Nievie, nievie, nack,
Whether hand wilta tak,
Under or aboon,
For a singal half-crown?
Nievie, nievie, nick, nack,
Whilk han’ will thou tak?
Tak the richt or tak the wrang,
I’ll beguile thee if I can.
Jamieson (Supp., sub voce) adds: “The first part of the word seems to be from neive, the fist being employed in the game.” A writer in Notes and Queries, iii. 180, says: “The neive, though employed in the game, is not the object addressed. It is held out to him who is to guess—the conjuror—and it is he who is addressed, and under a conjuring name. In short (to hazard a wide conjecture, it may be) he is invoked in the person of Nic Neville (Neivi Nic), a sorcerer in the days of James VI., who was burnt at St. Andrews in 1569. If I am right, a curious testimony is furnished to his quondam popularity among the common people.” It will be remembered that this game is mentioned by Scott in St. Ronan’s Well—“Na, na, said the boy, he is a queer old cull. . . . He gave me half-a-crown yince, and forbade me to play it awa’ at pitch and toss.” “And you disobeyed him, of course?” “Na, I didna disobey him—I played it awa’ at ‘Nievie, nievie, nick-nack.’”
See “[Handy-dandy].”
Nettles
Nettles grow in an angry bush,
An angry bush, an angry bush;
Nettles grow in an angry bush,
With my high, ho, ham!
This is the way the lady goes,
The lady goes, the lady goes;
This is the way the lady goes,
With my hi, ho, ham!
Nettles grow in an angry bush, &c.
This is the way the gentleman goes, &c.
Nettles grow in an angry bush, &c.