "Dear Mary, good-bye ! The winter is coming; and though we shan't die, we can't stand the cold, dear, and so we must go. Dear Mary, good-bye, you will miss us, we know P' Oh, poor little Mary, how lonely she was; she'd no one to play with; she'd no toys because she'd never had presents; she'd no toys, not one; and all through the winter she'd no games for fun ! But one night she happened to hear witch -girl Ann and all of her sisters at chat on a plan. "Oh, Christmas is com- \ ing!" said tliey "Cherrio! For Santa

brings presents at Christmas, we know ! "We'll ask him for. ball-dresses, bangles, and rings and bracelets and brooches and all kinds of things !" And when their long list came at last to an end. "I wish Santa'd give me," sighed Mary, "a friend !" Oh dear, what a noise ! How those four bad. girls screamed. "To think," cried they all, "that you'd dare to have dreamed that you'd get gifts, Mary ! Indeed, what a joke" — they held their fat sides just as if they would choke. 'Twas no laughing matter for Mary; "Oh ! Oh!" she sobbed, and she ran alone out in the snow. "Oh, flowers," she cried, "Oh, I know you can't hear 'because you are sleeping, but still you are near ! "And I'm so unhappy!" but, just as she spoke, the sound of sweet silver-bells ringing awoke. "We're deep in the ground," called the flowers; "but come, dear Mary, crpep down, we will find you" a home!" "Walk, on, you're quite safe!" rang the silver-bells true. "Walk on, find a home!" called the Pretty Maids, too. "Walk on, darling Mary," the cockle-shells said, as Mary walked under her own garden-bed ! Oh, on, on she walked; oh, a long way she passed ; but she wasn't frightened, and, sudden, at last, why, there was a great forest, stretching so wide, and there was a wee cottage by the road-side ! And there was a sledge drawn up outside the door, oh, filled up with toys till it could hold no more ; and out of the cottage that minute there ran the ' dearest and kindest white-bearded old man !

But when he saw Mary he pulled up his deer. "My darling," he called, "how on earth came you here ? You've tears on your cheeks ; tell mp why. dear, because — I love little children, and I'm Santa Claus ! "All through the long year while I'm making my toys for all little children*good girls and good boys— I want a wee girlie to laugh round and play and dress all the dollies and have her own way! "So, will you ^ot live here " and Santa Claus smiled, and Mary Contrairy, the poor lonely child, ran into his arms' and was hugged, oh, so tight, and she's lived in Santa Claus' Land since that nirfit !.