Mother Goose's Melodies

37

PETER PIPER picked a peck of pickled peppers;
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked;
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

JACK SPRAT could eat no fat,

His wife could eat no lean,

And so, betwixt them both, you see,

They licked the platter clean.

THE lion and the unicorn

Were fighting for the crown;
The lion beat the unicorn

All round about the town.
Some gave them white bread,
And some gave them brown;
Some gave them plum cake,
And sent them out of town.

As Tommy Snooks and Bessy Brooks
Were walking out one Sunday,
Says Tommy Snooks to Bessy Brooks,
"To-morrow will be Monday."

CURLY locks! Curly locks!

Wilt thou be mine?
Thou shalt not wash dishes

Nor yet feed the swine;

But sit on a cushion

And sew a fine seam,
And feed upon strawberries,
Sugar and cream.

BLOW, wind, blow! and go, mill, go!

That the miller may grind his corn;

That the baker may take it and into rolls make it,
And send us some hot in the morn.

SIX little mice sat down to spin, Pussy passed by, and she peeped in. "What are you at, my little men?" "Making coats for gentlemen."

"Shall I come in and bite off your threads?"

"No, no, Miss Pussy, you'll snip off our heads."

"Oh, no, I'll not, I'll help you to spin."

"That may

be so,

but you don't come in!"

BOBBY SHAFTOE's gone to sea,

Silver buckles at his knee;

When he comes back, he'll marry me,

Bonny Bobby Shaftoe.

Bobby Shaftoe's fat and fair,
Combing down his yellow hair;
He's my love for evermair,
Bonny Bobby Shaftoe.

ROCK-A-BYE, baby, thy cradle is green;
Father's a nobleman, mother's a queen;
And Betty's a lady, and wears a gold ring;
And Johnny's a drummer, and drums for the King.

Hush-a-bye, baby, on the tree-top,

When the wind blows the cradle will rock;
When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall,
Down will come baby, bough, cradle, and all.

To market, to market, to buy a fat pig,
Home again, home again, jiggety-jig;
To market, to market, to buy a fat hog,
Home again, home again, jiggety-jog;
To market, to market, to buy a plum bun,
Home again, home again, market is done.

Little Bo-peep

39

JACK AND JILL

JACK and Jill went up the hill,
To fetch a pail of water;

Jack fell down and broke his crown
And Jill came tumbling after.

Up Jack got and home did trot
As fast as he could caper,

And went to bed to mend his head
With vinegar and brown paper.

THE QUEEN OF HEARTS

THE Queen of Hearts
She made some tarts,

All on a summer's day;
The Knave of Hearts

He stole those tarts,

And with them ran away.

The King of Hearts

Called for the tarts,
And beat the Knave full sore;
The Knave of Hearts

Brought back the tarts,

And vowed he'd steal no more!

LITTLE BO-PEEP

LITTLE BO-peep has lost her sheep,
And can't tell where to find them;
Leave them alone, and they'll come home,
And bring their tails behind them.

Little Bo-peep fell fast asleep,

And dreamed she heard them bleating; But when she awoke, she found it a joke, For they were still a-fleeting.

Then up she took her little crook,

Determined for to find them;

She found them indeed, but it made her heart bleed, For they'd left their tails behind them!

It happened one day, as Bo-peep did stray,
Unto a meadow hard by,

There she espied their tails side by side,
All hung on a tree to dry.

She heaved a sigh, and wiped her eye,

And over the hillocks she raced;

And tried what she could, as a shepherdess should, That each tail should be properly placed.

MARY'S LAMB

MARY had a little lamb,

Its fleece was white as snow;
And everywhere that Mary went,
The lamb was sure to go.

He followed her to school one day,
Which was against the rule;
It made the children laugh and play
To see a lamb at school.

And so the teacher turned him out,
But still he lingered near,

And waited patiently about
Till Mary did appear.

Then he ran to her, and laid

His head upon her arm,
As if he said, "I'm not afraid-

You'll keep me from all harm."

"What makes the lamb love Mary so?"
The eager children cried.

"Oh, Mary loves the lamb, you know,"
The teacher quick replied.

st

Sing a Song of Sixpence"

41

And you each gentle animal

In confidence may bind,

And make them follow at your will,
If you are only kind.

THE STAR

TWINKLE, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are,
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.

When the blazing sun is set,
And the grass with dew is wet,
Then you show your little light,
Twinkle, twinkle, all the night.

Then the traveler in the dark
Thanks you for your tiny spark,
He could not see where to go
If you did not twinkle so.

In the dark blue sky you keep,

And often through my curtains peep,

For you never shut your eye

Till the sun is in the sky.

As your bright and tiny spark

Lights the traveler in the dark,

Though I know not what you are,
Twinkle, twinkle, little star.

Jane Taylor [1783–1824]

"SING A SONG OF SIXPENCE"

SING a song of sixpence,

A pocket full of rye;

Four-and-twenty blackbirds
Baked in a pie;