Title:  The Song of Sixpence Picture Book

Author:  Walter Crane

Release Date:  May 8, 2006 [EBook #18344]

Language:  English

Character set encoding:  ASCII

*** Start of this project gutenberg EBOOK the song of sixpence ***

Produced by Eileen Gormly, Jason Isbell, Christine D. and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

  The song of sixpence
  picture book

[Illustration:  Containing sing A song of sixpence princess Belle Etoile alphabet of old Friends]

  Walter
  crane’s
  picture
  Books

  London & new York:  John lane

  [Illustration]
  [Illustration]

  The song of sixpence
  picture book

  Containing sing A
  song of sixpence; princess
  Belle Etoile; an alphabet of
  old Friends:  With the original
  coloured designs by
  Walter Crane

  Including A preface and
  other embellishments

[Illustration]

  London & new York John lane
  the Bodley head

PREFACE

Whether the Poet undertook to write and sing A song of sixpence for that popular price is not stated in his simple rhyme, but, at all events, we learn that he started with “a pocket full,” and proceeded to draw on his imagination for all it was worth.  What that famous blackbird-pie really cost—­except in black-birds—­is not disclosed, though the King seemed to show some anxiety about the state of his treasury, as he was discovered “in his counting house” imediately after the feast.  But while the Queen, regardless of expense, regales herself on “bread and honey” in “the parlour”, and her Maid-of-honour, or perhaps of-all-work, is engaged at the clothes-line, nothing is said about a princess.

No doubt there was a princess, and that Princess might have been princess Belle-Etoile?  Anyway here she is in the same boat—­I mean book—­and certainly her adventures are romantic enough to prevent any surprise at the company in which Her Highness now finds herself.

Even princesses cannot do without Alphabets, and so in her train comes an alphabet in which will be discovered many old and tried Friends of the Nursery.