About the middle of the last century there was printed in England a children’s story with the attractive title, “The Good Natured Bear.” This story, written by Robert H. Horne, was reviewed by William Makepeace Thackeray, who at that time signed his criticisms M. A. Titmarsh. Mr. Thackeray wrote an article entitled “On Some Illustrated Children’s Books” for Fraser’s Magazine in which he made the following comment: “Let a word be said in conclusion about the admirable story of ‘The Good Natured Bear,’ one of the wittiest, pleasantest, and kindest of books that I have read for many a long day.”
A few years ago the editors of this collection of stories found out-of-print copies of “The Good Natured Bear,” “The Man of Snow,” and “Finikin and His Golden Pippins”—all old-fashioned tales for children. Believing that young readers of to-day will enjoy the good cheer and merry humour of these stories, the editors have included them in this volume with other happy tales which are perhaps much better known.
The excellent humourous stories in the folklore of all nations point out to us that good cheer and merriment were favourite themes of the olden-time story-teller. Some of his rarest treasures were nonsense rhymes, fables, and allegories which enlisted the sympathy of his audience by inducing them to laugh with him. With a merry twinkle in his eye we can hear him addressing the tiniest listeners:
“Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon;
The little dog laughed to see such sport
And the dish ran away with the spoon.”
Wide-eyed children pressing close to the enchanter were not the only persons in that appreciative audience who smiled at the first picture suggested by the rhyme, laughed with the little dog, and enjoyed with wholesome abandon the merriment called forth by the incongruous surprise of the last line. The story-teller knew the refreshing value of hearty laughter at pure nonsense.
The stories in this collection were written by authors who had the precious gift of knowing how to entertain young readers with narratives of good cheer and happy frolic. Such stories are valuable because they keep alive and develop a wholesome sense of humour. It is perfectly natural for a normal child to laugh heartily at the grotesque antics of a circus clown. But this elemental response to merry fun should be trained and quickened into a rich and varied sense of humour which can laugh with Gareth when Lancelot unhorses him; revel with Puck in Fairyland; and enjoy a merry Christmas with the Cratchits.