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Comparative childhood folklore
Jun. 12th, 2014 12:12 pm"Not last night but the night before..."
What's the rest of the verse? And, yes, I know there's no single right answer, and it's a rhyme that's been recorded in loads of different versions, but I'm always interested in comparing different childhood versions of playground rhymes and games.
EDIT: Oh well... It seems that hardly anyone else knows this rhyme, after all. Strange. Everybody present during the conversation at work knew a version, but everyone knew a different one. However, they didn't provide a big enough sample for me to find out if the differences were regional or due to date. For the record, the version I knew went "not last night but the night before, 3 little pussycats came knocking at the door, [something something] let them in, [something-thing] with a ROLLing pin!" However, when I was chanting it to try to track down the missing words, I kept getting sidelined by "OUT went the doctor, OUT went the nurse, OUT went the lady with the alligator purse," which comes from a different rhyme, one nobody else had heard before.
What's the rest of the verse? And, yes, I know there's no single right answer, and it's a rhyme that's been recorded in loads of different versions, but I'm always interested in comparing different childhood versions of playground rhymes and games.
EDIT: Oh well... It seems that hardly anyone else knows this rhyme, after all. Strange. Everybody present during the conversation at work knew a version, but everyone knew a different one. However, they didn't provide a big enough sample for me to find out if the differences were regional or due to date. For the record, the version I knew went "not last night but the night before, 3 little pussycats came knocking at the door, [something something] let them in, [something-thing] with a ROLLing pin!" However, when I was chanting it to try to track down the missing words, I kept getting sidelined by "OUT went the doctor, OUT went the nurse, OUT went the lady with the alligator purse," which comes from a different rhyme, one nobody else had heard before.
