The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
113 
sent the picture of the two goats, and 
said: “Out* is an old one and the other is 
a little oijp. They are Angora goats. We 
have to shear them every Spring.” 
Arthur lleisser is 15 years old. lie 
lives in New York State and writes: “I 
enclose a picture of myself on the back 
of a two-year-old colt. IIis name is 
General John Pershing. I help my 
father on the farm. I do all kinds of 
work, tin* same as a man. Father pays 
me. I have lived here for eight years 
and would not exchange for city life for 
anything." 
Live-Forever 
More of yon sent the right answer to 
last month's Nature Puzzle than I really 
expected. You will find the names be¬ 
low. and also an interesting letter from 
a girl who knew the plant, hut not the 
correct name. There was a good deal of 
variety in the other answers given, in¬ 
cluding milkweed, thistle, dock, birdweed 
ami pigweed Next to really knowing, it 
.4 School Group 
was better to try to answer than not to 
send any. I am sure we should all recog¬ 
nize this plant now and should not for¬ 
get its real name, which tits it so well— 
live-forever. 
Correct answers came from : 
New York — Howard Rock, Leora 
Shaw, Dorothy Middleton. Marion Gran- 
tier, Elloisc Carpenter. Marion Cnruiek. 
Marie Hong, Cora Ivyrk. Ruth Watts, 
Lila McCullough, Helen Messemer, Nor¬ 
ma Carr, Laura Lynn, Ada Ashbv, Nan¬ 
cy Wright, Millie Beatty, Dorothy 
Mackey. 
New Jersey—Dorothy Adams. 
Pennsy 1 van ia—C1 a rice Blake. 
M ich iga u—M a bel Wagense i 1. 
Carlotta Baker, a Central New York 
reader, wrote: 
I think I know the (lower described 
by Warren G. Brown, but am not sure 
of tlie name. I have not been able to 
(ind it in any flower guide that I have, 
but if this is the flower spoken of. I know 
it quite well. I find it mostly along 
roadsides. When I was about nine years 
old one of our teachers told us the leaves 
could be pressed carefully between the lin¬ 
gers so as lint to break the thin mem¬ 
brane on one side until they will form 
little balloons and will make a funny 
noise when you blow on them. I did not 
know they bad any flowers on until last 
Summer. One day l saw some on a 
stem swaying with the grass. They 
looked like Yarrow, but wore red instead 
Of white. When 1 examined one I noticed 
it was the same plant T had seen in early 
Summer. I am glad this tlmver has been 
described in Our Page, because I would 
like to know for sure what its name is. 
What Is It? 
The leaf of this tree is like the maple. 
The tree gets little balls on. which fall 
off in the Spring. The bark falls off, and 
the tree is left white. The bark is very 
thin. 
This Nature Puzzle was sent nearly a 
year ago by Helen Bashore. a Pennsyl¬ 
vania render. I wish more of you would 
try your hand at making these puzzles. 
It is fun. and we are all learning some¬ 
thing each month. Since we began this 
plan you have described and named five 
animals, four birds, three insects, three 
trees and three weeds and wild plants. 
Three Books and a Poem 
In the talk we had beside Our Magic 
Fire we spoke of reading as one of the 
great sources of pleasure in life. All 
hoys and girls like good books. You love 
to listen while an older person reads to 
you. As soon as you are old enough you 
want to read for yourselves. Now the 
world is so full of books that no one 
could possibly read thorn all. even if he 
spent his whole life at it. So it is very 
important to choose which hooks to read. 
They should be hooks that are worth 
while, that everyone should know. 
Not one of you is too youug to begin 
to make your own library of books. One 
book is the beginning of a library, and 
probably most of you have several books 
of your very own. Keep them carefully, 
and add a new one when you can. 
Mrs. Alice Smith Fisher, a friend of 
ours in Central New York State, who is 
(lie mother of several readers, is going to 
help your editor to give each month this 
year the names of three books and a 
poem that we know are worth reading. 
Here is the first list: 
“The Boy’s I.ife of Lincoln,” by Helen 
Nicolay. 
“Little Women.” by Louisa M. Aleott. 
“Stories of Little People Who Became 
Famous." by Laura A. Large. 
Poem: “O Captain! My Captain!” by 
Walt Whitman. 
We want you to do two things with 
this list. First, try to get hold of these 
books somewhere and read them during 
the next month. Some of them you may 
have already. But you can find the 
others if you set out to do it. Look in 
school libraries, church libraries, public 
libraries and ask your friends. If you 
are interested enough you might even 
buy one of them. You would always he 
glad. Anyway, don't stop till you get 
the books and read them. The poems 
can usually be found in any good collec¬ 
tion. One of the first hooks to obtain 
for your own library is a good hook of 
poems. There are several of these. “The 
Home Book of Verse for Youug Folks." 
by Burton Egbert Stevenson, and "Golden 
Numbers, a Book of Verse for Y'outh,” by 
Kate Douglas Wiggin and Nora Archi¬ 
bald Smith are among the best. 
Second, no doubt some of you have 
read one or more of these books or the 
poem already, or can do it soon. Sit 
down and put the whole story of the 
hook or poem into 150 words and send it 
to your editor. Let’s see how much you 
can say in a little space. Do this within 
a week. Next month we will print the 
best story on each one, four in all. Then 
we will give you four more to read and 
write about, and so on through the year. 
You will like this plan as soon as you 
take hold of it. 
Lawrence and the Chickens 
Plenty of stories came. We are cer¬ 
tainly all interested iu chickens* Some 
of you are planning to start a dock of 
your own this Spring. We ought to give 
some good directions on Our Page aboul 
how in begin the business and carry it 
on in the rifhr way. Who will send them 
to help us all? 
Below you will find the names of those 
who sent picture stories and two of the 
best ones: 
New Y'ork State—Christina Schmid I, 
Elloise Carpenter, Janet Rose. H -race 
McEachrou. Marie Iloag, Frederick 
Ryan, Jane Slyer, Harry Wort liman, 
Mary A. C„ Gladys Feldberg, Gladys 
Baxter, Carrie Phillips, Horace French, 
Bessie Mc.Minn, Helen Carr, Helen Dob!, 
Clarence Berg, Sylvia Randall. Marion 
llinman, Pauline Streun, Cora Kyrk, 
Ruth Freling. Marion Gleason, Margaret 
Gillespie. Agnes Nielsen, Lawrence Mor¬ 
rissey. Violet Simmons. 
New Jersey—Margaret Van Vliet, 
Dorothy Gardner, Charles Hester, Ruth 
Ashcroft. Kathryn Link. Dorothy Adams, 
Mike Zemlonsky, Ezra Mason. 
Pennsylvania — Ruth Griffith, Clara 
Cochran, Morton A., Beatrice Blake, 
Clara Lyon. 
Ohio—Viola Yallen. 
Connecticut—Daphne Luce. 
Vermont—Euretha Shonio. 
Virginia—Wilda Gndlove. 
North Carolina—Malcolm Massie. 
Lawrence went to see his friend one 
day and saw his chickens. His friend 
gave him a sitting of eggs. When he 
went home he asked his mother if she 
would loan him a hen. His mother told 
him that she would lie glad to if he would 
promise to take good care of his chickens, 
lie said he would. 
Lawrence set his hen, and being a 
live, energetic boy, he began to thiuk of 
building a poultry yard and house for 
his little chickens. You must not think 
that Lawrence syas counting his chickens 
before they were hatched. He just be¬ 
lieved in having things ready when the 
time came to use them. He built a nice 
little house for them, niul his father gave 
him money with which to buy poultry 
wire. He built a nice long yard and 
covered it with wire, leaving one end 
open, where lie set up the coop. About 
four days after he got it done the eggs 
hatched. Then he put his chickens in 
their nice home. They went scratching 
among the weeds in the bottom of the 
yard and Crying "peep, peep." They 
grew up to be liens, and Lawrence got 
quite a few eggs from them. He is going 
to hatch some more next year. I hope 
he has success with his chickens, as I 
think I \\ 111 keep some chickens myself. 
New York. KtuiisK cakpkxtfk. 
Nine years. 
Lawrence was a boy of 12 or 13. lie 
was a very active boy and was very fond 
of chickens. lie tried to think of some 
way he could earn enough money to buy 
a sitting of eggs to set a hen of liis 
mother’s. Finally a farmer hoy nearby 
wished to go away on a short vacation. 
He had to get some one t<> take care of 
hfs poultry before lie could leave. lie 
knew of no one he could trust to take 
good care of them. But as he wished to 
go real badly he started out for a small 
village to try to get someone. And who 
should he meet but Lawrence. Lawrence 
inquired where he was going, and the 
young lad told him all about liis poultry 
and how he wished to gn on his vacation. 
Lawrence was interested and offered his 
help. So at last it was settled. Lawrence 
was to take care of the farmer boy’s 
poultry, and he was to give Lawrence 
eggs enough to pay for his service. 
The lad returned in two weeks, which 
entitled Lawrence to four dozen eggs. As 
they were such nice high-bred hens his 
mother thought she would like to set some, 
too. So she bought all except one sitting 
from Lawrence. And Lawrence knew 
that he would need feed for his chickens, 
so he was delighted with the money. 
Now. as we see in the picture, Law¬ 
rence is feeding his chickens. lie has 
made a yard and a little house. And lie 
feeds them scratch feed, cracked corn and 
some buckwheat. In the Winter he feeds 
them mashes and green feeds, lie also 
gives them milk and plenty of warm 
water. As he loves chickens, he thinks 
he will raise more, He expects to sell 
the roosters and keep the pullets to breed 
from another year. 
New York. HORACE MCEACIIRON. 
Things to Do for Next Month 
1. Write about “The Qualities of 
Friendship.” 
2. Give careful directions for starting 
in the chicken business this Spring. 
3. Answer the Nature Puzzle and tell 
what you know about the - tree, 
4. Make up a Nature Puzzle of your 
own and send it in. 
5. Tell which of the three books and 
a poem you have read, and give the story 
of at least one of them in 150 words. 
0. Send a drawing for a heading for 
Our Page for February, March, April or 
May. 
7. Send a photograph or two. Your 
editor is running short of good pictures. 
S. Write in not more than 25 words 
your ideas of what Our Page stands for 
to its readers. This is for use in the 
Box at the top of the page. 
0. Work out the puzzle “Nuts to Crack” 
and send the correct answer along with 
a puzzle of your own. 
10. Write a good friendly letter about 
yourself, your home life, school life, work 
or play. 
Now then, every single reader can find 
something to do in that list, and I shall 
look for such a flood of letters that the 
postmaster will have to get another sack 
to hold them. Do not put it off, but 
write as soon as you finish reading this 
page, because I have to make up the 
February page early in the month. 
Nuts to Crack 
This puzzle was sent by Ruth Hol¬ 
lingsworth. a California reader. Each of 
the following is the name of some nut 
when put together correctly. Send your 
answers soon. 
1. Talnuw. 
2. Mandol. 
3. Napetu. 
4. Pneae. 
5. Tecushnt. 
6. Cnautooc. 
7. T.eanzuth. 
S. Yorkohintu. 
Notes 
Julia Wilson, a Virginia girl, sent the 
words in the Box, and a very good resolu- 
Pet Angora Goats 
tion it is, to be sure. Our Page depends 
for its success on its readers, on every 
oue of your boys and girls. Are you do- 
iug your share to help? 
I want to give my special thanks to 
those of you who sent Christmas and 
New Year’s cards to your editor. It was 
kind of you to think of me at that happy 
season, and I appreciate it. 
I see that we have come to the end 
without giving many letters this month. 
Well, next month we’ll give mostly let¬ 
ters. How will that be? Write without 
fail to your friend. Edward M. Tuttle, in 
care The Rural New-Yorker, 333 West 
30th Street, New Y’ork City. 
Ilow Sharp Arc Your Eyes? 
There Are Two Girls in This Picture 
