Transcriber's Notes:
1. Minor changes have been made to correct typesetters' errors, and to ensure consistent spelling and punctuation in this e-text; otherwise, every effort has been made to remain true to the original book.
2. The chapter summaries in this text were originally published as banners in the page headers, and have been moved to beginning of the chapter for the reader's convenience.
3. The title page in the scans used to create this e-text incorrectly attributed authorship to Jacob Abbott; all earlier editions and the Library of Congress catalog cite John S. C. Abbott as author.