The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes | Page 7

cried; as also did Mr. Smith, but they were obliged to send her away; for the People who had ruined her Father could at any Time have ruined them.

CHAP. IV.
How Little Margery _learned to read, and by Degrees taught others._
Little Margery saw how good, and how wise Mr. Smith was, and concluded, that this was owing to his great Learning, therefore she wanted of all Things to learn to read. For this Purpose she used to meet the little Boys and Girls as they came from School, borrow their Books, and sit down and read till they returned;
[Illustration]
By this Means she soon got more Learning than any of her Playmates, and laid the following Scheme for instructing those who were more ignorant than herself. She found, that only the following Letters were required to spell all the Words in the World; but as some of these Letters are large and some small, she with her Knife cut out of several Pieces of Wood ten Setts of each of these:
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r (s) s t u v w x y z.
[Post-processor's note: (s) is an old-English style non-terminating letter "s".]
And six Setts of these:
A B C D E F G H I K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z.
And having got an old Spelling-Book, she made her Companions set up all the Words they wanted to spell, and after that she taught them to compose Sentences. You know what a Sentence is, my Dear, I will be good, is a Sentence; and is made up, as you see, of several Words.
The usual Manner of Spelling, or carrying on the Game, as they called it, was this: Suppose the Word to be spelt was Plumb Pudding (and who can suppose a better) the Children were placed in a Circle, and the first brought the Letter P, the next l, the next u, the next m, and so on till the Whole was spelt; and if any one brought a wrong Letter, he was to pay a Fine, or play no more. This was at their Play; and every Morning she used to go round to teach the Children with these Rattle-traps in a Basket, as you see in the Print.
[Illustration]
I once went her Rounds with her, and was highly diverted, as you may be, if you please to look into the next Chapter.

CHAP. V.
How Little Two-Shoes _became a trotting Tutoress and how she taught her young Pupils._
It was about seven o'Clock in the Morning when we set out on this important Business, and the first House we came to was Farmer _Wilson's_. See here it is.
[Illustration]
Here Margery stopped, and ran up to the Door, _Tap, tap, tap_. Who's there? Only little goody _Two-Shoes_, answered Margery, come to teach Billy. Oh Little Goody, says Mrs. Wilson, with Pleasure in her Face, I am glad to see you, Billy wants you sadly, for he has learned all his Lesson. Then out came the little Boy. _How do doody Two-Shoes_, says he, not able to speak plain. Yet this little Boy had learned all his Letters; for she threw down this Alphabet mixed together thus:
b d f h k m o q s u w y z [f] a c e g i l n p r t v x j
and he picked them up, called them by their right Names, and put them all in order thus:
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r (s) s t u v w x y z.
[Post-processor's note: (s) is an old-English style non-terminating letter "s".]
She then threw down the Alphabet of Capital Letters in the Manner you here see them.
B D F H K M O Q S U W Y Z A C E G I L N P R T V X J.
and he picked them all up, and having told their Names, placed them thus:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z.
Now, pray little Reader, take this Bodkin, and see if you can point out the Letters from these mixed Alphabets, and tell how they should be placed as well as little Boy Billy.
The next Place we came to was Farmer _Simpson's_, and here it is.
[Illustration]
_Bow wow, wow_, says the Dog at the Door. Sirrah, says his Mistress, what do you bark at Little _Two-Shoes_. Come in _Madge_; here, Sally wants you sadly, she has learned all her Lesson. Then out came the little one: So _Madge!_ say she; so _Sally!_ answered the other, have you learned your Lesson? Yes, that's what