goober..
I have to say, reading your question, I was intrigued for a couple of
reasons. One, the wording of the phrase you are looking for and two,
the challenge of searching for a rhyme or limerick where the words
MIGHT be spelled correctly or might not. Well, it worked and I found
your rhyme. Let me explain how I found it as it was fun.
I tried a search first on the words I thought might have the best
chance of being spelled correctly, "be bi bo buck". Nothing found.
Then I tried "phyllison" knowing it might have been spelled with an f
instead of a ph. Nothing on either spelling. Nest, I tried
"phollison" and lo and behold, a hit at
http://www.harpiesbizarre.com/spellbound.htm, which turns out to be a
Bewitched fan page and there was your rhyme, partially. From there, I
searched under "qeeuvy quavy" and found your answer:
One-ry, or-ry, ickery, Ann!
Fillison, folliso, Nicholas, John.
Queevy, quavy, English Navy,
Stinckelum, stanklum, buck!
another version is
One-ery, two-ery, hickory, han,
Fillison, Follison, Nicholas, John.
Queevy, quavy, Virgin Mary,
Stingelum, stangelum, berry buck
This is what is known as a counting out rhyme. A counting out rhyme
is one that is used to choose someone for something. One that may be
familiar is
one-potatoe, two-potatoe
Three potatoe, four
Five potatoe, six potatoe
Seven potatoe, more
Notice the rhythm with which the rhyme is said is very close to the
rhythm of your rhyme.
In doing the research, I came across a notation of Mark Twain using
this rhyme in an article written for the Virgina City Territorial
Enterprise. This was a newspaper in Nevada where Twain wrote from
1862-1868. You can see a reprint of the article at
http://www.twainquotes.com/18660200t.html
Thanks for your very interesting question. If you need any further
clarification, please let me know.
Regards,
-THV
Search Strategy:
"phollison"
"queevy quavy"
References:
Counting Out Rhymes, Games
http://www.inquiry.net/outdoor/summer/counting_out/
Spellbound
http://www.harpiesbizarre.com/spellbound.htm
Twain Quotes
http://www.twainquotes.com/18660200t.html |