they had no children. The poor woman declared that she would be the
happiest creature in the world if she had but a son, although he were
no bigger than his father's thumb. Merlin was very much amused at the
thought of a boy no bigger than a man's thumb; and as soon as he
returned home he sent for the Queen of the Fairies and related to her
the desire of the ploughman and his wife to have a son the size of his
father's thumb.

[Illustration]

The Queen of the Fairies promised that their wish should be granted.
And so it happened one day that the ploughman's wife had a son
exactly of the size of his father's thumb. While the mother was
sitting up in bed, admiring the child, the Queen of the Fairies
appeared, and kissed the infant, giving it the name of Tom Thumb, and
summoned several fairies to clothe her little favorite.

Tom never grew any bigger; but, as he grew older, he became very
cunning and sly, which his mother did not sufficiently correct him
for; so that, when he was old enough to play with the boys for
cherry-stones, and had lost all his own, he used to creep into the
other boys' bags, fill his pockets, and come out again to play. But
one day, as he was getting out of a bag of cherry-stones, the boy to
whom it belonged chanced to see him.

[Illustration]

"Ah, ah! my little Tom Thumb," said the boy, "have I caught you at
your bad tricks at last? Now I will pay you off well for thieving."