nd being very much
fatigued, he stopped at the cottage of an honest plowman to rest
himself, and ask for some refreshment.

The countryman gave him a hearty welcome, and his wife, who was a very
good-hearted, hospitable woman, soon brought him some milk in a wooden
bowl, and some coarse brown bread on a platter.

Merlin was much pleased with this homely repast and the kindness of
the plowman and his wife; but he could not help seeing that though
everything was neat and comfortable in the cottage, they seemed both
to be sad and much cast down. He therefore questioned them on the
cause of their sadness, and learned that they were miserable because
they had no children.

The poor woman declared, with tears in her eyes, that she should be
the happiest creature in the world if she had a son; and although he
was no bigger than her husband's thumb, she would be satisfied.

Merlin was so much amused with the idea of a boy no bigger than a
man's thumb, that he made up his mind to pay a visit to the queen of
the fairies, and ask her to grant the poor woman's wish. The droll
fancy of such a little person among the human race pleased the fairy
queen too, greatly, and she promised Merlin that the wish should be
granted. Accordingly, in a short time after, the plowman's wife had a
son, who, wonderful to relate, was not a bit bigger than his father's
thumb.

The fairy queen, wishing to see the little fellow thus born into the
world, came in at the window while the mother was sitting up in bed
admiring him. The queen kissed the child, and giving it the name
of Tom Thumb, sent for some of the fairies, who dressed her little
favorite as she bade them.

"An oak-leaf hat he had for his crown;
His shirt of web by spiders spun;
With jacket wove of thistle's down;
His trousers were of feathers done.
His stockings, of apple-rind, they tie
With eyelash from his mother's eye:
His shoes were made of mouses' skin,
Tann'd with the downy hair within."

It is remarkable that Tom never grew any larger than his father's
thumb, which was only of an ordinary size; but as he got older he
became very cunning and full of tricks. When he was old enough to
play with the boys, and had lost all his own cherry-stones, he used to
creep into the bags of his playfellows, fill his pockets, and, getting
out unseen, would again join in the game.

One day, however, as he was coming out of a bag of cherry-stones,
where he had been pilfering