"I bet you a crown to a penny,
And lay the money down,
That I have the funniest horse of any
In this or in any town.
His tail is where his head should be—
'You bet! Well, come and see.'
And sure enough, within his stall,
The horse was turned—and that was all!"
Another, very ridiculous:—
"There was a man of our town
Who thought himself so 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 them in again!"
This would seem to suggest that a conceited man, having committed an egregious blunder, rashly undertakes to remedy it by one equally unwise. The folly of conceited impulsiveness!
Another, and I have done.
"Little Jack Horner
Sat in a corner,
Eating his Christmas pie;
He put in his thumb,
And pulled out a plum,
Oh, what a good boy am I!"
This is to encourage children with an idea that, if they be good, they shall have plums. It is very significant of the low culture. As if one were to imagine that the possession of a big plum (riches, or the like) demonstrated the moral excellency of the possessor!
Commentaries and parodies of these Comic trivialities have been written, and, forsooth, their beauties and meanings need exposition!