Moral Tales Read online

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  "Shall I relate to you the history of thatparticular louis,--all the adventures it has met with, and to howmany uses it has been applied?"--P. 3.]

  MORAL TALES

  BY MADAME GUIZOT

  TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH BY MRS. L. BURKE

  LONDON GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS THE BROADWAY, LUDGATE NEW YORK: 416 BROOME STREET

  PREFACE.

  The writings of Madame Guizot are highly celebrated in France, andthough something of this celebrity may be due to her position asthe wife of an illustrious statesman and historian, it must also beremembered, that this very position was calculated to draw forth aseverer criticism than would usually be passed on one less favourablycircumstanced. But the works themselves have merits of far toodecided an order not to command attention in any case, and theyespecially deserve the notice of English parents, from their entirefreedom from the exaggeration of sentiment and love of effect, sooften justly complained of in a certain portion of the Literature ofFrance.

  In her Tales, it has been the aim of Madame Guizot to secure theattention of her youthful readers by an attractive narrative, inwhich the chief personages are children like themselves, and theevents and situations such as might occur in their own experience,and then to lead their minds to important conclusions by the naturalcourse of the story, and without the repulsive intervention of merelecturing or argumentation; and we think it will be admitted, thatin the present series, she has been eminently successful. TheseTales are so simple and natural, that they may be understood by evenyounger children than they are actually intended for, while at thesame time they are so full of good sense, and touch so vividly thosesprings of action which influence alike both the young and the old,that many of them will be read with as much interest, and sometimeseven with as much advantage, by the parent as by the child. Thoughperfectly unpretending in structure and language, the most fastidioustaste will acknowledge them to be the productions of a highly refinedand cultivated mind, while they equally display all the charms of anaffectionate and parental disposition, conjoined with a lofty, thougha gentle and rational morality.

  It is only necessary to observe, in conclusion, that the Translatorhas endeavoured to preserve throughout the simplicity of style whichdistinguishes the original, and to convey its meaning with all thefidelity which the difference of the two idioms would permit. A fewunimportant expressions have been modified or omitted as unsuitableto English taste, or likely to convey, in translation, a differentimpression from that actually intended, but beyond this no libertyhas been taken with the text.

  CONTENTS.

  THE HISTORY OF A LOUIS D'OR _Page_ 1

  FRAN?OU 120

  M. LE CHEVALIER 142

  EUDOXIA; OR LEGITIMATE PRIDE 158

  EDWARD AND EUGENIA; OR THE EMBROIDERED BAG AND THE NEW COAT 185

  MARIE; OR THE FEAST OF CORPUS CHRISTI 212

  THE LITTLE BRIGANDS 272

  OLD GENEVI?VE 291

  JULIA; OR THE STORY OF MADAME CROQUE-MITAINE 309

  AGLA?A AND LEONTINE; OR MANOEUVRING 332

  OH! OH! OH! A TALE 359

  HELEN; OR THE FAILURE 370

  ARMAND; OR THE INDEPENDENT LITTLE BOY 381

  THE SECRET OF COURAGE 406

  THE DREAM; AN EASTERN TALE 417