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Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children, For Use in Colleges, Normal Schools and Library Schools

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Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children, For Use in Colleges, Normal Schools and Library Schools

Children's literature

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One day I went to my whirly-whicker-whacker, (Fodder field)
I met bow-backer, (A hog)
I called Tom-tacker (A dog)
To drive bow-backer
Out of my whirly-whicker-whacker.

       *       *        *       *        *

One day I went to Body-tot,
I met three ladies in a trot,
With green heads and yellow toes,--
If you don't tell me this riddle I'll burn your nose.
                                                  (Hens)

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Big at the bottom and little at the top,
A thing in the middle goes flippety-flop.
                                               (A churn)

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Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall;
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty Dumpty together again.
                                               (An egg)

       *       *        *       *        *

I have a little sister, she's called Peep-peep;
She wades the waters deep, deep, deep;
She climbs the mountains high, high, high,--
Poor little thing, she has but one eye.
                                              (A star)

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There was a man who had no eyes,
He went abroad to view the skies;
He saw a tree with apples on it,
He took no apples off, yet left no apples on it.

(The man had _one_ eye, and the tree had _two_ apples on it.)

       *       *       *       *       *

(The following catch depends upon the second child repeating the exact
words of the first, except that he changes "lock" to "key.")

1. I am a gold lock.
2. I am a gold key.
1. I am a silver lock,
2. I am a silver key.
1. I am a brass lock,
2. I am a brass key.
1. I am a monk lock.
2. I am a monk-key.

       *       *       *       *       *

As I was _going_ to St. Ives,
I _met_ a man with seven wives;
Each wife had seven sacks,
Each sack had seven cats,
Each sack had seven kits,--
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives,
How many were _going_ to St. Ives?

       *       *       *       *       *

Star of light, so bright, so bright,
'Tis the first star I've seen tonight;
I wish I may, I wish I might
Have the wish I wish tonight.

       *       *       *       *       *

Marble, marble, roll away,
  Go find your brother;
Marble, marble, come back home,
  Bring me another.

[Footnote: If you have lost a marble, take another marble and roll it
toward the place you lost the first one, repeating this charm. You
will find the lost one near the second marble.]

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Honest and true, black and blue,
You may take your knife and cut me in two.
                                  (An oath)

       *       *       *       *       *

Come, butter, come,
Come, butter, come;
Johnny stands at the gate,
Waiting for a butter cake,--
Come, butter, come.

       *       *        *       *        *

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children, For Use in Colleges, Normal Schools and Library Schools

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