TO BE SUNG IN A HIGH WIND.
Arthur O'Bower has broken his band,
And he comes roaring up the land,
King of Scots with all his power
Never can turn Sir Arthur O'Bower.
Hush-a-bye, baby, upon the tree top,
When the wind blows the cradle will rock;
When the bough breaks the cradle will fall,
Down tumble cradle and baby and all.
Daffy-down-dilly is new come to town,
With a petticoat green, and a bright yellow gown,
And her white blossoms are peeping around.
There was an old woman, and what do you think?
She liv'd upon nothing—but victuals and drink:
Victuals and drink were the chief of her diet,
And yet this old lady scarce ever was quiet.
The rose is red, the violet is blue,
The gillyflower sweet—and so are you.
These are the words you have me say
For a pair of new gloves on Easter-day.
Great A, little a, bouncing B,
The Cat's in the cupboard, and she can't see.
The little black dog ran round the house,
And set the bull a roaring,
And drove the monkey in the boat,
Who set the oar a rowing,
And scared the cock upon the rock,
Who cracked his throat with crowing.
Oh, what a sweet little white Mouse!
Oh, what a dear little bright Mouse!
With his eyes of pink,
Going winky-wink,
Oh, what a sweet little white Mouse.
My little Pink,
I suppose you think,
I cannot do without you,
I'll let you know
Before I go,
How little I care about you.
Tell tale tit, your tongue shall be slit,
And all the dogs in our town shall have a bit.
Saturday night shall be my whole care
To powder my locks and curl my hair;
On Sunday morning my love will come in
And marry me then with a pretty gold ring.
Dear Sensibility, O la!
I heard a little lamb cry, baa!
Says I, "So you have lost mamma?"
"Ah!"
The little lamb, as I said so,
Frisking about the fields did go,
And, frisking, trod upon my toe.
"Oh!"
Pease porridge hot, pease porridge cold,
Pease porridge in the pot nine days old.
Can you spell that with four letters?
Yes, I can—T H A T.
There was a man in our town
And he was wond'rous wise,
He jump'd into a bramble-bush,
And scratch'd out both his eyes;
And when he saw his eyes were out,
With all his might and main
He jump'd into another bush,
And scratch'd them in again.
As I was going to sell my eggs,
I met a thief with bandy legs,
Bandy legs and crooked toes,
I tript up his heels, and he fell on his nose.
Old mistress McShuttle
Lived in a coal-scuttle,
Along with her dog and her cat;
What they ate I can't tell,
But 'tis known very well,
That none of the party were fat.
Hen. Cock, cock, cock, cock,
I've laid an egg,
Am I to gang ba-are-foot?
Cock. Hen, hen, hen, hen,
I've been up and down,
To every shop in town,
And cannot find a shoe
To fit your foot,
If I'd crow my heart out.
[To be said very quickly, except the last two words in each verse, which are to be "screamed" out.]
Pussy sits behind the log,
How can she be fair?
Then comes in the little dog,
Pussy, are you there?
So, so, dear mistress Pussy,
Pray tell me how you do?
I thank you, little dog,
I'm very well just now.
How many days has my baby to play?
Saturday, Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday,
Saturday, Sunday, Monday.
Pat a cake, pat a cake,
Baker's man!
So I do, master, as fast as I can.
Pat it, and prick it,
And mark it with T,
And then it will serve
For Tommy and me.
There was a man and he had naught,
And robbers came to rob him;
He crept up to the chimney top,
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 look'd behind him.
Ding—dong—bell, the cat's in the well,
Who put her in? little Johnny Green.
Who pulled her out? great Johnny Stout.
What a naughty boy was that,
To drown poor pussy cat;
Who never did him any harm,
And killed the mice in his father's barn.
Lazy Tom with jacket blue,
Stole his father's gouty shoe.
The worst of harm that dad can wish him,
Is his gouty shoe may fit him.
Bonny lass! bonny lass!
Will you be mine?
You shall neither wash dishes
Nor serve the wine,
But sit on a cushion and sew up a seam,
And you shall have strawberries, sugar, and cream.
I won't be my father's Jack,
I won't be my father's Jill,
I will be the fiddler's wife,
And have music when I will.
T'other little tune, t'other little tune,
Prythee, love, play me t'other little tune.
London bridge is broken down,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
London bridge is broken down,
With a gay ladye.
How shall we build it up again?
Dance over my Lady Lee,
How shall we build it up again?
With a gay ladye.
We'll build it up with gravel and stone,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
We'll build it up with gravel and stone,
With a gay ladye.
Gravel and stone will be washed away,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
Gravel and stone will be washed away,
With a gay ladye.
We'll build it up with iron and steel,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
We'll build it up with iron and steel,
With a gay ladye.
Iron and steel will bend and break,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
Iron and steel will bend and break,
With a gay ladye.
We'll build it up with silver and gold,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
We'll build it up with silver and gold,
With a gay ladye.
Silver and gold will be stolen away,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
Silver and gold will be stolen away,
With a gay ladye.
We'll set a man to watch it then,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
We'll set a man to watch it then,
With a gay ladye.
Suppose the man should fall asleep,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
Suppose the man should fall asleep,
With a gay ladye.
We'll put a pipe into his mouth,
Dance over my Lady Lee,
We'll put a pipe into his mouth,
With a gay ladye.
Tom, Tom, the piper's son,
Stole a pig, and away he run;
The pig was eat,
And Tom was beat,
And Tom ran crying down the street.
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.
To bed, to bed, says Sleepy-Head;
Let's stay a while, says Slow;
Put on a pot, says Greedy-Sot,
We'll sup before we go.
Dingty diddledy, my mammy's maid,
She stole oranges, I am afraid:
Some in her pocket, some in her sleeve,
She stole oranges, I do believe.
Ride away, ride away,
Johnny shall ride,
And he shall have pussy-cat
Tied to one side;
And he shall have little dog
Tied to the other,
And Johnny shall ride
To see his grandmother.
Hush-a-bye, baby, lie still with thy daddy,
Thy mammy is gone to the mill,
To get some meal to bake a cake;
So pray, my dear baby, lie still.
Little lad, little lad,
Where were you born?
Far off in Lancashire, under a thorn,
Where they sup butter-milk
With a ram's horn;
And a pumpkin scoop'd,
With a yellow rim,
Is the bonny bowl they breakfast in.
Pretty John Watts,
We are troubled with rats,
Will you drive them out of the house?
We have mice too in plenty,
That feast in the pantry,
But let them stay and nibble away,
What harm in a little brown mouse?
Shake a leg, wag a leg, when will you gang?
At midsummer, mother, when the days are lang.
See saw, sacradown, sacradown,
Which is the way to Boston town?
One foot up, the other foot down,
That is the way to Boston town.
Tom Brown's two little Indian boys,
One ran away,
The other would n't stay,
Tom Brown's two little Indian boys.
Hop away, skip away, my baby wants to play.
My baby wants to play every day.
Bow, wow, wow, whose dog art thou?
Little Tom Tinker's dog, bow, wow, wow.
Bobby Shaftoe's gone to sea,
Silver buckles on his knee;
He'll come back and marry me,
Pretty Bobby Shaftoe.
Bobby Shaftoe's fat and fair,
Combing down his yellow hair,
He's my love forevermore,
Pretty Bobby Shaftoe.
Pussy cat, pussy cat, where have you been?
I've been to London to see the Queen.
Pussy cat, pussy cat, what did you there?
I frightened a little mouse under the chair.
Taffy was a Welchman, Taffy was a thief,
Taffy came to my house and stole a piece of beef;
I went to Taffy's house, Taffy wasn't at home,
Taffy came to my house and stole a marrow-bone;
I went to Taffy's house, Taffy was in bed,
I took the marrow-bone, and beat about his head.
Boys and girls, come out to play,
The moon does shine as bright as day,
Leave your supper, and leave your sleep,
And meet your playfellows in the street;
Come with a whoop, and come with a call,
And come with a good will, or not at all.
Up the ladder and down the wall,
A halfpenny roll will serve us all.
You find milk and I'll find flour,
And we'll have pudding in half an hour.
Ride a cock horse to Banbury-cross
To see what Tommy can buy;
A penny white loaf, a penny white cake,
And a two penny apple pie.
Ride a cock hose to Shrewsbury-cross,
To buy little Johnny a galloping horse
It trots behind and it ambles before,
And Johnny shall ride till he can ride no more.
Jemmy Jed went into a shed,
And made a ted of straw his bed;
An owl came out and flew about,
And Jimmy Jed up stakes and fled.
Wasn't Jimmy Jed a staring fool,
Born in the woods to be scar'd by an owl?
How many miles to Babylon?
Threescore miles and ten.
Can I get there by candle-light?
Yes, and back again.
Oh I am so happy,
A little girl said,
As she sprang like a lark
From her low trundle bed.
It is morning, bright morning,
Good morning, Papa!
Oh give me one kiss,
For good morning, Mamma!
Trip upon trenchers,
And dance upon dishes,
My mother sent me for yeast, some yeast,
She bid me tread lightly,
And come again quickly,
For fear the young men would play me some jest.
Yet didn't you see, yet didn't you see,
What naughty tricks they put upon me?
They broke my pitcher, and spilt my water,
And huff'd my mother, and chid her daughter,
And kissed my sister instead of me.
What's the news of the day,
Good neighbor, I pray?
They say the balloon
Has gone up to the moon.
There was an old man in a velvet coat,
He kiss'd a maid and gave her groat;
The groat was crack'd and would not go.
Ah, old man, do you serve me so?
Three wise men of Gotham
Went to sea in a bowl,
And if the bowl had been stronger
My song had been longer.
Wash me and comb me
And lay me down softly,
And set me a bank to dry,
That I may look pretty,
When some one comes by.
Up in the green orchard there is a green tree,
The finest of pippins that ever you see;
The apples are ripe, and ready to fall,
And Reuben and Robin shall gather them all.
Harry cum Parry, when will you marry?
When apples and pears are ripe.
I'll come to our wedding without any bidding,
And stay with the bride all night.
Jog on, jog on, the footpath way,
And merrily jump the style, boys,
A merry heart goes all the day,
Your sad one tires in a mile, boys.
I will sing you a song
Of the days that are long,
Of the woodcock and the sparrow,
Of the little dog that burnt his tail,
And he shall be whipt to-morrow.
I had a little Doll,
The prettiest ever seen,
She washed me the dishes,
And kept the house clean.
She went to the mill
To fetch me some flour,
And always got it home
In less than an hour;
She baked me my bread,
She brewed me my ale,
She sat by the fire
And told many a fine tale.
When I was a little he,
My mother took me on her knee,
Smiles and kisses gave with joy,
And call'd me oft her darling boy.
Is master Smith within?—Yes, that he is.
Can he set a shoe? Ay, marry, two.
Here a nail, and there a nail,
Tick—tack—too.
Charley loves good cake and ale,
Charley loves good candy,
Charley loves to kiss the girls,
When they are clean and handy.
John O'Gudgeon he was a wild man,
He whipt his children now and then,
When he whipt them, he made them dance,
Out of Ireland into France.
Peter, Peter, pumpkin eater,
Had a wife and couldn't keep her;
He put her in a pumpkin shell,
And then he kept her very well.
Peter, Peter, pumpkin eater,
Had another and didn't lover her;
Peter learnt to read and spell,
And then he loved her very well.
Jack and Jill went up the hill,
To draw a pail of water;
Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after.
There was an old man,
And he had a calf,
And that's half;
He took him out of the stall,
And put him on the wall,
And that's all.
There was a little man,
And he had a little gun,
And his bullets were made of lead,
He shot John Sprig
Through the middle of his wig,
And knocked it right off his head.
Goosey, goosey, gander, where dost thou wander?
Up stairs and down stairs, and in my lady's chamber;
There I met an old man that would not say his prayers,
I took him by his hind legs and threw him down stairs.
The girl in the lane,
That couldn't speak plain,
Cried, Gobble, gobble, gobble;
The man on the hill,
That couldn't stand still,
Went, hobble, hobble, hobble.
Robert Barns, fellow fine,
Can you shoe this horse of mine,
So that I may cut a shine?
Yes, good sir, and that I can,
As well as any other man;
There a nail, and here a prod,
And now, good sir, you horse is shod.
Hey ding a ding, ding, I heard a bird sing,
The parliament soldiers are gone to the king.
Pibroch of Donnel Dhu,
Pibroch of Donnel,
Wake thy voice anew,
Summon Clan-Connel.
Come away, come away,
Hark to the summons!
Come in your war array,
Gentles and commons!
Come as the winds come,
When forests are rended,
Come as the waves come,
When navies are stranded.
Faster come, faster come, faster and faster,
Chief, vassal, page and groom,
Tenent and master.
Fast they come, fast they come,
See how they gather!
Wide waves the eagle plume blended with heather.
Cast your plaids, draw your blades,
Forward each man set!
Pibroch of Donnel Dhu, now for the onset!
Jack Sprat could eat no fat;
His wife could eat no lean;
So 'twixt them both they cleared the cloth,
And lick'd the platter clean.
There was a little boy went into a barn,
And lay down on some hay;
A calf came out and smelt about,
And the little boy ran away.
The sow came in with the saddle,
The little pig rock'd the cradle,
The dish jump'd up on the table
To see the pot swallow the ladle.
The spit that stood behind the door
Threw the pudding-stick on the floor.
Odsplut! said the gridiron,
Can't you agree?
I'm the head constable,
Bring them to me.
Little Tommy Tucker,
Sing for your supper:
What shall I sing?
White bread and butter.
How shall I cut it
Without any knife?
How shall I marry
Without any wife?
I would, if I could; if I couldn't, how could I?
I couldn't without I could, could I?
Could you without you could, could ye? could ye? could ye?
You couldn't without you could, could ye?
Oh that I were where I would be!
Then should I be where I am not;
But where I am, there I must be,
And where I would be I can not.
Hiccory, diccory, dock,
The mouse run up the clock;
The clock struck one, and down he run,
Hiccory, diccory, dock.
Jacky, come give me your fiddle,
If ever you mean to thrive.
Nay, I'll not give my fiddle
To any man alive.
If I should give you my fiddle,
They'll think that I'm gone mad,
For many a joyful day
My fiddle and I have had.
There was a Piper had a Cow,
And he had naught to give her,
He pull'd out his pipes and play'd her a tune,
And bade the cow consider.
The cow considered very well,
And gave the piper a penny,
And bade him play the other tune,
"Corn rigs are bonny."
Away, pretty robin, fly home to your nest,
To make you my captive I still should like best,
And feed you with worms and with bread:
Your eyes are so sparkling, your feathers so soft,
Your little wings flutter so pretty aloft,
And your breast is all cover'd with red.
Handy-spandy, Jacky dandy,
Loves plum-cake and sugar candy.
He bought some at a grocer's shop,
And pleased away went hop, hop, hop.
When good King Arthur ruled his land
He was a goodly king;
He stole three pecks of barley meal
To make a bag-pudding.
A bag-pudding the king did make,
And stuff'd it well with plums;
And in it put great lumps of fat,
As big as my two thumbs.
The king and queen did eat thereof,
And noblemen beside;
And what they could not eat that night,
The queen next morning fried.
Rock-a-bye, baby, your cradle is green,
Father's a nobleman, mother's a queen,
And Betty's a lady, and wears a gold ring,
And Johnny's a drummer, and drums for the king.
See saw, Jack-a-daw,
Johnny shall have a new master;
Johnny shall have but a penny a day,
Because he can work no faster.
About the bush, Willie, about the bee-hive,
About the bush, Willie, I'll meet thee alive.
We're three brethren out of Spain,
Come to court your daughter Jane.
My daughter Jane she is too young,
She has no skill in a flattering tongue.
Be she young or be she old,
It's for her gold she must be sold,
So fare you well, my lady gay,
We shall return another day.
Mistress Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells and cockle shells,
And maidens all in a row.
When I was a little boy, my mother kept me in,
Now I am a great boy, and fit to serve the king;
I can handle a musket, I can smoke a pipe,
I can kiss a pretty girl at ten o'clock at night.
Mary had a pretty bird,
Feathers bright and yellow,
Slender legs, upon my word
He was a pretty fellow.
The sweetest notes he always sung,
Which much delighted Mary,
And often where the cage was hung,
She stood to hear Canary.
This is the way the ladies ride,
Prim, prim, prim;
This is the way the gentlemen ride,
Trim, trim, trim.
Presently come the country-folks,
Hobbledy gee, hobbledy gee.
One, Six,
Two, Seven,
Three, Eight,
Four, Nine,
Five, Ten,
I caught a hare alive. I let it go again.
Cock a doodle doo,
My dame has lost her shoe;
My master's lost his fiddlestick,
And knows not what to do.
Tom, Tom of Islington,
Married a wife on Sunday,
Bro't her home on Monday,
Hired a house on Tuesday,
Fed her well on Wednesday,
Sick was she on Thursday,
Dead was she on Friday,
Sad was Tom on Saturday,
To bury his wife on Sunday.
I had a little husband no bigger than my thumb,
I put him in a pint pot, and there I bid him drum;
I bought a little handkerchief to wipe his little nose,
And a pair of little garters to tie his little hose.
As I was going to St. Ives,
I met seven wives,
Every wife had seven sacks,
Every sack had seven cats,
Every cat had seven kits,
Kits, cats, sacks and wives,
How many were going to St. Ives?
Miss Jane had a bag, and a mouse was in it,
She opened the bag, he was out in a minute;
The Cat saw him jump, and run under the table,
And the dog said, catch him, puss, soon as you're able.
Cross Patch, draw the latch,
Sit by the fire and spin;
Take a cup, and drink it up,
Then call your neighbors in.
See-saw, Margery Daw,
Sold her bed and lay upon straw.
Was not she a dirty slut,
To sell her bed and lay in the dirt?
What care I how black he be?
Twenty pounds will marry me
If twenty won't, forty shall,
I'm my mother's bouncing girl.
Here's A, B, C, D,
E, F, and G,
H, I, J, K,
L, M, N, O, P,
Q, R, S, T,
U, W, V,[
X, Y, and Z, And oh, dear me, When shall I learn My A, B, C.*/
[*][Note from Brett: "V" and "W" appear to be intentionally inverted to favor the rhyme.]
Milk-man, milk-man, where have you been?
In Buttermilk channel up to my chin,
I spilt my milk, and I spoilt my clothes,
And got a long icicle hung to my nose.
I like little pussy, her coat is so warm,
And if I don't hurt her she'll do me no harm;
So I'll not pull her tail, nor drive her away,
But pussy and I very gently will play.
There was an old woman
Sold puddings and pies,
She went to the mill,
And the dust flew in her eyes.
While through the streets,
To all she meets,
She ever cries,
Hot Pies—Hot Pies.
A cow and a calf,
An ox and a half,
Forty good shillings and three.
Is not enough tocher
For a shoemaker's daughter,
A bonny sweet lass
With a coal-black ee[*]
[*][Note from Brett: "ee" is correct. I have no idea what it means.]
The little Robin grieves
When the snow is on the ground,
For the trees have no leaves,
And no berries can be found.
The air is cold, the worms are hid,
For Robin here what can be done?
Let's strow around some crumbs of bread,
And then he'll live till snow is gone.
Little Jack Nory
Told me a story
How he tried
Cock-horse to ride,
Sword and scabbard by his side,
Saddle, leaden spurs and switches,
His pocket tight
With cents all bright,
Marbles, tops, puzzles, props,
Now he's put in jacket and breeches.
There were two blackbirds sitting on a hill,
One name Jack, and the other name Jill;
Fly away, Jack—fly away, Jill,
Come again, Jack—come again, Jill.
Willie boy, Willie boy,
Where are you going?
O let us go with you,
This sunshiny day.
I'm going to the meadow,
To see them a mowing,
I'm going to help the girls
Turn the new hay.
Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town,
Upstairs and downstairs in his night gown;
Tapping at the windows, crying at the lock,
"Are the babes in their beds, for it's now ten o'clock?"