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CHILDREN'S COLUMN.
UNCLE HARRY'S LETTER.
No. CCXL.
Monday, February 6.
My dear Nieces and Nephews—Our
Fourth Annual "Sunbeam" Picnic has
p oved just a little too much for "the
Biggest 'Sunbeam' of them all," as I am
told some one so described your loving
Uncle. The gentlemen who so ably acted
as marshals, and the others who rendered
such good and cheerful service at the picnic,
relieved me of "the burden of the day;"
but the dozens of details that had to be
aranged and attended to right up to the
day itself, and the inevitable anxiety lest
anything should be forgotten, made up a
strain that has resulted in my doctor order-
ing "complete rest and quiet for a few
days."
So, my dear dear "Sunbeams," I am com-
! lulled to afeain ask'/you to: "let ine -off"
! tyi-itingas'ibiig "a letter ras T would like;]
I and to -please excuse whatever is lacking in :
: the: way 'of iacknowledgirients. This, much
1 must . sajV however, that I was exceed-j
: ingly.- pleased "with the behaviour and bear- |
;• iiij; of my multitude ;Of - "{Sunbeams" all 1
through fee day. ■' Spite" of the' delay in
s flirting and our consequent delay in reach
ing Gawler, spite of the; heat that, made the
long march to the grounds ■■so tiring to us
all, and spite of the fact ijiat tve . were
fully an hour later in arriving. there tlian
had been expected, 1 . heard no.- serious'
murmur or complaint from .a single'"Sun
beam." Tliey bore up bravely, and even
brightly, nil through; and 1 am justly
proud of them. Here let me say. too, that
J had no idea that the route taken by us
to the grounds would be so long. It was at
the wish of the Mayor of Gawler and some
of the residents whom 1 consulted that we
went up Murray-street, and it was doubt
less the half hour's waiting in the road
"■ way for the arrival of the second train
from town that made the march partieur
lariy trying to some. Even so, as 1 have
already stated, 1 heard no grumbling from
the- "Sunbeams" themselves. The few
murmurs that reached my ears came from !
some of the lady leaders, and perhaps they
spoke hastily. j
The Picnic, as a whole, must be accoun
ted the most successful we have ever held.
The muster was bv far the largest, and I
am sure the good folks of Gawler and our
"Sunbeams" and friends from tne district
must have been surprised at the display.
Jf only the result is a definite stimulus to
"b'unbeam" work all around, 1 will look
upon my few days' indisposition as but a
small payment for such a good return.
"S. '.T. Way" Circle, Mount Torrens, February 3. '
Dear Pride Harry—1 have been asked to write
tIn: -Circle letter, but I have never written one
before, bo perhaps it won't be AI. We hnvc
started Circle meetings after the Christmas holi
days, and have got 12b. fid. already, which I
think a very good start. Wo liavc a few things
t«- sell, and perhaps will make some more and
have a bazaar. We arc going to get up an ope
retta called "The old woman who lived in a
shoe," which ought to be very successful. It is
tr. he held on May 24- (Queen's Birthday).""' 1
think this is all I have to say this time. With
love to all from the Circle.—1 remain, your lov- j
ing Nephew, Bert Parsons. ' |
1 thank the following for Circle letters:
-Oh, how few to what there should be!
■ sWociate-Kiece Bessie Fisher, Secretary,
"Try Again;" Niece Amy Chapman, fSeere
ti.rv, "Sunflower:" Niece Lily Brown, and
Associate:Niece Maud (Jallaghan, "Alma" j
Circle. |
As no "best letters" appeared last week
1 am giving you two extra:— I
Broken Hill, January 22. j
Dear Uncle Harry — I am going to
tell you that wc had a small Christ
mas - tree. There were three of us—
Irene Danyon, Connie Hall, and Olive Traynor.
\\" got ids. Oar expenses were all free, so we
w ,•]•(, very clear. Besides the Christmas-tree, we
had the tea stall. On the Christmas-tree we had ]
do!'-' dresses, dolls' bonnets, and all sorts of balls, I
mats, lolly baskets, bunches of cherries, and a lot ]
of fancy lollies. If you remember I had a bazaar j
once before. We are coming to see you when we ;
go to Adelaide, tliat is next month. 1 think I
must, close, with love to Aunt Sophie, Cousins
Bessie, Bertie, and little Sunbeam, and tlie baby, :
not forgetting yourself. 1 gave the money to the 1
Sunbeam cot up here.—J remain, your loving
Niece, Olive Truynor.
Tarlce, January 2».
Dear Uncle Harry—This is the first time I have
'ever written to you. 1 spent my Christinas holi
days at home, helping mother and playing. 1
like going to school. The school teacher is very
good to us. On Saturday I help mother by clean
ing the knives and forks, and other little things.
1 got some nice presents for Christmas. 1 am in
the third class at school, and I
went to New Year's picnic and spent
a nice day, hut it was a hot day. I
went to our school picnic, two. 1 did not win
any of the races.—I remain, your loving Niece,
May Cwynne.
Cameron East, January 27.
Dear Uncle Harry—This is my third letter, but
tliey were not- printed in the paper last year. X
an. in the third class. My birthday is on the
fourteenth day of February. That day Mary Up
pill is coming up to our place. We are going
to have some fun. Wc have two such dear little
ponies. 1 am going for my holidays. We are
soon going to our new school; then I will be
glad. Good-by.—With love to all, from your lov
ing Niece, Ida Neville.
Alberton, February 5.
Dear Uncle Harry—I went to Gawler with the
■ •''Sunbeams." It was very nice, and 1 saw such
a lot of my cousins. On Christmas Day I had
the measles, and I iiad to stay in bed for a week,
' so I could not go to Gladstone or Caltowic to see
my aunties. But we are going at Easter time. My
Cousin Fritz i6 a "Sunbeam, too. He is such a
dear little fellow. One of my cousins was in the
Gawler Band. Father bought two little shell
parrots, one for Nina and one for me; and we
have four such dear little kittens. They have just
opened their e.vc6. So good-by, /'dear Uncle
Harry. Give .my love to Aunt Sophie, and Cousins
Bessie, Bertie, Sunbeam, and dear little baby.—
From your loving Niece, Vera Kearney.
Capper-street, Kent Town, February 2.
Dear Uncie Harry—i will be thirteen on Feb
ruary C. I did not write earlier in the month,
as I did not mind about my name not being in
the paper. I always think that it is a pity to
lake up all that room for the birthday list, as
no one hardly ever reads it; but at the 6ame time
did not want you to think that I had got care
less about writing to you. 1 have just read the
account of the "Sunbeam" dinner at Lambeth,
and felt very sorry for those who wanted "just
a peep. Guv'nor." I like the Pulteney-gtreet
School very much, and am sure you "will be very,
glad to hear that 1 got a good report at Cliristmts.
I did hot; go out much in the holidays, but I had.
a good read. I' am going to be confirmed On
Saturday week. Having no more news to write
you, I. .will conclude with love to Aunt Sophie, the
Cousins, and yourself. — 1 remain, your loving
Nephew, Archie Saunders.
I. was pleased to ripc^ive letters also from
the following:—Assotipte-Neices Agnes
Jane Bain (write. .to_iiie as often as .you
like), 'Ada 13. Castle" (thanks for Is. for
Home), Lucie Crossland, F.M;, Eva MeKeh
zie, F.M., Eunice Newell, Kosetta Mary
O'Keilly, Hifda I'etertjon^F.M'., Came l'ott,
F.M. (is it true the "l'ansy"' Circle, is to
-be revived?—! hope so), Ethel Spurr, Iris
Weber, Nellie Winfield (do try to start a
Circle again), and Edith Wyly; Associate-
Nephews Henry M. Bohnsack, F.M. (I wish
there were many more of my Nephews who
would "feel quite lost without the 'Sun-
beam' Society"), and Walter Holdernesse;
Nieces Minna Batten, Hilda Beevor, Susie
Beiiyman, Bthelwyn Caterer, F.M., Bessie
M. Uegg, Ruby Cole, P.M., Gwendoline M.
Cowan .(as you say, dear, "there must have
been some mistake '), Esther Davison (you
must write "vr'thin. a".- month" of your
Birthday if you wish it .to he remembered),
Dora Eaton, Violet Fagg, Alice Ferres (so
glad I remembered your Birthday),- Vera
Fisher, Ed a Godsmark (fancy having "three
ys!"), Doris.'E." llolloway, Nina
Uncle Harrys! ,,
Elsa Kearney,' - F.M., • Floris Kenny,
Marion , Lewis, Nessie Magarev, Irene
B. May, Ivy; Muirhead, Lily A. New
ton,' Pearl Nieass, Ka.thcrii.ie E. Phillips
(yes, Certainly—"keep on wriling" to me till
vou are twenty-one, and still longer if yon
like), Ella Sehuetze, Mary .Swanton, Nellie'
Waldin (yes, dear;, duly received, and un
sorry if not as duly acknowledged), Elsie
Wallace, and Ada Woodlands; Nephews
Willie Berry man, Shirley Donaldson, F.M.
(a kiss to baby Grace), Hilton Ford, Willie
Hodder, Frank Noitage (a. very nicely
written letter), George Part, F.M..:' C.
Leonard Silke, F.M., Herbert W. Tapp
(very neat), Alan Wallace, and Leonara
Western (well done, 'winner of the ''Sun
beam" Handicap!).. - '
I would be sorry to think- that the majo
rity of my "Sunbeams'' agreed with what
Nephew Archie Saunders lias said in his
letter' about the Birthday-list.. It is a
trouble to prepare, and I often grudge the
space it occupies in the Letter; but - for
many reasons I would not-like to discon
tinue it. It very often serves as
a most useful _ reminder to some
sleepy "Sunbeam" that he or she
is not forgotten, and I have many
times received a letter commenting thus:—
"I felt ashamed to see my Birthday remem
bered. though 1 had not written for so
long." This, of course, would be from one
who had just reached the age of fifteen;
in which case, and as a. gentle reminder, I
always remember the Birthday. And, cu
riously enough, the same mail that brought
Nephew Archie's letter brought one also
from a little Niece who had been too ill to
write within the prescribed time, and who
was quite overcome with joy to find her
Birthday was duly remembered. Her
mother wrote:—"Alice was too ill to write
to you in time for her Birthday, and she
cried bitterly about it. Wheal 1 told her
you bad it in the paper she said that
'Jesu's little bird must have told Uncle
Harry I was ill and eonld not write.' " So,
as long as I am likely to receive such pleas
ing evidence that the Birthday-list is appre
ciated by some, I will keep on its publica
tion. Perhaps this little chat about it will
cause some to take more interest in it than
now appears to be the case.
MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY.
NOTICE.—Only (hose "Sunbeams" who write to
Uncle Hairy witliin a month of tlicir birthday will
have it remembered.
"Sunbeams" must write to Uncle Hairy imme
diately atter their FIFTEENTH Birthday asking
to be enrolled as an Associate, otherwise their
connection with the Society ceases.
To-morrow, February 12tii, to Bessie M. Clegg,
F.M., Exeter (11); Stanley Willington, Kilkenny
(15); Philip lluddock, Hilton (15); Emma Hunt,
Parksido (15); Edward Guy Stirling, Stratbalbyn
(15); Dorothy Sutherland, Augas-street (10); Ag
nes II. Richardson, Mount Barker (10); Mary F.
Arnold, Royal-avenue, City (15); Gertrude M.
Jordan, Watervale (10); Henry B. Knapp Park
side (14); Helen (1. Jordan, Watervale (10); Mar
tha E. Simpson, Kesimark (12).
On Monday, 13th, to Nettie l'ulleine, Lobetlial
(A.); Ruby Robertson, Gawlcr (15); Win. O.
Roichstein, Morcliard (15); Bernard D. Ward,
Plympton (10); Edith Cooper, Bugle Ranges (10);
Linda Myrtle Weeks, Walkerville (15); Edmnnd
Frank Both, Oaltowie (8); Bessie K. Teague, Kil
kenny (15); Matilda Reynolds, Soutli-road (15);
Effia R. Z. Barker, Angaston (13); Jas. Edwd.
Ifewtou, Miulaton (13); Hugh Wm. Little, Taiia
(12).
On Tuesday, 14th, to Maude R. Godlco, Chan
dada Station (15); Violet Hutchinson, Clarendon
(15); Evelyn Esscrj", Norwood (13); llarold V.
Wiilson, Willson River, K.I. (15); Nellie
M. Reed, Glanvillc (15); Alice Reodman,
Walkerville (16); Ida Neville, Cameron East (0);
Mary K. K. King, Williumstown (10); Ruby Wliea
(on, Colliiisfleld (10); Willie Berryman, Alfred
street (11); Harold F. Rogers, Blancbetown (10);
Doris Marjorie West, Rose Park (0); Harry C.
Uren, Kadina (14); Clarice Solomon, Prospect
(0); Waller P. Fradd, Beetaloo (9).
On Wednesday, 36th, to Hilda Beevor, Sema
phore (11); Grace L. Foggo, Woodville '15); Wal
lace Baker, Melbourne-street, N.A. (8); Susie
Berryman, Alfred-street (14); Eflie Vera l'avy,
Wilmington (10).
On Thursday, 16t.li, to Gertie Raymond, F.M.,
Prospect North (15): Lucy Gurr, East Adelaide
(A.); Muriel Buckerfield, Gawler (9); Lucy Wiek
ins, Morcliard (15); Eleanor Kerridge, Portland
Ward (15); Hurtle H. Earle, Helton (30V Fred. T.
Weeks, Noarlungu (8); Albert. Ernest Graves, Pa
radise (7); Grace Ellen Howard, Goodwood (15);
Edward 1*. Forrest, Keswick (7); Garnet M.
South, Mount Gambier (14); Ellen L. Edmonds,
Macclesfield (35); Wm. Matzko, Klorieton (11);
Francis C. Sergeant, South Broken Bill (A.);
Arthur IV. Kirk, Brixton, London (7); Clarence D.
Huttcriek, Solomontowu (14); Ella Maud Butte
rick, Solomontowu (14).
On Friday, 17th, to Carrie Poti, F.M., Sandwell
(A.); Tlios. Jotfes, F.M., Payneliam (15); Ethel
Maudo l-.ee, F.M., Oaltowie (A.); Lizzie Scovell,
K.M., Watervale (15); Bertha M. Kelly, Clare
(15); Ida P. Anderson, Brighton (8); Leslie M.
W. South, North Adelaide (7); Rachel M. Par
sons, New Glenelg (9); Nesiic Maearev, llind
marsh (12); Albert Jas. Schmidt, Mannuhi (15).
On Saturdayj 18th, to Ada Maxflcld, Yatala
(15)) Beryl Hayipan," Melboume-street. N.A. (0);
Myrac Lock, fiiayiands (15); JqIhi Mudge,' Streaky
Bay (15); Henry . G. It. .. Allert, Han8dn-6trcet
(16)>, Ellen' M. (Jallagher, Ar'cher-strcet,' N.A.
(15);. Alice:®. White. Beverley. (12); Margt Ho-:,
wen; Clare (15)'; Hilda. F-'. Bugg, Ltedfern (9). ■
' I quite expected thiB week to be able to
give you All'. Kirk's promised long letter
about the "Sunbeam" Christmas dinner to
London waits.- But-the letter 1 havejubt
received from that gentlemanjtfells me of his
having been . unable to fiifd the neces
sary leisure' to write as fully as
he wished, to do; but. that when
lie wrote again he would .also send
copies of the very nice replies he had re
ceived from various celebrities in response j
to an invitation to be present at the din
ner. So there is something in store for us
yet.
. It is rarely my privilege to acknowledge
such a beautiful gift as the following origi
nal verses, written by one of our Senior
"Sunbeams," who, as an Associate, gained
the prize offered in the early days of our
Society for the best poem composed upon it.
I heartily thank the writer for her charm
ing gift.
LITTLE "SUNBEAM'S" LULLABY.
Little "Sunbeam," slumber sweetly
On thy pillows soft and white,
Do not fear that aught will liarm thee
Through the long and darksome nightf
Angels fair are guarding o'er thee,
They will watch; and with thec stay
Till the hours of shadow vanish
In the light of golden day.
Little "Sunbeam," sweetly sleep
While the angels vigil kcep. . .
Little "Sunbeam," whilst thine eyelids
Nestle o'er tho6C orbs of blue,
Loving angels down from heaven
Bear bright jewels unto you—
On thy lips they place the "Peace" pearl,
In thine eyes the gems of "Youth,'
On thy forehead God's own diamonds,
"Purity" and "Love" and "Truth."
Little "Sunbeam," slumber now,
God"? gems glisten on thy brow.
Little "Sunbeam," when thou wakest
Count-thy jewels, one by one;
Treasure, all, and use eacli rightly,
While the hours of daylight fun;
For when night again is hov'ring,
Angels back to heaven wilt bear
Each untarnished gem, and leave it
Safe in God's own keeping there.
Little "Sunbeam," day by day -
Guard those gems, which last for aye.
—Evelyn.
jl have to thank Nieces Florrie and Myrtle
Davies, Elsie Seaman, Hilda and Alma
Hammer, of Gawler, for the sum of f 1 3s.,
being the amount raised by a bazaar held
last December, and J heartily echo the wish
of these little helpers that they may be able
to assist further "in the near future." Why,
what a nucleus is here of another good
Circle in Gawler! ■
I also thank Associate-Niece Edith Tre
vaill, of Wayville, for the sum of, 2s., raised
at a penny concert'given "in our trap-shed"
by her brother Albeit and Masters A.
Warne, K. and li. Milton, T. Bown, L.
Burdon, and J. Barry. Here again is surely
the nucleus of an excellent hoys' "Sun
beam" Circle. Why not try, lads?
] thank Niece Jessie Eraser for a bundle
of old magazines and books, which doubt
less "Magpie" will make good use of. I
am always glad to get any copies of the
better class of illustrated papers, as the
pictures will do for scrap-albums and
screens, but the penny magazines, &.C., had
better be sent addressed to "Magpie," care
of "The li agister" Office, as she undertakes
to distribute them where needed.
I have to thank the "Harriet B. Stowe"
Circle, of Hamley Bridge, for a very good
group photo. 1 note that this Circle has
lost its excellent Leader, Miss F. A. Hus
tler, by reason of her removal to Fort Ade
laide, and J earnestly hope they may soon
succeed in getting some one to take her
place.
Next week the "Ian Mac-laren" Circle, of
Alberton, will please send some flowers to
Broken Hill Hospital, and the following
week (ending February 25) 1 will ask the
"Argyle" Circle, of Lower Mitcham, to
do so.
On Saturday, February 18, I am to be at
the Lobethal Institute with the "Sunbeam"
graphophone, and on- the Sunday afternoon
1 have promised to address the children on
"Sunbeam" work.
Now. dearies. I must say good-by.
With love from Aunt Sophie and the
Cousins.
1 am, yours affectionately,
$