The ancient Grecian version of “Cinderella” is that of the story of a beautiful woman named Rhodope, who, whilst bathing, an eagle flew away with one of her slippers to Egypt, and dropped it in the lap of the King as he sat at Memphis on the judgment seat.  The King was so attracted by the smallness and beauty of the slipper that he fell in love with the wearer, and afterwards made her his wife.

In Tuscany, Persia, Norway, Denmark, Russia, the story of “Dick Whittington” is well known.  In all probability, like many other fairy tales, its origin was from a Buddhist source.  The English version, that the Lord Mayor Whittington was the poor ill-used boy he is represented to have been in the popular tale seems quite impossible, since according to Stow (mentions Mr. Clouston) he was the son of Sir Richard Whittington, Knight.  The story was current in Europe in the thirteenth century.  In the chronicle of Albert, Abbot of the Convent of St. Mary of Slade, written at that period, it is related that there were two citizens of Venice, one of whom was rich, the other poor.  It fortuned that the rich man went abroad to trade, and the poor man gave him as his venture two cats, the sale of which, as in our tale of the renowned “Dick Whittington,” procured him great wealth.

On September 21st, 1668, Pepys makes mention in his diary of going to Southwark Fair, and of seeing the puppet show of “Whittington,” which he says “was pretty to see.”  A Pantomime on the subject was also given by Rich early in the eighteenth century.

In Tuscany, the “Dick Whittington” story runs that in the fifteenth century, a Genoese merchant, who presented two cats to the King, was rewarded by him with rich presents.

In Norway, a poor boy, having found a box full of silver money under a stone, emptied the box and its contents into a lake—­one piece, however, floated, which he kept, believing it to be good.  His mother, hearing of this, thrust him out of doors; and he eventually obtained employment in a merchant’s house.  The merchant, having to make a voyage to foreign parts, he asked each of his servants what he should “venture” for him.  The poor boy offered all he had, the silver penny, of which he was still the possessor.  With this the merchant purchased a cat, and sailed away, but the vessel in which he was in was driven out of her course on to the shores of a strange country.  The merchant going ashore went to an inn, and, in a room, he saw the table laid for dinner, with a long rod for each man who sat at it.  When the meat was set on the table, out swarmed thousands of mice, and each one who sat at the table beat them off with his rod.  The cat was brought into service, and sold for a hundred dollars, and soon put an end to the career of the mice.  When the merchant had weighed anchor, much to his surprise, he saw the cat sitting at the mast head.  Again foul weather came on, and again the vessel was driven to another strange country, where the mice were