HOW THIS BOOK CAME TO BE WRITTEN
'What a funny letter, Daddy,' said Spen, as he looked at the narrow envelope which had just arrived, and listened to the crackle of the thin paper.
'Do you think so? said Daddy. 'It is from home.'
'From home!' said Spen, laughing, 'why, Daddy, this is from home.'
'I mean from the old country, Spen.'
'The old country, Daddy?' said Veda, leaving her dolls and coming to lean against her father's knee, 'the old country? What do you mean?
'I mean "the little island in the west" to which we belong, and where I used to live,' said Daddy.
'But this is an island, a great big one, Mother says, so how can we belong to a little island?' asked Spen.
'Well, we do—at least, the big island and the little island belong to each other.'
'Oh, Daddy, do 'splain yourself, you are not 'splaining yourself at all,' said Veda.
'Well,' said Daddy with a sigh, 'long, long ago———'
