The House That Jack Built

Once there was a man named Jack, and he built a little house. This is the house that Jack built.

In his house, Jack kept a sack of malt, which is a kind of grain. This is the malt that lay in the house that Jack built. One night, a little brown rat crept in and nibbled the malt. This is the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built.

Then along came a cat, and she chased the rat all around the kitchen. This is the cat that chased the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built. Then a dog came barking, and he chased the cat right up a tree. This is the dog that chased the cat that chased the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built.

Then the dog ran into the field, where a cow with a crumpled horn was eating grass. The cow gave the dog a little toss with her crooked horn, and he landed in a soft haystack. This is the cow with the crumpled horn that tossed the dog that chased the cat.

Every morning, a young maiden came to milk the cow, and she always looked sad and lonely. One day, a man in a tattered and torn coat came by, and he gave the maiden a kiss. The maiden smiled at last, and she was not lonely anymore. This is the man all tattered and torn, who kissed the maiden all forlorn, who milked the cow with the crumpled horn.

The man and the maiden wanted to be married, so they went to see the priest. The priest had a shaven head and a kind face, and he married them that very day. This is the priest all shaven and shorn, who married the man all tattered and torn.

The next morning, the priest woke up to a loud “Cock-a-doodle-doo!” It was a rooster crowing at the break of day. This is the rooster that crowed in the morn, that woke the priest all shaven and shorn. And the rooster belonged to a farmer, who was busy sowing his corn. This is the farmer sowing his corn, who kept the rooster that crowed in the morn.

So the farmer kept the rooster, and the rooster woke the priest, and the priest married the man and the maiden. The maiden milked the cow, the cow tossed the dog, the dog chased the cat, and the cat chased the rat. And the rat ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built!