Anonymous British

Boys and Girls Come out to Play

Boys and girls come out to play, The moon does shine as bright as day; Come with a hoop, and come with a call, Come with a good will or not at all. Loose your supper, and loose your sleep, Come to your playfellows in the street; Up the ladder and down the wall. A halfpenny loaf will serve us all. But when the loaf is gone, what will you do? Those who would eat must work — 'tis true. Composition date is unknown - the above date represents the first publication date. The lyrical form of this poem is couplets. 1. Cf. The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes, ed. Iona and Peter Opie (1951\; Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1966), no. 75, pp. 99-100. 10. The last two words and the dash are missing and supplied from the edition of Isaiah Thomas (Worcester, Mass. , ca. 1785).