clasping the wrist of his or her left hand neighbour with the left hand,
thus leaving the right hand free. A thimble is provided, and is held by
one of the players in the right hand. No circular movement is necessary,
but as the tune is sung, the right hand of each member is placed
alternately in that of their right and left hand neighbour, each
performing the action in a swinging style, as if they had to pass the
ring on, and in such a manner, that the one standing in the centre
cannot detect it. The thimble may be detained or passed on just as the
players think fit. The words are the following:--
The thimble is going,
I don't know where.
Varied with
It's first over here,
Or
It's over there,
as the case may be, or rather may not be, in order to throw the victim
in the centre off the scent.--West Riding of Yorkshire (Miss Bush).
The players sit in a row or circle, with their hands held palm to palm
in their laps. The leader of the game takes a thimble, and going to
every member of the company in turn, pretends to slip it between their
fingers, or to hide it in their pinafores, saying as she does so--"I
bring you my lady's thimble, you must hold it fast, and very fast
indeed." Whereon each child thus addressed should assume an air of
triumph suitable to the possession of such a treasure. After the whole
party have gone through the farce of receiving the thimble, the girl who
carried it round calls a player from the circle to discover who holds
it. For every wrong guess a fine must be paid. When the searcher
discovers the thimble she begins a new round of the game by taking the
place of leader; and so on, till the accumulation of forfeits is
sufficient to afford amusement in "loosing the tines." The game is
called "Lady's Thimble."--Lincoln, Scawby and Stixwould 76 years ago
(Miss M. Peacock).
The rhyme used in the Sheffield game is that used in "Queen Anne," but
it appears to have no relevance to this game.
Thing done
A game described by Ben Jonson in his play of _Cynthia's Revels_ (act
iv. scene 1). The passage is as follows:--
"PHANTASTE. Nay, we have another sport afore this, of 'A thing done,
and who did it,' &c.
"PHILANTIA. Ay, good Phantaste, let's have that: distribute the
places.
"PHANTASTE. Why, I imagine A thing done; Hedon thinks who did it;
Maria, with what it was done; Anaides, where it was done; Argurion,
when it was done; Amorphus, for what cause was it done; you,
Philantia, what followed upon the doing of it; and this gentleman,
who would have done it better. . . ."
Gifford thinks that this sport was probably the diversion of the age,
and of the same stamp with our modern "Cross Purposes," "Questions," and
"Commands," &c.
Thread the Needle
[Music]
--Miss Dendy.
[Music]
--Harpenden (Miss Lloyd).
I. Thread my grandmother's needle!
Thread my grandmother's needle!
Thread my grandmother's needle!
Open your gates as wide as high,
And let King George and me go by.
It is so dark I cannot see
To thread my grandmother's needle!
_Who stole the money-box?_
--London (Miss Dendy).
II. Open your gates as wide as I, [high?]
And let King George's horses by;
For the night is dark and we cannot see,
But thread your long needle and sew.
--Belfast (W. H. Patterson).
III. Thread the tailor's needle,
The tailor's blind, so he can't see;
So open the gates as wide as wide,
And let King George and his lady pass by.
--Bocking, Essex (_Folk-lore Record_, iii. 170).
IV. Thread my grandmother's needle,
Thread my grandmother's needle;
It is too dark we cannot see
To thread my grandmother's needle.
--Harpenden (Mrs. Lloyd).
V. Thread the needle,
Thread the needle,
Nine, nine, nine,
Let King George and I pass by.
--Liphook, Hants (Miss Fowler).
VI. Open the gates as wide as wide,
And let King George go through with his bride;
It is so dark, we cannot see
To threaddle the tailor's needle.
--Parish _Dictionary of the Sussex Dialect_.
VII. Brother Jack, if ye were mine,
I would give you claret wine;
Claret wine's gude and fine--
Through the needle-e'e, boys!
--_Blackwood's Magazine_, August 1821.
VIII. Through the needle-e'e, boys,
One, two, three, boys.
--Ross-shire (Rev. W. Gregor).
IX. Hop my needle, burn my thread,
Come thread my needle, Jo-hey.
--Lincoln (C. C. Bell).
X. Come thread a long needle, come thread,
The eye is too little, the needle's too big.
--Hanbury, Staffs. (Miss Edith Hollis).
XI. Thread the needle thro' the skin,
Sometimes out and sometimes in.
--Warwickshire, Northall's _Folk Rhymes_, 397.
XII. Open the gates as wide as the sky,
And let King George and his lady go by.
--Ellesmere, Burne's _Shropshire Folk-lore_, p. 321.
(_b._) The children stand in two long rows, each holding the hands of
the opposite child, the two last forming an arch. They sing the lines,
and while doing so the other children run under the raised arms. When
all have passed under, the first two hold up their hands, and so on
again and again, each pair in turn becoming the arch. Mrs. Lloyd
(Harpenden version) says the two first hold up a handkerchief, and the
children all run under, beginning with the last couple. In the London
version (Miss Dendy) the "last line is called out in quite different
tones from the rest of the rhyme. It is reported to have a most
startling effect." The Warwickshire version is played differently. The
players, after passing under the clasped hands, all circle or wind round
one of their number, who stands still.
(_c._) In some cases the verse, "How many miles to Babylon?" is sung
before the verses for "Thread the needle," and the reference made
(_ante_, vol. i., p. 238) to an old version seems to suggest the origin
of the game. This, at all events, goes far to prove that the central
idea of the game is not connected with the sewing needle, but with an
interesting dance movement, which is called by analogy, Thread the
needle. It is, however, impossible to say whether the verses of this
game are the fragments of an older and more lengthy original, which
included both the words of "How many miles to Babylon" and "Thread the
needle," or whether these two were independent games, which have become
joined; but, on the whole, I am inclined to think that "Thread the
needle," at all events, is an independent game, or the central idea of
an independent game, and one of some antiquity.
This game is well illustrated by custom. At Trowbridge, in Wilts, a
game, known as "Thread the needle," used to be the favourite sport with
the lads and lasses on the evening of Shrove Tuesday festival. The vocal
accompaniment was always the following:--
Shrove Tuesday, Shrove Tuesday, when Jack went to plough,
His mother made pancakes, she didn't know how;
She tipped them, she tossed them, she made them so black,
She put so much pepper she poisoned poor Jack.
--_Notes and Queries_, 5th series, xi. p. 227.
At Bradford-on-Avon, as soon as the "pancake bell" rang at eleven A.M.,
the school children had holiday for the remainder of the day, and when
the factories closed for the night, at dusk the boys and girls of the
town would run through the streets in long strings playing "Thread the
needle," and whooping and hallooing their best as they ran, and so
collecting all they could together by seven or eight o'clock, when they
would adjourn to the churchyard, where the old sexton had opened the
churchyard gates for them; the children would then join hands in a long
line until they encompassed the church; they then, with hands still
joined, would walk round the church three times; and when dismissed by
the old sexton, would return to their homes much pleased that they
"Clipped the Church," and shouting similar lines to those said at
Trowbridge.
At South Petherton, in South Somerset, sixty or seventy years ago, it
was the practice of the young folk of both sexes to meet in or near the
market-place, and there commence "Threading the needle" through the
streets, collecting numbers as they went. When this method of recruiting
ceased to add to their ranks, they proceeded, still threading the
needle, to the church, which they tried to encircle with joined hands;
and then, whether successful or not, they returned to their respective
homes. Old people, who remember having taken part in the game, say that
it always commenced in the afternoon or evening of Shrove Tuesday,
"after having eaten of their pancakes." In _Leicestershire County
Folk-lore_, p. 114, Mr. Billson records that it was formerly the custom
on Shrove Tuesday for the lads and lasses to meet in the gallery of the
Women's Ward in Trinity Hospital to play at "Thread the Needle" and
similar games.
At Evesham the custom is still more distinctly connected with the game,
as the following quotation shows:--"One custom of the town is connected
with a sport called 'Thread my needle,' a game played here by the
children of the town throughout the various streets at sunset upon
Easter Monday, and at no other period throughout the year. The players
cry while elevating their arms arch-wise--
Open the gates as high as the sky,
And let Victoria's troops pass by."
--May's _History of Evesham_, p. 319.
As all these customs occur in the early spring of the year, there is
reason to think that in this game we have a relic of the oldest sacred
dances, and it is at least a curious point that in two versions
(Bocking and Ellesmere) the Anglo-Saxon title of "Lady" is applied to
the Queen.
The writer in _Blackwood's Magazine_, who quotes the rhymes as
"immemorial," says: "Another game played by a number of children, with a
hold of one another, or 'tickle tails,' as it is technically called in
Scotland, is 'Through the needle-e'e.'" Moor (_Suffolk Words and
Phrases_) mentions the game. Patterson (_Antrim and Down Glossary_)
gives it as "Thread the needle and sew." Barnes (_Dorset Glossary_)
calls it "Dred the wold woman's needle," in which two children join
hands, and the last leads the train under the lifted arms of the first
two. Holloway (_Dictionary of Provincialisms_) says the children form a
ring, holding each other's hands; then one lets go and passes under the
arms of two who still join hands, and the others all follow, holding
either by each other's hands or by a part of their dress. "At
Ellesmere," Miss Burne says, "this game was formerly called 'Crew Duck.'
It now only survives among little girls, and is only played on a special
day." It is alluded to in _Poor Robin's Almanack_ for 1738: "The summer
quarter follows spring as close as girls do one another when playing at
Thread my needle; they tread upon each other's heels." Strutt calls this
"Threading the Taylor's needle." Newell (_Games of American Children_)
gives some verses, and describes it as played in America.
See "How many miles to Babylon," "Through the Needle 'ee."
Three Days' Holidays
Two players hold up their joined hands, the rest pass under one by one,
repeating, "Three days' holidays, three days' holidays!" They pass under
a second time, all repeating, "Bumping day, bumping day!" when the two
leaders strike each player on the back in passing. The third time they
say, "Catch, catch, catch!" and the leaders catch the last in the train
between their arms. He has the choice of "strawberries or grapes," and
is placed behind one of the leaders, according to his answer. When all
have been "caught," the two parties pull against each other.--Berrington
(Burne's _Shropshire Folk-lore_, p. 522).
"Holidays," says Miss Burne, "anciently consisted of three days, as at
Easter and Whitsuntide, which explains the words of this game;" and the
manorial work days were formerly three a week. See "Currants and
Raisins."
Three Dukes
[Music]
--Madeley, Shropshire (Miss Burne).
[Music]
--Biggar, Lanarkshire (W. Ballantyne).
[Music]
--Sporle, Norfolk (Miss Matthews).
[Music]
--Isle of Man (A. W. Moore).
I. Here come three dukes a-riding,
A-riding, a-riding;
Here come three dukes a-riding,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
What is your good will, sirs?
Will, sirs? will, sirs?
What is your good will, sirs?
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
Our good will is to marry,
To marry, to marry;
Our good will is to marry,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
Marry one of us, sirs,
Us, sirs, us, sirs;
Marry one of us, sirs,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
You're all too black and greasy [or dirty],
Greasy, greasy;
You're all too black and greasy,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
We're good enough for you, sirs,
You, sirs, you, sirs;
We're good enough for you, sirs,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
You're all as stiff as pokers,
Pokers, pokers;
You're all as stiff as pokers,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
We can bend as much as you, sirs,
You, sirs, you, sirs;
We can bend as much as you, sirs,
With a rancy, tancy, tay!
Through the kitchen and down the hall,
I choose the fairest of you all;
The fairest one that I can see
Is pretty Miss ----, walk with me.
--Madeley, Salop (Miss Burne), 1891.
[Another Shropshire version has for the fourth verse--
Which of us will you choose, sirs?
Or,
Will you marry one of my daughters?]
II. Here comes three dukes a-riding, a-riding,
With a ransome dansome day!
Pray what is your intent, sirs, intent, sirs?
With a ransome dansome day!
My intent is to marry, to marry!
Will you marry one of my daughters, my daughters?
You are as stiff as pokers, as pokers!
We can bend like you, sir, like you, sir!
You're all too black and too blowsy, too blowsy,
For a dilly-dally officer!
Good enough for _you_, sir! for _you_, sir!
If I must have any, I will have this,
So come along, my pretty miss!
--Chirbury (_Shropshire Folk-lore_, p. 517).
III. Here come three dukes a-riding,
A-riding, a-riding;
Here come three dukes a-riding,
With a rancy, tancy, tee!
Pray what is your good will, sirs?
Will, sirs, will, sirs?
Pray what is your good will, sirs?
With a rancy, tancy, tee!
My will is for to marry you,
To marry you, to marry you;
My will is for to marry you,
With a rancy, tancy, tee!
You're all so black and blousey (blowsy?),
Sitting in the sun so drowsy;
With silver chains about ye,
With a rancy, tancy, tee!
Or,
[With golden chains about your necks,
Which makes you look so frowsy.]
Walk through the kitchen, and through the hall,
And pick the fairest of them all.
This is the fairest I can see,
So pray, Miss ----, walk with me.
--Leicester (Miss Ellis).
IV. Here come three dukes a-riding, a-riding, a-riding,
Here come three dukes riding, riding, riding;
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea (_sic_).
Pray what is your good will, sir, will, sir, will, sir?
Pray what is your good will, sir?
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
My will is for to marry, to marry, to marry,
My will is for to marry;
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
Pray who will you marry, you marry, you marry?
Pray who will you marry?
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
You're all too black and too brown for me,
You're all too black and too brown for me,
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
We're quite as white as you, sir; as you, sir; as you, sir;
We're quite as white as you, sir;
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
You are all as stiff as pokers, as pokers, as pokers,
You are all, &c.,
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
We can bend as well as you, sir; as you, sir; as you, sir;
We can bend as well as you, sir;
Ransam, tansam, tisum ma tea!
Go through the kitchen, and through the hall,
And take the fairest of them all;
The fairest one that I can see is "----,"
So come to me.
--Oxfordshire version, brought into Worcestershire (Miss Broadwood).
V. Here come three dukes a-riding, a-riding, a-riding;
With a ransom, tansom, titty foll-la!
With a ransom, tansom, tay!
And pray what do you want, sirs? want, sirs? want, sirs?
With a ransom, tansom, titty foll-la!
With a ransom, tansom, tay!
I want a handsome wife, sir; wife, sir; wife, sir;
With a ransom, tansom, titty foll-la!
With a ransom, tansom, tay!
I have three daughters fair, sir; fair, sir; fair, sir;
With a ransom, tansom, titty foll-la!
With a ransom, tansom, tay!
They are all too black and too browny,
They sit in the sun so cloudy;
With a ransom, tansom, titty foll-la!
With a ransom, tansom, tay!
Go through my kitchen and my hall,
And find the fairest of them all;
With a ransom, tansom, titty foll-la!
With a ransom, tansom, tay!
The fairest one that I can see,
Is little ---- ----, so come to me.
--Monton, Lancashire (Miss Dendy).
VI. Here come three dukes a-riding, a-riding, a-riding;
Here come three dukes a-riding, with a ransom, tansom, te!
Pray what is your intention, sir [repeat as above].
My intention is to marry, &c.
Which of us will you choose, sir, &c.
You're all too black and too browsy, &c.
We're good enough for you, sir, &c.
Through the kitchen and over the wall,
Pick the fairest of us all.
The fairest is that I can see, pretty Miss ----, come to me.
--East Kirkby, Lincolnshire (Miss K. Maughan).
VII. Here come three dukes a-riding,
A-riding, a-riding;
Here come three dukes a-riding,
With a dusty, dusty, die!
What do you want with us, sirs? [repeat as above].
We've come to choose a wife, Miss, &c.
Which one of us will you have, sirs? &c.
You're all too black and too browsy,
You sit in the sun so drowsy;
With a golden chain about your neck,
You're all too black and too browsy.
Quite good enough for you, sirs, &c.
We walk in our chamber,
We sit in our hall,
We choose the fairest of you all;
The fairest one that we can see
Is little ---- ----, come to me.
--Wakefield, Yorks. (Miss Fowler).
VIII. Here come three dukes a-riding, a-riding, a-riding,
Here come three dukes a-riding;
A randy, dandy, very fine day!
And pray what is your will, sirs? &c. [as above].
We come for one of your daughters, &c.
Which one will you have, sir? &c.
They are all as black as a browsie, browsie, browsie, &c.
One can knit, and one can sew,
One can make a lily-white bow;
One can make a bed for a king,
Please take one of my daughters in.
The fairest one that I can see
Is [ ], come to me.
--Gainford, co. Durham (Miss A. Edleston).
IX. Here comes a poor duke a-riding, a-riding,
Here comes a poor duke a-riding;
With the ransom, tansom, tee!
Pray who will you have to marry, sir? &c.
You're all so black and so dirty, &c.
We are quite as clean as you, sir, &c.
Through the kitchen, and through the hall,
Pick the fairest one of all.
The fairest one that I can see
Is ----,
The fairest one that I can see,
With a ransom, tansom, tee!
--Sporle, Norfolk (Miss Matthews).
X. Here comes one duke a-riding,
A-riding, a-riding;
Here comes one duke a-riding,
With a ransom, tansom, terrimus, hey!
What is your intention, sir? &c. [as above].
My intention is to marry, &c.
Marry one of us, sir? &c.
You're all too black and dirty (or greasy), &c.
We're good enough for you, sir, &c.
You're all as stiff as pokers, &c.
We can bend as much as you, sir, &c.
Through the kitchen and through the hall,
I choose the fairest of you all;
The fairest one as I can see
Is pretty ---- ----, come to me.
Now I've got my bonny lass,
Bonny lass, bonny lass;
Now I've got my bonny lass
To help us with our dancing.
--Barnes, Surrey (A. B. Gomme).
XI. Here comes one duke a-riding, a-riding, a-riding;
Here comes one duke a-riding
On a ransom, dansom bay!
You're all so black and dirty, &c.
Pray which of us will you choose, sir, &c.
Up in the kitchen, down in the hall,
And choose the fairest one of all.
The fairest one that I can see
Is pretty Miss ----, so come to me.
--Bocking, Essex (_Folk-lore Record_, vol. iii., pt. ii., pp. 170-171).
XII. Here comes one duke a-riding, a-riding, a-riding,
Here comes one duke a-riding, with a ransom, tansom, ta!
Pray which of us will you choose, sir? &c.
You're all so black and so blousey, &c.
We're quite as white as you, sir, &c.
Up of the kitchen, down of the hall,
Pick the fairest girl of all;
The fairest one that I can see
Is ---- ----, come to me.
--Suffolk (Mrs. Haddon).
XIII. Here comes the Duke of Rideo,
Of Rideo, of Rideo;
Here comes the Duke of Rideo,
Of a cold and frosty morning.
My will is for to get married, &c.
Will any of my fair daughters do? &c.
[The word "do" must be said in a drawling way.]
They are all too black or too proudy,
They sit in the sun so cloudy;
With golden chains around their necks,
That makes them look so proudy.
They're good enough for you, sir! &c.
I'll walk the kitchen and the hall,
And take the fairest of them all;
The fairest one that I can see
Is Miss ----
So Miss ----, come to me.
Now we've got this pretty girl,
This pretty girl, this pretty girl;
Now we've got this pretty girl,
Of a cold and frosty morning.
--Symondsbury, Dorsetshire (_Folk-lore Journal_, vii. 222-223).
XIV. Here come three dukes a-riding, a-riding, a-riding,
Here come three dukes a-riding;
With a ransom, tansom, tisamy, tea!
What is your good will, sirs? &c.
My good will is to marry, &c.
One of my fair daughters? &c.
You're all too black and browsy, &c.
Quite as good as you, sirs, &c.
[The dukes select a girl who refuses to go to them.]
O, naughty maid! O, naughty maid!
You won't come out to me!
You shall see a blackbird,
A blackbird and a swan;
You should see a nice young man
Persuading you to come.
--Wrotham, Kent (Miss Dora Kimball).
XV. Here comes a duke a-riding, a-riding, a-riding;
Here comes a duke a-riding, to my nancy, pancy, disimi, oh!
Which of us will you have, sir? &c.
You're all so fat and greasy, &c.
We're all as clean as you, sir, &c.
Come down to my kitchen, come down to my hall,
I'll pick the finest of you all. The fairest is that girl
I shall say, "Come to me."
I will buy a silk and satin dress, to trail a yard as we go
to church,
Madam, will you walk? madam, will you talk?
Madam, will you marry me?
I will buy you a gold watch and chain, to hang by your side
as we go to church;
Madam, will you walk? madam, will you talk?
Madam, will you marry me?
I will buy you the key of the house, to enter in when my
son's out;
Madam, will you walk? madam, will you talk?
Madam, will you marry me?
--Earls Heaton, Yorks. (H. Hardy).
XVI. Here comes one duke a-riding,
With a rancey, tancey, tiddy boys, O!
Rancey, tancey, tay!
Pray which will you take of us, sir? &c.
You're all as dark as gipsies, &c.
Quite good enough for you, &c.
Then we'll take this one, &c.
[After all are taken, the dukes say]--
Now we've got this bonny bunch, &c.
--Hurstmonceux, Sussex, about 1880 (Miss E. Chase).
[A Devon variant gives for the third verse--
You are all too black and ugly, and ugly, and ugly.
And--
You are all too black and _browsie_, &c.
With the additional verse--
I walked through the kitchen,
I walked through the hall,
For the prettiest and fairest
Of you all.
Ending with--
Now I have got my bonny lass, &c.
And something like--
Will you come and dance with me?
--Devon (Miss E. Chase)].
XVII. Here comes a duke a-riding, a-riding, a-riding;
Here comes a duke a-riding to the ransy, tansy, tay!
Pray what do you come riding for? &c.
For one of your fairy [? fair] daughters, &c.
Will either one of these do? &c.
They're all too black and too dirty, &c.
They're quite as clean as you, sir, &c.
Suppose, then, I take you, Miss, &c.
--Clapham, London (Mrs. Herbertson).
[Another version is played by the duke announcing that he wants a wife.
The circle of maids and duke then reply to each other as follows:--
Open the door and let him in.
They're all as stiff as pokers.
Quite as good as you, sir.
I suppose I must take one of them?
Not unless you like, sir.
I choose the fairest of you all,
The fairest one that I can see
Is ----, come to me.
--Clapham Middle-class Girls School (Mrs. Herbertson)].
XVIII. Here comes the duke a-riding,
With my rantum, tantum, tantum, tee!
Here comes the duke a-riding,
With my rantum, tantum, tee!
What does the duke a-riding want?
With his rantum, tantum, tantum, tee, &c.
The youngest and fairest daughter you've got, &c.
--Dublin (Mrs. Coffey).
XIX. Here comes a duke a-riding, a-riding, a-riding;
Here comes a duke a-riding, a ransom, tansom, tee!
What is your good will, sir, &c.
My will is for to marry, &c.
Will ever a one of us do? &c.
You're all so black and so browsy.
You sit in the sun and get frowsy,
With golden chains about your necks,
You're all so black and so browsy.
Quite as good as you, sir, &c.
[There is more of this, but it has been forgotten by my authority.]
--Thos. Baker, junr. (_Midland Garner_, N. S., ii. 32).
XX. Here comes a duke a-riding,
With a ransom, tansom, titta passee!
Here comes a duke a-riding,
With a ransom, tansom, tee!
Pray what is your good will, sir?
With a ransom, tansom, titta passee!
Pray what is your good will, sir?
With a ransom, tansom, tee!
My will is for to marry you (as above).
Pray which of us will you have, sir? &c.
Through the gardens and through the hall,
With a ransom, tansom, titta passee!
I choose the fairest of you all,
With a ransom, tansom, tee!
--Settle, Yorks. (Rev. W. G. Sykes).
XXI. There came three dukes a-riding, ride, ride, riding;
There came three dukes a-riding,
With a tinsy, tinsy, tee!