I
  Calico Pie,
  The little Birds fly
Down to the calico tree,
  Their wings were blue,
  And they sang "Tilly-loo!"
  Till away they flew,—
     And they never came back to me!
         They never came back!
         They never came back!
     They never came back to me!

II
  Calico Jam,
  The little Fish swam
Over the syllabub sea,
   He took off his hat
   To the Sole and the Sprat,
   And the Willeby-wat,—
      But he never came back to me!


         He never came back!
         He never came back!
         He never came back to me!

III
  Calico Ban,
  The little Mice ran,
To be ready in time for tea,
  Flippity-flup,
  They drank it all up,
  And danced in the cup,—


      But they never came back!
          They never came back!
          They never came back!
          They never came back to me!

IV
  Calico Drum,
  The Grasshoppers come,
The Butterfly, Beetle, and Bee,
  Over the ground,
  Around and around,
  With a hop and a bound,—


     But they never came back!
         They never came back!
         They never came back!
         They never came back to me!


 = Imogen Cohen