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 PUBLISHED BY S. BABCOCK. 
 
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 NEW HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 ii LIFE AND ADVENTURES ^ 
 
 OF 
 
 TOM THUMB. 
 
 
 His shirt was made of a butterfly's wing, 
 His boots were made of a mouse's skin, 
 His coat was wove of thistle down, 
 An oak-leaf hat he had for his crwn, 
 A tailor's needle hung by his side, 
 And a mouse for a horse he used to ride. 
 
 NEW HAVEN. 
 PUBLISHED BY S. BABCOCK. 
 
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NEW HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 LIFE AND ADVENTURES 
 
 OF 
 
 T O IV! T H U iVI B . 
 
 When I was a little boy, children's 
 books were not quite as plenty, or as 
 cheap, or as good as they are now. 
 In those days, children did not often 
 have a present of a pretty book with 
 beautiful pictures; but when they 
 did get one, it was highly prized. 
 
 We had Cock Robin, and Jack the 
 Giant Killer, and Blue Beard, and 
 The Forty Thieves, and many other 
 amusing but not very instructive tales. 
 Tom Thumb was one of the number, 
 and was a favorite book of mine, al- 
 though I knew the story was not true, 
 and that there were no such beings as 
 magicians and fairies. Perhaps my 
 little readers would like to know 
 what kind of stories we old folks read 
 when we were such little bodies as 
 
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 4 MERLIN AND THE FAIRY QUEEN, 
 
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 you are now. I think I remember 
 enough of Tom Thumb to be able to 
 tell you the story. 
 
 . Once on a time, Merlin, a famous 
 magician, was traveling, and beincr 
 weary, he stopped at a plowman's 
 cottage to ask for some refreshment. 
 The plowman's wife kindly brought 
 him a bowl of milk, and a wooden 
 plate of good brown bread, which she 
 urged him to partake of. 
 
 Merlin could not help seeing, that 
 the honest couple looked quite sad 
 and sorrowful ; so he asked the cause, 
 and learned that they had no chil- 
 dren ; the wife declaring, with tears 
 in her eyes, that she should be happy 
 if she had a son, even if he were no 
 bigger than his father's thumb ! 
 
 Merlin was much amused with the 
 idea of a boy no bigger than a man's 
 thumb, and sending for the queen of 
 the fairies, he told her of the desire 
 of the plowman's wife. The queen 
 was no less pleased than Merlin, and 
 she said the wish should be granted. 
 
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 6 THE PEDLER AND THE PUDDING. 
 
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 NEW HISTORY OF TOM THUMB. 7 
 
 Accordingly, the plowman's wife 
 had a son, who was just the size of 
 his father's thumb, and was named 
 by the queen, Tom Thumb. 
 
 One dav his mother was making a 
 pudding, and that he might see how 
 it w r as made, Tom climbed on the top 
 of the bowl ; but his foot happening 
 to slip, he fell over head and ears into 
 it, and his mother not seeing him, 
 she stirred him into the batter, and 
 then popped the whole into the pot. 
 
 The hot water made Tom kick 
 and struggle, and his mother, seeing 
 the pudding jump up and down in 
 the pot, thought it w r as bewitched. 
 A pedlar going by at that moment, 
 she gave him the pudding, which he 
 put in his pack and then walked on. 
 As soon as Tom could get the batter 
 out of his mouth, he began to cry out. 
 This so frightened the pedler that he 
 flung the pudding over a fence, and 
 took to his heels. The pudding was 
 broken by the fall, and poor Tom 
 crawled out and ran home. 
 
 
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 8 TOM LANDS IN THE HOT SOUP. 
 
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 NEW HISTORY OF TOM THUMB. 9 
 
 
 Tom never was any bigger; but as 
 he grew older be grew cunning and 
 sly. When he played with boys for 
 cherry-stones, and had lost his own, 
 he used to creep into his playmates' 
 bags, fill his pockets, and come out to 
 play again. One day, as he was doing 
 this, the owner chanced to see him. 
 "Ah, ha, my little Tom/' said he, " I 
 have caught you at last ; now I will 
 punish you for stealing/' So he drew 
 the bag-string tight about his neck, 
 and then shaking the bag, Tom's legs 
 and thighs were so sadly bruised,' that 
 he was thrown into a raging: fever. 
 
 Just at this time the queen of the 
 faires came in a coach drawn by six 
 flying mice, and placing Tom by her 
 side, drove through the air to her pal- 
 ace in fairy land, where she kept him 
 till he was restored to health. Then, 
 taking advantage of a fair wind, she 
 blew him straight to the court of kino- 
 Arthur. But just as Tom was about 
 to land in the palace-yard, the king's 
 cook happened to pass with a huge 
 
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 10 TOM SWALLOWED BY A FISH. 
 
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 bowl of soup, into which Tom fell 
 plump, and splashed the hot soup all 
 in the cook's face and eyes. 
 
 "Oh, dear! Oh, dear!" cried Tom. 
 half scalded and half drowned in his 
 hot hath; "murder! murder! mur- 
 der !" bellowed the cook, who was a 
 cross, red-faced old fellow, and sup- 
 posed Tom had done all this mischief 
 on purpose. Determined to be re- 
 venged on the little fellow for the 'im- 
 aginary insult, he urged his brother, 
 who was a miller, and as cross and 
 cruel as himself, to take little Tom 
 home with him, and put him where 
 he could do no more mischief. 
 
 Accordingly, the miller pocketed 
 Tom, and carrying him to his mill, 
 dropped him from a window into the 
 river. But Tom was not born to be 
 drowned. A large salmon swim- 
 ming by at that moment, caught him 
 in its mouth and swallowed him 
 without any trouble. 
 
 The salmon was soon caught, and 
 being a fine large fish, was presented 
 
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 TOM RELEASED. 
 
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 to the king, who ordered it to be 
 dressed immediately. "When it was 
 cut open, every body was delighted 
 to see little Tom Thumb step out. 
 He soon became the favorite of the 
 king, who knighted him, and gave 
 him a little golden palace to live in, 
 and also a tiny coach, which was 
 drawn by six white mice. 
 
 King Arthur one day questioned 
 Tom about his parents, and Tom in- 
 formed his majesty that they were 
 worthy people, but very poor. Then 
 the king led him into his treasury, 
 and showing him the piles of gold 
 and silver, told him he might pay his 
 parents a visit, and take with him 
 as much money as he could carry ! 
 Accordingly, Tom procured a little 
 purse, and putting a sixpence into 
 it, he with much labor and difficulty 
 got the purse upon his back and 
 started for home. 
 
 His mother met him at the door, 
 where he arrived almost tired to 
 death, having traveled nearly half a 
 
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 14 TOM RIDING ON A BUTTERFLY. 
 
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 mile, with a huge sixpence on his 
 back. His parents were delighted 
 to see him, especially as he brought 
 such an amazing sum of money. 
 
 Tom remained at home for some 
 time ; but at last getting weary of 
 his humble life, he watched for an 
 opportunity to reach king Arthur's 
 court again. One day he sauntered 
 out into the fields, and seeing a but- 
 terfly seated on the ground, he ven- 
 tured to get astride of him. The 
 butterfly soon took wing, and mount- 
 ing into the air with "Tom on his 
 back, flew from field to field, till at 
 last he reached the king's court. 
 
 The king, queen, and nobles, all 
 tried to catch the butterfly, but could 
 
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 not. At last poor Tom, having no 
 saddle or bridle, slipped off' and tum- 
 bled into a watering-pot, where he 
 was nearly drowned before he could 
 be taken out. But he soon recover- 
 ed from this mishap, and once more 
 became the pride and ornament of 
 king Arthur's court. 
 
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At last, a huge spider one day 
 attacked him, and though he drew his 
 sword and fought well, yet the spi- 
 der's poisonous breath at last over- 
 came him. 
 
 King Arthur and his whole court 
 went into mourning for little Tom 
 Thumb. They buried him under a 
 rose-bush, and raised a white marble 
 monument over his grave, with this 
 epitaph on it, in letters of gold : 
 
 Here lies Tom Thumb, a gallant knight, 
 Who died by a cruel spider's bite. 
 He was well known in king Arthur's court, 
 Where he afforded pleasant sport ; 
 He rode at tilt and tournament, 
 And on a mouse a hunting w r ent. 
 Alive, he filled the court with mirth ; 
 His death to general grief gave birth. 
 Good people, tears of sorrow shed, 
 And cry, Alas ! Sir Tom is dead ! 
 
 Now, my little readers, w r hich do 
 you like best, — true stories, moral and 
 instructive stories, or stories like the 
 wonderful adventures of 
 
 TOM THUMB? 
 
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 BABCOCK'S 
 
 I0¥ BOOKS, 
 
 NEW SERIES, 
 
 MORAL, INSTRUCTIVE, AND 
 ENTERTAINING, 
 
 ALL BEAUTIFULLY 
 
 gsaissttiiLasKiE® 
 
 WITH 
 
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 ENGRAVINGS. 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 THOMAS TELLER. 
 
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 EVERY DESCRIPTION 
 
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