Mythology & Folklore
I saw a ship a-sailing
From The Nursery Rhymes of England, collected by J. O. Halliwell (London: Warne; first ed. 1842; this printing 1886)
I saw a ship a-sailing,
A-sailing on the sea;
And, oh! it was all laden
With pretty things for thee!
There were comfits in the cabin,
And apples in the hold;
The sails were made of silk,
And the masts were made of gold:
The four-and-twenty sailors,
That stood between the decks,
Were four-and-twenty white mice,
With chains about their necks.
The captain was a duck,
With a packet on his back;
And when the ship began to move,
The captain said, "Quack! quack!"
Codex Note
Halliwell's class: Paradoxes.
Cite this poem
MLA
Anonymous (English nursery rhymes). “I saw a ship a-sailing.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-english-nursery-rhymes/373/.
Chicago
Anonymous (English nursery rhymes). “I saw a ship a-sailing.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-english-nursery-rhymes/373/.
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