s. The title of "The Picture
Exhibition; containing the Original Drawings of Eighteen Disciples....
Published under the Inspection of Mr. Peter Paul Rubens,..." is
evidently one of Newbery's efforts to be facetious. To the author, the
pretence that the pictures were by "Disciples of Peter Paul Rubens"
evidently conveyed the same idea of wit that "Punch" has at times
represented to others of a later century.

Fables have always been a mine of interest to young folks, and were
interspersed liberally with all moral tales, but "Entertaining Fables"
bears upon its title-page a suggestion that the children's old friend,
"Aesop," appeared in a new dress.

Another series of books contained the much abridged novels written for
the older people. "Peregrine Pickle" and "Roderick Random" were both
reprinted by Isaiah Thomas as early as seventeen hundred and
eighty-eight. These tales of adventure seem to have had their small
reflections in such stories as "The Adventures of a Pincushion," and
"The Adventures of a Peg-top," by Dorothy Kilner, an Englishwoman.
Mention has already been made of "Pamela" and "Clarissa" in condensed
form. These were books of over two hundred pages; but most of the
toy-books were limited to less than one hundred. A remarkable instance
of the pith of a long plot put into small compass was "The History of
Tom Jones." A dog-eared copy of such an edition of "Tom Jones" is still
in existence. Its flowery Dutch binding covers only thirty-one pages,
four inches long, with a frontispiece and five wood-cut illustrations.
In so small a space no detailed account of the life of the hero is to be
expected; nevertheless, the first paragraph introduces Tom as no
ordinary foundling. Mr. Allworthy finds the infant in his bed one
evening and rings up his housekeeper Mrs. Deborah Wilkins. "She being a
strict observer of decency was exceedingly alarmed, on entering her
master's room, to find him undressed, but more so on his presenting her
with the child, which he ordered immediately to be taken care of." The
story proceeds--with little punctuation to enable the reader to take
breath--to tell how the infant is named, and how Mr. Allworthy's nephew,
Master Bilfil, is also brought under that generous and respectable
gentleman's protection. Tommy turned out "good," as Mr. Allworthy had
hoped when he assumed charge of him; and therefore eventually inherited
riches and gained the hand of Miss Sophia Western, with whom he rode
ab