{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_63295/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_63295","id":"gutenberg_63295","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/63295","summary":null,"tags":["Avarice -- Juvenile fiction","Category: Children & Young Adult Reading","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Children -- Death -- Juvenile fiction","Christian life -- Juvenile fiction","Kindness -- Juvenile fiction","Orphans -- Juvenile fiction","Siblings -- Juvenile fiction","Wishes -- Juvenile fiction"],"text":"Transcriber's Notes:\n\n  Italic text is denoted by _underscores_ and bold text by\n  =equal signs=.\n\n  Small uppercase have been replaced with regular uppercase.\n\n  Blank pages have been eliminated.\n\n  Variations in spelling and hyphenation have been left as in the\n  original.\n\n\n\n\nFRONTISPIECE.\n\n[Illustration: _See Page 11._]\n\n\n\n\n                                  THE\n                             WISHING-CAP.\n\n\n                           BY MRS. SHERWOOD,\n               AUTHOR OF \"LITTLE HENRY AND HIS BEARER,\"\n                                &c. &c.\n\n\n                          _NEW EDITION._\n\n\n                                LONDON:\n                        HOULSTON AND STONEMAN,\n                         63, PATERNOSTER ROW.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WISHING-CAP.\n\n\nThere lived once a lady in London, who had a great deal of money, but\nwho had never given her heart to God. This lady had the care of five\nchildren: four of them were brothers and sisters; and their names\nwere James and Edward, Charlotte and Louisa. The fifth child was an\norphan, and had no brothers or sisters. The name of this little boy was\nCharles. Little Charles's papa and mamma had been dead only a very few\nmonths: they were very pious people, and had brought up their little\nboy in the fear of God. Charles thought of his papa and mamma every\nday: he knew they were gone to heaven, and he knew, also, who that\nblessed person was, for whose sake they had been received into that\nhappy place.\n\n[Illustration]\n\nEvery day little Charles read a few chapters in a Bible which his papa\nhad given him, and he tried to remember the good things which had been\ntaught him: so God blessed little Charles, and helped him to be good.\n\nIt happened, one Sunday afternoon, in the Christmas holidays, that the\nlady came into the children's play-room, and sat down among them. \"I am\ncome,\" she said, \"to drink tea with you this evening; after which we\nwill put on a wishing-cap; and then we shall see what fine things the\nwishing-cap will produce.\"\n\nThe children were all pleased to see the lady sit down among them; and\nwhile they were drinking their tea, they talked a great deal about the\nwishing-cap.\n\n\"What can a wishing-cap be?\" said Louisa, who was the youngest: \"and\nhow can it bring fine things?\"\n\n\"I never heard of a wishing-cap in all my life,\" said James. \"I want\ntea to be over, that we may see it.\"\n\n\"O!\" said Charlotte, \"I know what is meant by a wishing-cap. I remember\nreading of a man, in a fairy tale, who had a wishing-cap; and when he\nput this cap on, and wished for any thing, he had it immediately: but\nI thought there were no such things really as wishing-caps, except in\nfairy tales.\"\n\n\"Well, well,\" said the lady, \"we shall see what kind of wishing-cap I\ncan make: but I must tell you, my wishing-cap is not so good a one as\nthe man's in the fairy tale; it will only produce such things as may be\neasily had, it will not bring wonders to pass.\"\n\nIn this manner they went on talking till tea was over, and the\ntea-things carried away. Then the lady drew her chair to the fire, and\nbidding the children sit round her, she put her hand into her pocket,\nand pulled out a sheet of white paper. She then folded up the paper\nin the shape of a cap, and holding it up in her hand, \"This is the\nwishing-cap,\" she said; \"you shall put it on, and try what it is good\nfor. Come, who will be the first to wear the cap?\" Then the lady placed\nthe cap on Charlotte's head. \"Now,\" she said, \"think! what do you wish\nfor?\"\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\"But will what I wish for really come?\" said Charlotte.\n\n\"Perhaps it may,\" answered the lady: \"we shall know to-morrow morning.\"\n\n\"Then,\" said Charlotte, \"I wish for a muslin frock, trimmed with satin\nribbon.\"\n\n\"Very well,\" said the lady. \"Who comes next?\"\n\n\"I! I!\" cried James, snatching the cap from his sister's head, and\nputting it on his own; \"I wish for a rocking-horse.\"\n\n\"Now for me,\" said Edward; \"give me the cap. I wish for a coachman's\nwhip. Now, Louisa, it is your turn.\"\n\n\"I wish for a wax doll, with flaxen hair, and blue eyes,\" said Louisa.\n\n\"Now you have all had your turns,\" said the lady, \"but Charles: come,\nLouisa, give the cap to Charles.\"\n\n\"There, take it,\" cried Louisa, throwing the cap at him, \"and make\nhaste.\"\n\nThe cap fell at Charles's feet: he took it up, and laid it on the table.\n\n\"Put it on your head, you foolish boy,\" said James, \"and wish a wish.\"\n\nCharles smiled, but he did not offer to take up the cap.\n\n\"What are you about?\" said James, giving him a push; \"put on the cap,\nand tell us your wish.\"\n\n\"Charles,\" said the lady, \"don't you understand what you are to do? Put\non the cap, and don't be stupid.\"\n\n\"I thank you, Ma'am,\" answered Charles; \"but I beg that you will not be\nangry, if I don't put on the wishing-cap.\"\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\"But you shall have it on,\" said James, taking it off the table, and\nputting it on his head.\n\nCharles took it quietly off his head, and laid it on the table.\n\nThe lady looked surprised; and drawing Charles to her, she said, \"What\nis the meaning of your behaviour? Why will you not play with us?\"\n\n\"Perhaps you may not be pleased, if I tell you, Ma'am; and I do not\nwish to make you angry,\" answered little Charles.\n\n\"But I will know,\" said the lady, looking vexed.\n\n\"My poor papa, when he was alive,\" said Charles, \"used to tell me that\nI ought not to wish for any thing but God's blessing: and he taught me\nthis verse--_Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness;\nand all these things shall be added unto you_: (Matt. vi. 33.) and\nthis is the reason why I do not like to put on the wishing-cap.\"\n\nWhile little Charles was speaking, the rest of the children stood\nstaring and laughing; and when he had done, the lady pushed him away,\nsaying, \"You are a strange, foolish boy, and not fit to play with other\nchildren. Go to bed immediately.\"\n\nCharles went up to his room. His cheeks were wet with tears, and his\nheart was very sad. He remembered, that he once had a papa to lean his\nhead against when he was unhappy, and a dear mamma to wipe away his\ntears; but they were both dead: yet still he had a Saviour to whom he\nmight freely go. So he tried to lift up his heart to this dear Saviour,\nand laying his little head on his pillow, he fell asleep. In his sleep\nhe had a very sweet dream about heaven: and when he awoke in the\nmorning, he remembered these words in the Prophet Isaiah--_As one whom\nhis mother comforteth, so will I comfort you_. (Isaiah lxvi. 13.)\n\n[Illustration]\n\nWhile Charles was dressing himself, he heard a very great noise down\nstairs. He made haste, and running into the play-room, he found the\nrest of the children screaming and jumping for joy. Charlotte dressed\nin a new muslin frock; Louisa with the wax doll she had wished for;\nJames riding on a large new rocking-horse; and Edward with a coachman's\nwhip.\n\n\"Look here, Master Charles,\" said James, \"see what the wishing-cap\nhas brought us! Are you not sorry now that you were such a fool as to\nrefuse to put on the wishing-cap?\" Then the rude boy began to shout\nand halloo, riding up and down as hard as the horse would go; while\nEdward kept cutting and lashing the heels of the wooden horse with his\ncoachman's whip, whistling, and smacking his lips, like a coachman;\nLouisa sung to her doll; and Charlotte danced about in her new frock,\nsinging and laughing: and, all together, there was such a noise, that\nit might have been heard to the end of the street; the boys every now\nand then crying out, \"Well, Master Charles, what do you think of us\nnow?\"\n\nEvery thing went on very well, and all were in the greatest\ngood-humour, till Edward, without intending it, instead of lashing the\nwooden legs of the horse, gave his brother a most terrible cut with his\nlong whip, over one knee, and across one hand. James, being made very\nangry with the pain, jumped from his horse; and flying at his brother,\nbegan to beat him with all his strength. Edward ran to his sisters for\nhelp; and James followed, continuing to beat him, and saying, \"You\nsha'n't horse-whip me for nothing, Sir, I can tell you that.\"\n\nAt length, James pushed Edward against Louisa; by which means, her doll\nwas thrown down, and broken to pieces: and Edward, as he fell, caught\nhis foot in Charlotte's new frock, and tore it sadly.\n\nCharlotte and Louisa now began to scream and cry in their turns; and\nthere was such a dreadful noise, that the lady came in haste to see\nwhat was the matter.\n\nThe children were all quiet, as soon as they saw the lady, and very\nmuch frightened too. \"So,\" she said, \"you have been fighting, you\nnaughty children, instead of enjoying the pretty things I got for you!\nYou, Charlotte, have torn your frock; and you, Louisa, have broken\nyour doll. And as to you, you naughty boys, you have been beating each\nother: go up to your bed-rooms; and there you shall stay all day, and\nhave nothing but bread and water. As for the rocking-horse and the\nwhip, I shall send them back to the shop.\"\n\nSo the four children were taken up to their rooms; and the whip and the\nrocking-horse were sent back to the shop: but little Charles was asked\nto breakfast with the lady in the parlour. And she said to him, \"I\nbegin to think your papa was a wise man, when he taught you to seek for\nnothing but God's blessing: for I see that having the things we wish\nfor, does not always make us the happier.\"\n\nLittle Charles was much pleased, when he heard the lady speak so\nkindly; and he asked her to forgive the other children, but she would\nnot.\n\n[Illustration]\n\nAnd now I will tell you how little Charles received at last what he had\nsecretly desired above all things, and how happy it made him.\n\nAbout two months after this time, all the children were taken ill\nwith a fever which was then going about London. They all recovered,\nhowever, but little Charles; for though the lady took great care of\nhim, because she now began to love him, and though a very skilful\ndoctor came often to see him, yet he got worse and worse. For many days\nhe could not speak, and did not know any body.\n\nAt last, the time of his death drew very near. He had been asleep; and\nopened his eyes, while the lady was standing by his bed. He looked\nquite cheerful; and holding out his hand to her, \"I am going to die,\nMa'am,\" he said, \"I feel death approaching; but I am very happy. That\ndear Saviour whose love my father taught me to seek, is very near me,\nthough my eyes do not now see him. He comforts me with his promises,\nand tells me that for his sake death shall be made easy to me.\"\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\"It was because I desired his love alone, that I ceased to wish for\nother things. I knew that they could not make me happy. All the world,\nmy papa taught me, could not make me happy without my Saviour's love.\nAnd now I am going to this dear Saviour; and I know that he will\nforgive my sins, because he gave me grace to seek him.\"\n\nThen little Charles prayed that God would bless the lady, and the other\nchildren under her care: and soon afterwards he died.\n\nI am happy to tell you, that the lady never forgot little Charles's\nwords upon his dying bed. From that time, she gave her heart to seek\nheavenly blessings instead of earthly possessions: and she used often\nto say to the other children, when they were wishing for toys, or\nother foolish things, \"Remember little Charles; and, like him, put away\nthe wishing-cap.\"\n\nAnd so I say to you, my dear little children, who may hereafter read\nthis story,--\n\n\n                     DON'T PUT ON THE WISHING-CAP.\n\n\n                                FINIS.","title":"The Wishing Cap","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":2078}