Mother Goose in Prose | Page 3

quota to the
mass of jingles attributed to "Mother Goose." Some of the earlier
verses have become entirely obsolete, and it is well they have, for many
were crude and silly and others were coarse. It is simply a result of the
greater refinement of modern civilization that they have been relegated
to oblivion, while the real gems of the collection will doubtless live and
grow in popular favor for many ages.
While I have taken some pains to record the various claims to the
origin of Mother Goose, it does not matter in the least whether she was
in reality a myth, or a living Eliza Goose, Martha Gooch or the "Mere
Oye" of Perrault. The songs that cluster around her name are what we
love, and each individual verse appeals more to the childish mind than
does Mother Goose herself.
Many of these nursery rhymes are complete tales in themselves, telling
their story tersely but completely; there are others which are but bare
suggestions, leaving the imagination to weave in the details of the story.
Perhaps therein may lie part of their charm, but however that may be I
have thought the children might like the stories told at greater length,
that they may dwell the longer upon their favorite heroes and heroines.
For that reason I have written this book.
In making the stories I have followed mainly the suggestions of the
rhymes, and my hope is that the little ones will like them, and not find
that they interfere with the fanciful creations of their own imaginations.

L Frank Baum
Chicago, Illinois, September, 1897.

Sing a Song o' Sixpence
Sing a Song o' Sixpence
Sing a song o' sixpence, a handful of rye, Four-and-twenty blackbirds
baked in a pie; When the pie was opened the birds began to sing, Was
not that a dainty dish to set before the King?
If you have never heard the legend of Gilligren and the King's pie, you
will scarcely understand the above verse; so I will tell you the whole
story, and then you will be able to better appreciate the rhyme.
Gilligren was an orphan, and lived with an uncle and aunt who were
very unkind to him. They cuffed him and scolded him upon the
slightest provocation, and made his life very miserable indeed.
Gilligren never rebelled against this treatment, but bore their cruelty
silently and with patience, although often he longed to leave them and
seek a home amongst kinder people.
It so happened that when Gilligren was twelve years old the King died,
and his son was to be proclaimed King in his place, and crowned with
great ceremony. People were flocking to London from all parts of the
country to witness the festivities, and the boy longed to go with them.
One evening he said to his uncle,
"If I had sixpence I could make my fortune."
"Pooh! nonsense!" exclaimed his uncle, "a sixpence is a small thing.
How then could you make a fortune from it?"
"That I cannot tell you," replied Gilligren, "but if you will give me the
sixpence I will go to London, and not return until I am a rich man."

"The boy is a fool!" said his uncle, with anger; but the aunt spoke up
quickly.
"Give him the money and let him go," she said, "and then we shall be
well rid of him and no longer be obliged to feed and clothe him at our
expense."
"Well," said her husband, after a moment's thought, "here is the money;
but remember, this is all I shall ever give you, and when it is gone you
must not come to me for more."
"Never fear," replied Gilligren, joyfully, as he put the sixpence in his
pocket, "I shall not trouble you again."
The next morning he cut a short stick to assist him in walking, and after
bidding goodbye to his uncle and aunt he started upon his journey to
London.
"The money will not last him two days," said the man, as he watched
Gilligren go down the turnpike road, "and when it is gone he will starve
to death."
"Or he may fall in with people who will treat him worse than we did,"
rejoined the woman, "and then he 'll wish he had never left us."
But Gilligren, nothing dismayed by thoughts of the future, trudged
bravely along the London road. The world was before him, and the
bright sunshine glorified the dusty road and lightened the tips of the
dark green hedges that bordered his path. At the end of his pilgrimage
was the great city, and he never doubted he would find therein proper
work and proper pay, and much better treatment than he was
accustomed to receive.
So, on he went, whistling merrily