"Here's a beck and here's a boo, Here's a side and here's a sou; Open your gates and let us through."
All the players in the first line say: "Here's a beck and here's a boo," as they suit the action to the word. As they do so, they also drop hands and each makes a courtesy, with hands at the hips for the "beck," and straighten up and make a deep bow forward for the "boo"; assuming an upright attitude, then, and bending the head sideways to the right for "Here's a side," and to the left for "Here's a sou."
The partners clasp hands, and all run forward ten steps, keeping time with the rhythm of the words. Then all pass under the upraised hands, which represent the city gates. This is done in four running steps, making twelve steps in all. The couples who made the gate then turn around in four running steps, until they face the first line, when they repeat the dialogue as given above, etc.
PUSS IN THE CORNER
Corners are selected by some of the players; the others remain in the center of the room. The puss in a corner calls to the other puss in a corner, "Puss, puss," and they try to get to each other's corner before these can be taken by the others.
When this is played outdoors, trees or the corners in a fence may be utilized as were the corners of a room.