The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fairchild Family, by Mary Martha Sherwood

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Title: The Fairchild Family

Author: Mary Martha Sherwood

Editor: Mary E. Palgrave

Illustrator: Florence M. Rudland

Release Date: August 19, 2009 [EBook #29725]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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THE FAIRCHILD FAMILY

BY Mrs. SHERWOOD

[Illustration: "_Mr. and Mrs. Fairchild had three children, Lucy, Emily
and Henry._"--Page 1.]

THE FAIRCHILD
FAMILY

BY Mrs.
SHERWOOD

EDITED WITH
INTRODUCTION
BY
MARY E.
PALGRAVE

WITH
ILLUSTRATIONS
BY
FLORENCE M.
RUDLAND

NEW YORK
FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY
PUBLISHERS

Introduction

The History of Lucy, Emily, and Henry Fairchild was begun in 1818,
nearly a century ago. The two little misses and their brother played
and did lessons, were naughty and good, happy and sorrowful, when
George III. was still on the throne; when gentlemen wore blue coats
with brass buttons, knee-breeches, and woollen stockings; and ladies
were attired in short waists, low necks, and long ringlets. The Battle
of Waterloo was quite a recent event; and the terror of "Boney" was
still used by nursery maids to frighten their charges into good
behaviour.

Perhaps some of those who take up this book and glance at its
title-page are saying to themselves. We have plenty of stories about
the children of to-day--the children of the twentieth century, not of
the early nineteenth. How should it interest us to read of these little
ones of the time of our great-grandparents, whose lives were so dull
and ideas so old-fashioned; who never played cricket or tennis, or went
to London or to the seaside, or rode bicycles, or did any of the things
we do?

To anyone who is debating whether or no he will read the _Fairchild
Family_, I would say, Try a chapter or two before you make up your
mind. It is not what p