Nursery Rhymes: Charms and Lullabies

This story is part of the Nursery Rhymes unit. Story source: The Nursery Rhyme Book edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897).

Nursery Rhymes: Charms and Lullabies

CUSHY cow bonny, let down thy milk,
And I will give thee a gown of silk;
A gown of silk and a silver tee,
If thou wilt let down thy milk to me.
If you love me, pop and fly;
If you hate me, lie and die.

[Said to pips placed in the fire; a species of divination practised by children.]

~ ~ ~

(Wikipedia: Peter Piper)

PETER PIPER picked a peck of pickled pepper;
A peck of pickled pepper Peter Piper picked;

If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pepper,
Where's the peck of pickled pepper Peter Piper picked?

~ ~ ~

(Wikipedia: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John)

MATTHEW, Mark, Luke, and John,
Guard the bed that I lay on!
Four corners to my bed,
Four angels round my head;
One to watch, one to pray,
And two to bear my soul away!

~ ~ ~

COME, butter, come,
Come, butter, come!
Peter stands at the gate,
Waiting for a butter'd cake;
Come, butter, come!

~ ~ ~

(Wikipedia: Bye, Baby Bunting)

BYE, baby bunting,
Daddy's gone a hunting,
To get a little hare's skin
To wrap a baby bunting in.

~ ~ ~

HUSHY baby, my doll, I pray you don't cry,
And I'll give you some bread and some milk by-and-by;
Or perhaps you like custard, or maybe a tart,—
Then to either you're welcome, with all my whole heart.

~ ~ ~

DANCE to your daddy,
My little babby;
Dance to your daddy,
My little lamb.

You shall have a fishy,
In a little dishy;
You shall have a fishy
When the boat comes in.

~ ~ ~

(Wikipedia: Rock-a-bye Baby)

HUSH-A-BYE, baby, on the tree top;
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock;
When the bough bends, the cradle will fall;
Down will come baby, bough, cradle, and all.

~ ~ ~

RABBIT, rabbit, rabbit-pie!
Come, my ladies, come and buy,
Else your babies they will cry.

~ ~ ~

HEY, my kitten, my kitten,
And hey, my kitten, my deary!
Such a sweet pet as this
Was neither far nor neary.

Here we go up, up, up,
And here we go down, down, downy;
And here we go backwards and forwards,
And here we go round, round, roundy.

~ ~ ~

YOUNG lambs to sell!
Young lambs to sell!
If I'd as much money as I can tell,
I never would cry, Young lambs to sell!

~ ~ ~

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.

~ ~ ~

To market, to market,
To buy a plum bun;
Home again, come again,
Market is done.

~ ~ ~

Hickup, hickup, go away!
Come again another day;
Hickup, hickup, when I bake,
I'll give to you a butter-cake.

~ ~ ~

Hickup, snicup,
Rise up, right up,
Three drops in the cup
Are good for the hiccup.

~ ~ ~

Swan swam over the sea —
Swim, swan, swim,
Swan swam back again,
Well swam swan.

Next: Nursery Rhymes: Games

(400 words)