The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1888-03-16
miscellaneous.
Mother Goose Must Go.

Harpers Bazaar.
About Christmas time the opinions of sew.
eral eminent men on Santa Claus were pub
llshed i'll the American newspapers. This
method OF collating opinion is very popular
one, and IL occurred TO the writer that an as.
sortment of views on the productions of Mrs.
Goose would be eagerly read.
He therefore addressed to u number of
prominent opinion manufacturers n note, of
which the following is copy
DEAR SIR,-What is your opinion of the
wisdom of bringing up little children on a
literary Diet composed of Mother Goose's
melodies?
IF you regard any of the works of this
authorizes as pernicious, will you please
quote the perniclous portion, and accompany
the same with u diagram showing where the
RIGHTEOUSNESS comes in p
The replies received are appended. The
first is from the Rcv.-, d. D., of New
York:
DEAR SIR,-AlOst of the statements con
lnned in Mother Goose's poetry are lies, and
do not think there is any need for Il long
statement as to the wisdom of teaching lies
to little children. The danger is that when
the little children find out the lies, as of
course they do in time, they will he temp, ed
to class with them the religious truths which
they are taught | object especially to the
lie about blackbirds:
Sing a song of sixpence, a pocket full of rye.
Four-and- twenty blackOirds baked in a pie.
When the pho Was opened, the birds began to
sing;
Wasn't that dainty dish to set before the
kingY
ITO say nothing of the large size of pic
which could hold twenty-iOur blacksbrds,
| merely declare that 1t is totally impossible
N lakn thpgn
life. 1t is well known that dead birds cannot
sing. The statement in the verse is, then
clearly Il lie. | am afraid that when the
children find this to be the cnse, they will dis.
believe the Biblical account of SLadrach,
Meshech and Abednego in the fiery furnace,
Yours very truly, -"
The next letter is from PrOfessor--of the
university. Mr----is one Of the fore
most astronomers in this country-indeed,
may say, In the worll-and he therefore
speaks with authority
DEAR SIR,-l am not conversant with
all of Mother Gooses poetical works, but
there is one that conveys q very distorted
view of astronomy which occurs to me ut
this moment. 1t runs something like this:
There was an old woman went up in a basket,
Ninety times as high as the moon.
when we consider that the p1ooa is
24OOOO miles distant from the earth, and
then multiply that by ninety, the false nature
OF the idea impaired to the child will be ap-
parent for II is not possible to ascend so
high even in balloon, not to speak of max.
ing the trip in basket, without propulsive
force. A calculation as to the length of time
such a journey would consume, even if 1t
were possible to make it in railway train,
VIII also show its utter impossibilty. For
these reasons doubt the wisdom ofteaching
this poem to children.
Yours sincerely, -"
-, Professor of Philosophy in-Uni-
versily, holds views somewhat similar to
PrOtessor-'s.
DEAR SIR,-Mother Goose's melodies
were tavories with me when ] was child,
but must say that have been compelled to
unlearn several things which they taught
me. There can be no harm in
Mary had little lamb,
Its fleece was white as snow
Nor can any objection be found to
Jack Spratt could eat no fat,
His wife could eat no lean,' etc.
But when we come to
Hey diddle diddle!
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon:
tne lutte ,t dog laughed TO see such sport,
some objections can be noted. When it is
considered that the utmost cow can do in
the jumping line is to get over The garden
fence, it conveys 10 II child's mind very in
adequate idea of the distance of the moon
from the earth, TO teach it that the cow vault
ed over that heavenly body, But the great
est objection is the last line of the verse,
where the dish is described as running after
the spoon. Now dishes and spoons are not
animate creatures, and are not provided with
legs, and it is obviously wrong to create in
the minds of children the false impression
that such is the case.
Your most obedient servant, -"
-, author and lecturer, of Boston, also
files some objections:
DEAR SIR,-ln replying to your inter-
rogatores wish to place myself upon re-
cord as objecting most strenUously to the
many false conceptions of life presented in
the works of the author under discussion. A
simple instance will suffice:
Peter. Peter. pumpkin eater,
Had wife, but couldn't Keep her,
He put her In pumpkin shell,
And then he ke2ther very WE'LL
This sianza gives to the unsuspecting
child an exaggerated idea of the size of pump
kins, as well MS false view of domestic econo-
mony. 1t and all the other lucubartions of
Mrs Goose should be expunged fom con-
temporary literature.
"Faitbfulyyours, -"
or the dozen or so queries sent to the
President and Cabinet, only one has so far
ELECTED reply The Secretary of the Navy
writes;
"MY DEAR SR,-I think Mother Gooses
rhymes very suitable for children, affording
them the enjoyment of verse readily
committed to memory. The only thing In
them which object to is contained in
Bobby Shafto's gone to sea,
Silver buckles on his knee;
But he'll come back to marry me
Dearest Bobby Shafto.'
Gas silver buckles are no longer sewed on
to seamen, owing to the necessity of econo.
MIXING the appropriations, it might be well
to change this reference in the nex. edition.
-"
The opposition "a Mother Goose is not
confined TO this country, as will be seen from
the following note from Queen Victoria:
"SIR,-I can't say tina: | admire Mother
Goose's poetry very much. 1t is altogether
too exciting, and therefore hard on the nerves.
What do object to mostly is the familiar
way in which she refers to persons engaged