PART VI
STORIES, PROVERBS, PARADOXES
EXPERIENCE RHYMES, RHYMING
ALPHABETS, ETC.
CHILD STORIES AND
CHILD PLAY.
Old Mother Goose, when
She wanted to wander,
Would ride through the air
On a very fine gander.
Mother Goose had a house,
'T was built in a wood,
Where an owl at the door
For sentinel stood.
This is her son Jack,
A plain-looking lad;
He is not very good,
Nor yet very bad.
She sent him to market,
A live goose he bought:
"Here! mother," says he,
"It will not go for nought."
Jack's goose and her gander
Grew very fond;
They'd both eat together,
Or swim in one pond.
Jack found one morning,
As I have been told,
His goose had laid him
An egg of pure gold.
Jack rode to his mother,
The news for to tell.
She called him a good boy,
And said it was well.
There was a man in our town,
And he was wondrous wise,
He jumped into a bramble bush,
And scratched out both his eyes;
But when he saw his eyes were out,
With all his might and main,
He jumped into another bush,
And scratched 'em in again.
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Little Jack Jelf |
And no more about him,
For I wish him a very good-bye!
Hub a dub dub,
Three men in a tub;
And who do you think they be?
The butcher, the baker,
The candlestick-maker;
Turn'em out, knaves all three!
Little King Boggen he built a fine hall,
Pie-crust and pastry-crust that was the
wall,
The windows were made of black puddings
and white,
And slated with pancakes, you ne'er saw
the like.
Three children sliding on the ice,
Upon a summer's day;
As it fell out they all fell in,
The rest they ran away.
Now, had these children been at home,
Or sliding on dry ground,
Ten thousand pounds. to one penny,
They had not all been drowned.
You parents all that children have,
And you that have got none,
If you would have them safe abroad,
Pray keep them safe at home.
The King of France went up the hill,
With twenty thousand men;
The King of France came down the hill,
And ne'er went up again.
Old King Cole
Was a merry old soul,
And a merry old soul was he;
He called for his pipe,
And he called for his bowl,
And he called for his fiddlers three.
And every fiddler he had a fine fiddle,
And a very fine fiddle had he;
"Twee tweedle dee, tweedle dee," went the
fiddlers.
Oh, there's none so rare,
As can compare
With King Cole and his fiddlers three.
If I'd as much money as I could spend,
I never would cry, "Old chairs to mend!
Old chairs to mend! Old chairs to mend!"
I never would cry, "Old chairs to mend!"
If I'd as much money as I could tell,
I never would cry, "Old clothes to sell!
Old clothes to sell! Old clothes to sell!"
I never would cry, "Old clothes to sell!"
My father he died, but I can't tell you how,
He left me six horses to drive in my plough.
I sold my six horses, and I bought me a
cow,
I'd fain have made a fortune, but did not
know how.
I sold my cow, and I bought me a calf;
I'd fain have made a fortune, but lost the
best half.
I sold my calf, and I bought me a cat;
A pretty thing she was, in my chimney
corner sat.
I sold my cat, and bought me a mouse;
He carried fire in his tail, and burnt down
my house.
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Tom he was a piper's son, |
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That he pleased both the girls and boys,
And they stopped to hear him play
"Over the hills and far away."
Tom with his pipe did play with such skill
That those who heard him could never
keep still;
Whenever they heard they began for to
dance,—
Even pigs on their hind legs would after
him prance.
As Dolly was milking her cow one day,
Tom took out his pipe and began for to
play;
So Doll and the cow danced "the Cheshire
round,"
Till the pail was broke, and the milk on
the ground.
He met old Dame Trot with a basket of
eggs,
He used his pipe and she used her legs;
She danced about till the eggs were all
broke,
She began for to fret, but he laughed at
the joke.
He saw a cross fellow was beating an ass,
Heavy laden with pots, pans, dishes and
glass;
He took out his pipe and played them a
tune,
And the jackass's load was lightened full
soon.
For every evil under the sun,
There is a remedy, or there is none.
If there be one, try and find it;
If there be none, never mind it.
I saw a ship a-sailing,
A-sailing on the sea;
And, oh! it was all laden
With pretty things for thee!
There were comfits in the cabin,
And apples in the hold;
The sails were made of silk,
And the masts were made of gold.
The four-and-twenty sailors
That stood between the decks
Were four-and-twenty white mice,
With chains about their necks.
The captain was a duck,
With a packet on his back;
And when the ship began to move,
The captain said, "Quack! quack!"
I saw three ships come sailing by,
Come sailing by, come sailing by—
I saw three ships come sailing by,
New Year's Day in the morning.
And what do you think was in them then,
Was in them then, was in them then?
And what do you think was in them then,
New Year's Day in the morning?
Three pretty girls were in them then,
Were in them then, were in them then -
Three pretty girls were in them then,
New Year's Day in the morning.
One could whistle, and another could sing,
And the other could play on the violin—
Such joy was there at my wedding,
New Year's Day in the morning.
Oh that I was where I would be!
Then would I be where I am not!
But where I am I must be,
And where I would be, I cannot.
In time of prosperity friends will be plenty,
In time of adversity not one amongst
twenty.
See a pin and pick it up,
All the day you'll have good luck;
See a pin and let it lay,
Bad luck you'll have all the day.
Riddle me, riddle me, riddle me ree,
None are so blind as those that won't see.
My Lady Wind, my Lady Wind,
Went round about the house to find
A chink to get her foot in:
She tried the key-hole in the door,
She tried the crevice in the floor,
And drove the chimney soot in.
And then one night when it was dark,
She blew up such a tiny spark
That all the house was pothered;
From it she raised up such a flame
As flamed away to Belting Lane,
And White Cross folks were smothered
And thus when once, my little dears,
A whisper reaches itching ears,
The same will come, you 'll find:
Take my advice, restrain the tongue,
Remember what old Nurse has sung
Of busy Lady Wind!
I Love sixpence, pretty little sixpence,
I love sixpence better than my life;
I spent a penny of it, I spent another,
And took fourpence home to my wife.
Oh, my little fourpence, pretty little four
pence,
I love fourpence better than my life;
I spent a penny of it, I spent another,
And I took twopence home to my wife.
Oh, my little twopence, my pretty little
twopence,
I love twopence better than my life;
I spent a penny of it, I spent another,
And I took nothing home to my wife.
Oh, my little nothing, my pretty little
nothing,
What will nothing buy for my wife?
I have nothing, I spend nothing,
I love nothing better than my wife.
There were three jovial huntsmen-
As I have heard them say,
And they would go a-hunting
All on a summer's day.
All the day they hunted,
And nothing could they find
But a ship a-sailing,
A-sailing with the wind.
One said it was a ship,
The other said Nay;
The third said it was a house
With the chimney blown away.
And all the night they hunted,
And nothing could they find,
But the moon a-gliding,
A-gliding with the wind.
One said it was the moon,
The other said Nay;
The third said it was a cheese,
And half o' 't cut away.
A Man of words and not of deeds,
Is like a garden full of weeds;
For when the weeds begin to grow,
Then doth the garden overflow.
Oh, who is so merry, so merry, heigh ho!
As the light-hearted fairy, heigh ho, heigh ho!
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He dances and |
His nectar he sips
From the primrose's lips,
With a hey, and a heigh, and a ho!
Oh, who is so merry, so merry, heigh ho!
As the light-footed fairy, heigh ho, heigh ho!
His night is the noon,
And his sun is the moon,
With a hey, and a heigh, and a ho!
Bryan O'Lin and his wife and wife's
mother,
They all went over a bridge together:
The bridge was broken, and they all fell in;
"Here's a nice mess!" quoth Bryan O'Lin.
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Five, six, |
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Seven, |
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Nine, ten, a good fat hen;
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Eleven, |
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Seventeen, eighteen, | ||
The man in the wilderness asked me,
How many strawberries grew in the
sea?
I answered him as I thought good,
As many as red herrings grew in the
wood.
There was a man, and he had nought,
And robbers came to rob him;
He crept up to the chimney-pot
And then they thought they had him.
But he got down on t'other side,
And then they could not find him;
He ran fourteen miles in fifteen days,
And never looked behind him.
If wishes were horses,
Beggars would ride;
If turnips were watches,
I'd wear one by my side.
If "ifs" and "ands,"
Were pots and pans,
There would be no need for tinkers!
Birds of a feather flock together,
And so will pigs and swine;
Rats and mice will have their choice,
And so will I have mine.
If all the world was apple-pie,
And all the sea was ink,
And all the trees were bread and cheese,
What should we have for drink?
Come when you're called,
Do what you 're bid,
Shut the door after you,
And never be chid.
Multiplication is vexation,
Division is as bad;
The Rule of Three doth puzzle me,
And Practice drives me mad.
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When V and I together meet, |
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He that hath it and will not keep it,
He that wanteth it and will not seek it,
He that drinketh and is not dry,
Shall want money, as well as I.
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A was an apple-pie ;  C cut it;  G got it; |
M mourned for it ;  S stole it; |
A, B, C, and D,
Pray, playmates, agree.
E, F, and G,
Well, so it shall be.
J, K, and L,
In peace we will dwell.
M, N, and O,
To play let us go.
P, Q, R, and S,
Love may we possess.
W, X, and Y,
Will not quarrel or die.
Z, and ampersand,
Go to school at command.
[Tom Thumb's Alphabet.]
A was an Archer, and shot at a frog,
B was a Butcher, and had a great dog.
C was a Captain, all covered with lace,
D was a Drunkard, and had a red face.
E was an Esquire, with pride on his
brow,
F was a Farmer, and followed the plough.
G was a Gamester, who had but ill
luck,
H was a Hunter, and hunted a buck.
I was an Innkeeper, who loved to carouse,
J was a Joiner, and built up a house.
K was King William, who ruled in England,
L was a Lady, who had a white hand.
M was a Miser, and hoarded up gold,
N was a Nobleman, gallant and bold.
O was an Oyster man, and went about town,
P was a Parson, and wore a black gown.
Q was a Queen, who was fond of good flip,
R was a Robber, and
wanted a whip.
S was a Sailor, and
spent all he got,
T was a Tinker, and
mended a pot.
U was an Usurer, a
miserable elf,
V was a Vintner, who
drank all himself.
W was a Watchman, and guarded the door,
X was expensive, and so became poor.
Y was a Youth, that did not love school,
Z was a Zany, a poor harmless fool.
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A FOR the Ape that we |
D for a Duck, a very good bird;
E for an Egg, good in pudding or pies;
F for a Farmer, rich, honest, and wise;
G for a Gentleman, void of all care;
H for the Hound that ran down the hare;
I for an Indian, sooty and dark; | |
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N for Sir Nobody, ever in fault; |
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Q was for quartering it;
see, here he comes;
R for a Rook, that croaked
in the trees;
S for a Sailor, that ploughed the
deep seas;
T for a top, that doth
prettily spin;
V for a Virgin of delicate
mien;
W for Wealth in gold, silver and pence;
X for old Xenophon, noted for sense;
Y for a Yew, which forever is green;
Z for a Zebra, the oddest beast seen.
My story's ended,
My spoon is bended:
If you don't like it,
Go to the next door
And get it mended.
Father Iohnson Nicholas Iohnson's Son—
Son Iohnson Nicholas Iohnson's Father.
