There are fairies at the bottom of our garden! They often have a dance on summer nights; The butterflies and bees make a lovely little breeze, And the rabbits stand about and hold the lights. Did you know that they could sit upon the moonbeams And pick a little star to make a fan, And dance away up there in the middle of the air? Well, they can. There are fairies at the bottom of our garden! You cannot think how beautiful they are; They all stand up and sing when the Fairy Queen and King Come gently floating down upon their car. The King is very proud and _very_ handsome; The Queen--now can you guess who that could be (She's a little girl all day, but at night she steals away)?-- Well--it's ME! * * * * * "Young Lady Wanted, for few months, as Companion-Help (seaside); fare paid and 6d. week pocket-money; or would train Girl as Housemaid, same terms."--_Provincial Paper_. Such extravagance in war-time ought to be checked. * * * * * "SHADY GERMAN TRICK. "In the village of Boisleux-au-Mout the Germans utilised part of the cemetery to bury their own dead, but before doing so deliberately hewed down every tree growing on the side of the ground where the French graves lie."--_Daily Paper_. Is "shady" quite the right word for this outrage? * * * * * PEAS AND PLEDGES. "Has anything special," I said, "been happening during my absence?" "We are up to our chins in work," said Francesca. "But is it real work?" "Of course it is. We've formed a General Committee, of which everybody's a member, including you, and we've formed an Executive Committee, of which there are about a dozen members. And then there are some Sub-Committees." "Yes, I know. The Executive Committee thinks it's going to do all the work, but it's got to report to the General Committee, and it it'll be a great piece of luck if the General Committee doesn't insist on asserting itself by upsetting all the decisions of the Executive Committee." "Oh, but our General Committee isn't going to be like that at all. There won't be any petty jealousy about our General Committee. Besides, the Executive Committee has power to act, and it doesn't need to report till the Annual Meeting of the General Committee, which is to be held a year from now. When that time comes lots of things will have happened." "That," I said, "is one of the truest things you've ever said. Even the War may be over by that time." "But if it isn't we shall all be living on swedes or pea-soup, or rice-bread or all three together; and we shall have a food controller in every village, and our Committees won't be wanted." "I beg your pardon; they'll be more wanted than ever to keep the controller straight and act as a buffer between him and the population."