There Was a Little Woman, As I've Heard Say
There Was a Little Woman, As I've Heard Say
Nursery Song
1. There was a little woman, as I've heard say,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
She went to market, her eggs for to sell,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol.
She went to market all on a market day,
And she fell asleep upon the king's highway;
Fol de rol de lol lol lol lol lol,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol.
2. And there came a pedlar whose name was Stout,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
He cut her petticoats all round about,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
He cut her petticoats up to her knees,
Which made the little woman to shiver and freeze,
Fol de rol de lol lol lol lol lol,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol.
3. When the little woman began to awake,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
She began to shiver, and she began to shake,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
She began to shake, and she began to cry,
Lawk-a-mercy on me! this is none of I,
Fol de rol de lol lol lol lol lol,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol.
4. If it be I, as I suppose it be,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
I've a little dog at home, and he knows me;
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
If it be I, he will wag his little tail,
If it be not I, he will bark and rail,
Fol de rol de lol lol lol lol lol,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol.
5. And when the little woman went home in the dark,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
Her little dog he did begin to bark,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol;
He began to bark, and she began to cry,
Lawk-a-mercy on me! this is none of I,
Fol de rol de lol lol lol lol lol,
Fol, lol, diddle, diddle dol.
Notes
Here's the version from The Real Mother Goose (1916), illustrated by Blanche Fisher Wright:
There Was an Old Woman, As I've Heard Tell
There was an old woman, as I've heard tell,
She went to market her eggs for to sell;
She went to market all on a market-day,
And she fell asleep on the King's highway.
There came by a pedlar whose name was Stout,
He cut her petticoats all round about;
He cut her petticoats up to the knees,
Which made the old woman to shiver and freeze.
When the little old woman first did wake,
She began to shiver and she began to shake;
She began to wonder and she began to cry,
"Lauk a mercy on me, this can't be I!
"But if it be I, as I hope it be,
I've a little dog at home, and he'll know me;
If it be I, he'll wag his little tail,
And if it be not I, he'll loudly bark and wail."
Home went the little woman all in the dark;
Up got the little dog, and he began to bark;
He began to bark, so she began to cry,
"Lauk a mercy on me, this is none of I!"
Thanks and Acknowledgements
The 1st and 2nd illustrations are from The Baby's Bouquet, A Fresh Bunch of Rhymes and Tunes by Walter Crane (1878). The 3rd illustration is from The Little Mother Goose (1912), illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith. The 4th illustration is from The Real Mother Goose (1916), illustrated by Blanche Fisher Wright.
