PREFACE.

N the proposal to draw up a Life of Tom Thumb, to accompany the graceful Illustrations of this little book, the attempt would have seemed a presumptuous interference with nursery classics, had it not appeared, on examination, that he, unlike his companions in fireside mythology, has never been the theme of any cultivated mind, but has been left to the unpoetical English tradition. His adventures, as usually narrated, are without variety, and, in general, disagreeable; and even the name of King Arthur cannot raise him, appearing only as the vulgarized Arthur of nursery rhymes.

Fielding's burlesque only added the evils of the literature of his age to the dull poverty of the old story, and thus the field appeared to be open to an endeavour to weave the traditional mishaps of the pigmy-knight into a tale that might be free from the former offences against good taste; to do, in fact, what Perrault did for Blue Beard, Puss in Boots, and the Sleeping Beauty, and the Comtesse d'Aulnoy for the White Cat, and Beauty and the Beast. Such success as theirs is not to be looked for in these days, nor by the present writer, but it is hoped that the tale here presented, may connect a few pleasant associations with the little favourite of nursery lore.

The view has been to adhere as closely as possible to the legitimate English fairy lore. Arbitrary fairies are very pretty additions to a tale of wonder; but they are not the beings that the popular mind regarded with a strange mixture of sportiveness, dread, and compassion; and as such, it has been my desire to represent them. If a strain of gravity have thus mingled with the tale, it should be remembered, that, as Mr. Ruskin has taught us, even the grotesque playfulness of our northern race has in it a shade of deeper signification, than appears on the sportive surface.

The Notes may perhaps be thought over numerous, but they were added with the desire of rendering accessible to children some of the choice passages of English fairy poetry, well known indeed to their elders, but to them out of reach, as well as to give a few sketches from the romances of King Arthur's Court, often a subject of much youthful curiosity, not easily gratified.

Thus originality is the last object aimed at, since the class of readers to whom Sir Thomas offers himself are those who least desire novelty. If any of those who are attracted to the book by the little Knight's capital portraits, should chance to feel aggrieved and incredulous at any new exploits being attributed to him, they are entreated to believe, that the Author is quite as unwilling as they can be to disturb a time-honoured tradition, and that no more has been altered than was necessary to render the story in any way worthy of its Illustrations.

INTRODUCTION.

OME say that Tom Thumb was in truth King Edgar's

dwarf, but this does not seem so likely as that there

should always have been a story told to German, Danish, French, and English children about a little man, no bigger than a thumb.

The Germans call this little man Thumbling, and some of his adventures were much the same as those in this story, especially his riding in the horse's ear, and being eaten by the cow. The French name for him was le petit Poucet, and in the year 1696, Monsieur Perrault published a story of him, which is the same as that we call Hop-o'-my-Thumb, (not Tom Thumb, I hope,) the little boy who was forsaken with his six brothers, by his cruel parents, in a wood, and who found his way home, the first time, by the little white pebbles he had strewn as he went; but, afterwards, using bread crumbs instead, they were eaten by the birds, and he fell into the ogre's cave, where he changed his own red cap and those of his brothers for the crowns of the six sleeping little ogresses, and so caused the ogre to devour his own seven daughters, instead of the seven wanderers.

This story must, I think, all but the name of Poucet, have

come from the South, for you will never find an ogre in a tale that arose in the North.

The Danish mannikin was called Svend Tomling, and married a lady three ells and a quarter long. It was she who probably sung the song of putting her little husband into a pint pot. The Scots called him Tomalin, or Tamlane, but though they sent him to Fairy-land, they do not seem to have believed him smaller than other people.

Our own Tom Thumb is different from all of these, and is made to say in an old history of Robin Goodfellow

"My actions all, in volumes two are wrote,

The least of which will never be forgot."

Poor Tom was not more prophetic than grammatical, for there is only one history of him extant, besides an old ballad, which is not very poetical. They both agree in taking him to King Arthur's court and into Fairy-land. Mr. Orchard Halliwell thinks that the subsequent part of the story is not so old as the rest, but added by some awkward imitator.

King Arthur was a favourite subject of all the romances that were written in England and France, and sometimes in Italy, and they made out that he and his knights were the very models of everything they thought noble and chivalrous.

As to the fairies, I have tried to shew them here, as our forefathers believed in them. It seems to have been thought that they were pretty, gay beings, long-lived and not subject to

the griefs and pains of mortals, but that they lived in a sort of middle state, without hopes of being saved like us men, and, therefore, unable to take any true joy or pleasure. They had power only by night, and could do no harm to those who placed themselves under the only true and holy protection; but always took advantage of those who, by their own fault, were exposed to these spirits of the lower air.

These were the dancing fairies who traced the rings on the grass, and of whom Mab was Queen. The males of these were called elves, the females fairies or elf-women, and they were thought so beautiful that we find many of the old Saxons named after them,-Alfred, Elfrida, &c. There are many wonderful histories of them in German and Swedish popular legends.

Other fairies also spoken of, and more properly called fays, were generally women, enchantresses, called in Italian, charmed, fatata or fata, in French fée, and in English, fay. We often meet with them in old romances, and probably all the fairy godmothers we hear of, are meant for these, but they are quite a distinct class from

"The King of Elves, and little Fairy Queen."

I advise the little people who may read this book, not to settle that Notes must be dull, for they will find in these some of the prettiest verses about fairies that I have been able to bring together.

December 6th 1855.