Chapter 1
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The Nursery Rhyme Book
THE NURSERY RHYME BOOK
EDITED BY ANDREW LANG
ILLUSTRATED BY L. LESLIE BROOKE
_Copyright 1897 by F. Warne & Co._
LONDON . FREDERICK WARNE AND CO . AND NEW YORK MDCCCXCVII
Printed by BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO. At the Ballantyne Press
TO read the old Nursery Rhymes brings back queer lost memories of a man's own childhood. One seems to see the loose floppy picture-books of long ago, with their boldly coloured pictures. The books were tattered and worn, and my first library consisted of a wooden box full of these volumes. And I can remember being imprisoned for some crime in the closet where the box was, and how my gaolers found me, happy and impenitent, sitting on the box, with its contents all round me, reading.
There was "Who Killed Cock Robin?" which I knew by heart before I could read, and I learned to read (entirely "without tears") by picking out the letters in the familiar words. I remember the Lark dressed as a clerk, but what a clerk might be I did not ask. Other children, who are little now, will read this book, and remember it well when they have forgotten a great deal of history and geography. We do not know what poets wrote the old Nursery Rhymes, but certainly some of them were written down, or even printed, three hundred years ago. Grandmothers have sung them to their grandchildren, and they again to theirs, for many centuries. In Scotland an old fellow will take a child on his knee for a ride, and sing--
"This is the way the ladies ride, Jimp and sma',--"
a smooth ride, then a rough trot,--
"This is the way the cadgers ride. Creels and a'!"
Such songs are sometimes not printed, but they are never forgotten.
About the people mentioned in this book:--We do not exactly know who Old King Cole was, but King Arthur must have reigned some time about 500 to 600 A.D. As a child grows up, he will, if he is fond of poetry, read thousands of lines about this Prince, and the Table Round where his Knights dined, and how four weeping Queens carried him from his last fight to Avalon, a country where the apple-trees are always in bloom. But the reader will never forget the bag-pudding, which "the Queen next morning fried." Her name was Guinevere, and the historian says that she "was a true lover, and therefore made she a good end." But she had a great deal of unhappiness in her life.
I cannot tell what King of France went up the hill with twenty thousand men, and did nothing when he got there. But I do know who Charley was that "loved good ale and wine," and also "loved good brandy," and was fond of a pretty girl, "as sweet as sugar-candy." This was the banished Prince of Wales, who tried to win back his father's kingdom more than a hundred years ago, and gained battles, and took cities, and would have recovered the throne if his officers had followed him. But he was as unfortunate as he was brave, and when he had no longer a chance, perhaps he _did_ love good ale and wine rather too dearly. As for the pretty girls, they all ran after him, and he could not run away like Georgey Porgey. There is plenty of poetry about Charley, as well as about King Arthur.
About King Charles the First, "upon a black horse," a child will soon hear at least as much as he can want, and perhaps his heart "will be ready to burst," as the rhyme says, with sorrow for the unhappy King. After he had his head cut off, "the Parliament soldiers went to the King," that is, to his son Charles, and crowned him in his turn, but he was thought a little too gay. Then we come to the King "who had a daughter fair, and gave the Prince of Orange her."
There is another rhyme about him:--
"O what's the rhyme to porringer? Ken ye the rhyme to porringer? King James the Seventh had ae dochter, And he gave her to an Oranger.
Ken ye how he requited him? Ken ye how he requited him? The lad has into England come, And ta'en the crown in spite o' him.
The dog, he shall na keep it lang, To flinch we'll make him fain again; We'll hing him hie upon a tree, And James shall have his ain again."
The truth is, that the Prince of Orange and the King's daughter fair (really a very pretty lady, with a very ugly husband) were not at all kind to the King, but turned him out of England. He was the grandfather of Charley who loved good ale and wine, and who very nearly turned out King Georgey Porgey, a German who "kissed the girls and made them cry," as the poet likewise says. Georgey was not a handsome King, and nobody cared much for him; and if any poetry was made about him, it was very bad stuff, and all the world has forgotten it. He had a son called Fred, who was killed by a cricket-ball--an honourable death. A poem was made when Fred died:--
"Here lies Fred, Who was alive and is dead. If it had been his father, I would much rather; If it had been his brother, Still better than another; If it had been his sister, No one would have missed her; If it had been the whole generation, So much the better for the nation. But as it's only Fred, Who was alive and is dead, Why there's no more to be said."
This poet seems to have preferred Charley, who wore a white rose in his bonnet, and was much handsomer than Fred.
Another rhyme tells about Jim and George, and how Jim got George by the nose. This Jim was Charley's father, and the George whom he "got by the nose" was Georgey Porgey, the fat German. Jim was born on June 10; so another song says--
"Of all the days that's in the year, The Tenth of June to me's most dear, When our White Roses will appear To welcome Jamie the Rover."
But, somehow, George really got Jim by the nose, in spite of what the poet says; for it does not do to believe all the history in song-books.
After these songs there is not much really useful information in the Nursery Rhymes. Simple Simon was not Simon Fraser of Lovat, who was sometimes on Jim's side, and sometimes on George's, till he got his head cut off by King George. That Simon was not simple.
The Babes in the Wood you may read about here and in longer poems; for instance, in a book called "The Ingoldsby Legends." It was their wicked uncle who lost them in the wood, because he wanted their money. Uncles were exceedingly bad long ago, and often smothered their nephews in the Tower, or put out their eyes with red-hot irons. But now uncles are the kindest people in the world, as every child knows.
About Brian O'Lin there is more than this book says:--
"Brian O'Lin had no breeches to wear; He bought him a sheepskin to make him a pair, The woolly side out, and the other side in: 'It's pleasant and cool,' says Brian O'Lin."
He is also called Tom o' the Lin, and seems to have been connected with Young Tamlane, who was carried away by the Fairy Queen, and brought back to earth by his true love. Little Jack Horner lived at a place called Mells, in Somerset, in the time of Henry VIII. The plum he got was an estate which had belonged to the priests. I find nobody else here about whom history teaches us till we come to Dr. Faustus. He was _not_ "a very good man"; that is a mistake, or the poem was written by a friend of the Doctor's. In reality he was a wizard, and raised up Helen of Troy from the other world, the most beautiful woman who ever was seen. Dr. Faustus made an agreement with Bogie, who, after the Doctor had been gay for a long time, came and carried him off in a flash of fire. You can read about it all in several books, when you are a good deal older. Dr. Faustus was a German, and the best play about him is by a German poet.
As to Tom the Piper's Son, he was probably the son of a Highlander, for they were mostly on Charley's side, who was "Over the hills and far away." Another song says--
"There was a wind, it came to me Over the south and over the sea, And it has blown my corn and hay Over the hills and far away. But though it left me bare indeed, And blew my bonnet off my head, There's something hid in Highland brae, It has not blown my sword away. Then o'er the hills and over the dales, Over all England, and thro' Wales, The broadsword yet shall bear the sway, Over the hills and far away!"
Tom piped this tune, and pleased both the girls and boys.
About the two birds that sat on a stone, on the "All-Alone Stone," you can read in a book called "The Water-Babies."
Concerning the Frog that lived in a well, and how he married a King's daughter and was changed into a beautiful Prince, there is a fairy tale which an industrious child ought to read. The frog in the rhyme is not nearly so lucky.
After these rhymes there come a number of riddles, of which the answers are given. Then there are charms, which people used to think would help in butter-making or would cure diseases. It is not generally thought now that they are of much use, but there can be no harm in trying. Nobody will be burned now for saying these charms, like the poor old witches long ago. The Queen Anne mentioned on page 172 was the sister of the other Princess who married the Prince of Orange, and she was Charley's aunt. She had seventeen children, and only one lived to be as old as ten years. He was a nice boy, and had a regiment of boy-soldiers.
"Hickory Dickory Dock" is a rhyme for counting out a lot of children. The child on whom the last word falls has to run after the others in the game of "Tig" or "Chevy." There is another of the same kind:--
"Onery Twoery Tickery Tin Alamacrack Tenamalin Pin Pan Musky Dan Tweedleum Twiddleum Twenty-one Black fish White trout Eery, Ory You are out."
Most of the rhymes in this part of the book are sung in games and dances by children, and are very pretty to see and hear. They are very old, too, and in an old book of travels in England by a Danish gentleman, he gives one which he heard sung by children when Charles II. was king. They still sing it in the North of Scotland.
In this collection there are nonsense songs to sing to babies to make them fall asleep.
Bessy Bell and Mary Gray, on page 207, were two young ladies in Scotland long ago. The plague came to Perth, where they lived, so they built a bower in a wood, far off the town. But their lovers came to see them in the bower, and brought the infection of the plague, and they both died. There is a little churchyard and a ruined church in Scotland, where the people who died of the plague, more than two hundred years ago, were buried, and we used to believe that if the ground was stirred, the plague would fly out again, like a yellow cloud, and kill everybody.
There is a French rhyme like "Blue-Eye Beauty"--
"_Les yeux bleus_ _Vont aux cieux._ _Les yeux gris_ _Vont a Paradis._ _Les yeux noirs_ _Vont a Purgatoire._"
None of the other rhymes seem to be anything but nonsense, and nonsense is a very good thing in its way, especially with pictures. Any child who likes can get Mrs. Markham's "History of England," and read about the Jims, and Georges, and Charleys, but I scarcely think that such children are very common. However, the facts about these famous people are told here shortly, and if there is any more to be said about Jack and Jill, I am sure I don't know what it is, or where the hill they sat on is to be found in the geography books.
Page
I. _Historical_ 29
II. _Literal and Scholastic_ 41
III. _Tales_ 53
IV. _Proverbs_ 75
V. _Songs_ 85
VI. _Riddles and Paradoxes_ 121
VII. _Charms and Lullabies_ 143
VIII. _Gaffers and Gammers_ 153
IX. _Games_ 167
X. _Jingles_ 189
XI. _Love and Matrimony_ 197
XII. _Natural History_ 217
XIII. _Accumulative Stories_ 247
XIV. _Relics_ 261
_Notes_ 275
_Index of First Lines_ 279
Page
Frontispiece--Little Bo-Peep 4
Title-Page 5
Heading to Preface 7
Medallion--Frederic. Walliae Princeps 12
Tailpiece to Preface 19
Heading to Contents 21
Heading to List of Illustrations 23
Title (Historical) 29
Old King Cole 31
Good King Arthur 33
Over the water to Charley 36
Title (Literal and Scholastic) 41
Great A, little a 43
A was an archer 45
When he whipped them he made them dance 48
Mistress Mary, how does your garden grow? 50
Title (Tales) 53
The man in the moon 55
There was a crooked man 57
Simple Simon met a pieman 59
He ran fourteen miles in fifteen days 61
The lion and the unicorn 62
His bullets were made of lead 64
Went to sea in a bowl 65
He used to wear a long brown coat 70
Taffy came to my house and stole a piece of beef 72
He caught fishes in other men's ditches 73
Title (Proverbs) 75
To put 'em out's the only way 77
When the wind is in the east 80
Then 'tis at the very best 81
Title (Songs) 85
There I met an old man 87
Says t'auld man tit oak tree 91
Whenever they heard they began for to dance 95
Even pigs on their hind legs would after him prance 96
So Doll and the cow danced "the Cheshire round" 97
He'll sit in a barn 101
Merry are the bells, and merry do they ring 104
He rode till he came to my Lady Mouse hall 107
Tailpiece 110
His mare fell down, and she made her will 115
Three pretty girls were in them then 118
Title (Riddles and Paradoxes) 121
I went to the wood and got it 123
Arthur O'Bower has broken his band 125
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall 129
Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy, and Bess 133
If all the world was apple-pie 135
The man in the wilderness asked me 137
Here am I, little jumping Joan 140
Title (Charms and Lullabies) 143
Cushy cow bonny, let down thy milk 145
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pepper 146
Where's the peck of pickled pepper 147
Hush-a-bye, baby 149
Home again, come again 151
Title (Gaffers and Gammers) 153
There was an old woman lived under a hill 155
She had so many children she didn't know what to do 159
He was dancing a jig 165
Title (Games) 167
There were three jovial Welshmen 169
Here comes a candle to light you to bed 174
The Five Pigs 177
Can I get there by candle-light? 183
Little Jackey shall have but a penny a day 185
This is the way the ladies ride 187
This is the way the gentlemen ride 187
This is the way the farmers ride 187
Title (Jingles) 189
Went to bed with his trousers on 191
Hey! diddle, diddle 193
The fly shall marry the humble-bee 195
Title (Love and Matrimony) 197
Jack fell down, and broke his crown 199
A little boy and a little girl lived in an alley 201
Tommy Snooks and Bessy Brooks 203
Jack Sprat could eat no fat 206
Betwixt them both, they lick'd the platter clean 207
There I met a pretty miss 209
Here comes a lusty wooer 211
Title (Natural History) 217
I sent him to the shop for a hap'orth of snuff 219
Pussy-cat, pussy-cat, where have you been? 221
Four-and-twenty tailors went to kill a snail 224
There was a piper, he'd a cow 226
A long-tail'd pig, or a short-tail'd pig 229
Dame, what makes your ducks to die? 231
Little Tom Tinker's dog 233
Pussy and I very gently will play 234
Lady bird, lady bird, fly away home 235
I had a little hen, the prettiest ever seen 237
Higgley Piggley, my black hen 238
He's under the hay-cock fast asleep 241
There I met an old man that would not say his prayers 243
She whipped him, she slashed him 245
Title (Accumulative Stories) 247
This is the house that Jack built 249
The old woman and her pig 255
Title (Relics) 261
Willy boy, Willy boy, where are you going? 263
What are little boys made of? 265
Girls and boys, come out to play 267
Daffy-down-dilly has come up to town 269
Barber, barber, shave a pig 271
Wished to leap over a high gate 273
Heading to Notes 275
Heading to Index of First Lines 279
OLD King Cole Was a merry old soul, And a merry old soul was he; He called for his pipe, And he called for his bowl, And he called for his fiddlers three.
Every fiddler, he had a fiddle, And a very fine fiddle had he; Twee tweedle dee, tweedle dee, went the fiddlers. Oh, there's none so rare, As can compare With King Cole and his fiddlers three!
WHEN good King Arthur ruled this 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.
I HAD a little nut-tree, nothing would it bear But a silver nutmeg and a golden pear; The King of Spain's daughter came to visit me, And all was because of my little nut-tree. I skipp'd over water, I danced over sea, And all the birds in the air couldn't catch me.
THE King of France, and four thousand men, They drew their swords, and put them up again.
THE King of France went up the hill, With twenty thousand men; The King of France came down the hill, And ne'er went up again.
PLEASE to remember The Fifth of November. Gunpowder treason and plot; I know no reason Why gunpowder treason Should ever be forgot.
OVER the water, and over the sea, And over the water to Charley; Charley loves good ale and wine, And Charley loves good brandy, And Charley loves a pretty girl, As sweet as sugar-candy.
Over the water, and over the sea, And over the water to Charley; I'll have none of your nasty beef, Nor I'll have none of your barley; But I'll have some of your very best flour, To make a white cake for my Charley.
AS I was going by Charing Cross, I saw a black man upon a black horse; They told me it was King Charles the First; Oh, dear! my heart was ready to burst!
HIGH diddle ding, Did you hear the bells ring? The parliament soldiers are gone to the King! Some they did laugh, some they did cry, To see the parliament soldiers pass by.