Punchbowl Midnight: A Punchbowl Farm Story

Punchbowl Midnight, with her slanting, velvety eyes, was beautiful, and to Dion she was like no other calf, for he had assisted at her birth. When she escaped, he and the rest of the Thorntons were nearly distracted with fear that they would never find her again. They had other anxieties too for the wild deer were coming in from the Punch Bowl and trampling the young growing corn. With the true farmer's instinct for preserving his crops, Dion threatened to shoot the deer. But Lindsey could not bear the thought that the lovely wild beasts should suffer and with the aid of Tamzin Grey, who was staying nearby, she evolved a secret plan for keeping them away from the fields. It was while they were carrying out this plan that they discovered that Punchbowl Midnight had joined the deer and was running wild with them. It seemed impossible that they would ever get her back until suddenly they thought of a magnificent scheme which involved the whole family, their friends and their neighbours in a thrilling adventure. The setting for this exciting story is the rich downland of Surrey. The Thorntons' farm is next the heather-covered hills of Hindhead and the deep, bracken-filled plunge of the Devil's Punch Bowl. It is a busy little farm and no matter how great the excitements the daily round must not be interfered with: the animals must be fed, the cows milked, the fields ploughed. Monica Edwards gives a delightful description of these busy days and Charles Tunnicliffe's pictures make everything very real and fascinating.