The Bad Family
There is a certain street in a certain town (no matter for its name) inwhich there are two handsome houses of equal size. The owners of thesehouses have each six children, and the neighbours have named one the BADFAMILY, and the other the GOOD FAMILY.
In the Bad Family there are three boys and three girls; and theservants, who are always much teased and vexed when they live wherethere are naughty children, speak of them thus:--the eldest they callFIGHTING HARRY, the second GREEDY GEORGE, and the youngest IDLERICHARD; the eldest girl is nicknamed CARELESS FANNY, the next LYINGLUCY, and the youngest SELFISH SARAH.
MASTER HENRY indeed well deserves his title, for he thinks it a mightyfine thing to be a great boxer, and takes great pride and pleasure inhaving a black eye or a bloody nose. This does not proceed from courage;no, no: courage never seeks quarrels, and is only active to repelinsult, protect the injured, and conquer danger; but Harry would be oneof the first to fly from real danger, or to leave the helpless to shiftfor themselves. He knows that he is very strong, and that few boys ofhis age can match him, so he picks quarrels on purpose to fight, becausehis great strength and his constant practice make him almost sure toconquer. All his schoolfellows hate him, for such a boy can neitherhave a good temper, a good heart, nor good manners. It is a pity heshould be sent to school, for learning is thrown away upon him; he willbe fit only to live with men that sweep the streets or drive carts andwaggons, for with such coarse and vulgar habits, gentlemen will notendure him in their company.
GEORGE, the second boy, is always thinking of eating and drinking. Hefollows the cook from place to place to know what nice things she hasgot in her pantry. When there is any dainty on the dinner-table, hisgreedy eyes are fixed on it from the moment he sits down till he ishelped, and then he grudges every morsel that any one else puts in hismouth. In his eagerness to get more than his proper share, he cramsgreat pieces into his mouth until he is almost choked and the tears areforced from his eyes. He will get slily into the store-room and stealhoney, sugar, or raisins; and in the pantry he picks the edges of thetarts and pies, and does a number of other mean tricks. When there iscompany at dinner, he watches the parlour-door till they leave it, andbefore the servants have time to clear the table, he sips up all thedrops of wine that are left in the glasses, and will even eat theparings of apples and pears that lie on the dessert plates. If he hasan orange or a cake, he runs into some dirty hole to eat it, for fearhis brothers and sisters should ask for a piece. If he has any moneygiven him, he spends it all at once, and crams and eats till he canscarcely move.
This greedy boy is always watched and suspected. No one will trust himin a garden, for he would eat till he made himself sick, or tear downthe branches of the trees to get at the fruit. Nor can he be allowed topay any visits, for the manners of a glutton give great offence to allwell-bred people. He has a sallow, ugly look, and is always peeping andprying about, like a beast watching for its prey.
IDLE RICHARD, the third son of the Bad Family, is a great dunce. Yet heis very capable of learning well, if he chose to take the trouble, buthe is fond of idleness and of nothing else. In the morning when he iscalled, though he knows it is time to get up, he will lie still, andafter he has been called again and again, he is never ready in time forbreakfast. At his meals he lolls upon the table, or against the back ofhis chair, and is just as slow and drawling in his manner of eating asin his learning. When he is sent to school, instead of looking at hisbook, he is gazing all round the room, or cutting bits of stick with hisknife; sometimes he lays his head down on the desk and falls asleep, andthen pretends to have the headache to excuse his idleness. His master isobliged often to punish him, and then for an hour or two he will learnvery well, but next day he gets back to all his idle tricks, and doesnothing; so that he is far below many boys that are much younger thanhimself. When other children go to play, he sits still or lies downupon the ground; he can take no pleasure, for he hates the trouble ofmoving, and there he sits yawning and pining for want of something todo. When he walks, he drags his feet along as if they were too heavy tolift up. His clothes are always dirty, for he will not brush them; hiseyes are dull and heavy; he looks like a clown and speaks like ablockhead. Idle Richard is a burthen to himself, and scorned byeverybody.
MISS FANNY has got the title of Careless, because she minds no one thingthat she ought. If she goes out to walk, she is sure to lose one of hergloves, or lets her bonnet blow off into the mud, or steps into themiddle of some filthy puddle, because she is staring about and notminding which way she goes. At home, when she should go to work, herneedle-book, or her thimble, or her scissors cannot be found; thoughshe has a work-basket to put these things in, they are never in theright place.
At dinner she does not observe how her plate stands on the table, andperhaps her meat and all the gravy tumble into her lap. If she has aglass of wine, she spills it on her frock; if she hands a plate of breadand butter to any one, she is sure either to drop the plate, or tolet the bread and butter fall upon the carpet. She wears very coarseclothes, for she cannot be trusted with good ones. At night when sheundresses to go to bed, she throws her frock on a chair or the ground,instead of folding it neatly up, so that it is tumbled and not fit toput on the next morning. If she writes, she throws the ink about herclothes; if she tears a hole in her frock, she does not take a needleand thread to mend it directly, but pins it up; then perhaps the pinpricks her half a dozen times in an hour, and tears three or four moreholes in the frock. If she has a book lent to her, she will let it fallin the dirt, or drop the grease of the candle upon the leaves. She isalways a slattern and always dirty; she is a disgrace to herself and aburthen to her friends.
What a shocking name the next is--LYING LUCY! It is dreadful to thinkthat any one should deserve to be so called, but this wicked little girldeserves it, for she has no sense of honour, and seldom speaks thetruth. Even when she does say what is true, on account of her havingtold falsehoods so long, people know not how to believe her, for who candepend upon the word of a LIAR? If she would forbear for a whole monthto tell a lie, there would be hopes of her amendment, and then her wordmight be taken. But till she leaves off this shameful practice, she mustexpect to be shunned and pointed at with scorn wherever she goes.
SELFISH SARAH loves no one but herself, and no one loves her. She willnot let her brothers or sisters or any other child play with her toys,even if she is not using them. She hoards up her playthings, and cannotamuse herself with them, for fear another should touch them. If she hasmore sweet cake or fruit than she can eat, she puts it by, and lets itspoil and get mouldy rather than give it away; or if she sees a poorchild begging in the streets, without shoes, stockings, or clothes tocover him, she will not part with a halfpenny to buy him a bit ofbread, though she is told that he is starving with hunger. She neverassists any one, nor is ever thankful or grateful for what is done forher. She covets everything she sees, yet takes no real pleasure inanything.
The parents of these odious children never look happy, nor enjoycomfort. The brothers and sisters never meet but to quarrel, so that thehouse is always in an uproar. All abuse each other's vices, yet take nopains to cure their own faults. The servants hate them, the neighboursdespise them, and the house is shunned as though it had some dreadfuldistemper within. They live without friends; for no prudent persons willsuffer their children to visit where they can learn nothing butwickedness and ill manners.