10 TO " OUR BOYS " 



clever musician, poet, and painter, she has a kind 

 heart and a right feeling for the animals whose 

 cause is even to-day in such need of help. Let me 

 quote a few lines by " Carmen Sylva," and may 

 they make an impression upon you. She writes : — 



" I love all animals, even Spiders, they spin so 

 cleverly and are such excellent mothers. Besides, 

 they are musical. My friend, the Swedish com- 

 poser, Hallstrom, told me that for a long time he 

 had two Spiders which would let themselves down 

 from the ceiling by long threads when he played, 

 and station themselves on the piano to hear the 

 music. Of Ants and Bees I will not speak; one 

 who does not love them is so stupid that I have 

 nothing to say to him. Even Wasps are not as 

 black as they are painted. For Snakes only I 

 have no liking; they terrify me; but my aversion 

 is doubtless due to the fact that I have not studied 

 them enough. It seems to me impossible not to 

 love an animal whose innocence and goodness one 

 has accurately comprehended. How many kinds 

 of insects have I painted with real delight, begging 

 them to sit still upon my hand until their portraits 

 were finished! How many Bumble Bees have I 

 made my fast friends ! " 



That last sentence about the fussy Humble Bee 

 strikes the right note. You should endeavour to 

 make fast friends of animals, and it is astonishing 

 how intimate the friendship may become if the 



