The history of a great many little boys and girls, for the amusement of all good children of four and five years of age.

The history of a great many little boys and girls, for the amusement of all good children of four and five years of age.

Table of contents

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Title page

PREFACE.

The History of Miss BETSY and Miss MARY HIGGINS.

The History of Master TOMMY PIPER.

The History of Miss PEGGY BRIGHT.

The History of Master GEORGE TRUEMAN.

The History of Miss MARY ANN SELFISH.

The History of Miss SALLY TRIP.

The History of Master HENRY WISE.

The History of Miss POLLY MEEKLY.

The following BOOKS, for the Entertainment and Instruction of CHILDREN, are printed and sold by S. HALL, No. 53, Cornhill, BOSTON.

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THE HISTORY OF A GREAT MANY Little BOYS and GIRLS, FOR THE Amusement of all Good Children OF FOUR and FIVE YEARS of AGE.

BOSTON: Printed and sold by SAMUEL HALL, No. 53, Cornhill.

1794.

PREFACE.

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I HAVE long la [...]ted, that amongst all the numerous volumes written for the amusement of children, few that I have ever yet seen have been well adapted to the puerile comprehensions of Infants of Four or Five Years of Age: they generally are filled with incidents totally uninteresting to them; such as gentlemen and ladies meeting with great happiness in the nuptial state, and arriving at great wealth and riches through their superior wisdom and goodness. In the opinion of the author, such like[Page]histories, so far from being beneficial to children, are either quite beyond their understanding, and therefore capable of affording no entertainment to them; or else, tend only to inspire their tender minds with Pride, Ambition, Vanity, and every passion disgraceful to human nature.

The following little book was written with a view to amuse and instruct one particular family, in whose welfare the author is nearly concerned; but if it should be distributed into the hands of other children, they may, perhaps, be equally entertained with reading the histories of so many little boys and girls; who, by boys and girls, will always be thought the most important part of the species.

The History of Miss BETSY and Miss MARY HIGGINS.

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BETSY and Mary Higgins were two little girls. Betsy was six years old, and Mary a little more than four. In common they were both very good, but sometimes Mary used to be a little heedless, and not mind when first she was spoken to; which was very silly, and made [Page]

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people not love her so well as they otherwise would have done. One day her Mamma lent her a fan, that she might look at the pictures which [Page] were on it; with a caution to take care of, and not break it. But she did not mind what was said to her, and after she had done looking at it, began to sweep the room with it, calling it in play, A nice broom. Her Mamma called to Mary, Do not do so, Mary! do not do so! you will break it, and if you do I shall be very angry with you! But Mary did not mind, and went on sweeping the room till [Page] she tore the fan all to pieces, and it could be used no more.

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So her Mamma was obliged to get up to her, shake her a great [Page] deal, and put her into the corner for being so naughty as not to mind what was said to her. How silly it was! for if she had minded when her Mamma first bade her leave off sweeping the room, she would have been a good girl, and not have made her Mamma angry; and might have seen the fan another time, and all the pretty pictures which were upon it.

Now you shall hear about [Page]

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Miss Betsy Higgins. She was a very good girl indeed, and always did as she was desired, and held up her head so very well, [Page] and turned out her toes, and was so clever, and so agreeable, that every body was fond of her, and liked to have her come to see them, and play with their little boys and girls; for she never said any bad words, nor did any thing that was wrong; and when any body spoke to her, she used to answer so prettily, and speak so plain, and so civilly, that she never forgot to say Madam, if a [Page] lady spoke to her, and Sir, if a gentleman; so that people used to call her the good Miss Higgins. One day a lady who went to

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[Page] see her Mamma, knowing what a good girl she was, carried her a new doll, and a little tea-chest, for which she made a very pretty courtesy, and said, I am much obliged to you, Madam. Then up stairs she ran to show it to her sister; for she always took great pains to please her, and let her play with her toys; and if she had any apples or buns, she gave her sister half of them.

The History of Master TOMMY PIPER.

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TOMMY Piper was five years old, very tall, and a fine boy; but he was so fretful and naughty, that nobody liked to see him. If he wanted a piece of bread, instead of asking prettily, and saying, Pray be so good as to give me a bit of bread? he [Page] would say, Give me a bit! for I want it! and will have it! And

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if it was not given to him directly, he would cry and scream [Page] like a pig. One day as Mr. Makegood was going by Mr. Piper's house, he heard Tommy crying, and roaring, and making a sad noise; so he stopped at the door, to ask what was the matter? And when he was told that it was master Tommy crying, because he would not be dressed; he said, Let me see him, and I will make him good. So Tommy was fetched to him, and came screaming down stairs, [Page]

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and saying, I will not be washed! I will not be washed! That I will not! But I will be dirty! I will be naked! Will you? said Mr. [Page] Makegood, Do you talk in that way, Master Tommy? I shall try whether I can make you be good. Then he took him up in his arms, carried him into the garden, and threw him into a great tub of water to wash him. Now, said he, will you ever say you will not be washed again? If you do, you shall always be thrown into the tub. And then he began to beat him whilst he was naked, and [Page] said, If you will not be dressed,

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I shall beat you all the time you are without your clothes; for I do not like to see naked [Page] children. He had a great rod in his hand, which hurt him sadly, so that he was very glad to stand quietly to be dressed; and took care never to say another time, I will not be dressed, and I will be naked.

The History of Miss PEGGY BRIGHT.

MISS Peggy Bright was but four years old, and she [Page] could spell very well indeed, and read such little books as this, which she was very fond of doing; for she liked to know all the pretty histories. As she was such a good girl, her Mamma was so kind as to take great pains with her to teach her, for which she was obliged to her: for if she had not, Peggy would always have been a dunce, and never have known how to read. Her Mamma [Page] taught her to work too, and that she was very fond of, and

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could hem, and sew, and stitch too, very neatly indeed. She [Page] worked so well that she made her little brother a shirt all herself. And when she had finished it, her Mamma gave her a little pair of scissars and a nice flowered work-bag for her own, to keep herself. Little Peggy could sing a great many songs too; and one of her songs which she used to sing was this: [Page]

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Hush, my dear, be still, and hark!

For sure I hear my Pompey bark,

And saw my kitten play;

[Page] My dog I fancy wants some bread,

My kitten too must now be fed,

Nor any longer stay.

Come Pompey! Pompey! come to me,

For sure I am that I love thee:

Indeed, my dog, I do:

And you, my Puss, I love as well,

Which I love best I cannot tell,

Whether my dog or you.

The History of Master GEORGE TRUEMAN.

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MASTER Trueman was only seven years old, but

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[Page] the best boy you ever saw in your life. He could read like a man, and write very well: so that if he was absent from any of his friends, he could send letters to them, and read what they wrote to him. He always did as he was desired; and if he happened to be about any thing which he ought not to do, as soon as he was told, he left off directly; so that every body loved him, and [Page] tried to please him. He was good, and spoke so civilly, that all the gentlemen and ladies who lived near his Papa's house, used to ask him to come and see their children, to teach them to behave like himself. And when he went out without his Papa or Mamma, he always was as good as if they had been with him: nor would he eat or drink any thing, or do what he thought they would [Page] not like, for he knew it was very naughty indeed to do what displeased them, because he was out of their sight. His Papa and Mamma did not choose that he should eat cakes or butter, because it was not good for him, and would make him sick, and they loved him too well to like that he should be sick. One day, when he went to see Master Puny, he found him eating cakes, and [Page] bread and butter. Master Puny asked him if he would not eat some? but George said, No, I thank you! I never eat cakes

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[Page] or butter. I will have a bit of dry bread if you please. Mrs. Puny did not know that his Papa and Mamma did not choose that he should eat them, and so she too asked him to eat some; and said, Pray, Master George, eat a bit of cake, I got it on purpose for you; and I am sure a little will not hurt you: It is very good and nice, pray eat some. But George was too [Page] good a boy to do what he knew was wrong. And so he very civilly thanked her, and said, Indeed, Madam, I cannot eat any, for my Papa and Mamma desire I will not eat cakes; and I am sure I must do as they bid me; for they are very kind to me, and take a great deal of care of me, and let me have every thing that is proper for me; and would let me eat cakes if they [Page] thought they would not hurt me; but they say that cakes will make me sick, and I am sure Papa and Mamma know much better than I do. Well, said Mrs. Puny, you are a very good child indeed, and here is an apple and an orange for you; for I dare say you may eat them. George thanked her, and said, Yes, Madam, I may eat them, because they are ripe fruit: and [Page] so he took them, and gave his play-fellow, Master Puny, some of each. When he went home, Mrs. Puny sent word how good he had been. So his Papa and Mamma kissed him, and told him they loved him dearly; and the next morning his Papa gave him a little horse to ride on, which George liked better than eating cakes; for he knew they would soon be gone; and besides, [Page]

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he must have been punished too, for doing what he ought not. But now this little horse lived with him a [Page] great while, and his Papa and Mamma were much pleased with him.

The History of Miss MARY ANN SELFISH.

MISS Mary Ann Selfish would have been a very good and agreeable little girl, if she had not been so sadly greedy of every thing, either to eat or to play with. She had two [Page] little sisters, who were very good girls, and she said, that she loved them dearly: But if you had seen her when she

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[Page] was eating a bun or an apple, you would have thought she did not love them at all: for she did not like to give them a bit; but chose to eat all herself; and filled her mouth so frightfully full, you cannot think how ugly she looked. Her sisters were very good-humoured, and always liked to give her some of every thing they had: but Mary Ann was never contented, but after [Page] she had eaten a great deal of pudding, or a whole orange, or apple, she wanted some of

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[Page] her sisters, and used to go and stand by one of them, and ask for more. Her Mamma and all her friends often told her not to do so; but she did not mind them, but still wanted every thing that she saw any body else have, just like a little hog. So her Mamma one day took hold of her hand, and said, Mary Ann! if you will be so like a hog, you shall go and live with the pigs, [Page] and not with me and your sisters; for you will teach them to be as bad as yourself. Come, I will carry you to the pigs now, and then you may eat together as fast and as much as you please. Mary Ann began to cry! her Mamma did not mind that, but carried her out, and put her to the pig-sty with the hogs. What a sad thing that was for a little girl to live among the [Page]

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hogs! But so all greedy children must be treated; and so must you too if you behave like her; therefore pray remember [Page] never to eat all yourself, or want to have your sister's victuals.

The History of Miss SALLY TRIP.

I AM going to tell you about the naughtiest girl you ever knew in your life; and I hope no other little girls or boys will be like her, for she used [Page] sometimes to tell stories, and not speak the truth. One day

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she took some sugar that stood upon the table, and ate it; and [Page] when her Mamma asked her how she got it, she said, her aunt had given it to her. What a sad thing that was! for she knew that it was very naughty to say so, because her aunt had not given it to her. So she was obliged to be whipped a great deal indeed, and have her mouth tied up that she could not speak at all. For if people tell fibs, they had better have no tongues than make such use [Page] of them. Another time her Papa gave her a biscuit, and when she was asked who gave it to her? she said, that she found it in the garden; which was another naughty fib you know. So when her Mamma heard that she had told such a story about the cake that was given her, she took it all from her, and whipped her very hard indeed, and turned her out of the house; for she [Page] did not like to have such naughty girls in the room with

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her; and she made her stay out in the cold all the day, [Page] without any body taking any notice of her, or giving her any victuals to eat, or any thing to drink. And so all little boys and girls must be served who tell fibs.

The History of Master HENRY WISE.

MASTER Henry Wise was a good-humoured, merry [Page] little boy of five years old, who never did any thing that was naughty, or what he ought not. He would let any body play with him, and jump him about as much as they pleased; and if they did any thing to him, which he did not like, he would say, Pray, Sir, do not do so; I shall be much obliged to you if you will let me stand down. And then they would put him down [Page]

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directly when he spoke so prettily. He had a little cousin who lived at his Papa's, whose name was James Brown: [Page] but he was not near so good, therefore nobody loved him so well as Henry, nor had he half so many play-things; for Henry was so good that every body used to take pains to please him; and one person gave to him a horse, another a cart; and he had a pretty little windmill which was given to him by his Papa, because he took pains with his reading and spelling, and [Page]

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likewise was a good boy, and never cried for any thing he wanted; and did not ask for things he saw other people [Page] have; and his uncle gave him a fine watch, with a seal and key to wind it up with, and a nice little hook to it, that he might hang it up.

The History of Miss POLLY MEEKLY.

MISS Polly Meekly was as good a girl as Master Wise was a boy, and always did as she was bidden the moment [Page] she was spoken to. If any body called her, she went directly, and did not trouble them to ask her more than

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[Page] once to go. And if any body said, How do you do, my dear? How does your Mamma do? She answered at once like a woman, and said, Very well, I thank you, Madam! so plain, that every body could hear her. Some little girls, when they are spoken to, answer so low that they cannot be understood; and if you desire them to sing you a song, they only put up their shoulders, [Page] and hang down their heads, and look silly, Miss Polly behaved much better indeed; and if she was at any time asked to sing, began directly, and said,

I'm sure I'll sing with all my heart,

If me you like to hear;

But for the real singer's part,

It will be bad I fear.

Then to your goodness trust I will,

Hoping you will excuse

My want of better voice or skill,

Since you a song did choose.

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And now my song I must conclude,

Having no more to say;

And if you will not think me rude,

I'll sing another day.

Miss Polly used to sing a great many more songs, but I have forgotten all the rest; though I never shall forget how clean she used to rub her shoes when she came in doors; and how she folded up her cloak and gloves, and put them away herself; for she never made a [Page] litter, and after she had been at play she always picked up

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all her doll's play-things, and put them into a box to keep [Page] them all together; for her Mamma was so kind as to let her have a box to keep all her treasures in. And she took great pleasure in making dolls' clothes for her little sisters, who were not old enough to work for themselves. She had a little dog that she was very fond of, and fed every day when she had her breakfast; and she took great care of it, and never [Page] hurt it; but stroaked and played with it very prettily.

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The dog's name was Cato. It was a droll dog, and had a [Page] black face, and a white back, and black feet. Miss Polly took great pains to learn to read well; and she read better than any little girl I ever knew. She never fretted and cried; but was always good-humoured; and at dinner she never asked and teazed for any thing, but ate what was given to her without wanting any thing else; and never greased her fingers, but used [Page] her knife and fork like a lady. I hope all little boys and girls, who read this pretty book, will learn to behave like Master Henry Wise and Miss Polly Meekly, and not like those who were naughty.

THE END.

The following BOOKS, for the Entertainment and Instruction of CHILDREN, are printed and sold by S. HALL, No. 53, Cornhill, BOSTON.

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1. DIVINE SONGS, attempted in easy Language for the Use of Children.—By I. WATTS, D. D.

2. Tommy Trip's Pictures of Beasts and Birds, with a familiar Description of each, in Verse and Prose.—Published for the Benefit of the little Masters and Misses of the United States of America.

3. Little Stories for Little Folks, in easy Lessons of one, two, and three syllables. Embellished with Pictures.

4. Nurse Truelove's New-Year's Gift; or, the Book of Books for Children: Designed for a Present to all little Boys and Girls, who wish to become great and good.

5. The Holy Bible abridged; or, the History of the Old and New Testament—illustrated with Notes, and adorned with about 60 Pictures, con [...]ning lively representations of the most remarkable [...] and transactions recorded in the sacred Scrip [...]es.

6. The History of the Holy Jesus, containing [...] and plain Account of his birth, life, death, [...]esu [...]ction, and ascension into Heaven; and his [...]mi [...]g again at the great and last day of judgment: [Page] Being a pleasant and profitable companion for Children, and composed on purpose for their use.

7. Short Conversations, or an easy Road to the Temple of Fame; which all may reach who endeavour to be good.

8. The Good Child's Delight, or the Road to Knowledge, in short, entertaining Lessons of one and two syllables.

9. An approved Collection of Entertaining Stories, calculated for the Instruction and Amusement of all little Masters and Misses. By Solomon Winlove, Esq.

10. Virtue and Vice; or, the History of Charles Careful, and Harry Heedless. Shewing the good Effects of Caution and Prudence, and the many Inconveniences that Harry Heedless experienced from his Rashness and Disobedience, while Master Careful became a great Man only by his Merit.

11. Little Truths better than Great Fables; containing Information on divers Subjects, for the Instruction of Children.—In 2 vols. each volum [...] sold separate.

12. The History of a great many little Boys and Girls, for the Amusement of all good Children of four and five years of age.

13. Familiar Dialogues, for the Instruction and Amusement of Children of four and five years old.

Information about this book

Title statement

The history of a great many little boys and girls, for the amusement of all good children of four and five years of age.

Pelham, M., 1755-1836.

Publication

Publisher

Text Creation Partnership,

Place of publication

Ann Arbor, MI :

Date

2008-09.

ID [DLPS]

N20653

ID [TCP]

N20653

ID [STC]

Evans 27120

ID [NOTIS]

APY0274

ID [IMAGE-SET]

27120

ID [EVANS-CITATION]

99027320

Availability

This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal. The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission.

Series

Early American Imprints, 1639-1800 ; no. 27120.

Notes

(Evans-TCP ; no. N20653)

Transcribed from: (Readex Archive of Americana ; Early American Imprints, series I ; image set 27120)

Images scanned from Readex microprint and microform: (Early American imprints. First series ; no. 27120)

Source

— The history of a great many little boys and girls, for the amusement of all good children of four and five years of age., Pelham, M., 1755-1836..

Extent

[6], vii-viii, 9-66, [2] p. : ill. ; 12 cm. (4to)

Printed and sold by Samuel Hall, no. 53, Cornhill.,. Boston: :: 1794.. (Attributed by Welch to Dorothy Kilner, who often used the pseudonymns M.P. and Mary Pelham.) (Bookseller's advertisements, p. [67-68].)

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