Los Angeles herald., 1908-11-08
BEAUTIFUL WALKS

A-A your letters printed in this paper.
I am disappointed, too, because some of
the letters were very interesting. But
I absolutely cannot print any more let /
ters which come to me written on both |
sides of the paper This week more of
YOU were careless and forgetful about |
that than at any time since the Junior
was started,
Do you know that when you send in
letters written on both sides of the pa
per Aunt Laurie has to sit-down at her
typewriter and copy those pages, every |
one of them So from now on please |
please, dear boys and girls, take the
pains to write plainly and neatly on one
side of the paper only and be sure and
sign your name to each article which
you send. One or two of the writers
last week wrote me very nice little per-
sonal notes to which they signed their
names and then inclosed their letters or
stories for publication without sigma
ture. The letters for my own perusal
are not kept with the others and conse-
uuently when I came to make the prize
awards could not determine definitely
just who should have the credit for the
prizes and honorable mention.
The spirit in which all the boys and
girls are entering into these competi-
tions is splendid. The experience the
! erald Junior offers to young writers
will surely encourage them to develop
their talents in this direction. Some
of the most successful artists and
writer's of this generation commenced
their work along these lines in the
old st. Nicholas magazine many years
ago, when the idea of a department
for boys and girls was very new one.
Today that same magazine is pointing
with pride to the result of its small be-
ginning How soon may Aunt Laurie
claim some great author or artist as
former Herald Junior?
I feel that our paper today is remark
able not only for its many responses
from the boys and girls but for the |
character of these letters as well. The
descriptions of the paths to school
would make a good advertisement for
our beautiful state. Scarcely boy or
girl failed to mention either beautiful
trees, wonderful roses or magnificent |
mountain tops.
Our California boys and girls speak
in most casual manner. of whole groves
of oranges, lemons, walnuts, figs and |
other luscious fruits. Do you realize,
my dear nieces and nephews, that in
the cold eastern winter, school chill
dren will regard the possession of even
a single orange as great treat. They
will gaze with longing eyes through
the frost covered window of some gro
Gerry store at the great golden oranges,
packed in boxes bearing the trade
mark of some Southern California
shipping company, and would find it
hard to believe that your letters were
literal descriptions of your paths to
school,
The two prize winning letters particu-
larly are vivid and picturesque descrip- /
tions of country which fairly glorifies
the pen which touches it, while it needs, |
alas! a mightier pen than any we have
as yet in our ranks to do faint justice
to the beauties of our daily walks. The
letters were all very satisfactory and 1
am sure that if each one of you would
send the paper containing copies of
those letters east to your dearest
friends it would be strong plea in
want to speak to my boys and girls
about writing their notes of thanks to
me. Every one of them ought to be very
prompt in writing and acknowledging
the receipt of their prize whether it be
a book or a check. The habit will be a
good one to acquire for future life.
am very much afraid that some of
the Herald Juniors have not learned
much about that form of writing yet.
Several of the boys and girls who have
received prizes, either books or money,
from Aunt laurie have never responded