Project Gutenberg 2005-04-01 Public domain in the USA. 109 Blackford, Mrs. (Martha) 1775 1846 Stoddart, Isabella, Lady Blackford, Martha The Eskdale Herd-boy A Scottish Tale for the Instruction and Amusement of Young People Produced by Ted Garvin, S.R. Ellison, Charles Franks, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team "The Eskdale Herd-boy" by Mrs. Blackford is a fictional tale aimed at young readers, written in the early 19th century. The book is set in picturesque Dumfriesshire, Scotland, revolving around the lives of John Telfer, an orphaned herd-boy, and Helen, the daughter of the local minister, Mr. Martin. It explores themes of integrity, perseverance, and the moral lessons imparted through their experiences in a close-knit community. At the start of the narrative, we are introduced to John Telfer, who has recently lost his parents and is taken in by Mr. Martin. Mr. Martin, recognizing John's grief and potential, offers him the opportunity to work as a herd-boy for a local farmer while also committing to teaching him to read. John's journey begins with his initial struggle against sadness and loneliness, but it gradually shifts to hope as he aims to better his life through education and hard work. Concurrently, Helen Martin is learning to ride her pony and is encouraged by her mother to persevere; her character serves as a counterpoint to John’s, with themes of duty and obedience. The opening portion establishes a rich setting and introduces readers to the core characters and their circumstances, hinting at the adventures and lessons that await them. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 70.6 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read. en Conduct of life -- Juvenile fiction Scotland -- Juvenile fiction Shepherds -- Scotland -- Juvenile fiction PZ Text Category: Children & Young Adult Reading Category: Novels Category: British Literature 322867 2025-08-04T04:05:35.897770 text/html 322688 2025-01-11T01:38:14.450005 text/html 186985 2025-08-04T04:05:41.036729 application/epub+zip 190073 2025-08-04T04:05:37.509709 application/epub+zip 190073 2025-08-04T04:05:36.485827 application/epub+zip 335858 2025-08-04T04:05:43.887717 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 314514 2025-08-04T04:05:40.362758 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 309401 2022-09-04T08:12:51.418165 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 307670 2025-08-04T04:05:35.609745 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 308011 2015-02-21T19:56:00 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 18147 2025-08-04T04:05:44.013715 application/rdf+xml 12332 2025-08-04T04:05:36.979741 image/jpeg 3249 2025-08-04T04:05:36.731728 image/jpeg 113436 2015-02-21T19:57:16 application/octet-stream application/zip 182712 2025-08-04T04:05:35.924724 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia