November 1922 School Magazine

BRISBAND cInLS' Cna.nt^nAn SCflOOf, VfaCAZtr.iE. Novem,ber. 1922 Margo and Billy in Babyland.

Margo was a very pretty litile girl of the age of five, her hair was of a light golden shade, and her eye,s were lar.ge and brown. llillie was her litt,le ,brother. He had rather . a riark complexion with short blalck, wavy hair. ()ne dir.i' when Marrgo's Mumrny was arrang- iug lhe flolvers in the vases, and the litile gill was standing,by her side, she asked, '^]\{umm-v, is it true that I rcame oul of a firlwer?" "Yes, my dear; it is quite true, you calle out of a beautiful twhite rosebud, antl you were the ,sweetest litile baby I've seetr, a.l1 pink and white." ,,Well, Mulmmy, what dirl Ililly co'me out o,f ?,, ..He came out of a big, dark, red poppy; that is why he is sr_r tla.rk." "But, Mummy, where diil ,we con. fi't}iu, and hotv did we get here?', ,,Oh, a big stork brought you here fro,m Bahyland, where ;r,ll '"he flol'er-babies grow in rows all over thc glounds. It is a very beautiful place.,, All that day Margo could thin;k of nothing else but Batbyland, and how she wou.ld love ro go there, That ni,ght rvhen everlbody was asleep the, children were awakened with a start, lfor there in front of the,m rvas a lit,ile olcl man with a long bearcl. "I am trather Lucas from Baby- lantl," he said, and tiren tbeckoned them to f ollotrv him. So they jumped out o,f bed tluickly unrl ,put on their dres,sing gowns and slippers. Irather Lucas then bade them (lrink sorne stuf'f that lookecl like water. Whe- they did, they knerw not another ,thing, but seern€rd to feel themselves floating slci.,vly tllrough the air. Then they heard the tiny tinkling of a. little bell, ancl there they rrvere standing in,front of a hu,ge palr of gates, rvit.h a. no1.ice "'I'o Tlabyland" in iarge blach Jetter|s. and t'ather Lucas 1ry2s ringing the Itel1. P!'oselltl), the gates were openecl ,by

0wo big storks that lookerl ,like giants to the ch.ildren. They wers led up a paih through beaut,i'ful gardens, where it had a sign ,,The Flower Garden." Father Lucas took them through this and told them all about the different florilers, and how cruel it was for people to pi'ck them bercause they have lives as rvell as we, and they always withered ancl died wilh sorro$' and .grierf when t.hey were taken a,way fro,m the rest of the fa.m.ily and relations, and put ryith stran,ge flo,wers in vases, but it rwas alrlght if the same kinds were put torgefher. Then they left, this sar- den and walked further up the ;path through beautiful arches of roses, into the most gor- geous garden you ,could ever imagine. Father Lucas was wblking in front and the childr:n were following. Just as t.hey passed through the last arch (it ,\,qas of pale pink roses) al1 the flov'ers seemed to o,pen, ancl a lot of tin-v silvery voices were heard singing: Where the but,terflies are so silly, They fly right into your hand. \\rhere all the flowers re-open, And the balbies sit up in their beds, Just to let old Father Lucas Stroke each of their dear tittle heads." When the last of the ,silvery notes hacl djerl ar.vay, all t.he litt1e flower,s .foldecl their petals gently, and the ba'bies inside rvent to join the immortals once more. Marg.o woke up ancl found greatly to her sufprise, she was sitting up in her orwn little ,bed, and there was Billy opposite her in his cot fast aslee'p. She stole softly out of bed and dressed quickly and ran dotwn to teli Mummy of the wonderiul drea,m she had had, and that she had really seen Babyland, and was quite sure she had been a roserbud after all. L.8., I,. III B. "Dear little Margo and Billy, We rwelcotme you to our land,

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Dawn,

A dull, clull morn, And banks of heavy clouds are in the way Of redd'ning streaks, to announce the birilr c,f da.wn, Al<1 everything in Naiulc seem,s forlorn: A sad, sad day. -rt,.1,

A clear, clear morn. And lovely tints, pale as the new mown hay, Give place to soverei.gn hue, like ripene.d corn, {nfl thgl-xil rosy comes the smiling darvD: A glad, glad dav. "Nescio Quis," VI.