Nursery Rhyme. CXLIII. Songs.

    Little Bo-peep has lost her sheep,
        And can't tell where to find them;
    Leave them alone, and they'll come home,
        And bring their tails behind them.

    Little Bo-peep fell fast asleep,
        And dreamt she heard them bleating;
    But when she awoke, she found it a joke,
        For they still were all fleeting.

    Then up she took her little crook,
        Determin'd for to find them;
    She found them indeed, but it made her heart bleed,
        For they'd left all their tails behind 'em.

Unknown

The identity of this poet is not known. Their works, which are often of significant historical or cultural value, have been attributed to 'Unknown'. This designation is commonly used when the creator of works, ranging from ancient texts to more modern writings, remains anonymous or uncredited. Despite the lack of personal details, the impact and importance of these works endure, offering insight into the eras and cultures from which they originated.

Unknown

Nursery Rhyme. CCXLVIII. Charms.

Unknown , Simple Poetry

Nursery Rhyme. CCCLVIII. Games.

Unknown , Simple Poetry

Nursery Rhyme. CCCXXXIII. Games.

Unknown , Simple Poetry

After Dinner Speeches

Unknown , Simple Poetry

English

Suggested Poems

Explore a curated selection of verses that share themes, styles, and emotional resonance with the poem you've just read.

Little Bo-Peep


Little Bo-Peep has lost her sheep,
And can't tell where to find them;
Leave them alone, and they'll come home,
And bring their tails behind them.



Little Bo-Peep fell fast asleep,
And dreamt she heard them bleating;
But when she awoke, she found it a joke,
For they were still a-fleeting.

Then up she took her little crook,
Determined for to find them;
She found them indeed, but it made her heart bleed,
For they'd left all their tails behind 'em.

Leonard Brooke

Bo-Peep

1.
Little Bo-Peep, she lost her sheep,
And didn't know where to find them;
Let them alone, they'll all come home
And bring their tails behind them.

2.
Little Bo-Peep fell fast asleep,
And dreamt she heard them bleating;
But when she awoke, she found it a joke,
For they were still a-fleeting.

3.
Then up she took her little crook,
Determined for to find them,
She found them indeed, but it made her heart bleed
For they'd left their tails behind them.

4.
It happened one day as Bo-Peep did stray
Into a meadow hard by,
There she espied their tails side by side,
All hung on a tree to dry.

5.
She heaved a sigh and wiped her eye,
Then went o'er hill and dale,
And tried what she could, as a shepherdess should,

Walter Crane

Little Bo-Beep.

What was Bo-Peep? Can anyone guess?
Why, little Bo-Peep was a shepherdess!
And she dressed in a short white petticoat,
And a kirtle of blue, with a looped-up look,
And a snowy kerchief about her throat,
And held in her hand a crook.

What eyes she had, the little Bo-Peep!
They had tears to laugh with, and tears to weep.
So fringy, and shy, and blue, and sweet,
That even the summer skies in color,
Or the autumn gentians under her feet,
Less tender were and duller.

Now, a shepherdess ought to watch her sheep;
But the careless little girl, Bo-Peep,
Was hunting for late wild strawberries,
The sweetest her tongue had ever tasted;
They were few in number, and small in size,
Too good, though, to be wasted.

And in that way the little Bo-Peep...

Clara Doty Bates

Nursery Rhyme. DLXXXIX. Natural History.

    Little boy blue, come blow up your horn,
    The sheep's in the meadow, the cow's in the corn;
    Where's the little boy that looks after the sheep?
    He's under the hay-cock fast asleep.
    Will you wake him? No, not I;
    For if I do, he'll be sure to cry.

Unknown

Little Bo-Peep

Little Bo-Peep, she has lost her sheep,
    And will not know where to find them;
They are over the height and out of sight,
    Trailing their tails behind them!

Little Bo-Peep woke out of her sleep,
    Jump'd up and set out to find them:
"The silly things! they've got no wings,
    And they've left their trails behind them!

"They've taken their tails, but they've left their trails,
    And so I shall follow and find them!"
For wherever a tail had dragged a trail
    The grass lay bent behind them.

She washed in the brook, and caught up her crook.
    And after her sheep did run
Along the trail that went up the dale
    Across the grass in the sun.

She ran with a will, and she came to a hill
    That went up steep like a spire;

George MacDonald

Nursery Rhyme. DLXXXV. Natural History.

    Bah, bah, black sheep,
        Have you any wool?
    Yes, marry, have I,
        Three bags full:
    One for my master,
        And one for my dame,
    But none for the little boy
        Who cries in the lane.

Unknown