IB English How Doth The Little Crocodile How doth the little crocodile Improve his shining tail, And pour the waters of the Nile On every golden scale! How cheerfully he seems to grin, How neatly spread his claws, And welcome little fishes in With gently smiling jaws! Against Idleness And Mischief Isaac Watts How doth the little busy bee Improve each shining hour, And gather honey all the day From every opening flower! How skillfully she builds her cell! How neat she spreads the wax! And labours hard to store it well With the sweet food she makes. In works of labour or of skill, I would be busy too; For Satan finds some mischief still For idle hands to do. In books, or work, or healthy play, Let my first years be passed That I may give for every day Some good account at last You are old, Father William You are old, Father William, the young man said, And your hair has become very white; And yet you incessantly stand on your head - Do you think, at your age, it is right? In my youth, Father William replied to his son, I feared it might injure the brain; But, now that I m perfectly sure I have none, Why, I do it again and again. You are old, said the youth, as I mentioned before, And have grown most uncommonly fat; Yet you turned a back-somersault in at the door - Pray, what is the reason of that? In my youth, said the sage, as he shook his grey locks, I kept all my limbs very supple By the use of this ointment - one shilling the box - Allow me to sell you a couple? You are old, said the youth, and your jaws are too weak For anything tougher than suet; Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the beak - Pray how did you manage to do it? In my youth, said his father, I took to the law, And argued each case with my wife; And the muscular strength, which it gave to my jaw, Has lasted the rest of my life. You are old, said the youth, one would hardly suppose That your eye was as steady as ever; Yet you balanced an eel on the end of your nose - What made you so awfully clever? I have answered three questions, and that is enough, Said his father; don t give yourself airs! Do you think I can listen all day to such stuff? Be off, or I ll kick you down stairs! The Old Man s Comforts And How He Gained Them Robert Southey The few locks which are left you are grey; You are hale, father William, a hearty old man; In the days of my youth, father William replied, I remember d that youth would fly fast, And Abus d not my health and my vigour at first, That I never might need them at last. And pleasures with youth pass away. And yet you lament not the days that are gone; In the days of my youth, father William replied, I remember d that youth could not last; I thought of the future, whatever I did, That I never might grieve for the past. And life must be hast ning away; You are cheerful and love to converse upon death; I am cheerful, young man, father William replied, Let the cause thy attention engage; In the days of my youth I remember s my God. And He hath not forgotten my age. The Duchess s song to the pig baby.
Speak Roughly Speak roughly to your little boy, And beat him when he sneezes: He only does it to annoy, Because he knows it teases. Chorus Wow! wow! wow! I speak severely to my boy, I beat him when he sneezes; For he can thoroughly enjoy The pepper when he pleases! Speak Gently G. W. Langford Speak gently! It is better far To rule by love than fear Speak gently; let no harsh word mar The good we may do here! Speak gently to the little child! Its love be sure to gain; Teach it in accents soft and mild; It may not long remain. Speak gently to the young, for they Will have enough to bear; Pass through this life as best they may, Tis full of anxious care! Speak gently to the aged one, Grieve not the care-worn heart; Whose sands of life are nearly run, Let such in peace depart! The Bat Twinkle, twinkle, little bat How I wonder what you re at! Up above the world you fly Like a tea-tray in the sky. The Star Jane Taylor Twinkle, twinkle, little star, How I wonder what you are! Up above the world so high, Like a diamond in the sky. When the blazing sun is gone, When he nothing shines upon, Then you show your little light, Twinkle, twinkle, all the night. Then the traveller in the dark, Thanks you for your tiny spark: He could not see which way to go, If you did not twinkle so. In the dark blue sky you keep, And often through my curtains peep, For you never shut your eye Till the sun is in the sky. As your bright and tiny spark Lights the traveller in the dark, Though I know not what you are, Twinkle, twinkle, little star. Speak gently, kindly to the poor; Let no harsh tone be heard; They have enough they must endure, Without an unkind word! Speak gently to the erring; know They must have toiled in vain; Perchance unkindness made them so; Oh, win them back again. Speak gently; Love doth whisper low The vows that true hearts bind; And gently Friendship s accents flow; Affection s voice is kind. Speak gently; tis a little thing Dropped in the heart s deep well; The good, the joy, that it may bring, Eternity shall tell.
A Whiting And A Snail Will you walk a little faster? said a whiting to a snail. There s a porpoise close behind us, and he s treading on my tail. See how eagerly the lobsters and the turtles all advance! They are waiting on the shingle - will you come and join the dance? Will you, won t you, will you, won t you, will you join the dance? Will you, won t you, will you, won t you, won t you join the dance? You can really have no notion how delightful it will be When they take us up and throw us, with the lobsters, out to sea! But the snail replied Too far, too far! and gave a look askance - Said he thanked the whiting kindly, but he would not join the dance. Would not, could not, would not, could not, would not join the dance. Would not, could not, would not, could not, could not join the dance. What matters it how far we go? his scaly friend replied. There is another shore, you know, upon the other side. The further off from England the nearer is to France - Then turn not pale, beloved snail, but come and join the dance. Will you, won t you, will you, won t you, will you join the dance? Will you, won t you, will you, won t you, won t you join the dance? The Spider And The Fly Mary Howitt Will you walk into my parlour? said the spider to the fly, Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy, The way into my parlour is up a winding stair, And I ve got many curious things to show when you are there. Oh, no, no, said the little fly, to ask me is in vain, For whoever goes up your winding stair can ne er come down again. The Lobster Tis the voice of the Lobster; I heard him declare, You have baked me too brown, I must sugar my hair. As a duck with its eyelids, so he with his nose Trims his belt and his buttons, and turns out his toes. When the sands are all dry, he is gay as a lark, And will talk in contemptuous tones of the Shark, But, when the tide rises and sharks are around, His voice has a timid and tremulous sound. The Sluggard Isaac Watts Tis the voice of the sluggard; I heard him complain, You have wak d me too soon, I must slumber again. As the door on its hinges, so he on his bed, Turns his sides and his shoulders and his heavy head. A little more sleep, and a little more slumber; Thus he wastes half his days, and his hours without number, And when he gets up, he sits folding his hands, Or walks about sauntering, or trifling he stands. I pass d by his garden, and saw the wild brier, The thorn and the thistle grow broader and higher; The clothes that hang on him are turning to rags; And his money still wastes thill he starves or he begs. I made him a visit, still hoping to find That he took better care for improving his mind; He told me his dreams, talked of eating and drinking; But he scarce reads his Bible and never loves thinking. Said I then to my heart, Here s a lesson for me, This man s but a picture of what I might be; But thanks to my friends for their care in my breeding, Who taught be betimes to love working and reading. Soup Of The Evening Beautiful Soup, so rich and green, Waiting in a hot tureen! Who for such dainties would not stoop? Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup! Soup of the evening, beautiful Soup! Soo - oop of the e - e - evening, Beautiful, beautiful Soup! Beautiful Soup! Who cares for fish, Game, or any other dish? Who would not give all else for two pennyworth only of beautiful Soup? Pennyworth only of beautiful Soup? Soo - oop of the e - e - evening, Beautiful, beautiful Soup! Star Of The Evening James M. Sayle Beautiful star in heav n so bright, Softly falls thy silb ry light, As thou movest from earth afar, Star of the evening, beautiful star. Chorus Beautiful star, Beautiful star, Star of the evening, beautiful star. In fancy s eye thou seem st to say, Follow me, come from earth away. Upward thy spirit s pinions try, To realms of love beyond the sky. Shine on, oh star of love diving, And may our soul s affection twine Around thee as thou movest afar, Star of the twilight, beautiful star.
The Walrus and the Carpenter (from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872) The sun was shining on the sea, Shining with all his might: He did his very best to make The billows smooth and bright-- And this was odd, because it was The middle of the night. The moon was shining sulkily, Because she thought the sun Had got no business to be there After the day was done-- "It's very rude of him," she said, "To come and spoil the fun!" The sea was wet as wet could be, The sands were dry as dry. You could not see a cloud, because No cloud was in the sky: No birds were flying overhead-- There were no birds to fly. The Walrus and the Carpenter Were walking close at hand; They wept like anything to see Such quantities of sand: "If this were only cleared away," They said, "it would be grand!" "If seven maids with seven mops Swept it for half a year. Do you suppose," the Walrus said, "That they could get it clear?" "I doubt it," said the Carpenter, And shed a bitter tear. "O Oysters, come and walk with us!" The Walrus did beseech. "A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk, Along the briny beach: We cannot do with more than four, To give a hand to each." The eldest Oyster looked at him, But never a word he said: The eldest Oyster winked his eye, And shook his heavy head-- Meaning to say he did not choose To leave the oyster-bed. But four young Oysters hurried up, All eager for the treat: Their coats were brushed, their faces washed, Their shoes were clean and neat-- And this was odd, because, you know, They hadn't any feet. Four other Oysters followed them, And yet another four; And thick and fast they came at last, And more, and more, and more-- All hopping through the frothy waves, And scrambling to the shore. The Walrus and the Carpenter Walked on a mile or so, And then they rested on a rock Conveniently low: And all the little Oysters stood And waited in a row. "The time has come," the Walrus said, "To talk of many things: Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax-- Of cabbages--and kings-- And why the sea is boiling hot-- And whether pigs have wings." "But wait a bit," the Oysters cried, "Before we have our chat; For some of us are out of breath, And all of us are fat!" "No hurry!" said the Carpenter. They thanked him much for that. "A loaf of bread," the Walrus said, "Is what we chiefly need: Pepper and vinegar besides Are very good indeed-- Now if you're ready, Oysters dear, We can begin to feed." "But not on us!" the Oysters cried, Turning a little blue. "After such kindness, that would be A dismal thing to do!" "The night is fine," the Walrus said. "Do you admire the view? "It was so kind of you to come! And you are very nice!" The Carpenter said nothing but "Cut us another slice: I wish you were not quite so deaf-- I've had to ask you twice!" "It seems a shame," the Walrus said, "To play them such a trick, After we've brought them out so far, And made them trot so quick!" The Carpenter said nothing but "The butter's spread too thick!" "I weep for you," the Walrus said: "I deeply sympathize." With sobs and tears he sorted out Those of the largest size, Holding his pocket-handkerchief Before his streaming eyes. "O Oysters," said the Carpenter, "You've had a pleasant run! Shall we be trotting home again?' But answer came there none-- And this was scarcely odd, because They'd eaten every one.