New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1900-02-04
LITTLE JACK HORNER. y
IAN AMERICAN MOTHER" TAKES EX-
CEPTIONS TO THE VIEWS OF
DR. Won DOPE.

To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: An American mother and admirer Of
The Tribune, write to express my regret that you
should have opened the columns of your paper to
attack upon of the dearest traditions of
the nursery-the goodness of Little Jack Horner.
This may trivial grievance to you and to
the author of the attack, who has probably never
had child to raise; but TO an American mother
who must find harmless and simple lyrics for her
little ones. this attack comes as a blow.
To such 1 the nursery room ballad of Little
Jack Horner has for generations been treasure.
because Of its child enhancing rhythm and its
tire freedom from words which lead 10 embarrass-
ing questions. In this latter particular it differs
gratefully from many other Mother Goose
rhymes, such "Margery Daw.' "Taffy the
Welshman," etc. If your hypercritical humorist
had poured out his sarcasm upon such as these l
would not have objected. but by attempting to
show that dear Little Jack Horner was the en-
bodiment of self-esteem he has ranged himself
alongside that other enemy of childhood, the man
who snatched from the loved tradition of Will
lam Tell shooting the apple from his sons head.
But 1 thankful that although the traducer
of Little Jack Horner meant 70 do his worst, his
arguments feeble as to be easily refuted.
The chief charge brought against Little Jack is
that he exclaimed in the words of the poet, What
a good boy am I?' Another is that he in
to eat his Christmas pie. Hence it is
argued that he too bad to be allowed to sit
with the Others and that he overweeningly
conceited. The truth is, the heart Of every
mother who will tell her, and as 1
have frequently told my own, that Little Jack had
been toddpg about the kitchen watching his
mother making Christmas pies, and to keep him
from being stepped his mother set him in his
high chair in and promised to bake a
little Christmas pie especially for him if he would
''be good; which is the generic term for all the
virtues of the nursery, covering a multitude of
graces. from saying ones prayers to sitting still
taking small mouthfuls.
When Little Jacks pie baked it set be-
fore him, and not being old enough to fork
fright here wish to draw attention to the fact that
with knife and fork-oh, horrorsD began to break
open with his dmped a ngTS Pyng fla far WITHIN within
he checks natural desire to bite the tempting
mouth to oyerfiowing with the pastry but, deity
inserting his chubby thumb he daintly scoops the
parent to See exclaims: m good boy This is
When he does as he IS bid and in Using it he does
not express inordinate conceit. as his traducer
mother to the fact that he has ' remembered the n
junction to take small mouthfuls. This he knows
of being thought self Mandatory This is true filaI
for The Tribune to give currency to the nfiiction
upon Little Jack Of the penalty he risked for his
The, Then again how absurd is the attempt to hold
Little eo JACK Homer up to because he was lit
little in mind All natural babies are. Minds must
With great mind You'd d b as an Unnatural mon s
The ra e Of Jack Horner is evidently an adj
mrer OF precocfty. But most puerile of ALL perhaps,
is his argument that because Master Horner was
calleO JACK ne Is entitled to consideration than
# the poet had called him John. Is Jack a
dminutive of endearment with all the English
speaking races? Certainly il Is. Witness that
dearly loved knight of the nursery. Jack the Giant
Killer. Witness also that sprghtly elf, the
Box Witness too. the faithful partner in adversely
of JILL
Down with these men, say l, who would deprive
the little children OF America OF their faith in the
simple folk of legend! What have they to offer as
a substitute? Wagner's perplexng myths? Arthur's
doubtful knights of the Round Table? Those
Jack Horner has held his niche as good boy who
sat where he was put and ate what given him
without kicking crying. That is what makes a
good boy OF four years Little Jacks traducer
will appreciate when he has had boy OF his own,
and l. for one, petition The Tribune to take firm
stand in the future against all such iconoclasts
this verbose Professor Dope, of the University
of Schlafendorf. AN AMERICAN MOTHER
NewYork. Feb 1. 1900.