his suffering grew worse, he was too ill to think at all.
CHAPTER VI.
THE END OF HIS TROUBLES.
Tom Jones, having secured the baby's comforter, the thin Paisley shawl, and
the little winsey frock, ran as fast as he could to a pawnbroker's hard by.
There he received a shilling on the articles, and with this shilling
jingling pleasantly in his pocket he entered an eating-house which he knew,
and prepared to enjoy some pea pudding and pork.
Tom expended exactly the half of the shilling on his dinner; he ate it
greedily, for he was very hungry indeed, and then he went back into the
street, with sixpence still to the good in his trouser pocket.
With sixpence in his pocket, and a comfortable dinner inside of him, Tom
felt that his present circumstances were delightfully easy. He might walk
about the streets with quite fine gentlemanly airs for an hour or two, if
he so willed. Or he might flatten his nose against the shop windows, or he
might play halfpenny pitch and toss. His circumstances were really
affluent, and of course he ought to have been correspondingly happy. The
odd thing was that he was not very happy; he could not get Billy's white
face out of his head, and he could not altogether forget the icy cold feel
of the baby's little arms, when he slipped off that brown winsey frock.
Tom was as hard a boy as ever lived, and a year ago his conscience might
not have troubled him, even for playing so wicked a prank as he had done
that day. But since then he had met with a softening influence. Tom Jones
had been very ill with a bad fever, and during that time had been taken
care of in the London fever hospital.
In that hospital, the wild, rough street boy had listened to many kind and
gentle words and had witnessed many noble and self-denying actions.
Two or three children had died while Tom was in the hospital, and the
nurses had told the other children that this death only meant going home
for the little ones, and that they were now safely housed, and free from
any more sin and any more temptation.
Tom had listened to the gentle words of the kind Sister nurse, without
heeding them much.
But the memory of the whole scene came back to him to-day, all mingled
strangely with Billy's pale face and the baby's cold little form, until he
became quite compunctious and unhappy, and finally felt that he could not
spend that remaining sixpence, but must let it burn a hole in his pocket,
and do anything, in short, rather than provide him with food and shelter.
Tom was accustomed to spending his nights under archways and huddled up in
any sheltered corner he could discover.
This particular night he was lucky enough to find a cart half-full of hay,
and here he would doubtless have had a delicious sleep, had not the baby
and Billy come into his dreams. The baby and Billy between them managed to
give poor Tom a horrible time of it, and at last he felt that he could bear
it no longer: he must go and give Billy the sixpence which remained out of
his shilling.
He started tolerably early the next morning, and carefully turning his face
away from the bakers' shops and coffee-stalls as he passed them, he found
himself presently in Aylmer's Court.
He had conquered himself in the matter of the bakers' shops and the coffee
stalls, and in consequence he felt a good deal elated, his conscience
became easier, and he began to say to himself that very few boys would
restore even a stolen sixpence when they were starving. He ran up the
stairs, calling out to a neighbor to know if Billy Andersen was within.
"I believe yer," she replied; "jest listen to That 'ere blessed babby,
a-screamin' of itself into fits; oh! bother her for as ill-mannered a child
as ever I came across."
Tom ran up the remainder of the stairs, and entered Billy's attic without
knocking.
There he saw a sight which made him draw in his breath with a little start
of surprise and terror; the baby was sitting up in bed and crying lustily,
and Billy was lying with his back to her, quite motionless, and apparently
deaf to her most piteous wails.
Billy's usual white face was flushed a fiery red, and his breathing, loud
and labored, fell with solemn distinctness on Tom's ears.
Tom knew these signs at a glance; he had seen them so often in the fever
hospital.
Shutting the door softly behind him, and first of all taking the baby in
his arms and thrusting a sticky lollipop, which he happened to have in his
waistcoat pocket, into her mouth:
"Be yer werry bad, Billy Andersen?" he said, stooping down over the sick
boy.
"Our Father," replied Billy, raising his blue eyes and fixing them in a
pathetic manner on Tom. "'Tis our Father I wants."
"Why, he were a bad'un," said Tom; "he runned away from yer, he did; I
wouldn't be fretting about him, if I was you, Billy lad."
"'Tis the other one--'tis t'other one I means," said Billy in a weak
gasping voice. "I has 'ad the words afore me all night long--our Father;
tell us what it means, Tom, do."
"I know all about it," said Tom in a tone of wisdom; "I larned about it in
hospital. There, shut up, Sairey Ann, do; what a young 'un yer are for
squallin'. Our Father lives in heaven, Billy, and he'll--he'll--oh! I am
sure I forgets--look yere, wouldn't yer like some breakfast, old chap?"
"Water," gasped Billy, "and some milk for the babby."
Tom found himself, whether he wished it or not, installed as Billy's nurse.
He had to run out and purchase a penny-worth of milk, and he had also the
forethought to provide himself with a farthing's worth of bull's eyes, one
of which he popped into Sarah Ann's mouth whenever she began to howl.
Never had Tom Jones passed so strange a day. It did not occur to him that
Billy was in any danger, but neither did it come into his wild, untutored,
hard little heart to desert his sick comrade.
By means of the lollipops, he managed to keep Sarah Ann quiet, and then he
kindled a tiny fire in the grate, and sat down by Billy, and gave him
plentiful drinks of cold water whenever he asked for them.
Billy shivered and flushed alternately, and his blue eyes had a glassy
look, and his breath came harder and faster as the slow sad day wore away.
Tom, however, never deserted his post, satisfying his own hunger with a
hunk of dry bread, and managing to keep Sarah Ann quiet.
Toward evening, Billy seemed easier; the dreadful oppression of his
breathing was not quite so intense, and the flush on his face had given way
to pallor.
Tom lit a morsel of candle and placed it in a tin sconce, and then he once
more sat down by his little comrade. For the first time then Tom noticed
that solemn and peculiar look which Billy's well-known features wore. He
puzzled his brain to recall where he had last seen such an expression;
then it came back to him--it was in the fever hospital, and the little ones
who had worn it had soon gone home.
Was Billy going home? The baby lay asleep in Tom's arms, and he looked from
her to the sick child whose eyes were now closed, and whose breath was
faint and light.
"Shall I fetch a doctor, old chap?" he whispered.
Billy shook his head.
"Tell us wot yer knows about our Father," he said in a very low and feeble
voice.
"Our Father," began Tom. "He lives in heaven, he do. He's kind and he gives
lots of good things to the young 'uns as lives with him in heaven. It
sounds real fine," continued Tom, "the way as our Father treats them young
'uns, only the worst of it is," he added with the air of a philosopher, "we
'as to die first."
"To die," said Billy, "yes, and wot then?"
"I 'spect," continued Tom, "as our Father fetches us up 'ome somehow, but
I'm very ignorant; I don't know nothing, but jest that there's a home and a
Father somewheres. Look yere, Billy, old chap, you ain't going to die, be
yer?"
"I 'spect I be," said Billy; "a home somewheres, and our Father there, it
sounds werry nice."
Then he closed his eyes again, and his breath came a little quicker and a
little weaker, and the solemn look grew and deepened on his white face.
"Give me my babby," he said an hour later; "lay her alongside o' me; oh! my
darling, darling Sairey Ann; and I'll tell mother when she comes in."
But mother never got her message, for when next Billy spoke, it was in the
safe home of our Father.
Billy's baby grew up by and by, but no one ever loved her better than Billy
did.
THE OLD ORGAN-MAN.
"The world goes up and the world goes down,
And the sunshine follows the rain."
CHARLES KINGSLEY.
CHAPTER I.
PLAYING FOR LOVE.
He was always called old Antonio, and though he doubtless possessed a
surname of some sort, no one seemed to know anything about it. He had white
hair, and a bronzed face, and kindly soft brown eyes, and he got his living
by pacing up and down the streets and turning a hurdy-gurdy.
This instrument was a rather good one of its class--it could play six
different airs, and all the airs were Italian, and even played by the
hurdy-gurdy had a little of the sweet cadence and soft pathetic melody of
that land of music.
Antonio lived in an attic all by himself, and the grown people wondered at
him and asked each other what his history could be, but the children loved
him and his music, and were to be seen about him wherever he went.
He looked like a man with a story, but no one had ever troubled themselves
to find it out or to ask him any questions. He did, however, receive stray
pennies enough to keep him alive, and the street children loved him, and
whenever they had a chance danced merrily to his music.
One cold and snowy afternoon, about a week before Christmas Day, old
Antonio sat up in his attic and looked gloomily out at the snow-laden
clouds.
Nothing but the fact that there was no oil for his stove, and no pennies in
his pockets, would have induced the old Italian to brave such inclement
weather. But no fire and no food will make a man do harder things than
Antonio was now thinking about. He must get something to eat and some fire
to warm himself by. He shouldered his hurdy-gurdy and went out.
"Poor Marcia," he said to himself as he trudged along. "Well, well, we of
the south are mistaken in the generous land of England. The milk and
honey-bah, they are nowhere. The inhabitants--they freeze like their frozen
skies. Poor Marcia, no doubt she has long ceased to look for the footfall
of her Antonio."
The old man, feeling very melancholy and depressed, walked down several
streets without once pausing or attempting to commence his music. At last
he stopped at the entrance of a very dull square. He had never yet received
a penny in this square, and had often said to himself that its inhabitants
had not a note of music among them. He took the square now as a short cut,
meaning to strike out toward Holborn and the neighborhood of the shops.
Half-way through the square he stopped. A house which used to be all over
placards and notices to let presented a different appearance. It was no
longer dead and lifeless. From its windows lights gleamed, and lie could
see people flitting to and fro.
He stopped for a moment to look at the house and comment on its changed
appearance, then with a slight little start, and a look of pleased
expectation, he put down his hurdy-gurdy and began softly to turn the
handle and to bring out one by one his beloved Italian melodies.
The first, a well-known air from "Il Trovatore," was scarcely finished
before a little dark head was popped up from behind a window-blind, and two
soft eyes gazed eagerly across the street at the old organ-grinder.
"Bless her! what a depth of color, what eyes, what hair! she comes from the
south, the pretty one."
Antonio nodded his head to her as he made these remarks, and the child,
with her face pressed against the pane, gazed steadily back at him, now and
then smiling in an appreciative manner.
The six airs were all played out and repeated a second time, and then
Antonio, looking up at the sky, from which the snow was still steadily
falling, began to think of moving on. In his pleasure at playing for the
child he had forgotten all about the money part of his profession. He was
indeed indulging in a happy dream, in which Marcia, and a certain little
Marcia, who had long ago gone back to God, were again by his side.
He threw a cloth over his hurdy-gurdy and prepared to mount it on his
shoulder.
The moment he did so the child disappeared from the window. There was a
quick, eager patter of little feet in the hall, the front door was opened,
and the next moment the little dark child was standing by his side.
"Here's sixpence of my very own, and you shall have it, poor man, and thank
you for your lovely, lovely music."
"You liked it, dearie?" said Antonio, not touching the sixpence, but
looking down at the pretty child with reverence.
"Oh! didn't I just? I used to hear those airs in Italy, and they remind me
of my dear mamma."
"Little missy has got eyes dark and long like almonds; perhaps she comes
from our sunny south?" said Antonio eagerly.
"No, I am a little English girl; but my mamma was ill, and they took her to
Italy, and Marcia nursed her. God has taken my mamma away, and now I am in
England, and I don't like it; but I shall only stay here until my father
comes home."
"Missy, you make my heart beat when you talk of Italy and of Marcia--but
your Marcia, was she young?--the name is a common one, and mine, if the
good Lord has not removed her, must be very old now."
"My Marcia was young and good," said the little girl. "I loved her, and I
cry for her still. I am so sorry your Marcia is old, poor man. Thank you
for the music. I must run in now, or Janet will scold. Good-by. Here's your
sixpence."
"No, no, missy. I'll get some pence in the other streets. Let me feel that
I played the old airs for you only for love."
CHAPTER II.
A FRIEND IN NEED.
Antonio did not stay out much longer in the snow. This enterprise of his
had not turned out a profitable one; no one on such a miserable day felt
inclined to listen to his Italian airs, the snow seemed to be locking up
people's hearts, and he went back to his attic hungry and cold, and quite
as penniless as when he started on his expedition. Still there was a glow
in his heart, and he was not at all sorry that he had played for the pretty
child for love.
He sat down in an old broken arm-chair and wrapped a tattered cloak about
him, and indulged in what he called a reverie of Italy and old times. This
reverie, as he said afterward, quite warmed him and took away his desire
for food.
"The child has brought all back to me like a golden dream," he murmured.
"Poor, poor Marcia! why do I think of her so much to-night? and there's no
money in the little box, and no hope of going back to her, and it's fifteen
years ago now."
The next day Antonio went back to the quiet square off Bloomsbury, and
played all his Italian airs opposite the house where he had played them
yesterday; but though he looked longingly from one window to another, he
could not get any glimpse of the child who reminded him of Italy. As he
walked through the square on his way home he could see the people passing
to the week-night service at the church, which stood in the center. But no
trace of the little one could he catch. As far as money was concerned, he
had had a much better day than yesterday, but he went home, nevertheless,
disappointed and with quite a blank at his old heart. The next day he hoped
he would see the child, and he again went slowly through the square, but he
could not catch a glimpse of her, and after doing this every day in vain
he soon came to the conclusion that she had gone.
"Her father has come for the pretty one, and she has gone back to the fair
south," he murmured. "Ah, well! I never saw such eyes as hers on an English
maiden before."
On Christmas Day Antonio shouldered his organ, as usual, and went out.
On this morning he made quite a little harvest; people were so merry and so
bright and so happy that even those who did not want his Italian airs gave
him a penny to get rid of him.
Quite early in the afternoon he turned his steps homeward. On his way he
bought half a pound of sausages and a small bottle of thin and sour claret.
"Now," he said to himself, "I shall have a feast worthy of my Italy," and
he trudged cheerfully back, feeling all the better for his walk through the
pleasant frosty air.
Antonio never indulged in fires, but he had a small paraffin stove in his
attic, and this he now lit, and spread out his thin hands before the poor
little attempt at a fire. Then he drank his claret and ate his sausages and
bread, and tried to believe that he was having quite a bright little
Christmas feast.
There were many voices in the room below, and cheerful sounds coming up now
and then from the court, and altogether there was a festive air about
everything, and Antonio tried to believe himself one with a merry
multitude. But, poor old man, he failed to do so. He was a lonely and very
old man--he was an exile from his native country. No one in all this great
world of London cared anything at all about him, and he was parted from his
good wife Marcia.
Fifteen years ago now they had agreed to part; they both supposed that this
parting would be a matter of months, or a year at most.
"The good land of England is paved with gold," said Antonio. "I will go
there and collect some of the treasure and then come back for you and
little Marcia."
"And in the mean time the good God will give me money enough to keep on
the little fruit stall and to support our little sweet one," said Marcia,
bravely keeping back her tears.
Antonio came to England, and quickly discovered that the streets paved with
gold and the abundant wealth lived only in his dreams. The little money he
had brought with him was quickly spent, and he had no means to enable him
to return to Italy. Neither he nor his wife could write, and under these
circumstances it was only too easy for the couple to lose sight of each
other.
Once, a few years back, an Italian had brought him word that little Marcia
was dead, and that his wife was having a very poor time of it. When Antonio
heard this he came home in a fit of desperation, and finding a small box,
bored a hole in the lid, and into this hole he religiously dropped half of
all he earned, hoping by this means to secure a little fund to enable him
to return to Naples and to Marcia.
The winter, however, set in with unusual severity, and the contents of the
little box had to be spent, and poor Antonio seemed no nearer to the only
longing he now had in his old heart.
On this particular Christmas Day, after his vain attempt at being merry and
Christmas-like, he dropped his head into his hands and gave way to some
very gloomy thoughts.
There was no hope now of his ever seeing his old wife again. How tired she
must be of standing by that fruit stall and watching in vain for him to
turn the corner of the gay and picturesque street!
There she would stand day after day, with her crimson petticoat, and her
tidy bodice, and the bright yellow handkerchief twisted round her head. Her
dark eyes would look out softly and longingly for the old man who was never
coming back. Yes, since the child had gone back to God, Marcia must be a
very lonely woman.
After thinking thus for some time, until all the short daylight had faded
and the lamps were lit one by one in the street below, Antonio began to
pace up and down his little attic.
He was feeling almost fierce in his longing and despair; the patient
submission to what he believed an inevitable fate, which at most times
characterized him, gave place to passionate utterances, the natural outcome
of his warm southern nature.
"Oh, God! give me back Marcia--let me see my old wife Marcia once again
before I die," he pleaded several times.
After a little he thought he would change the current of his sad musings,
and go out into the street with his hurdy-gurdy. As I have said before, he
was always a favorite with the children, and they now crowded round him and
begged for that merry Italian air to which they could dance. Antonio was
feeling too unhappy to care about money, and it afforded him a passing
pleasure to gratify the children, so he set down his barrel-organ in the
dirty crowded street, and began to turn the handle.
The children, waiting for their own favorite air, collected closely round
the old man; now it was coming, and they could dance, oh! so merrily, to
the strains they loved.
But--what was the matter? Antonio was looking straight before him, and
turning the handle slowly and mechanically. Suddenly his whole face lit up
with an expression of wonder, of pleasure, of astonishment. He let go the
handle of the barrel organ, and the music went out with a little crash, and
the next instant he was pushing his way through the crowd of dirty
children, and was bending over a little girl, with dark hair and dark,
sweet, troubled eyes, who was standing without either bonnet or jacket
spell-bound by the notes of the old hurdy-gurdy.
"Why, my little one--my little sweet one from the south, however did you
come to a dreadful place like this?" said old Antonio.
At the sound of his voice, the child seemed to be roused out of a spell of
terror; she trembled violently, she clasped her arms round his knees, and
burst into sobs and cries.
"You are my organ-man--you are my own darling organ-man. Oh! I knew it must
be you, and now you will take me home to my father."
"But however did you come here, my dear little missy?"
"My name is Mona. I am Mona Sinclair, and Janet my maid--oh! how cruel she
is; she was jealous of the dear Marcia I used to have in Italy, and she
said she would punish me, and she would do it on Christmas Day. Father has
not come home yet, and I have been so unhappy waiting for him, and Janet
said she was tired of my always crying and missing my mamma, and she took
me for a walk this afternoon, and she met some grandly dressed people, and
they wanted her to go with them, and she said she would for a little, and
she told me to stand at the street corner, and she would be back in ten
minutes, but it seemed like hours and hours," continued the child
excitedly, "and I was so cold, and so miserable, and I could not wait any
longer, and I thought I would find my own way home, and I have been looking
for it ever since, and I cannot find it. I asked one woman to tell me, but
all she did was to hurry me into a corner and take off my fur cap and my
warm jacket, and she looked so wicked, and I've been afraid to ask any one
since; but now you will take me home, you won't be unkind to me, my dear
organ-man."
"Yes, I will take you home, my darling," said Antonio, and he lifted the
little child tenderly into his arms.
CHAPTER III.
GLAD TIDINGS.
"I must not leave my barrel-organ in the street," said Antonio to the
child; "will you let me take it home first, missy? and then I can take you
back to your father."
Little Mona, holding Antonio's hand, and walking by his side in the midst
of the rabble, was a totally different child from Mona, standing by herself
under the street lamp.
"I shall like to see your home, organ-man," she said in her sweet voice.
"Do you really live in an attic? Marcia and her mother live in an attic in
Italy, too, and Marcia likes it."
Then they walked through the streets together, and Mona went upstairs with
Antonio. She seemed quite contented in the funny little place, and sat down
on a low seat with a sigh of satisfaction.
"I am so glad I met you, organ-man, and I like your home. I would much
rather live here with you than go back to Janet. I am dreadfully afraid of
Janet, and I sometimes think my father will never come. I wish I could live
with you, organ-man," continued little Mona in a piteous voice, "for you
could talk to me about Italy, where my dear mamma died, and oh! organ-man,
you do remind me of Marcia."
"I once had two Marcias," said old Antonio in a grave and troubled voice;
"the little one is with God, and the wife whom I love, I don't know what
shelter she is finding for her gray hairs. It troubles me to hear you speak
of Marcia, missy. It brings back painful memories."
The child had a thoughtful and serious face; she now fixed her eyes on old
Antonio, and did not speak.
"And I must take you home," continued the old man. "I should like to keep
you with me, my little bright missy, but suppose your good father has
returned, fancy his agony."
"If I could think my father had come, how glad I should be!" said little
Mona, and she went over to Antonio and took his hand. It was not a very
long way from Antonio's attic to the house in B---- Square.
Antonio was too old and too feeble to carry the little girl all the way. He
would have liked to do so, for the feel of her little arms round his neck,
and her soft brown cheek pressed to his, brought the strangest peace and
comfort to his heart.
Antonio had not had such a good time since he left Italy, and he could not
help feeling, in some inexplicable way, that he was going back to Marcia.
At last they reached the house, and the old organ-man's ring was speedily
answered. Immediately there was a shout of delight and a great bustle, and
little Mona was almost torn from her companion and carried into a
dining-room, which was very bright with firelight and gaslight.
Antonio, standing on the hall-door steps, heard some very tender and loving
words addressed in a manly voice to the little girl.
Then he said to himself, "The dear little one's father has come and her
heart will be at rest." And he began slowly to go down the steps, and to
turn back to a world which was once more quite sunless and cold.
But this was not to be, for little Mona's voice arrested him, and both she
and her father brought him into the house and into the warm dining-room.
There Mr. Sinclair shook his hand, and thanked him many times, and tried to
explain to him something of the agony he had undergone when he had listened
to the terrified Janet's confession, and had discovered that his only child
was gone.
"I too have lost a child," said old Antonio. "I can sympathize with your
feelings, sir."
"But you have got to tell my father all that story of the Marcia with gray
hair," said little Mona. She was a totally different child now, her
timidity and fear were gone, she danced about, and put Antonio into a snug
chair, and insisted once more on his telling his story.
When he had finished, Mr. Sinclair said a few words: "I believe God's
providence sent you here to-night in a double sense, and I begin to see my
way to pay you back in some measure for what you have done for me. The
young girl who so devotedly nursed my wife during her long illness was
called Marcia. We wished to bring her to England, for my child loved her
much, but we could not induce her to go away from an old mother of the same
name. She often told us what hard times this mother had undergone, and how
her heart was almost broken for her husband, who had gone away to England
to seek his fortune, but had never come back. Now, can it be possible that
these two Marcias are yours, and that the man who said your child was dead
was mistaken?"
"It may be so," said old Antonio, whose face had grown very white. "Oh!
sir, if ever you go back to Naples could you find out from that Marcia with
gray hairs if the husband she laments was one Antonio, an old man, who
played Italian airs?"
"My child and I are going back to Naples next week," said Mr. Sinclair,
"and suppose you come with us and find out for yourself, Antonio."
CHAPTER IV.
AT LAST.
There came a warm day, full of light, and life, and color; a day over which
the blue sky of Italy smiled. Beside an artistically arranged fruit stall a
slender and handsome Italian girl stood. Behind the stall, on a low seat,
sat an old woman; she was knitting, but her restless eyes took eager count
of every passer-by.
"Did you observe that old man, Marcia?" she said in her rapid Italian to
the young girl.
The girl turned her beautiful and pitying eyes full on the old woman. "He
was not my father, mother. Ah! dear mother, can you not rest content that
the good God has taken my father to himself?"
"Fifteen years," muttered the old Italian woman. "Fifteen years, with the
love growing stronger, and the heart emptier, and the longing sorer. No, I
have not given him up. Oh! my merciful Father in heaven, what--who is
that?" A little group was coming up to the fruit stall, a child who danced
merrily, an old man with a bent white head, and a gentleman on whose arm he
leaned.
They came up close. The child flew to the younger Marcia, the old couple
gazed at each other with that sudden trembling which great and wonderful
heart-joy gives, they came a little nearer, and then their arms were round
each other's necks.
"At last, Marcia," said old Antonio--"at last!"
THE END.
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close of his career was critical and eventful in the extreme. At its
commencement the English were traders existing on sufferance of the native
princes. At its close they were masters of Bengal and of the greater part
of Southern India. The author has given a full and accurate account of the
events of that stirring time, and battles and sieges follow each other in
rapid succession, while he combines with his narrative a tale of daring and
adventure, which gives a lifelike interest to the volume.
"He has taken a period of Indian history of the most
vital importance, and he has embroidered on the
historical facts a story which of itself is deeply
interesting. Young people assuredly will be delighted
with the volume."--_Scotsman._
The Lion of the North: A Tale of Gustavus Adolphus and the Wars of
Religion. By G. A. HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by JOHN SCHOeNBERG.
12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
In this story Mr. Henty gives the history of the first part of the Thirty
Years' War. The issue had its importance, which has extended to the present
day, as it established religious freedom in Germany. The army of the
chivalrous king of Sweden was largely composed of Scotchmen, and among
these was the hero of the story.
"The tale is a clever and instructive piece of history,
and as boys may be trusted to read it conscientiously,
they can hardly fail to be profited."--_Times._
The Dragon and the Raven; or, The Days of King Alfred. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by C. J. STANILAND, R.I. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
In this story the author gives an account of the fierce struggle between
Saxon and Dane for supremacy in England, and presents a vivid picture of
the misery and ruin to which the country was reduced by the ravages of the
sea-wolves. The hero, a young Saxon thane, takes part in all the battles
fought by King Alfred. He is driven from his home, takes to the sea and
resists the Danes on their own element, and being pursued by them up the
Seine, is present at the long and desperate siege of Paris.
"Treated in a manner most attractive to the boyish
reader."--_Athenaeum._
The Young Carthaginian: A Story of the Times of Hannibal. By G. A. HENTY.
With full-page Illustrations by C. J. STANILAND, R.I. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.00.
Boys reading the history of the Punic Wars have seldom a keen appreciation
of the merits of the contest. That it was at first a struggle for empire,
and afterward for existence on the part of Carthage, that Hannibal was a
great and skillful general, that he defeated the Romans at Trebia, Lake
Trasimenus, and Cannae, and all but took Rome, represents pretty nearly the
sum total of their knowledge. To let them know more about this momentous
struggle for the empire of the world Mr. Henty has written this story,
which not only gives in graphic style a brilliant description of a most
interesting period of history, but is a tale of exciting adventure sure to
secure the interest of the reader.
"Well constructed and vividly told. From first to last
nothing stays the interest of the narrative. It bears
us along as on a stream whose current varies in
direction, but never loses its force."--_Saturday
Review._
In Freedom's Cause: A Story of Wallace and Bruce. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
In this story the author relates the stirring tale of the Scottish War of
Independence. The extraordinary valor and personal prowess of Wallace and
Bruce rival the deeds of the mythical heroes of chivalry, and indeed at one
time Wallace was ranked with these legendary personages. The researches of
modern historians have shown, however, that he was a living, breathing
man--and a valiant champion. The hero of the tale fought under both Wallace
and Bruce, and while the strictest historical accuracy has been maintained
with respect to public events, the work is full of "hairbreadth 'scapes"
and wild adventure.
"It is written in the author's best style. Full of the
wildest and most remarkable achievements, it is a tale
of great interest, which a boy, once he has begun it,
will not willingly put on one side."--The Schoolmaster.
With Lee in Virginia: A Story of the American Civil War. By G. A. HENTY.
With full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The story of a young Virginian planter, who, after bravely proving his
sympathy with the slaves of brutal masters, serves with no less courage and
enthusiasm under Lee and Jackson through the most exciting events of the
struggle. He has many hairbreadth escapes, is several times wounded and
twice taken prisoner; but his courage and readiness and, in two cases, the
devotion of a black servant and of a runaway slave whom he had assisted,
bring him safely through all difficulties.
"One of the best stories for lads which Mr. Henty has
yet written. The picture is full of life and color, and
the stirring and romantic incidents are skillfully
blended with the personal interest and charm of the
story."--_Standard._
By England's Aid; or, The Freeing of the Netherlands (1585-1604) By G. A.
HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by ALFRED PEARSE, and Maps. 12mo,
cloth, price $1.00.
The story of two English lads who go to Holland as pages in the service of
one of "the fighting Veres." After many adventures by sea and land, one of
the lads finds himself on board a Spanish ship at the time of the defeat of
the Armada, and escapes only to fall into the hands of the Corsairs. He is
successful in getting back to Spain under the protection of a wealthy
merchant, and regains his native country after the capture of Cadiz.
"It is an admirable book for youngsters. It overflows
with stirring incident and exciting adventure, and the
color of the era and of the scene are finely
reproduced. The illustrations add to its
attractiveness."--_Boston Gazette._
By Right of Conquest; or, With Cortez in Mexico. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by W. S. STACEY, and Two Maps. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.50.
The conquest of Mexico by a small band of resolute men under the
magnificent leadership of Cortez is always rightly ranked among the most
romantic and daring exploits in history. With this as the groundwork of his
story Mr. Henty has interwoven the adventures of an English youth, Roger
Hawkshaw, the sole survivor of the good ship Swan, which had sailed from a
Devon port to challenge the mercantile supremacy of the Spaniards in the
New World. He is beset by many perils among the natives, but is saved by
his own judgment and strength, and by the devotion of an Aztec princess. At
last by a ruse he obtains the protection of the Spaniards, and after the
fall of Mexico he succeeds in regaining his native shore, with a fortune
and a charming Aztec bride.
"'By Right of Conquest' is the nearest approach to a
perfectly successful historical tale that Mr. Henty has
yet published."--_Academy._
In the Reign of Terror: The Adventures of a Westminster Boy. By G. A.
HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by J. SCHOeNBERG. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.00.
Harry Sandwith, a Westminster boy, becomes a resident at the chateau of a
French marquis, and after various adventures accompanies the family to
Paris at the crisis of the Revolution. Imprisonment and death reduce their
number, and the hero finds himself beset by perils with the three young
daughters of the house in his charge. After hairbreadth escapes they reach
Nantes. There the girls are condemned to death in the coffin-ships, but are
saved by the unfailing courage of their boy protector.
"Harry Sandwith, the Westminster boy, may fairly be
said to beat Mr. Henty's record. His adventures will
delight boys by the audacity and peril they depict....
The story is one of Mr. Henty's best."--_Saturday
Review._
With Wolfe in Canada; or, The Winning of a Continent. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
In the present volume Mr. Henty gives an account of the struggle between
Britain and France for supremacy in the North American continent. On the
issue of this war depended not only the destinies of North America, but to
a large extent those of the mother countries themselves. The fall of Quebec
decided that the Anglo-Saxon race should predominate in the New World; that
Britain, and not France, should take the lead among the nations of Europe;
and that English and American commerce, the English language, and English
literature, should spread right round the globe.
"It is not only a lesson in history as instructively as
it is graphically told, but also a deeply interesting
and often thrilling tale of adventure and peril by
flood and field."--_Illustrated London News._
True to the Old Flag: A Tale of the American War of Independence. By G. A.
HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.00.
In this story the author has gone to the accounts of officers who took part
in the conflict, and lads will find that in no war in which American and
British soldiers have been engaged did they behave with greater courage and
good conduct. The historical portion of the book being accompanied with
numerous thrilling adventures with the redskins on the shores of Lake
Huron, a story of exciting interest is interwoven with the general
narrative and carried through the book.
"Does justice to the pluck and determination of the
British soldiers during the unfortunate struggle
against American emancipation. The son of an American
loyalist, who remains true to our flag, falls among the
hostile redskins in that very Huron country which has
been endeared to us by the exploits of Hawkeye and
Chingachgook."--_The Times._
The Lion of St. Mark: A Tale of Venice in the Fourteenth Century. By G. A.
HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.00.
A story of Venice at a period when her strength and splendor were put to
the severest tests. The hero displays a fine sense and manliness which
carry him safely through an atmosphere of intrigue, crime, and bloodshed.
He contributes largely to the victories of the Venetians at Porto d'Anzo
and Chioggia, and finally wins the hand of the daughter of one of the chief
men of Venice.
"Every boy should read 'The Lion of St. Mark.' Mr.
Henty has never produced a story more delightful, more
wholesome, or more vivacious."--_Saturday Review._
A Final Reckoning: A Tale of Bush Life in Australia. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by W. B. WOLLEN. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The hero, a young English lad, after rather a stormy boyhood emigrates to
Australia, and gets employment as an officer in the mounted police. A few
years of active work on the frontier, where he has many a brush with both
natives and bushrangers, gain him promotion to a captaincy, and he
eventually settles down to the peaceful life of a squatter.
"Mr. Henty has never published a more readable, a more
carefully constructed, or a better written story than
this."--_Spectator._
Under Drake's Flag: A Tale of the Spanish Main. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
A story of the days when England and Spain struggled for the supremacy of
the sea. The heroes sail as lads with Drake in the Pacific expedition, and
in his great voyage of circumnavigation. The historical portion of the
story is absolutely to be relied upon, but this will perhaps be less
attractive than the great variety of exciting adventure through which the
young heroes pass in the course of their voyages.
"A book of adventure, where the hero meets with
experience enough, one would think, to turn his hair
gray."--_Harper's Monthly Magazine._
By Sheer Pluck: A Tale of the Ashanti War. By G. A. HENTY. With full-page
Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The author has woven, in a tale of thrilling interest, all the details of
the Ashanti campaign, of which he was himself a witness. His hero, after
many exciting adventures in the interior, is detained a prisoner by the
king just before the outbreak of the war, but escapes, and accompanies the
English expedition on their march to Coomassie.
"Mr. Henty keeps up his reputation as a writer of boys'
stories. 'By Sheer Pluck' will be eagerly
read."--_Athenaeum._
By Pike and Dyke: A Tale of the Rise of the Dutch Republic By G. A. HENTY.
With full-page Illustrations by MAYNARD BROWN, and 4 Maps. 12mo, cloth,
price $1.00.
In this story Mr. Henty traces the adventures and brave deeds of an English
boy in the household of the ablest man of his age--William the Silent.
Edward Martin, the son of an English sea-captain, enters the service of the
Prince as a volunteer, and is employed by him in many dangerous and
responsible missions, in the discharge of which he passes through the great
sieges of the time. He ultimately settles down as Sir Edward Martin.
"Boys with a turn for historical research will be
enchanted with the book, while the rest who only care
for adventure will be students in spite of
themselves."--_St. James' Gazette._
St. George for England: A Tale of Cressy and Poitiers. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
No portion of English history is more crowded with great events than that
of the reign of Edward III. Cressy and Poitiers; the destruction of the
Spanish fleet; the plague of the Black Death; the Jacquerie rising; these
are treated by the author in "St. George for England." The hero of the
story, although of good family, begins life as a London apprentice, but
after countless adventures and perils becomes by valor and good conduct the
squire, and at last the trusted friend of the Black Prince.
"Mr. Henty has developed for himself a type of
historical novel for boys which bids fair to
supplement, on their behalf, the historical labors of
Sir Walter Scott in the land of fiction."--_The
Standard._
Captain's Kidd's Gold: The True Story of an Adventurous Sailor Boy. By
JAMES FRANKLIN FITTS. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
There is something fascinating to the average youth in the very idea of
buried treasure. A vision arises before his eyes of swarthy Portuguese and
Spanish rascals, with black beards and gleaming eyes--sinister-looking
fellows who once on a time haunted the Spanish Main, sneaking out from some
hidden creek in their long, low schooner, of picaroonish rake and sheer, to
attack an unsuspecting trading craft. There were many famous sea rovers in
their day, but none more celebrated than Capt. Kidd. Perhaps the most
fascinating tale of all is Mr. Fitts' true story of an adventurous American
boy, who receives from his dying father an ancient bit of vellum, which the
latter obtained in a curious way. The document bears obscure directions
purporting to locate a certain island in the Bahama group, and a
considerable treasure buried there by two of Kidd's crew. The hero of this
book, Paul Jones Garry, is an ambitious, persevering lad, of salt-water New
England ancestry, and his efforts to reach the island and secure the money
form one of the most absorbing tales for our youth that has come from the
press.
Captain Bayley's Heir: A Tale of the Gold Fields of California By G. A.
HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by H. M. PAGET. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.00.
A frank, manly lad and his cousin are rivals in the heirship of a
considerable property. The former falls into a trap laid by the latter, and
while under a false accusation of theft foolishly leaves England for
America. He works his passage before the mast, joins a small band of
hunters, crosses a tract of country infested with Indians to the
Californian gold diggings, and is successful both as digger and trader.
"Mr. Henty is careful to mingle instruction with
entertainment; and the humorous touches, especially in
the sketch of John Holl, the Westminster dustman,
Dickens himself could hardly have
excelled."--_Christian Leader._
For Name and Fame; or, Through Afghan Passes. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
An interesting story of the last war in Afghanistan. The hero, after being
wrecked and going through many stirring adventures among the Malays, finds
his way to Calcutta and enlists in a regiment proceeding to join the army
at the Afghan passes. He accompanies the force under General Roberts to the
Peiwar Kotal, is wounded, taken prisoner, carried to Cabul, whence he is
transferred to Candahar, and takes part in the final defeat of the army of
Ayoub Khan.
"The best feature of the book--apart from the interest
of its scenes of adventure--is its honest effort to do
justice to the patriotism of the Afghan
people."--_Daily News._
Captured by Apes: The Wonderful Adventures of a Young Animal Trainer. By
HARRY PRENTICE. 12mo, cloth, $1.00.
The scene of this tale is laid on an island in the Malay Archipelago.
Philip Garland, a young animal collector and trainer, of New York, sets
sail for Eastern seas in quest of a new stock of living curiosities. The
vessel is wrecked off the coast of Borneo and young Garland, the sole
survivor of the disaster, is cast ashore on a small island, and captured by
the apes that overrun the place. The lad discovers that the ruling spirit
of the monkey tribe is a gigantic and vicious baboon, whom he identifies as
Goliah, an animal at one time in his possession and with whose instruction
he had been especially diligent. The brute recognizes him, and with a kind
of malignant satisfaction puts his former master through the same course of
training he had himself experienced with a faithfulness of detail which
shows how astonishing is monkey recollection. Very novel indeed is the way
by which the young man escapes death. Mr. Prentice has certainly worked a
new vein on juvenile fiction, and the ability with which he handles a
difficult subject stamps him as a writer of undoubted skill.
The Bravest of the Brave; or, With Peterborough in Spain. By G. A. HENTY.
With full-page Illustrations by H. M. PAGET. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
There are few great leaders whose lives and actions have so completely
fallen into oblivion as those of the Earl of Peterborough. This is largely
due to the fact that they were over-shadowed by the glory and successes of
Marlborough. His career as general extended over little more than a year,
and yet, in that time, he showed a genius for warfare which has never been
surpassed.
"Mr. Henty never loses sight of the moral purpose of
his work--to enforce the doctrine of courage and truth.
Lads will read 'The Bravest of the Brave' with pleasure
and profit; of that we are quite sure."--_Daily
Telegraph._
The Cat of Bubastes: A Story of Ancient Egypt. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
A story which will give young readers an unsurpassed insight into the
customs of the Egyptian people. Amuba, a prince of the Rebu nation, is
carried with his charioteer Jethro into slavery. They become inmates of the
house of Ameres, the Egyptian high-priest, and are happy in his service
until the priest's son accidentally kills the sacred cat of Bubastes. In an
outburst of popular fury Ameres is killed, and it rests with Jethro and
Amuba to secure the escape of the high-priest's son and daughter.
"The story, from the critical moment of the killing of
the sacred cat to the perilous exodus into Asia with
which it closes, is very skillfully constructed and
full of exciting adventures. It is admirably
illustrated."--_Saturday Review._
With Washington at Monmouth: A Story of Three Philadelphia Boys. By JAMES
OTIS. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Three Philadelphia boys, Seth Graydon "whose mother conducted a
boarding-house which was patronized by the British officers;" Enoch Ball,
"son of that Mrs. Ball whose dancing school was situated on Letitia
Street," and little Jacob, son of "Chris, the Baker," serve as the
principal characters. The story is laid during the winter when Lord Howe
held possession of the city, and the lads aid the cause by assisting the
American spies who make regular and frequent visits from Valley Forge. One
reads here of home life in the captive city when bread was scarce among the
people of the lower classes, and a reckless prodigality shown by the
British officers, who passed the winter in feasting and merry-making while
the members of the patriot army but a few miles away were suffering from
both cold and hunger. The story abounds with pictures of Colonial life
skillfully drawn, and the glimpses of Washington's soldiers which are given
show that the work has not been hastily done, or without considerable
study.
For the Temple: A Tale of the Fall of Jerusalem. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by S. J. SOLOMON. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Mr. Henty here weaves into the record of Josephus an admirable and
attractive story. The troubles in the district of Tiberias, the march of
the legions, the sieges of Jotapata, of Gamala, and of Jerusalem, form the
impressive and carefully studied historic setting to the figure of the lad
who passes from the vineyard to the service of Josephus, becomes the leader
of a guerrilla band of patriots, fights bravely for the Temple, and after a
brief term of slavery at Alexandria, returns to his Galilean home with the
favor of Titus.
"Mr. Henty's graphic prose pictures of the hopeless
Jewish resistance to Roman sway add another leaf to his
record of the famous wars of the world."--_Graphic._
Facing Death; or, The Hero of the Vaughan Pit. A Tale of the Coal Mines. By
G. A. HENTY. With full-page Illustrations by GORDON BROWNE. 12mo, cloth,
price $1.00.
"Facing Death" is a story with a purpose. It is intended to show that a lad
who makes up his mind firmly and resolutely that he will rise in life, and
who is prepared to face toil and ridicule and hardship to carry out his
determination, is sure to succeed. The hero of the story is a typical
British boy, dogged, earnest, generous, and though "shamefaced" to a
degree, is ready to face death in the discharge of duty.
"The tale is well written and well illustrated, and
there is much reality in the characters. If any father,
clergyman, or schoolmaster is on the lookout for a good
book to give as a present to a boy who is worth his
salt, this is the book we would
recommend."--_Standard._
Tom Temple's Career. By HORATIO ALGER. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Tom Temple, a bright, self-reliant lad, by the death of his father becomes
a boarder at the home of Nathan Middleton, a penurious insurance agent.
Though well paid for keeping the boy, Nathan and his wife endeavor to bring
Master Tom in line with their parsimonious habits. The lad ingeniously
evades their efforts and revolutionizes the household. As Tom is heir to
$40,000, he is regarded as a person of some importance until by an
unfortunate combination of circumstances his fortune shrinks to a few
hundreds. He leaves Plympton village to seek work in New York, whence he
undertakes an important mission to California, around which center the most
exciting incidents of his young career. Some of his adventures in the far
west are so startling that the reader will scarcely close the book until
the last page shall have been reached. The tale is written in Mr. Alger's
most fascinating style, and is bound to please the very large class of boys
who regard this popular author as a prime favorite.
Maori and Settler: A Story of the New Zealand War. By G. A. HENTY. With
full-page Illustrations by ALFRED PEARSE. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The Renshaws emigrate to New Zealand during the period of the war with the
natives. Wilfrid, a strong, self-reliant, courageous lad, is the mainstay
of the household. He has for his friend Mr. Atherton, a botanist and
naturalist of herculean strength and unfailing nerve and humor. In the
adventures among the Maoris, there are many breathless moments in which the
odds seem hopelessly against the party, but they succeed in establishing
themselves happily in one of the pleasant New Zealand valleys.
"Brimful of adventure, of humorous and interesting
conversation, and vivid pictures of colonial
life."--_Schoolmaster._
Julian Mortimer: A Brave Boy's Struggle for Home and Fortune. By HARRY
CASTLEMON. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Here is a story that will warm every boy's heart. There is mystery enough
to keep any lad's imagination wound up to the highest pitch. The scene of
the story lies west of the Mississippi River, in the days when emigrants
made their perilous way across the great plains to the land of gold. One of
the startling features of the book is the attack upon the wagon train by a
large party of Indians. Our hero is a lad of uncommon nerve and pluck, a
brave young American in every sense of the word. He enlists and holds the
reader's sympathy from the outset. Surrounded by an unknown and constant
peril, and assisted by the unswerving fidelity of a stalwart trapper, a
real rough diamond, our hero achieves the most happy results. Harry
Castlemon has written many entertaining stories for boys, and it would seem
almost superfluous to say anything in his praise, for the youth of America
regard him as a favorite author.
"Carrots:" Just a Little Boy. By MRS. MOLESWORTH. With Illustrations by
WALTER CRANE. 12mo, cloth, price 75 cents.
"One of the cleverest and most pleasing stories it has
been our good fortune to meet with for some time.
Carrots and his sister are delightful little beings,
whom to read about is at once to become very fond
of."--_Examiner._
"A genuine children's book; we've seen 'em seize it,
and read it greedily. Children are first-rate critics,
and thoroughly appreciate Walter Crane's
illustrations."--_Punch._
Mopsa the Fairy. By JEAN INGELOW. With Eight page Illustrations. 12mo,
cloth, price 75 cents.
"Mrs. Ingelow is, to our mind, the most charming of all
living writers for children, and 'Mopsa' alone ought to
give her a kind of pre-emptive right to the love and
gratitude of our young folks. It requires genius to
conceive a purely imaginary work which must of
necessity deal with the supernatural, without running
into a mere riot of fantastic absurdity; but genius
Miss Ingelow has and the story of 'Jack' is as careless
and joyous, but as delicate, as a picture of
childhood."--_Eclectic._
A Jaunt Through Java: The Story of a Journey to the Sacred Mountain. By
EDWARD S. ELLIS. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The central interest of this story is found in the thrilling adventures of
two cousins, Hermon and Eustace Hadley, on their trip across the island of
Java, from Samarang to the Sacred Mountain. In a land where the Royal
Bengal tiger runs at large; where the rhinoceros and other fierce beasts
are to be met with at unexpected moments; it is but natural that the heroes
of this book should have a lively experience. Hermon not only distinguishes
himself by killing a full-grown tiger at short range, but meets with the
most startling adventure of the journey. There is much in this narrative to
instruct as well as entertain the reader, and so deftly has Mr. Ellis used
his material that there is not a dull page in the book. The two heroes are
brave, manly young fellows, bubbling over with boyish independence. They
cope with the many difficulties that arise during the trip in a fearless
way that is bound to win the admiration of every lad who is so fortunate as
to read their adventures.
Wrecked on Spider Island; or, How Ned Rogers Found the Treasure. By JAMES
OTIS. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
A "down-east" plucky lad who ships as cabin boy, not from love of
adventure, but because it is the only course remaining by which he can gain
a livelihood. While in his bunk, seasick, Ned Rogers hears the captain and
mate discussing their plans for the willful wreck of the brig in order to
gain the insurance. Once it is known he is in possession of the secret the
captain maroons him on Spider Island, explaining to the crew that the boy
is afflicted with leprosy. While thus involuntarily playing the part of a
Crusoe, Ned discovers a wreck submerged in the sand, and overhauling the
timbers for the purpose of gathering material with which to build a hut,
finds a considerable amount of treasure. Raising the wreck; a voyage to
Havana under sail; shipping there a crew and running for Savannah; the
attempt of the crew to seize the little craft after learning of the
treasure on board, and, as a matter of course, the successful ending of the
journey, all serve to make as entertaining a story of sea-life as the most
captious boy could desire.
Geoff and Jim: A Story of School Life. By ISMAY THORN. Illustrated by A. G.
WALKER. 12mo, cloth, price 75 cents.
"This is a prettily told story of the life spent by two
motherless bairns at a small preparatory school. Both
Geoff and Jim are very lovable characters, only Jim is
the more so; and the scrapes he gets into and the
trials he endures will, no doubt, interest a large
circle of young readers."--_Church Times._
"This is a capital children's story, the characters
well portrayed, and the book tastefully bound and well
illustrated."--_Schoolmaster._
"The story can be heartily recommended as a present for
boys."--_Standard._
The Castaways; or, On the Florida Reefs. By JAMES OTIS. 12mo, cloth, price
$1.00.
This tale smacks of the salt sea. It is just the kind of story that the
majority of boys yearn for. From the moment that the Sea Queen dispenses
with the services of the tug in lower New York bay till the breeze leaves
her becalmed off the coast of Florida, one can almost hear the whistle of
the wind through her rigging, the creak of her straining cordage as she
heels to the leeward, and feel her rise to the snow-capped waves which her
sharp bow cuts into twin streaks of foam. Off Marquesas Keys she floats in
a dead calm. Ben Clark, the hero of the story, and Jake, the cook, spy a
turtle asleep upon the glassy surface of the water. They determine to
capture him, and take a boat for that purpose, and just as they succeed in
catching him a thick fog cuts them off from the vessel, and then their
troubles begin. They take refuge on board a drifting hulk, a storm arises
and they are cast ashore upon a low sandy key. Their adventures from this
point cannot fail to charm the reader. As a writer for young people Mr.
Otis is a prime favorite. His style is captivating, and never for a moment
does he allow the interest to flag. In "The Castaways" he is at his best.
Tom Thatcher's Fortune. By HORATIO ALGER, JR. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Like all of Mr. Alger's heroes, Tom Thatcher is a brave, ambitious,
unselfish boy. He supports his mother and sister on meager wages earned as
a shoe-pegger in John Simpson's factory. The story begins with Tom's
discharge from the factory, because Mr. Simpson felt annoyed with the lad
for interrogating him too closely about his missing father. A few days
afterward Tom learns that which induces him to start overland for
California with the view of probing the family mystery. He meets with many
adventures. Ultimately he returns to his native village, bringing
consternation to the soul of John Simpson, who only escapes the
consequences of his villainy by making full restitution to the man whose
friendship he had betrayed. The story is told in that entertaining way
which has made Mr. Alger's name a household word in so many homes.
Birdie: A Tale of Child Life. By H. L. CHILDE-PEMBERTON. Illustrated by H.
W. RAINEY. 12mo, cloth, price 75 cents.
"The story is quaint and simple, but there is a
freshness about it that makes one hear again the
ringing laugh and the cheery shout of children at play
which charmed his earlier years."--_New York Express._
Popular Fairy Tales. By the BROTHERS GRIMM. Profusely Illustrated, 12mo,
cloth, price $1.00.
"From first to last, almost without exception, these
stories are delightful."--_Athenaeum._
With Lafayette at Yorktown: A Story of How Two Boys Joined the Continental
Army. By JAMES OTIS. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The two boys are from Portsmouth, N. H., and are introduced in August,
1781, when on the point of leaving home to enlist in Col. Scammell's
regiment, then stationed near New York City. Their method of traveling is
on horseback, and the author has given an interesting account of what was
expected from boys in the Colonial days. The lads, after no slight amount
of adventure, are sent as messengers--not soldiers--into the south to find
the troops under Lafayette. Once with that youthful general they are given
employment as spies, and enter the British camp, bringing away valuable
information. The pictures of camp-life are carefully drawn, and the
portrayal of Lafayette's character is thoroughly well done. The story is
wholesome in tone, as are all of Mr. Otis' works. There is no lack of
exciting incident which the youthful reader craves, but it is healthful
excitement brimming with facts which every boy should be familiar with, and
while the reader is following the adventures of Ben Jaffreys and Ned Allen
he is acquiring a fund of historical lore which will remain in his memory
long after that which he has memorized from text-books has been forgotten.
Lost in the Canyon: Sam Willett's Adventures on the Great Colorado. By
ALFRED R. CALHOUN. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
This story hinges on a fortune left to Sam Willett, the hero, and the fact
that it will pass to a disreputable relative if the lad dies before he
shall have reached his majority. The Vigilance Committee of Hurley's Gulch
arrest Sam's father and an associate for the crime of murder. Their lives
depend on the production of the receipt given for money paid. This is in
Sam's possession at the camp on the other side of the canyon. A messenger is
dispatched to get it. He reaches the lad in the midst of a fearful storm
which floods the canyon. His father's peril urges Sam to action. A raft is
built on which the boy and his friends essay to cross the torrent. They
fail to do so, and a desperate trip down the stream ensues. How the party
finally escape from the horrors of their situation and Sam reaches Hurley's
Gulch in the very nick of time, is described in a graphic style that stamps
Mr. Calhoun as a master of his art.
Jack: A Topsy Turvy Story. By C. M. CRAWLEY-BOEVEY. With upward of Thirty
Illustrations by H. J. A. MILES. 12mo, cloth, price 75 cents.
"The illustrations deserve particular mention, as they
add largely to the interest of this amusing volume for
children. Jack falls asleep with his mind full of the
subject of the fishpond, and is very much surprised
presently to find himself an inhabitant of Waterworld,
where he goes through wonderful and edifying
adventures. A handsome and pleasant book."--_Literary
World._
Search for the Silver City: A Tale of Adventure in Yucatan. By JAMES OTIS.
12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Two American lads, Teddy Wright and Neal Emery, embark on the steam yacht
Day Dream for a short summer cruise to the tropics. Homeward bound the
yacht is destroyed by fire. All hands take to the boats, but during the
night the boat is cast upon the coast of Yucatan. They come across a young
American named Cummings, who entertains them with the story of the
wonderful Silver City, of the Chan Santa Cruz Indians. Cummings proposes
with the aid of a faithful Indian ally to brave the perils of the swamp and
carry off a number of the golden images from the temples. Pursued with
relentless vigor for days their situation is desperate. At last their
escape is effected in an astonishing manner. Mr. Otis has built his story
on an historical foundation. It is so full of exciting incidents that the
reader is quite carried away with the novelty and realism of the narrative.
Frank Fowler, the Cash Boy. By HORATIO ALGER, JR. 12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
Thrown upon his own resources Frank Fowler, a poor boy, bravely determines
to make a living for himself and his foster-sister Grace. Going to New York
he obtains a situation as cash boy in a dry goods store. He renders a
service to a wealthy old gentleman named Wharton, who takes a fancy to the
lad. Frank, after losing his place as cash boy, is enticed by an enemy to a
lonesome part of New Jersey and held a prisoner. This move recoils upon the
plotter, for it leads to a clue that enables the lad to establish his real
identity. Mr. Alger's stories are not only unusually interesting, but they
convey a useful lesson of pluck and manly independence.
Budd Boyd's Triumph; or, the Boy Firm of Fox Island. By WILLIAM P. CHIPMAN.
12mo, cloth, price $1.00.
The scene of this story is laid on the upper part of Narragansett Bay, and
the leading incidents have a strong salt-water flavor. Owing to the
conviction of his father for forgery and theft, Budd Boyd is compelled to
leave his home and strike out for himself. Chance brings Budd in contact
with Judd Floyd. The two boys, being ambitious and clear sighted, form a
partnership to catch and sell fish. The scheme is successfully launched,
but the unexpected appearance on the scene of Thomas Bagsley, the man whom
Budd believes guilty of the crimes attributed to his father, leads to
several disagreeable complications that nearly caused the lad's ruin. His
pluck and good sense, however, carry him through his troubles. In following
the career of the boy firm of Boyd & Floyd, the youthful reader will find a
useful lesson--that industry and perseverance are bound to lead to ultimate
success.
End of Project Gutenberg's The Little Princess of Tower Hill, by L. T. Meade