Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-11-15

u U IN ily n,'''z: sooinson" SONS : and and
Jules Verne's book,
"Around the World in Eighty Days" and
''Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the
Sea-" These books nv boy deyoured, and
all the adventures Of their remarkable
people were initiated as far as his limited
capacity and opportunity would allow, and
to this day, though he is 6 feet and inches
high and has boy Of his own, can sesin
his daily life and conversation the influence
of these stories. I remember once asking
him on q Sabbath morning: "What book
are you reading, my son? Is it proper
book to read on the Sabbath"
He rose from his seat and assumed very
dignifed attitude, and said in most i'm
pressive tones: "Well, I should think 1t
was. It is about very excellent Christian
family who were cast away on desert
island on Sunday; it is the Swiss Family
Robinson"
Crusoe Versus the Pilgrim.
A little friend of his, hearing my boy
talk about the exploits Of his favorite hero,
exclaimed: "How can you like that hum
bug, Robinson Crusoe? I can't bear him.
Did you ever hear Pilgrims Progress q
That is the greatest bSok ever heard. /
tell you when my mother reads that book to
us children we just hold our breath to hear
what happens to Christian. Didn't he have
jolly time, though, when he got to the
Celestial City after his hard journey, and
heard the bells ring and saw the angels
tapping their wingS?"
ooh, bosh I" said the advocate Of ROB
inson Crusoe" 81 like to read about things
that happened in this world. Why, I heard
fellow say the other day that ships could
60 to Robinson Crusoe's island now, and I
mean to go myself some time"
A little cousin of my children once re-
marked, after listening to their conversation
about the books they liked: 81 hase to read
about good people. I like stories about bad
boys that ran away from home, and had
awful times, and then grew good and went
back to their mothers" Only the other day
one of the little girls of a later generation
said to her mother who was trying to in
terest her in that fascinating book, 'Little
Lord Fauntleroy," 81 don't want to hear
that mamma, there is no bad boy in it.
can't be SO very, very good, and don't want
to hear about it."
Fairy Tales for the Imagination.
The early years of one of my little girls
were devoted to fairy stories: Thackeray's
"The Rose and the King" "Grimm's Fairy
Tales" and Miss Mulock's 'The Little
Lame Prince" She lived in their ideal
world. She talked with the trees and the
clouds, and said she never was lonely-in
her vivifed Imagination the fairy realm was
all about her She came in one day from a
walk across the lawn, and in great excite
ment informed me she had seen o large
white bear under the trees and on another
dav she had seen horrid serpent lying
across the path, and just as she went Up to
it, it turned into a little fairy. A white cat
and an earth worm were the realities of
these visions.
At years of age this same daughter found
her greatest pleasure in books of history and
travel Abbott's little red-covered histories
were read over and over again. She was
fascinated with all that was striking and
picturesque in accounts of foreign places,
and shall never forget her indignation
when she overheard some one say that it
was pity Abbott's histories were not al
together reliable. She was so grieved and
angry that she left the room and I found
her halt hour later crying by herself, ''be-
cause she said, 81 will. not listen to any
body who says those books are not true-I
believe every word of them, and never
wish to see that man againl"
Delighted With Big Atlas.
Her chief diversion was to spread an
atlas on a chair and seat herself on low
stool and find the places spoken OF, and
follow in her Imagination ESQ early and
strongly developed by her fairy tale read
ing) Napoleon IN his campaigns, and Marie
Antoinette through the changeful scenes of
her life, and Maria Theresa, and all the rest.
I remember her announcing to me, after one
Of these imaginary journeys, that she should
visit all those places as soon as she was old
enough, and that if she could 60 in no other
way she should go as nurse.
Peter Parley's geography and history
we're great delight to her. She was very
fond OF little children. and at the immature
age Of 10 she taught history and geography
TO little group of poor children in the
In after years she said: Gas
[ remember it now, it was very funny
teaching, but my pupils were entirely salts
fed. and so was l at the time"
When in later years she took q long for
eign journey she said in one of her letters
home: ''The cities I visit do not seem
strange to me, they are just as used to
fancy them when I read about them and
found them on the map" and from Rome,
The wrote: Everything was SO exactly as
1ad pictured it, that 1 can hardly believe I
lave not seen it all before"
Tho Most Interesting Of Books
As I glance backward, and recall those
delicious hours, when my children gathered
Iround the evening lamp before cheerful
'pen fire, in large country house, and We
cad together one book after another, it is
lificult to tell what was the one book !
which most fascinated them, because always |
he one in hand was the "most interesting |
hey had ever read"
''The Wide, Wide World" and 1.-THE |
"a" plighter" never failed in sickness or in |
eaith to hold my girls spell-bound and to
our appointed for them to be closed in
leep. My eldest daughter has revealed to
le the secret which she kept very closely
t the time-that ''The Schonberg Gotta
'amily" drew her from her bed at the first
avn Of day on freezing winter morning
, eager was she to follow the fortunes Of
nat remarkable family.
hDc nv 1