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Frog Went A-Courting (Frog’s Courtship)
English, Ballad Air; Widely spread both in US and abroad.
ARTIST: From Brown Collection NC Folklore
CATEGORY: Fiddle and Instrumental Tunes
DATE: 1909 First appears in 1549 (Wedderburn's "Complaynt of Scotland");
OTHER NAMES: “Frog Went A-Courting;” “A Frog He Would A-Wooing Go;” “The Frog’s Courtship;” "The Frog and the Mouse;" "It was a frog in a well;" “There Was a Puggie in a Well;” “There Lived a Puddie in the Well;” “The Frog's Wooing”
RELATED TO: Here's to Cheshire, (Here's to Cheese); There Was a Puggie in a Well; Sing Song Kitty (Won't You Ki-Me-O); Frog's Wedding; It Was a Frog in the Well; Kyman-I-Doe; Birmingham; "Kemo Kimo;" “King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O;” "I Ask That Gal" (tune); "The Bear in the Hill" (plot); “Kitty Alone” (text)
SOURCES: American Ballads and Folk Songs, MacMillan, Bk (1934), p.310; American Folk Songs for Children, Doubleday/Zephyr Books, Bk (1948), p.116; American Songbag, Harcourt Brace Jovan..., Sof (1955), p143 (Mister Frog Went A-Courting); Craven, Callie. Southern Folk Ballads, Vol. 2. Ballads - Stories in Song..., August House, Bk (1988), p. 41; Gentry, Jane. Eighty English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, MIT Press, Sof (1968), p 95 (Frog and the Mouse); Herren, Ruth Burton. Sweet Bunch of Daisies, Colonial Press, Bk (1991), p 76; Riddle, Almeda. Singer and Her Songs. Almeda Riddle's Book of Songs, Louisiana State, Bk (1970), p 44 Randolph 108, "The Frog's Courtship;" Eddy 44, "The Frog and the Mouse;" Flanders/Olney, pp. 11-13, "Gentleman Froggie;" Kennedy 294, "The Frog and the Mouse;" McNeil-SFB2, pp. 41-43, "Frog Went A-Courtin;" Wyman-Brockway I, p. 25, "Frog Went A-Courting;" Wyman-Brockway II, p. 86, "The Toad's Courtship;" Fowke/Johnston, pp. 170-171, "A Frog He Would A-Wooing Go;" FSCatskills 142, "Missie Mouse;" Sharp/Karpeles-80E 75, "The Frog and the Mouse;" Sandburg, p. 143, "Mister Frog Went A-Courting;" Scott-BoA, pp. 339-341, "The Mouse's Courting Song;" Asch/Dunson/Raim, p. 32 "King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O;" Lomax-ABFS, pp. 310-313, "Frog Went A-Courtin';" Botkin-NEFolklr, pp. 571-572, "The Frog in the Spring;" Botkin-SoFolklr, p. 722, "Frog Went A-Courting;" PSeeger-AFB, p. 56, "Froggie Went A-Courtin';" Pankake-PHCFSB, pp. 48-49, "Froggie Went A-Courting;" JHCox 162, "The Frog and the Mouse;" Chappell/Wooldridge I, pp. 142-143, "The Wedding of the Frog and Mouse;" Silber-FSWB, p. 403, "Frog Went A-Courtin';" BBI, ZN3249, "It was a frog in a well"
NOTES: "A Frog He Would A-Wooing Go." G Major. Standard. One part. The air for this song (which Horace M. Belden believes is the most widely known song in the English language) first appears in Thomas Ravenscroft's "Melismata" (1611). It is an early version of the song ("Froggie Went A-Courtin'") famous in British and American traditional folklore and folksong, of which the earliest appearence was in Wedderburn's "Complaynt of Scotland" (1549) where it is called "The frog cam to the myl dur." Another early version is found in a broadside text of 1580, called "A moste Strange weddinge of the ffrogge and the mowse" (Rollins). See also the extensive note on this tune and text in Cazden's (et al, 1982) Catskill Mountain (New York) collected "Missie Mouse." Chappell (Popular Music of the Olden Times), Vol. 1, 1859; pg. 142.
The notes on this song in Cazden et al (pp. 524-532) constitute probably the best succinct summary available on variants of this piece. Spaeth has a note that the original version of this was supposed to refer to the Duke of Anjou's wooing of Elizabeth I of England. If the second known version (1611, in Melismata, reprinted in Chappell) were the oldest, this might be possible -- there are seeming political references to "Gib, our cat" and "Dick, our Drake." But the Wedderburn text, which at least anticipates the song, predates the reign of Queen Elizabeth by nine years, and Queen Mary of by four. If it refers to any queen at all, it would have to be Mary Stuart. Those who want a version of this piece which does not involve inter-species hanky-panky are advised to try J. A. Scott's version (or other American texts); in this, both creatures are mice. Of course, it does end with the cat interfering with the festivities. The earliest text we have is the one I mentioned, in Ravenscroft's book of 1611, Melismata. He gives the tune too. It starts:
It was the Frogge in the well,
Humble-dum, humble-dum,
And the merrie Mouse in the Mill,
tweedle, tweedle twino.
The burden in between the story lines has to be an imitation of the sound of a spinning wheel—Mrs. Mouse is spinning when Froggy arrives. Same goes for the more modern versions-- "ahum" or however you want to spell it, while the "twino" seems to spawn "kimo" as in the minstrel song ["coino" is found in the 18th century], and there's quite a few variations.
The exchange of lyrics with “Froggie” and many other folk songs and fiddle tunes in the US have caused some confusion. Fiddle tunes often borrow short rhyming lines that make little sense as a narrative. Presumably some of the nonsense rhymes could have traveled from songs like “Froggy” and “Martin Said to His Man,” to “Kemo Kimo” and “Kitty Alone then to other animal songs including “Buckeye Jim.” There is an interesting connection with the “weave and spin” in “Buck-Eye Jim” and the “spin” in the Froggy songs. “I Ask that Gal” which uses the “Froggie” melody can be found in Randolph-Legman I, pp. 133-134.
RECORDING INFO: Brand, Oscar. Oscar Brand's Children's Concert, Riverside RLP 1438, LP (1961), cut#A.02; Dyer-Bennet, Richard. Twentieth Century Minstrel, Stinson SLP 2, LP (196?), cut# 3 (Frog and the Mouse); Falderal String Band. Step Right Up... Free Show Tonight!, Hen House, Cas (1996), cut#B.06; Ginandes, Shep. Dogwood Soup, Pathways of Sound POS 1023, LP (196?), cut#A.02 (Dogwood Soup); Hall, Martha. Mountain Music of Kentucky, Folkways FA 2317, LP (1960), cut# 23 (Kitty Alone); Hall, Martha. Mountain Music of Kentucky, Smithsonian/Folkways SF 40077, CD (1996), cut#2.38 (Kitty Alone); Hicks, Dee. Hicks Family. A Cumberland Singing Tradition, Tennessee Folklore Soc. TFS-104, LP (1982), cut# 6; Hills, Anne; and Cindy Mangsen. Never Grow Up, Flying Fish FF 671, CD (1998), cut# 4; Hinton, Sam. Whoever Shall Have Some Good Peanuts, Scholastic SC 7530, LP (1964), cut#B.07; Ives, Burl. Burl Ives Sings Little White Duck And Other Favorites, Harmony HS-14507, LP (197?), cut#A.03 (Mr. Froggie Went A-Courtin'); MacColl, Ewan; and Peggy Seeger. Matching Songs of the British Isles and America, Riverside RLP 12-637, LP (196?), cut# 10; Marks, Phyllis. Folksongs and Ballads, Vol 2. Phyllis Marks, Augusta Heritage AHR 008, Cas (1991), cut#2.03; McCurdy, Ed. Children's Songs, Tradition TLP 1027, LP (1958), cut#A.10; McCutcheon, John. How Can I Keep from Singing?, June Appal JA 0003, LP (1975), cut# 7; McLain Family Band. McLain Family Band, Country Life CLR-2, LP (1973), cut#B.02 (Mister Frog); Mobley, Pleaz. Anglo-American Songs and Ballads, Library of Congress AFS L12, LP (1953), cut# 6; Niles, John Jacab. Best of John Jacob Niles, Tradition S-2055, LP (196?), cut#B.05; O'Hara, Mary. Songs of Ireland, Tradition TR 1024, LP (1958), cut# 3 (Frog Song); Pitt, Everett. Up Agin the Mountain, Marimac 9200, Cas (1987), cut# 10 (Frog and the Mouse); Riddle, Almeda. Granny Riddle's Songs and Ballads, Minstrel JS-203, LP (1977), cut#A.01; Riddle, Almeda. Sounds of the South, Atlantic 7-82496-2, CD( (1993), cut#4.04; Rooftop Singers. Good Time!, Vanguard VRS-9134, LP (1964), cut#B.05 (R. C. Frog); Seeger, Peggy. Everybody Sing, Vol 2., Riverside RLP-1419, LP (196?), cut# 9b; Seeger, Peggy And Mike. American Folk Songs for Children, Rounder 8001/8002/8003, LP (1977), cut# 43; Seeger, Pete. American Favorite Ballads. Volume 4. Tunes and Songs, Folkways FA 2323, LP (1963), cut#A.06; Sexton, Morgan. Shady Grove, June Appal JA 0066C, Cas (1992), cut# 17; Sexton, Morgan. Rock Dust, June Appal JA 0055, LP (1989), cut# 1; Stekert, Ellen. O Love Is Teasin', Elektra BLP-12051, LP (1985), cut#1.04; Stekert, Ellen. Our Singing Heritage. Vol I, Elektra EKL-151, LP (195?), cut# 12; Storm, Gail Stoddard. Brave Boys, New England Traditions in Folk Music, New1 World1 NW 239, LP (1977), cut# 1 (Frog He Would A Wooing Go); Watson, Doc. Home Again, Vanguard VSD 79239, LP (1967), cut# 9; Watson, Doc. Essential Doc Watson, Vanguard VCD 45/46, CD (1986), cut# 3; Bradley Kincaid, "Froggie Went A Courting" (Supertone 9209, 1928); Chubby Parker, "King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O" (Columbia 15296D, 1928; on AAFM1, CrowTold01); Adolphus Le Ruez ,"The Frog and the Mouse" (on FSB10); Elizabeth Cronin, "Uncle Rat Went Out to Ride" (on FSB10); Annie Paterson, "The Frog and the Mouse" (on FSB10); Albert Beale, "A Frog He Would a-Wooing Go" (on FSB10) Pleaz Mobley, "Froggie Went A-Courting" (AFS; on LC12); Anna & Julietta Canova, "The Frog Went A-Courtin'" (c. 1928; on CrowTold02)
NOTES ON KEMO KIMO-SING SONG KITTY: Spaeth reports that one H. Wood published a song called "Keemo Kimo" in 1854. A variant of "Froggie Went A-Courtin'"is “Sing Song Kitty (Won't You Ki-Me-O)” or “Kemo Kimo” sometimes named “Beaver Creek”. “King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O” is a minstrel version of this branch of “Froggie” which was a big hit for Chubby Parker, recorded on Columbia 15296D, on AAFM1, CrowTold01 in 1928.
The main difference between the related “Froggy” and the “Kemo/Sing Song Kitty/Kitty Alone” songs, which I separate, is the “Kemo” songs tend to not have a plot (not a ballad) and are comic rhyming verses usually about animals. Several of these texts, such as Lawrence Older's "Frog in the Spring," have lyrics reminiscent of "Frog Went A-Courting." Kemo relates to: "The Carrion Crow/A Kangaroo Sat on an Oak" "Raccoon" (floating lyrics); "Frog Went A-Courting" (floating lyrics, theme)
SOURCES OF KEMO KIMO: Anthology of American Folk Music, Oak, Sof (1973), p 32 (King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O); Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1940/1965), p106b (Kemo Kimo); Traditional Music in America, Folklore Associates, Bk (1940/1965), p418 (Kemo Kimo) Randolph 282, "There Was an Old Frog;" Eddy 45, "The Opossum;" Warner 68, "The Bull Frog;" Gilbert, p. 42, "Polly Won't You Try Me O" RECORDING INFO ON KEMO KIMO: Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. At Home with the Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem & their Familiies, Tradition TR 2060, LP (197?), cut# 14 (Frog in the Well); Gibson, Bob. Folk Songs of Ohio, Stinson SLP 76, LP (195?), cut#B.01 (Down in Sky Town); Hobdy, Ann. Sweet Bunch of Daisies, Colonial Press, Bk (1991), p 48 (Kitchy, Kitchy Ki Me O); McCurdy, Ed. Children's Songs, Tradition TLP 1027, LP (1958), cut#B.08 (Keemo Kimo); Older, Lawrence. Adirondack Songs, Ballads and Fiddle Tunes, Folk Legacy FSA-015, Cas (1964), cut#B.01 (Frog in the Spring); Parker, Chubby. Anthology of American Folk Music, Smithsonian/Folkways SFW 40090, CD( (1997), cut# 8 (King Kong Kitchie Kitchie Ki-Me-O); Stracke, Win. Folk Songs for the Young, Golden Records, LP (1962), cut#A.05 (Kemo Kimo); Watson, Doc. Home Again, Vanguard VSD 79239, LP (1967), cut# 8; West, Harry and Jeanie. Smokey Mountain Ballads, Counterpoint/Esoteric CPT-545, LP (197?), cut# 1; West, Harry and Jeanie. Harry and Jeanie West, Archive of Folk Music FS-208, LP, cut# 1; Lawrence Older, "Frog in the Spring" (on LOlder01); Prairie Ramblers, "Beaver Creek" (c. 1935; on CrowTold02)
NOTES ON KITTY ALONE: “Kitty Alone” is distant branch of “Froggie” and “Kemo Kimo.” It is related to the “Old Blind Drunk John” songs and the text is more closely to the related to the “Limber Jim/Buck-Eye Jim” group of songs. In a long note on this song Professor G. L. Kittredge shows that the “Old Blind Drunk John” songs derive from “a famous old English song, ‘Martin Said to His Man,’ and entered in the Stationers’ Register in 1588.” It is a lying song—“I saw a louse run a mouse.... I saw a squirrel run a deer.... I saw a flea kick a tree..., in the middle of the sea.” One Scottish version cited says, “Four and twenty Hilandmen chasing a snail,” etc.
Referred to in Dryden's 1668 play "Sir Martin Mar-all, or the Feign'd Innocence" (act IV). It seems to have been very popular in the century prior to that. The American versions can generally be told by their narrative pattern, "(I) saw a () (doing something)," e.g. "Saw a crow flying low," "Saw a mule teaching school," "Saw a louse chase a mouse," "Saw a flea wade the sea." Other names fro “Kitty Alone” are “Who's the Fool Now?,” “Old Blind Drunk John,” “Fooba-Wooba John.”
RECORDING INFO- KITTY ALONE: Beers Family. Seasons of Peace. A Great Family Sings, Biograph BLP 12033, LP (1970), cut#B.03; Bradley, Hank; and Cathie Whitesides. American Fogies. Vol. 2, Rounder 0389, CD (1996), cut#18a; Hills, Anne; and Cindy Mangsen. Never Grow Up, Flying Fish FF 671, CD (1998), cut# 1. Martha Hall, "Kitty Alone" (on MMOK, MMOKCD)
SOURCES- KITTY ALONE: Kinloch-BBook XIV, pp. 50-54, "The Man in the Moon" (1 text) Randolph 445, "Johnny Fool" (2 texts); Wyman-Brockway I, p. 22, "The Bed-time Song" (1 text, 1 tune) Lomax-FSNA 136, "Hurrah, Lie!" (1 text, 1 tune); Chappell/Wooldridge I, p. 140, "Martin Said to His Man" (1 text, 1 tune)
120 The Frog's Courtship- Brown Collection
For the history and range of this nursery classic, see Kittredge's bibliographical note (JAFL xxxv 394-9), Payne's study (PFLST V 5-49), Grace Partridge Smith's (JAFL lii 125-7), and the headnote in the Missouri collection ( BSM 494-5), and add to the references in the last of these Massachusetts (FSONE 204-6), Virginia (FSV 208-13), Tennessee (BTFLS v 43-5), Florida (SFLQ IV 146-7, VIII 179-81), the Ozarks (OFS i 403-10), Indiana (BSI 226-38), and Michigan (BSSM 455-9).
Of the six types into which Payne divides the texts our collection shows chiefly two,
that with the "kimo" and that with the nasal grunt or hum refrain, along with a few other forms and two with no refrain indicated. Texts A-C have the "kimo" refrain in some form, texts D-W have the hummed refrain. The 'Kitty Alone' song, often reckoned as a form of 'The Frog's Courtship,' occurs but once in our collection and has no mouse and no courtship, is indeed merely a lovely lullaby, 111 (1 is therefore presented as a separate item. Sam Cowell's adaptation of 'The Frog's Courtship' to the blackface minstrel fashion of a hundred years ago, and an American memory of it, are considered here in an appendix.
A. The Frog Went A-Courtin' Reported by Flossie Marshbanks of Mars Hill, Madison county, Not dated.
1. Frog went a-courtin' and he did ride,
Ring ting bottom and a kymo
Sword and pistol by his side.
Ring ting bottom and a kymo
Chorus: Hello naro he's my caro,
Hello caro narrow;
Ring ting bottom ditty boat around
Ring ting bottom and a kymo.'
2. Rode up to Miss Mousie's house.
Asked Miss Mousie to be his wife.
3. Where shall the wedding' supper be?
Down yonder in the hollow tree.
4. What shall the wedding supper be?
A plate of butter and a black-eyed pea.
5. The first came in was a butterfly.
With her pudding and her pie.
6. Next came in was a bumblebee.
With his fiddle on his knee.
7. Next came in was a crippled flea ;
Danced all night for the bumblebee.
8. Next same in was a yellow cat.
Seized Miss Mousie by the back.
B. 'Frog Went A-Courting,' Reported by D. W. Newsom as learned "at his mother's knee" in Littleton, Halifax county, about 1885-90. With the tunc. The refrain is an interpolated line and then a four-line part, as in A.
1. Frog went a-courting and he did ride.
Rain down bonny mish ki-me-oh
Sword and buckler by his side.
Rain down bonny mish ki-me-oh.
Kero kiro gilt and garo
Kero kiro karo
Rap Jack penny winkle flammydoodle yellow buckle
Rain down bonny mish ki-me-oh.
2 He rode down by the mill side door
To hear his saddle squeak and roar.
'The refrain line is thus interpolated in and the chorus sung after each stanza.'
3 He rode down to Lady Mouse's house.
The old Miss Mouse was not at home.
4 The old mouse came home at last.
Shook her big fat sides and laughed.
5 He took Miss Mousie on his knee:
Pray Miss Mousie, will you marry me?'
6 'Who will make the wedding gown?"
'Old Miss Rat from pumpkin town.'
7 'Where will the wedding breakfast he?'
'Way down yonder in a hollow tree.'
8 'What will the wedding supper be?'
'A fried mosquito and a roasted flea.'
'One Two Three." From Thomas Smith. Ziunville, Watauga county, as sung by Mrs. Julia Grogan in March 1913. "She says it was sung when she was a child, over forty years ago." It lacks the first part of the story.
1. Mrs. Mousey went to town
Tim a rang tang bottom a my kimo
To buy her niece a wedding gown.
Chorus:Tim a rang tang bottom tim a kimo come a nedro
Keep my caro turn a turn bum stumpy tum dido bodey
Round tim a rang tang bottom a my kimo.
2. 'Where will the wedding supper be ?"
'Way down yonder in a hollow tree.'
3. 'What will the wedding supper be?'
'Two blue beans and a black-eyed pea.'
4. First come in was Mrs. Lily.
She brought her peaches and her Julie.
5. Next come Mrs. Butterfly.
She fanned all as she passed by.
6. Next come in was Madam Cat.
She took Miss Mousie' into the back.
D. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Reported by K. L. Lewis as set down in igio by Dr. Kemp P. Battle of Chapel Hill. Each stanza is a couplet extended to three lines by repeating the first line, and the nasal hum comes after the first and third lines of each such stanza.
1. Frog went a-courtin'. he did ride, M-m M-m
Frog went a-courtin" he did ride.
Sword and pistol by his side, M-m M-m
2 He rode to Mistress Mousie's hall;
There he knocked and loudly called.
3 "Miss Mousie. are you within?'
"Yes. kind sir, I sit and spin.'
4 Me took Miss Mousie on his knee :
'Miss Mousie, will you marry me?'
5 "Oh no. kind sir. I can't say that
Without the consent of old Uncle Rat.'
6 Old Uncle Rat came a-riding home.
"Who's been here since I've been gone?'
7 'A very fine gentleman has been here
Who says he'll marry me if you don't care.'
8 Old Uncle Rat laughed and shook his fat side
To think his niece should be a bride.
9 'Where shall the wedding supper be?'
'Wav down yonder in the old hollow tree.'
10 'What shall we have for the wedding supper?'
"Black-eyed peas and bread and butter.'
11 The first came in was Capt. Bedbug,
Who swore by all he was a *run jug.
12 The next came in was Colonel Mead,
He danced a jig wMth a bumblebee.
13 And while they all were eating supper
In came the cat and made a great sputter.
14 The first he pursued was old Uncle Rat,
And threw him down and spoiled his fat.
15 The next he pursued was Miss Mousie;
But she ran up a hollow tree.
16 The frog he swam across the lake
And got swallowed up by a big black snake.
17 This is the end of one, two, three,
Frog and Rat and Miss Mousie.
*So the manuscript, Probably it should be "rum."
E. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Contributed by Miss Amy Henderson of Worry, Burke county, in 1914. Refrain and stanza structure as in D and corresponds in part to that version, but lacks stanzas 6-7 of D and has more formal manners in stanza 4:
Down upon his knee fell he;
Says he, 'Miss Mousie, will you marry me?'
In stanza 5 she tells him that:
Not without Uncle Rat's consent
Would I marry the President.
The list of guests and the outcome of the party are different:
9. The first to come in was the bumblebee
With his fiddle on his knee.
10. The next come in was a great big flea;
He said, 'Dance with the bumblehee.'
11. Next to come in was Major Tick,
Who ate so much it made him sick.
12. Then they sent for Dr. Fly,
Who swore by George old Tick would die.
13. They all went sailing down the lake
And were swallowed up by a great hig snake.
14 That's the end of one, two, three,
The rat and the mouse and little froggie.
F. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Reported I)y Miss Gertrude Allen (later
Mrs. Vaught) from Oakboro, Stanly county. C'lose to E through the
first nine stanzas, but inserts after stanza 5
Uncle Rat he went down town
To I)uy his niece a wedding gown.
The account of the wedding party, however, is different:
10 T'first came in was a little seed tick;
It ate so much it made it sick.
11. Next came in was a big black snake;
lie ate up all the wedding cake.
12. Next came in was a little fat pig;
Thought he'd have a little jig.
13. Lady Mouse came a-trippling down;
She fell over her wedding gown.
14. Then Frog came a-swimming across the lake.
He got swallowed by a big black snake.
'Froggy Went A-Courtin'.' Contributed by I. T. Poole from Burke county. A somewhat reduced version.
1. Froggy went a-courtin' and he did ride unhuh-unhuh
Froggy went a-courtin' and he did ride.
Sword an pistol hy his side unhuh-unhuh.
2. Rode down to Miss Mousie's den:
'Say, Miss Mousie, are you within?'
3. 'Yes. kind sir, I'm sitting to spin ;
Pull the string and you'll come in.'
4 He took Miss Mousie on his knee:
'Say, Miss Mousie. will you marry me?'
5 'Who shall the wedding waiters he?'
'Miss Grasshopper and Captain Flea.'
6 'Where shall the wedding supper he?'
'Away down yonder in a hollow tree.'
7 'What shall the wedding supper be?'
'Three green beans and a black-eyed pea.'
'Frog Went A-Courting.' Reported by P. D. Midgett of Wanchese, Roanoke Island, in 1920, as writen down for him by a friend. First seven stanzas as in E except that stanza 4 runs:
'Say. Miss Mouse, will you marry me.
And live over yonder in a hollow tree ?'
The remaining nine stanzas introduce some new figures :
8 'What shall the wedding supper be?'
'A cup of tea and a black-eyed pea.'
9 First came in was little moth.
Bringing in the tablecloth.
10 Next came in was a great big snake,
Bringing in the wedding cake.
11 Next came in was a little louse,
Bringing in a j^late of souse.
12 Next came in was a great big tick.
Walking around with a hickory stick.
13 Next came in was a bumblebee.
Took a jig with a broken-back flea.
14 Next catne in was a little sea tick,
Eat so much it made him sick.
15. Had to send for Dr. Fly,
Thought to my Lord that tick would die.
16 Old gray goose she swam the lake.
She got hit hy a great hig snake.
I. 'Frog and tlie Mouse.' From a notebook of Mrs. Harold Glasscock of Kalcigli, lent to Dr. White in 1943, in whicli Mrs. Glasscock had set down sings she had learned from her parents. Much like D, but has a preliminary stanza:
Gentleman frog lived in the well em hm
Gentleman frog lived in the well,
Lady mouse lived in the mill em hm.
The mouse's answer to Uncle Rat sounds coy :
'Who's been here since Lve been gone?"
'There was a tall, nice young man,
Gentleman Frog was his name."
The price Uncle Rat pays for the wedding gown is given:
What do you reckon he paid for it ?
Nine dollars and a bit.
The conclusion presents some new figures:
12 First came down was a bumblebee,
Timing a fiddle on his knee.
13 Next came down was a little seed tick
Dancing a jig with a hickory stick.
14 Next came down was a butterfly;
She fanned the company as she went by.
15 Next came down was the pussy cat.
She caught Miss Mousie and then ran back.
16 Mr. Frog jumped in the lake
And there was swallowed by a big black snake.
17 Big black snake swam to the land
And there was killed by a little *homely man.
18 Little homely man went off to sea;
And that's the end of my story.
'Miswritten no doubt for "seed tick," which occurs in F and I.
J. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Contributed by Miss Margaret Higgs of Greenville, Pitt county. Fourteen stanzas, introducing nothing not already presented in the preceding versions except a junebug. It ends:
13 The next to come in was the little June bug;
He jumped in the fire and gave the frog a hug.
14 Mr. Frog gut mad and jumped in the lake
And there he got bit by a hig black snake.
K. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' From Mrs. Sutton, who says she has heard it in Caldwell, Mitchell, Avery, Watauga, Henderson, and Bunconme counties, and gives a Caldwell version of eight stanzas as she learned it from her grandmotlier. The wedding supper here becomes an 'infair supper,' and the flea dances a jig with the bumblebee.
L. 'A Woodman's Song.' Reported by Julian P. Boyd as obtained from Minnie Lee, one of his pupils in the school at Alliance, Pamlico county, in 1927. Six stanzas, of which the first is the same as stanza 1 of D and the second the same as stanza 4 of S (except that the refrain is spelled "Humph" instead of "Ah-ha"). The other four stanzas (the
last of which is an intruder from the body of floating bird and animal jingles) are as follows:
3 'Say. Miss Mouchy, where will we he?'
'We'll bttild our house in a hollow tree.'
4 'Say, Miss Mouchy, what shall we eat?'
'Two big hams, bread and meat.'
5 'Say, Miss Mouchy. where shall we lie?'
'Between the wheat straws and the rye.'
6 Jay bird died with the whoopingcough.
'Long come de bird with his tail bobbed off.
M. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Reported by Jesse T. Carpenter from Durham county. Ten stanzas, the last three of which run:
8 The next one was a big black bug.
He came in dragging a jug.
9 Then came in the practice goose.
She had a hddle and she cut loose.
10 They all went swimming down the lake,
And all were swallowed bv a big blacksnake.
N. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Reported by James A. McKay, student at Trinity College, as sung in New Hanover county. Five stanzas, giving only the first part of the song. The bride was dressed in "green pea slippers and a big brass breastpin" and they had for supper "black-eyed peas and dog-foot hutter."
O. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Obtained from Miss Lura Wagoner of Vox, Alleghany county, in 1921. Ten stanzas, not differing significantly from E except that the latter part is reduced to two stanzas:
9 The first to come in was the bumblebee
With his fiddle on his knee.
10. The next to come was a great big flea;
He said, "Dance with the bumblebee.'
P. 'Frog Went A-Courtin'.' Reported by Sarah K. Watkins as known in Anson and Stanly counties. Only four stanzas, corresponding to stanzas I, 2, 9, 10 of D.
Q. 'Frog Courtship.' From Mrs. Nilla Lancaster, Wayne county. Eleven stanzas. No element not already given in one or another of the preceding texts except at the close, which runs:
Frog went a-floating down the brook.
He got caught by the fisherman's hook.
R. No title. Reported by Alinnie S. Gosney as known in Raleigh and Wake
county. Here the stanza structure is different; the "uhuh" refrain comes
only at the end of the couplet. The story is disarranged; it begins with
the wedding party.
1 First came in was a bumble-bee;
Stung Miss Mousie on the knee.
Uhuh uhuh
2 Next came in was Mr. Tick;
Ate so much it made him sick.
3 Had to send for Dr. Fly.
And he swore, by gosh, Air. Tick woidd die.
4 Mr. b'roggie rode by Miss Mousie's den;
Says he, 'Miss Mousie, are you within?'
5 Took Miss Mousie on his knee;
Says he, 'Miss Mousie, will you marry me?'
6 Mr. Froggie went to town
To buy Miss Mousie's wedding gown
7 Mr. Froggie went by the lake.
There he was swallowed up by a big black snake.
8 That snake swum to shore.
A big black *man killed him there.
9 That big black man has gone to France
To teach the negroes how to dance.
10 Now I lay my book on the shelf;
If you want any more, you can sing it yourself.
S. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' Contributed by Mrs. A. J. Ellis of Raleigh. Eighteen stanzas. The refrain here (at the end of tlie first and third lines of each stanza, as in D) is written "Ah-ha." but this is doubtless just a variant writing of the usual hum or grunt. Otherwise the text is substantially the same as D.
T. 'A Frog Went A-Courting.' Obtained by Professor James F. Royster
at Chapel Hill in 191 5 from William C. Doubkin. student at the Univer-
sity of North Carolina. Five stanzas, ending with
'What will the wedding supper be?'
'A slice of toast and a cup of tea,'
and the notation "I do not recall more."
U. 'A Frog Went A-Courting.' From James A. McKay. A variant form
of N. Here the refrain comes after each line, not only after the first
and third— at least, so the manuscript is written. Fur example :
Frog went a-courting, he did ride uh huh
Frog went a-courting. he did ride uh huh
Sword and pistol by his side uh huh
Went down to Lady Mouse's hall uh huh
Went down to Lady Mouse's hall uh huh
Gave a loud knock and loud he called uh huh
etc.
The form of the wooing dialogue is slightly different from that in
preceding versions :
'Old lady mouse, will you marry me?'
'Yes, kind sir, but you frighten me.'
V. 'Mr Frog Went A-Courting.' From Miss Mamie E. Cheek of Durham. .A.n unusually full form, eighteen stanzas. When Uncle Rat asks "Who's been here since I've been gone?" Miss Mousie replies "A very nice fellow all dressed in brown, the very nicest fellow in town." The wedding guests are a bumblebee, a little moth, "a big black spider who
walked up the aisle and sat down beside "er," a little brown flea, a big green snake, a little tick— who dies despite the ministrations of Dr. Fly. The bride and groom march in and "They jumped over the handle of the broom." A "broomstick marriage" is an illegal or mock marriage. See NED under broomstick.
W. 'Frog Went A-Courting.' From Lida Page of Durham county. This is in the collection in two forms, one with the normal hummed refrain as in D. the other with the hum after each line of the four-line stanza, thus :
Frog went a-courting and he did ride uh uh
Frog went a-courting and he did rideuh uh
Frog went a-courting and he did ride uh uh
Sword and pistol by his side uh huh
The flea is crippled yet danced all night with the bumblebee; the cat is yellow.
X. 'Frog Went A-Courting." From Miss Isabel B. Busbee of Raleigh, as sung by her great-aunt Miss Louisa Nora Taylor. Marked by a refrain that I have not found elsewhere. Nine stanzas. Begins:
Mr. Frog a- wooing rides
Linctim lee lincum loddy
With sword and pistol by his sides
Fddlin dav fodlin doddv.
Y.'Froggie Went A-Courting.' A second text reported by Mrs. Vaught (see F), this one from Taylursville, Alexander county. The first four Stanzas only. Has neither the "kimo" nor the hummed refrain but a "chorus," sung apparently after each stanza:
Plot, plot, plot, plot.
Z. No title. Contributed by Allie Ann Pearce of Colerain, Bertie county.
No refrain is indicated. The text differs in other respects from the
others in tine collection.
1 A frog he would a- wooing go
Whether his mother would let him or not.
So off he started with his opera hat.
And on the way he met with a rat.
'Pray, Mr. Rat, will you go with me
Kind Miss Mousy for to see?'
2 Thev soon arrived at Mousy's hall;
They gave a loud knock and gave a loud call :
'Pray, Mis.s .Nhmsy, will vou give us some beer?
Froggie and 1 are fond of good cheer.'
3 As they were having a merry time
The cat and her kittens came tumbling in.
The cat she seized the rat by the crown.
The kittens they pulled little mousie down.
The frog was in a terrific fright;
He picked up his hat and bade them goodnight.
4 As froggy was crossing a silvery brook
A lily white duck came and gohhied him up.
So this was the end of one, two, three.
The frog, the rat, and the little mousie.
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