Howard Pyle, a chronicle by Charles D. Abbott, with an introduction by N. C. Wyeth and many illustrations from Howard Pyle's works.

HOWARD PYLE: A CHRONICLE
The book was published in 1S8 86, the first of the author's
collections of fairy stories. Unfortunately, it was not very
successful with the general public, perhaps because it was
too costly, but it was, nevertheless, a genuine work of art,
well arranged, bristling with good pictures, and sparkling
with a quaint, kindly humor. Its main purpose was to provide entertainment pure and simple; the morals added to
the tales and verses increased rather than diminished the
broad appeal. The preface in which Howard Pyle dramatizes his own feelings and his desires was a genuine bit of
inspiration, and since it gives so clearly the author's spirit
of intoxicating humor and the whole scope of the book, it is
well worth quoting:
"Here, my little man, you may hold my cap and bells,
and you, over there, may hold the bauble! Now', then,
I am ready to talk as a wise man should and am a giddypated jester no longer!
"This is what I have to say:
"One must have a pinch of seasoning in this dull, heavy
life of ours; one should never look to have all the troubles,
the labors, and the cares, with never a whit of innocent
jollity and mirth. Yes; one must smile now and then, if
for nothing else than to lift the corners of the lips in laughter that are only too often dragged down in sorrow.
"It's for this that I sit here now, telling you all manner
of odd quips and jests until yon sober wise man shakes his
head and goes his way, thinking that I am even more of a
shallow-witted knave than I really am. But, prut! Who
cares for that? I am sure that I do not if you do not.
"Yet listen!I One must not look to have nothing but
pepper and salt in this life of ours-no, indeed! At that
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