みなさん、こんにちは。
RuiRuiです。
今月のたどくらぶで紹介するマザーグースは“I saw a ship a-sailing”です。
I saw a ship a-sailing,
A-sailing on the sea,
And oh, but it was laden
With pretty things for thee!
There were comfits in the cabin,
And apples in the hold;
The sails were made of silk,
And the masts were all of gold.
The four-and-twenty sailors,
That stood between the decks,
Were four-and-twenty white mice
With chains about their necks.
The captain was a duck
With a packet on his back,
And when the ship began to move
The captain said, Quack! Quack!
Imagine a gorgeous treasure ship returning to you with pretty things and delicious sweets.
The sails are made of silk and the masts are gold.
Twenty four sailors are all mice and the captain is a duck saying Quack!
This lovely ship has inspired many illustrators.
And Beatrix Potter also drew this ship although the illustration was not published.
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O136 ... ix-potter/
In this rhyme the word “four-and-twenty” is used for the number 24.
This expression can also be found in other rhymes.
For example, “Sing a song of sixpence”, “Four and twenty tailors went to kill a snail”, “Barber, barber, shave a pig”, and so on.
I don’t know the reason why “four-and-twenty” appeared in many rhymes.
See you soon at たどくらぶ hopefully.
RuiRui