Comparative Studies in Nursery Rhymes Part 16

A similar chant comes from Spain, which gives the answers with a curious variation. For in this case most of the numbers are explained as one less of one kind and one more of another. Thus one stands for the Wheel of Fortune; two for one clock and bell; three for the handle of a mortar (? _la mano del almiles_); four for three basins and one dish; five for three jars of red wine and two of white (_or_ for the wounds of St.

Francis); six for the loves you hold (_amores que teneis_); seven for six ca.s.socks and a cape; eight for seven butchers and one sheep; nine for eight hounds and one hare; ten for the toes; eleven for ten hors.e.m.e.n and one leader (_breva_, ? acorn); twelve are probably pigs.

Exactly as in the other chants the numbers are set in question and answer, the answer being in c.u.mulative form:--

Quien me dira que no es una?-- La rued de la fortuna. (Ma., p. 68.)

"Who will tell me what is one?--One is the Wheel of Fortune," and so forth.

In this Spanish version there is the alternative of a.s.sociating five with the jars of wine of Cana or with the wounds of St. Francis, both of which are Christian conceptions that occur in the Christian chants--the wounds of St. Francis in the Italian chant, and the jugs of wine, six in number, in the chant as it is sung and danced in Canada. Christian conceptions are also introduced into some of the numerous versions of the heathen Chants of the Creed that are current among ourselves, but they are relatively few, and by their nature suggest a change from heathen to Christian matters of belief.

The oldest version of this chant was printed by Chambers from an unpublished collection of songs by P. Buchan. It is in dialogue form, and, as in the case of the Druidical chants, its words indicate a teacher who is instructing his pupils:--

1. We will a' gae sing, boys, Where will we begin, boys?

We'll begin the way we should, And we'll begin at ane, boys.

O, what will be our ane, boys?

O, what will be our ane, boys?

--My only ane she walks alane, And evermair has dune, boys.

2. Now we will a' gae sing, boys; Where will we begin, boys?

We'll begin where we left aff, And we'll begin at twa, boys.

What will be our twa, boys?

--'Twa's the lily and the rose That shine baith red and green, boys.

My only ane she walks alane, And evermair has dune, boys.

3. Now we will a' gae sing, boys, ... etc.

What will be our three, boys?

Three, three thrivers ... etc. (1870, p. 44.)

Four's the gospel-makers, five's the hymnlers o' my bower, six the echoing waters, seven's the stars in heaven, eight's the table rangers, nine's the muses of Parna.s.sus, ten's the commandments, eleven's maidens in a dance, twelve's the twelve apostles.

Further variations of this chant have been recovered in Dorsetshire, Cornwall, Derbyshire, Norfolk, and elsewhere. Many of them at the close of each line insert the interjection _O_ in the place of the word _boys_. This drew the suggestion from Dr. Jessopp that the song was connected with the so-called _Seven great Os_, a song sung at vespers during Advent before the _Magnificat_ from 16 December to Christmas Eve.

It took its name from the first line in the song, which begins _O Sapientia_.

The Dorsetshire version is still sung at Eton, and is known as "Green grow the rushes oh," the words that form the chorus:--

Solo: I'll sing you one oh!

Chorus: Green grow the rushes oh!

What is your one oh?

Solo: One is one and all alone And ever more shall be so.[57]

[57] Byrne, S. R., _Camp Choruses_, 1891, p. 91.

The same order is observed for the next verse, the soloist explaining two, the chorus adding one, and so forth. In this version we have two lily-white boys, three rivals, four gospel makers, five symbols at your door, six proud walkers, seven stars in the sky, eight bold rainers, nine bright shiners, ten commandments, eleven for the eleven that went up to heaven, twelve for the twelve apostles.

A Chant of the Creed is sung in Cornwall by the sailors, and begins:--

Come and I will sing you!

--What will you sing me?

I will sing you one, oh!

--What is your one, oh!

Your one is all alone, And ever must remain so.

The explanations which follow are very corrupt. Two are lily-white maids clothed all in green, oh!; three are bright shiners; four are gospel-makers; five are the ferrymen in a boat and one of them a stranger; six is the cheerful waiter; seven are the stars in the sky; eight are the archangels; nine are the bold rainers; ten are the commandments; eleven went up to heaven; twelve are the apostles.[58]

[58] Lang, A., "At the Sign of the Ship," in _The Gentleman's Magazine_, January, 1889, p. 328.

In Derbyshire the chant is a.s.sociated with the harvest festival, and takes the form of a drinking song. It begins with three, but the explanations of one and two are preserved in the last verse, in which the song is carried back to its real beginning:--

Plenty of ale to-night, my boys, and then I will sing you.

What will you sing?--I'll sing you three oh.

What is the three O?...

The last verse enumerates:--Twelve apostles; eleven archangels; ten commandments; nine bright shiners; eight, the Gabriel riders; seven golden stars in heaven; six came on the board; five by water; four Gospel rhymers; three threble thribers; two lily-white maids and one was dressed in green O.[59]

[59] Addy, S. O., "Two Relics of English Paganism," in _The Gentleman's Magazine_, July, 1890, p. 46.

This version of the chant was sung or recited at harvest-time in Norfolk also, and began:--

A: I'll sing the one O.

B: What means the one O?

A: When the one is left alone, No more can be seen O!

C: I'll sing the two Os.

D: What means the two Os?

Two's the lily-white boys--three's the rare O--four's the gospel makers--five's the thimble in the bowl--six is the provokers--seven's the seven stars in the sky--eight is the bright walkers--nine's the gable rangers--ten's the ten commandments--'leven's the 'leven evangelists--twelve's the twelve apostles.[60]

[60] Jessopp, "A Song in Arcady," in _Longman's Magazine_, June, 1889, p. 187.

The version current in Herefordshire is preserved as far as number eight only:--

Eight was the crooked straight, Seven was the bride of heaven, Six was the crucifix, Five was the man alive, Four was the lady's bower [_or_ lady bird, _or_ lady, _or_ lady's birth?], Three was the Trinity, Two was the Jewry, One was G.o.d to the righteous man To save our souls to rest. Amen.[61]

[61] From Stoke Prior, Herefordshire, in Addy, S. O., _Household Tales and Traditional Remains_, 1895, p. 150.

Some of our nursery rhymes which are nonsensical represent these lines in a further degradation:--

One, two, three, four, five, I caught a hare alive; Six, seven, eight, nine, ten, I let her go again. (_c._ 1783, p. 48.)

And the following, in which "sticks" takes the place of _crucifix_, while "straight" recalls _crooked straight_:--

One, two, buckle my shoe, Three, four, shut the door, Five six, pick up sticks, Seven, eight, lay them straight. (1810, p. 30).

The rhyme is sometimes continued as far as twenty:--