Hesba Stretton

Alone in London Hesba Stretton

Hesba Stretton (1832-1911) was the pseudonym of Sarah Smith, an English author of children's literature. She is considered one of the most popular Evangelical writers in the nineteenth century. She used her "Christian principles as a protest against specific social evils in her children's books. An excerpt reads, "In the shop it was not yet so dark but that old Oliver could see his way out with the shutters, which during the day occupied a place behind the door. He lifted the flap of the counter, and was about to go on with his usual business, when a small voice, trembling a little, and speaking from the floor at his very feet, caused him to pause suddenly. "Please, rere's a little girl here," said the voice. Oliver stooped down to bring his eyes nearer to the ground, until he could make out the indistinct outline of the figure of a child, seated on his shop floor, and closely hugging a dog in her arms. Her face looked small to him; it was pale, as if she had been crying quietly, and though he could not see them, a large tear stood on each of her cheeks."