Disobedience
James James
Morrison Morrison
Weatherby George Dupree
Took great
Care of his Mother,
Though he was only three.
James James
Said to his Mother,
"Mother", he said, said he;
"You must never go down to the end of the town,
if you don't go down with me."
James James
Morrison's Mother
Put on a golden gown,
James James
Morrison's Mother
Drove to the end of the town.
James James
Morrison's Mother
Said to herself, said she:
"I can get right down to the end of the town and be
back in time for tea"
King John
Put up a notice,
"LOST or STOLEN or STRAYED!
JAMES JAMES
MORRISON'S MOTHER
SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN MISLAID.
LAST SEEN
WANDERING VAGUELY;
QUITE OF HER OWN ACCORD,
SHE TRIED TO GET DOWN TO THE END OF THE TOWN-
FORTY SHILLINGS REWARD!
James James
Morrison Morrison
(Commonly known as Jim)
Told his
Other relations
Not to go blaming _him_.
James James
Said to his Mother,
"Mother", he said, said he:
"You must never go down to the end of the town with-
out consulting me."
James James
Morrison's Mother
Hasn't been heard of since.
King John
Said he was sorry,
So did the Queen and Prince.
King John
(Somebody told me)
Said to a man he knew:
"If people go down to the end of the town, well,
what can anyone do?"
(Now then, very softly)
J. J.
M. M.
W. G. Du P.
Took great
C/o his M*****
Though he was only 3.
J. J.
Said to his M*****
"M*****", he said, said he:
"You-must-never-go-down-to-the-end-of-the-town-if-
you-don't-go-down-with-ME!"
Commentary
Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet… Woozles, Jagulars and Heffalumps… Honey… Kanga and Roo, not to mention Tigger… are you feeling nostalgic yet? Milne’s tales of the Hundred Acre Wood need no introduction - nor, for that matter, contradiction <grin>. Seriously, though, I cannot imagine a childhood lived without Edward Bear and his many friends, and I’m sure the same holds true for people all over the world and of every generation.
Equally enchanting are Milne’s books of light verse - ‘When We Were Very Young’, and ‘Now We Are Six’. The ballad of James James and his errant mother was my favourite poem from the former; I’m told that when I was very young, I used to recite the entire thing at breakneck speed and earsplitting volume - especially the last stanza.
Ah, fond memories. And the truly wonderful thing is that I still get every bit as much enjoyment from Milne today as I did back then. Sigh.
— Thomas
PS. Many thanks to my mother for suggesting I run this poem on the Minstrels, and for typing it out for me (since I don’t have a copy near at hand, more’s the pity).
Biography
b. Jan. 18, 1882, London, Eng.
d. Jan. 31, 1956, Hartfield, Sussex
in full ALAN ALEXANDER MILNE, English humorist, the originator of the immensely popular stories of Christopher Robin and his toy bear, Winnie-the-Pooh.
Milne attended Westminster School, London, and Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1906 he joined the staff of Punch, writing humorous verse and whimsical essays in a style that quickly dated. He achieved considerable success with a series of light comedies such as Mr. Pim Passes By (1921) and Michael and Mary (1930). Milne also wrote one memorable detective novel, The Red House Mystery (1922); and a children’s play, Make-Believe (1918), before stumbling upon his true literary métier with some verses written for his son Christopher Robin. These grew into the collections When We Were Very Young (1924) and Now We Are Six (1927). These remain classics of light verse for children.
His most popular works were the two sets of stories about the adventures of Christopher Robin and his toy animals–Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, Kanga, Roo, Rabbit, Owl, and Eeyore–as told in Winnie-the-Pooh (1926) and The House at Pooh Corner (1928). Ernest Shepard’s illustrations added to the books’ charm. In 1929 Milne adapted another children’s classic, The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame, for the stage as Toad of Toad Hall. A decade later he wrote his autobiography, It’s Too Late Now.