The Only True Mother Goose Melodies
The editor of the new edition of Mother Goose's Melodies knows much more about the curious history of the Boston edition than I do. And the reader will not need, even in these lines of mine, any light on the curious question about Madam Vergoose, or her son-in-law Mr. Fleet, or the Contes de Ma Mere l'Oye, which are so carefully discussed in the preface. All this is admirably discussed also in Mr. William Whitmore's paper published in Albany in 1889, and reprinted in Boston in 1892. In that paper he reproduced in facsimile Isaiah Thomas's edition of Mother Goose published first in 1785. What I want to tell, is of Mother Goose in the nineteenth Century--the Mother Goose on which the old Boston line was brought up--a line now nearly forgotten. But there were days, Gentle Reader, when an excellent body of people in this little Town of Boston grew up all together loving and loved, brought up their children here, loving and loved, and amused those children from babyhood in their own way. The centre of the baby life of this race was Mother Goose's Melodies in the dear little quarto edition, of which a precise copy is in the reader's hands.
9. He took a boat to His own city. There they brought to Him a
man with palsy who was lying on a bed. Jesus, seeing their faith, said
to the sick man; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins are forgiven thee.
Behold, certain of the scribes said, This man blasphemes. And, Jesus
knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? Is
it easier to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee or Arise and walk? So ye
may know that the Son of man has power on earth to forgive sins, (then
He said to the sick man) Arise, take up thy bed and go to thy house.
The man did get up and went to his house. When the multitude saw it,
they marvelled and glorified God who had given such power.
When Jesus left there He saw a man sitting at the receipt of custom. He
said to him, Follow me. And he arose and followed Him. As Jesus sat at
dinner, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with Him and His
disciples. When the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, Why
does your master eat with publicans and sinners? When Jesus heard this,
He said, Those who are well do not need a physician, but those who are
sick do. Go and learn what that means. I will have mercy and not
revenge because I have not come to call the righteous, but to call
sinners to repentance.
Then John's disciples came to Him and asked, Why do we and the
Pharisees often fast, but thy disciples do not fast? Jesus said to
them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn as long as the
bridegroom is with them? The day will come when the bridegroom will be
The editor of the new edition of Mother Goose's Melodies knows much more about the curious history of the Boston edition than I do. And the reader will not need, even in these lines of mine, any light on the curious question about Madam Vergoose, or her son-in-law Mr. Fleet, or the Contes de Ma Mere l'Oye, which are so carefully discussed in the preface. All this is admirably discussed also in Mr. William Whitmore's paper published in Albany in 1889, and reprinted in Boston in 1892. In that paper he reproduced in facsimile Isaiah Thomas's edition of Mother Goose published first in 1785. What I want to tell, is of Mother Goose in the nineteenth Century--the Mother Goose on which the old Boston line was brought up--a line now nearly forgotten. But there were days, Gentle Reader, when an excellent body of people in this little Town of Boston grew up all together loving and loved, brought up their children here, loving and loved, and amused those children from babyhood in their own way. The centre of the baby life of this race was Mother Goose's Melodies in the dear little quarto edition, of which a precise copy is in the reader's hands.