The Old Man and His Wife-Traditional

THE OLD MAN AND HIS WIFE

There was an old man who lived in a wood,

As you may plainly see,

He said he could do as much work in a day

As his wife could do in three.

'With all my heart,' the old woman said,

'If that you will allow,

To-morrow you'll stay at home in my stead,

And I'll go drive the plough.

'But you must go milk Tidy the cow,

For fear that she go dry;

And you must feed the little pigs

That are within the sty.

And you must mind the speckled hen,

For fear she lay away;

And you must reel the spool of yarn

That I spun yesterday.'

The old woman took a staff in her hand,

And went to drive the plough,

The old man took a pail in his hand,

And went to milk the cow.

But Tidy hinched, and Tidy flinched,

And Tidy broke his nose,

And Tidy gave him such a blow,

That the blood ran down to his toes.

'High, Tidy! ho, Tidy! high, Tidy!

Tidy! stand thou still;

If ever I milk you, Tidy, again,

'Twill be sore agaisnt my will.'

He went to feed the little pigs

That ran within the sty;

He hit his head against the beam,

And he made the blood to fly.

He went to mind the speckled hen,

For fear she'd lay astray;

And he forgot the spool of yarn

His wife spun yesterday.

So he vowed by the sun, the moon, and the stars,

And the green leaves on the tree:

If my wife do not a day's work in her life,

She shall ne'er be blamed by me!'

TRADITIONAL

Summary: 'The Old Man and His Wife' is a traditional poem that tells the story of an old man who boasts that he can do as much work in a day as his wife can do in three. The old woman accepts his challenge and switches roles with him for a day. The old man struggles to complete all the tasks his wife normally does, including milking the cow, feeding the pigs, and minding the speckled hen. He ends up injuring himself and forgetting some of the tasks his wife assigned him. In the end, he realizes the hard work his wife does and vows to never blame her for not working hard again.