Love

I married my wife by the light of the moon

by Anonymous (English nursery rhymes) traditional; recorded 17th–19th century

From The Nursery Rhymes of England, collected by J. O. Halliwell (London: Warne; first ed. 1842; this printing 1886)

Love

I married my wife by the light of the moon,
A tidy housewife, a tidy one;
She never gets up until it is noon,
And I hope she'll prove a tidy one.

And when she gets up, she is slovenly laced,
A tidy, &c.
She takes up the poker to roll out the paste,
And I hope, &c.

She churns her butter in a boot,
A tidy, &c.
And instead of a churnstaff she puts in her foot,
And I hope, &c.

She lays her cheese on the scullery shelf,
A tidy, &c.
And she never turns it till it turns itself.
And I hope, &c.

✦ ✦ ✦

Halliwell's class: Love and Matrimony.

MLA

Anonymous (English nursery rhymes). “I married my wife by the light of the moon.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-english-nursery-rhymes/473/.

Chicago

Anonymous (English nursery rhymes). “I married my wife by the light of the moon.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-english-nursery-rhymes/473/.

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