PREFACE
It is because I have found that children love Stockton’s stories, that they appreciate the delicate bits of humor found in them, and enjoy discussing the ethical questions suggested, that I have arranged in this book a few of the favorites, easily read by children from eight to ten years of age.
I believe, also, that children can best learn to read by reading what is best in literature.
This little volume, then, is the result of repeated tests with children of various ability in the reading of Stockton’s stories. The results proved that the language is simple and childlike, the thought natural, and the story itself intensely interesting.
Notes and suggestive questions for each story, except “The Christmas Truants,” which is so simple that it does not seem to need them, are given at the end of the book. These, it is believed, will be found helpful to the teacher and pupil and aid in securing the best results.
Julia Elizabeth Langworthy.