Mother Goose's Bicycle Tour

Chapter 16: THREE WISE MEN OF ST. IVES.

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About This Book

The collection frames a lighthearted bicycle tour taken by an elderly rhyming hostess and her goose, using that journey to present a wide assortment of nursery verses, parodies, and short poems. Familiar jingles and character pieces alternate with comic vignettes, riddles, and enigmata, often interspersed with French phrases and playful foreign allusions. Stanzas range from sing-song originals to humorous rewrites, accompanied by occasional scene-setting lines and a glossary. The overall tone is whimsical and theatrical, aimed at young readers through melodic rhythm, visual suggestion, and gentle absurdity.

THREE WISE MEN OF ST. IVES.

Said this very wise man of St. Ives,

“I hear that potatoes have eyes;

I’ll shave all my head and dye my clothes red,

I’ve a nervous objection to spies.”

Said the wiser, “I cannot advise

Such a strange and uncommon disguise;

But this is my plan, to eat all we can,

Regardless of shape or of size.”

Said the sagest, “You don’t realize

That your scheme is most truly unwise;

If you eat them at all, either large ones or small,

Every thought of your heart they’ll surmise.

“On the man who successfully tries,

Or some feasible plan can devise,

To grow us a kind that really is blind,

We’ll bestow a magnificent prize.”