August 6. Story of the Day: The Cock that Crowed

This is another item from The McCloskey Primer by Margaret Orvis McCloskey, with illustrations by Charles Copeland. The story is an English translation of a modern Greek song; I found the Greek text online and included that at the bottom of this post.

Since this is just a recitation of items without a reversal at the end, I think that means this would be classified as ATU 2035. The House that Jack Built.

And for more stories, click here for previous Stories-of-the-Day.

THE COCK THAT CROWED
IN THE MORN

There was an old man,
And he had a cock,
That crowed in the morn
And awoke the old man.

But there came a cat
And ate the cock,
That crowed in the morn
And awoke the old man.

And there came a fox
And ate the cat,
That ate the cock,
That crowed in the morn
And awoke the old man.

And there came a wolf
And ate the fox,
That ate the cat,
That ate the cock,
That crowed in the morn
And awoke the old man.

And there came a lion
And ate the wolf,
That ate the fox,
That ate the cat,
That ate the cock,
That crowed in the morn
And awoke the old man.

And there came a river
And drowned the lion,
That ate the wolf,
That ate the fox,
That ate the cat,
That ate the cock,
That crowed in the morn
And awoke the old man.


NOTES

This Greek song and its Hebrew counterpart are mentioned in Dr. Wiener's "Essay on Modern Hebrew in its Relation to Modern Greek," American Folklore Journal, Vol. II, p. 320, as an illustration of the marked similarity of construction in the two languages.

~   ~   ~

McCloskey is reproducing the English translation from Garnett's Greek Folk Poesy, and that book led me to the Greek text in Passow's Carmina popularia.

Ἦταν ἕνας γέρος
Κ᾿ εἶχεν ἕνα πετεινὸ,
Ποῦ λάλει καὶ ξύπνα τὸ μαῦρο τὸ γέρο.

Ἦλθε μία γάτα
Κ᾿ ἔφαγε τὸν πετεινὸ,
Ποῦ λάλει καὶ ξύπνα τὸ μαῦρο τὸ γέρο.

Κ᾿ ἦλθε μία ἀλωποῦ
Κ᾿ ἔφαγε τὴν γάτα,
Ποὔφαγε τὸν πετεινὸ,
Ποῦ λάλει καὶ ξύπνα τὸ μαῦρο τὸ γέρο.

Κ᾿ ἦλθε ἕνας λύκος,
Κ᾿ ἔφαγε τὴν ἀλωποῦν,
Ποὔφαγε τὴν γάτα,
Ποὔφαγε τὸν πετεινὸ,
Ποῦ λάλει καὶ ξύπνα τὸ μαῦρο τὸ γέρο.

Κ᾿ ἦλθε ἕνας λέων,
Κ᾿ ἔφαγε τὸν λύκον,
Ποὔφαγε τὴν ἀλωποῦν,
Ποὔφαγε τὴν γάτα,
Ποὔφαγε τὸν πετεινὸ,
Ποῦ λάλει καὶ ξύπνα τὸ μαῦρο τὸ γέρο.

Κ᾿ ἦλθε ἕνας ποταμὸς,
Πῆρε τὸν λέοντα,
Ποὔφαγε τὸν λύκον,
Ποὔφαγε τὴν ἀλωποῦν,
Ποὔφαγε τὴν γάτα,
Ποὔφαγε τὸν πετεινὸ,
Ποῦ λάλει καὶ ξύπνα τὸ μαῦρο τὸ γέρο.