Edward Lear
Edward Lear (1812–1888) was an English artist, author, and poet known for his literary nonsense. His "Book of Nonsense" and poems like "The Owl and the Pussycat" popular…
"There was an old person of Filey, Of whom his acquaintance spoke highly; He danced perfectly well, To the sound of a bell, And"
"The Perpendicular Purple Polly, who read the Newspaper and ate Parsnip Pie with his Spectacles."
"The Inventive Indian, who caught a Remarkable Rabbit in a Stupendous Silver Spoon."
"There was an old Man of Bohemia, Whose daughter was christened Euphemia; Till one day, to his grief, She married a thief, Whic"
"There was an Old Man of Marseilles, Whose daughters wore bottle-green veils; They caught several Fish, Which they put in a dish,"
"I. Calico pie, The little birds fly Down to the calico-tree: Their wings were blue, And they sang "Tilly-loo"
"There was an old person of Rye, Who went up to town on a fly; But they said, "If you cough, You are safe to fall off! You abs"
"The Absolutely Abstemious Ass, who resided in a Barrel, and only lived on Soda Water and Pickled Cucumbers."
"There was an old person of Stroud, Who was horribly jammed in a crowd; Some she slew with a kick, Some she scrunched with a stick,"
"The Bountiful Beetle, who always carried a Green Umbrella when it didn't rain, and left it at home when it did."
"The Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo, whose Head was ever so much bigger than his Body, and whose Hat was rather small."
"The Judicious Jubilant Jay, who did up her Back Hair every morning with a Wreath of Roses, Three feathers, and a Gold Pin."
"There was an old man of Dumblane, Who greatly resembled a crane; But they said, "Is it wrong, Since your legs are so long, To"
"There was an old person of Wick, Who said, "Tick-a-Tick, Tick-a-Tick; Chickabee, Chickabaw." And he said nothing more, That l"
"There was an old man of Toulouse Who purchased a new pair of shoes; When they asked, "Are they pleasant?" He said, "Not at present"
"There was a Young Lady of Wales, Who caught a large fish without scales; When she lifted her hook, She exclaimed, "Only look!""
"There was an Old Man of Melrose, Who walked on the tips of his toes; But they said, "It ain't pleasant, To see you at present,"
"There was an Old Man on some rocks, Who shut his wife up in a box; When she said, "Let me out," He exclaimed, "Without doubt,"
"There was an Old Man who said, "Hush! I perceive a young bird in this bush!" When they said - "Is it small?" He replied - "Not at a"
"There was an Old Man of Corfu, Who never knew what he should do; So he rushed up and down, Till the sun made him brown, That b"
"There was an Old Man with a gong, Who bumped at it all the day long; But they called out, "O law! You're a horrid old bore!" S"
"There was an Old Person of Rhodes, Who strongly objected to toads; He paid several cousins, To catch them by dozens, That futi"
"There was an old person of Shoreham, Whose habits were marked by decorum; He bought an Umbrella, And sate in the cellar, Whic"
"There was an Old Man of the Hague, Whose ideas were excessively vague; He built a balloon, To examine the moon, That deluded O"
"There was an old man in a barge, Whose nose was exceedingly large; But in fishing by night, It supported a light, Which helpe"
"A a A was once an apple-pie, Pidy, Widy, Tidy, Pidy, Nice insidy, Apple-pie! B"
"There was a young person whose history Was always considered a mystery; She sate in a ditch, Although no one knew which, And"
"There was a Young Lady of Lucca, Whose lovers completely forsook her; She ran up a tree, And said, "Fiddle-de-dee!" Which emba"
"There was an Old Man, who said, "Well! Will NOBODY answer this bell? I have pulled day and night, Till my hair has grown white,"
"There was an old person of Pisa, Whose daughters did nothing to please her; She dressed them in gray, And banged them all day,"
"There was an old person of Down, Whose face was adorned with a frown; When he opened the door, For one minute or more, He ala"
"There was an old person of Pinner, As thin as a lath, if not thinner; They dressed him in white, And roll'd him up tight, Tha"
"There was a young Lady of Dorking, Who bought a large bonnet for walking; But its colour and size, So bedazzled her eyes, That"
"There was a Young Lady of Russia, Who screamed so that no one could hush her; Her screams were extreme, No one heard such a scream,"
"There was an Old Person of Leeds, Whose head was infested with beads; She sat on a stool, And ate gooseberry fool, Which agree"
"There was an old man in a tree, Whose whiskers were lovely to see; But the birds of the air Pluck'd them perfectly bare, To m"
"There was an Old Man who supposed, That the street door was partially closed; But some very large rats, Ate his coats and his hats,"
"There was an Old Person of Sparta, Who had twenty-five sons and one daughter; He fed them on snails, And weighed them in scales,"
"There was a young person of Kew, Whose virtues and vices were few; But with blamable haste She devoured some hot paste, Which"
"There was an Old Lady of Prague, Whose language was horribly vague; When they said, "Are these caps?" She answered, "Perhaps!""
"There was a Young person of Crete, Whose toilette was far from complete; She dressed in a sack, Spickle-speckled with black, T"
"There was an old man of Hong Kong, Who never did anything wrong; He lay on his back, With his head in a sack, That innocuous"
"There was an Old Person whose habits, Induced him to feed upon Rabbits; When he'd eaten eighteen, He turned perfectly green, U"
"There was an Old Man of the West, Who wore a pale plum-coloured vest; When they said, "Does it fit?" He replied, "Not a bit!""
"There was an Old Man of Madras, Who rode on a cream-coloured ass; But the length of its ears, So promoted his fears, That it k"
"There was an old person of Brigg, Who purchased no end of a wig; So that only his nose, And the end of his toes, Could be see"
"Two old Bachelors were living in one house; One caught a Muffin, the other caught a Mouse. Said he who caught the Muffin to him w"
"The Comfortable Confidential Cow, who sate in her Red Morocco Arm Chair and toasted her own Bread at the parlour Fire."
"King and Queen of the Pelicans we; No other Birds so grand we see! None but we have feet like fins! With lovely leathery thr"
"The Enthusiastic Elephant, who ferried himself across the water with the Kitchen Poker and a New pair of Ear-rings."
"There was a Young lady of Portugal, Whose ideas were excessively nautical; She climbed up a tree, To examine the sea, But decl"
"The Tumultuous Tom-tommy Tortoise, who beat a Drum all day long in the middle of the wilderness."
"There was an old man of West Dumpet, Who possessed a large nose like a trumpet; When he blew it aloud, It astonished the crowd,"
"There was an old Person of Burton, Whose answers were rather uncertain; When they said, "How d'ye do?" He replied, "Who are you?""
"There was an old person of Cannes, Who purchased three fowls and a fan; Those she placed on a stool, And to make them feel cool"
"There was an Old Man of Columbia, Who was thirsty, and called out for some beer; But they brought it quite hot, In a small copper p"
"I. The Nutcrackers sate by a plate on the table; The Sugar-tongs sate by a plate at his side; And the Nutcrackers said"
"There was an Old Man with a beard, Who sat on a horse when he reared; But they said, "Never mind! You will fall off behind, Yo"
"I. The Broom and the Shovel, the Poker and Tongs, They all took a drive in the Park; And they each sang a song, ding-a"
"There was an old person of Nice, Whose associates were usually Geese. They walked out together In all sorts of weather, That"