“Tak up, tak up my bonny young son, Gar _wash_ him wi’ the _milk_; Tak up, tak up my fair lady, Gar row her in the _silk_.” Green Grow the Leaves (1) [Music] —Earls Heaton (Mr. Hardy). I. Green grow the leaves (or grows the ivy) round the old oak tree, Green grow the leaves round the old oak tree, Green grow the leaves round the old oak tree, As we go marching on. Bless my life I hardly knew you, Bless my life I hardly knew you, Bless my life I hardly knew you, As we go marching on. —Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire (Miss Peacock). II. Green grow the leaves on the old oak tree, I love the boys and the boys love me, As we go marching on. —Sharleston (Miss Fowler). III. I love the boys and the boys love me, I love the boys and the boys love me, I love the boys and the boys love me, As we go marching home. Glory, glory, hallelujah! Glory, glory, hallelujah! Glory, glory, hallelujah! As we go marching home. The old whiskey bottle lies empty on the shelf, The old whiskey bottle lies empty on the shelf, The old whiskey bottle lies empty on the shelf, As we go marching home. —Earls Heaton, Yorkshire (Herbert). (_b_) In Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire the game is played by the children forming a circle and dancing round, singing. The first and third lines are sung three times. Partners are chosen during the singing of the last line. Miss Peacock adds, “The rest wanting, as my informant had forgotten the game.” In the Sharleston version the children march round two by two, in a double circle, with one child in the centre, singing the verse. At the conclusion, the children who are marching on the inner side of the circle leave their partners and take the place of one in front of them, while the centre child endeavours to get one of the vacant places, the child turned out taking the place of the one in the centre, when the game begins again. In the Earls Heaton version there is the circle of children, with one child in the centre, who chooses a partner after the lines have been sung. (_c_) From this it would seem that while the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire words appear to be the most complete, the action has been preserved best at Sharleston. The acting of this version is the same as that of “The Jolly Miller.” The third variant is evidently an imitation of the song, “John Brown.” Green Grow the Leaves (2) [Music] —Northants (R. S. Baker). Green grow the leaves on the hawthorn tree, Green grow the leaves on the hawthorn tree, We jangle and we wrangle and we never can agree, But the tenor of our song goes merrily, merrily, merrily, The tenor of our song goes merrily.