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Poetry Archives

A continuing selection of classic and contemporary poems.

What Does The Donkey?

Christina Rossetti

What does the donkey bray about?
What does the pig grunt through his snout?
What does the goose mean by a hiss?
Oh, Nurse, if you can tell me this,
I’ll give you such a kiss.

The cockatoo calls “cockatoo,”
The magpie chatters “how d’ye do?”
The jackdaw bids me “go away,”
Cuckoo cries “cuckoo” half the day:
What do the others say?
Online text © 1998-2008 Poetry X. All rights reserved.
From Sing-Song: A Nursery Rhyme Book | 1893
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