Banbury Chap Books | Page 7

"Goody Two Shoes," "Jack and Jill," "Cock Robin," The Fables,
early Bewick School.
[Illustrations: 221 - 2214]

All Evans's style of woodcut, Catnach, etc., all used at Rushers
Banbury Press.
[Illustrations: 231 - 2311
Babes in the Wood. Blue Beard.]
Providing ourselves with a variety of pens and ink, we select two of the
best and proceed to describe the Banbury Printer's old stock of cuts.
Banbury, Oxfordshire, was one of the chief provincial towns noted for
its Children's Books, Chap Books, Battledoes, Reading Easies, etc.,
also for locally printed works, notably for two, viz., Dr. Johnson's
Rasselas, and White and Beesley's workon Bees, thin 12mo volumes,
boards, printed in a curious phonetic character, called "Rusher's
Types." Rusher, printer of this town, had some ingenuity and originality
of his own, and was not such a plagiarist and imitator as some of his
contemporaries. Many of the tales he cleverly adapted to the locality,
which have become very valuable. His edition of the Rasselas realized
£5 5s. This book was written by Johnson in a week to defray his
mother's funeral expenses.
We give several extracts from some of Rusher's Penny Books which will
show how well he adapted them to his town.
[Illustrations: 241 - 244]
[Early John Bewick,] Rusher's Lilliputian Library, Banbury, circa.
1810.
At Rusher's fam'd Warehouse, Books, Pictures and Toys Are selling to
please all The good girls and boys.
For youth of all ages There's plenty in store, Amusement, instruction,
For rich and the poor.
From the New House that Jack Built.
See Jack in his study, Is writting a book, As pretty as this is In which

you may look;
The price is one penny, For girls or for boys, There's more too at
Rusher's, And Pictures and Toys.
Poetic Trifles.
Sing see-saw, Jack thatching the ridge, Which is the way to
Banbury-bridge? One foot up and t'other foot down, And that's the way
to Banbury town.
As I was going to Banbury Upon a summer's day, My dame had butter,
eggs and fruit, And I had corn and hay, Joe drove the ox and Tom the
swine, Dick took the foal and mare: I sold them all--then home to dine
From famous Banbury Fair.
Here's something new Dear child for you, I will please you in a trice A
halfp'ny chuse, Now don't refuse, A penny is the price.
Tho' basely born Pray do not scorn A Tale no worse than many For I'm
afraid More say in trade, A halfp'ny's made a penny.
Good things to engross, Near Banbury cross Where Tommy shall go on
the nag, He makes no mistake, Buy a Banbury Cake, Books, Pictures,
and Banbury Shag.
Little Robin Redbreast Sat upon a tree He sang merrily As merrily
could be.
He nodded with his head And his tail waggled he As little Robin
Redbreast Sat upon a tree.
Now each lad and each lass Both sister and brother May have books
for each class For Father or Mother.
And when with much pleasure You've read them all o'er, Then hasten to
Rusher's, He's printing some more.
Where each daughter and son And each nephew and niece, Each good

child may have one, For a penny a piece.
BLACK YOUR SHOES, YOUR HONOUR?
Here's Finiky Hawkes, As busy as any, Will well black your shoes, And
charge but a penny.
The following little "Banbury Cake" Book is so excessively rare, we
give the text verbatim.
* * * * *
THE HISTORY of a BANBURY CAKE.
An Entertaining Book For Children.
BANBURY: Printed and Sold by J. G. RUSHER, Bridge Street.
Price One Penny.
PREFACE.
It will be thought very odd, I doubt not, by each little boy and girl into
whose hands this book shall fall, that a Banbury Cake should be able to
write (as it were) its own life; but as they advance in years, they will
find that many strange things happen every day--I shall therefore
without more words to the bargain proceed with my story.
HISTORY OF A BANBURY CAKE.
I was born or made (whichever you please, my little reader) at Banbury
in the county of Oxford, as you can plainly conceive by my title, where
great numbers of Cakes are brought into being daily; and from whence
they travel by coach, chaise, waggon, cart horse and foot into all parts
of this Kingdom: nay and beyond the seas, as I heard my maker declare
that he had, more then once sent some of them into France.
Soon after I was made, and while I was yet warm from the oven, I was
sold by my maker's fair daughter to a person on horseback for

twopence.
With this person I took my first journey to Oxford; he rode a very fine
Black Horse. As soon as he came