Eugene Field - 1850-1895 Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night Sailed off in a wooden shoe,— Sailed on a river of crystal light Into a sea of dew. "Where are you going, and what do you wish?" The old moon asked the three. "We have come to fish for the herring-fish That live in this beautiful sea; Nets of silver and gold have we," Said Wynken, Blynken, And Nod. The old moon laughed and sang a song, As they rocked in the wooden shoe; And the wind that sped them all night long Ruffled the waves of dew; The little stars were the herring-fish That lived in the beautiful sea. "Now cast your nets wherever you wish,— Never afraid are we!" So cried the stars to the fishermen three, Wynken, Blynken, And Nod. All night long their nets they threw To the stars in the twinkling foam,— Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe, Bringing the fishermen home: 'Twas all so pretty a sail, it seemed As if it could not be; And some folk thought 'twas a dream they'd dreamed Of sailing that beautiful sea; But I shall name you the fishermen three: Wynken, Blynken, And Nod. Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes, And Nod is a little head, And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies Is a wee one's trundle-bed; So shut your eyes while Mother sings Of wonderful sights that be, And you shall see the beautiful things As you rock in the misty sea Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three:— Wynken, Blynken, And Nod. It don't git no more literary than that.
"Mary Mary, quite contrary, How does your garden grow? With Silver Bells and Cockle Shells, And one lousy Onion." hal
I know a ditty nutty as a fruitcake Goofy as a goon and silly as a loon Some call it pretty, others call it crazy But they all sing this tune: Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey A kiddley divey too, wouldn't you? Yes! Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey A kiddley divey too, wouldn't you? If the words sound queer and funny to your ear, a little bit jumbled and jivey Sing "Mares eat oats and does eat oats and little lambs eat ivy"
"Chickery Chick, Cha-la Cha-la, Checkala Romy in a Bananika, Bollika Wollika can't you see... Chickery Chick is ME!"
Eletelephony Laura E. Richards Once there was an elephant, Who tried to use the telephant— No! No! I mean an elephone Who tried to use the telephone— (Dear me! I am not certain quite That even now I’ve got it right.) Howe’er it was, he got his trunk Entangled in the telephunk; The more he tried to get it free, The louder buzzed the telephee— (I fear I’d better drop the song Of elephop and telephong!)
Georgy Porgy puddin' pie Kissed the girls and made them cry. But when the boys came out to play, Georgie Porgy ran away. I think this was political satire back in the day.
You made me look. Wiki says: By 1884 a version had appeared in which the third line read "When the boys came out to play", and it was this reading which Peter and Iona Opie [an English married team of folklorists who applied modern techniques to children's literature] chose to perpetuate in their day in The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (1951). They also mentioned there various unsubstantiated conjectures that link the character Georgie Porgie to British historical figures, including King George I and George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham, claims that have been copied in other works of reference to this day.