A Lyttel Booke of Nonsense A Lyttel Booke of Nonsense [Illustration] R. D. London: Macmillan & Co. Ld. mdccccxii Copyright First published 1912 To the Reader Few of the cuts in this book are less than four hundred years old. To join them to new occasions need be no slur on their value and beauty, if the rhyme be taken as lightly as it is offered by a lover of old things as well as new, who is indebted to Messrs. Quaritch, Leighton, Barnard, and others, for much more than is here to be seen, as also to Edward Lear. R. D. Chelsea, mcmxii. A Lyttel Booke of Nonsense There was a young fellow of Sark, Who wandered about in the Park; When the constable said He’d be better in bed, He replied, “I’m afraid of the dark.” [Illustration] There was an old man of Sheerness, Who invited a friend to play chess; But he’d lent all the pieces To one of his nieces, And stupidly lost her address. [Illustration] There was an old fellow of Trent, Who sold little boxes of scent; But they said to him “Smell them Yourself ere you sell them!” Which made him feel far from content. [Illustration] There was an old fellow called Cox, Who tried to jump over the rocks; But they said “Poor old feller, He has come a smeller, And look at the holes in his socks!” [Illustration] There was a young fellow of Treves, Who met with a watery grave; There was nobody nigh To attend to his cry As he sank ’neath the swallowing wave. [Illustration] There was a young fellow of Cadiz, Who said “What a blessing Free Trade is; But it’s not my ambition To turn politician-- So let’s go and talk to these ladies.” [Illustration] There was a young man of Athlone, Who was trying to ride like Tod Sloan; But a brute of a bee So bewildered his gee That he hardly escaped being thrown. [Illustration] There was a young fellow of Brill, Who supported the Parliament Bill; But he’d larger ideas For reforming the Peers, And suggested a better way still. [Illustration] There was an old fellow of Derry, Who loved to see every one merry; So he asked them to tea At a mulberry tree, And gave them some excellent sherry. [Illustration] There was a young fellow of Kansas, Who couldn’t remember the Lancers; When they’d got half way through He’d forget what to do, Which flummoxed the rest of the dancers. [Illustration] There was a young fellow of Sherborne, Who would go to church in a turban; When they put him outside He politely replied That he thought their ideas were suburban.