About the year 1650 there appeared in circulation in London a small
book, named "Rhymes of the Nursery; or Lulla-Byes for Children," which
contained many of the identical pieces that have been handed down to
us; but the name of Mother Goose was evidently not then known. In this
edition were the rhymes of "Little Jack Homer," "Old King Cole,"
"Mistress Mary," "Sing a Song o' Sixpence," and "Little Boy Blue."
In 1697 Charles Perrault published in France a book of children's
tales entitled "Contes de ma Mere Oye," and this is really the first
time we find authentic record of the use of the name of Mother Goose,
although Perrault's tales differ materially from those we now know
under this title. They comprised "The Sleeping Beauty," "The Fairy,"
"Little Red Riding Hood," "Blue Beard," "Puss in Boots" "Riquet with
the Tuft," "Cinderella," and "Little Thumb"; eight stories in all. On
the cover of the book was depicted an old lady holding in her hand a
distaff and surrounded by a group of children listening eagerly. Mr.
Andrew Lang has edited a beautiful English edition of this work
(Oxford, 1888).
America bases her claim to Mother Goose upon the following statement,
made by the late John Fleet Eliot, a descendant of Thomas Fleet, the
printer:
At the beginning of the eighteenth century there lived in Boston a
lady named Eliza Goose (written also Vergoose and Vertigoose) who
belonged to a wealthy family.
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