5. Tom, the Chimney-Sweep

(Written by Canon Kingsley for his own little boy.)

Once there was a chimney-sweep, and his name was Tom. He lived in a great city, where there were plenty of chimneys to sweep. He never washed himself, he never had been taught to say his prayers, he could not read or write. One morning Tom and his master, Mr. Grimes, started off to sweep some chimneys in the country. Mr. Grimes rode the donkey, and Tom, with his brushes, walked behind. They overtook a poor old Irish woman, trudging along with a bundle on her back. She had a shawl on her head and a red dress. She spoke kindly to Tom, and they walked along together until they came to a spring. The master jumped from the donkey and dipped his head into the water, shaking his ears to dry them. Tom said, “Master, I never saw you wash before.” “Nor will you see me wash again, most likely. I did it for coolness, not for cleanliness. I’d be ashamed to want washing every week or so like any smutty collier-lad.” “I wish I might wash,” said poor little Tom. “Come along,” said Grimes. “What do you want with washing yourself?” and he began beating the poor boy. “Shame on you!” cried the old woman. “They that wish to be clean, clean they will be; they that wish to be dirty, dirty they will be. Remember!”

That day Tom swept so many chimneys that he got lost, and came down the wrong chimney in one house, and found himself standing in a room the like of which he had never seen before. There was a wash-stand with a basin and soap and brushes and towels. Looking toward the bed he held his breath, for there, under the snow-white coverlet, was the most beautiful little girl Tom had ever seen. “Are all the people like that when they are washed?” he thought. Then he looked at his wrists and tried to rub off the soot, and wondered if it ever would come off. Looking round he saw standing close to him a little, ugly, black, ragged boy with red eyes and grinning white teeth. “Who are you?” he said. “What does such a little black monkey want here?” But it was himself reflected in the great mirror, the like of which also Tom had never seen before. Tom found out then, for the first time, that he was dirty. He burst into tears and turned to sneak up the chimney again to hide himself, but he upset the fender and threw the fire-irons down with a great noise. Under the window there was a great tree, and Tom went down the tree like a cat and across the garden toward the woods. The gardener, who was busily engaged in watering the rose-bushes, saw him and gave chase; the milkmaid heard the noise and followed too; and so did the groom and the plowman, and the old Irish woman and Mr. Grimes. But Tom ran faster than all, and in the woods he was lost from view, and all went back again. On the bank of a river Tom sat down to rest, and was soon fast asleep and dreaming of the little clean girl and the Irish woman who said, “They that wish to be clean, clean they will be.” All at once he cried out, “I must be clean! I must be clean!” He awoke and went into the water, where he washed his feet, and suddenly he was changed into a Water-baby. Hundreds of other Water-babies were there, laughing and singing and shouting and romping in the clear, cool water, and all dressed in their little bathing-suits, so clean and white. The one that had been poor little Tom, the chimney-sweep, was the happiest and whitest among them all. And he never forgot the old Irish woman (who was really Queen of the Water-babies) or what she had said: “They that wish to be clean, clean they will be; they that wish to be dirty, dirty they will be.”—Adapted from “The Water-babies.”