Mary Frere: Old Deccan Days, London, 1870
Mary Frere (1845-1911) went to Bombay in 1863. She collected Indian folk tales through one of her servants and published twenty four of them in Old Deccan Days. A copy of the second edition is shown here. She reproduced with great care the oral story telling of the originals. This was the first field collected story book of Indian folk tales. Through its great popularity with Anglo Indians it gave considerable impetus to the serious study of folklore.
