ed as the hero of the English
version of this romantic tale has never been
made clear. Probably it was due to the common
tendency of the folk in all lands to attribute
unusual success in any field to other than
ordinary causes. However that may be, it is
certainly true that no story more completely
satisfies the ideal of complete success for
children than this "History of Sir Richard
Whittington." Mr. Jacobs calls attention to the
interesting fact that the chapbook places the
introduction of the potato into England rather
far back!

WHITTINGTON AND HIS CAT

In the reign of the famous King Edward III, there was a little boy
called Dick Whittington, whose father and mother died when he was very
young, so that he remembered nothing at all about them and was left a
ragged little fellow, running about a country village. As poor Dick was
not old enough to work, he was very badly off; he got but little for his
dinner and sometimes nothing at all for his breakfast, for the people
who lived in the village were very poor indeed and could not spare him
much more than the parings of potatoes and now and then a hard crust of
bread.

For all this, Dick Whittington was a very sharp boy and was always
listening to what everybody talked about. On Sunday he was sure to get
near the farmers as they sat talking on the tombstones in the churchyard
before the parson was come; and once a week you might see little Dick
leaning against the sign post of the village alehouse, where people
stopped to drink as they came from the next market town; and when the
barber's shop door was open, Dick listened to all the news that his
customers told one another.

In this manner Dick heard a great many very strange things about the
city called London; for the foolish country people at that time thought
that folks in London were all fine gentlemen and ladies, and that there
was singing and music there all day long, and that the streets were all
paved with gold.

One day a large wagon and eight horses, all with bells at their heads,
drove through the village while Dick was standing by the signpost. He
thought that this wagon must be going to the fine town of London; so he
took courage and asked the wagoner to let him walk with him by the side
of the wagon. As soon as the wagoner heard that poor Dick had no father
or mother and saw by his ragged clothes th