Chenodia

PUER CÆRULEUS

Little Boy Blue, come blow your horn,
The cow’s in the meadow, the sheep in the corn.
Where’s the little boy that looks after the sheep?
Under the haycock fast asleep.

Cœrule parve puer, cornu nunc suscipe cantum.
Per segetes errant pecudes, per pascua vaccæ.
Ah, ubi nunc ovium custos tam parvulus absit?
En, gregis oblitus sub fœno dormit opaco.

VETULA CALCEOCOLA

There was an old woman who lived in a shoe,
Who had so many children she didn’t know what to do;
She gave them some broth without any bread,
And whipt them all soundly and sent them to bed.

Calceus inclusit vetulam turbamque suorum,
Multum quæ luctans natos compescuit arctos;
Jus illis profert oblita apponere panem,
Verberibusque datis dormitum sæva remittit.

CANIS KEVENSIS

I am his Highness’s dog at Kew.
Pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you?

Principis excelsi coram canis ecce Kevensis.
Dic mihi vicissim quæso cujus canis es tu?

DICCORA DOGIUM

Dickory dickory dock,
The mouse ran up the clock,
The clock struck one,
The mouse ran down,
Dickory dickory dock.

Diccora diccora dogium,
Ascendit mus horologium.
Insonuit hora,
Fugit mus sine morâ,
Diccora diccora dogium.

Δίκκορα δίκκορα δόγιον
Ἀνέβη μῦς εἰς ὡρολόγιον·
Ἕν! ὥρα ἔφη·
Ὁ δὲ μῦς κατέβη.
Δίκκορα δίκκορα δόγιον.

Ἄρχετε Δικκορικᾶς μοῖσαι φίλαι ἄρχετ’ ἀοιδᾶς.
Ἠγέρθη ποθ’ ὕραξ, ἀνέβη δ’ εἰς ὡρολογητήν‧
Κώδωνος φθογγὸν δεινὸν κατέφευγε φοβηθείς.
Λήγετε Δικκορικᾶς μοῖσαι ἴτε λήγετ’ ἀοιδᾶς.

THOMÆ QUADRIJUGÆ

Tom’s coach and six, whither in such haste going?
But a short journey, to his own undoing.

Quadrijugis Thomas quo nunc se proripit ille?
Abiit in celerem – brevis est via, nota – ruinam.

HOMUNCULUS ET PUELLULA

There was a little man,
And he wooed a little maid,
And he said, Little maid, will you wed wed wed?
I have little more to say,
Then will you ay or nay,
For the least said is soonest mended ded ded.

Homunculus eximius puellulam amavit,
Quam ut nubendam duceret sic ore compellavit:
Quid verbis opus pluribus? Dic volo, dicve nolo,
Sat verbum sapientibus: responde sine dolo.

Then the little maid replied,
“Should I be your little bride,
Pray, what shall we have for to eat eat eat?
Will the flame that you are rich in
Make a fire in the kitchen,
Or the little god of love turn the spit spit spit?”

Responsum dat puellula, – Si flectar ad nubendum
Dic, quæso, quid cibarii habebimus edendum?
Amorem credis ignem in culinâ servaturum,
Aut parvulum Cupidinem jam veru versaturum?

Then the little man replied,
And, they say, a little sighed,
For his little heart was big with sorrow sorrow sorrow,
“My offers are but small,
But you have my little all;
And what we haven’t got we must borrow borrow borrow.”

Replicuit homunculus suspiriis convulsus,