| 1. Who made Cock Robin's shroud? |
| 2. Who was exhausted by family cares? |
| 3. Who disliked insects? |
| 4. Who showed an interest in horticulture? |
| 5. Who summoned an orchestra? |
| 6. Who pursued matrimonial intentions without the parental sanction? |
| 7. Who showed religious intolerance? |
| 8. Who took a joint that did not belong to him? |
| 9. Who deplored the loss of hand gear? |
| 10. Whose salary was restricted owing to slackness in work? |
| 11. What animal pursued horological investigations? |
| 12. Who made the record high jump? |
| 13. Who wore a superfluity of jewelry? |
| 14. Whose culinary efforts were temporarily confiscated? |
| 15. Who pulled Pussy from the well? |
| 16. Who slept instead of attending to business? |
| 17. Who exhibited sanctimonious satisfaction over a meal? |
| 18. Who lost a number of domestic animals? |
| 19. Who had an accident during the performance of their duty? |
| 20. Who was mutilated by a bird? |
Some of the questions seemed easy and some were difficult. The girls sat puzzling over them, and writing the answers when they got inspiration. Irene scribbled away delightedly, but Lorna, who had almost forgotten the nursery rhymes of her childhood, was in much mystification, and only filled in a few of the vacant spaces. Numbers 6, 7, 13 and 14 proved the most baffling and no one was able to solve all twenty.
After allowing a considerable laxity in respect of time Mrs. Clark rang the bell and declared the competition closed. The girls changed cards, and waited with interest while their hostess read out the answers.
ANSWERS TO NURSERY RHYMES COMPETITION
1.
| I, said the beetle,
With my thread and needle. |
2.
| The old woman who lived in a shoe. |
3.
| Miss Muffet. |
4.
| Mary, Mary, quite contrary. |
5.
| Old King Cole, who called for his fiddlers three. |
6.
| Froggie would a-wooing go,
Whether his mother would let him or no. |
7.
| Goosey goosey gander,
Whither do you wander,
Upstairs, downstairs,
In my lady's chamber.
There I met an old man
Who wouldn't say his prayers,
So I took him by the left leg
And threw him down the stairs. |
8.
| Taffy was a Welshman,
Taffy was a thief,
Taffy came to my house
And stole a piece of beef. |
9.
| Three little kittens
Lost their mittens
And they began to cry. |
10.
| Johnny shall have a new master
And he shall have but a penny a day,
Because he won't work any faster. |
11.
| Dickery, dickery, dock!
The mouse ran up the clock! |
12.
| The cow jumped over the moon. |
13.
| The fair lady of Banbury Cross.
Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes
She shall have music wherever she goes. |
14.
| The Queen of Heart's tarts. |
15.
| Little Tommy Trout. |
16.
| Little Boy Blue. |
17.
| Little Jack Horner. |
18.
| Little Bo Peep. |
19.
| Jack and Jill. |
20.
| The maid was in the garden
Hanging out the clothes,
When by came a blackbird
And nipped off her nose. |
There was a good deal of laughter over the competition and much counting up of marks. Irene, who had scored eighteen out of the possible twenty, came out top, and was accordingly handed the pretty little photograph frame which formed the prize.
"I only got six," mourned Lorna. "I was a perfect duffer at it."
"I had fifteen," purred Sheila, "but I couldn't for the life of me remember who made Cock Robin's shroud, or who pulled Pussy out of the well."
"It's such ages since I read any nursery rhymes," said Monica.
"That's just the fun of it, of course!" declared Mary. "Did you make up the questions, Mrs. Clark?"