[Editor: This postcard, sent with some Christmas greetings, is dated Christmas 1917 (during the First World War, 1914-1918).]
[Front of postcard]
ADVANCE AUSTRALIA
GREETINGS SINCERE
WATTLE-lot of Happiness, WATTLE-lot of Health,
WATTLE-lot of Peace and Joy, WATTLE-lot of Wealth,
WATTLE-lot of Everything wherever you may be,
WATTLE-lot of I wish you no one knows, but me.
[Description: A shield with a Southern Cross, surrounded by wattle blossoms, with a scroll underneath with the words “Advance Australia”, along with a poem.]
[Reverse of postcard]
POST CARD
[Handwritten text, in italics]
To Allan
From Thelma & Lorna
Xmas 1917
[Manufacturer’s information:]
B. B. London Series No. A. 60. Printed in Germany.
Source:
Original document
Editor’s notes:
Dimensions (approximate): 88 mm. (width), 140 mm. (height).
The text in the poem “WATTLE-lot of” is a pun or a play upon words, meaning “What a lot of”.
Xmas = an abbreviation of “Christmas”
Dear Ed. Oh, I love this one.
But as I am a slow learner, it took me a little while to realise that “Wattle-lot of … ” is intended as a rhyming pun on/for “What a lot of …”.
Looking back at your comment, it was decided to add an editorial note to explain the pun, just in case it was missed by others as well. Thanks for the idea to do so.