E-text prepared by Emmy, Tor Martin Kristiansen, and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by Internet Archive (http://www.archive.org) Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustrations. See 32241-h.htm or 32241-h.zip: (https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/32241/pg32241-images.html) or (https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32241/32241-h.zip) Images of the original pages are available through Internet Archive. See http://www.archive.org/details/dickensstoriesab00dick DICKENS' STORIES ABOUT CHILDREN EVERY CHILD CAN READ Edited by REV. JESSE LYMAN HURLBUT, D.D. [Illustration: CHARLES DICKENS.] Illustrated [Illustration: Every Child's Library] The John C. Winston Co. Philadelphia Copyright, 1909, By The John C. Winston Co. PREFACE. TO THE YOUNG READER: Charles Dickens was one of the greatest among the many story-writers of "the Victorian age;" that is, the middle and latter part of the Nineteenth Century, when Victoria was Queen of Great Britain. Perhaps he was the greatest of them all for now, a generation after he passed away, more people read the stories of Dickens than those by any other author of that period. In those wonderful writings are found many pictures of child-life connected with the plan of the novels or stories. These child-stories have been taken out of their connections and are told by themselves in this volume. By and by you will read for yourselves, "The Christmas Carol," "The Chimes," "David Copperfield," "The Old Curiosity Shop," and the other great books by that fascinating writer, who saw people whom nobody else ever saw, and made them real. When you read those books you will meet again these charming children, and will remember them as the friends of your childhood. JESSE L. HURLBUT. CONTENTS. PAGE TROTTY VECK AND MEG. _From "The Chimes"_ 9 TINY TIM. _From "Christmas Carol"_ 24 THE RUNAWAY COUPLE. _From "The Holly-Tree Inn"_ 34 LITTLE DORRIT. _From "Little Dorrit"_ 49 THE TOY-MAKER AND HIS BLIND DAUGHTER. _From "Cricket on the Hearth"_ 68 LITTLE NELL. _From "The Old Curiosity Shop"_ 86 LITTLE DAVID COPPERFIELD. _From "David Copperfield"_ 123 JENNY WREN. _From "Our Mutual Friend"_ 178 PIP'S ADVENTURE. _From "Great Expectations"_ 185 TODGERS' 196 DICK SWIVELLER AND THE MARCHIONESS 219 MR. WARDLE'S SERVANT JOE 233 THE BRAVE AND HONEST BOY, OLIVER TWIST 248 ILLUSTRATIONS.